"This is the gift you were talking about?"
"A pitch-black jade plaque?"
Paimon stared blankly at the jade token in Qiu Nian's hand.
Qiu Nian chuckled softly and held the jade up toward a nearby lantern.
The light passed easily through the dark jade.
What had seemed like dull black suddenly revealed a brilliant emerald glow.
The carved patterns on its surface became clear as well.
It was a koi leaping up from a pond.
"S-so beautiful…"
Paimon stared at the jade, almost mesmerized.
"It really is beautiful."
"This is the first time I've seen jade this pretty."
Lumine nodded in amazement.
"This is a piece of natural black jade of extremely high quality."
"And the carving on it was done by me personally."
Qiu Nian explained calmly.
As for where the jade came from—
When he had shattered the rough stone shell earlier, he had taken a small portion of the black jade simply because he thought it looked nice.
And this jade piece had already been refined into a storage item.
The internal space was roughly about one cubic meter.
Even ignoring the value of the jade material and the carving itself—
The fact that it could store items alone made it a priceless treasure.
He had simply made it out of boredom.
"I didn't expect you to know jade carving too!"
Paimon said in admiration while staring at the jade.
"I know a little."
"It's just a small hobby of mine."
Qiu Nian replied with a faint smile.
"Let's go."
"This piece of jade should be more than enough as a meeting gift."
After speaking, Qiu Nian led Lumine and Paimon toward Yujing Terrace.
Once they arrived, they found a man named Bu Yun.
After giving the secret code, the three of them stepped onto a platform built with floatstone as its base.
The platform slowly lifted them into the sky.
It carried them upward toward the Jade Chamber.
At that moment, Ningguang stood upon the Jade Chamber, her beautiful eyes gazing down at Liyue Harbor below.
Behind her stood her two confidants—Baiwen and Baishi.
Mr. Qiu Nian…
Lives on the outskirts of Jueyun Karst.
Handsome appearance. An old friend of Mr. Zhongli from Wangsheng Funeral Parlor.
Arrived in Liyue Harbor together with the Traveler who returned from Jueyun Karst.
Also assisted the Traveler in preparing the Rite of Parting.
Later, under Zhongli's recommendation, he became a consultant of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor.
Ningguang rested one hand beneath her chin, silently analyzing.
His background was truly mysterious.
It was almost as if he had appeared out of nowhere.
Her informants had observed Qiu Nian for quite some time and found nothing suspicious.
Was this man simply very good at hiding himself…
Or was he truly just a hermit who lived in Jueyun Karst?
But since he had already been drawn into this whirlpool—
And was connected to the Traveler—
It would be better to invite him up and meet him personally.
Not long after, Qiu Nian and the others arrived on the Jade Chamber.
"Wow…"
"So this is the Jade Chamber? It's enormous!"
Paimon exclaimed in amazement at the massive palace before them.
"Indeed."
"Whether it's the magnificent architecture or the height that overlooks all of Liyue…"
"It's truly impressive."
Qiu Nian nodded in agreement.
"We've been expecting you."
"Those who returned from Jueyun Karst."
At that moment, Ningguang approached with Baiwen and Baishi.
"Ah, it's Ningguang!"
"This is our first meeting, so we prepared a small gift. We hope you like it!"
Paimon said politely while looking at the elegant woman before them.
"Lady Ningguang."
"This is a jade token I carved personally. I hope you won't find it lacking."
Qiu Nian took out the black jade and handed it to her.
"A gift for me? Thank you very much."
"I invited the three of you here, yet you've gone to such trouble."
"You must be Mr. Qiu Nian."
Ningguang smiled gently.
Just as her informants had reported—
He was indeed handsome and youthful.
And his knowledge seemed to rival that of Mr. Zhongli, the man who seemed to know everything.
Ningguang had seen countless talented young people before.
Many of them had even pursued her.
But she had never seen a young man with such a unique temperament.
"This jade…"
"It resembles the black jade that the boss of Xie Cui Pavilion auctioned a few days ago."
Ningguang looked at the exquisitely carved jade in her hand.
"You mean that jade was auctioned?"
Lumine asked curiously.
"Yes."
"It sold for a sky-high price of eleven million Mora."
"I was interested in buying it myself, but the price exceeded its true value."
"However, this jade should not be that exact piece."
"Because processing the auctioned raw material would take more than just a few days."
"But the jade carved by Mr. Qiu Nian appears to have originated from that same raw stone."
Ningguang explained.
"Eleven million Mora?!"
Paimon's eyes widened instantly.
Lumine was equally stunned.
Good heavens—
Qiu Nian actually had jade worth that much?!
They had only thought it looked pretty.
They never imagined it could be so valuable.
And how could someone as poor as Qiu Nian possibly possess such an expensive jade?
Both Lumine and Paimon turned to stare at him.
Even though the jade wasn't theirs—
Their hearts still ached.
"Haha…"
"Before the Rite of Descension, I visited Liyue Harbor once."
"I helped the owner of Xie Cui Pavilion identify that black jade within a rough stone."
"As thanks, he gave me a small portion of it."
"After carving that piece, it became what you see now."
Seeing their confusion, Qiu Nian explained with a light laugh.
"So that's how it happened."
"But you're practically broke, yet you never sold this jade."
"I really don't know what to say about you…"
Paimon complained with a smug look.
"I see."
"I didn't expect Mr. Qiu Nian to have such deep knowledge in rough jade stones."
"And the carving itself is exceptionally refined."
Ningguang said with surprise.
…Broke?
Her intelligence reports had indeed mentioned that this gentleman lived in a house in Jueyun Karst because he lacked money.
But someone with such skill in jade appraisal and carving—
How could he possibly be poor?
"I was simply lucky."
"I wouldn't say I have any special expertise."
Qiu Nian shook his head slightly.
"I wonder—does Lady Ningguang like this small gift?"
"Mr. Qiu Nian is too modest."
"I like this gift very much."
Ningguang placed one hand over her chest and smiled warmly at him.
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