Chapter 87: Chapter 87: Not Broke, Are You?
 

“Are you sure?” Xu Yang raised an eyebrow.

With five million to earn, it was still worth going for.

He had basically figured out how to select raw stones by now, which ones contained jade.

If it was a bet, he was sure to win the five million.

“Of course I’m sure, just giving you this dumbass bumpkin a chance to make money.” Chen Guanglei was still lacking manners.

“Your words are still so tasteless. You really can’t teach an old dog new tricks. If you keep talking like this, stop speaking to my husband,” Zhao Yuxin was really getting angry, and she turned to Zhao Yulu and said, “Sis, what kind of people are your friends? Hanging out with such people, don’t you feel ashamed? I feel embarrassed for you. It doesn’t matter if you lose face, but please don’t bring such people around in front of me and my husband!”

Zhao Yulu glanced at Chen Guanglei with some dissatisfaction and said, “Chen Guanglei, you may not care about your own dignity, but I need to care about mine.”

Chen Guanglei’s face turned ugly, but he had no way to retort, only able to nod and say, “Fine, I’ll speak politely.”

He then looked at Xu Yang, “How about it, dare to bet?”

Xu Yang nodded, “If you’re willing to give away money, I see no reason not to take it.”

“You, coming from a small county, are just a hick…” He stopped mid-sentence as he felt two hostile glares upon him and promptly changed his tune, “If you’ve got the skills, I’ve got nothing to say, I’m just worried you might not win.”

Xu Yang nodded, “Alright, let’s get a third-party agency to draw up a contract and give them the money.”

In the jade trading center, such bets happen almost every day, and there is a third-party agency for these services.

This was what Tang Zhengqi had just told Xu Yang.

Chen Guanglei was taken aback, then immediately said, “Is a third-party really necessary? We can just bet directly, and whoever loses will pay the money. Why bother with all this trouble?”

Xu Yang glanced at Chen Guanglei, “Without a third-party, what if you lose and don’t pay up? What do I do then?”

Chen Guanglei retorted, “Why wouldn’t I pay? I understand the principle of honoring a bet.”

Xu Yang replied, “Sorry, you might understand the principle, but I don’t trust you. There are plenty of people who know the rules but still welsh on bets.”

He looked Chen Guanglei deep in the eyes, “Speaking of which, you don’t even have five million, do you?”

Chen Guanglei’s face paled slightly as he scoffed, “You think I’m like you folks from a small county who don’t even have five million? Forget five million, even if it was ten million, I’d have it.”

In truth, he didn’t have five million; there was only one million in his bank account.

When he bet with Xu Yang, he never considered the possibility of losing and hadn’t thought about involving a third party.

He just hadn’t expected Xu Yang to be aware of this too.

Xu Yang said, “As long as you’ve got the money, then that settles it. Why say more?”

Chen Guanglei stiffened his neck, “I just didn’t want to go through all this hassle, but since you insist, let’s do it.”

He said this, but inside he was silently complaining.

The words were already out, and since he was the one who initiated the bet, backing out wasn’t an option anymore.

It looked like he’d have to figure something out.

The place where they were wasn’t far from the third-party agency, just a two-minute walk away.

As soon as they walked in, Chen Guanglei clutched his stomach and groaned in pain, “My stomach hurts a bit, I need to use the bathroom real quick. I’ll be right back, just wait here.”

Without waiting for Xu Yang and the others to say anything, he dashed off to the restroom.

Xu Yang and the others were speechless.

Zhao Yuxin couldn’t help but say, “This guy doesn’t really lack the money and is looking for an excuse to back out of the bet, does he?”

Xu Yang nodded, “It’s quite possible. The way he looked earlier, it seems like he genuinely doesn’t have five million.”

Zhao Yulu’s expression turned unpleasant, as she knew Chen Guanglei’s financial situation – he had told her he only brought one million to Haicheng.

However, Chen Guanglei had said that with one million, he could at least make five million.

But they had just arrived, and Chen Guanglei hadn’t even bought a raw stone to make any earnings before running into Xu Yang and Zhao Yuxin, and then he bet with Xu Yang.

Based on what she knew about Chen Guanglei, he wasn’t the type to run away, especially since he was someone who cared a lot about face.

She guessed that he must have gone to the bathroom to make a phone call for money.

Indeed, as soon as Chen Guanglei entered the restroom, he dialed his father, Chen Ankang.

The phone was answered quickly.

Chen Guanglei immediately said, “Dad, I need money right now, send me five million first.”

It was a substantial amount; he could only ask his father for it.

His friends certainly wouldn’t lend him that much money.

In any case, he had to get the money, otherwise he would completely lose face.

“What do you need so much money for? Didn’t I just give you a million the day before yesterday?” Chen Ankang’s expression was somewhat unpleasant.

“Dad, I came to Haicheng Jade Trading Center today, and there’s a batch of raw jade stones here. I came to check them out and there’s a high chance that one of the stones could be top-quality Imperial Green Jade. It’s just that it’s a bit pricey at five million. I really have my eye on this stone, and I want to buy it. It’s an opportunity that could potentially make tens or even hundreds of millions,” Chen Guanglei explained.

This was the excuse Chen Guanglei had thought up on his way to the third-party agency.

Such an excuse couldn’t be more legitimate.

“Really?” Chen Ankang perked up, “The raw stone you’re interested in, it could really yield jade worth tens or even hundreds of millions?”

Chen Ankang did have some confidence in his son’s ability to assess jade stones.

It had to be said, the son wasn’t all that competent in managing the company.

But when it came to gambling on stones, he was quite good.

He had been to the Haicheng Jade Trading Center with his son, and most of the raw stones his son selected turned out to yield jade.

In front of him, his son spoke confidently and knowledgeably about stone gambling.

If there was a stone that could yield jade worth tens or even hundreds of millions, of course he would support it.

Even though his net worth was several billion, tens or even hundreds of millions were not small sums.

“Dad, you know my ability to gamble on stones. There’s definitely a very good chance that I can get the Imperial Green,” Chen Guanglei said confidently.

He had just said there was a high chance and now he was emphasizing it again to lay the groundwork for explaining later to his father.

Making tens or even hundreds of millions was impossible.

He just wanted to have a gambling match with Xu Yang and at most, make fifty thousand.

Even if he bought more raw stones and earned a bit more later, it wouldn’t be tens of millions.

“Alright, I’ll transfer the money to you right away,” Chen Ankang agreed immediately upon hearing his son’s confidence.

On this end,

Chen Guanglei hung up the phone and breathed a sigh of relief.

Fortunately, his dad knew about his stone gambling skills; otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to ask for this money.

Borrowing from friends was definitely not an option for such an amount.

Now that his father was supportive, everything was fine.

He had already thought about it, when the time came he would return the five million saying the jade that came out wasn’t Imperial Green but another type that only broke even.

As for losing to Xu Yang, that hadn’t even crossed his mind.

How could Xu Yang, a country bumpkin from a small county town new to jade gambling, compare with him, a rich second-generation?

This gambling match wasn’t about making money, but about stepping on Xu Yang hard.

Soon enough, he received a message from his dad saying that five million had been transferred to his account.

Chen Guanglei opened his mobile banking app, saw the amount had indeed been credited, and couldn’t help but laugh.

“Xu Yang, you damn county-town bumpkin, you enjoyed the company of a pair of sisters, something even I, a rich second-generation, haven’t achieved. I need to step on you hard to feel good!”