199: Chapter 198 Misfortune and Fortune Have No Door

Huang Sheng's eyes froze for a moment upon hearing this, as if recalling some terrifying scene. A trace of painful struggle surfaced on his face before he said resolutely, "Mr. Cao, you'd better not ask. Those things are taboos; they cannot be mentioned. Otherwise... just think about why only a small fraction of that hundred-thousand-strong expeditionary force remained back then. A hundred thousand men! And it was an army armed to the teeth... anyway, take my advice: you can play around the outskirts all you want, but don't go into the depths. I'm saying this for your lives, and for my own survival."

Hearing Huang Sheng mention the events of the past made it seem as though there were some hidden secrets involved. Huang Sheng's implication was nothing more than that they had encountered 'that kind of existence' back then, leading to so many sacrifices. Thinking about it, the power of a hundred thousand men was enough to move mountains and fill seas; no matter how terrifying Yeren Mountain was, sacrificing some men to carve out a safe passage shouldn't have resulted in losing more than half the force. Could the military commanders of that time really not have thought of that? Huang Sheng spoke so mysteriously, calling them 'taboos' and 'them,' so they must be something supernatural, and more than one. Beyond that, Cao Xiao couldn't guess. The truth was baffling, but no matter what he said, Huang Sheng remained tight-lipped, refusing to reveal even a sliver of information. Huang Dacheng also kept his mouth shut, even appearing somewhat displeased.

Seeing this, Cao Xiao stopped pushing and decided to follow their advice and not risk going deep. However, preparations still needed to be made. Thus, he stopped talking and closed his eyes to rest, sinking his consciousness into his space to quietly tinker with things.

The torrential rain came and went quickly. Ten minutes later, the clouds suddenly dispersed and the rain stopped, the sun peeking out again as the weather—which had just cooled down—began to turn sweltering once more. Half an hour later, they passed Pagan without stopping, heading straight for the Pagan Jade Mine. The road leading to the mining area was difficult to traverse; by the time they arrived, it was already noon. Everyone ate some snacks in the car. After inspecting the mine, they would have to rush into the mountains to set up camp, aiming to leave the mountains within two days; otherwise, they might not make it back in time for the public auction.

Before they even reached the mine, they encountered a checkpoint. Emeralds were of staggering value, and the mine was jointly controlled by the local armed government and clan forces, guarded by a squad of soldiers armed with live ammunition. Stopping the car voluntarily, Cao Xiao had Zheng Hui, Zhou Qingxuan, and Huang Sheng go down to negotiate while he watched from the car. He expected that under the offensive of money, they would obtain permission to visit. Unexpectedly, those soldiers gave them no chance at all, raising their guns to stop Zhou Qingxuan and the other two from approaching. Huang Sheng raised his hands and shouted in a local language Cao Xiao didn't understand while moving closer. He had only taken two steps when a gunshot rang out; a bullet struck the ground in front of him. Huang Sheng didn't dare move recklessly and was about to retreat slowly, but at that moment, the other side opened fire again, spraying a burst at the ground in front of the car and even shattering a headlight.

The soldiers' purpose was self-evident: to drive them away immediately, or they would get serious. The bodyguards reacted instantly, quickly exiting the vehicle and taking cover behind it to prepare for an attack. At this point, Cao Xiao could no longer sit still, his face dark with rage. They had opened fire to drive people away without a word and even attacked his car. Since the other party was so arrogant and unreasonable, he would show them a thing or two and teach them how to speak properly!

Although he wished he could immediately teach these soldiers a harsh lesson, he knew he couldn't. As soon as he ordered his men to fire, the nature of the situation would change. An armed attack on a military force in another country's territory would be labeled as terrorism at best, and an illegal invasion provoking war at worst. He couldn't shoulder that blame, and he didn't even dare to have a conflict with them; otherwise, if they held a grudge, they could easily find an excuse to mobilize a large army for a suppression campaign. So for now, he could only swallow his anger. However, he didn't plan to let it go just like that. Since he had come here with ill intentions anyway, and the soldiers under them were so arrogant, the boss couldn't be much better. Taking a bit of abuse now would actually relieve him of any psychological burden when he acted later. Besides, it wasn't like he was completely out of options; as long as he could get in, he wouldn't sweat the small stuff.

Seeing that the soldiers opposite had already taken an offensive stance and conflict was imminent, Cao Xiao hurried out of the car and ordered the bodyguards, "Put away your weapons and get back in the car." After saying that, he turned to Zheng Hui and said, "Zheng Hui, please go and negotiate with them in the name of the government. If we can get in, there will be plenty of benefits for you."

Zheng Hui had also been startled by the scene just now and was standing there helplessly. Hearing Cao Xiao's words, his expression changed again as he said hesitantly, "Mr. Cao, let's forget it! The central government's name doesn't carry weight here. Besides, I'm just a small fry with no official rank; these soldiers won't listen to me. Let's not go looking for trouble."

