Chapter Thirty-Five: Ten Dollars

The craftsman’s hands were deft as he worked on the ring, though they trembled ever so slightly. After all, this was a piece of jewelry worth over a hundred thousand, and with a setting like this—where the diamond was sealed in place—once it was opened, its value would immediately be cut in half. With little effort, the craftsman pried open the platinum setting around the diamond, then carefully removed the stone and placed it on the glass counter.

All eyes were fixed on the diamond. The craftsman took a deep breath, then turned the diamond over.

A chorus of gasps filled the air. Everyone present, except for Zhang Can, sucked in a breath of cold air.

The diamond’s face sparkled brilliantly, a radiant beauty that attested to its high quality. But the underside, once revealed, was pitted and flawed, unmistakably damaged—anyone with knowledge could see it in an instant. The stone had been badly cut, with half of it essentially ruined. Its value was now less than a tenth of the original, and even with the platinum band, the ring was worth no more than ten thousand. The female manager and her staff stood dumbstruck. After a stunned silence, the manager’s face turned ashen. Suddenly, she waved to the salesgirl who’d just handled Zhang Can’s transaction.

“Lili, ring up the bill for a hundred and twenty-eight thousand for this gentleman and refund him the other two hundred and fifty-six thousand in cash!”

Zhang Can grinned. This was outright breach of contract, an obvious attempt to renege on the deal.

The elegant young woman hadn’t expected the manager to go back on her word so shamelessly. Frowning in anger, she said, “What did you just say? Didn’t you agree to have the ring inspected? Now you want to sell a damaged diamond for a hundred and twenty-eight thousand? This is outrageous!”

But the manager, having gone this far, was unwilling to back down. She replied coldly, “Who can prove it? Is there any evidence? Everyone knows that sealed diamond rings from a jeweler can’t be opened for inspection. He insisted on opening it himself—this has nothing to do with us. We’re not charging extra; we’ll refund what’s owed. We’ll only keep the original price.”

Zhang Can shook his head, marveling at her brazenness.

The beautiful young woman was no longer upset about Zhang Can’s refusal to sell her the bracelet; instead, she felt indignant on his behalf. The manager had agreed to the inspection, but now that the truth was revealed, she refused to honor her word. If Zhang Can hadn’t been present, and she had bought the ring herself, wouldn’t she have been swindled as well?

Secretly admiring Zhang Can’s expertise, she also felt a sense of injustice for him. She pulled out her phone. “Fine. I’ll call the police. Let them sort this out.”

But the manager snatched the phone from her hand and shouted to another salesgirl, “Call security! Someone’s causing trouble in the store!”

The salesgirl wasted no time, picking up the phone to call the supermarket’s security office.

Vendors who rented space in the mall, having paid management fees, expected the protection of mall security. Whenever there was trouble with a customer, or a quarrel, the security staff would burst in aggressively and drive the customer out—sometimes even resorting to violence. Large malls often had close ties with local authorities; as major taxpayers, they enjoyed special privileges. Police typically turned a blind eye to such incidents, letting the mall handle things as long as nothing serious happened.

Such practices only encouraged abuses of power, and over the years, there had been no shortage of reported incidents: security guards beating customers, framing them for theft, or forcibly searching them.

Moreover, the salesgirl who made the call was dating one of the security office’s deputy captains. Within two minutes, six or seven burly security guards rushed over, their manner aggressive.

“Who’s causing trouble?” the lead security guard barked as they reached the counter.

The salesgirl pointed at Zhang Can. “It’s him. He bought the ring and made us open it, even though it’s against regulations to open a sealed diamond ring. He insisted, so we opened it, and now he wants to back out and is making a scene!”

“Damn it, do you even know where you are? Get lost if you know what’s good for you—don’t block our business!” The head guard shouted at Zhang Can. Judging by his ability to spend over a hundred thousand on a ring, they figured he wasn’t just any pauper. Had he been a mere customer spending a few hundred or a thousand, they’d have roughed him up already.

The other guards pushed Zhang Can toward the exit, not letting him stay inside. The beautiful young woman, her face flushed with anger, hurried after him. Outside the supermarket’s main entrance, the guards gave Zhang Can a hard shove, nearly knocking him over. The young woman rushed to steady him.

Shortly after, the manager emerged and threw a bag of cash at Zhang Can’s feet. “Here’s your refund. The ring, in its box, is in the bag as well,” she said coldly.

As she turned to go back inside, Zhang Can heard her mutter under her breath, “Ungrateful bastard…”

Anger blazed in Zhang Can’s chest. He was about to rush back inside, ready for a confrontation—regardless of the consequences. But the young woman held him back, whispering, “Don’t be foolish. You’ll only suffer if you make a scene now. A wise man knows when to accept a temporary setback.”

