LABMY CH10

The commotion between the two had already attracted a crowd. When Jian Yuanbai proposed the bet, the nearby discussions drew even more onlookers.

“Is this kid really betting this big?”

“Are you stupid? The boss is obviously trying to scam him. A semi-gambling rough jade stone of this quality, sold for 30,000? Either the boss is crazy, or the stone itself is problematic.”

“But didn’t the boss say he was giving it to him as a favor?”

The bystander sneered, “In this business, it’s always the ‘friends’ who scam you the hardest.”

Old Liu’s expression turned grim.

The reason he could sell such a “good” semi-gambling stone without hesitation was that the green jade exposed at the cut was fake—carefully glued on to deceive others.

No one knew better than him that there was no jade inside, only worthless stone.

He chose to sell it to Jian Yuanbai because this kid barely understood gambling stones and was often tricked by others. Old Liu was confident that, with a little “brotherly sentiment,” this naive fool would think he’d struck gold.

But who would’ve thought…

Old Liu’s gaze darkened.

How did this kid suddenly see through the scam?

No, impossible.

He had done the forgery with extreme care. No one knew. Jian Yuanbai couldn’t have figured it out.

With more and more people gathering, Old Liu knew he was now in a situation where retreat was impossible.

If he refused, it would show he was guilty and that the stone was fake. His reputation in the market would be ruined.

If he accepted… he’d lose 100,000.

Putting on an indignant expression, Old Liu slammed the table and shouted, “I treated you as a friend and gave you this at a low price to return a favor. Everyone knows gambling on jade comes with risks. I offered you a bargain, hoping you’d profit. If you lose, the loss wouldn’t be much either.”

“But since you’re so distrustful and aggressive…”

Old Liu gritted his teeth. “Fine! I’ll take the bet!”

His righteous tone shifted the crowd’s opinion. People began urging him to cut the stone.

Jian Yuanbai nodded and immediately scanned Old Liu’s QR code, transferring 30,000 yuan. “Let’s cut the stone.”

In the jade market, there was a designated area for cutting stones. For a small fee, you could use the cutting machines or hire a professional to do it.

Old Liu said, “I’ll cut it myself.”

Jian Yuanbai refused flatly, “We’re betting. Let someone else do it.”

A crowd of people followed them to the cutting station. Jian Yuanbai paid a professional to cut the stone.

During the entire process, Old Liu kept urging the cutter to be careful and go slow. His performance even convinced some that he genuinely believed there was jade inside.

“The boss seems sincere. Maybe he really wanted to help out.”

“That kid looks handsome, but he’s acting pretty heartless.”

Amidst the chatter, Jian Yuanbai remained silent.

As the stone was carefully cut layer by layer, not a single trace of green jade appeared.

By the end, only the thin layer of green on the original window remained—a complete scam.

“Nothing at all…”

“How could a semi-gambling stone with such a good cut be empty inside?”

“Such terrible luck.”

“The boss lost big this time. Tried to do a favor and ended up paying 100,000.”

“Yeah, poor guy.”

Some people began to suspect something was off. “Wasn’t the boss forcing this stone on the kid? Looks like a scam.”

But this minority opinion was quickly drowned out.

“Everyone watched the cutting process. The boss’s reaction was genuine.”

As the crowd whispered and pointed at Jian Yuanbai, Old Liu put on an angry and disappointed expression.

But inside, he was laughing.

100,000 is nothing. My reputation is what matters. Now everyone thinks I was the one scammed. And Jian Yuanbai? He’ll be seen as an ungrateful and heartless kid. Perfect.

Old Liu sighed heavily, “Alright, brother, I’ll transfer the money.”

“I admit, you made the right bet. I tried to do you a favor by selling at cost, but who knew… there’s really nothing inside. I’m sorry.”

With those words, the crowd’s judgmental gaze toward Jian Yuanbai intensified.

Jian Yuanbai, who had always been oblivious to others’ love or hate, sensed something off when all eyes turned against him.

