Reborn with Consumption System-Chapter 682 - 293: Remarkable Figure_3
Having been alive for twenty years, her most glorious moment was undoubtedly this very moment!
While floating on cloud nine, she was also filled with trepidation—Han Lie, what on earth are you planning to buy?!
She instinctively clung tightly to Han Lie's arm, listening to him exchange pleasantries and mutual business flattery with the person opposite them.
As is well known, Cartier didn't have a Huaxia District headquarters within the country. It only had a global headquarters in Paris, France. All its stores in the country were franchised. The sole representative office was located in CITIC Taifu Plaza, employing about 15 to 20 staff.
However, bizarrely, Cartier's administrative structure had also designated a separate Huaxia District within the North Asia Region. It had even established the position of Managing Director for the Huaxia District there, a title that was upgraded to Chief Executive Officer of the Huaxia District at the end of last year.
Well, ultra-luxury brands are always so capricious.
Today, Lu Yisi, Cartier's first Chief Executive Officer of the Huaxia District, made a special appearance. This man was a foreigner with a prominent nose who knew only a smattering of Chinese but took great offense if people didn't use his Chinese name.
Han Lie's English proficiency was remarkably high—a testament to abilities that could overcome challenges where mere effort failed. Yet, he didn't utter a single word of English, opting instead to communicate cheerfully with the other party in Mandarin.
Assistant Liang's spoken English was terribly bad, so at Han Lie's hint, he kept his mouth shut.
Just as the translator Mr. Lu had brought was about to step in, Second Sister Jin stood up—good heavens, she actually spoke quite fluent French, conversing seamlessly with Mr. Lu.
Since Second Sister Jin had adopted the stance of an accomplished translator, Han Lie couldn't very well refuse her kind offer, so he truly settled into the role of the one being served.
The group went directly into the store's VIP room. Then, the manager and Cartier's designer brought over a pile of... erm, exquisite catalogs.
Lu Yisi apologized with an especially humble attitude.
"Apologies, honorable Mr. Han, your request was so urgent that I couldn't manage to immediately bring over the collections from headquarters. So, we can only offer recommendations this way. We hope you'll forgive our impertinence and grant us this precious opportunity to communicate…"
To be honest, Mr. Lu knew how to make conversation.
Some always felt that foreign white elites were consistently haughty, handsome, and stylish—yes, that was true most of the time.
However, the moment they sensed a potential profit, they could brown-nose with the best of them, not one bit inferior to the chief stewards of a former dynasty.
Making money, after all, is nothing to be ashamed of.
Han Lie sat on the central sofa, a faint smile on his lips. He nodded and gestured with his hand, "That's fine. I'm very much looking forward to it."
Then, Cartier's designer began their presentation.
"As is well known, there are only six types of top-quality high-end gemstones universally recognized by the international community. Ranked by value and degree of recognition, they are—diamonds, rubies, sapphires, emeralds, cat's eye, and opal.
Our Cartier gemstone vault houses countless top-tier gems from among the finest high-end stones, such as this pink diamond, 6.08 carats, FL flawless grade, which is…"
Han Lie listened only to this point before he waved his hand at Second Sister Jin.
"Tell them I'm not interested in diamonds."
Actually, even without Second Sister Jin translating, Lu Yisi had already understood.
He hurriedly asked, "Respected Mr. Han, are you dissatisfied with the pink color, or do you find six carats too small?"
"No, I simply don't like diamonds, that's all."
Everyone present, including Yu Yun whose eyes were sparkling brightly, was thoroughly perplexed.
Han Lie didn't bother to explain, nor did he intend to.
How could he explain? Was he supposed to tell them that by 2025, domestically produced synthetic diamonds would become indistinguishable from natural ones by any detection method? Sisters, it's a new century! The Qing Dynasty is long gone! Even De Beers was driven to desperation by the synthetic diamond magnates from Huaxia's Henan Province! In 2018, De Beers shamelessly launched its own synthetic diamond brand, 'Light Box,' then stubbornly told customers: 'Synthetic diamonds are not suitable for important occasions.' But the problem is, all the physical properties of synthetic diamonds are identical to natural ones; not even the gods themselves would know if you were wearing a real or a lab-grown diamond! So diamonds, already difficult to liquidate, had essentially seen their market value collapse.
The real reason couldn't be revealed, but that didn't stop Han Lie from posturing.
Besides, who hasn't picked up some niche trivia from TikTok these days?
Facing the incomprehension of Lu Yisi, Yu Yun, and the others, he spoke calmly.
"The scarcity of high-grade pink diamonds is largely due to the closure of the Argyle Mine. However, the Argyle Mine wasn't closed due to depletion. In fact, its reserves are in excellent health.
Mr. Lu, you talk about how scarce it is now, but how do you plan to protect my interests when De Beers decides to reopen the Argyle Mine?"
Lu Yisi was so taken aback by the question that sweat beaded on his forehead. It wasn't embarrassment, but fear.
The middle-aged Caucasian man was screaming internally: Damn it! How on earth did this young man from Huaxia know a secret of this caliber?! Truly, apart from the top executives at De Beers and Rio Tinto, hardly anyone among the six major high-end jewelers colluding with them knew this!
What did this imply? Lu Yisi couldn't figure it out, nor could he afford to dwell on it.
Instantly, he no longer dared to underestimate the young man before him in the slightest.
On the contrary, he felt as if he had encountered someone truly extraordinary...
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