The new week dawned, and after typing late into the night to upload, I’m begging for recommendation votes…

Driving, that act itself—say it’s easy, and it really isn't that hard. Wang Zhuo, after all, had only practiced for half a month and could already navigate the roads smoothly.

As for expertise, well, that was certainly lacking. That’s why, on the little Swallow car borrowed from Ding Ren, he had plastered the four corners with photocopied paper, bearing the four large characters: NOVICE DRIVER.

“Hey, guess who this is?” A distinctive ringtone, full of that Shandong accent—the original sound of Hei Pi from the movie Crazy Stone—blared from the cell phone resting on the passenger seat.

Wang Zhuo calmly steered the car to the side of the road and parked before picking up the call.

“Hello? Wang Zhuo, have you arrived yet?”

The speaker was Qiu Lu. He had just returned from Yunnan, and word was his haul was excellent. Coincidentally, Cai Yuantu had called that day, mentioning the shop had just received a new batch of raw jade material. Qiu Lu, Wang Zhuo, and Qi Fei had arranged to go look at it together and catch up.

Wang Zhuo managed a wry smile. “How could I be there so fast? I’m still on my way to pick up Sister Qi.”

Qiu Lu sounded surprised. “Not there yet? You left half an hour ago, didn’t you?”

“Come on, big brother, I’m a novice, okay? I haven’t dared to go faster than a horse carriage. A few kids on racing bicycles even overtook me just now.”

“Uh… well, keep going then. Be safe!”

Wang Zhuo merged back onto the road, crawling along for another ten minutes before reaching the spot where he was supposed to meet Qi Fei. Qi Fei was already drenched in sweat, the fabric under her arms completely soaked through.

Less than five minutes after getting into the car, Qi Fei couldn’t stand it anymore. “Can we please drive faster?”

“I am being responsible for your life,” Wang Zhuo replied, his posture steady and his tone righteous.

Qi Fei was caught between laughter and tears. “How about I drive instead? You can practice driving anytime you want; I’d rather save time to look at more stones.”

What could Wang Zhuo say? He had no choice but to switch places with her. The Swallow shot forward, starting directly in third gear, deftly weaving into the sea of traffic.

Having handed over the steering wheel, Wang Zhuo finally had the leisure to observe Qi Fei. She was wearing the same casual outfit from the first time they met. That day, the jade stone Wang Zhuo gambled on for the first time—the one he successfully uncovered—was purchased by her for eighty thousand yuan.

They had known each other for quite some time now, and Wang Zhuo knew Qi Fei was a woman who perspired easily. Whenever she was nervous, excited, or hot, she would start sweating immediately, and more profusely than the average person. However, her sweat carried a faint, milky sweetness, almost undetectable unless one was close enough to smell it carefully.

Perhaps it was the intense heat, or perhaps the Swallow’s air conditioning simply wasn't powerful enough; even with the cold air blasting at full force, the temperature inside the car remained quite high. Qi Fei occasionally had to reach up to wipe the sweat from her forehead, leaving damp marks on the steering wheel with her hands.

Wang Zhuo couldn't resist teasing her. “Sister Qi, Cao Xueqin must have known you; otherwise, how could he write that women are made of water?”

Qi Fei shot him an annoyed glare, and while waiting for the light to turn green, her right hand sneakily darted out, wiping across Wang Zhuo’s trousers.

The light turned green, and the car moved on. Wang Zhuo furtively watched the fine beads of perspiration nestled between Qi Fei’s cleavage, recalling the sensual scene from that other day, and secretly swallowed.

On that day, Wang Zhuo had noticed that Qi Fei’s breasts were slightly upward-tilting, tapered like bamboo shoots—trembling delicately and strikingly beautiful. For this, he had specifically consulted the master of adult films, Fei Long, falsely claiming he had seen an actress with that exact breast shape and asking if Fei Long had any corresponding footage.

Fei Long had exclaimed they were top-tier treasures and provided Wang Zhuo with several films from memory. Wang Zhuo watched them all but felt none compared to Qi Fei’s, making him even more convinced he had discovered a true rarity.

