Spencer Burleyâs face darkened again. Furious, he said, âKeith Walker, what is this supposed to mean? Youâve already taken half the deposit; now youâre saying youâre out just like that?â
âHey, I say, Spencer Burley. If someone doesnât want to oppose their own teacher, thatâs human nature, you know? You have to understand that.â
Nathan Humphrey chuckled and said to Keith Walker, âDonât worry. However much deposit you took from him, Iâll cover it later.â
Upon hearing this, Keith Walker immediately broke into a beaming smile and said, âThankyou, Nathan. Nathan sure is generous.â
Nathan Humphrey lifted his chin, prideful, and said, âWell, Spencer Burley, what do you think? Still want to bet?â
âHa-ha, his appraiser is gone. Whatâs there left to bet? Really thought he could win against our Master Zhang by himself?â
âOverestimating himself, daring to bet with Nathan. He must be sick of living.â Spencer Burleyâs face looked incredibly sour, but he also knew the others were right. Now that he was without an appraiser, continuing to bet would have just been a humiliation.
Today was a washout!
Just as he was about to make a public apology, Greg Jensen suddenly patted his shoulder and said with a smile, âDonât panic. Arenât I still here?â
Spencer Burley hesitated, âBig brother Greg, youâ¦â
Greg Jensen smiled and responded, âRelax, if Iâm here there wonât be problems.â
âHey, whatâs it got to do with you? Who are you to stick your nose into our bet?â Nathan Humphrey frowned and questioned.
Greg Jensen sneered, âIâm the appraiser Spencer called in. So, is it my business or not?â
âYouâre an appraiser?â
Nathan Humphrey was taken aback and then burst into laughter. Pointing at Greg Jensen, he said, âGuys, he says heâs an appraiser. Do you believe it?â âBullshitting, arenât you? Probably havenât even finished your apprenticeship at your age. What could you possibly appraise!â
âHa ha haâ¦â
The group of wealthy second-generation heirs burst into another round of loud laughter.
Louisa Burley furrowed her brows slightly, seemingly dissatisfied with the behavior of the wealthy young men, and whispered softly, âBig brother Greg, I believe in you.â
âUhâ¦â
Greg Jensen smiled and nodded his head, then turned towards Nathan Humphrey and demanded, âSpit it out, no dawdling. Are we betting or not? Just say the word!â
âBet? Why not? But I want to change the terms of the bet a little,â Nathan Humphrey replied, his gaze sinister, and with a smirk he sneered, âIf you lose, not only does Spencer Burley have to kneel and apologize to me, all of you have to kneel down.â
He paused briefly, then turned to Louisa Burley beside him, his face revealing a malicious grin, âOf course, if the lady doesnât want to kneel, sheâs welcome to spend the night with me!â
âYou dare insult my sister? Iâll fight you to the death!â
Enraged, Spencer Burley was about to charge at him when Greg Jensen lifted his hand and delivered a slap.
Slap!
The strike was neither too harsh nor too gentle, but it resonated loudly throughout the entire warehouse.
âAiden Clark, you dare hit Nathan? Iâm going to kill you!â
âGuys, letâs take this punk down!â
The other affluent young men filled with righteous indignation, but Nathan Humphrey stopped them.
He glared at Greg Jensen with a dark look and said indifferently, âNot bad, kid. Iâll remember that slap. After the bet is over, weâll settle this privately!â
After that, he leered at Louisa Burley before saying, âAlright, letâs start. The stones are all here; each person picks three.â
âHold on!â
âWhat now? Too scared to bet?â
Nathan Humphrey stopped in his tracks, revealing a mocking smile, âIf youâre chickening out, just admit it early. Kneel down and apologize to me, and let me give you ten more slaps, then weâll call it quits for today.â
Greg Jensen smiled faintly, âYouâre thinking too much. I just find this way of playing boring, thatâs all.â
âOh, you think the stakes are too low?â
âJust kneeling and apologizing, how boring is that?â
Greg Jensen sneered, âHow about this, the loser doesnât need to kneel and apologize; just crawl out of here barking like a dog. How does that sound?â âBesides that, letâs add two million in cash. Without any money involved, Iâm really too lazy to make a move.â
Upon hearing his words, Spencer Burley and Adrian Wrightâs expressions changed instantly. They didnât even have an appraiser on their side; the odds of losing were high. How could they up the stakes?
Spencer Burley felt anxious, but seeing Greg Jensenâs calm demeanor, a sense of confidence inexplicably grew within him.
Nathan Humphrey was first stunned, then his eyes lit up as he laughed and said, âI love that idea; I didnât expect you, kid, to be so much to my liking.
If you werenât on their side, I would have really liked to make friends with you.â Greg Jensen shook his head and sneered, âHeh, sorry, youâre not worthy!â Nathan Humphreyâs face immediately darkened as he glared at Greg Jensen for a long time before suddenly smiling and nodding, âFine, donât be anxious. Youâll have your chance to cry later!â
âShall we start?â
âSure.â
Greg Jensen smiled and walked into the exhibition area with Spencer Burley and the others.
Adrian Wright hurried a few steps forward, lowering his voice anxiously, âBrother Greg, are you confident?â
âOf course, I am confident. Would I raise the stakes if I werenât?â Greg Jensen laughed.
Spencer Burley was also somewhat worried, but Greg Jensen was his invitee. He couldnât say much else and could only grit his teeth, saying,
âBrother Greg, if we lose later, Iâll stay behind to hold them off. You take my sister and get out of here quickly.â
Greg Jensen laughed heartily, patting his shoulder and said, âDonât worry, we canât lose. With me here, youâd have a hard time even trying to lose.â âReally?â
âRubbish, when have you seen me do something I wasnât sure about?â
Thinking it over, Spencer Burley felt his tension ease.
Only then did he notice Greg Jensen and Louisa Burley still holding hands.
He was immediately stunned and pointing at them asked, âYou twoâ¦â
Louisa Burley snapped out of it and quickly let go of her hand. Her charming little face instantly turned red, and in a voice as soft as a mosquitoâs, she said, âBrother Greg, sorry, I didnât mean to.â
âI think this stone looks quite good.â
To hide his embarrassment, Greg Jensen quickly walked over to a stone, placed his hand on it, and then channeled his True Qi to use the Mind Soil Technique. The structure inside the stone instantly appeared in his mind.
The whole stone turned into a cloud of gray mist in his mind, and in the middle of the mist shone a light green glow.
Is there something there?
Greg Jensenâs face lit up with joy. After double-checking, he took the marker from Spencer Burleyâs hand and marked a tick on the stone.
âBrother Greg, does this mean⦠youâve made your choice?â
All three stared at him, utterly bewildered.
Wasnât that too quick?
Even if they knew nothing about stone selection, they understood that one needed to carefully examine the shellâs texture and eye color.
Greg Jensen had barely looked at it; he simply touched it and made his choice. They couldnât help but wonder if he was joking.
âTrust me!â
Knowing they didnât believe him, Greg Jensen didnât explain further; he just smiled and said this, continuing to feel his way along.
On the other side, since Mr. Zhang had been looking around since the morning and was very familiar with the stones in the area, he quickly chose three stones. âYoung Master Nathan, letâs go with these three stones; theyâre a sure win. Thereâs no better stone here than these three.â
âHmm, youâve worked hard.â
Nathan Humphrey trusted Mr. Zhang and didnât think much else about it, confidently walking towards Greg Jensen and the others.
He planned to see what kind of goods that arrogant kid could come up with.