Linda could only come up with so many insults for Zack, but even those didn’t seem enough.

Nancy, utterly disgusted, frowned deeply and shot a glare in Zack’s direction. "I was just planning to have a bit of fun, but since he’s that shameless, just having fun isn’t enough anymore."

"What? What?"

Linda, noticing Nancy’s sudden spark of determination, grabbed her excitedly. "Nancy, are you about to show off some real skills?"

Nancy didn’t explain. She simply waved for them to follow her. "Come with me."

Everyone assumed she was about to pull off some brilliant strategy, but instead, she walked straight to the pile of small, discarded stones near the entrance and crouched down.

Ashley couldn’t hide her dismay. "Miss Nancy, these raw stones are too small, and there’s hardly anything promising about them. If you want to beat Zack, it’d be better to pick from the larger stones inside."

Nancy nonchalantly sifted through the pile, her hands brushing over the small stones. "The bet with Zack is about who makes the most profit. His stones are worth millions each—it’d take a miracle for him to break even. And with the number of stones he’s buying, even if he does profit, it won’t be by much."

Linda still didn’t get it. "So, what does that have to do with these junky stones?"

"Everything."

Nancy casually picked up a medium-sized stone with a black, unpolished surface. It wasn’t particularly large, but it was heavy enough that she struggled to lift it with one hand and had to use both.

"Ashley, I’ll take this one."

Ashley’s eyelid twitched. "Are you sure?"

"Of course."

Nancy shoved the stone into Ashley’s arms. "This one’s just the start. I’m not done picking yet. You might want to get a cart because I doubt you can carry all of these."

Ashley: "…"

The pile of small stones was like a little mountain, and judging by Nancy’s determination, she wasn’t leaving until she’d gone through every last one.

Left with no other option, Ashley turned to a staff member, who promptly brought over a pushcart.

Unbothered, Nancy kept sorting through the so-called "junk."

"This one looks promising," she said, tossing another stone into the cart.

"And this one’s pretty nice too," she added, adding yet another to the growing pile.

Linda, holding her cheeks in both hands, looked like she was about to cry. "Nancy, are you sure we can actually win like this?"

Without even turning around, Nancy continued her work, her tone light and unconcerned. "Winning against him? Easy."

Linda: "…"

Emily: "…"

Ashley: "…"

Where did she get this level of confidence?

Only Henry seemed unbothered. Every time Nancy was about to toss a stone into the cart, he would offer a quiet suggestion or point out something interesting, which Nancy would then examine briefly before adding it to her growing collection.

"I can’t shake the feeling that Nancy’s just picking by instinct," Linda whispered to Emily, tugging on her sleeve. "Doesn’t this seem kind of unreliable?"

Emily, however, had already resigned herself to whatever happened. Nancy had just spent over a hundred million to buy her the Phoenix Bracelet today—there was no way she could complain.

"Let her enjoy herself," Emily said with a faint smile.

After an extended session of picking stones, the cart was nearly full when Nancy finally stood up and dusted off her hands.

"That should do it. Time to check out."

Ashley’s lips twitched. "It’s fine; the total cost is pocket change. You can settle up after the stones are cut."

Looking at the cart, Ashley estimated it all to be worth about ten thousand dollars—an amount so negligible that she couldn’t even muster concern.