On the plane, Wu Rendi called Sun Fatty and me over and said, "Let's split those three pearls."
Wu Rendi finally spoke. Previously, Sun Fatty had an idea: each of us takes one pearl, then he and I would find a way to sell ours first, leaving Wu Rendi's pearl for himself to deal with later. It sounded like a good plan, but since Director Hao hadn't given the go-ahead, nothing had moved forward.
"You sell those three pearls, no matter the price, I want half," Wu Rendi said with a somewhat awkward expression on his face — apparently, even he knew that sounded a bit too much.
"Sure, no problem." Sun Fatty and I answered in unison. Getting half was better than the pearls sitting unsold.
"You don't have to give me any money from selling the pearls." Wu Rendi found a note and wrote down an address and a name. "Give the money to this mother and daughter." I glanced at it — the note showed a place in Nanjing and the name Shao Jie. Shao Yiyi. Mother and daughter? Both surnamed Shao?
A few hours later, the plane landed. By the time we returned to the Bureau of Paranormal Investigation, it was already late. Wu Rendi remained elusive — once inside the Bureau, he disappeared. Po Jun went to the director's office to report on the situation in Qilin City. Sun Fatty and I wandered around the office but didn't see Director Hao Wenming, so we returned to the dorm and started working on selling the pearls.
Back when Sun Fatty worked undercover, he had contacts in all sorts of circles. After a few calls and friends recommending friends, we finally found a buyer in Hong Kong who agreed to meet the next day at the Capital Hotel.
The lifestyle of the wealthy was right in front of us. Sun Fatty and I had no mood to work, so we grabbed a quick meal in the cafeteria and returned to the dorm. Maybe we were too excited because neither of us felt sleepy. We stared at each other in the dorm, bragged half the night, and only managed to get some rest late at night.
The next day, Sun Fatty and I called Director Hao Wenming early, claiming we were feeling unwell and taking a day off. Hao didn't mind; the office didn't have much work recently, and with us gone, Old Qiu wouldn't come by to borrow people.
With the director's leave approved, Sun Fatty and I left the Bureau, hailed a cab (we didn't dare use the idle cars parked nearby to avoid being recognized), and headed straight to the Capital Hotel.
There was no conversation on the way. Once inside the Capital Hotel, the Hong Kong buyer's secretary was already waiting in the lobby. After some polite greetings, she led Sun Fatty and me to her boss's suite.
Unlike the typical image of a Hong Kong businessman, the man before me was surnamed Ma, with an imposing name — Ma Xiaolin. Around fifty years old, speaking Mandarin with a Cantonese accent. He was skinny, almost skin and bones. If I had met him months ago in the Water Curtain Cave in Yunnan, I would have mistaken him for a dried corpse and shot him without hesitation. But despite his frail appearance, his face showed shrewdness — clearly a guy who would take advantage without losing out.
After some formal chit-chat, we got to the point. Yesterday, Sun Fatty hadn't explained clearly over the phone, only mentioning some newly unearthed artifacts without details. Now, with the three luminous pearls on display, Ma Xiaolin's eyes lit up.
Sun Fatty even pulled the curtains and turned off the lights. The three night pearls emitted a silvery light, resembling starlight.
"These are priceless treasures," Ma Xiaolin said, holding the three pearls with his mouth watering almost dripping on them. Sun Fatty and I exchanged a glance — this was promising; those three pearls could fetch a good price.
However, once the curtains were drawn back, Ma Xiaolin's expression changed. "But, there are some flaws!"
Before I could react, Sun Fatty snapped, "Which eye of yours saw the flaws?"
Ma Xiaolin smiled cheekily, not offended, and handed over the three night pearls. "Sun, Shen, take a look yourselves."
Sun Fatty and I each took one in hand and looked carefully from all angles but saw no obvious defects.
"They're round and lustrous, no problem," I told Ma Xiaolin.
"No, look here," Ma Xiaolin pointed to different spots on each pearl, then called over his secretary, "Bring the magnifying glass."
With the magnifier, one could barely see tiny scratches on the pearls — probably caused when the pearls fell underground in the desert. Ma Xiaolin somehow saw them with his sharp eyes.
"Flaws? Boss Ma, where did you train your eyesight?" Sun Fatty joked, holding a pearl in one hand and the magnifier in the other, looking at Ma Xiaolin.
"Heh," Ma Xiaolin chuckled, "Even the smallest flaw counts. No way around it — flaws mean they're not perfect."
Ma Xiaolin was about to continue, but Sun Fatty cut him off, "Hold on, Boss Ma, be straight with us — how much can you actually pay for these three night pearls?"
Ma Xiaolin hesitated for a moment, then said, "Eight hundred thousand. What do you think?"
"Eight hundred thousand (110,000 USD)?" Sun Fatty collected the night pearls and said, "Lazi, let's go. We came to the wrong place."
