Another half an hour passed before the remaining two raw ores were completely carved out, revealing top-quality jadeites of considerable size, which astonished the onlookers and sparked discussions once more.
It seemed they didn't mind standing for nearly two hours and were rather engrossed in watching the process.
When all the stones had been carved out, they reluctantly agreed to go and eat, still discussing the seven raw ores they had just witnessed and remarking on the eye-opening experience they had had that day.
Finding good jade from solved stones was not uncommon; what was rare was getting seven valuable pieces in a row.
Such skills would be considered top-notch in the jade industry, and some people had already started to inquire about the identity of the stones' owner through their connections.
Lan Xiaohe wiped the sweat from her forehead and brought the jadeite to Yu Xian with admiration in her tone.
"Sir, your eyesight is truly incredible, every piece of raw ore you chose contained hidden treasures. I think even the jade appraisal masters would not be more skilled than you."
"He's much better."
Lu Yuan muttered quietly.
There were two jade appraisal masters in his family, and even they would consider eight successes in ten attempts as outstanding, let alone consistently making big profits.
He wasn't some naïve master who could be coaxed into offering a bargain of ten thousand taels.
Aside from those top-level varieties, the prices of other jadeites were relatively unstable.
The green jadeite's appearance was not good, and its only advantage was its size. To sell it at a good price depended on chance, like encountering a generous buyer.
Being able to sell it quickly in exchange for cash, even at a slightly lower price, didn't mean he was at a loss.
Moreover, he could form a good relationship with Yu Xian, and in the future, he could try to learn some special jade appraisal techniques from him.
Even if such techniques couldn't be learned, he could still ask for Yu Xian's assistance in appraising valuable pieces in the future.
Considering the ten thousand taels discount he got today, how could Yu Xian refuse?
As for Yu Xian, he merely glanced at the jadeites brought over to him. The spiritual energy in these jadeites was too sparse to catch his attention.
"Miss Lan, can you please ask the Treasure Tower's master to appraise these jadeites? I'm going to sell the lot to Brother Lu here."
"Of course, sir," Lan Xiaohe replied, looking quite exhausted but still managing to respond energetically.
She had been on her feet for nearly two hours, constantly monitoring the stones and dealing with the relentless inquiries of customers, which had taken a toll on her energy.
Yulan, being attentive, spotted Lan Xiaohe's unusual state but didn't say anything directly. Instead, she hugged Yu Xian's arm and coquettishly said, "My lord, I've been accompanying you for so long that I'm starving. Let's go eat."
Yu Xian started, then immediately apologized: "I forgot how much time has passed. In that case, Miss Lan, go eat and rest, and return in an hour."
As his cultivation deepened, the mana within his body provided most of his energy needs, reducing his appetite for food to a mere gesture of tasting.
However, he had forgotten that the people around him were still mortal and needed to eat.
If Yulan hadn't reminded him, his companions would have had no choice but to wait on him without complaint. However, he wasn't a wicked capitalist; there was no need to exploit them so harshly.
Lan Xiaohe gratefully looked at Yulan before thanking Yu Xian, "Thank you, sir. I'll go and have a break now."
...
Over an hour later, Yu Xian returned with Yulan, both of them full and content.
Lan Xiaohe had already been waiting for them at the booth, and Steward Liu had arrived as well. Lu Yuan was engaged in a heated discussion with a middle-aged man.
Seeing Yu Xian approaching, Steward Liu respectfully greeted him and apologized: "Tributor Yu, I apologize for not being here to welcome you in person this morning."
Yu Xian smiled, "Steward Liu, you're too polite. You sent Miss Lan over, and her service was excellent. I'm quite satisfied."
Steward Liu echoed the sentiment: "Little He is my most reliable assistant, and it's her honor to serve Tributor Yu."
"Alright, no need for more pleasantries."
Yu Xian called out to Lu Yuan: "Young Brother Lu, has the price of my jadeite been appraised yet?"
