"If this piece is good, it's worth quite a bit," the boss said as he worked the blade across the stone. "But I picked it up as scrap, so whether there's anything inside is all down to luck..."
He kept talking as he cut, but then he stopped mid-sentence. "Looks like we've got a winner," he said, blinking at the fresh cut.
Dewitt leaned in for a look and grinned. "Well, would you look at that. It actually turned out green."
Claire stared, shocked. She seriously hadn't thought much about her pick. She'd just grabbed whichever rough stone felt right since, honestly, none of them really knew what they were doing.
Still, somehow, she'd hit the jackpot again.
Sophia nudged her and laughed. "Claire, you're our lucky charm. I think we all need to stick close to you."
Len let out a dramatic sigh. "How come I never get that lucky?" The stone had looked like a plain black rock. Who'd have guessed there was jade hiding inside?
Shirley gave Claire an exaggerated once-over. "With luck like yours, let's go try our hand at the Casino!"
Who could believe she'd bet twice and won both times?
The rest of them were left out, while Claire kept pocketing the rewards for pure luck.
"This might be all the luck I've got," Claire said, shaking her head.
She didn't take any of it seriously as she watched the boss get back to work, carefully chipping away at the rest of the stone.
The owner glanced up and gave some advice. "If you're not sure about processing the whole thing, you could sell it now, even though it's only partially cut."
He eyed the green inside with appreciation. "I'd say you've got yourself a great jade right here. That's crazy valuable."
He couldn't help sharing more. "Honestly, this is the best piece I've ever opened up at this stall. It's my fault for mixing things up. If I hadn't gotten them confused, I would've opened this one myself last night. Wouldn't have left any for you to pick."
He waved a hand over the stone, almost defensively. "This ugly lump might look like nothing from the outside, but it's real black-skin jadeite, the kind that always gives you a beautiful green inside."
He gave Claire a grudging smile. "You really are lucky. And you do have a good eye, too."
Claire wasn't buying all his fuss. She was pretty sure the owner was kicking himself inside, even if he managed to keep a straight face.
But also, if he had really meant to open this one, why didn't he do it? If he'd thought it mattered that much, he wouldn't have gotten it mixed up. He just felt bad about now that he'd seen her luck pay off.
She smiled back politely. "Well, your stones are top-notch. Otherwise, I'd never have found anything."
Word got out fast, and soon the crowd was growing. Dewitt had his guys make some noise to draw even more attention, and soon the little stall was surrounded.
The news spread: someone had
pulled out a Black-skin jadeite boulder from a piece of scrap, and all for only thirty bucks. People crowded in, eager for a look.
"That's insane luck," one of the onlookers muttered.
"Yeah, but luck is part of the game, right? She's something else," another replied.
"I wonder if she'll sell. That stone must fetch close to twenty thousand. Shame it's kind of small," someone else added.
But that lush green color was going to bring top dollar. There were plenty of wealthy ladies who'd fall in love with it.
A white-haired man with a folding fan elbowed his way up to Claire. "Miss, is this your jade?"
She nodded.
He didn't waste a second. "I'll give you ten thousand for it. What do you say?"
A young man immediately jumped in, not wanting to be outdone. "Old man, That's
not enough for this. I'll pay eighteen thousand!"
He said it with the swagger of a big spender, but he wasn't raising the bid by much.
Claire hesitated. She snapped a
photo and sent it to Dane. She didn't
care much about strangers yelling
out offers. If she sold to someone
she knew she trusted them to name a fair price.