“What would you like to drink?” Su Cheng asked.
“Blue Mountain coffee, please.”
Su Cheng smiled faintly. “Old Fu told me that you studied in the United States and majored in business administration. You’re currently working as a vice president at an entertainment company, right?”
“Yes.” Zhang Rui smiled politely. “I think the film and television entertainment industry has tremendous potential. I heard that President Su is interested in this field as well.”
Su Cheng nodded. “I share your view. The entertainment industry is bound to flourish.”
“I’ve just established an entertainment company, and I’d like to invite you to be its general manager. I’ll give you five percent of the company’s shares to start with. After three years, if your performance is outstanding, I’ll consider increasing that to ten percent.”
“If the company eventually goes public, you understand what its market value could become—and what your shares would be worth.”
A flicker of excitement flashed through Zhang Rui’s eyes.
The corners of Su Cheng’s lips lifted slightly.
“I wonder if you’re interested.”
Zhang Rui looked at the young woman sitting before him. She was beautiful, composed, and remarkably self-assured.
He smiled.
“Meeting President Su is my good fortune. I believe working for you will be the best decision I could make.”
“Of course.” Su Cheng smiled. “One of my greatest strengths is that I don’t interfere in other people’s work. I’m confident you won’t regret the decision you’re making today.”
“I’ll have someone bring you the contract later. I’ll be leaving Shengshi Entertainment in your hands, President Zhang.”
Zhang Rui was the son of one of Fu Zhengguo’s former comrades. His family was well-off, and he was highly capable. He had studied overseas and returned to China afterward. Fu Zhengguo had always thought highly of him.
A light, cheerful ringtone suddenly sounded.
Su Cheng looked at Zhang Rui.
“Sorry, I need to take this.”
She walked toward the entrance and answered the phone.
“Hello?”
Sun Jianjun’s voice came from the other end.
“President Su, the ribbon-cutting ceremony for Shengshi Pearl is the day after tomorrow. Will you be able to attend?”
Su Cheng thought about Zhao Ruyue and Huo Zhengting.
Forget it. If I happen to run into people they know at the ceremony, it could cause unnecessary trouble.
“You go ahead. I have something I need to take care of and can’t get away.”
“Tomorrow, I’ll have Lin Hai deliver those two pieces of rough jade to you. We’ll cut them at the ceremony. I’ll have to trouble you with that.”
“Of course, President Su. It’s no trouble at all.”
Sun Jianjun was secretly touched.
Su Cheng trusted him enough to entrust such valuable jade to him. She clearly valued him, so he was even more determined to do his best.
After hanging up, Su Cheng returned to the café.
Zhang Rui was sitting elegantly, sipping his coffee.
“I have something else to take care of, so I’ll be leaving first. I’ll have someone contact you about the rest.”
Zhang Rui stood.
“President Su, you have things to attend to. Let me walk you out.”
“No need. I’ll be going.”
Su Cheng left the café.
She took a taxi to the antique market.
Today, she had come here to gamble on a few pieces of jadeite and absorb some spiritual energy. She wanted to see whether she could finally open her space.
As she walked down the street, she saw an overwhelming variety of antiques displayed outside every shop.
There were ancient, heavy-looking vases, as well as blue-and-white porcelain bowls.
As for whether they were genuine or not, she had no idea. Su Cheng didn’t know much about antiques.
She eventually arrived at a shop called Yipinxuan.
The place was bustling, with voices coming from inside.
Then she heard someone shout excitedly,
“It’s green! It’s green!”
Su Cheng walked inside to take a look.
A large crowd had gathered around a stone-cutting machine in the middle of the shop.
Someone had already started making offers.
“Are you selling this piece? Five million! If you keep cutting, the price might not hold.”
The speaker was a portly man.
“I’ll give you six million.”
“Seven million!”
“I’m not selling. Keep cutting.”
A familiar voice suddenly rang out.
Su Cheng looked up.
It was Fu Zhengguo.
The stone-cutting machine continued to buzz loudly.
The cutter carefully removed the gray outer layer of the stone and then continued rubbing the surface with sandpaper.
Before long, the entire piece was exposed.
It was about half the size of a basketball.
“This is glutinous-rice jadeite. What a pity there are black inclusions. If the black streaks were only on the surface and didn’t extend too deeply, it would still be a very good piece.”
People around them began discussing it.
A trace of disappointment appeared on Fu Zhengguo’s face.
