Zombie Bodyguard
Chapter 65 - 64: How Is Ten Million Enough?

Chapter 65: Chapter 64: How Is Ten Million Enough?

The long table in the center of the living room had already been cleared of drinks, and now the Bai Family’s servants were placing one stone after another on it, quickly filling it with dozens of raw jade materials. If Lin Tian had seen so many jade materials before today, he would have been amazed.

However, having seen thousands of materials in Elder Zhou’s basement, these dozens of stones now seemed rather ordinary. The wealthy guests in the living room all gathered around, young and old alike, forming small groups and pointing and commenting on the raw jade materials on the table, as if they were judges in a competition.

They acted like experts, though most of them had only a superficial knowledge. Gemstone gambling, without guidance from a true connoisseur, is difficult to master. Even Zhou Botong, who spent all his time under the influence of Elder Zhou, was just mediocre, let alone these rich people.

"Xiao Tian, over here..." Elder Zhou, not far away, suddenly called for Lin Tian and gestured for him to come over. Standing with Elder Zhou were members of the Xiao Family and the Bai Family. As Lin Tian approached, he noticed the middle-aged couple from the Bai Family looking at him with strong hostility.

"Who are those two?" Lin Tian whispered to Xiao Manxuan.

"They’re Bai Yuze and Bai Yufeng’s parents," she replied in an equally low voice.

No wonder their gaze was so voracious; their son had been kicked not too lightly. Although Bai Yuze had returned to the living room and seemed fine on the surface, the kick to his rear would be memorable for a long time.

"Elder Zhou, you called for me. Is there something you need?" Lin Tian ignored them and turned to ask Elder Zhou.

Elder Zhou chuckled and said, "Xiao Tian, have you forgotten what I mentioned before I came? You need to take part in the jade appraisal competition later."

He spoke too euphemistically, calling it jade appraisal instead of plain gambling on stones. However, Lin Tian later realized that in situations without a formal transaction, it indeed wasn’t called stone gambling. Understanding Elder Zhou’s intent, Lin Tian shook his head and said, "Elder Zhou, I’d like to take part, too, but unfortunately, I don’t have ten million. Even if you sold me, I wouldn’t fetch ten million if I lost."

"Lin Tian, right?" Bai Zhengchu looked at Lin Tian, his expression unreadable, and said, "You were so spirited just now. Why are you backing out before we even start? That’s not the spirit of a young man. Besides, even a layman could randomly pick a piece and not necessarily choose the worst one. What are you so worried about?"

Here it comes, the Bai Family starting to provoke. But Lin Tian was stubborn and didn’t engage with Bai Zhengchu. That would surely infuriate them; all Bai Family members were of the same ilk.

Lin Tian’s reaction was unexpected for Bai Zhengchu. He had thought that a young man who loved the spotlight like Lin Tian should be easy to provoke. Yet Lin Tian was indifferent to the taunts, not taking the bait at all, leaving Bai Zhengchu feeling like he was punching cotton.

"You’re the Xiao Family’s bodyguard, and you just won a great deal of face for the Xiao Family. Even if you really lose in the competition, surely Mrs. Xiao and Miss Xiao wouldn’t begrudge a mere ten million," the middle-aged man from the Bai Family said with a smile, cleverly dragging the Xiao women into the debate.

"Grandfather..." Bai Yuze stepped forward and said, "Brother Lin Tian may truly be clueless about jade appraisal. Why should we force him to do something beyond his ability? Jade appraisal isn’t something just anybody can afford to play at."

The three generations of the Bai Family were in sync, true to the saying that the family environment shapes the individual.

"Old Bai, not only will we support Lin Tian with ten million, but also..." Xiao Manxue paused, expressionless, before continuing, "also, our two families will privately wager on whether Lin Tian or Bai Yuze picks the worse piece, and the losing side will contribute an additional twenty million as a donation. How does Old Bai feel about this proposal?"

Miss Xiao was stunningly cool and assertive, the President of the Xiao Group. Lin Tian glanced at her and found Xiao Manxue’s spirited demeanor quite enchanting, his heart skipping a beat.

Xiao Manxue’s voice wasn’t loud, but those who were close by heard her clearly. In no time at all, the news spread throughout the hall, and the already excited guests became even more enthusiastic.

"20 million?" Bai Zhengchu wasn’t unable to afford the sum, but he was puzzled by Xiao Manxue’s confidence.

"That’s right, 20 million euros!" Xiao Manxue added.

million euros! Lin Tian was utterly speechless. It would have been somewhat understandable had this woman dropped 20 million yuan to support him, but 20 million euros, given the current exchange rate, would exceed 160 million yuan!

Could this woman be too overconfident? 160 million was no small amount.

"What’s the matter? Does Old Bai disagree with the proposal? Since it’s about identifying jadeite rough, we should follow the payment standard of the Myanmar Jade Public Auction, naturally in euros," Xiao Manxue said nonchalantly, seeing that the Bai Family didn’t respond.

The Bai Family didn’t just have money blown in by the wind. Her casual suggestion of 20 million euros was indeed beyond their expectations. Bai Zhengchu looked at her and then at Lin Tian before saying, "Very well, we’ll do as you say."

The evening’s entertainment was one spectacle after another, and the wealthy guests felt that attending the gathering was not in vain. The heavyweights returned to their seats while the younger generation gathered around the long table, yet no one took the initiative to select the jadeite rough. Lin Tian and Bai Yufeng walked over, and people made way for them.

The focus of the competition was on these two men because the outcome of their duel would affect a donation involving more than 160 million yuan.

"Mr. Bai, since this is your home ground, you should go first," Lin Tian generously said.

There were some rough stones with good-looking exteriors, and those who chose first could take the initiative. However, Bai Yufeng did not accept the courtesy. With a confident smile on his face, he said, "We can choose at the same time, each relying on our own skills. There’s no need to divide into first and second, please go ahead!"

His confidence had its reasons; he had been nurtured by his family since he was young and had studied jade identification. He had also revealed quite good jadeite water types in the domestic stone gambling market, giving him a modest reputation among the younger generation.

Aside from Elder Zhou and Xiao Manxuan, others were not very optimistic about Lin Tian. Xiao Manxuan’s confidence in Lin Tian was also blind; even knowing he had never dealt with stone gambling, she chose to believe in him.

Zhou Botong whispered, "Lin Tian, don’t feel any psychological pressure. After all, if you lose, it’s not your money that will be spent."

This comment left Lin Tian speechless; he shook his head and ignored him, concentrating instead on the jadeite rough on the table.

If one were to go by the exterior standards Elder Zhou had mentioned, Lin Tian found that there was not a single good piece of material here; no python patterns or cracks to use as reference. Naturally, the Bai Family wouldn’t bring out any good materials.

"Lin Tian, your method of looking at the rough is truly unique. Don’t you need a magnifying glass?" Bai Yufeng said with a smile, his eyes barely concealing his disdain.

The guests in the hall also viewed him with some contempt. Examining rough without any tools was even more clueless than an outsider. Lin Tian couldn’t care less about these people. As a novice, using tools was useless to him; X-ray vision was his greatest reliance.

He pretended to pick up a stone and look closely, but in reality, he was using his X-ray vision to inspect the internal situation of the jadeite rough. However, after examining over a dozen pieces, he still hadn’t found any high-quality jadeite; the best barely reached the bean green variety, and some of the rough actually contained just ordinary stone!

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