He realized she was right, and his anger slowly subsided. The young woman led him to the parking lot, then fixed him with a look. “Wait here for a minute. Don’t go anywhere, all right?”

Though puzzled, Zhang Can found himself trusting her for reasons he couldn’t explain. He nodded. As he watched her graceful figure walk briskly toward the lot, he marveled at how they had gone from adversaries to allies in such a strange turn of events.

In less than a minute, she drove up in a red Hyundai, pulled over, and rolled down the window. “Get in!” she called.

Even after getting in, Zhang Can was still in a daze. How had he ended up in her car?

Back in the jewelry shop, she had readily offered seventy or eighty thousand for the bracelet, then ten thousand more, and finally wanted to buy the ring worth a hundred and twenty-eight thousand for the exchange. Anyone able to spend such sums so casually had to be from a wealthy family, Zhang Can thought.

Yet now she was driving a car worth barely over a hundred thousand, which struck him as odd. Usually, a rich heiress would have a luxury car worth at least a million. Why would she drive such a modest vehicle?

What’s more, she didn’t have the frivolous air of a spoiled heiress. Thinking back, Zhang Can realized that even when she had tried to buy his bracelet, she hadn’t been arrogant, just straightforward and reasonable.

As the car rolled on, Zhang Can didn’t much mind the loss of a hundred and twenty-eight thousand; for him, making that much was easy now. He was more concerned with how to deal with the jewelry store and get his money back. The money itself was a small matter, but his pride was at stake. Still, this would be much harder than dealing with Old Su, who was now completely under his thumb. The manager, though, would be far more difficult to handle.

He glanced at the woman driving. Her profile was strikingly beautiful, but of a different kind than Liu Xiaoqin’s. Liu had the charm of the girl next door, while this woman exuded a natural elegance and nobility.

Several minutes passed before Zhang Can realized the car was heading in a different direction from where he needed to go, and that he’d forgotten to ask her to let him off.

“Miss, could you please pull over at the next stop? I’ll get out there,” he said, pointing at a bus stop ahead.

“Don’t talk,” she replied, flashing him a mysterious smile before turning her attention back to the road. Zhang Can had no idea what she was up to, but he could only wait. His unusual vision could see through objects, but not into people’s minds—he had no way of guessing her thoughts.

About ten minutes later, she pulled into a residential complex in the southern part of the city, parking in the underground garage of a tall building. After getting out, she smiled at him. “My surname is Zhou—Zhou Nan, as in the nan wood. Remember my name, and come upstairs with me.”

“Upstairs? Where to?” Zhang Can asked, surprised. Zhou Nan was certainly an odd one. Did she want to rob him now that she couldn’t get the bracelet? Or seduce him?

He kept these thoughts to himself, amused by the idea.

Zhou Nan led him into the elevator and pressed the button for the sixteenth floor. With only the two of them inside, she gave him an odd smile and reached out her hand. “Hand it over.”

“Hand what over?” Zhang Can asked, puzzled.

“Don’t pretend!” Zhou Nan said with a grin. “The gold bracelet. Give it to me. We’re going to my grandmother’s house now—surely you can’t refuse me?”

So, she wanted to make the exchange a fait accompli.

She patted him on the shoulder. “Don’t worry, I’ll pay you for it—I’m not asking for it for free. Besides…” She leaned in to whisper, “I’ll make that manager and the security guards apologize to you. How about that? Is that a fair deal?”

Zhang Can hesitated, then smiled. He’d bought the bracelet as a gift for his mother, but it wasn’t irreplaceable. By now, he’d developed a fondness—and a sense of camaraderie—for Zhou Nan. Without further thought, he handed her the jewelry box and smiled. “Deal!”

Zhou Nan opened the box, checked the contents, and grinned. “Aren’t you afraid I won’t pay you now? Actually, I’m a swindler who’s short on cash. Come on, give me that ten-yuan note too—I need it for lunch!”

Zhang Can fished a ten-yuan bill from his pocket and waved it. “Here it is. Do you really want it?”

Without hesitation, Zhou Nan snatched it from him. She slipped the jewelry box into her bag, then took out her wallet, kissed the bill, and laughed. “I’ll keep this as proof you discriminated against me!”

The note now bore a faint lipstick mark. Zhou Nan put it in her wallet, then back into her bag, before looking up at Zhang Can.

“I find you a bit strange,” she said. “What do you do for a living? How could you be so knowledgeable about gold, jade, and diamond jewelry? You didn’t even touch that ring—just looked at it through the display case. How did you know the diamond was ruined?”

Zhang Can disliked being questioned on this point. He scratched his head. “I work in an antique shop, so I have some experience. Ordinary people can’t tell the difference, but with enough practice, you can judge a diamond by studying the way it refracts and reflects light. Complete stones and damaged ones reflect light differently.”