He suddenly smiled, bright and carefree, “No need for the 100,000. Just give me a piece of rough jade of equal value.”

Then, he casually walked over to Old Liu’s stall and grabbed a stone the size of a baby’s fist.

The stone was placed in the 200-yuan section—meant for beginners to practice. With no moss, no cracks, and no visible features, experienced gamblers wouldn’t even glance at it.

“This one will do. I’ll take it instead of the 100,000.”

Old Liu was stunned. He hadn’t expected Jian Yuanbai to let him off the hook so easily. He quickly said, “How can I accept that?”

The crowd began to sympathize with both of them.

“Both are pretty decent guys, huh?”

Just as Jian Yuanbai turned to leave, he casually added, “By the way, Old Liu, the batch of materials you got this time seems off. It’s all just stone.”

With that, he walked away.

The crowd instantly shifted focus.

“Wait, if the semi-gambling stone had nothing, maybe the rest of the batch is trash too?”

“That kid didn’t even touch the stone. Just one glance, and he called it. Maybe he’s got real skill?”

“Better not risk buying from Old Liu today…”

Gambling on jade is often tied to luck and intuition. With Jian Yuanbai’s final remark, the crowd quickly lost interest in Old Liu’s stall.

Old Liu’s face turned pale as the crowd dispersed, but there was nothing he could do.

---

On the way home, the system asked, “How did you know it was all stone?”

“That semi-gambling stone looked pretty good. It’d be normal to think there was jade inside.”

The system’s advice to not buy was purely out of distrust for Old Liu’s character. It hadn’t expected Jian Yuanbai to reject the deal so decisively.

Jian Yuanbai replied casually, “Simple.”

The system was stunned.

Could it be that Jian Yuanbai had exceptional experience in jade gambling? Or some hidden talent the system didn’t know about?

Just as the system was about to revise its evaluation of this host…

Jian Yuanbai said confidently,

“I just trusted my gut feeling.”

The system: …

Its sudden silence made Jian Yuanbai very dissatisfied. “You’re always like this—starting a conversation with me and then suddenly going silent. What’s this called again…?”

“Right, hot and cold! A scumbag… No, a scum system.”

The system sneered coldly, “No one can keep chatting with you forever. Has anyone ever told you that you’re really bad at conversation?”

Jian Yuanbai: “No way, I have lots of friends.”

The system fell silent again. Under Jian Yuanbai’s relentless harassment, it endured until he arrived home.

Standing at his front door, Jian Yuanbai was stunned to find the door wide open and his belongings scattered outside. “Did someone break into my house?”

At that moment, a greasy-faced middle-aged man walked out of the room and snapped, “Perfect timing! Get all your junk out of the room. I’m not renting this place to you anymore.”

Jian Yuanbai blinked in confusion and asked, “Who are you?”

The middle-aged man glared and pointed at his nose, “I’m your landlord! You don’t even recognize me? I’m not renting to you anymore, understand?”

“Stop pretending to be clueless. Get out of here right now.”

Jian Yuanbai called out to the system in his heart, “Didn’t you say this house was left to the original owner by his parents?”

System: “…Maybe the house came with a free landlord?”

“A buy-one-get-one-free deal. Lucky you,” the system replied as calmly as possible.

Jian Yuanbai wanted to grab the system and pluck some cat fur from it, but with the landlord present, he could only shout, “How many shows have you watched?! You can’t even verify such a simple fact as whether the house is mine!”

He threatened mercilessly, “I’m going to report you. You’re absolutely useless unless you promise to stop watching shows, cleanse your mind, and start over as a proper system.”

System: “Fine, I promise.”

Jian Yuanbai: “You agreed too quickly. You’re definitely lying.”

The system was speechless. After a moment, it said, “Fine… I promise.”

Jian Yuanbai: “You’re answering too slowly. You must be thinking of a way to trick me. You have to delete everything in front of me.”

The system wanted to curse. It hadn’t even watched anything. How was it supposed to delete something that didn’t exist? “You’re going too far.”

