Chapter 5

When Xu Qing returned to the rented apartment, he found Qin Bing still sitting in the living room, her head lowered and looking haggard. He could only steel himself and approach, bracing for a scolding.

"Brother-in-law, I’m back." Xu Qing entered the room with his head hanging low, his eyes fixed on his toes.

Qin Bing’s lips trembled slightly, and she wiped her dry eyes. "You haven’t had breakfast yet, right? I’ll make it for you." She then got up and headed towards the kitchen.

"No, I’ve already eaten outside." Xu Qing quickly took a few steps forward and stopped Qin Bing. Seeing his sister-in-law’s haggard face, his heart ached.

"Oh! Then wash your face and get some sleep. I’m going to work now." Qin Bing’s expression was somewhat wooden as she slowly turned around, picked up her small bag, and walked towards the door.

There was no scolding, no excessive words, as if Xu Qing had never left. However, from her haggard appearance, it was clear that she had not slept all night.

After Qin Bing left, Xu Qing immediately rummaged through the drawer for a paper cutter and a new book. He carefully cut open the hidden layer of the old map and, as expected, found a square piece of paper that looked like a stamp.

Taking advantage of the time before he had to return the computer, Xu Qing quickly went online to research the piece of paper. After a long search, he finally found a stamp identical to the one he held on a website called Huayou Network.

The Qing Dynasty Dragon Stamp, known as "Wannian Youxiang," is one of the mother stamps of the Qing Dynasty Dragon Stamps. On the back of the elephant is a pot of Wannian Qing, symbolizing endless cycles and eternal life. Two bats are flying above, and a cloud is in the upper left corner. The bat, which sounds like "fu" (blessing), combined with the cloud, symbolizes "great blessings," and with the elephant, it becomes "great blessings and auspicious omens"...

Xu Qing held his breath and quietly browsed through various introductions to "Wannian Youxiang," his heart almost jumping to his throat. When he saw the frequent mentions of "extremely valuable" and "invaluable," his fingers began to tremble.

After an hour of browsing, Xu Qing was certain that the piece of paper he bought for eight yuan was the Qing Dynasty Dragon Mother Stamp "Wannian Youxiang," and it was in excellent condition, almost like a new stamp. According to the information he found online, this stamp had been auctioned for nearly 600,000 Hong Kong dollars, which was the most exciting part for him.

Even if it wasn’t 600,000, even half of that, 300,000, would be more than enough to solve his current financial problems. Xu Qing took a deep breath, found a small plastic bag from the drawer, and carefully used a blade to transfer the stamp into the bag. He then placed the bag between the pages of the book and put the book into his backpack.

Just as he finished, the phone on the table rang. Xu Qing picked it up and answered. It was the man from the second floor who had asked him to fix the computer. He responded casually, immediately shut down the computer, unplugged it, and hurriedly went downstairs.

When he reached the second floor, Mr. Liu, the resident, was already waiting at the door, rubbing his hands. He was short and fat, wearing black-rimmed glasses, and his job was writing scripts for online novels, which paid reasonably well. However, without a computer, he was like a fish out of water, pacing anxiously and calling early in the morning.

Seeing Xu Qing, Mr. Liu quickly rushed forward to help carry the computer case and ran into the room.

Xu Qing, seeing the fat man’s jiggling belly and swift steps, was taken aback and shook his head with a smile as he carried the monitor into the room.

Mr. Liu, though he couldn’t fix computers, was familiar with plugging in and turning them on. Hearing the computer hum, his face lit up, and he praised, "Brother, you’re good! You fixed my little San in just one night..."

Xu Qing was slightly stunned, a few black lines appearing on his forehead. "Little San" and "fixing" were completely out of context!

Mr. Liu smiled and pointed at the computer. "This is my little San. You fixed it, right? And the fan is much quieter now."

Xu Qing realized what he meant and smiled. "The CPU fan was dusty, so I cleaned it with a brush."

Mr. Liu gave a thumbs up. "Dedicated! You’re better than those computer repair guys. Here, 20 yuan. If I need anything in the future, I’ll come to you." He then took out a 20-yuan note and handed it to Xu Qing.

Xu Qing took the money and put it in his pocket, then asked casually, "Brother Liu, do you know any places in Jiangcheng where stamps are traded?"

Mr. Liu smiled slightly. "You collect stamps too?"

Xu Qing nodded. "I used to, and I have a few stamps I want to sell to get some cash."

In his view, even if the stamp was valuable online, it wouldn’t help if he couldn’t cash it in. It would be better to sell it at a lower price, at least to cover his college expenses and help ease his sister-in-law’s burden.

Mr. Liu, while fiddling with the computer, said without turning around, "I know a rich second-generation guy who likes to collect stamps and antiques. He doesn’t care much for ordinary stamps like the Monkey Stamp, but if the item is good, money is no issue."

In other words, if the item wasn’t good, it wouldn’t catch his eye. Mr. Liu had a wide network of contacts, and the rich second-generation guy he mentioned was the son of a well-known coal boss from Shanxi. Once people turn their wealth into numbers, they often seek to add cultural depth. As long as the item was good, money was no problem for this father and son.

Xu Qing’s heart raced, but he kept a calm face and smiled. "To be honest, Brother Liu, my stamp is worth more than the Monkey Stamp. If your friend is willing to pay, he’ll be pleasantly surprised."

"Really?" Mr. Liu put down the mouse and turned to look at Xu Qing with suspicion. "Are you sure? What kind of stamp is it?"

"Brand new Qing Dynasty Dragon Stamp, Wannian Youxiang." Xu Qing calmly said the ten words, and Mr. Liu’s face twitched. Although he wasn’t an expert in stamps, the name "Qing Dynasty Dragon Stamp" was known to any Chinese person with a bit of knowledge.

"Are you sure it’s a Qing Dynasty Dragon Stamp?" Mr. Liu’s eyes sparkled with disbelief, and he asked again. Seeing Xu Qing nod, he immediately picked up his phone and dialed a series of numbers.

Dialing... The phone connected, and a gruff voice came from the other end. "What the hell are you doing, disturbing me so early in the morning?" The voice’s owner was clearly still in bed, complaining.

Mr. Liu, confident, shouted into the phone, "I’m not calling you; the brand new Qing Dynasty Dragon Stamp is calling you... Wannian Youxiang..."

"Shit, are you kidding me?" The other end cursed and hung up immediately. Mr. Liu shook his head with a bitter smile, not understanding why the rich second-generation guy had hung up. Perhaps disturbing someone’s sleep early in the morning deserved a scolding.

"Never mind, maybe he already has that stamp. I’ll be going now." Seeing Mr. Liu’s disappointment, Xu Qing didn’t want to stay any longer. He still had to clean the hallway of the rented apartment and didn’t take Mr. Liu’s mention of the rich second-generation guy to heart.