After sending Ma Chao to fly home the picked Tianshan snow lotus, Liu Dong drove alone to Hotan, a hundred miles away!
After first finding a hotel to stay, Liu Dong took a short rest, and then went to the jade trading market in Hotan early the next morning!
Liu Dong's interest in this place that he had longed for for three or four years was naturally high. But when he actually arrived and took a look around, he was deeply disappointed!
Because on the most important jade street in the Teachers Market, there really wasn’t much Hetian jade on sale outside that he could fancy. In addition to the low-priced Hetian jade, there were also Russian jade and Afghan jade mixed in, and even
Qing*hai jade, what’s even more outrageous is that there are fakes!
After Liu Dong walked around and didn't find any jade that he could like, he chose the largest shop on the street and went in.
Compared with the jade shops in developed coastal provinces, this store that mainly sells or even wholesales jade raw materials is not very well decorated. The interior of the more than 200 square meters shop and the cement plastered floor are basically filled with jade raw materials.
of iron frame.
Even after Liu Dong came in, no one came in to say hello, and there were not too many customers inside the store. Liu Dong made a brief observation and found that most of them were tourists, and there were no jade merchants who wanted to buy goods.
.
After Liu Dong circled the iron frame, he also discovered the reason.
Although the jade on the shelves is of better quality than the jade at the door of the store, the quality is limited. The best jade is only third-grade jade, and the price per gram is less than 1,000!
"Haha, brother, are you not satisfied with these jade stones?"
A middle-aged Uyghur man wearing a black jacket and a small hat appeared in front of Liu Dong, and his eyes showed the cunning and greed commonly seen among small businessmen! But in comparison, his eyes concealed
More hidden!
But Liu Dong didn't care about this. Whether it was the unsatisfactory three years in the past or now, he had long been accustomed to the greed of the world, not to mention the same for himself.
"certainly!"
Seeing Liu Dong nodding, the Uyghur boss looked at him quickly and carefully and then said again: "I don't know what to call brother?"
"Forgive me your last name is Liu!"
"Oh, Mr. Liu, you are welcome to my shop!" the Uyghur boss said enthusiastically.
Of course, this kind of enthusiasm is full of philistine, because the other party obviously saw from Liu Dong's expensive clothes that there was an opportunity for him to make a fortune!
"You're welcome!"
"Mr. Liu came to Hotan this time to buy jade?" the Uyghur boss asked again.
"That's right, but if it's all these things, forget it!"
As he spoke, Liu Dong pointed to the jade material placed on the iron frame.
"Haha. The jade here is sold to ordinary people, so naturally there won't be very good materials! ... If brothers don't mind it, how about we go upstairs to talk?"
After hearing this, Liu Dong didn't refuse. He came to Hotan this time just for the jade. It didn't matter where he went to purchase it!
As the saying goes, a skilled person is bold!
Like most multi-storey shops, the reception room is basically placed on the second or third floor. Following the stairs at the back of the store, Liu Dong came to a reception room that was decorated quite retro, and it was slightly more elegant than the interior of the store.
Although simple, the second floor can be called luxurious!
Not to mention anything else, the floor is just the best solid wood, and it's also dragon and phoenix sandalwood.
This kind of wood comes from South America. It is heavy and hard, resistant to corrosion, wear and termites. It has beautiful texture, uniform texture, high strength and pleasing color. It is a high-end material in wooden floors and furniture, and it is valuable.
"Mr. Liu, please sit down!"
"Easy to say!"
After saying a few polite words, the two of them sat down, and a beautiful waitress served tea next to them.
After taking a sip, the middle-aged Uighur boss said: "I wonder what kind of jade Mr. Liu wants to buy this time?"
Faced with the temptation, Liu Dong did not try to hide it. He glanced at the other party and said calmly: "I only need some Hetian jade of grade two or above. It doesn't matter whether it is seed material, mountain water, or mountain material. The key is the stuff."
Good enough, money is no problem!”
really!
After listening to Liu Dong's words, the Uyghur boss's eyes instantly lit up.
"Mr. Liu is indeed very brave!"
Facing the thumbs up from the Uighur boss, Liu Dong smiled calmly and said, "So you have the good jade I want in your hand?"
"Haha, I'm not afraid of Mr. Liu's jokes. In the entire Hotan City, apart from the famous 'Jade King', there really aren't many shops that can match the amount of jade I have in my hands!"
"Jade King?" Liu Dong asked back.
When he came to Hotan for the first time, he had no idea about the forces here.
"Is this your first time in Hotan, Mr. Liu?" After taking a look at Liu Dong, the Uyghur boss smiled.
"That's right!"
"That's not surprising. Anyone who has been to Hotan knows about the 'Jade King' Mulati!"