Jian Yuanbai muttered, “Reporting…”

“Alright, I’ll delete them in front of you,” the system said through gritted teeth. It stopped talking to Jian Yuanbai and hesitated for a long time before sending a message somewhere: “Do you have those kinds of videos the system watches? Send me some.”

The reply came quickly, “It took chimpanzees five million years to evolve into humans, but you’ve taken just one hundred years to evolve into a pervert. Congratulations.”

The system’s face turned so dark it could drip ink.

Jian Yuanbai had no clue about the system’s secret activities. He was busy arguing with the landlord, “I rented this place properly. What right do you have to kick me out? You’re violating the contract!”

Though he wasn’t sure if there was even a contract, he said it with full confidence.

The landlord sneered, “It’s my house. I can stop renting whenever I want. Let me tell you the truth: you’ve offended someone.”

“A big shot named Wei specifically ordered that you be thrown out onto the streets. No matter where you try to rent, the moment you sign the lease, he’ll offer a higher price to get you kicked out.”

Jian Yuanbai gave him a cold glance, grabbed a stone from inside the door, and left without looking back.

“Hey! What about your stuff? If you don’t take it, I’ll sell it as scrap!”

Jian Yuanbai ignored him. At that moment, he suddenly wanted to see Wei Zhenge. He hopped on his motorbike and sped all the way to Jinyang No. 1 High School. However, upon seeing the school’s name, he calmed down.

When the landlord spoke, Jian Yuanbai’s first thought wasn’t where to live or regretting offending Mr. Wei. Instead, he thought of Wei Zhenge.

Mr. Wei’s blatant targeting wasn’t aimed at Jian Yuanbai himself but showed his utter disregard for his own son, Wei Zhenge.

Jian Yuanbai stood at the school gate for a while before turning back. He didn’t confront Wei Zhenge or argue with Mr. Wei.

He wanted Wei Zhenge to stand before Wei Chengye and slap his father’s face himself.

With no outlet for his anger, Jian Yuanbai rushed back to the old residential building. Ignoring the landlord’s shouting, he grabbed a simple cutting machine and squatted by a faucet used for watering plants, grinding away at the rough stone.

It was a piece of raw jade material he had gotten from Old Liu.

His technique looked crude, and he didn’t even pour water on the stone. He just kept grinding. Yet, bit by bit, a vibrant, translucent green emerged.

Even the stone dust and debris couldn’t hide its beauty. Only then did Jian Yuanbai turn on the faucet, letting the water flow continuously. Under the stream, a flawless, high-grade Imperial Green jadeite appeared in his hand.

Jian Yuanbai admired it for a moment, then snapped a photo and sent it to a contact named “Old Liu” in his phone.

“I just randomly picked a piece of raw material because I didn’t want to make you lose ten grand. Who knew I’d accidentally get Imperial Green high-ice jadeite?”

“Good deeds are rewarded, right, Old Liu?”

Old Liu stared at the dazzling green in the photo, clenching his fists in fury. He felt a metallic taste in his throat as if he were about to cough up blood.

Fifty million. A piece of this size and quality was worth at least fifty million.

That fifty million should have been his. But Jian Yuanbai got it for free.

Old Liu almost fainted from rage.

The system stared at the jade in disbelief. “You really found it?”

“I knew there was jade inside. That’s why I picked it,” Jian Yuanbai replied casually, slipping the jade into his pocket.

The system hesitated and asked, “How did you know? Do you have x-ray vision too?”

If Jian Yuanbai had x-ray vision and went down the path of gambling on jade, how could Wei Zhenge ever become the best?

But Jian Yuanbai shook his head. “No, it’s intuition.”

He added earnestly, “I have really good luck and a sharp intuition. You get it?”

The system replied gloomily, “I don’t.”

Sorry, but it couldn’t comprehend how sheer luck could lead to finding Imperial Green.

Do you even hear the nonsense coming out of your mouth?