163: Chapter 162 A Strong Start but a Weak Finish

Actually, Cao Xiao should be glad. If it weren't for the engagement ceremony today, the host hadn't announced the details of the jewelry and the gems on the dress, and the items were placed on a high stage without being fully displayed, the guests wouldn't have been able to accurately estimate the quantity, quality, and size of these gems even with high-definition cameras filming up close. If he had taken them out in front of so many people under normal circumstances and others had come up for a closer look, the consequences would have been far more serious than just now! Other gems were fine, but those diamonds would have been a major problem; once their true data and information were known, it would definitely cause an enormous storm.

The quality of a diamond depends on the 4Cs, which are the evaluation standards for diamonds. They include Carat, Clarity, Color, and Cut.

Carat is the unit of weight for diamonds, representing their size. When the other three Cs are the same, the price of a diamond is proportional to the square of its weight; the larger the weight, the higher the value. One carat is divided into one hundred points, where each point is one-hundredth of a carat. For diamonds under one carat, every ten points represents a price level; if they aren't in the same level, even a difference of one point can lead to a significant price gap. The price gap between levels for large diamonds over one carat is far greater than the gap for those under one carat.

Clarity refers to the number of inclusions in a diamond; the fewer the inclusions, the higher the grade, allowing it to reflect a dazzling brilliance. Clarity grading is based on the position, size, and quantity of inclusions. From high to low, the detailed grades are FL, IF, VVS1, VVS2, VS1, VS2, SI1, SI2, SI3, P1, P2, and P3. When observing a diamond's cleanliness under a ten-power microscope, the more inclusions there are and the more obvious their location, the poorer the quality and the lower the price. Among them, FL-grade diamonds can reach a state of perfection, with no inclusions inside or out under a ten-power magnifying glass. IF-grade is internally flawless, with only slight surface blemishes visible under a ten-power magnifying glass. Surface and internal inclusions in VVS1 and VVS2 grades are very difficult to see under ten-power magnification. VS1 and VS2 grades have inclusions visible under ten-power magnification but are difficult to distinguish with the naked eye. Inclusions in SI1 and below can be seen with the naked eye.

Color refers to the color grade of a diamond. Diamond colors range from the rarest completely colorless to yellow and brown. The lighter the color of the diamond, the easier it is for light to penetrate, which is the most intuitive of the 4Cs. Colorless is the best; the deeper the hue, the poorer the quality. In the colorless diamond grading scale, the top color is D, followed in order down to Z. D, E, and F are considered colorless; G, H, I, and J are near-colorless; K, L, and M are faint yellow; below N is light yellow; and below Z are called fancy colored diamonds.

Cut refers to the geometric shape and arrangement of the various facets of a finished loose diamond. Among the 4C standards for measuring diamond value, only the cut is directly influenced by humans. A raw diamond stone wouldn't even be noticed if thrown onto the road; it is the cut that gives it a second life. Only through the precise design of a well-trained master and exquisite craftsmanship can the diamond's veil be lifted, allowing it to fully utilize the properties of light to present rainbow-like fire and sparkling characteristics. The cut is divided into three categories: cut proportions, polish, and symmetry. Each category has five levels, which from high to low are EXCELLENT, VERY GOOD, GOOD, FAIR, and POOR. Diamonds with a Triple EX top-grade cut can achieve a near-perfect ratio for light reflection, resulting in the most brilliant colors. However, the price for such a cut is relatively high because its yield is lower, costing about 5% more than non-Triple EX cuts. When the other three Cs are the same, the price can differ by several times due to the quality of the cut.

The Seven-Colored Diamond Jewelry Set that Cao Xiao brought out consisted of seven pieces of jewelry made from seven types of fancy colored diamonds: a platinum tiara inlaid with one 8.6-carat, 36 one-to-three-carat, and 108 half-carat to one-carat purple diamonds; a fancy green diamond necklace consisting of one 6-carat main stone, 18 three-to-five-carat secondary stones, 36 one-to-three-carat tail stones, and a chain made of 108 eighty-point long octagonal prisms; a 3.2-carat red diamond ring; two 2.4-carat pink-gold inlaid platinum stud earrings; a platinum bracelet inlaid with 12 one-to-three-carat green main stones and blue diamonds under one carat; a platinum brooch inlaid with one 3-carat and 188 half-carat to 1.5-carat orange diamonds; and a butterfly-shaped platinum hairpin composed of 18 roughly one-carat and 136 ten-to-fifty-point yellow diamonds.

