Chapter 11

Jiang Ping's home is located in Suzhou, a city known for its abundant rice and fish in southern Jiang, with a history of over two thousand years. In the old city area, ancient buildings with a history of hundreds of years can be seen everywhere, giving a strong sense of historical weight.

In the old city area, there is a street called Xiangguo Road. This small street is lined with many antique shops, and many vendors set up stalls on the roadside, selling various antiques and collectibles, both genuine and fake. Especially after the turn of the 21st century, the antique trade on Xiangguo Road has become increasingly prosperous. People gradually forgot the original name of the street and began to call it "Antique Street."

Today is the weekend, and Antique Street is even busier than usual. Not only are all the antique shops open for business, but there are also more vendors on the roadside than usual. The narrow road is crowded with people, all hoping to find treasures. Jiang Ping locked his bicycle at the intersection and began to walk down the street, hoping to find something profitable.

Of course, as a senior high school student, the amount of money Jiang Ping could use was pitifully small. He had only 1,350 yuan in his pocket, which, though seemingly meager, was all his savings, accumulated over many years as New Year's money.

Since his funds were limited, Jiang Ping naturally did not dare to enter those grand antique shops with exquisite decorations. Instead, he planned to try his luck at the small stalls on the street. It was only 2002, and Jiang Ping, who had memories from his previous life, knew that the collecting craze that began in the late 1990s was not as疯狂 as it would later become. He believed that as long as he was patient and had a bit of luck, he should be able to find some items on these street stalls that could make him money.

Jiang Ping started from the first stall and examined each one, hoping to find something valuable. On Antique Street, where the majority of the visitors were middle-aged and elderly, the young Jiang Ping naturally stood out.

Many stall owners thought that the young Jiang Ping lacked experience and wanted to make a quick profit from him. As soon as Jiang Ping stopped at their stalls, the owners would enthusiastically recommend their items. They would exaggerate the value of their items, making them sound like treasures. They would hint to Jiang Ping that if he didn't buy the items immediately, he would be missing out on a great deal and would regret it for the rest of his life.

These stall owners, of course, did not know that in his previous life, Jiang Ping was not only a famous thief but also a highly skilled forger of antiques and artworks. The antiques and artworks he forged could even fool most appraisers. To forge convincing antiques, Jiang Ping had to have a keen eye. In fact, his expertise in appraising antiques and artworks was at an expert level, and these stall owners trying to deceive him was like showing off one's skills in front of an expert.

Jiang Ping just smiled and walked away from these stall owners who exaggerated the value of their items. He was here to earn money for his sister's medical expenses and had no time to listen to their boasts.

Jiang Ping thought that with his knowledge and discernment, making money here would not be difficult. However, the reality was somewhat discouraging. He had already walked through Antique Street from beginning to end but had not found any items that met his requirements.

This was not because all the items on the stalls were fake, but because the items he liked were either too expensive for him to afford or offered too little profit margin, making them not worth buying.

Unexpectedly, his first visit to Antique Street turned out to be disappointing. Jiang Ping felt somewhat discouraged. It seemed that even in 2002, when the collecting craze had not yet reached its peak, finding a bargain was not easy. However, upon further reflection, he realized that it was normal. If everyone could find bargains, the stories of people making huge profits from small investments would not be so widely talked about.

With no gains, Jiang Ping decided to take advantage of the crowd and try to see the color of the "yintang" (the space between the eyebrows) of the passersby. He concentrated his mind and stared intently at every person who passed by, hoping to see the color he had seen before.

However, reality disappointed Jiang Ping again. No matter how hard he tried to concentrate or how wide he opened his eyes, he could not see the phenomenon he had experienced before. Worse still, after concentrating for a short while, his eyes became sore and painful, as if they had been scalded with hot oil. Despite his stubbornness, he continued for a while, but the discomfort in his eyes became increasingly severe, and his eyes felt hot and ready to burst.

"Will I go blind if I keep this up?" This thought flashed through Jiang Ping's mind, and he dared not continue the experiment, so he gave up.

Jiang Ping closed his eyes tightly, and after a while, they felt more comfortable. However, when he opened his eyes again, he startled a passerby who happened to be walking by.

The old man looked at Jiang Ping sympathetically and kindly advised him, "Young man, if your eyes are uncomfortable, you should go to the hospital. Don't push yourself. You're still young, and if you develop a chronic condition, it will be bad for you!"

Jiang Ping asked the kind old man, "Are you a doctor? How can you tell that my eyes are uncomfortable?"

The old man pointed to Jiang Ping's eyes and said, "Anyone who isn't blind can see the problem with your eyes. Just look in a mirror, and you'll see!"

There was a stall nearby selling old furniture with mirrors, and Jiang Ping hurried over to look in the mirror. He found that his eyes were red and slightly swollen, clearly due to overuse.

Seeing his red and swollen eyes, Jiang Ping dared not continue the experiment. His eyes were still sore and painful, and if he persisted, he might really hurt his eyes, as the old man had warned.

By now, Jiang Ping had neither bought any suitable items nor managed to recreate the phenomenon. Feeling disappointed, he slowly walked back, planning to retrieve his bicycle and return home. He had pretended to have a morning class at school, so he had to be back by noon.

However, on his way back to get his bicycle, he noticed a new stall on the opposite side of the road. Out of curiosity, he went over to take a look and found an item that really appealed to him.

It was a snuff bottle, apparently made of white jade. From the craftsmanship and the patina on the surface, it seemed to be from the Republican era at the earliest. Most importantly, this snuff bottle was placed in a large box with several other snuff bottles, indicating that it had not received much attention from the stall owner.

Jiang Ping knew it was time to act. If he could buy this snuff bottle at the lowest possible price, his trip today would not have been in vain.

===分割线===

This is the second update for today. I'm still seeking votes and collections.

Thank you to the reader "机智的机智" for the tip.

翻页上AD开始

翻页上AD结束