"Eh, isn't that Mr. Li? What a surprise to find you here! Mr. Li, is this glass crystal something you've uncovered? Wow, you're really impressive!"
A man in his 40s or 50s, upon seeing Li Yun, quickly approached to shake his hand enthusiastically.
Li Yun recognized this man; his name was Zhao Tuo, and his family was quite well-known in Jinling. Li Yun showed no arrogance and shook his hand.
"Let me tell you all, do you know who this person in front of us is?"
"This is Mr. Li Yun, the richest man in our city of Jinling! Do you think that, even if you offer a large sum of money, he would be interested?"
At that moment, Zhao Tuo made an extra effort to act like Li Yun's little follower, revealing his identity to everyone else.
Upon hearing that the man in front of them was Li Yun, the richest man in Jinling, everyone lost interest in the glass crystal he held.
It was a joke! In the city of Jinling, if anyone had more money than Li Yun, even if they lent him more, they still couldn't compare to him.
"Mr. Li, did you also come to the jade street opening ceremony?" Zhao Tuo asked again with interest.
"Yes."
"I got a little curious, played a bit, and it seems like the result isn't too bad."
Li Yun chatted briefly with Zhao Tuo before dismissing him, then instructed Chu Jun to send someone to transport the glass crystal back to the mansion.
Since this glass crystal was going to be a gift for Gu Yanran, he would leave the decision of how to handle it to her—whether to turn it into a bracelet, necklace, pendant, or something else.
Anyway, since it was so large, even if they decided to make a complete set, they would have enough material.
After strolling for a while with Gu Yanran, Li Yun felt it was time, so he headed to the largest shop on jade street.
The jade street opening wasn't really a grand ceremony, as all the shops had already opened to the public.
The reason Ouyang Zhenhua had invited so many people was for a gemstone gambling event.
However, after the incident with Ouyang Feiying, Li Yun was no longer as interested in the gambling event organized by Ouyang Feiying.
The largest store on jade street was called "Jade Pavilion," and although its name was a bit common, it belonged to Ouyang Zhenhua, the president of the Jinling Jade Association. It covered an area of 2,000 square meters and had three floors.
This represented one-tenth of the entire jade street, demonstrating Ouyang Zhenhua's power in the area.
At that moment, the Jade Pavilion was full of people, with wealthy individuals from Jinling, as well as jade enthusiasts from the surrounding areas, all there to support Ouyang Zhenhua.
Many wealthy people were already on the first floor, playing with gemstones.
The second floor wasn't open yet, and the third floor was reserved for the wealthy to rest.
In the main hall, dozens of uniformed employees were serving the guests, offering tea and water.
People with less power were usually on the first floor, gambling with gemstones, networking, or looking for investments.
"This place doesn't disappoint, look at everything on the first floor! This is my third time winning something good."
"It's gone up a lot, it's gone up a lot! I'm making a fortune!"
"It's turning green! It's turning green! It's excellent green, looks like this time I can win five times what I invested!"
"Ah, too bad mine didn't turn green!"
Everyone was surrounded by gemstones, some were sad for not winning, others were happy with their big gains.
They were all small entrepreneurs, and being invited to this event was already a great honor for them, so they couldn't be treated any differently than the big business owners.
The third floor was reserved for the wealthiest people in Jinling and the most important figures in the jade world—only they had the privilege of entering.
However, there was an unexpected young man among them.
If Li Yun had been there, he would have immediately recognized him. That young man was Luo Fan.
It could be said that the protagonists are always protagonists. Even after Li Yun had left him homeless, Luo Fan still found an opportunity to meet influential people.
Luo Fan, after getting drunk at a bar, accidentally came across a gemstone gambling shop. In his elevated spirits from the drink, he decided to put on quite a display.
He gambled with gemstones!
And what happened next left everyone stunned.
Because Luo Fan won every single bet—he got them all right!
Luo Fan's demonstration was witnessed by Ouyang Zhenhua, who, seeing the talent of this young man, didn't hesitate to approach him.
When he saw such a talented young man, Ouyang Zhenhua couldn't resist and took him to his home.
After a long conversation and more demonstrations from Luo Fan, Ouyang Zhenhua was completely impressed and began to form a strong friendship.
Just at that moment, taking advantage of the jade street opening, Ouyang Zhenhua decided to introduce Luo Fan to his circle, to help him expand his network and facilitate his integration into high society.
Not only that, but Ouyang Zhenhua had already decided to marry his granddaughter, Ouyang Mingyue, to Luo Fan.
Although Ouyang Cheng Mingyue strongly opposed this decision, Ouyang Zhenhua was determined to have his granddaughter marry Luo Fan.
For Ouyang Zhenhua, Luo Fan had the potential to become a true jade king, even though he was still an unknown figure. He believed that with his help, Luo Fan could become a prominent figure.
If Luo Fan married into his family, the Nangong family's lineage would be even stronger, as they would have another jade king.
"Gentlemen, today, since all the big shots are present, I want to introduce you to a young man."
"He is a friend I've recently met, and in gemstone betting, he's already above me. You could say he wins every bet. We've had many conversations and become good friends. I hope that everyone will offer him some support for the sake of this old friend of mine."
To help Luo Fan integrate into the higher circles, Ouyang Zhenhua even lowered his own status to raise Luo Fan's value.
"If President Ouyang recommends him like this, this young man must have something special. Ouyang, please, let us see him and let us be amazed!"
"Yes, I want to see this lucky young man that Ouyang has chosen! I can't wait to meet him."
The wealthy, talking amongst themselves, were all eager to meet the young man that Ouyang Zhenhua valued so highly and seemed to trust.
"As everyone insists, I won't hide him any longer. Luo Fan, come out and show yourself."
Everything that happened inside the building had been observed by Luo Fan with his enhanced vision, and upon hearing his name, he adjusted his attire a bit and walked out confidently.
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