Reborn As Super Heiress

Chapter 143: Chapter 140: Big Brother, Lend Me a Bucket

“This is the largest raw material recycling factory in Pingzhou, specializing in collecting and processing failed cuts and unsold ‘brick’ materials. Almost all the ‘bricks’ on Jade Street come from here.”

“There are plenty of bricks here, and they’re inexpensive. The factory probably buys them back for just tens to hundreds of yuan each, then processes the raw materials a little, and sells them for four or five hundred yuan. The shops on Jade Street mainly rip off tourists from out of town, increasing the price by more than tenfold. You’re at a disadvantage picking bricks on Jade Street; you should pick here instead, where there’s an abundance.”

While explaining, Du Yuanwei led Huo Sining and the others into the factory and, sure enough, as soon as they entered, they saw an enormous basement warehouse filled with all sorts of brick materials.

Huo Sining exchanged a look with Bai Yishan, her heart filled with joy.

With such low prices and so much raw material, she figured that even if they bought a lot, it probably wouldn’t attract attention.

And since this was a waste material recycling station, even if she used the most bizarre methods to select her raw materials, nobody was likely going to care.

...

Conditions like these seemed tailor-made for her.

“How much will it cost for the raw materials we pick out here? Should we agree on the price beforehand? Otherwise, after we’ve made our selection, if they jack up the price, won’t we be at a loss?”

Huo Sining was thinking ahead. Although the possibility was small, she was still concerned. The materials she picked out were definitely expected to increase in value when cut. If she ended up getting swindled, should she give up the purchase or allow herself to be taken advantage of?

Du Yuanwei couldn’t help but laugh: “You can rest assured about that. Though there aren’t many walk-in customers here, there are still more than just a few of you. The owner of this waste material factory is a friend of mine who wholesales ‘brick’ materials to jade gambling shops all over the country. You can pick as much as you want, and if you buy a lot, I can get you a discount. Plus, I can arrange for the materials to be shipped back for you; there’s no risk of being overcharged.”

Assured of this, how could Huo Sining and the others hesitate? They immediately rushed towards the piles of raw materials.

Since it was a so-called raw material recycling factory, most of the materials here were deemed worthless, either being failed cuts or obviously undesirable ‘bricks’ unlikely to increase in value upon cutting.

In Pingzhou, these materials were unpopular, but once transported out to jade gambling shops around the country, lots of uninformed newcomers couldn’t resist the temptation. Especially if there was the occasional overlooked piece that could increase in value when cut, those novices would pounce like cats smelling meat.

In Du Yuanwei’s eyes, Huo Sining and her companions were probably such greenhorns. However, everyone starts as a novice, and he could understand their desire to find bargains and get rich. It was better to come here to the recycling station than to get fleeced by unscrupulous dealers on Jade Street. After all, it was just a few hundred yuan per piece. They could gain experience and learn lessons, and even if the cuts failed, it wouldn’t be too painful.

Just then, a middle-aged man came out from a nearby workshop. Seeing Du Yuanwei, he showed some surprise: “A Wei, what brings you here? Why didn’t you give me a call to let me know? Hurry, come in and sit down.”

With a smile, Du Yuanwei said, “Qi Ge, I’m here to help friends pick out raw materials. Those three over there are my friends; I’d like to trouble you to look after them a little later.”

“No problem at all, your buddy’s friends are my friends too,” Old Qi said as he followed Du Yuanwei’s gaze and spotted three girls standing in front of a pile of raw materials. A mischievous smile crept into the corners of his eyes as he playfully nudged Du Yuanwei’s shoulder and teased, “Oh, three beauties, huh? Have you finally seen the light, kid? Which one’s your girl?”

Hearing Old Qi’s teasing, Du Yuanwei immediately felt embarrassed and hurriedly explained, “None of them, they’re just ordinary friends. They all came with Su Jinyuan. That kid was busy, so he asked me to help take care of them a bit.”

“Su Jinyuan is here too?” Old Qi was momentarily stunned, then suddenly seemed to remember something, slapped his forehead and said, “Look at my memory, you guys are here for the jade bidding event, aren’t you? I almost forgot.”

Du Yuanwei nodded his head.

Old Qi’s expression turned a bit more serious, and he spoke with a profound look in his eyes, “The prices at this event might fluctuate greatly. I’ve heard that things are pretty unstable in Myanmar lately, seems like a few big families are gearing up for a fight again. This public sale is probably gauging the gamblers’ mindset, getting ready to make a big score. You and Su Jinyuan should be mentally prepared, don’t rush to bid, better to wait and see first.”

Old Qi often dealt with the raw material merchants from Myanmar, and naturally, the rumors he spread weren’t without basis. Du Yuanwei’s expression grew solemn, and he took the advice to heart.

Meanwhile, Su Qingqing was having a blast picking through the raw materials, but Huo Sining seemed a bit distracted. Without water, she was completely in the dark, unable to do anything.

Just then, a worker with a plastic bucket went to a tap in the corner of the warehouse to wash his face, lighting up Huo Sining’s eyes with excitement. She quickly ran over, “Big brother, could we borrow your bucket for a bit? The stones are so dusty, and we’d like to get some water to wash our hands.”

The worker turned around and gave the three women a glance without saying a word. Huo Sining was quick-witted and understood immediately, pulling out fifty bucks from her bag, “How about this? I’ll give you fifty bucks to borrow your bucket, and we’ll return it to you as soon as we’re done picking through the raw materials. What do you say?”

The worker finally showed a satisfied smile on his face, handing the bucket to Huo Sining, “Little lady, you can use it. This bucket isn’t worth much, I’ll sell it to you.”

After taking the fifty yuan and tucking it into his chest pocket, he even kindly filled the bucket with water and carried it to the middle of the warehouse for Huo Sining.

Seeing Huo Sining bringing a bucket of water over, Su Qingqing was puzzled, “Ningning, we’re not washing stones, what do you need a bucket of water for?”

Bai Yishan, thinking of the odd jade gambling skill Huo Sining had mentioned, guessed what she was up to and quickly laughed, helping to cover for Huo Sining,

“These raw materials must have been sitting here for who knows how long, coated in dust. You can’t see their true colors without washing them first. It’s good to have some water; we’ll eat less dust that way.”

Su Qingqing, unaware of the silent understanding between the two, took their word for it and nodded without further question.

Boss Qi didn’t miss the little antics of Huo Sining and her group. Many people who came to buy gambling stones would wash them with clear water to take a better look, and seeing that the women were clearly novices, he didn’t pay much mind and let them do as they pleased without interference.