Cao Xiao sighed, knowing that what Zheng Hui said was indeed the truth. Sending him wouldn't help, so he decided to give up for now and come back after returning from the mountains. Just as he was turning the car around to leave, several vehicles drove out from the opposite side. Those soldiers saluted respectfully and let them pass. Seeing that Cao Xiao's car was still blocking the road, a soldier raised his gun and fired another burst toward them. Several bullets hit the body of the car Cao Xiao was in, and a rear tire was blown out. He was practically exploding with rage. The other party was blatantly humiliating him. Not only were they driving them away like cattle, but they even shot out the tire. This was the final straw! It was simply outrageous!

"Everyone, prepare for combat! I'm going to get the big guns out and teach these dogs a lesson!" At this moment, Cao Xiao had only one thought. As for the consequences... as long as the sky didn't fall, he wouldn't fear a local armed force, or even the entire country. If things really came to a head, he could produce dozens of nuclear warheads in minutes and show them off—who would dare touch him then? He was going to make these idiots regret this immediately and let them know that the person they had provoked was a living King of Hell.

The car didn't even finish turning; it just sat there. Ignoring the bodyguards, he threw open the door and got out first, intending to go to the trunk to get a rocket launcher. But just then, there was a change on the opposite side. A young man with a Myanmar face in camouflage gear got out of a car. Cao Xiao couldn't help but stop to see who this 'sacred being' in the car was. After the man got out, he glanced at Cao Xiao and babbled something to the soldiers. Then, a middle-aged man in a suit got out of the car behind him. As soon as he stepped out, he looked Cao Xiao over seriously and then walked straight toward him.

"Is this little brother from Huaxia? A tourist? Or a raw stone merchant?"

Hearing the other party speak Huaxia, Cao Xiao made a gesture behind him, signaling the bodyguards not to get out. Then he replied, "I'm here for the public auction, so I suppose I'm a jewelry merchant. My name is Cao Xiao. How should I address you?"

"Haha! I didn't misjudge you. My name is Cai Xidong, a native of the capital. I'm a raw stone merchant. Are you also here to buy raw stones? You didn't suffer any losses just now, did you?" The middle-aged man laughed heartily.

Hearing the man's name, Cao Xiao couldn't help but smile. Cai Xidong—Xidong Cai—for a businessman to have a name like 'East-West Vegetable' was truly odd. He was a bit curious why Cai Xidong was coming out from inside and asked tentatively, "No one was hurt, but the car was damaged by them, and I've had my fill of their attitude. Buying raw stones directly from the mine... it seems Mr. Cai's business is quite large! Are you well-acquainted with the owner here?"

Cai Xidong chuckled and said, "Just a small business, earning a bit of hard-earned money. As middlemen, we naturally have to deal with the manufacturers frequently. I'm on a first-name basis with almost all the emerald mine owners in Myanmar; there's at least some friendship. Brother Cao, in business, harmony brings wealth. Don't lower yourself to the level of these grunts in the mountains. As long as the business gets done, suffering a little grievance is nothing."

Cao Xiao was noncommittal about Cai Xidong's business theory, but he wasn't an ordinary businessman and didn't need to endure the wanton provocations of ants. So he said, "Mr. Cai is too modest. I didn't intend to get angry with them, but they took me for a pushover. If I don't show them something, I won't be able to hold my head up in the future. By the way, Mr. Cai, who is that person?"

Seeing that Cao Xiao was unwilling to let it go, Cai Xidong said helplessly, "Sigh! When under someone else's roof, one must bow one's head. When away from home, endure what you can; even if you can't, you must. Especially in a foreign land. I won't say more; take care of yourself. That is Wu Meng, the eldest son of the major shareholder of the Pagan Jade Mine. His family is a big clan in Pagan, controlling many emerald mines in the surrounding area; they are prominent throughout Myanmar. He's coming over; you should leave quickly!"

"The car is broken, so I couldn't leave even if I wanted to. Thank you for your kindness, Mr. Cai. Please, go ahead." Cao Xiao replied to Cai Xidong and then turned to look silently at the young man walking up to him.

People in Myanmar have only names and no surnames; the 'Wu' before the name is not a surname but an honorific meaning 'Mister.' This young man named Meng was sturdily built, with a two-inch scar on his face and small eyes that occasionally flashed with a sharp light, showing he was a man of depth. The young man looked Cao Xiao over seriously and then whispered something to Cai Xidong beside him.

