“This is our Yun family’s newly appointed chief gambling stone master, Master Ye.” Zhuo Ping could ignore Ye Meng, but he couldn’t overlook this chief gambling stone master.
Hearing this, the Lance family’s chief gambling stone master immediately changed his expression. “So it’s Master Ye. A pleasure to meet you.”
He smiled broadly, clearly not underestimating Ye Shaohua because of her age.
“Hello,” Ye Shaohua replied very modestly.
The two parties exchanged a few words before parting ways.
“So that’s the Yun family’s chief master,” people from the Lance family were all sighing. “I heard Master Yun voluntarily stepped aside. Originally, I thought this master must be over fifty. I never expected someone so young. Looks like the Yun family is set to dominate for many more years. Their luck is truly incredible.”
Ye Meng stood frozen in place. Hearing this, her heart surged with turbulent waves. “That person just now, are they really that formidable?”
“For someone to make Master Yun willingly step aside, at the very least, I wouldn’t dare say I could compare.” The speaker glanced at Ye Meng. “As for you, maybe in about ten years or so, you could possibly compare to where she is now.”
Other masters were still talking, but Ye Meng could no longer listen.
Originally, she had been full of confidence. But now, hearing what the Lance family members said, all her confidence and pride were mercilessly crushed, leaving only humiliation.
Although Ye Meng had some talent in stone gambling, she actually lacked experience.
So she didn’t take the stage, but she didn’t leave either. She stayed at the convention, watching Ye Shaohua.
When she saw the man beside Ye Shaohua, her expression twisted.
“Are you sure you want this piece?” Yun Qinghe asked quietly. “You don’t need any others?”
Ye Shaohua nodded. “That’s right. This single piece is enough to crush every jade piece in the whole venue.”
In such a vast stone quarry, there were always overlooked treasures. Of course, there were also plenty of genuine waste stones, but even waste could sometimes be misjudged. Ye Shaohua liked searching for stones among these rejects.
Partly because she enjoyed the challenge, and partly because these misjudged stones were truly the spirits of jadeite. That’s why she favored these raw materials.
However, the ones she chose didn’t fit conventional aesthetic standards.
Ye Meng glanced at the raw stone Ye Shaohua had chosen and frowned. She knew stone gambling too and could naturally see that Ye Shaohua’s skill in picking stones seemed no different from before.
Her expression instantly turned odd again.
Meanwhile, people from other families around them were murmuring: why had the Yun family swapped for such a subpar gambling stone master this time?
Of course, some kept their doubts to themselves, watching silently.
“Master Ye, are you sure about choosing this raw stone?” At the gambling stone area, the stone cutter also glanced at Ye Shaohua. “Are you certain you don’t want to change it?”
Ye Shaohua nodded.
The staff member opened his mouth but couldn’t say anything more. He just looked at Yun Qinghe. “Young Master Yun, is the Yun family sure about not choosing any other raw stones?”
Yun Qinghe’s expression didn’t change. “Yes.”
Were these two really this decisive?
Now even the judges had nothing to say. They all just smiled awkwardly.
A young man from the Lance family walked over. He glanced at Ye Shaohua, then at Yun Qinghe, and laughed. “Yun Qinghe, your Yun family’s gambling stone master isn’t up to par this time. You might as well have replaced them with Master Yun.”
Others weren’t as bold as the Lance family member to speak so directly, but their expressions also clearly showed they had little faith in the stone Ye Shaohua had chosen.
Words spoken here and there all subtly criticized the raw stone Ye Shaohua had picked behind her back.
Many on good terms with the Yun family tried to persuade them, but Yun Qinghe was very resolute. They would use the raw stone Ye Shaohua had chosen.
Ye Meng stared unblinkingly at Ye Shaohua, listening to the words around her. In her heart, she was hoping that the raw stone Ye Shaohua had picked would turn out to be a complete waste, containing nothing at all.
The raw stone Ye Shaohua chose was in her usual style—very large.
The master stone cutter followed where Ye Shaohua had instructed, cutting along the edge. No green was visible.
“Yun Qinghe, I’ll have to thank you for this generous concession. The territory in F Continent now belongs to our Lance family.” The Lance family heir let out a scoff. “Your Yun family’s gambling stone master this time is really something, truly exceptional, a born genius!”
His words sounded like praise, but who didn’t know he was actually mocking?
Ye Shaohua glanced at him, knowing he was from the Lance family, which had just cut open a top-grade jadeite—the best one on site so far. No wonder he was so smug.
“Continue,” Ye Shaohua said calmly.
The master stone cutter said nothing, following the same cut line to slice once more. Unexpectedly, the second cut revealed a large swath of green. The surrounding chatter instantly died.
“That color… Imperial Green!” After a moment, someone finally spoke.
The stone cutter became very cautious now. Looking at such a large stone, except for the outer skin, almost everywhere else was jadeite.
A piece this large, weighing well over a dozen pounds…
The Lance family had also cut an Imperial Green earlier, but its color quality wasn’t as fine as what Ye Shaohua had produced. And especially… it wasn’t even half the size of Ye Shaohua’s piece.
It was crystal clear who the winner was.
“Congratulations.” All the big shots in the venue cupped their hands towards Yun Qinghe, then looked at Ye Shaohua with complex expressions on their faces.
This time, Ye Meng was utterly stunned. Her whole body began to tremble.
After the competition ended, Ye Meng didn’t stay any longer. She hurriedly returned home to find Ye Qing.
“Dad, how are things with Feisheng Entertainment now?” Ye Meng hadn’t rested in a long time; dark circles had already formed under her eyes.
Startled by her agitated state, Ye Qing replied, “They’re already investigating. It’s estimated that by tomorrow at the latest, Feisheng will be shut down.”
Hearing this answer, Ye Meng finally calmed down and let out a long breath.
At the same time, Yin Tianyu was still at his home.
By the time he had returned, he had already handed the evidence over to the police. Soon, Ye Shaohua would be arrested.
“Tianyu, does this Weibo post say this girl is your girlfriend?” His mother pointed to a set of photos on Weibo and looked at Yin Tianyu.
Yin Tianyu glanced at them. It was a photo of Ye Shaohua.
Hearing this, he fell silent and didn’t answer.
Seeing her son’s expression, his mother sighed with emotion. “I never thought you’d end up with her. It must be fate. Treat her well. Back then, without her mother, we would have died in that explosion along with your father. Of course, you don’t remember this. When her mother saved us, you were just a tiny thing, scared unconscious. I searched for her mother for a long time afterward but never found her in that place. I never expected you to be with her daughter. By the way, where is she now? Take me to see her.”
Yin Tianyu, however, was stunned by these words. He turned blankly towards his mother. It took a full few minutes for him to react, his voice trembling. “Mom… c-can you say that again?”
