Chapter 699

Li Long insisted on not taking money, and Director Qian could guess the reason why. Neither side explicitly mentioned the matter of the "lifting poles" (illegal logging/timber trade), leaving it as an unspoken understanding.

Director Qian asked about Li Long's family situation, and upon learning that Li Long's wife had given birth to twin boys, he said with envy:

"I originally wanted to have a son and a daughter, but I ended up with two daughters. Now that my daughters are in school and are very filial, to be honest, I still have some regrets about not having a son...

Don't think I'm being sexist; that's just the general social environment we live in..."

Li Long certainly understood. If he had twin daughters, he might not mind, but there would definitely be people in the village who would talk, and his parents might say something too; Gu Xiaoxia might even feel uncomfortable about it.

On the whole, the concept of gender equality in the Maxian area of Northern Xinjiang was stronger than in many places "inside the pass," but some people inevitably still harbored a bit of that bias.

Li Long could tell that Director Qian was speaking from the heart.

When he had his children, the family planning policy hadn't started yet, so he was able to have two daughters. But such a family surely had its own principles; having had two without a son, they simply stopped having more.

Li Long could tell that Director Qian's envy was genuine, so he smiled and said:

"Boys or girls, it's all the same. As long as they are filial and healthy, that's all that matters."

"Yes, yes, yes, that's the truth." Director Qian had let his true feelings slip for a moment, but after Li Long said that, he immediately reined in his emotions and asked about the children again.

Upon learning that the children were well-behaved, Director Qian smiled and said:

"That's good. When the children are well-behaved, the parents don't have it as hard."

After chatting about family life for about ten minutes, Li Long stood up to take his leave.

"Take the things down and give them to Xiao Si," Director Qian said. "Let him take them home. If you have nothing to do tonight, come over to my place for dinner."

"I can't, Director. I still have some things to take care of in Wucheng," Li Long said. "With two children, it's hard to manage at home, so I want to finish my business as quickly as possible and head back."

"That's fine. The children are young, so I won't keep you. When they're older and easier to manage, you come over and have dinner at my place then." Director Qian nodded, not wanting to force him.

He wasn't an absentee manager; he had helped out when his own children were born, so he knew how exhausting it was to raise them.

Seeing that Li Long wasn't using this as an excuse, he believed Li Long truly felt that way.

He had carried the bag in, and now he carried it out. He ran into a few people, and some of them looked at the bag with expressions that were quite intriguing.

Li Long didn't care about the gazes of others at all; giving a little something to a leader was perfectly normal these days.

He went to the vehicle fleet and relayed Director Qian's words to Xiao Si.

After hearing what Li Long said, Xiao Si took the black bag, pulled out the snow leopard skin, and returned the bag to Li Long.

As for the peaches, he asked Li Long to wait, ran back to the dormitory, and returned a moment later with a cardboard box. He took the peaches out and placed them in one by one, saying as he did so:

"These peaches are really good! Honestly, I don't believe you bought these in the city. I've never seen peaches like these sold in the city."

That was perfectly normal; Beiting City was so large that it was impossible for Xiao Si to know about every situation.

Li Long chatted with Xiao Si for a few more minutes, then carried the empty black bag out of the Prefecture Cooperative's gate, got into the jeep, started it up, and drove east.

The second stop heading east: Wucheng.

Li Long naturally hadn't come specifically for Director Qian, but this visit to Director Qian was a must.

What he didn't know was that after he left, Director Qian pulled out a plan submitted by a department from his desk. Looking at some of the figures on it, he took a fountain pen, changed a few numbers, nodded, and turned to shout outside:

"Xiao Wang?"

"Director, I'm here." The young man who had poured tea for Li Long walked in quickly.

"Go, take this plan to the Procurement Department and have them issue the tasks according to these figures."

"Yes, Director." Xiao Wang took the plan with both hands and walked out.

Half an hour later, Li Long entered the urban area of Wucheng.

This time he didn't go to the Bayi Hotel, but drove directly to the Jade Carving Factory.

Li Long had brought all three pieces of bloodstone this time; he wanted to ask Master Liu if these bloodstones were valuable.