Cai Xidong and Wu Meng whispered for a good while before Cai Xidong smiled and said to Cao Xiao, "Wu Meng says he won't hold what happened just now against you. If you can guarantee a purchase of no less than fifty million huaxia currency in raw stones, he can take you in immediately." At the end, he leaned into Cao Xiao's ear and whispered, "He wants to line his own pockets. We can go take a look; if the quality is good and you don't have enough money, I'll help you make up the difference and we can split it according to our contribution later. It's highly likely he's opening a private reserve warehouse this time, filled with old pit material. It's a rare opportunity. I have channels for private transport to save a fortune in customs duties. Brother, don't hesitate."

Cao Xiao was a bit surprised to hear this. The man had provoked him for no reason and then acted magnanimous as if it were Cao Xiao's fault—was this Wu Meng stupid? Did he really think he could manipulate a foreigner at will? However, hearing Cai Xidong's later words, he wasn't in a hurry to get angry. He didn't know what Wu Meng was planning, but now he was actively letting him in to buy stones, and he had to buy at least fifty million huaxia currency's worth. This kind of opportunity that other stone merchants would kill for had suddenly dropped into his lap? He reserved judgment on the newly met Cai Xidong, unable to be sure if these two were working together to scam him. He didn't believe he was that lucky, but he wasn't afraid of whatever scheme Wu Meng might have. Fifty million was a small matter; as long as he could walk through once, he could earn back eighty or a hundred times that. So he agreed, went back to the car to give Zhou Qingxuan some instructions, and then sat in Cai Xidong's car alone, following Wu Meng's vehicle into the mining area.

Before long, the two cars stopped one after the other in an area of low-rise bungalows. After getting out, Cai Xidong pulled Cao Xiao along, happily communicating with Wu Meng in English. Cao Xiao understood; both were talking about raw stones. He didn't interrupt and followed quietly. Wu Meng led them to a massive warehouse built of thick poured concrete. It had no windows, only a heavy electric iron gate, with two soldiers standing guard with rifles by the door.

Cai Xidong was somewhat disappointed when he arrived and said to Cao Xiao, "Brother, it seems we aren't that lucky. This is a transit warehouse; it's all new pit 'blind' material. However, the price will be much cheaper, and we can pick more pieces. By the way, I see you didn't bring a master stone-picker with you. Can you judge them yourself?"

Cao Xiao laughed with self-assurance, "Haha, Brother Cai might not know, but although I'm self-taught, my teacher is a famous geology expert, Old Chen from Huanghe City. Have you heard of him? His eye for stones is no worse than the so-called Jade King; it's just that he doesn't like gambling on stones and rarely acts, so his fame isn't widespread. Having been influenced by him, I've developed a bit of an eye."

Cai Xidong's eyes lit up, and he praised happily, "I usually like to tinker with antiques, so of course I've heard of Old Chen's great name. I've even had the honor of meeting him a few times. But what's most admirable about Old Chen isn't his academic achievements, but his ability to educate the next generation; he's no less than the ancient Dou Yujun. The five children Old Chen raised have all achieved great success in various fields, and I heard his eldest son is about to take another step up—vice-ministerial level! He could be considered a high official, and he's still very young with a good reputation. With the right opportunity, his future is limitless. I didn't expect you to be Old Chen's disciple. Even if you only learned a fraction of his skills, you'd be much better than those stone-picking masters. Good luck today; meeting a benefactor like you, maybe I'll have to rely on your help in the future!"

Cao Xiao felt a bit awkward at Cai Xidong's words; though it was praise, it was a bit exaggerated. Making friends by lowering one's own status to flatter the other, then flattering each other—he knew smooth businessmen were all like this and didn't resent it. Just as he was about to say something modest, Wu Meng had someone open the warehouse doors. The two stopped talking and followed him inside.

"The stones are sorted into piles by price. You can choose for yourself, but those are just last year's prices. According to the current market, they'll be at least fifty percent higher this year. However, these stones are premium pieces we've specially selected; the chance of finding emerald is very high, so naturally, they can't be calculated at outside prices. Since it's your first time, I can give you a twenty percent discount—I'll sell them to you at double the listed price," Wu Meng said with a smile, looking at Cao Xiao after leading them into the warehouse.

Cao Xiao frowned upon hearing this. He looked at the prices listed next to the piles of raw stones and immediately understood that the reason Wu Meng had brought him here to buy stones was to scam him—and quite excessively at that. Cao Xiao didn't even need his eyes to select stones, but he wasn't completely ignorant. With the massive amount of relevant analytical data in his AI brain's database for reference, he could naturally see that the external appearance of these stones was very average, far from being 'premium.' Yet now Wu Meng was charging him premium prices. By his calculation, the unit price was higher than last year's 'King of the Auction.' Even by this year's prices, the cost was four times the actual value. Unless every single piece yielded high-grade emerald, he would lose money even if he held onto them for several years before selling. He couldn't help but sigh: Misfortune and fortune have no doors; they are brought upon oneself!