With a hint of doubt, Richard thought for a mont and said, "My ti in Laisi is quite tight this ti. If he can co within two days, I can et with him to talk. If he’s late, I can only apologize."
"Alright, Lord Grey Crow, I will relay your ssage," said Water Bird.
"Okay, goodbye."
"Goodbye."
After a simple farewell, Richard walked out of the room, left the shop, and headed to an address on the list, silently repeating the already confird contact’s na: "Qian Ning."
Half an hour later.
"Martin Channing?" Richard stood in the center of a jewelry store in Laisi City, looked at the person in front of him, and asked aloud, "You are Martin Channing?"
The other party was short and stout, resembling a barrel with limbs. However, the occasional glint in his small beady eyes revealed extraordinary shrewdness.
Looking at the person’s appearance, Richard couldn’t help but think of the shifty rchant Alex whom he encountered in White Stone Tower City, who had a similar look and took quite a bit of money from him. Of course, he later dug up Alex’s ancestor’s grave, filled it with chlorine, and found the Black Spirit King’s treasure.
So, looking back, they were about even.
At this mont, Martin Channing, whose na was called, listened to the question, stared with his small eyes in confusion at Richard. He scrutinized Richard quietly, unsure of Richard’s identity and even less clear about why Richard was looking for him.
His eyes rolled in their sockets, cautiously asking, "This custor, I don’t know who you are. What business do you have with Martin Channing?"
While speaking, he had already made up his mind: if it was good news, he’d reveal his identity. If it was bad news, then "sorry, Martin Channing is not here."
"You can call Grey Crow, Water Bird sent ," Richard said aloud, "I want to inquire about so matters related to gemstones."
"Wa...Water Bird, you say? I see," said the short and stout Martin Channing, breathing a sigh of relief after hearing Richard’s words. He patted his chest and said, "I am Martin Channing. Um, this Lord Grey Crow, you can just call Qian Ning. If you have any specific needs, please let know, I will absolutely et them."
As he said this, Qian Ning waved at the two assistants at the door, signaling them to close the store’s main door to serve Richard exclusively, showing considerable acun.
Richard observed all this and said, "Specifically, I’ve heard that you have a batch of rather rare green gemstones here. I want to see if they are what I need."
"Green gemstones?" Qian Ning’s eyebrows raised slightly with a hint of caution, and he said thoughtfully, "I do have green gemstones here, but not many. After all, this is just a small shop, and funding has always been tight. If you require a large quantity, I can take you to see other places, ensuring fair prices."
"No need, let’s first take a look at the green gemstones you have here. As for the price, rest assured, I won’t shortchange you. I can purchase at market price or even above."
"Really?" Qian Ning’s small beady eyes glead with interest.
Richard looked at him seriously and asked, "Do you think I look like I’m joking? I don’t have ti for jokes."
"Yes, yes, that’s my mistake," Qian Ning replied with a couple of apologetic chuckles, showing no sign of dissatisfaction. He suddenly turned his head and shouted to the shop’s assistants, "What are you standing there for? Didn’t you hear what the lord said? Quickly bring out all the green gemstones in the shop, hurry!"
"Yes." The four burly assistants in the shop looked quite afraid of Qian Ning. After hearing his words, they hunched their shoulders in fear and quickly headed to the back warehouse.
Soon, four people carried out long wooden boxes one by one, carefully placing them on the counter and opening them to display the green gemstones inside that hadn’t yet made it to the shelves.
Qian Ning led Richard closer and began introducing the green gemstones in the boxes.
"Lord, look, this piece is a green gemstone produced by Kelin Mountain. You know Kelin Mountain, located in the barren North Wilderness, with hardly a soul. Therefore, green gemstones from there are incredibly expensive. Such gemstones, set in jewelry, would feel very noble, perfectly suiting your status."
"Look at these other pieces; they are from the Sika Kingdom. I’ll tell you quietly, it’s said they were stolen from the treasury of a certain Great Noble in the Sika Kingdom, and the quality is excellent and rare in the whole Soma Alliance."
"And this one, look at its shape, the pattern—isn’t it a little like a human heart? Because of this, this gemstone is called the Erald Heart, extrely rare, and isn’t seen in hundreds of years..."
"..."
Qian Ning went on and on, while Richard listened and carefully observed the green gemstones he was talking about.
In the end, he picked up one piece again and another, setting them down each ti.
Ultimately, Richard picked up a rather coarse-looking green gemstone, squinting his eyes a little.
"Lord, are you interested in such an Erald?" Qian Ning saw this, smiling as he spoke, imdiately spouting a rather grand na, although it was uncertain whether it was real or made up on the spot.
"I think this might be the gemstone I need," Richard replied.
"Then it shows your eye is really excellent, Lord," Qian Ning’s smile blossod like a flower. "This is a rare gem among rare gems. Although it’s produced in Laisi City locally, I guarantee there’s no other green gemstone like this in the whole world. So, the price may be a bit high."
"The price doesn’t matter, but I want to confirm if this is indeed what I need," Richard said.
Qian Ning’s small beady eyes blinked, quietly asking, "Lord, how do you plan on confirming...Ah!" As he spoke halfway, Qian Ning’s voice suddenly turned to a scream.
Richard was seen placing the three-centiter square green gemstone in his hand and, with a squeeze, crushed it into powder with a "crack" sound.
Qian Ning’s body fat trembled violently, almost making him jump, but he controlled himself.
However, the assistants in the shop didn’t have such temperance, a hint of anger appearing in their eyes. They didn’t think too hard about how Richard managed to crush the gemstone but suspected he was intentionally causing trouble and were about to step forward, only to halt suddenly in synced motion.
"Whoosh!"
A sound echoed, and a sky-blue fla appeared out of nowhere in Richard’s hand, burning the now powdered green gemstone.
The fla soared, illuminating the faces of everyone in the shop with its glow.
Martin’s mouth opened and closed, his face muscles twisted, forcing out a smile, exclaiming, "Lord, impressive!"
The nearby assistants subtly withdrew the steps they were about to take forward, echoing, "Indeed, the lord is impressive." They then turned around, grabbed cleaning cloths, and began wiping the counter vigorously. Though the counter was spotless, they continued to wipe with such diligence that the polish was nearly being stripped off.
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