The lake adjacent to Huguang City is called Cai Lin Lake, and the color scale clam is the most important specialty of this lake. It is both a pearl mussel and a meat.
Pearls produced by colorful scale clams are also prefixed with colorful scales. Wang Qi and his party saw the treasures in the hotel, and they were very beautiful.
Because this hotel is right next to the pier, there is a special showcase for pearls and products next to the reception area on the first floor. There are many unprocessed pearls, ranging in size from large to small.
The name "Colorful Scale" comes from this kind of pearl. Its surface has a microstructure similar to that of a lepidopteran insect. When the viewing angle is changed, each point will change color.
The pearlescent luster of some other types of pearls also has similar performance, but it seems much duller in comparison.
Maybe the formation is a bit like being taken advantage of. During the visit, someone came up to introduce it. There is nothing new, it is basically the same as the jeweler's bragging, and the term "eternal" has not even been invented yet.
What kind of jewelry can last forever? The answer is... none.
Diamonds will undergo graphitization at less than a thousand degrees in an oxygen-isolated environment. If there is oxygen, they will directly turn into carbon dioxide, and they will break when hit by a hammer. On the contrary, it is less touted. Ruby and sapphire, which are mainly formed from alpha crystals, are more durable, but they also need maintenance, because natural gemstones contain a certain proportion of hydrates, and the color will change after losing water.
However, no matter how hard mineral gems are, they can indeed be passed down for several generations or even longer under non-extreme circumstances. Pearls are a typical "limited time jewelry". Due to the larger proportion of hydrates and even a certain organic content, no matter what A good preservation environment will reach its limit in about two hundred years.
A short shelf life does not necessarily mean it is bad, it will also have its own unique advantages.
First of all, a shorter shelf life brings a lower ceiling price. Unless you encounter a rare and exquisite product, it is generally difficult to achieve a particularly high price.
In addition, jewelry with a short shelf life is more suitable for burial... Anyway, it cannot be passed down, and burial is also a pomp.
Wang Qi listened to the waiter blowing for a while and glanced at Li Xiang next to him. She didn't say she wanted it, but her eyes were obviously unable to move away.
Pointing to a few pills on the counter, he asked, "How do you sell these pills?"
When the waiter saw that there was something going on, he immediately became more energetic: "My lord, you have really good eyesight. These two pairs have been here for half a year, and they haven't gotten the third one yet. They are absolutely the best... bala bala aba aba "
The waiter was foaming at the mouth, but luckily he didn't dare to approach Wang Qi, so there was no splashing.
There are a total of five pearls pointed out by Wang Qi. The largest one has a standard oval shape with a diameter of more than 2.7 cm and a length of 3.2 to 3.4 cm. Perhaps it is because it is not round and it belongs to the standard color of colorful scale beads. Although It's big but not particularly expensive. The first round quote given by the waiter was 20,000.
Twenty thousand, which was the kind of money from Lei Ming Kingdom that looked like stamps, was exchanged for four small gold bars.
There are also two pairs of pearls that have been matched for roundness and size.
Matching is the real money-making business in the pearl industry. If the size and roundness of a whole string of pearl necklaces are exactly the same, the price will be dozens of times more expensive than retail sales.
Another characteristic of colorful scale beads is that they are not suitable for post-processing. Once polished, the colorful scale effect will be lost, and the rubbed area will turn into a luster similar to ordinary pearls, making the roundness and matching price more expensive.
Among the two pairs of pearls, two are 2.5 cm in diameter and two are 2.3 cm in diameter.
In the origin of colorful scale pearls, the size is not amazing. The waiter said that it is not a good match, mainly because the color is relatively scarce. It will be difficult to choose pearls of the same size with high roundness from the scarce colors.
Color scale pearls also have main colors. The situation can be compared with the pearlescent paint used on cars. Although various colors will appear in places with different light angles, the main color will still appear in the position where the light is hitting.
The two pairs that Wang Qi ordered are both in a pinkish color with bright silver as the main color, and the color structure is more complicated. The large oval one is the standard color, white with a little pink, and no silvery shine. However, as the main body of the jewelry, It also doesn’t need to match other pearls.
Wait for the waiter to finish speaking.
After receiving the first quotation, Wang Qi felt that it was not too outrageous, but it would take a lot of time to pick out the remaining beads. In order to avoid delaying the meal, he asked the hotel to arrange for someone to send some beads to the room to pick out at night.
On the way to the restaurant, Wang Qi held Li Xiang's hand and could feel her heart pounding.
Maybe it wasn't about money, but it was the first time in decades that he thought of giving something valuable.
Li Xiang has been with him for a long time, and he can better understand that in Wang Qi's eyes, all jewelry is a bunch of things that can be represented by compounds. It cannot be made because the technology is not mature yet.
It's impossible for him to buy pearls for his own use, so he must give them to others. Who needs to give them to others? If it's not him, whoever gets them will have his hand chopped off!
When he arrived at the dining table, Wang Qi saw Li Xiang's awkward look and mentioned a trivial matter without realizing it:
"Pearls are very fragile and may be damaged by fingernails or paper. They may not be suitable for carrying in battles."
Li Xiang said flatly: "Hmph, can't I learn some magic to protect you when I go back?"
"OK."
Dinner was a combo meal of colorful clams and fish.
It rains a lot in the Thunder Country, so although there are pastas, most of them are rice-like staple foods. This kind of rice is very big, with one grain worth five grains.
Because it's so big, it doesn't look like rice when it's placed on a plate, but more like some kind of small dough.
Local tableware only has spoons, no knives and forks. It doesn’t make sense, but after eating it a few times on the road, I understand that there is no need for anything else.
Local cooking is mainly stewed, and the heat is relatively soft. There is almost no fried food. If it is fried, it needs to be wrapped in a very thin baked bread to eat. Wang Qi also tried to roll everything in a big pancake in his previous life. There is nothing that people are not used to.
The colorful scale clam is relatively disappointing when it comes to eating. The service level of this restaurant is pretty good. A lot of spices are added, but the original... peculiar smell of the clam meat can still be tasted.
It’s not fishy at all. They probably use farmed mussels and won’t come into contact with silt.
Wang Qilai had to guess that this peculiar smell may come from water pollution, or it may be due to its inherently weird smell. After all, there are still some places where anti-human things like "bean juice" are used to make specialty foods.
The fish is just so-so, I can’t say it’s bad, but it’s just like that. It can’t compare with many cold-water fish. I can only say that the freshness is okay.
After eating, I went back to the house and continued picking out pearls. It took me two hours to finally select all the beads.
The hotel provides comprehensive services. These beads will be sent to cooperating craftsmen for processing and can be collected within three days.
Seven gold bars in total!
...It would only cost 4,200 yuan if converted into Phoenix coins.
It's definitely not cheap based on the minimum wage. If you change it to the salary of a skilled worker, including daily necessities, it only takes about three years to save so much money. The technical backbone of some large factories can make a living every year.
The low price is still due to the self-selected model of bulk pearls from the origin. If the pearls are made into finished products and shipped to other places, even the most conscientious merchants will have to double or triple the price.
Wang Qi was not one to wait three days. He paid a deposit for the pearl necklace and took a ferry the next day to visit the parish of Guangming Church in the south.
