I am an incredibly handsome man, and my fiancée refuses to call off the engagement even at the cost

Dugu Xun suppressed his complicated feelings and looked at the middle-aged man in white: "Everyone's almost here, right? Who else are we waiting for? Let's begin, Mr. Mingjing."

The middle-aged man in white stood up with a smile, and in an instant, he appeared on the huge white jade platform above the lotus pond. Gu Yan looked at him, thinking to herself, "So he's the host of this jade gambling event."

"Since Fellow Daoist Dugu is already impatient, let's begin!" With a warm smile, Mr. Mingjing waved his hand, and fifteen raw stones of different colors and sizes floated in the air. Each stone was numbered from one to fifteen.

Mr. Mingjing smiled and said to everyone:

"These are the first batch of rough stones for today. Please feel free to make yourselves at home."

The rough stones varied in size; some were dull and lackluster, others shone with dazzling brilliance, some were unremarkable, and others were covered in magnificent patterns. What they all had in common was that the interior of each stone was difficult to probe with divine sense. To know for sure what was inside, one could only rely on eyesight or other methods to determine.

Everyone stared at the batch of rough stones for a while, but no one made a hasty decision.

Seeing this, Master Mingjing smiled and said, "Which fellow Daoist would like to go first?" He looked around and then at the silver-haired old woman, "Has Madam Tantai taken a fancy to anyone?"

The silver-haired old woman looked at Dugu Xun and smiled, "With Patriarch Dugu here, why don't you let him choose first?"

Dugu Xun turned his gaze to Gu Yan: "Zirong, you choose."

Instantly, everyone's attention was once again focused on Gu Yan.

Xie Jingshu smiled and struck up a conversation: "Young Master Zirong, are you perhaps skilled in pupil techniques?"

As Xie Jingshu spoke, a glint of malice flashed in the eyes of the young man in the royal blue robe sitting next to her, and his gaze toward Gu Yan was filled with hidden hostility.

This young man is the Crown Prince of the Great Zhou Dynasty. His mother is from the Xie Clan of Shouhua, and she is a cousin of Xie Jingshu.

This Prince Zhou had always been infatuated with his cousin Xie Jingshu. He had noticed long ago that Xie Jingshu had been completely captivated by him the moment he entered. Now that Xie Jingshu was taking the initiative to chat with him, he immediately became extremely jealous.

Gu Yan chuckled lightly: "I wouldn't dare say I'm good at it. Brother, you choose."

"Come on, pick whatever you like. I have plenty of money, so it doesn't matter if you choose the wrong one," Dugu Xun said magnanimously.

"Young Master Zirong, just choose boldly. If you choose wrong, consider it as gaining experience," Prince Zhou said with a smile. His words were loaded with meaning; they seemed to be encouraging Gu Yan, but in reality, they were underestimating him.

Dugu Xun gave him a cold glance, and Xie Jingshu, Cheng Siyan, and the other women present also gave him an unpleasant look.

Gu Yan also glanced at Prince Zhou. He sensed that the other party was hostile towards him. As for the source of this hostility, Gu Yan could easily guess that it was nothing more than the woman beside him.

Gu Yan ignored the man and said to Dugu Xun, "My brother asked me to choose, so I'll give it a try." His gaze turned to the raw stones, and his emerald eyes deepened in color.

In Gu Yan's vision, each of the raw stones changed, and different colors of light appeared on each stone. Those that were previously dull and lackluster were now dazzling in his vision, while those that were previously vibrant and extraordinary were now shrouded in black mist or had lost their color.

His gaze fell on the rough stone marked with the number "five".

"Let's take this No. 5 rough stone." Gu Yan pointed with her finger.

Everyone stared at the fifth rough stone. It was a dull, grayish-white stone, and although a trace of spiritual energy emanated from it, that didn't mean anything. Spirit stones also possessed spiritual energy, but if you unearthed a spirit stone, you'd lose a fortune.

