"Who is this gentleman?" As someone in charge of the mine, how could he afford not to have keen eyes?
At this moment, Chu Ge no longer concealed his aura; of course, it wasn’t a martial prowess, but a temperament naturally formed after cultivating martial arts.
Anyone with a bit of insight could sense a noble and majestic air from this temperament.
The person in charge of the mine’s eyes lit up, and he immediately approached Chu Ge, bowing slightly, "May I ask who this young master is?"
"Just do what you need to do, don’t ask questions that you shouldn’t be asking," Huo Tianqian said directly with a frown, speaking quite rudely.
However, the head of the mine did not show any sign of anger, but instead said with a smile, "Hehe, Master Huo’s reminder is apt; it was my impertinence, please, esteemed guests, follow me!"
With that, he led the way.
Chu Ge followed directly, while Huo Tianqian walked behind him, lagging by about two or three steps.
Every person has two sides to them. Just as the trio was about to enter the mine, a man dressed in a suit – yet now covered in mud and looking utterly unkempt – was desperately grabbing onto the door frame, seemingly wanting to enter.
Only to be dragged outwards by two security guards in uniform.
Seeing the person in charge of the mine coming over, the man’s eyes brightened, as if he’d seen a lifesaver, and he lunged forward to hug his right leg: "Boss Xu, Boss Xu, please give me another chance, I beg you, just one more chance, I won’t make the wrong choice again!"
The person in charge hesitated and glanced at Chu Ge and the others, and Chu Ge made a "suit yourself" gesture, then took out his smartphone and started fiddling with it.
Only then did the person in charge stop, showing a gentle smile to the man: "Then how much money can you still bring out?"
"Money?" The man was taken aback, shaking his head like a rattle-drum: "Boss Xu, I really don’t have any money left. My house, my car, all have been mortgaged, I’ve even taken out a high-interest loan, I’m really at my wit’s end. I beg you, give me another chance, just once!"
Boss Xu still wore a smile on his face, but his gaze was turning icy: "If you have no money, how can I give you a chance? Someone, if he dares to break in again, break both his legs and throw him out!"
"Boss Xu, Boss Xu!" The man struggled desperately but was ultimately dragged away by two burly security guards, leaving only his screams drifting from afar: "Boss Xu, I beg you, my wife has been taken, if I don’t pay up, I can only die to make amends!"
Looking at the marks on the ground from the dragging, Chu Ge’s eyes flickered, but he made no move.
He is not a saint, on the contrary, sometimes he can even be considered petty. Unless it touched his heart, even if a tragedy was unfolding before his eyes, Chu Ge would not intervene.
Without paying any more attention to the man being dragged out, Chu Ge as he entered the door, suddenly remarked, "For ordinary people, this place is both a heaven and a hell."
"For someone like you, this place is merely a toy, which by a mere wave of the hand can be annihilated," Huo Tianqian said reverently from behind Chu Ge.
Chu Ge glanced at him, smiled faintly, but said nothing.
These were not words said in discretion, but rather spoken directly. And yet, Boss Xu leading the way in front showed not the slightest sign of anger, appearing like the most humble servant as opposed to the stern demeanor he exhibited earlier.
This is the survival rule for these kinds of people. If they encounter someone weaker, they instantly become Hell Yama; if they confront someone stronger, then they can only become a servant.
At this time, it was midday. The mine was bustling with quite a number of people, all congregating around piles of rocks – there were those who bawled their eyes out, those who were as elated as if they were insane, and even a few dancing jubilantly, as if possessed by demons.
After leading Chu Ge into the mine, Boss Xu excused himself to leave, after all, the large Gambling Stone Field still required his oversight, and his presence at the entrance to personally welcome them had already given enough face.
It didn’t matter though, Huo Tianqian seemed to be a regular here, and he led Chu Ge familiarly through various sections.
"You seem quite familiar with this place," said Chu Ge, casually picking up a rock before tossing it aside.
Hidden within that rock was a high-quality piece of jade that could probably be worth tens of thousands if cut open, but for the current Chu Ge, such things no longer held his interest.
"I did want to do something for you," Huo Tianqian chuckled and cautiously added, "Coming here to the Gambling Stone Field, in fact, was to foster a good relationship with the Miss of the Tang Family."
"Miss of the Tang Family?"
"That’s right," Huo Tianqian nodded, "Mr. Tang has two grandsons and one granddaughter. They are Tang Youwei, Tang Jiatai, and Tang Xin. This Tang Xin is the Miss of the Tang Family and the most adored by Old Master Tang. Miss Tang Xin has a penchant for jade and jadeite, yet doesn’t like to buy directly from stores, thus she’s a regular customer at this Gambling Stone Field."
As he said this, Huo Tianqian pointed to the price tags on the rocks: "These prices might be unbearable for ordinary people, but to the Tang Family, they’re merely a drop in the bucket. It also took me a lot of effort to become somewhat familiar to Miss Tang Xin."
"Tang Xin, huh?" Chu Ge dusted off the dust on his sleeve, suddenly smiling, "If it’s just about gambling stones, the matter seems to be getting simpler."
Huo Tianqian, unaware that Chu Ge could detect in advance whether a stone contained jade, reminded him with some concern: "Mr. Chu, this Miss Tang Xin has been spoiled by Old Master Tang since she was young, so her personality is incredibly willful. Even the people from the Four Great Families here probably won’t hold much respect for her."
"So, in my opinion, how about we first try to find a master of stone-cutting to curry her favor?" Huo Tianqian observed Mr. Chu’s expression and whispered, "Despite Miss Tang Xin’s capricious temperament, she has a profound love for gambling stones, even to the point of obsession. If you can impress her in this field, whatever you wish to pry from her would become exceedingly easy!"
"Curry favor, huh?" Chu Ge mumbled, then suddenly shook his head with a smile, "Huo Tianqian, have I ever mentioned to you that I also do stone-cutting?"