After all, when it came down to it, he felt this was his biggest harvest from cutting grass in the mountains.

But since he wasn't an expert, he just wanted to ask, and while he was at it, see if Master Liu had any good jade carvings he could buy on the spot.

The entrance to the Jade Carving Factory was quite lively. Li Long saw people selling jade coming and going. He parked his car on the side of the road and waited for a while, mainly hoping to see Yusufu.

He hadn't seen this friend in a long time, and he didn't know if his business trip south had been successful.

After watching for ten minutes or so without seeing any familiar faces, Li Long drove the jeep toward the side entrance.

To Li Long's surprise, there were quite a few people gathered around the side entrance as well.

The last few times he had come, there was basically no one here, and Master Liu's stall was supported almost entirely by him.

It seemed that things were looking up here, and there was new life.

Li Long parked the jeep forty or fifty meters away, picked out some peaches, put them in his black leather bag, and carried them over.

Approaching the side entrance, he saw the stall was the same as before; the glass cabinet hadn't changed, but there were more jade carvings inside. Three or four people were picking through them, and a few others were watching from the periphery.

It seemed that after the economy was liberalized, people's demand for decorative items was increasing. Jade itself was the "stone of the gentleman," and people in this country had been wearing it since ancient times; legend even had it that there was a specific "Jade Age."

Otherwise, later generations wouldn't have been able to drive jade prices so high—in truth, investors and capital were naturally involved, but if there hadn't been a group of people who truly loved jade, the prices wouldn't have been driven up.

These people were picking out jade pieces and asking questions from time to time. Master Liu was explaining them one by one. To Li Long's surprise, there was a young man standing next to Master Liu who would interject occasionally, mostly asking questions, which Master Liu would also explain.

Was he an apprentice sent by the factory, or one of Master Liu's own family members?

Master Liu no longer looked as decadent as when Li Long first saw him; his complexion looked quite good, and his voice was strong, clearly having recovered.

Those few people finished picking, paid, and left. Others were picking, and Li Long saw more people coming from afar, so he thought he should go up now, or he'd be waiting until they got off work.

Li Long moved closer. Master Liu hadn't noticed him at first, as he was explaining the material and weight of a jade Buddha to a customer. After finishing, he looked up and saw Li Long smiling at him.

"Yo, Little Li is here!" Master Liu shouted with pleasant surprise, and handed the jade Buddha to the young man next to him: "Zhigang, you watch the stall, I have something to do."

After saying that, he opened the side door and invited Li Long in:

"Come in quickly, Comrade Little Li. I haven't seen you in a long time; I was wondering if you weren't coming anymore..."

Li Long carried his black bag, squeezed through the crowd, and followed Master Liu inside.

Some of the jade buyers were a bit confused, but the young man immediately took over the jade Buddha and started introducing it. He focused mainly on the price, the carving technique, and the future appreciation potential, which actually attracted everyone's attention.

"... Everyone should be clear about the jade from Southern Xinjiang; it used to be tribute, and jade carving factories in Shanghai would come all the way here to stock up. Don't look at these jade carvings as small; they are authentic Hetian jade. They will definitely increase in value in the future, as the raw materials in the river are being mined less and less, and the price of these raw materials will only get higher."

"Is this jade Buddha carved from raw material?" the middle-aged woman buying the jade Buddha asked, her eyes lighting up.

"Yes, of course it's raw material. Although it's not large, it's genuine raw material, and the whiteness is sufficient—above grade two. Although it doesn't reach grade one, it's close..."

Well, the young man and the old man spoke differently and looked at things from different angles, which was actually more attractive.

The jade Buddha was sold for eighteen yuan.

The people behind who had been watching immediately crowded over.

Prices were rising these days, and keeping money in the bank didn't seem very safe, so it was better to buy things to preserve value.

"Gold in chaotic times, collectibles in prosperous times"—this concept hadn't quite taken off yet, but people understood that the scarcer something was, the more valuable it became. Moreover, jade could be worn, and if it could also appreciate in value, it was killing two birds with one stone.

