Old Song shook his head with contempt, "This kid is an outsider, he has no idea how to cut it. He should have cut a small piece from the side first to see the situation. By cutting right through the middle, even if there were any bits of green, they would have been sliced open."
"It's hopeless."
Someone chuckled, "What a frog in a well. He doesn't even believe what Master Song says. If you don't listen, you can only lose money!"
Bang!
Half a block of stone fell onto the table.
Suddenly, everyone's eyes widened in shock.
Miss Gao looked over and exclaimed in awe.
Old Song had originally been looking up at the sky, putting on an air of indifference, as if he already knew what the outcome would be without even looking.
But upon hearing the astonished cries from the people around him, he quickly looked down.
His eyes bulged out like saucers!
He exclaimed, "Impossible!"
Miss Gao pointed fiercely at Old Song, using his full name, "Song Yuan, to think you're some sort of second-level appraiser, and you let me pass up on such a good piece of original stone!"
"This is a fine piece of green."
Her face was full of regret!
At the cut section of the original stone, a piece of green the size of a pigeon's egg appeared.
Though it was just the cross section, one could tell from the depth that this was not a streak of green, but a solid piece of it!
Shen Zhou's cut was spot-on, as if he had cut the stone while looking at this piece of green.
The half that was cut off, now waste stone, was right at the edge of the green.
He calmly cut away all the waste stone.
A lustrous and dazzling piece of green emerged.
Deep and crystal-clear, like a lake hidden deep within a forest.
Everyone was dazzled.
Someone whispered in awe, "The quality of this jade is too good, it can easily sell for at least five hundred thousand. If you hire a skilled craftsman to meticulously carve it, it could be worth over a million!"
Song Yuan was almost hysterical, "Impossible, it was clearly nothing but goose feather fragments, how... how did a pigeon's egg green appear? How did you do it?"
He pointed at Shen Zhou, as if he had seen a ghost.
Of course, Shen Zhou wouldn't say, 'Sir, I simply used a bit of spiritual power to merge the fragments of goose feathers inside, forming the pigeon's egg green. It was quite easy.'
The green in the original stone was considered a form of spiritual energy, except it turned to stone instantly after cutting it open!
He remained silent, his right hand clutching the pigeon's egg green, his left hand waving, producing a glittering golden needle, which he kept jabbing at the jade.
One by one, pieces of jade the size of a match head flew out and fell to the ground.
Once again, everyone watched speechless, faces full of regret:
"Such careless carving will cause a huge loss of material!"
"This is reckless! Random carving is too wasteful; the loss is tremendous!"
"Such a good piece of jade will be ruined by his actions!"
...
Miss Gao shouted, "Aren't you being reckless? Do you even know how to carve, stop! I've bought the jade!"
No sooner had she spoken than her eyes widened in disbelief.
The people around her also couldn't believe it and were utterly amazed!
In Shen Zhou's palm lay a lifelike little green horse, so vivid and spirited!
Shen Zhou flashed a smile at the clerk, "Could you get me a string, please?"
The clerk was dumbstruck, staring at the little jade horse, completely mesmerized.
Urge by someone, he quickly nodded and went to fetch it.
Shen Zhou tied the red string around the jade horse and dangled it lightly in the air.
Under the light, the little jade horse shimmered even brighter with green radiance.
Shen Zhou was quite pleased, smiling slightly, "The little girl will definitely like it."
```
He clutched the small jade horse in his hand, twisted his body, and walked toward the exit.
It seemed he didn't notice the stunned gazes around him.
Song Yuan felt utterly embarrassed and shouted at Shen Zhou's receding figure, "How on earth did you do it?!"
Without turning his head, Shen Zhou responded with an indifferent smile, "There's no need to tell you."
Miss Gao turned to Song Zhikun, furious with embarrassment, "You're so pathetic, I trusted you, and I'll never seek your help again. Song Yuan, your reputation is now completely ruined!"
She hurriedly chased after him, "Hey, wait for me, I have something to say to you, don't run so fast... Do you know who I am?"
Her words carried an imperious tone.
The scene was left with a bunch of people standing agape and shards of jade scattered all over the floor.
If only Shen Zhou were a bit more careful, he could pick out a few larger pieces that, even if set in rings, would be worth fifty or sixty thousand.
But he didn't care!
Song Yuan was devastated, "I can't believe... the Original Stone really had nothing but goose feather-like fragments..."
But reality had a way of slapping him in the face.
Shen Zhou moved with the fluidity of drifting clouds and flowing water, swiftly entering the Royal International and heading straight to the third floor.
On the third floor was a single banquet hall, large enough to accommodate a hundred tables.
It was decorated like something out of a fairy tale.
The decor alone must have cost at least two hundred thousand.
In the whole of Changming City, there were few groups or families that could afford such extravagance.
This spoke volumes of Xue Lixue's deep affection for Doudou.
In a small room next to the banquet hall, Doudou, who was being dolled up like a princess, was distracted.
The ladies doing her makeup kept asking if she was missing her mother.
Some tried to console her, "Mom is working on a big business deal at the company; she'll be back soon."
Doudou pouted and shook her head, "I don't miss mom, she's always so busy anyway. We're always apart. Right now, I just want Dad to come to my birthday party, I want Dad to celebrate my birthday with me."
"I don't even know if he knows about it, I forgot to tell him."
The little princess's tears were about to fall.
The makeup artists were taken aback, whispering among themselves.
"Since when does our little princess have a dad? Could it be that President Xue has a boyfriend?"
The little princess spoke up loudly, "Even though my dad isn't mom's boyfriend yet, he will be very soon, even a husband, and then I can sleep with them both!"
She said this with a face full of sweetness.
Soon after, she slapped her little thighs, looked up to the heavens and sighed deeply, "My Dad, you must come to my birthday party tonight, Dear God, please send a message to my dad and tell him to hurry over."
"If he comes, that will be the best gift of my entire party."
As she said this, her little face lit up with radiance.
The little girl didn't know, at that very moment, her dad was only thirty meters away from her in a straight line.
At the entrance of the banquet hall, guests dressed in finery were entering, invitations in hand.
Shen Zhou joined the queue and glanced inside, shaking his head slightly, "Tacky! Next time it's Doudou's birthday, I'll give her a real fairy tale world."
A mysterious smile appeared on his face.
When it was Shen Zhou's turn, he was stopped by two security guards.
One asked coldly, "Where's your invitation?"
The other added, "Even if you had an invitation, you can't go in dressed like that, too scruffy. Not even Liang Jingru would give you the courage to show up like this."
A mocking laughter erupted from those around.
Shen Zhou, neither humble nor arrogant, said, "Please let me in. I am the most important person at this birthday party, without a doubt."
The security guards and the guests looked stupefied.
Then they burst into laughter.
Full of mockery!
```