Chapter 239: Presenting the Beautiful Music Pearl

Seeing Ye Cheng approach on his vehicle, Cai Zong hurriedly waved, "This, this, Ye brother, I've saved a parking spot for you."

"I'm just on a motorcycle, what do I need a parking spot for?"

But since they were so polite, Ye Cheng had no choice but to honestly park; a motorcycle taking up a whole parking spot was quite imposing.

Cai Zong pulled Ye Cheng into the shop, not forgetting to give him a brief introduction.

"Brother, you came to the right place; this is one of the top jewelry stores in Donghai Shi. I have three floors, and this first floor is all gold and silver stuff."

Ye Cheng looked around; indeed, Cai Zong's place was spacious. The first-floor counters were filled with gold rings, gold earrings, and so on, plus gold Buddhas and gold zodiac ornaments. There were plenty of customers, indicating the business was doing well.

"Come on, go upstairs; up there are all jade wares."

Cai Zong led Ye Cheng to the second floor, where a dazzling array of jadeite, Hetian jade, and pearls greeted the eye.

At a counter, Ye Cheng stopped in his tracks; the items there were familiar to him—the oyster pearls he sold, made into necklaces, each strand costing several thousand.

"The oyster pearls you brought last time aren't exactly easy to sell; they have price but no market, just another variety," Cai Zong briefly explained.

Frankly, Ye Cheng thought the same; oyster pearls really aren't as attractive as freshwater pearls.

They can fetch a price only because they're rare.

Unlike the Beautiful Music Pearl, which is brightly colored and has a unique pattern.

Cai Zong led Ye Cheng up to the third floor, which was his office area, featuring a large desk and a kung fu tea table.

After pouring Ye Cheng a cup of kung fu tea, Cai Zong looked at him with eager eyes,

"Brother, you said you have Beautiful Music Pearls."

"Hmm." Ye Cheng nodded, pulling out the exquisite wooden box from his pocket.

Cai Zong chuckled, "Brother, you've really gone all out with the packaging this time."

As he spoke, he carefully opened the box, and his pupils instantly contracted, completely captivated by the Beautiful Music Pearl inside.

Not daring to touch it with his hands, Cai Zong took a magnifying glass from the drawer, then put on silk gloves and picked it up for a close examination.

"The color and luster are good, very bright."

"The internal pattern is correct too; it really is a Beautiful Music Pearl."

"Brother, you're incredibly lucky; to get hold of something this rare is amazing."

Ye Cheng gave a faint smile, "No matter how hard it is to obtain, it's now in your hands, Cai Zong. Name your price—this should sell better than oyster pearls."

"That's for sure; the Beautiful Music Pearl is a genuine treasure. I dare say Donghai Shi might not even have one—it's absolutely one of a kind." Cai Zong grew more excited as he spoke; as a jeweler, getting to see such a thing in a lifetime is thrilling.

"How about this: I'll offer 50,000, Ye brother—what do you think?" Cai Zong extended one hand, spreading five fingers.

Ye Cheng lifted his tea cup and took a sip; 50,000, well, it was a bit short of his expectations.

Seeing Ye Cheng silent, Cai Zong didn't rush; he brought the teapot over and refilled Ye Cheng's cup.

Then he took out a vernier caliper from the table, carefully measured it, and handed it to Ye Cheng to see.

"Brother, take a look—it's 12 millimeters, a bit small; if it were 20 millimeters, selling for 100,000 would be no problem, but being this much smaller, the price will definitely be much lower."

Size is indeed a major factor affecting price.

Just like with jadeite, many sellers know to show you how translucent it is when they pick it up, but they never tell you the thickness of the jade piece.

Discussing translucency while ignoring thickness is nonsense.

If you get it down to one millimeter, even a stone can become translucent.

Therefore, the size of this pearl isn't much of an advantage, Ye Cheng knows.

Not only is the size a bit off, but the roundness is also lacking; it's not a standard perfect sphere.

There are many flaws, yet they do not overshadow its merits.

"How about this, Cai Zong: 60,000—I'll sell it for that."

60,000 yuan can cover a down payment on a house; that's not low.

Cai Zong hesitated a moment, took out a calculator and punched buttons for a while, then finally nodded and extended his hand,

"Alright, deal!"

Being able to sell it for 60,000, Ye Cheng was also quite satisfied.

With the price settled, Cai Zong locked away the Beautiful Music Pearl, had someone fetch the money, and then pulled Ye Cheng to sit and drink tea.

Ye Cheng also casually asked, "Cai Zong, besides jewelry, what else do you collect?"

Cai Zong glanced at Ye Cheng and probed, "Brother, you wouldn't happen to have any more high-end goods, would you? Bring them over and let me take a look; if you think I can't afford the price, I can help you find a buyer."

Ye Cheng waved his hand, "Nothing left; all I have is the underwear on my back. I'm just asking casually—if I happen to find something next time I go out to sea, I'd at least have an idea."

"As for me, I'll take anything legal—for example, agarwood and huanghuali, those high-quality timbers; I can collect them to make ornaments and bead strings to sell."

After chatting with Cai Zong for over half an hour, needless to say, the gains were considerable—no wonder he's someone who's been rolling in the jewelry trade for so long.

After receiving the money, Ye Cheng stocked up his little home with some food and drink, then headed back to the village.

This 60,000, Ye Cheng intends to keep for himself; it's from the sea turtle.

That 23,000, divided three ways, brings my savings up to 170,000, external debt 40,000, mortgage 300,000 (including interest).

With such a large sum, it must be put to use, and Ye Cheng already has a plan for where.

After returning, Ye Cheng first sent the money to Xiao Hu, then had him go ask Wang Defa for the price—how much that boat would sell for.

As for himself, he went to his older brother's house at dinnertime—one reason was to discuss something, another, well, naturally to mooch a meal.

Granny Sun had already gone back; this visit had been satisfactory, and she had been especially courteous to Jiang Yunxiang, letting her earn plenty of face, so as soon as she saw Ye Cheng arrive she immediately called out,

"A Cheng, you'll just eat dinner at home tonight; sis-in-law will whip up a few big dishes for you."

Ye Cheng tossed the big bag of chips and snack pack onto the table, "Sure, I'm just here to mooch a meal tonight."

"Dou Dou, hurry and look—potato chips!"

Dou Dou, now trained by Ye Cheng, has become a picky eater; he's grown tired of chocolate and now prefers potato chips.

"A Cheng, don't buy him these snacks; he won't even eat dinner." Jiang Yunxiang laughed as she complained.

Actually, back then there weren't all those high‑calorie labels; for Jiang Yunxiang it was just an instinctive wish that the child eat a bit more.

Ye Cheng played with Dou Dou for a while, then Ye Guowei returned, saw Ye Cheng there, and casually took out a bottle of wine, planning to have a few drinks later.

Just the four of them—three adults and one child—Jiang Yunxiang cooked a duck, prepared some meat, tossed in some peanuts, then put it on the table and started the meal. The family ate, and the atmosphere was relaxed.