The sky, veiled in a thin layer of white gauze, watched the greenery dotted among the steel and concrete skyscrapers. Hua Yan and Gao Ruqing sat chatting on the top floor of the stone gambling banquet hall, which was set to take place in the afternoon. The spacious and comfortable setting, with a marble table adorned with pastries specially prepared by Gao Ruqing, girls' snacks, and refreshing southern green tea, exuded such a pleasant atmosphere. It was evident that the host here took great pleasure in enjoying life.

"Your place is truly an idyllic paradise. Even doing nothing and just sitting here is delightful," Hua Yan admired, her eyes sparkling as she looked around. She had a special fondness for places where she could relax comfortably or bask in the sunlight for a nap.

Gao Ruqing was pleased with Hua Yan's admiration and pointed to the pastries and tea on the table. "These pastries were made by a special pastry chef invited for today's banquet. Care to try them? And this tea was just harvested from a tea garden in the south. Though the tea itself may be ordinary, I personally brewed it for you, so it should have a unique flavor."

"Of course, it's my honor to drink tea brewed by Mr. Gao himself," Hua Yan said as she took a sip of the tea, its fragrance spreading in her mouth like the scent of rain after a shower, remarkably delicious. "It's very good."

The two of them chatted leisurely, occasionally with Hua Yan under Gao Ruqing's guidance, brewing a pot of tea to taste.

When the secretary upstairs came to invite them downstairs, the aroma of tea filled the room as soon as the door opened. One couldn't help but exclaim that these two were truly "birds of a feather."

To avoid attracting attention by going downstairs with Gao Ruqing, Hua Yan came down a step ahead. Since fewer people in Haibin City knew Hua Yan among the celebrity businessmen, and she dressed comfortably and unpretentiously today, neither the reporters nor the guests paid attention to her.

Sitting in a corner with a glass of strawberry drink, she watched the well-dressed men and women. When she saw Li Meier following behind Cheng Jie, Hua Yan was momentarily stunned. Just now, Gao Ruqing had said that Cheng Jie had dumped Li Meier upon returning to China. She hadn't expected Li Meier to make a comeback.

In just a few minutes, she saw another acquaintance, a handsome man named Hu Er, dressed in a suit and chatting amiably with people around him. Those people seemed very willing to converse with him. When did the upper class become so accepting of unknown individuals?

As Hu Er conversed with the people who came to talk to him, he casually searched for the person he was looking for. After circling around without seeing the person in any conspicuous place, he finally heard two women pointing and sneering at the leisurely and seemingly unnoticed Hua Yan in the corner. Only then did he bring some snacks over.

"Are you also attending the stone gambling banquet?" Hua Yan asked as she took a pastry from Hu Er.

"Yeah, the master needs information from all sides, so it's necessary to attend these banquets."

"You're not foreign spies, are you?" Hua Yan joked.

Hu Er smiled and said, "Do you think the national security of this country is a pushover?"

"Those people seem to treat you quite well," Hua Yan remarked.

"The master has given me the identity of a high-value investor, so they are attentive to me for this reason," Hu Er explained.

Hua Yan nodded in understanding and saw that Gao Ruqing was already standing by the covered piece of raw material. She smiled and continued eating the pastries in front of her. Hu Er asked curiously, "Miss Hua Yan, aren't you interested in stone gambling?"

"Not really. Sitting here, I can still find out the result. Why bother squeezing to the front?" Hua Yan replied.

Hu Er smiled and asked, "Do you need me to get you some snacks?"

"No, thank you. Can you guess whether this piece of raw material will increase in value?" Hua Yan inquired.

"No one can be sure until it's opened. I heard that another company is also unveiling a piece of raw material from Burma, bought for 1.1 billion. It seems like these two companies are rivals," Hu Er explained.

"Yes, indeed." Both companies had sent representatives to each other's stone gambling banquets to learn about their respective raw materials for the first time. It was surprising how similar Gao Ruqing and the "fat guy's" attitudes were toward this practice. Gao Ruqing seemed more relaxed about these details than usual.

"I guess the stone gambling master will lose face this time. How could his one billion raw material possibly compare to the 1.1 billion king-grade raw material?" Hu Er speculated.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"I think so too. I was originally planning to go to the fat guy's company to witness the appearance of the jadeite, hoping to get some good luck. Maybe I could even win a game of mahjong or get a perfect hand, or even a thirteen wonders. Now I just hope I don't get any bad luck..." Hua Yan sighed.

"In that case, let's move away quickly," a few socialites said disdainfully as they backed away. Others nearby who overheard also cautiously moved a step back.

Upon hearing these words, Gao Ruqing felt a surge of anger, but he had to endure it. When Cheng Jie seemed about to explode, Gao Ruqing stopped him with a glance. Just as one wave subsided, another rose. At this moment, the "fat guy" called.

The secretary hesitated whether to inform Gao Ruqing, but Gao Ruqing had already heard and immediately picked up the phone.

"Hey, Gao buddy, you answered pretty quickly. I thought you had already wet your pants in fear. How about this: if you call me 'brother' now, and throw in a third of your company's clients, I'll postpone the stone gambling and save your face. I'm a man of my word, what do you say, Gao buddy, consider it?" the "fat guy" said.