The cut of all these colored diamonds was Triple EX; no other cut grade would appear in Cao Xiao's hands, as cut grading was meaningless to him since he possessed the industrial mother machine. Furthermore, these colored diamonds were the best selected after he had screened his entire inventory; the large diamonds were the heaviest among all those that reached FL-grade clarity. The smaller ones were also all FL-grade. Aside from those giant diamonds, it could be said that this Seven-Colored Diamond Jewelry Set was the finest essence of the nearly 70,000 carats of colored diamonds he owned; he could never put together a second set as perfect from the remaining colored diamonds.

The ratio of white diamonds to colored diamonds is 100,000 to 1, and it is very rare for colored diamonds to appear as large stones. It was purely his personal good luck to obtain so many colored diamonds, having fortunately acquired over 50,000 carats of colored diamonds kept secret by the Angress Family, and then collecting over 10,000 carats of good quality colored diamonds in the diamond mine near the Lake St. Lucia area. Other people or other diamond companies couldn't possibly have such a massive base of colored diamonds as he did; it would be incredibly difficult for them to even select multiple colored diamond roughs of the same color grade. Moreover, colored diamonds usually contain many impurities and inclusions, with clarity generally at SI1 or below. Colored diamonds exceeding 1 carat are even rarer, and with the extreme difficulty of a Triple EX cut, no high-quality multi-colored diamond jewelry set has ever appeared in the world until now. One made of even three colors of top clarity and color grade is unheard of; such a Seven-Colored Diamond Jewelry Set can be called a miracle, unparalleled and unique in the world!

If that diamond wedding dress were truly scrutinized, it would yield a terrifying result. Not to mention those hundreds of large diamonds over one carat, the tens of thousands of colorless diamonds ranging from ten points to one carat alone would be enough to leave people speechless with shock. Those weren't worthless diamond chips, but small diamonds with an Excellent cut, Flawless clarity, and D-color. Even if you added up all the diamonds from several super-giant diamond mines, there would be no guarantee of selecting tens of thousands of Flawless, D-color diamonds. Setting aside the quality of the diamonds themselves, the processing fee for tens of thousands of Triple EX cut diamonds would be an absolute astronomical price; the first digit would be at least a five, the unit would be in the hundreds of millions, and the currency would be us dollars! Reaching the top of all 4C standards is merely an ideal state; a diamond that reaches D-color, FL clarity, and Triple EX cut is known as a collection-grade diamond. In the international market, collection-grade diamonds are very rare even under one carat, and large ones over one carat are pitifully few. The larger the diamond, the harder it is to guarantee quality, and one over fifty carats is unheard of. Therefore, the value of this wedding dress can no longer be estimated; it can only be described with the words 'rare unique piece' and 'priceless treasure.'

So, the guests felt an intense desire for possession just by looking at it; if they were allowed to see it clearly, they would definitely try to snatch it regardless of the cost. If that Seven-Colored Diamond Jewelry Set or the diamond wedding dress were placed in any museum, it would immediately generate a powerful ability to attract visitors and could even become a dazzling national calling card. By then, if Cao Xiao didn't want to be hounded by countless tourists during the day and frequently woken up by international thieves for a 'chat' at night, he would have to obediently send them to a museum. Ordinary museums wouldn't even be qualified; only the largest museums in the country would have the strength to protect them.

...

Now, Cao Xiao only cared about how to proceed with the next steps of the ceremony, but as soon as he thought of the oil field asset transfer document he had prepared, he was suddenly almost scared to tears! The guests' emotions were currently extremely unstable; if they were stimulated any further...

Thinking of this, Cao Xiao ignored the rules, walked to Guo Yutao's side, and whispered in his ear, "There's no need to make that last betrothal gift public. Cancel the return gift segment. After exchanging engagement rings, announce the start of the banquet immediately."

Guo Yutao's body jolted upon hearing this. He looked at Cao Xiao solemnly, having made a guess in his heart. The fifth betrothal gift must also be extraordinary, and he didn't know if the bride's family's return gifts would be more shocking items. Cao Xiao's request to cancel was for the best; as long as no more accidents happened, the pressure they faced would be much smaller. He then nodded heavily in response to Cao Xiao.

