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墨書 Inktalez
Gravekeeper
Wang Tieniu insisted on giving me a card, promising to cover all the expenses.
Of course, I refused. I left Wang Tieniu's villa and took a taxi to find my own car. I initially planned to drive to Shanghai, but then I thought about how congested that place is. It would be unwise to drive; taking the High-Speed Rail would be better. In less than half an hour, I would arrive.
I bought a ticket for the next High-Speed Rail and took a taxi to Suzhou North Station. After boarding the train to Shanghai, I barely settled into my seat before we arrived.
I got off and took the subway to Zhangjiang. After getting off the subway, I took another taxi directly to Xue Xiang's home.
Xue Xiang lived in a relatively upscale area. To be honest, land in Shanghai is incredibly expensive. The specifications and quality of the place where Xue Xiang lived were far inferior to Wang Tieniu's villa, yet the price was not much different.
As I arrived at the building, I noticed an elderly woman burning paper at the entrance. She was sighing and wiping her tears as she did so.
For some reason, I suddenly felt that something was off!
I hesitated for a moment before walking over to the old lady. "Auntie, my condolences."
The old lady looked up at me with red eyes and said, "Thank you, thank you, young man. The person has passed away; I've come to terms with it. There's no need for condolences anymore."
I replied, "Um, Auntie, I wanted to ask you if Master Xue lives upstairs?"
Upon hearing my question, the old lady suddenly lifted her head and stared at me. "What do you want with him? You’re too late!"
I was taken aback for a moment and then squatted down beside her. "Grandma, this person... could it be... could it be Master Xue?"
The old lady nodded slowly as she straightened her back.
I stepped forward to support her as she sighed deeply. "Yes, this is Master Xue. Today is his seventh day since passing; he died here, so I'm here to burn some paper money for him..."
My heart sank; if this lead was cut off, it would be troublesome. I quickly asked, "Grandma, what exactly happened? How did Master Xue suddenly... pass away?"
The old woman shook her head. "Oh, come inside."
I helped her into the house. They lived on the fifth floor, but thankfully there was an elevator; otherwise, it would have been quite difficult for her.
Once inside, the old woman brewed a pot of tea and settled into a rocking chair. "Not many people come to see Old Xue anymore. People come and go, and when I was working at the company, the bosses were always polite to him. Now, all they think about is how to shirk responsibility and minimize their losses."
I remained silent; this was the reality.
The old woman continued, "In the jewelry business, there's not much fame. Only those in the industry know about it. Actually, heh, what masters? They're just skilled workers. Old Xue never changed jobs because he valued his relationship with the bosses. He accepted his salary without ever thinking of profiting from it. Now, I wonder if Old Xue regrets seeing how coldly the company treats him."
She wiped away her tears and smiled at me. "When you get old, you tend to ramble a bit. With the kids not around and no one else to talk to, I can only chat with you."
I replied, "It's alright, Grandma. I'm here for you. I wanted to ask how Master Xue passed away. Was it... was it madness?"
"You?" The old woman suddenly turned to look at me. "How do you know? How did you find out?"
Seeing her agitation confirmed my guess was right. I said, "Grandma, I'm not lying to you. The reason I came looking for Master Xue is because of a strange case I'm handling. My client’s wife went mad, and in the end, we found out that the source of it all was a diamond ring—one that was crafted by Master Xue!"
"What!" The old woman grabbed my business card, her hands trembling slightly as she looked at me. "No wonder! It really is like that! You see, Old Xue was indeed acting strangely in the week before his death. I always thought it was due to work pressure, but his behavior clearly exceeded normal limits. I wanted to take him to see a doctor, but how could I convince him? On the night before he died, he suddenly went wild and smashed a chair against the security window before jumping out..."
The old woman began to cry again. I comforted her for a moment and asked, "Grandma, do you remember anything about that diamond?" I could only cling to a glimmer of hope; honestly, with Xue Xiang dead, tracing back the origins of that diamond and understanding its curse would be complicated—I would have to investigate at the jewelry company.
I despised dealing with companies; their efficiency was painfully slow.