Gao Ruqing narrowed his eyes, concealing the cold light about to burst out. After silently counting to ten in his heart, he calmly replied, "You better hope you win today..."

"Boss, Gao Ruqing still doesn't know what's good for him," the "fat guy's" secretary muttered quietly.

The "fat guy" loosened his tie and snorted disdainfully, "This old stubborn guy only knows how to talk big. Watch me put him in his place when I win... What are you still standing here for? Hurry up and start the stone gambling." With a flattering nod and a smile, the secretary hurriedly directed the technicians to start working.

Gao Ruqing quickly unveiled the red cloth, allowing the stone workers to start the process of unveiling the stone. The atmosphere on the "fat guy's" side was lively and bustling, while surprisingly, it was calm on Gao Ruqing's side.

As the raw material was being unveiled, Gao Ruqing's palms were sweating profusely. His entire life's efforts were riding on this moment. If he lost, not only would his company be ruined, but his reputation would also be tarnished by the "fat guy." Thinking about this, Gao Ruqing felt that time was passing too slowly, each second feeling like an eternity.

Throughout the banquet hall, only Hua Yan and Hu Er remained the most composed. They both knew in advance that this piece of raw material was bound to produce jadeite. Hua Yan observed the ugly faces of the people around her, her lips curling into a cold smile. She slowly stood by Gao Ruqing's side, silently offering her support. When Cheng Jie and Li Meier saw her, their eyes widened in surprise. They hadn't expected her to appear at the banquet. Moreover, seeing Hua Yan standing beside Gao Ruqing without any response from him, they couldn't see the grateful look in his eyes towards her.

"That unlucky woman is here. She must have brought bad luck to the raw material," Li Meier said viciously, glaring at Hua Yan. These words made many people observe Hua Yan with various expressions and speculate about her intentions. Hua Yan heard this and simply glanced at Li Meier, causing her to tremble involuntarily. She had always felt that since her divorce, Hua Yan had become inscrutable, transforming from a simple and kind woman into a shrewd and profound one. She couldn't help but feel less confident in front of her.

Half an hour later, the atmosphere had completely changed. Gao Ruqing was now surrounded by a group of people, eagerly flattering and pleasing him. Meanwhile, on the "fat guy's" side, guests were making excuses to leave, leaving behind an empty hall. The splendid decorations that had dazzled earlier now seemed to mock the "fat guy." His suit looked wrinkled like a sack, his face pale like a ghost, and he sat silently on the ground with eyes devoid of expression. His secretary stood nearby like a statue, openly displaying a gloating expression. Now, only a pile of white stones accompanied him. The 1.1 billion raw material had turned out to be just stones, and this blow made the "fat guy" feel like he was already halfway into the underworld.

"I must toast to you for this. If it weren't for your reminder earlier, I would be the one in the 'fat guy's' place now," Gao Ruqing said, even he was smiling as he approached Hua Yan and Hu Er with a drink and a juice.

Even though Gao Ruqing had initially harbored thoughts of coercing Hua Yan, a talented stone gambler, into joining him, his hesitation at the time had brought him even greater benefits now. He had friends who sympathized with him, elders who took joy in watching him grow, and a continuous stream of good luck.

"Congratulations," Hua Yan accepted the drink from Gao Ruqing with a smile.

"To be honest, I didn't expect this raw material to yield high-quality Fu Lu Shou jadeite in three colors. Since you like carved hairpins, I'll have someone carve a piece of Fu Lu Shou jadeite for you. How do you like that?" Gao Ruqing generously offered Hua Yan something worth tens of millions. Of course, Hua Yan's reminder about Burma had brought him more benefits than just this. However, he also knew that Hua Yan didn't care much about these things. She was usually spontaneous.

Sometimes, when she saw clothes she liked at the roadside stalls, she would buy them without hesitation and wear them for a long time.

Originally, Hua Yan wanted to refuse Gao Ruqing's gift of such precious jadeite jewelry. However, she thought that this was also a way for Gao Ruqing to share his success with others. Moreover, she still had the Fu Lu Shou jadeite, and she planned to give him a piece later.

There were not many Fu Lu Shou Xi in the world, and even fewer of high quality. It was conceivable that the Fu Lu Shou Xi she would get in the future could elevate Gao Ruqing's company to a higher level. At this moment, she could imagine how excited Gao Ruqing must have been at that time.

"Thank you, Boss Gao. I wish your company continued success!"

"Thank you for your kind words," Gao Ruqing and Hua Yan chatted happily, causing quite a stir among the other guests. Many curious individuals were inquiring about Hua Yan's background.

Not wanting so many people to treat her like a monkey, Hua Yan quickly greeted the secretary, who was relatively idle, and left. She needed to conserve her energy to deal with the special training arranged by Lao Qiao for her. Lao Qiao had said that as long as she rested well, everything else was confidential. He would take her to the mysterious training base when the time came. The mysterious and potentially deadly situation aroused Hua Yan's curiosity.