Prince Zhou looked disdainful, thinking to himself: As expected, he is an amateur. This stone has the appearance of "burying bones". The stone pattern is stiff and lifeless. The spiritual energy is leaking out but not pure. At most, it can yield inferior spirit stones.

"Young Master Zirong, this rough stone doesn't look very good to me." The one who spoke was the daughter of the fat man in brocade robes, the charming girl in red.

"Young Master Zirong, why don't you choose another one?" Xie Jingshu advised, as she didn't think much of this one either.

The others remained silent, but they also didn't think much of it.

The mysterious man, whose entire body was hidden in the black mist, stared at Gu Yan and thought to himself: Is this guy all show and no substance, or is he hiding his true abilities?

Gu Yan asked Mr. Mingjing, "How much is this raw stone priced?"

"Fifty million spirit stones," Mr. Mingjing replied.

"I want this one," Gu Yan said.

Mr. Mingjing smiled and asked, "Is there anyone bidding?"

Everyone looked at the others, and the handsome young man brought by the couple who were both Spirit Emperor Realm experts whispered, "Who would want this piece of junk?"

After he finished speaking, his mother glared at him, signaling him to shut up and not to speak carelessly.

"If Young Master Zirong likes it, then of course I cannot compete with him for it," Cheng Siyan said with a smile. She didn't think much of the raw stone either, but she didn't forget to flirt with Gu Yan whenever she could, which made Dugu Xun, who was standing to the side, want to gouge out her eyes.

"Since there are no more bidders, this No. 5 rough stone belongs to Young Master Zirong. Young Master Zirong, would you like to cut it yourself, or would you like me to do the work?" Mr. Mingjing asked Gu Yan with a smile.

Gu Yan said, "Thank you for your help, Mr. Mingjing."

After hearing this, Master Mingjing did not immediately open the rough stone. Instead, he smiled and said, "Before opening this rough stone, does any fellow Daoist wish to place a bet on whether there is any spirit jade inside? The odds are 5 to 1, and 2 to 1 if you bet there is none."

The betting process before the first round of stone cutting is a familiar routine at Wan Yu Ge.

As soon as Mr. Mingjing finished speaking, Prince Zhou said, "I bet 80 million spirit stones."

After he finished speaking, a mustard seed bag containing eighty million spirit stones flew towards Master Mingjing. Everyone glanced at him, and the kind-looking fat man in brocade robes laughed and said, "It seems that Crown Prince Zhou doesn't think much of Young Master Zirong's judgment."

"Does Mr. Ruan think this rough stone can yield a spirit jade?" Prince Zhou asked.

Mr. Ruan smiled and asked his daughter, "What should we bet on?"

The adorable girl in red glanced at Gu Yan, her cheeks flushing red. She didn't really like the rough stone, thinking it was too dull and couldn't possibly contain anything good. But she liked Gu Yan, so she told her father, "I'll bet on it."

Mr. Ruan glanced at Gu Yan, inwardly both amused and exasperated. His precious daughter was clearly bewitched by her looks. But what could he do since his daughter had already spoken? He chuckled, "My daughter says yes, so I'll bet fifty million spirit stones that she has."

With a wave of his hand, Mr. Ruan sent a mustard seed bag flying toward Mr. Mingjing.

Cheng Siyan glanced at Mr. Ruan's daughter, then smiled at Gu Yan, and said with a charming smile, "Then I'll bet my share too. Fifty million!"

After she finished speaking, the stern-faced man at the same table as her and the fierce-looking red-haired old man both glanced at her. Could this woman be having another episode of her old habits? This young man is from the Dugu family; isn't he afraid of angering Dugu Xun?

Cheng Siyan has always been a womanizer and has many lovers.

After Cheng Siyan placed her bet, almost all the female VIPs here followed suit, giving Gu Yan ample face. Xie Jingshu, disregarding her cousin's feelings, even placed a bet of 80 million.

Prince Zhou was so angry that his face was almost contorted. He had bet 80 million on nothing, and she had actually bet 80 million on something. Wasn't this a slap in his face?