Xu Bo was startled. "You want to bet?"

Lin Xian became interested and asked, "Zhang Jun, what are you betting?"

Zhang Jun played with the stone in his hand and said, "So this Manager Xu said he"s an expert. Is he willing to make a bet with an outsider like me, to see whose judgement is better?"

Zhang Jun"s clapback already annoyed Xu Bo. The defiant remark added fuel to his fire. "Boy, you"d better think twice before you make any decision." He sneered, "Or you will regret it very much."

Zhang Jun answered, "Thanks for your concern. Are you in?"

"If you"re so eager about it, I have no problem with that. What are you betting?" Xu Bo started to get really annoyed. He was going to teach this kid a lesson and make him regret today!

Zhang Jun said, "I bet my stone is going to increase in value. If it does, I win and you lose."

"And I win if it doesn"t?" Xu Bo asked.

"That"s right. And if I win, you pay for everything I buy here today." Zhang Jun raised the stakes.

A light flashed in Xu Bo"s eyes. He asked calmly, "And if you lose?"

Zhang Jun chuckled and said, "If I lose, you get all two million and seventy thousand in this card."

He flashed his bank card at Xu Bo. All the money he"d won at the club yesterday was saved in this card.

Xu Bo"s eyes twitched. "Are you sure?" he asked slowly.

Lin Xian was taken aback. Two million was no small number. It could change his life! She got quite anxious about by his audacity and said, "Zhang Jun, what do you thnk you"re doing?"

Zhang Jun looked at her and said, "Trust me, I got this."

The look in Zhang Jun"s eyes convinced Lin Xian. She believed him at that moment. She looked at Zhang Jun and sighed, "Alright, I hope you won"t regret this."

On the other hand, Xu Bo did not want Zhang Jun to back off, so he taunted Zhang Jun, "Hey boy, if you changed your mind, it"s never too late to quit."

Zhang Jun lifted his brows. "Unless you quit, I"m sticking to the bet."

Xu Bo laughed and took the stone from Zhang Jun. He examined the stone closely and said, "Let me tell you something." He pointed to the rough crust. "This is very common gamble stone material. It used to be a river rock. The crust formed after it had been twice-weathered."

He took another close look at the rock and smiled. "I can tell from my experience, that judging by the weight and appearance, there"s less than ten percent chance this rock would prove valuable."

Zhang Jun waited for him to finish. "If you are sure about it, our bet is on."

Xu Bo thought, "This kid is totally a rookie and a troublemaker. Two million is in the bag!" He couldn"t help grinning, "Like you said, if you win, I"ll pay for whatever you want, up to 3 million. How about that?"

Zhang Jun"s eyes lit up and he said, "Deal!"

Xu Bo wasn"t sure what to make of this. This kid was just a rookie, where did his confidence come from? Were there any tricks up his sleeves?

He discarded this thought as soon as it came up. He"s just a rash kid. What tricks might he possible have?

He shook his head and nodded towards Lin Xian. Then he took the stone to the sanding machines and asked the operator to do his work.

The operator was an old hand with a lot of experience. He set up the machine very quickly and started to sand one side of the stone. With small stones, they usually start "cleaning the windows" on one side to see if they could "strike green".

As he worked, the old operator kept a close eye on the rock. People started gathering around and making comments.

"It"s so small!" said a plump lady who seemed very a.s.sured of herself, "I don"t think there"s anything inside! Money wasted!"

"Not so fast. The stone may be small but sometimes there is jade inside. Let"s take a look."

Xu Bo was all smiles. "Miss Lin, can I treat you tonight after I win two million yuan?"

Lin Xian looked like she wasn"t in the mood for it. After all, she was the one who brought Zhang Jun to this festival. If he lost, she would feel bad about it. Not wanting to upset Zhang Jun, she forced a smile and said nothing.

At that moment the operator went "Huh?" and stopped. The stone had a clean window now, and in that window a smudge of green peered out, pure and bright.

"He struck green!"

The audience exclaimed.

"Whose stone is this? I"m offering a million!" A middle-aged man shouted.

"The color is perfect!" An expert in the crowd looked quite jealous, "And its texture almost resembles an ice-jade. If it"s bigger than an egg, it"s definitely worth more than a million!"

Xu Bo"s smile froze. He ignored the murmuring crowd and told the operator, "Clear every side. It could be a fluke."

The operator was just there to follow orders, so he started again. He worked very fast. Within twenty minutes he cleared out all the windows around the stone and exposed the inner layer.

"Green on all sides!" hearing this, Lin Xian let out a sigh of relief and smiled.

Xu Bo"s face turned grey and he did not speak a single word.

Zhang Jun smiled and turned to Lin Xian, "Senior Lin, aren"t you looking to buy some jade? What do you think of this one?"

Lin Xian laughed, "I was about to tell you that I"m buying this stone for 2.2 million. What do you think?"

This jade was intact, and its color spread evenly. Its texture was indeed, very close to an ice-jade. Lin Xian"s offer was quite decent.

As soon as she spoke, the middle-aged man who offered 1 million immediately said, "2.4 million! Sell it to me, friend!"

Lin Xian shrugged. "Two million and four hundred thousand! That"s a great deal. Do consider it."

Zhang Jun just said, "Two million. It"s yours, Senior Lin."

Lin Xian beamed. "Thank you so much!"

Zhang Jun went to Xu Bo and said, "Excuse me, Manager Xu. It looks like I"ve won. I"ll be getting some rocks under 3 million, thanks to you."

Xu Bo would very much like to punch Zhang Jun right now, but he"s a man of culture and he"s seen a lot. He took a deep breath and said slowly, "You are very lucky. I lost, go pick your stones."

Zhang Jun asked Lin Xian, "Would you like to come with me?"

Lin Xian walked towards Zhang Jun, smiling gracefully. Zhang Jun felt his insides stir.

"Yes, I"d love to. I want to see if your luck can hold, maybe it will let me ride along."