Chapter 170: Defusing Crisis

Su Yan frowned and fell into deep thought. Her fingers unconsciously touched the gemstone in her hand.

While Zhang Sheng was running around anxiously, Su Yan asked, “How do you auction underground gemstones?”

Zhang Sheng did not understand, but he quickly replied, “Most of the underground gemstones are raw stones. No one knows what is inside the stones, so some people become rich overnight, and some people go bankrupt.”

Su Yan’s eyes lit up, and she whispered into Zhang Sheng’s ear.

Zhang Sheng’s eyes lit up when he heard that.

Soon, a series of tasks were given out.

Those who did not know what had happened could only do as they were told.

On the stage, Liu Meiniang looked at Su Yan, smiled, and changed her words, “Everyone, the highlight of today’s auction is coming.”

The guests who had already adapted to the auction process looked at them in confusion.

Liu Meiniang continued, “From now on, we will put all the gemstones together. Everyone can choose the gemstones that they like at will. After that, our appraiser will evaluate the value of the gemstones. You can decide whether you want to buy them or not.”

After saying that, she looked at the people who were not in high spirits and said, “Gemstones have spirituality. Why don’t we go and look for that fated gemstone ourselves? It has nothing to do with its value. We will only look for the one that we like.”

These few sentences vividly described a beautiful scene.

Everyone moved differently and urged them to start quickly.

Su Yan secretly gave a thumbs up to Liu Meiniang.

The smile on Liu Meiniang’s lips deepened.

This won Su Yan’s side time to appreciate it. Even if they received low-quality or fake gemstones, they would only think that they had deliberately placed them there.

It was also because someone had come up with a fake gem that the atmosphere became heated.

People with status also came down to look for the most valuable gem to show their status.

Because of what Liu Meiniang said about fate, no matter what they got, they would buy it unless the price was too high.

But because the price was too high, they would not be angry. Instead, they felt secretly happy that they deserved a more valuable gem.

This incident had also pushed the reputation of Qicao Pawnshop to its peak.

After it was over, Su Yan calculated the accounts for this time.

It was more than double what they had expected.

The net profit from the auction had reached 300,000 taels.

However, they did not feel happy. If it was not for a servant finding out that something was wrong in time, the pawnshop would have fallen into a crisis of trust this time.

Su Yan frowned and said, “Go investigate.”

Zhang Sheng nodded. Because the development this time was too fast, he had recruited a lot of new people. The people who had caused trouble would definitely be among them.

At the Imperial Pawnshop.

Elder Wang threw the teacup in his hand on the ground and said angrily, “Trash.”

Not only did he not cause trouble for the pawnshop, but he even helped them.

When he thought of this, he was so angry that his heart ached.

The surrounding people lowered their heads and did not dare to make a sound. After Elder Wang lost his temper, his expression became greedy.

These two auctions had made him envious for a long time.

Since Qicao Pawnshop could do it, he could do it too.

He revealed a sinister smile.

Zhang Sheng’s side quickly caught the person who had secretly mixed in the fake gemstones.

Su Yan looked at the middle-aged woman kneeling on the ground and asked, “Who told you to do this?”

The woman said with a firm expression, “No one. I just wanted to do it myself.”

Su Yan did not say whether she believed it or not. She said slowly, “You also have a son who passed the elementary scholar exam, right?”

The woman’s expression froze.

“If I remember correctly, according to the Imperial Kingdom’s regulations, if this mother was sent to an official, it seems that the son would not enter the imperial court to become an official.”

A struggle appeared in the woman’s eyes. In the end, she fell silent. It was still the same old story.

Su Yan waved her hand to let her go. She did not mention anything about sending the official away.

After Zhang Sheng returned, he asked in confusion, “Why did Princess Consort let her go?”