Chapter 14 of 100
Chapter 14
18 min read4,593 words
Jiang Yan's heart stirred, and he asked, "What is the treasure of your friend that is worth a fortune?"
The old man, seeing the question, immediately smiled mysteriously and said, "It's really a treasure."
"What kind of treasure? It might just be a scam!" Jiang Xiaoyue said.
"Hmph, would an old man like me deceive you?" The old man was upset, snatching the two tortoise shells from Jiang Yan's hands and tossing them into his ragged bag. "Go away, don't interfere with my business."
"The little girl doesn't know any better, don't take it to heart, old man." Jiang Yan smiled awkwardly. "I'm very interested in those two tortoise shells, but you should tell me what the treasure is. You just say it's a treasure, but I can't see it, how can I believe you?"
"So big, so tall!" The old man, seeing the question, immediately gestured and whispered, "It's a bronze artifact. My friend told me it's a Shang Dynasty bird-shaped vessel, worth a fortune."
"What is the Shang Dynasty? I've never heard of it," Jiang Xiaoyue asked.
The old man looked at Jiang Xiaoyue as if she were an idiot and said, "Little girl, have you read the 'Investiture of the Gods'? King Zhou was the last king of the Shang Dynasty, understand?"
"But... isn't that just a myth?" Jiang Xiaoyue frowned.
"Xiaoyue!" This time, even Jiang Yan couldn't stand it anymore; Jiang Xiaoyue's questions were indeed excessive.
Jiang Xiaoyue was very afraid of Jiang Yan. Seeing him speak, she naturally didn't dare to ask anything more. Jiang Yan thought for a moment and said, "I do want those two tortoise shells, but 200,000 is really too expensive!"
"This?" The old man stroked his chin, thought for a moment, and then said, "Boss, I see you know your stuff and have seen the world. The authenticity of the tortoise shells is obvious to you. 200,000 is not expensive, but if you're short on cash, how about this: you pay 20,000 now and write me an IOU. When you sell it, you can pay me the rest. What do you think?"
Jiang Yan thought seriously. If it was just 20,000, even if it was a loss, it would be limited. Selling it and then paying the rest would ensure he wouldn't lose anything. He immediately nodded and said, "Deal!"
"Then it's settled. Write an IOU!" The old man was instantly delighted. He called over a waiter to let Jiang Yan pay by card, then pulled out an old notebook from his ragged bag, wrote an IOU, and had Jiang Yan sign it. He even made him press a fingerprint on it before he was satisfied.
Jiang Yan was also satisfied and smiled, "The old man is very fair." From the conversation, he learned that the old man's surname was Wu, and his given name was Bai, a rather ordinary name.
"Hehehe!" Wu Lao laughed dryly, "Boss Jiang, what's a little business like this?" He deliberately looked around and then lowered his voice, "That bronze artifact is the big deal. If Boss Jiang makes this deal, you won't have to worry for the rest of your life. Your beautiful daughter's dowry will be plentiful."
Hearing this, Jiang Yan was also extremely pleased. He thought that since it was better to act now than to wait, he would take the two tortoise shells and find someone to appraise them. If they were genuine, he could sell them immediately.
After Jiang Yan and Jiang Xiaoyue left, Wu Lao took out a cigarette, lit it, and smoked it contentedly, smiling happily. Indeed, less than half an hour later, Jiang Yan, Jiang Xiaoyue, and Jiang Shanghua all came back. Jiang Yan was also smiling happily.
"Old man, I sold those two tortoise shells. I'll give you the rest of the money!" Jiang Yan's mouth was almost too wide to close. He had just found someone to appraise them, and Professor Qin personally confirmed they were genuine Shang Dynasty oracle bones used for divination. Someone immediately showed great interest and bought them for 350,000.
Jiang Yan calculated that after deducting the 200,000 cost, he could still net 150,000. This business was too good. So, he rushed back to find the old man named "Wu Bai."
Thinking about the bronze bird-shaped vessel Wu Bai mentioned, he was even more eager. He gave 200,000 to Wu Bai, who very generously gave him the IOU and wrote a phone number on the back of it.
"Old man, how much do you want for that bronze artifact?" Jiang Yan asked in a low voice.
"Ten million!" Wu Bai whispered, "My friend said that thing is worth at least 30 to 50 million on the market, but it's risky. He's willing to let go of the profit, so he only wants ten million. If you're interested, you can call this number to contact me. But my friend doesn't want to meet anyone else."
Jiang Yan was stunned. What did it mean that he didn't want to meet anyone else?
Wu Bai looked at him, seeing no one around, and said again, "Boss, you must know what kind of business my friend is in. If this gets out, it could be... you know!" He made a gun gesture with his hand and whispered, "If this gets out, you won't be clean either. So, I won't force you. If you're interested, call me. If not, forget it."
Saying this, Wu Bai tidied up the messy things on the ground, stuffed them into a burlap bag, and then walked away casually.
Jiang Yan stood there, stunned for a moment. Jiang Shanghua felt something was off and said in a low voice, "Dad, are you really going to buy that bronze artifact?"
"Let's talk about it when we get home!" Jiang Yan thought for a moment. This place wasn't suitable for discussing such matters, so he called Jiang Xiaoyue and Jiang Shanghua to go home, ignoring Yang Kang.
"Dad, aren't we waiting for Yang Kang?" Jiang Xiaoyue asked.
"Why wait for him?" Jiang Yan sneered. "It's just a short distance, and he knows the way back." Saying this, he led his children back home, no longer paying attention to Yang Kang.
Back at Yuzhenzhai, it was only 9:40 PM, still early. Wei Yan hadn't returned from mahjong. Jiang Yan thought for a moment and said, "Call your mother and tell her to hurry back. I have something urgent."
"Okay!" Jiang Xiaoyue, seeing Jiang Yan's unhappy face, hurried to call Wei Yan.
"Xiaoyue, I'm playing mahjong. What's up?" Wei Yan said hurriedly.
"Dad said he needs you to come back!" Jiang Xiaoyue said hurriedly.
"What's so urgent? I'll come back after I finish this game." Wei Yan was very impatient. She was having good luck and had won a lot. It was only 9:40 PM, why was he in such a hurry to find her?
"If you don't come back, don't come back at all!" Jiang Yan snatched the phone and shouted, "Why don't you die at the mahjong table!"
Hearing Jiang Yan's anger, Wei Yan didn't dare to say anything more and hurriedly agreed to come back. She quickly ended her mahjong game and rushed back. The place where she played mahjong wasn't far from Yuzhenzhai, and it only took about ten minutes to get home. When she entered, she saw Jiang Yan pacing restlessly in the room, and Jiang Xiaoyue and Jiang Shanghua were there, but Yang Kang was nowhere to be seen.
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