Lu Yuan glared at the middle-aged man and said, "Just let him tell you."
Steward Liu introduced in a timely manner: "Master Zeng is our jade master in the tower. I heard from Xiaohe that you want an appraisal for the jadeite, so I asked him to come."
Master Zeng, who was respected even by the steward, did not dare to be negligent. He cleared his throat and said:
"Sir, I estimate that the value of these jade pieces you have is around twenty-six thousand seven hundred taels of silver. However, Boss Lu doesn't agree, saying they're worth only up to twenty-two thousand taels."
Lu Yuan angrily said: "Now that a large amount of jade is flooding the market, it's bound for the prices to fall. I've already offered a high price.
Any higher and I won't buy it, take it to Treasure Tower if you can."
"This?"
Master Zeng looked at Steward Liu with difficulty.
Steward Liu was also in a dilemma, he was just trying to help Tributor Yu raise the price a little, but ended up getting burnt.
Yu Xian saw the situation and knew that Steward Liu had gone too far, but he couldn't blame him for his kindness.
"Stop arguing, let's settle for twenty-two thousand taels of silver."
"Huh? Why are you suddenly so generous?"
Lu Yuan looked at Yu Xian suspiciously.
Yu Xian said displeased: "Fine, twenty-five thousand!"
"No no, twenty-two thousand is fine."
Lu Yuan quickly handed over the silver.
These jade merchants who came to participate in the transactions not only had to sell but also buy, so they all had prepared a lot of silver.
Yu Xian waved the banknote in his hand and said to Steward Liu:
"Steward Liu, please bring more people with me, I want to buy some more stones."
His spiritual sense could see through the raw jade ores, so gambling on stones was not much different from picking up money for him.
Although it was a bit high-profile and against his principles, it was worth it for his future financial freedom.
He almost killed someone for one hundred thousand taels, let alone several one hundred thousand taels.
"No problem."
As Steward Liu had clearly heard from Lan Xiaohe about Tributor Yu's exploits in the morning, he immediately summoned some manpower.
"Get all of these!!"
Waving his banknotes, Yu Xian started his shopping spree and swept away all the good raw ores he had looked at earlier that morning. There were not only jadeite but also white jade, yellow jade, red jade, agate, crystal, and many other varieties.
In the gambling on stones mode, as long as there was an outer layer of stone skin, one could bet.
Twenty-two thousand taels of silver disappeared like water, and finally, he even added the remaining two thousand taels from his body.
Jade is expensive, but stones are cheap.
Lu Yuan's raw ore had been carefully selected, that's why he dares to sell one piece for a high price of several hundred taels. However, many small traders were willing to sell their raw ores for several tens of taels or even a few taels of silver.
Twenty-four thousand taels of silver was not a small figure.
However, such an opportunity to pick up money was unknown how often it would come.
Moreover, because of such a high-profile sweep of goods this time, others would have to put him on the blacklist next time, even if they had no shame. If they have no shame at all, the stones he looked at would be directly treated as non-sale items by others, and they would secretly open them themselves.
Soon.
The mountain of raw ores attracted almost the entire second floor of the venue.
Steward Liu's face turned red, and he waved his hand:
"Call all the stone cutting masters in the tower, we'll have all these stones opened today."
"Ladies and gentlemen, don't miss out as you pass by. These stones were personally selected by our Treasure Tower's jade appraisal master. We guarantee that every piece will produce jade. If you like it, you can make an offer, and the highest bidder gets it!"
He even abandoned his regular duties at this point.
If the returns from this morning were to be estimated, these more than twenty thousand taels of silver could be turned into more than four hundred thousand.
Moreover, Tributor Yu intended to give Treasure Tower a 10% commission.
This was not a small sum, and at the same time, it was a great reputation for Treasure Tower. Even if the tower owner knew about it, he would not blame him but would give him credit.
As for Yu Xian himself, he hid his talents and fame among the discussions of the "young appraisal master" from the crowd.