Seeing that we were about to leave, Ma Xiaolin finally got a bit flustered and said, "Mr. Sun, Mr. Shen, everything can be negotiated. If you think eight hundred thousand is not suitable, then how about eight hundred and ten thousand? Business is all about give and take. Don't leave just yet. If eight hundred and ten thousand isn't enough, we can still talk."
Sun Fatty gave him a look and said, "Do you think you're dealing with beggars? Three night pearls for eighty-one thousand? Do you think Old Sun works for free?" Sun Fatty might mess around in regular work, but when it comes to side deals, he's sharp as a tiger. After all, he used to be an undercover and has seen it all.
Ma Xiaolin shrugged his shoulders and asked, "Then tell me, how much do you think is appropriate?"
Sun Fatty glanced at me. I raised one finger: one million. Half goes to Wu Rendi, and Sun Fatty and I split the other half — two hundred fifty thousand each. Twenty-five thousand dollars, enough to build a small house for my third uncle back home, and to support my third aunt. Still have some left for my parents. Wait, my grandfather deserves some too.
Sun Fatty nodded and said, "My big brother said ten million!"
Ten million? Could it really be sold for ten million? I felt dizzy. Growing up, I never knew what it meant to have ten million. When I was a special forces soldier, I got a five thousand yuan (about 700 USD) allowance, and I was so excited I couldn't sleep for nights. If I could really get ten million, damn, from then on I'd only eat intestine Chen's dishes without the grilled buns!
Just when I was feeling dizzy, Ma Xiaolin suddenly jumped up from the sofa and shouted, "Mr. Sun, what kind of joke is this? Three glowing stones worth ten million?"
"Smack!" Sun Fatty slammed the coffee table and pointed right at Ma Xiaolin's nose, shouting, "You think we're some bumpkins who have never seen the world? These three are called night pearls, not some luminescent stones with radioactive elements. Night pearls of this quality go for ten million each outside, people are fighting over them. Now we're selling you all three for ten million, that's a steal. What else do you want?"
After Sun Fatty's tirade, Ma Xiaolin completely lost his temper and sighed, "I know, eighty thousand is a bit low, but Mr. Sun, do you know what antiques really sell for?" Seeing that Sun Fatty remained silent, Ma continued, "Antiques sell for what people cherish. If rich people say it's valuable, it's priceless. If they say it's worthless, it's just a glowing rock. If you sell the night pearls to me, I still have to find a real connoisseur to sell them to. This process might take five years, or if unlucky, fifty years."
Sun Fatty wasn't going to argue further. He pocketed the pearls, grabbed me, and started to leave. Seeing we were really in a hurry, Ma Xiaolin blocked us at the door and said, "Don't go yet, we can still negotiate. If eighty thousand isn't enough, how about two million, three million, five million, seven million, seven and a half million?" When he saw Sun Fatty slow down, indicating he was wavering, Ma grit his teeth and said, "Final offer: eight million. I really can't go any higher."
Sun Fatty glanced back at me and asked, "Lazi, what do you think?"
To be honest, when Ma Xiaolin shouted "three million," I was already holding it together. Now selling for eight million, I could laugh in my sleep. I said, "Big Saint, I think this is about right. Mr. Ma isn't easy either. Eight million it is." I forced my heart, which was pounding wildly, to sound casual.
Sun Fatty nodded at Ma Xiaolin and said, "Fine, my big brother already gave the word, this time we're cutting you a deal." Saying that, he tossed the three pearls to Ma Xiaolin. "Eight million is yours."
Ma Xiaolin carefully took the night pearls, pulled out a checkbook, and said, "Eight million in a check, is that okay?" Sun Fatty shook his head, "No checks."
Ma Xiaolin was stunned. "Are you joking, Mr. Sun? You don't want a check, you want cash? Eight million in cash, the bank will ask for an explanation. How am I supposed to say?"
Sun Fatty chuckled and took out a laptop from his backpack. "What are you thinking? Bank transfer. Do you think we can carry eight million cash?"
Sun Fatty also had a personal account, truly a master at keeping a low profile. Not just me, even Ma Xiaolin looked surprised. "I didn't expect you to come prepared, Mr. Sun." Then, in front of Sun Fatty, he transferred eight million into Sun Fatty's account.
After the transaction, Ma Xiaolin had his secretary pour three glasses of champagne and said, "Let's celebrate the success of this deal—a win-win!"
"No time!" This time it was me shouting. I grabbed Sun Fatty's arm and whispered, "Let's go, time to withdraw the money!"
At the bank, I realized after the transfer, Sun Fatty immediately divided the eight million into several banks, splitting it into three accounts under his name. I started to wonder — with such familiarity, where exactly had he been undercover before?
Under Sun Fatty's strong recommendation, the two million that belonged to me was converted into a bank card. I originally wanted a passbook — that little book feels more secure. But Sun Fatty said bank cards are safer than passbooks. Seeing how professional he was in this area, I followed his advice.