Chapter 189: Catherine Unveils the Stone, Witnessing Good Luck
Maurice turned the conversation to Catherine, and everyone's eyes followed. Catherine lifted her head slightly.The black dress and pearl necklace made her look exceptionally elegant, giving her an air of mystery that felt almost untouchable.
Catherine said coolly, “They’re all trash. I’m not interested.”
From their surface patterns alone, it was clear that the raw jade stones the Hughes family had on display were extremely ordinary—the kind that would produce only bean-grade jade.
Catherine’s attitude upset Logan on stage. “What family is she from? How rude. She’d better not embarrass herself,” he muttered. Catherine didn’t even look up. “I think everything here is terrible, and I’m really disappointed.”
“Anyone who dared to use the Jade Oracle name to scam people in Imperia City would not be let off easily by Catherine or Oscar. Logan was furious!”
“You dare say I don’t have good raw stones? I was gambling on jade when you were still a child!” A commanding voice suddenly rang out.
“The Hughes family sure has guts. You invite someone without knowing their skill level, and yet you dare to question the Windsor family?”
Everyone looked over in shock as Paloma wheeled Owen in and seated him near Catherine and her group. Logan frowned. “And who are you?”
Owen said nothing and didn’t even lift his eyes. The atmosphere grew tense. Anthony stood up from the front row and laughed awkwardly.
“Owen, why didn’t you let me know you were coming so I could pick you up?” The Hughes family had built their fortune years ago by relying on the Harrison family. No matter how much Anthony looked down on Owen's ways, he still had to show respect. Owen glanced at everyone. "I'm protecting Catherine. Anyone who dares to speak against her had better think twice about their future in Imperia City. Since you claim to be the Jade Oracle, prove it. “Cut open two stones and let’s see what you’ve got!”
The Harrison family’s influence in the antiques world was significant. Anthony didn’t dare openly defy Owen.
Anthony smiled and waved at the stage. “Cut the stones.” Seeing how respectfully Anthony treated Owen, Logan didn’t dare say another word.
He selected two raw stones on the spot and began cutting them in front of everyone.
Alexander asked quietly, “Did he pick good ones?”
“They’re not very good,” came the reply.
Logan cut very carefully, only daring to make thin cuts along marked lines. Someone in the crowd exclaimed, "There's green!"
Maurice and Anthony relaxed when they saw the green jade material on stage. Logan looked smugly at Catherine below. “Ms. Windsor said everything here is trash.” “I wonder if this counts as good?”
Catherine frowned slightly and shook her head in disapproval.
“Like I said, everything here is worthless.”
What Logan had cut was only a surface layer. With a little more cutting, it would reveal nothing more than a thin sheet of green jade covering dull, worthless white stone beneath.
"One more cut and we'll know. This thin layer—who are you fooling?" The Hughes family had bought expensive raw stones to make a good showing today. If even one produced high-quality jade, the effort would pay off. Anthony ordered, “Keep cutting.” Logan gritted his teeth, convinced Catherine was nothing more than an ignorant troublemaker stirring up trouble.
"If this stone turns out good, Ms. Windsor needs to apologize to me." A cold laugh suddenly rang out.
A middle-aged man in a hoodie slowly stood up behind Catherine. “She said everything here is trash, so it’s all trash.” Everyone there was familiar with jade gambling. They all recognized this man—Oscar, the legendary Jade Oracle from Stellara’s older generation. Anthony’s eyebrow twitched violently when he saw Oscar.
Why would Oscar come to the Hughes family’s jade gambling event? Anthony quickly stood up and rubbed his hands together with a smile. “Oscar, long time no see.”
Oscar rolled his eyes coldly. “Long time no see, and I hear you’re selling questionable goods. Anthony, that’s quite disappointing.”
Being called out by Oscar in front of everyone made Anthony’s face twitch. “You there on stage, what are you waiting for? Catherine said to keep cutting.”“Let everyone see the poor-quality stones you picked.”
Alexander suddenly spoke up, “Logan offended my fiancée. I’ll remember that.”
Logan never expected that after years of posing as Jade Oracle without trouble, he'd run into the real deal at the Hughes family event!
His hands trembled as he continued cutting. What emerged was no longer clear green jade, but a large, cloudy white stone—the least valuable variety imaginable.
Anthony bit his lip. “Again!”
There were hardly any promising raw stones among the lot. Logan cut several more, but the best he uncovered was only a small fragment of ice-grade jade.
Catherine yawned. "Very boring. Fake is fake, as expected." With Oscar present, Logan couldn't keep claiming to be Jade Oracle.
Anthony shot Michael a venomous glare, fury blazing in his eyes. Michael felt his calm façade crack. The so-called Jade Oracle he had paid a fortune for was actually a fraud?
His standing in the Hughes family was finished. Logan said stubbornly, “I can’t get good results because your raw materials are poor. If even I can’t make it work, no one can.”nobody here can! It's just my bad luck! Even if Oscar tried, he couldn't get anything good either!" Oscar laughed coldly. "Luck?“You’re not even worth my effort. Catherine, go show them what real skill looks like.”
“Fine.”
Catherine’s jade cutting had nothing to do with luck.
But when he saw Catherine stand up, Logan felt a surge of relief. She clearly knew nothing about jade gambling. As long as she failed to produce anything valuable, he would still have a chance to turn things around. He might still be able to scrape by. Maurice watched Catherine with undisguised admiration tinged with greed, the look in his eyes deeply unsettling.
“Ms. Windsor, please. Even if you don’t produce any good stones, today’s losses will be covered by the Hughes family. We simply hope to make friends.”
Alexander stood and walked to Catherine’s side, his gaze filled with cold menace. “Maurice, if you value your businesses, you’d better watch what you say.” “At least consider the other members of the Hughes family.”
Maurice looked at Alexander and forced a smile, though his legs trembled uncontrollably beneath him.
Alexander was undeniably intimidating, but with the entire Windsor family standing behind Catherine, Maurice couldn’t suppress his urge to draw closer to her and secure her favor.
Catherine bent down and casually picked up an unremarkable raw stone. “This one will do nicely.”