"Why, is he very powerful here?" Liu Dong asked curiously.
"Haha, this is not a powerful word to describe. Let me tell you this, in the entire Hotan, Jade King Mulati controls more than 90% of the jade trade here!" The Uyghur boss said with envy.
"Ninety percent?" Liu Dong was surprised.
This is close to a monopoly. In China, there are actually industries that are monopolized by private individuals?
“More than 90% of jade mining in Hotan is conducted by Mulati’s companies!”
"Why? Are there no other more powerful jewelry companies that develop their own ores?" Liu Dong continued.
"It has happened before, but unless you have a powerful backstage behind you, you have to abide by the rules set by the 'Jade King' Mulati in Hotan!"
"What rules?"
"Individual jade mining requires a 20% protection fee, and the jade mined collectively must be sold to his jade company!"
"What, you have to pay protection fees to pick jade? Plus forced buying and selling, is there no one to care about such a thing?" Liu Dong found it a bit incredible.
Liu Dong found it a bit incredible that something like this happened openly in China. It not only involved forced buying and selling, but also involved industry monopoly.
"Hey, of course there are people taking care of it, but these people who once wanted to take care of it have all disappeared, and there is no one alive or dead!" the Uyghur boss said with a hint of complexity in his sneer.
"Does the government just not care?" Liu Dong frowned.
"Control? Of course we will. But this is Xinjiang Province, not an eastern province. The Uighurs, Tibetans and Hui people here are definitely no less than the Han people, so stability and unity are better than anything else! As long as there is no evidence, use money to manage it.
Now, who is willing to challenge me? I am an official for thousands of miles just for wealth, brother!"
After listening to the other party's words, Liu Dong felt a little disgusted, but he also felt that what the other party said was indeed right. In today's country, ethnic minorities do not need to consider family planning, ethnic minorities can get extra points for schooling, and ethnic minority cadres are more prominent in officialdom.
It is easy to make progress, as if in this land that has inherited five thousand years of ancient civilization, the Han people have become out-and-out second-class citizens!
After the Han and Tang Dynasties, our civilization seemed to have its backbone broken, and the proud descendants of Yan and Huang began to become slaves of foreign nations!
This was the case in the Song Dynasty, the Yuan Dynasty went further, the Ming Dynasty improved slightly, and the Qing Dynasty completely branded the Chinese people as slaves in their bones!
The humiliation of the Republic of China completely destroyed China's pride and self-confidence since the Han and Tang Dynasties!
So now, the things we were once proud of have become more and more ignored. Steamed buns and porridge are not as good as KFC and McDonald's, tea is not as good as Coke, and "The Analects of Confucius" is not as good as the "Bible". Five thousand years have made us
The infinitely proud civilization is not as good as an American green card!
Perhaps in another five hundred or one thousand years, without the invasion of foreign enemies or natural disasters, our once proud civilization will disappear into the heap of history because there is no one to inherit it, just like ancient Egypt and ancient times.
India is like ancient Babylon. If these are too far away, then think of the red empire around us, the former 'big brother' and 'su*lian'!
Liu Dong, whose mind was wandering, thought of many things in an instant.
But after being filled with emotion and even indignation, he discovered that he was indeed capable of changing things at the national level, and could not change the current ethnic policies. Of course, he also had something he could work hard to change, and that was to continue to strengthen his determination to promote traditional culture.
The works related to China before the Han Dynasty found in the tomb of King Kangju this time are a very good supplement and a hot spot that attracts attention.
In addition, he is currently doing charity and applied for the charity school, which is rapidly expanding and is also a good opportunity to promote and pass on ancient culture!
Of course, these are things for the future. Now, what he should deal with most is the immediate one!
What we are seeing is not changing the status quo of Hotan jade industry, but Hotan jade that has been put on the table by Uyghur bosses!
There are not many jade stones, there are only six pieces in total, four of which are second-grade jade, and the remaining two are first-grade jade. The special jade material Liu Dong wants most is not among them. As for the higher-grade mutton-fat jade,
, Liu Dong never thought that this level of jade is truly rare but rare to find, and its value is even rarer than glass-type imperial green jade!
"Boss, what price do you plan to sell these pieces of jade at?" Liu Dong quickly glanced at the six pieces of jade and asked.
"This needs to be divided in detail. For example, this piece of 780 grams of Shanliushui material should cost no less than 15,000 per gram, right?"
During the process of speaking, the Uyghur boss kept observing Liu Dong's expression from the corner of his eyes. After seeing that he did not show any obvious unswerving expression because of his price, his eyes clearly showed a trace of relief!
His price is at least 10% more expensive than the market price! (To be continued.)