Chapter 420 - 408: Jue Pearl (2)

Under Mr. Hu’s lead, everyone introduced themselves and then gathered to chat about wellness.

Elder Xu said, "We shouldn’t just do Tai Chi. I know a set of exercises called the Eight Pieces of Brocade that’s also great for wellness. Come on, I’ll teach you."

"Alright, let’s learn from each other."

And so, the group began learning the Eight Pieces of Brocade from Elder Xu.

Yun Jiao and Yun Xiao Ba joined in as well.

Yun Jiao had been learning to dance, so she picked it up after just one run-through, and her movements were quite precise.

As for Yun Xiao Ba, she had gotten a bit chubby from staying with Mr. Hu, so her movements were a little stiff.

"Oh my, this little one is doing great. Just look at her, she’s a natural!"

Yun Jiao was practicing the Eight Pieces of Brocade just behind her master. The group of elderly men and women behind them were originally watching Elder Xu, but they couldn’t help but be captivated by Yun Jiao’s movements.

Her serious little expression and precise movements, like a beautiful kitten, were heartwarming to watch.

Older people are fond of children, and they were even more taken with one so pretty and adorable.

Elder Xu said proudly, "My apprentice."

"Your apprentice must have studied dance, right? You can tell she has some training."

"You’ve got a good eye. My apprentice is clever, and she loves to learn..."

Elder Xu sounded like he was bragging about his own clever granddaughter.

Yun Jiao heard this and wanted to ask, ’Aren’t you always telling me I don’t work hard enough?!’

Of course, she didn’t dare to ask.

After two rounds of the Eight Pieces of Brocade, everyone had worked up a bit of a sweat.

This was especially true for Mr. Hu and Yun Xiao Liu.

The two of them were quite tired after just two rounds.

So they went to rest on the sidelines, deciding to take it slow and increase their exercise load day by day.

Before long, Yun Jiao was the one leading the elderly men and women through the Eight Pieces of Brocade, while Elder Xu moved through the group to correct their form.

More people trickled into the park, and finding the scene amusing, some even joined in.

The ranks gradually swelled.

Yun Jiao...

After seven or eight rounds, Yun Jiao had had enough.

"Master, I’m going to go play!"

Without waiting for his reply, she dashed off to join her Sixth Brother and the others resting on the sidelines.

The group of elderly men and women had also gotten enough exercise, so they dispersed to find other ways to pass the time.

A few of the women gathered to chat and gossip, while the men went to play Chinese chess under a tree.

The weather was cold, so they didn’t linger for long after their workout before heading home.

As soon as they got home, Mr. Hu started cooking.

Yun Jiao and Yun Xiao Ba stayed with Mr. Hu for a few days. When the auction drew near, they returned to their respective masters’ homes.

The auction was held in an old, historic-looking building. It was the first time Yun Jiao and Yun Xiao Ba had attended such an event, so they both stuck close to Ancient and his son.

There was a wide variety of items up for auction, five of which had been submitted by Yun Jiao and her friends.

They actually had many more items they could have auctioned, but putting them all up at once would attract too much attention. Besides, releasing too much supply would drive down the price.

So, to play it safe, they only put up five pieces.

Only after arriving did Yun Jiao realize the world was truly full of wealthy people.

It was just that the circles she had moved in before were filled with ordinary people, and given the general state of the economy, she had assumed the wealthy were few and far between.

After all, she had seen newspaper reports celebrating families whose assets exceeded ten thousand yuan.

But here, ten thousand yuan seemed like an insignificant sum to these people.

Of course, Yun Jiao herself was already a little tycoon in her own right.

Watching the prices of the items climb higher and higher, she felt the impulsive urge to join the bidding herself.

"Jiaojiao, is there anything you have your eye on?"

Yun Jiao shook her head. "Not yet."

Soon, her antiques were brought out.

When the antiques were presented, the auctioneer described their historical context and their former owners.

The bronze sword, for instance, had once been wielded by a famous general.

It was this kind of provenance that increased their value to collectors, naturally driving up the price.

In the end, they all fetched excellent prices.

There were three items in the grand finale.

A bead of unknown origin, a five-hundred-year-old ginseng root, and an ancient painting.

All eyes were primarily on the ginseng.

A five-hundred-year-old ginseng root—that was a truly life-saving treasure.

However, the first to be brought out was the bead.

"This is a miraculous bead. As you can all see, it’s a deep ocean blue, yet it emits a very soft glow, which is even more prominent in the dark. Now, we’re going to turn off all the lights and draw the curtains so we can all admire this magical bead together."

The bead’s origin was not mentioned. Usually, in a situation like this, it suggested the item had a questionable provenance.

It had likely been looted from a tomb somewhere.

But this was an unwritten rule of the industry, so no one said a word.

When the room was plunged into darkness, the blue bead seemed to come alive. The color within it appeared to flow, and the bead itself emitted a beautiful, soft glow.

The moment the bead appeared, Yun Jiao found she couldn’t tear her eyes away from it.

Others might not know what it was, but she did.

’It’s a Jue Pearl!’

’Not the kind of pearl formed from tears, but the Jue Pearl from inside a Merfolk’s body!’

’A Merfolk only has one Jue Pearl. If the pearl leaves the body, the Merfolk dies.’

’How can a Jue Pearl exist in this world?’

’Could it be that the legends in the books are true?’

Once everyone had admired it to their heart’s content, the lights in the building came back on and the curtains were drawn open.

"Alright, let the auction begin. The starting bid for this bead is three hundred thousand yuan, with minimum increments of ten thousand..."

Yun Jiao tugged on Gu Lanting.

"Uncle Gu, I like this. Can you help me bid on it?"

Gu Lanting knew from Yun Jiao’s collection that she had a fondness for pearls, gems, Jadeite, and other pretty things.

He figured this bead must have appealed to the girl’s tastes as well.

So he joined the bidding.

The money, of course, would come from Yun Jiao herself.

In the end, they won the bead for one million six hundred thousand yuan.

Although the bead was a curiosity, no one knew what it actually was.

People would only buy it as a rare collectible, and for those who just wanted a glowing orb, a Luminous Pearl was a more affordable alternative.

Everyone else present was there for the ginseng, so they weren’t willing to spend too much on the bead, which worked out in Yun Jiao’s favor.

Besides, the Jue Pearl wouldn’t have been of much use to anyone else, but for Yun Jiao, it was incredibly valuable.