Gu Hai's luck was truly incredible. He had casually brought out a black box, and it turned out to be made of the most valuable red sandalwood!
When Su Yun had first come to the recycling station, she had also found a piece of red sandalwood—but it was a rotten, worm-eaten scrap that only sold for 20 yuan.
Comparing people really was infuriating!
Filled with obvious jealousy, Su Yun rolled her eyes at Gu Hai. "Where did you get so many valuable things?"
Gu Hai answered honestly, "From the riverside where I dug up that big iron block."
"A few years ago, I found it and secretly dug it out at night, then buried it at home."
"No one knows about this, not even my younger siblings. I always felt it must be worth a lot, but keeping it with me made me uneasy, so I decided to bring it to you and exchange it for money."
"Su Yun, your friend should like it, right?"
At that moment, Su Yun was too overwhelmed to notice that Gu Hai had called her by name directly.
Still filled with envy, she nodded. "Of course. This thing is quite valuable."
Gu Hai smiled. "What's inside, you'll like even more."
Su Yun froze. "There's something inside?"
She had thought he was only showing her the box!
Excited, Su Yun immediately opened the red sandalwood case—and was stunned by what she saw.
"What is this?"
She picked up the heavy jade piece. It was warm yellow in color, smooth and cool to the touch. A lifelike dragon was carved on it, as if ready to soar into the sky. Beneath it were eight traditional Chinese characters:
"By the Mandate of Heaven, may longevity and prosperity endure."
"Ding! Detected: Imperial Jade Seal (original), well-preserved. Recovery price: 10,000,000. Do you wish to sell?"
Su Yun: "!!!"
How much?!
Her eyes widened as she took a long moment to process it.
The Imperial Jade Seal—worth a fortune!
And it was now in her hands?
Coming back to her senses, Su Yun quickly shoved the jade seal back into Gu Hai's arms as if it were burning her. She shook her head frantically. "No, no, this is too valuable. I can't afford it… I mean, my friend can't afford it!"
Gu Hai, as if not noticing her slip, firmly pushed it back to her. "Su Yun, this item is too special. The current situation is unclear. If someone discovers it, the consequences would be unimaginable. The only solution is to get rid of it as soon as possible. I trust you can handle it."
"Sell it to someone else—let them deal with the trouble."
Su Yun: "..."
Big brother, I'm the one dealing with the trouble!
She felt like crying. After repeatedly refusing, she finally accepted the Imperial Jade Seal under Gu Hai's insistence.
…Mostly because she couldn't resist the temptation of owning it!
Rumor had it that whoever possessed the Imperial Jade Seal would be blessed with great fortune. Whether it was true or not, she didn't know.
Like it was a treasure, Su Yun carefully hid the seal in the cabinet beneath her feet, even locking it and clutching the key tightly, as if ready to fight anyone who tried to take it.
Before closing time, Gu Hai rode away on his bicycle.
Su Yun quickly shut the door and cautiously took the jade seal out again.
The moment her hand touched the box, the system prompted her again, asking whether to sell the red sandalwood.
She chose "No."
Opening the box, she took out the jade seal and admired it repeatedly.
The system asked again if she wanted to sell it.
Without hesitation, Su Yun chose "No" again.
She hadn't even enjoyed it enough yet—why would she sell it?
Besides, this was the Imperial Jade Seal—a national treasure! How could she sell it to the system just for money?
She knew that the country would improve in the future, and the current tense situation wouldn't last long.
Su Yun began to plan: maybe she could trick Gu Hai, give him 10,000 yuan, and claim that was the best offer she got.
Then she could secretly keep the seal and donate it to the country when the time was right.
Even though that would be unfair to Gu Hai, she promised herself that he would share in the honor later!
While she was thinking, the system kept prompting her, but she ignored it, determined to hide the seal.
But after ten prompts, the system suddenly changed—
"Ding! Detected: Imperial Jade Seal (original), well-preserved. Recovery price: 10,000,000. Item has been automatically sold. Please check your balance!"
A flash of light—
The jade seal vanished from her hands!
She checked her balance: 10,013,582.4
Su Yun: "What the hell?!"
Was this some kind of joke?!
What kind of system forcefully buys things?!
This was outrageous!
Su Yun shouted, "Stupid system, give me back the Imperial Jade Seal!"
"Ding! The system has recovered the Imperial Jade Seal (original). Balance exceeds 10,000,000. Advanced mode unlocked. Would you like to store the Imperial Jade Seal?"
A glowing interface appeared with two options:
Enable storage space (cost: 1000)
Do not enable storage space (cost: 0)
Su Yun paused, not fully understanding, but still chose to enable storage space with great anticipation.
The screen flashed, and a warehouse interface appeared before her.
In the first slot of the warehouse, the Imperial Jade Seal was clearly displayed, with options to retrieve or store it.
Without hesitation, Su Yun selected "Retrieve."
Instantly, the jade seal reappeared in her hands!
She was overjoyed. "System, advanced mode is this powerful? I can retrieve items even after selling them? Doesn't that mean I just got 10 million for free?"
The system flickered but did not respond.
For some reason, Su Yun felt like it was protesting—perhaps because she had just called it a "stupid system."
She didn't care.
Happily, she stored the jade seal back into the system warehouse, then kicked over her hard wooden stool.
She decided she would replace it tomorrow!
A stool that only made her uncomfortable had no place anymore!
Finally, she sold the red sandalwood box as well.
Since she had already sold the jade seal, what was the point of keeping the box?
Sell everything!
With her balance now exceeding 10 million, Su Yun no longer walked normally—she strutted arrogantly, like a crab, sideways and upright.
Before heading home, she felt her old cloth shoes didn't match her new status, so she opened the system and bought a pair of white women's shoes, changing into them on the spot before happily skipping home.
As soon as she entered the courtyard, she saw Aunt Gao and Officer Qin heading toward the central courtyard.
Following behind them, she watched as Aunt Gao knocked on the He family's door.
Holding a registration book, Officer Qin shouted, "He Hua, hiding won't help! Open the door!"
"The list for going to the countryside will be submitted tomorrow. You meet the requirements—you can't avoid it. Come out and register!"
After shouting, Aunt Gao turned around and saw Su Yun. She greeted her warmly, "Su Yun, you're back! Oh, you even bought new shoes?"
Without waiting for a response, she turned to Officer Qin and said, "See? People with jobs are different. Look at Su Yun—her life is getting better and better! Even the man she's dating is a knowledgeable collector. And then look at He Hua—always causing trouble for no reason! In my opinion, it's good that she's being sent to the countryside. At least our courtyard will finally have some peace…"