Li Long glanced at the young man named Zhigang; this guy was sharp.

Master Liu let Li Long inside, found him a stool to sit on, and said with a smile:

"Comrade Little Li, it seems you've really been busy. It's been almost a year since you last came, right? My wife still mentions you from time to time."

"There was no one here when I came last time," Li Long explained. "It looks like things have changed a lot here, Master Liu; it's much better than before."

"It's alright, it's alright," Master Liu said happily. "After those few times you came, I had a bit more leeway here and slowly started carving things again. I can also pick and choose what the factory sends over to sell; I've sent back some of the poorer quality ones. Now I'm selling pieces with better quality, and slowly, more people have started coming to buy."

There was a commission, and Master Liu had his own business; with more people coming to buy, his income increased, and naturally, he became happier. He was no longer relying on that meager salary to get by, so he was naturally quite pleased.

Li Long took the peaches out of his bag, placed them on the table, and said:

"I came to see you this trip. I saw these peaches on the road and they looked good, so I bought some for you to enjoy slowly."

"Good, good." Master Liu didn't refuse; he helped Li Long arrange the peaches, then took two to wash and handed one to Li Long.

Zhigang, over on the other side, turned his head to glance at them, quite curious about Li Long.

However, there were many people outside the stall, so his main focus remained there.

"Little Li, are you looking for jade carvings this time too?" Master Liu asked in a low voice while eating a peach.

"Yes, of course," Li Long said with a smile. "But I have other matters I need your help with."

"Whatever it is, just say it." Master Liu was deeply grateful to Li Long and felt duty-bound to help him.

"I acquired three red stones and would like to trouble you to take a look and see if they are valuable." Although Li Long was certain those three stones were bloodstone, he was an outsider and needed an expert to verify them.

【No errors, no omissions, read the content at a glance!】

"Take them out and let me see."

Li Long finished the peach in a few bites, placed the pit on the corner of the table—he hadn't found a trash can—and took the three pieces of bloodstone out of the side pocket of his black bag.

Master Liu's expression turned serious as he took the reddest stone to examine it.

After just a few glances, he turned it over and went to look at the other two stones.

It took no more than five or six minutes to examine all three stones. Master Liu then handed them back to Li Long and said:

"Little Li, these three stones are bloodstone. This one, which is fully red, is considered top quality and is worth a considerable amount. How much did you pay for them?"

Li Long thought for a moment and said:

"A few dozen yuan."

"Heh, you hit the jackpot," Master Liu said with a smile. "Although I specialize in jade carving and don't know much about bloodstone, I have peers in that field. This one piece alone is no less valuable than a piece of grade-one Hetian jade of the same weight—you hit the jackpot."

Grade-one Hetian white jade of the same weight was still sold by the kilogram at this time, but a kilogram was worth several hundred yuan, so this piece alone was worth at least a thousand.

It was definitely worth it.

Li Long felt relieved, put the three stones away, and said:

"Then Master Liu, take out your things. I'm going on a shopping spree again this time."

"Heh, you kid!" Master Liu liked Li Long's straightforwardness—a shopping spree, indeed!

Over this long period, Master Liu had carved quite a few things. Although he had sold a few, he had kept most of the better materials.

Now that he wasn't short on money for food, Master Liu felt it was better to leave these good things for Li Long—after all, Li Long was his "little talent scout."

After waiting so long, Master Liu had been somewhat disappointed; he had even wondered if Li Long's financial situation wasn't good, which was why he hadn't come.

If he hadn't lacked a way to contact him, Master Liu would have even wanted to tell Li Long from afar that he would sell these things to him even at cost.

Not for any other reason, but because when he was down and out, it was Comrade Little Li who had given him a hand.

But looking at it now, Li Long was clearly not short on money—this one piece of bloodstone alone was worth more than twice the price of all the things he had carved.

Not to mention Li Long had three of them.

Someone outside questioned why Li Long was allowed inside, but the one named Zhigang simply said Li Long was a friend of Master Liu's and was here to discuss business.

There was no helping that; who didn't have friends and family?

Master Liu took out all the good things he had carved one by one.

