Qin Huainan’s eyes sparkled, brimming with curiosity.
What do you want to know?
What is your school like inside?
Jiang Ci thought for a moment and said, There is a playground, a tennis court, as well as a cafeteria and dormitory buildings. The ceiling on the first floor of the teaching building is very high, and there is a large auditorium with tiered seating. It is said it can hold two thousand people, and all indoor group activities are held there.
Two thousand people? That building must be enormous!
It used to be a church before it was converted into a school.
Just then, Qin Huainan asked, I heard that students at girls’ schools all live on campus. Why don’t you have to, Sister-in-law?
Unmarried girls are required to board, but many students in the married ladies’ class have household duties to take care of, so boarding is not mandatory.
So what do you study in class?
Chinese classics, English, arithmetic, music, etiquette, plus electives like home economics and art. Jiang Ci looked at the pork knuckle meat in her bowl, afraid she would go on forever, and added, But it was only my first day, so I only scratched the surface and can’t say much yet.
Hearing this, Qin Huainan withdrew her gaze, looking unsatisfied. She poked at the meat with her chopsticks, her mind clearly elsewhere.
After a while, she spoke again. Sister-in-law, I heard from Mother that it was Elder Brother who suggested you go to school. Do you think if he helped persuade Father and Mother, I could go to school too?
The first branch of the Qin family was actually quite traditional. Only Qin Huai’an, who had studied abroad, held modern views, so Qin Huainan was usually confined to the house and rarely went out.
Jiang Ci felt the situation was not optimistic.
Firstly, if the Qin family had wanted Qin Huainan to go out to school, they would have sent her ten years ago.
Secondly, Qin Huai’an had been her older brother for a long time. If he had truly cared, Qin Huainan wouldn’t have needed to ask him specifically now.
However, Jiang Ci was still practically an outsider who had only moved in a few days ago. Of course she couldn’t meddle in their sibling affairs or be the bad guy.
So she glanced at Qin Huainan and said vaguely, Maybe you could try.
But Elder Brother isn’t even home these days. How can I tell him? Qin Huainan frowned in thought, then suddenly her gaze landed on Jiang Ci, her eyes gradually lighting up with an idea.
Jiang Ci had a bad feeling about this.
Sure enough, the next second, Qin Huainan blinked her eyes pitifully and said, Sister-in-law, your school has a tennis court, so you must need to buy tennis outfits, right? I saw in magazines that all the socialites wear white dresses to play tennis.
Jiang Ci’s chopsticks paused. I actually don’t really like sports.
Oh come on, Sister-in-law… just buy one set! Then when we have a holiday, you can take me out to find Elder Brother! Please…
Unable to withstand her repeated pleas, Jiang Ci could only nod. Alright.
Before Qin Huainan could cheer, Jiang Ci put on a serious face and said, Let me make it clear first. I will only take you to find your brother as a favor. I know absolutely nothing else about anything else.
Don’t worry, Sister-in-law! If Elder Brother asks, I’ll say it was all my idea!
…
A few days later.
The last period of the day was activity class, and school was dismissed early.
Instead of going straight home after leaving school, Jiang Ci had Ajin drive her to Longchang Jade Shop.
When she entered, she found a group of people gathered inside, studying some jade stones.
The shopkeeper was sharp-eyed. Glancing out of the corner of his eye, he looked up.
Boss.
At his call, everyone else turned toward the door and greeted Jiang Ci in unison.
My boss is here.
What are you all looking at?
The shopkeeper said, You brought back those rough stones, and there are two that haven’t been cut yet. We are discussing where to make the first cut!
Aren’t there already stones that have been cut open for practice?
Before the shopkeeper could answer, Master Ge smiled and said, The jade you brought back includes top-grade imperial purple and chicken oil yellow. Neither of those is something we can use for practice! And there is another piece with mineral inclusions that you told us not to touch. So that leaves only these two remaining stones to cut.
Jiang Ci was puzzled and asked, Polishing bangles is a basic skill. Are they still afraid to do it?
The bangles are already polished. Now we need to carve pendants from the leftover material. With such high-quality jade, we have to be absolutely sure before we start, so I wanted them to practice on other stones first.
Jiang Ci couldn’t very well tell them that these two were also top quality, so she picked up a pen, drew two lines casually on the table, and said, Cut here.
The two young craftsmen looked at each other, not daring to object, and picked up the wire saws to start work.
Meanwhile, Jiang Ci asked the shopkeeper, Where is that colorless glass-type jade I had?
The shopkeeper went to the back room and brought out a locked box, opening it right in front of Jiang Ci.
Right here! As you instructed, no one has dared to touch it.
Just then, Master Ge came over.
Looking at the jade, Jiang Ci asked, Master Ge, in your opinion, how much would this piece sell for if we sold it directly as it is?
Master Ge stroked his sleeve, considering his words carefully. Colorless jade is rather plain. Even if it is glass-type, it doesn’t fetch a high price. Furthermore, this piece has quite a lot of inclusions inside. If we sold it to another shop, four or five silver dollars would be the absolute maximum.