"Next, we proceed to the final segment of this engagement ceremony. Will the two prospective newlyweds, Mr. Cao Xiao and Ms. He Yueyou, please come to the center of the stage. Witnessed by your parents, relatives, friends, and all our guests, exchange your engagement rings and complete your happy and beautiful promise!"

"What's going on now? Isn't there one more betrothal gift?"

"Eleven of the twelve trays have been uncovered now. What's in the last one?"

"Aren't there return gifts? The host mentioned the ceremony process at the beginning! I didn't hear it wrong!"

"Hmph! It must be something else shady!"

"Guo Yutao, there's still one tray that hasn't been opened!"

...

As soon as Guo Yutao finished speaking, the guests below began to buzz with discussion again. Some guests, disregarding their image, shouted loudly at the host on the stage.

Guo Yutao, however, acted as if he hadn't heard anything. He and Ning Feitong turned their backs to the audience, watching Cao Xiao and He Yueyou in the center of the stage with rapt attention.

Facing the questioning looks from Father He and Mother He, Cao Xiao could only make a dejected expression and shake his head slightly to show his helplessness. He then quickly avoided those four murderous glares and nodded with a smile to He Yueyou. The two of them walked in step to the center of the stage and stood facing each other, their eyes filled with lingering smiles.

"Yueyou, I love you! Will you marry me?" Cao Xiao knelt on one knee before He Yueyou, holding an open small box in his hand.

"I'm not willing..."

When He Yueyou spoke and he heard the word 'not,' Cao Xiao was dumbfounded. He looked at He Yueyou in disbelief, not expecting her to suddenly do this at the critical moment. Even if it was a prank, it scared him out of his wits, and he was nervous to the extreme. If he hadn't seen a hint of craftiness in He Yueyou's eyes, Cao Xiao might not have been able to stop himself from speaking up.

"Ah!"

"Something's happened!"

"Haha, that girl has character. She's truly the daughter of Lord Luya!"

"Serves him right! A toad will never get to eat swan meat!"

"Come marry my granddaughter instead! She's only sixteen this year, beautiful and fertile. As long as you bring the betrothal gifts, I won't even ask for a bride price!"

"Haha, look at that blank face! That's what you get for showing off!"

"Don't marry him, marry me!"

...

The moment He Yueyou paused, the scene was submerged in overwhelming clamor. There were those among the guests who were surprised, but quite a few were gloating. Hearing those mischievous remarks, Cao Xiao almost spat out a mouthful of old blood. What kind of people had been invited today! Those old gentlemen were far too improper! And there was even a burly man who dared to...

Cao Xiao looked at He Yueyou with a face full of grievance, his eyes carrying an intense sense of pleading as he blinked repeatedly, as if silently expressing: 'My lady, please stop teasing me and finish your sentence!'

"Pfft! Tee-hee!"

Seeing Cao Xiao's pitiful look, He Yueyou couldn't help but burst into laughter, a triumphant expression appearing on her face.

He Yueyou's laugh was like the clouds parting to reveal the moon; all the nervousness in Cao Xiao's heart melted away. He looked at He Yueyou with a beaming face, waiting for her to speak.

"I'm not willing... to be apart from you! I am willing... to marry you!"

He Yueyou looked into Cao Xiao's eyes with a smile and said each word clearly.

Only upon hearing this sentence did Cao Xiao truly feel at ease. If a hitch occurred at the critical moment of a major marriage event, no matter how good his mental fortitude was, he wouldn't have the powerful, cold-hearted ability to accept it.

He took the ring out of the box, set the box down, held the ring in his left hand, and held his right hand out flat in front of He Yueyou. He Yueyou slowly extended her left hand, which Cao Xiao gently supported with his right. With his left hand, he placed the ring on He Yueyou's ring finger. Then, He Yueyou lightly grasped Cao Xiao's hand and lifted it, signaling that he could stand up.

He Yueyou took out a box identical to Cao Xiao's, opened it to take out the ring, and also extended her right hand to Cao Xiao, placing the ring on the ring finger of his left hand. Then, their hands were tightly clasped together.

"A joyous union seals a thousand years of love; a century passes without shifting the heart even half an inch! We thank all our guests for witnessing this happy moment together. We sincerely wish the two prospective newlyweds a happy union and hope that you two can enter the hall of marriage soon! Now, please use your applause to express your most sincere blessings and warmest congratulations to the parents of both sides and to the two lovers! May they always be of one heart and mind, living in perfect happiness throughout their future life journey!"