To Li Long's surprise, the items Master Liu had kept were much larger in size; apart from some items meant to be worn around the neck, most were ornaments larger than a fist.

Seeing Li Long's surprised expression, Master Liu said proudly:

"Business is better here, so the factory has relaxed a bit. They can send over some larger materials; after all, we are creating value for the factory here too!"

Li Long smiled. It was no wonder Master Liu's mood and demeanor were different now; he had regained his old touch.

"Then let's calculate the total price," Li Long said. "I made some money in the first half of this year, so I'll take all of these. As your Zhigang says, these things will definitely appreciate in value in the future; buying them now is an investment, earning money for myself."

Master Liu shook his head noncommittally.

"Master Liu, I think he's right. You should also keep a few good pieces of material for yourself, even if you don't carve them. After all, the raw material is truly becoming scarcer and scarcer..."

There would be plenty of mountain-mined material in the future, but raw river-mined material was truly becoming scarcer.

Master Liu thought that made sense, though he did have some good materials he had kept for himself. Of course, he could also feel that Li Long was sincere in saying this.

Thinking about how Li Long made a lot of money in business and had never been stingy when buying these materials, he thought he would listen this once; if there were any more good materials, he would keep a few at home.

Now that he had some spare money, it wasn't like he couldn't afford it.

Li Long wrapped each piece of jade in newspaper and put them into his black cloth bag.

These jade pieces were all carved by Master Liu himself, and all used Hetian jade of grade two or higher; they weren't cheap in terms of either material or carving.

Master Liu had definitely given him a "friendship price," and with so many people outside, Li Long didn't say much. Master Liu was in a good mood and business was good, which was great.

Even if he retired later, by saving a few good pieces of material, in ten years or so, he would know the value of these materials.

After all, let alone Hetian jade, even the once-brick-like Qinghai jade, which cost a few thousand yuan for a truckload, skyrocketed dozens or hundreds of times in price after the new century, being sold by the gram.

He settled the final account, paid the money, chatted with Master Liu for a few more minutes, and said he might not be back until winter, then left the side room and walked away carrying his black bag.

Master Liu saw Li Long out, watching him all the way to the jeep, opening the door, starting it up, waving at him, and driving away. Only then did Master Liu realize that this Comrade Little Li was also someone who didn't show his true colors.

Anyone who could drive a car was at the very least someone close to a leader.

Even the director of the Jade Carving Factory hadn't been able to ride in this little jeep.

Goodness!

Master Liu suddenly remembered what Li Long had said about hoarding jade and immediately felt that he needed to buy more raw materials from the factory next.

Li Long drove the jeep away from the Jade Carving Factory. Seeing that it was almost time to get off work, his next stop would have to wait until tomorrow.

He drove the jeep toward his target, the Bayi Agricultural College, and found a hostel located in a courtyard nearby to stay in.

The jeep was still a bit conspicuous outside; it was better to have a courtyard where the car could be driven inside.

The room rate wasn't high—four yuan a night for a single room—cheaper than the Bayi Guest House.

The Bayi Guest House was different; it had high foot traffic, so the prices were naturally higher. There wasn't as much foot traffic here. The jade carvings and bloodstone Li Long was carrying were valuable items.

Not to mention the bloodstone, the jade carvings he bought from Master Liu alone were worth over five hundred yuan.

And that was the friendship price.

The true value was naturally higher, so Li Long had to be careful. Staying in a single room was safer.

For a "big spender" like Li Long, the person in charge of the hostel was also polite, providing hot water and suggesting where to get a good dinner nearby. The shop also provided *jiupianzi* (hand-torn noodles), which weren't expensive—eighty cents a bowl.

Li Long smelled that it was good, so he simply ate there.

He planned to get a good night's rest and go find Professor Wu first thing tomorrow morning.

During the time he was cutting grass in the mountains this year, several families' melon crops had developed pests. With his older brother away, his sister-in-law used the method Li Long had left behind last year to tell the others, and it had actually managed to control the infestation.

This was definitely something he had to thank Professor Wu for. (End of chapter)