Sometimes Wang Zhuo felt a pang of regret; these treasures would inevitably belong to someone else someday. He wondered which lucky man would eventually benefit from them…

The two found Qiu Lu in the back courtyard of the Odd Stone Workshop. The simple-natured youth had darkened considerably under the Yunnan sun. As the three exchanged greetings, half a small mountain of a figure leaned out of the attic window and boomed heartily, “Miss Qi, Wang Zhuo, Little Qiu, come up for a seat!”

This stout man with a crude face and oversized gold hoop earrings was none other than Cai Yuantu, the owner of the Odd Stone Workshop. Wang Zhuo grinned and waved back in affirmation, and the three walked along the path toward the attic.

“Haha, what a rare treat! Come in, have a seat!” Cai Yuantu warmly ushered the trio inside the tea area, called for a waiter to prepare tea, and then asked Wang Zhuo, “I hear Guo Jiandeng cut that stone of yours?”

Wang Zhuo nodded wryly. The jade enthusiasts on Aicui.com were remarkably well-informed, and it seemed Guo Jiandeng had deliberately engineered the topic. Thus, the news that the Imperial Green jade had been sliced in half had spread quickly. No one could have imagined Guo Jiandeng would be so wasteful, cutting a perfectly good egg-shaped rough into a simple safety buckle and a large cabochon, immediately drawing countless curses and an equal measure of attention.

“That kid, worthy of the title ‘Hype Genius,’” Cai Yuantu commented with a faint smile, nodding. “He spares no expense in ruining things just to create buzz, keeping the hype constantly simmering. With someone so unconventional involved, this entire industry is about to see another small boom.”

Wang Zhuo was genuinely surprised for a moment and asked, “With just his own influence, can he actually drive up the price of jade across the entire industry?”

“No, your understanding is slightly skewed,” Cai Yuantu chuckled, shaking his head. “He is merely borrowing momentum to boost momentum, not fighting the current. That is the most crucial point, and where his brilliance lies.”

Wang Zhuo pondered for a moment. Once he grasped the meaning of those words, he nodded slowly.

Qi Fei smiled. “Boss Cai, your analysis is incredibly sharp. I feel like a light has suddenly been turned on.”

Qiu Lu also nodded repeatedly. He didn’t deeply understand these matters, but as long as everyone believed jade still had room to appreciate in value, he could confidently start his own business.

The tea was fragrant and delicate; sipping it left a lingering aroma on the palate. Unfortunately, it came in only a tiny cup, which Wang Zhuo finished in one gulp, leaving him decidedly unsatisfied.

Setting the teacup down, Cai Yuantu brought up another matter. “I heard you broke one of Li Shangdong’s wine cups? That spread like wildfire. I only found out a couple of days ago that it was you.”

Nanyang was Qiu Lu’s uncle, Qiu Nanyang. That incident was during Wang Zhuo’s very first visit to the Antique Street, where he immediately exposed the fake blue-and-white porcelain wine cup at Shangdong Tower. The story was already well-known, but no one knew who had done it.

Wang Zhuo chuckled wryly. “It was just an impulse. If my friend hadn't insisted on buying it right then, I would have just pretended not to notice.”

“Not bad, little brother. So many master appraisers couldn’t spot that fake, but you saw through it at a glance.” Cai Yuantu nodded, placing an object he had been turning over in his hand onto the table in front of Wang Zhuo. “This is a new acquisition of mine; could you give me your assessment?”

Everyone leaned in to look. It was an object about the size of a walnut, gleaming gold, with a rough surface and an irregular shape, resembling a piece of bone gnawed by a dog.

Qi Fei reached out, picked it up, weighed it a couple of times, and asked tentatively, “Is this… a nugget?”

Cai Yuantu nodded. “Miss Qi has a good eye. That’s right, a gold nugget.”

“I don’t even know what a gold nugget is,” Wang Zhuo said with a self-deprecating smile. “Boss Cai, breaking that wine cup was just a lucky coincidence. I certainly don't know how to appraise things.”

“Ah, I don’t see it that way,” Cai Yuantu said seriously. “So many experts authenticated that wine cup; why didn’t they break it? And that Imperial Green stone sat here for a year; why didn’t anyone else cut it? I think you, my brother, possess the gift of insight. Not knowing is fine; I can teach you as you look.”

Wang Zhuo had no choice but to agree, feeling another layer of admiration for Cai Yuantu. His own ability to see things was due to his supernatural power, but Cai Yuantu’s ability to read people was an equally formidable skill.