During famine years, I had a divination slip in hand, and my whole family ate chicken, duck, fish, a

A disheveled, emaciated old beggar, wrapped in a tattered coat, huddled in a corner. His gray hair was no different from the weeds in the field, and his beard was matted together.

His eyes were fixed blankly on the ground, as if he were half-dead.

His appearance is so pitiful that you can't help but want to throw him a coin or two.

It must be him.

Ye Qingqing jumped off the carriage, seemingly heading towards the rouge shop, but in reality, she secretly approached to observe.

As Ye Qingqing approached within a few meters, a stench assaulted her nostrils, nearly knocking her over.

Luckily it's winter now; if it were summer, the smoke would have rendered everything within a ten-meter radius barren!

Ye Qingqing rubbed her nose, took out a few copper coins from her cloth bag, and prepared to throw them into the broken bowl at his feet to strike up a conversation.

"Oh, poor thing..."

Before she could even make a move, Li Chunyan approached with a sympathetic look, reached into her sleeve, and tossed a few copper coins into his bowl with a clatter, sighing deeply as she spoke.

"This world, is it even possible for a human to live like this...?"

"Thank you, Madam! Thank you, Madam!"

The old beggar seemed to come back to life from a state of near-death, and quickly prostrated himself on the ground, kowtowing repeatedly, his aged voice trembling uncontrollably.

"May God bless you! Good deeds bring good fortune. Your wife will surely be blessed with wealth and prosperity, and have many children and grandchildren!"

His sons are all high-ranking officials, and his daughters are all married to the emperor!

Ye Qingqing, "..."

It's not wrong for a beggar to say a few auspicious words, but Ye Qingqing couldn't help but see a glint of shrewdness in the old beggar's half-dead eyes.

That look in his eyes was like a scrutiny.

Ye Qingqing frowned unconsciously.

"Oh my, I love hearing that, hahaha!"

Li Chunyan covered her mouth and laughed, then took out a few copper coins from her pocket and tossed them in without hesitation, "Take these and buy yourself a hot meal, you poor thing."

"The lady is dressed in cotton, which shows that she comes from a wealthy family and has a broad and discerning eye!"

May the lady's good deeds continue to the end, and may God bless her with great wealth and unexpected riches!

The old beggar seemed oblivious to the four or five copper coins in the bowl. Instead, he straightened up and looked eagerly at Li Chunyan, pleading with her while trembling as he pulled a stone from his pocket and presented it to her with shaky hands.

"Look, madam! This is a family heirloom jade stone, and inside it lies a precious jadeite!"

"Jade?"

Li Chunyan didn't dare to answer, but she was also taken aback.

That stone was the size of a goose egg, pitted and dark, it didn't look like a piece of jade at all.

Return the jade!

Just as she was about to scoff, the old beggar suddenly trembled, and the stone fell to the ground with a thud. After rolling a few times, it suddenly revealed a bright, emerald-green color, about the thickness of a willow leaf.

Li Chunyan immediately held her breath, her eyes fixed on the stone.

"Is it really jade?"

Ye Qingqing, "..."

Something feels off.

The old beggar was like a fish casting a trap, while the woman was like a clueless fish in the water...

She couldn't help but exchange a glance with Ye Dazhuang.

Ye Dazhuang's deep eyes remained completely still, and Ye Qingqing couldn't glean any useful information from them.

"It's jade! Madam, this jade stone was passed down from my grandfather's ancestors, and he treasures it like a precious gem."

The old beggar said with a face full of grief, "If it weren't for the drought this year and the lack of harvest, I wouldn't have been willing to sell this jade!"

The old man hadn't eaten for three days, and his wife was bedridden with illness. He had no other choice but to make a decision that went against his ancestors' wishes: to sell the jade so he could at least get through the winter...

"Madam, please have mercy, madam, please buy it!"

Li Chunyan's eyes darted around a few times, then she carefully reached out and took it, staring intently at the willow-leaf-like green and inhaling deeply.

"Dali, Erya, come quick! This...this really looks like jade..."

Ye Qingqing pinched her nose and leaned over for a look. "Sister-in-law, I don't know anything about jade. Asking me is pointless."

Looking at the window cut into the original stone, the emerald green color was a bit too bright, and it looked fake at first glance.

If a jade stone could produce this color, it would definitely be a top-grade emerald!

With such a treasure, how could an old man still be a beggar here?

Ye Qingqing was a little puzzled...

The predictions made by the divination sticks are absolutely correct, even if you're struck by lightning!

But the rough stone in the old beggar's hand looks fake at first glance, what's going on?

Could he be hiding real jade in his pocket?

Things were a bit chaotic, so Ye Qingqing decided to let the bullets fly for a while longer.

Ye Dali shook his head and said frankly,

"Yan'er, how could I not understand this? Our family isn't one that wears gold and jade, why would we buy it?"

"Of course! Who said they were going to bring it!"

Li Chunyan rolled her eyes at him and whispered in Ye Dali's ear, "Didn't that old beggar say he was only selling this jade because he was desperate to survive? If we buy it, and then sell the jade after it's cut open, how much silver can we make?"

Ye Dali thought for a moment, then shook his head and said hesitantly,

"Yan'er, we really don't know anything about this. Who knows if it's real or fake? Let's not buy it..."

"But isn't this bright, shiny jade? And the color is a strange, vibrant green..."

These words made Li Chunyan hesitate for a moment, and she quickly looked at Ye Qingqing, asking anxiously,

"What do you think, Second Sister?"

"My lord and madam, this old man swears to heaven, there really is jade inside this stone!"

Before Ye Qingqing could speak, the old beggar raised three fingers and swore in a trembling voice, "I'm sixty-four years old and I've seen people burying their necks in the ground. Why would I lie to you?"

If it weren't for the fact that we were really struggling to make ends meet, I wouldn't have been willing to take out my family heirlooms to exchange for food!

"Madam, I only need three taels of silver... three taels! Enough for my wife and me to live on coarse grain porridge until spring. Please, have pity on this old man who's starving to death!"

His words were both reasonable and persuasive, and Li Chunyan was immediately swayed again, especially when she heard that it only cost three taels of silver; her eyes lit up instantly.

"Only three ounces! Dali, Erya, people are just trying to make a living, otherwise why would they buy it?"

"Three ounces isn't much, why don't we buy it? Maybe we can make a fortune by reselling it..."

With her current wealth, three taels of silver really stings her, but it's not like she can't afford it.

But if you spend three or four ounces to buy this stone, and then open it up to find a treasure, wouldn't you make a fortune?

Jade is worth a fortune!

Ye Qingqing didn't have any objections. Anyway, the divination slip predicted that she could make a small profit from the jade, so she just casually mentioned it.

"I have no objection. Sister-in-law, if you like it, just buy it. It's not that expensive. Consider it an act of kindness."

Unless there is another old beggar.

"Really? Second daughter, you agreed?"

Li Chunyan's eyes lit up instantly, and she became lively. "Did you also realize that this is a good thing? I knew it! This emerald green is so bright and shiny, how could it be faked?"

"Then I'll buy it! When it's converted into silver, I'll give you half!"

Ye Qingqing smiled and said, "No need, it's our own money, why be polite?"