Chapter 6

Lin Yue held the epidemic prevention certificate and walked out of the pet hospital. He hailed a taxi by the roadside and rushed to the antique market on San Yang Road.

He rarely came here for a stroll, partly because he had no expertise in antiques, partly because he had little interest, and most importantly, he had no money. He also had a bit of a natural, harmless persecution complex, always feeling that the vendors would take him for a lamb to the slaughter.

Since the reward for the rookie mission was a 1907 Saint-Gaudens double eagle gold coin, he could only grit his teeth and come here to try his luck if he wanted to quickly convert it into cash.

After wandering around the crowded street for a while, he turned and entered a shop specializing in ancient coins.

It was clear that the owner was well-funded, with the interior decorated in an ancient style. Various ornate lamps illuminated the exhibition hall brilliantly.

Foreign coins, copper coins, silver ingots, ration tickets... all kinds of ancient coins with historical and cultural value were neatly displayed in glass counters, with annotations and prices beside them. In the middle, several pillar-shaped display cases housed knife money and spade money from the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, in good condition with clear inscriptions. He didn't know if they were genuine or models.

Glancing at the collectors browsing in the hall, Lin Yue walked straight to a 27- or 28-year-old clerk and asked, "Do you buy foreign ancient coins?"

"Of course, we do." The woman looked at him and said, "I wonder which country's ancient coins you want to sell?"

Lin Yue cautiously looked around and pulled out a plastic box wrapped in black tape from his pocket.

The clerk's lips curled into a slight smile, thinking this guy was being too cautious, acting like a thief.

At this moment, Lin Yue removed the tape, opened the plastic box, and placed the contents on the counter.

"It's a gold coin."

The clerk was slightly surprised, not expecting him to actually have something.

"Please wait a moment." Now it was her turn to be cautious. She asked Lin Yue to sit down and walked into a room behind the counter.

A moment later, a man in his fifties came out and walked straight to Lin Yue.

"I am the appraiser of the shop. May I see your item?"

Lin Yue nodded and pushed the box with the gold coin over.

The appraiser examined it thoroughly, weighed it, and then used a magnifying glass to check the details of the coin. Finally, he said with a serious expression, "Yes, this is a Saint-Gaudens double eagle gold coin."

"If you buy it, how much can you offer?"

The appraiser thought for a moment and said, "30,000."

"US dollars?"

The man glared at him, "RMB."

What? That's too low. From the auction records he had found, this coin was worth at least 7,000 US dollars, equivalent to over 40,000 RMB. The current offer of 30,000 RMB was a rip-off, even worse than what African dealers would do.

"That's too low. The lowest auction price I found online was over 7,000 US dollars."

The appraiser said, "That's not bad. You know, those are auction prices, which don't include commission and taxes. Plus, the time and effort spent. How much more would you gain compared to 30,000 RMB? Besides, this foreign coin has low recognition in China, with a limited audience. Many antique coin dealers don't even accept it."

Lin Yue thought for a moment, acknowledging that the appraiser had a point, but the gap between 30,000 RMB and his mental threshold of 40,000 RMB was too wide. He felt reluctant to sell it so cheaply.

"If you're not satisfied, you can ask other antique coin dealers. I doubt anyone will offer more than 30,000 RMB," the appraiser said confidently.

All crooked dealers are the same. Who knows if the remaining antique coin shops on San Yang Road are owned by the same person or if they are related. He wasn't that foolish; if he wanted to ask, he would have to go to other antique markets.

"Huh, 30,000..."

Lin Yue hesitated whether to go to an antique market in a neighboring district. A man with graying temples and wearing tortoiseshell glasses glanced at him, a mocking smile on his face.

"Grandpa!" A girl of about 16 or 17 years old tugged at his arm, her tone reproachful, as if scolding him for meddling.

Lin Yue's eyes twinkled. "Sir, do you recognize this ancient coin?"

He didn't ask for the man's opinion but chose a seemingly trivial question.

The old man ignored the girl's expression, picked up the gold coin from the counter, and said, "1907 Saint-Gaudens double eagle gold coin, face value of 20 US dollars. It's between circulated and uncirculated, a rare coin that once sold for 2 million US dollars at an auction in North America."

"Of course, the condition of this Saint-Gaudens double eagle gold coin is not perfect, but according to the grading standards of NGC and PCGS, it could score around 64 or 65. A 30,000 RMB offer for a 30,000 US dollar item... tsk tsk, it's like robbing someone."

"30,000 US dollars? You buy it?"

The appraiser didn't expect this. A young man in his twenties saying something irresponsible was one thing, but the old man, who had lived for decades, was another. Wasn't he blocking someone's livelihood?

"Actually, if the price is right, I would like to buy it for my granddaughter as a dowry."

The old man's words left the appraiser speechless, and the girl's face turned red with embarrassment.

"Sir, do you really want to buy it?"

"Am I at my age to joke with you?"

"Then I'll transfer it to you."

"Young man, think carefully. From the perspective of value preservation and collection, this is a top-notch item."

For those with overseas connections, this gold coin is easy to liquidate and has much higher liquidity than ancient Chinese coins.

"I'm in a bit of a bind. What price do you offer?"

"Let me take a small advantage. How about 200,000 RMB?"

"Deal, 200,000 RMB." Lin Yue knew the old man was talking about the exchange rate.

"Hmph." The appraiser coldly snorted and stormed out.

The old man didn't even look at him, returned the double eagle gold coin to Lin Yue, and said, "There's a Construction Bank not far from here. Shall we go there to complete the transaction?"

"Sure."

Lin Yue led Badun out of the shop and followed the old man and the girl. "What's your name, sir?"

"Xiang Huai."

Xiang Huai?

He felt the name was familiar but couldn't remember where he had heard it.

...

After a while, Lin Yue walked out of the antique market with a bank card containing 200,000 RMB.

The passersby, the distant vehicles, the clouds in the sky, the towering buildings, and General Badun behind him—everything now seemed as beautiful as love.

From a bicycle to a motorcycle, from an Alto to an Audi, from a part-time QM to a young model at a club—today was his lucky day.

200,000 RMB, a full 200,000 RMB!

In 23 years of eating rice, he had only seen so much money in others' hands. Now, Mr. Lin could finally buy a toilet in the寸土寸金 (highly valuable) city of Jianghai.

"Hey!"

Lin Yue stopped and looked at the sign hanging on the second floor of the building to his left—Shangwu Boxing Gym.

"System panel."

He summoned the system panel in his mind and looked at the attribute data, lost in thought.

Name: Lin Yue.

Race: Human.

Attributes: Constitution 5.

Strength 10.

Agility 6.

Intelligence 7.

Spirit 4.

What level is 10 points of strength?

He asked himself, leading Badun upstairs.