After thinking for a moment, the old woman said, "Now that you mention it, I do recall something. Generally speaking, Old Xue never brought diamonds home. But some time ago, he did bring back a diamond—a rather large one that wasn’t set in any ring; it was just a stone. At that time, I thought it looked quite nice; Old Xue seemed enchanted by it. I asked him why he brought it home since there was no way to polish it here. He said it was too beautiful not to admire for another night. I laughed and told him he was being too narcissistic—how could something he polished himself look so good? Old Xue shook his head and said this diamond was crafted using the Ten Hearts and Ten Arrows technique—one of the rarest in the world; no one in China could replicate it."
Listening to her recounting, though somewhat disorganized, I managed to grasp some details. "Ten Hearts and Ten Arrows? Was that diamond already cut and shaped?"
The old woman nodded. "Yes, it had already been polished and was quite large; such a diamond should be quite famous. So I asked him why he didn’t sell it since it was already finished? Old Xue sighed and explained that this diamond was an antique needing refurbishment; the company had asked him to recut and polish it without telling him why. After cutting it, he could never see such a beautiful diamond again."
I felt a surge of energy upon hearing the old woman's words. I said, "Grandma, you mean the previous diamond was larger and more beautifully crafted, but the company had Old Xue re-cut and polished it?"
"Yes," the old woman nodded. "A diamond that size must be worth several million, but once it's re-cut and polished, it would be lucky to retain a few hundred thousand."
"There's a problem," I replied. "That diamond has issues."
The old woman nodded again. "Now that you mention it, I also think Old Xue started to become unwell after that diamond was polished."
"Grandma, I need to know the origins of that diamond. How can I find out about it?"
She thought for a moment and said, "I know a way, but can you promise me that once you trace its origins, you'll come back here and testify for me? I need proof that Old Xue died because of work-related issues. The company isn't compensating me, and... I'm not satisfied."
"Sure!" I replied immediately. "Grandma, here's my number. If you need anything, just call me. I will do my best to prove this matter."
The old woman thanked me and then went inside her house to search for something. Finally, she came out with a business card. "This is the phone number of the company's purchasing agent. She was the one who procured that diamond. If you find her, you'll definitely learn about the diamond's background."
I thanked the old woman again and looked at the business card. It was from Longxiang Jewelry Company, listing Ye Yun as the Deputy Manager of the Purchasing Department, along with her phone number.
I picked up my phone and dialed Ye Yun's number, but her phone was turned off. I frowned; if anything else went wrong, it could complicate matters.
I bid farewell to the old woman and inquired about directions before heading straight to Longxiang Jewelry Company.
The company's address wasn't too far from Xue Xiang's home; it took about ten minutes by taxi to get there. The company seemed quite large, at least having its own headquarters rather than just renting an office space like many others.
I walked in and headed straight for the reception desk. "Hello, I'm looking for Ye Yun, the Manager of Purchasing. Where can I find her?"
The receptionist glanced at me and asked, "Who are you?"
"I'm a friend of Ye Yun. We've collaborated on business before, and there's a significant deal this time. Since I've worked with her in the past, I trust her and would like to collaborate again," I explained.
Sister leaned closer to me and whispered, "Ye Yun hasn't come to work these past few days."
Hearing the Receptionist say this made me uneasy. If something happened to Ye Yun, I would have to go to the company's Boss to find out what was going on, which would complicate things significantly. Moreover, if the issues with the diamonds were causing problems for both employees and clients, the company would definitely try to cover it up.
I felt a bit worried and asked, "She hasn't come to work? What happened? Is she sick? I need to go check on her."
The Receptionist replied, "She is feeling a bit unwell. I went to see her a few days ago. Actually, I'm sort of a close friend of Manager Ye; her ex-boyfriend is my cousin, hee hee."
I sighed in relief and smiled, "Oh, really? Can you tell me where Manager Ye lives? I want to go see her."
The Receptionist nodded, "You know, if you ask others in the company, they might not know. Manager Ye has been envied a lot at work; everyone thinks she got her position because of her looks. But I know that Ye Yun works very hard and is quite upright. The Boss even tried to take advantage of her but failed. It's a pity for my cousin; he didn't have that kind of luck. He only pursued Ye Yun for a short time and then got all eager to get her drunk, but she kicked him away, hee hee..."
I felt helpless inside; it seemed every company had a quirky and amusing receptionist.
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