Chapter 188: Jade Oracle? All Trash
Stellara's elder generation Jade Oracle and entertainment superstar Sophia were both squatting under a small table.
Their mouths were stuffed with cream cakes, and each held one in both hands.
Sophia chuckled. “Boss, you guys carry on. Don’t mind us.”
Catherine pressed her temples helplessly. "What are you doing here?"
Sophia had her excuse ready.
"Didn't I go pick up Oscar? He was on a plane for over ten hours and got hungry, but I'm a public figure—if I eat too much, it'll make headlines!"
The last time a tabloid claimed Sophia had binge-eaten cream cakes late at night after a breakup, she had nearly lost her temper.
Was that a breakup? She had simply been craving sweets.
Oscar and Sophia both loved cream cakes the most.
Oscar reached out his hand. "Come on, Catherine. Help me up. My legs are numb from squatting too long."
Catherine pulled them out from under the table with resignation.
Oscar stomped his feet, then glanced at Alexander. “Not bad-looking. Where did you pick him up?"
Catherine replied flatly, "Picked him up off the street."
"Nice, nice. Better than the last one.” Oscar waved his hand. “I’m going to grab something else to eat. You two continue.
Watching them scurry off and hide under another table to keep eating cake, Catherine rubbed her temples again.
Alexander's presence swept over as he leaned down slightly toward Catherine.
"The last one?"
His fiancée had picked up other men off the street before?
This realization made a faint jealousy stirred within him.
The more time he spent with Catherine, the more he realized she was like hidden treasure, always surprising him. She was amazing, but he had never been part of her past.
"Just someone unimportant that Oscar mentioned. He misunderstood” Catherine replied calmly.
"Then am I important?"
She turned to glance at him, as if seeing straight through his thoughts.
"Didn't Oscar say? Very good."
Stone gamblers could lose everything for a piece of fine jade.If she were a gambler, Alexander would be top quality.
It took him a moment to realize she was praising him.
Catherine took a man’s watch from her handbag and handed it to him without looking up.
"I modified it. If you don't like it, then..."
“I like it,” Alexander interrupted quickly. “Anything from you, I like.”
On their way back from Tranquil County, Catherine had casually modified his watch as a return gift for the one he had given her.
"Thank you for the trouble."
Catherine noticed that no matter what he wore, the cufflinks on his sleeves were always the pair she had given him at Healing Touch Hospital.
Anyone unaware would think the CEO of the Howard Group owned only one usable pair of cufflinks.
Meeting his bright gaze, she fastened the watch onto his wrist.
Emilia popped up from somewhere. "Catherine, I've set everything up. Come on, I found the best spot."
“I have two more friends. Do you mind?” Catherine gestured toward Oscar and Sophia, who were crawling out from under another table.
Emilia’s lips twitched. “If they’re your friends, of course not. But why do they look kind of familiar?"
Emilia had seen many films, yet the glamorous star on screen did not resemble the cake-devouring woman before her, so she failed to recognize Sophia.
The Hughes family’s stone-gambling event had attracted numerous guests, most drawn by the Jade Oracle’s reputation.
According to the rules, if someone favored a stone cut open on the spot, it could be auctioned.
But since this was hosted by the Hughes family, most high-quality jade would ultimately end up in their possession.
Emilia patted her chest confidently. “This spot has the best view. If you like any stone, Catherine, I'll buy it for you!"
Oscar said dismissively, "What good material could the Hughes family possibly have?"
Sophia agreed while eating cake, "I haven’t seen anything impressive."
Catherine lifted her gaze slightly. “There are a few decent pieces, but not many.”
At least among the huge pile of raw materials the Hughes family had on display, only two or three caught her eye, and even those wouldn’t sell for much.
Sophia wiped her mouth gracefully and said seriously, "Ms. Hughes, your family's cake is delicious. May I take some with me when I leave?"
"Good taste! I’ll have some packed for you!"
Alexander sat beside Catherine, holding her hand as he asked quietly, "You understand stone gambling too?"
“Not really. Just guessing. I’m lucky sometimes.”"
Most gamblers relied on luck.
But Catherine was sitting beside Oscar, and Sophia kept calling him “teacher.”
Alexander narrowed his eyes. “Sophia resembles someone who assisted you at Healing Touch Hospital.”
He still remembered what the people from Moon Laboratory looked like. One of them bore a striking resemblance to Sophia.
Catherine replied flatly, “Venus and Sophia are twins.”
Then Sophia must also be affiliated with Galactic Aurora Collective.
On stage, Maurice from the Hughes family, wearing a well-fitted and refined suit, smiled at the crowd.
Emilia leaned closer and whispered, “Maurice isn’t a good person.”
Sophia's lips twitched. "Isn't he your real brother?"
Emilia shrugged. “Yeah, so I can't say he's not a good person? Michael may be ugly and stupid, but Maurice has a lot of bad intentions. Catherine, if he approaches you later, ignore him."
Her tone carried an unspoken warning.
Catherine nodded knowingly. "I understand, thank you."
Maurice’s gaze swept across the audience before settling briefly on Catherine. When he noticed Alexander’s cold stare, he looked away.
“Thank you all for attending the Hughes family’s stone-gambling event,” Maurice announced. “Without further delay, let’s welcome the Jade Oracle.”
The Jade Oracle's reputation was too prominent. Even Emilia perked up to watch the stage.
Unlike the whole venue's attention, the two people beside Catherine were full of contempt for the so-called Jade Oracle.
Sophia sneered.
Oscar muttered, “What kind of thing dares to impersonate me."
A middle-aged man with a small mustache stepped onto the stage, making Oscar's mouth twitch.
"Ugly,” Oscar scoffed. “How dare he come out to gamble stones looking like that? Aren't you afraid of scaring the stones?"
Maurice applauded. “Allow me to introduce the world-renowned Jade Oracle, Logan Porter.”
"The Hughes family hopes to witness the miracle of stone gambling with everyone. Today, besides the raw materials Logan selects to be cut on the spot, we invite everyone to choose their favorite raw materials to cut. Valuable ones belong to you; the rest belong to the Hughes family."
Sophia snorted softly. “Sounds generous. In reality, there’s barely anything worthwhile in that pile.”
The Hughes family wouldn't do business that would lose them money.
Maurice’s gaze returned to Catherine.
“Ms. Windsor, would you like to select a couple of raw stones?”