He looked at the cutter.
“Cut it straight down the middle.”
The cutter nodded.
That was probably the best choice.
If the black streaks didn’t extend into the center, the stone would still be valuable. They might even be able to make several bracelets from it.
But if the black streaks ran all the way through, then the gamble would be a complete loss. The stone would be practically worthless.
The cutter started cutting.
As the blade went down, black streaks could clearly be seen running through the green jadeite.
“It’s a bust. The black streaks have penetrated all the way through.”
Someone sighed.
Fu Zhengguo looked disappointed, yet strangely relieved.
“That’s gambling on jade for you. One cut can take you to heaven, and the next can send you straight to hell.”
Su Cheng walked over with a smile.
“Uncle Fu, you like gambling on jade too? How have you been feeling lately?”
When Fu Zhengguo saw her, his face immediately softened into a warm, affectionate smile.
“Xiao Su, what brings you here?”
“A friend told me they had just received a batch of old-mine rough stones, so I came to try my luck.”
He gestured toward the jadeite streaked with black.
“As you can see, I lost this time.”
There was a trace of regret in his eyes.
Su Cheng comforted him.
“That’s how gambling on jade works. One cut can make you poor, and the next can make you rich.”
Fu Zhengguo nodded in agreement.
“Uncle Fu, I’m going to pick out a few pieces of rough stone. Would you like to come with me? You can help me broaden my horizons.”
“Sure. I’ll go take a look with you.”
Fu Zhengguo picked up a flashlight and magnifying glass, and the two of them headed toward the rough-stone section.
A sign stood there:
500 yuan per kilogram — Authentic Burmese Old-Mine Material.
Su Cheng ran her hand over the stones one by one.
The quality of this batch was indeed quite good.
She could already sense spiritual energy from several pieces.
That meant they contained jadeite.
This time, Su Cheng intended to choose several large pieces with especially rich spiritual energy.
When her hand touched a gray-skinned rough stone nearly as tall as a person, an especially dense wave of spiritual energy rushed toward her.
Su Cheng became excited.
She almost didn’t want to let go.
“Boss, I’ll take this one.”
She pointed at another stone.
“And this one. And that one too.”
She continued pointing out several pieces she had just touched. Each contained jadeite and had relatively abundant spiritual energy.
Her main concern was that someone else would pick them before she could.
“All right, miss.”
The shop owner beamed.
“This batch is genuine old-mine material. Take your time and pick a few more.”
Fu Zhengguo watched Su Cheng select stones as casually as if she were choosing cabbages at a market.
She didn’t even use the magnifying glass.
She didn’t shine the flashlight on them either.
He sighed inwardly.
Young people really don’t understand this.
She probably thinks every stone contains jade.
After all, Su Cheng was his lifesaver. He couldn’t just stand by and watch her lose money.
He hurriedly said,
“Xiao Su, take another look. Buying one or two pieces for fun is enough. You’re buying so many…”
“It’s fine, Uncle Fu.”
Su Cheng smiled.
“My sixth sense is pretty accurate. I’ll just pick a few more.”
As she spoke, she continued touching the stones.
She selected several with abundant spiritual energy, then casually grabbed a few smaller pieces to fill out the order.
To Fu Zhengguo, it looked exactly like she was choosing them at random.
He shook his head inwardly.
Xiao Su’s financial situation should be pretty good.
Once she loses money this time, she’ll learn her lesson and won’t pick stones so casually again.
Fu Zhengguo continued examining the rough stones with his flashlight.
After a while, Su Cheng looked over.
“Uncle Fu, have you chosen one yet? Would you like me to take a look for you?”
Fu Zhengguo’s mouth twitched.
You want to look for me? You just grabbed yours without even examining them.
Anyone could do that.
But he still smiled politely.
“All right. Then pick one for Uncle Fu. Let me borrow some of your good luck.”
Su Cheng walked over.
She tried sensing the stone Fu Zhengguo had been examining for quite some time.
There was no spiritual energy whatsoever.
It was definitely worthless.
She then sensed the rough stone beside it.
That one contained a faint trace of spiritual energy, but it was extremely weak.
Su Cheng continued touching several more pieces.
Eventually, she found a rough stone about the size of a basketball. The spiritual energy inside was fairly decent.
She picked it up and handed it to Fu Zhengguo.
“This one.”
She smiled.
“I don’t know why, but I feel like this one is especially pleasing to the eye.”