But if I could use it to carve a one-of-a-kind ornament, do you think it would sell for a good price then?
That is hard to say. Master Ge hesitated. They say gold has a price but jade is priceless. The value of a carved piece depends entirely on whether it catches the buyer’s eye; it isn’t fixed like gold jewelry. To put it bluntly, even the legendary Heshibi was just considered a rock by everyone else until it was recognized by King Wen of Chu!
Jiang Ci nodded and said, Actually, when you get down to it, catching someone’s eye is simply about beauty. People say colorless jade is plain, but another way to look at it is that plainness represents purity and nobility. And those white inclusions—at first glance they seem like flaws, but from another angle, they can be the very thing that brings the piece to life.
Master Ge frowned, looking somewhat confused. What do you mean?
Four words: Seeking Plum Blossoms in the Snow.
Seeking Plum Blossoms in the Snow! Master Ge’s eyes widened in surprise, never having thought of such an approach. He suddenly slapped his thigh and exclaimed, Why didn’t I think of that! And here I’ve been in this business for thirty years!
Some ideas seem simple in hindsight, but to those who have never encountered them before, they are brilliant innovations.
Before Jiang Ci traveled back in time, Muna snowflake jade was extremely popular.
Modern people see this kind of jade and immediately think of snowflakes; it doesn’t seem like a revolutionary concept.
But in this era, not just in Shanghai but across the entire jade industry, no one had ever taken what was considered a flaw in colorless jade and given it such a beautiful interpretation.
Jiang Ci’s approach was truly groundbreaking.
Just then, the other two stones were cut open.
Boss, another winner! This is ice-type with floating flowers!
Another craftsman said, The other one is a dud. It’s also colorless with inclusions, but the patches are even bigger than the one you brought back earlier!
Jiang Ci walked over to look. The blue-green color veins on the ice-type jade were vivid and flowing, floating beautifully against the clear base.
As for the other piece, it was filled with irregular white patches, looking like scattered shreds of paper throughout the stone.
Jiang Ci picked up this second piece and handed it to Master Ge. The theme for the first one is Seeking Plum Blossoms in the Snow. For this one, how about Temple of the Mountain God in the Wind and Snow?
Excellent! Wonderful! Master Ge excitedly took the jade and examined it, then immediately grabbed paper and pen to sketch the design, hurrying off to one side.
The young craftsmen looked at each other in dismay. Boss, Master Ge took both duds. What are we supposed to use for practice now?
Use that ice-type with floating flowers.
After dealing with the craftsmen, Jiang Ci waved over the shopkeeper. Old Wu, come here.
Shopkeeper Wu followed her to the display counter. He watched as Jiang Ci pointed to an entire cabinet full of jade carvings and said, Take all of these out and smash them.
Smash them? Shopkeeper Wu was shocked. Boss, these are worth several hundred silver dollars! The craftsmanship may be average, but they aren’t worthless enough to smash!
Smash them. Do it on a busy day, right in front of the whole city. Let everyone know our resolve. From now on, Longchang Jade Shop will only sell the very best jade.
…
And so, on the day Jiang Ci took Qin Huainan out, they had barely left the house when they heard people on the street calling to their friends.
Did you hear? Longchang Jade Shop is smashing jade right outside their store today! They’ve already broken more than ten pieces! Hurry, let’s go see!
Which Longchang Jade Shop?
Who else? The one with the imperial purple jade! Their boss has been incredibly lucky lately! Not only did they gamble on the imperial purple, but also a chicken oil yellow! I heard both are big enough for bangles. They’re serious now, only selling top-quality jade from now on!
That bold? Yeah, we definitely have to go see it!
Hearing this, Qin Huainan turned to Jiang Ci. Sister-in-law, who owns Longchang Jade Shop? I’ve never heard of it.
Just then, a car passed by their rickshaw and slowed down.
The rear window rolled down, revealing Lu Fengchun’s roguish face. Miss Qin, you really don’t pay attention to your own family affairs. The owner of Longchang Jade Shop is far away in the sky, but right here in front of you.
Qin Huainan looked at Lu Fengchun warily and said bluntly, Who are you?
Jiang Ci sat up straight, positioning herself slightly in front of Qin Huainan, and spoke politely but distantly. Mr. Lu.
Lu Fengchun shifted his gaze from Qin Huainan to Jiang Ci. Where are you two ladies off to? I can give you a ride if it’s on my way.
I’m afraid you are being too kind, Mr. Lu. If we told you our destination, you might have to go out of your way. Why don’t you tell us where you are going first?
Lu Fengchun was surprised by how quickly she turned the tables. He chuckled slowly. I was actually just heading to Longchang Jade Shop to see the excitement. I’m wondering if Madam Qin would be willing to part with that purple jade.
Qin Huainan had been quiet for a while, but hearing this mention of the jade, she suddenly remembered what the passersby had said about imperial purple and chicken oil yellow. She couldn’t hide her curiosity. Sister-in-law, I want to go to your shop too!