"This time, we can finally try out that entire set of tools in our new house. Honestly, ever since we bought them, I've been itching to give them a go," Liang En said to Joan after Benjamin and the others left.
"Ah, I'm really curious about how those shiny jewels are made, so can I come along to watch?" Elizabeth, feeling a bit envious, turned to Liang En and asked.
"Of course, you're more than welcome. It's not something you can't see," Liang En nodded and replied. "But if I remember correctly, didn't you mention yesterday that you had some business to attend to in the next few days—"
"Yes, but the deal was canceled this morning," Elizabeth said with a helpless smile. "There was an issue with the collateral for the loan."
"They offered 150 cars as collateral, but after investigating, I found out there were problems with the cars; the import paperwork wasn't complete. I was worried there might be trouble down the line, so I backed out."
"Well done. You know, our core investment principle is stability, not chasing overly high profits. So, from that perspective, it's definitely the right choice to avoid risky deals," Liang En nodded approvingly.
"I think you must be a bit tired these days, so taking a break wouldn't be a bad idea. After all, to work well, you need to rest well," he added.
That evening, they arrived at the estate. By then, most of the formalities had been completed, and all the instruments and devices were in place. After a quick check, Liang En immediately began his design work.
Considering that the client wanted to make a big splash and that the brand's tradition was extreme luxury, Liang En quickly decided to create a set of Rococo-style jewelry after some thought.
Rococo jewelry is known for its intricate craftsmanship, with the style originating in Paris in the 1730s. Asymmetrical floral and feather motifs are key features.
In its early days, Rococo style often appeared on snuff boxes and the chain ornaments hanging from women's belts, used to hold their watches or keys—these were essential daytime jewelry items for 18th-century women. Another important daytime jewelry item was shoe buckles. At that time, gentlemen and ladies replaced traditional shoelaces with gemstone-studded buckles, which also aligned with Lacloche's brand philosophy of integrating jewelry into everyday life.
This refinement is evident in many aspects. For example, from the 1790s until the 19th century, it was popular to arrange the initials of gemstones to spell out words in a "gemstone language."
For example, Lapis, Opal, Vermeil, and Emerald would spell out the word "LOVE."
One of the most famous examples is the three bracelets Napoleon gave to his second wife, with the gemstones arranged according to their birthdays, the day they met, and their wedding date.
Such details were present in all aspects of this type of jewelry design, so for Liang En, creating this design meant paying close attention to these key points and striving for perfection.
After a quick overview, Liang En identified the core characteristics of Rococo jewelry: asymmetry, feathers, flowers, intricate details, slender shapes, colorful gemstone combinations, a ring of small gems surrounding larger ones, short necklaces, and a large number of small diamonds.
It must be said that the Lacloche family is indeed a historically significant family, so most of the stock they currently have consists of colorful gemstones rather than the more common diamonds.
For Liang En, the combination of the Rococo art-related card he had acquired and the previous set of cards was enough for him to create the finest Rococo-style jewelry.
More importantly, Marie Antoinette's taste in this area was among the best, so with her as his advisor, Liang En was confident he could design a top-notch set of jewelry.
It took Liang En two days and nights to complete the design work, which was incredibly fast compared to real designers. But for Liang En, it had consumed a massive amount of time and energy.
This set of designs used a large amount of enamel, gold, and various colored gemstones, making it immediately recognizable as a piece of wealth at first glance.
Take the simplest brooch as an example. This small butterfly brooch was designed with 2,378 colored gemstones, totaling 77 carats, to mimic the most natural scales on a butterfly's wings.
In addition, the butterfly's wings were encrusted with diamond shards, while the center of the butterfly was set with two emerald-cut diamonds, fully embodying the word "luxury."
Moreover, in selecting the types of gemstones, Liang En chose stones with fluorescent properties, which would create a different effect under ultraviolet light at night compared to daylight.
Of course, finishing such a design in a short time was no easy task, especially now when time was of the essence. Fortunately, Liang En's friend and partner, Mr. Verma, was arguably the most suitable person in the world for this type of work.
So, after completing the design, Liang En immediately called Mr. Verma to ask if he could finish this complex gemstone setting work in a short time.
According to Liang En's plan, it would be ideal if they could take on the job. If not, he would have to use extraordinary means to make the jewelry.
As for explaining it, it was simple. As a jeweler and part-time jewelry craftsman, Liang En had amassed significant wealth, including shares in gold and gemstone mines. So, making some jewelry at home for emergencies was perfectly reasonable.
Luckily, Mr. Verma's response was affirmative. He assured Liang En that their expertise was precisely in setting large numbers of small gemstones in a short time, and they could definitely complete this order on time.
Though sometimes Indian promises could be unreliable, Liang En had found Mr. Verma to be trustworthy during their previous collaborations. More importantly, Liang En had backup plans, so he wasn't worried about delays.
The other pieces of jewelry, whether crowns, necklaces, bracelets, belts, or rings, all adopted a more luxurious style, with enamel and a large number of colorful gemstones.
These pieces shared a common theme: they featured a large number of natural motifs, such as flowers, plants, animals, or other similar designs, bringing the entire style to a harmonious unity.
In fact, for Liang En, his mind was filled with many classic designs, many of which hadn't appeared in this world. But the problem was that most of these designs were standalone pieces.
This meant that most of these designs were individual items, so selecting pieces that could form a complete set and then making the necessary modifications required a lot of time and effort.
Fortunately, with the legacy of many artists, Liang En eventually completed the overall design and created a very impressive set of jewelry.
According to Marie Antoinette, this set of jewelry was outstanding as a whole. It was the kind of top-tier jewelry that could have been presented to her in her era, making it more than adequate for this exhibition.
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