Chapter 28

At the moment, those two large pieces of Hainan yellowheart wood were still by the roadside, which made Jiang Ping very uneasy. After getting the key, he didn’t say much to Old Huang, simply bid farewell to the elderly man, and hurriedly returned to the demolition site.

When Jiang Ping returned to the demolition site, Old Wang and his companions had already carried down another large beam and were anxiously waiting for him to come back.

Jiang Ping quickly checked the newly carried-down beam, confirming that it was also a large piece of Hainan yellowheart wood, which made him extremely happy. Even in 2002, such two large pieces of Hainan yellowheart wood could sell for two to three thousand dollars. If Jiang Ping had a bit of patience and waited for ten years, the price of Hainan yellowheart wood would increase by several dozen times. At that time, even if he did nothing else, selling these two large pieces for seven to eight hundred thousand dollars would be no problem at all.

However, Jiang Ping didn’t have the patience to wait that long. He was in a hurry to save up for his sister’s medical expenses. If he waited ten years, it would be too late. Jiang Ping decided to personally craft these two large pieces of Hainan yellowheart wood into antique-style furniture and sell them at a high price after aging them.

Of course, to personally craft antique-style Hainan yellowheart furniture and age it, one needed not only superb skills but also a thorough understanding of ancient furniture. Even a very skilled professional carpenter couldn’t handle this task.

However, in his previous life, Jiang Ping was a master forger of antiques, so this wasn’t too difficult for him. The only problem Jiang Ping faced was time; he had to complete the furniture and find a buyer willing to pay a high price before his sister’s illness flared up.

Crafting a set of Ming and Qing dynasty-style furniture wasn’t an easy task. Even for an expert like Jiang Ping, it would take several months. Therefore, he decided to start working as soon as possible; otherwise, the furniture might not be finished by the time his sister’s illness flared up.

For Jiang Ping at the moment, the most important thing was to transport these two large pieces of Hainan yellowheart wood back. Fortunately, he had already arranged it with the workers, so he didn’t need to worry about this issue.

Under Old Wang’s direction, a worker pushed a wooden cart. Everyone worked together to load the two beams onto the cart, and then, led by Jiang Ping, they headed to the small courtyard he had just rented in Huahua Alley.

The demolition site wasn’t too far from the courtyard in Huahua Alley. Even if one walked, it would take no more than half an hour. Since Old Wang and his companions were used to heavy work, they moved faster despite pushing the heavy cart. In about twenty minutes, they arrived at the small courtyard in Huahua Alley.

When Jiang Ping and Old Wang’s group arrived, Landlady Huang, an elderly woman, was just about to leave. Seeing that Jiang Ping indeed hadn’t lied and was renting the house to store the two large beams, the elderly woman’s impression of him improved, and she even helped Jiang Ping open the courtyard gate.

Jiang Ping thanked the elderly woman and then directed Old Wang and the others to move the two beams into the first-floor room. It was quite a coincidence that the room’s width was just enough to fit the two beams, and there was still enough space for Jiang Ping to work, which made him very satisfied.

Seeing that the beams had been moved into the room without damaging anything, the elderly woman left contentedly. Old Wang and the others had worked hard to transport the beams from the demolition site, so Jiang Ping gave them two hundred yuan for each beam, and they left happily with four hundred yuan.

Now, Jiang Ping was alone in the small courtyard, and he could finally express his joy. Although the two large beams were still covered in dust, Jiang Ping didn’t show any disgust. He gently touched the rough beams, his movements as tender as if he were caressing a lover’s skin, and whispered softly, “Be patient, I will definitely turn you into exquisite furniture!”

In a certain sense, Jiang Ping, as a forger of antiques, was also an artist. Good artists are always sensitive and somewhat neurotic, so it was inevitable that he would feel excited when faced with such rare Hainan yellowheart wood and even communicate with it.

The Hainan yellowheart wood, of course, didn’t respond to Jiang Ping and remained quietly lying in the room. However, at this moment, a faint “gurgling” sound suddenly echoed in the quiet room, clearly indicating that another presence wanted to communicate with Jiang Ping.

However, this wasn’t some mysterious presence; it was just Jiang Ping’s stomach growling. He had been busy since morning and it was already noon. His eighteen-year-old body had a hearty appetite, and his stomach was growling with hunger.

“Alright, let’s go eat first, then head to the antique street to look for some goods!” Jiang Ping touched the five thousand yuan he had left in his pocket and quickly made a decision.

Thus, Jiang Ping reluctantly left the Hainan yellowheart wood, carefully locked the door, and walked out. He was about to open the courtyard gate when it was suddenly pushed open from the outside.

Jiang Ping’s alertness was evident at this moment. As soon as the courtyard gate was pushed open, he immediately stepped back two steps, staring vigilantly at the door, ready to defend himself. Jiang Ping’s reaction was so quick, entirely out of instinct from his previous life. His body had already reacted before his brain gave the command.

As the courtyard gate opened, Jiang Ping immediately saw a young woman. She had a delicate oval face, beautiful eyes, and a small nose, adding a touch of gentleness to her appearance.

The young woman was wearing a dark suit, which seemed to be a company uniform. Even though it was a very ordinary uniform, it perfectly accentuated her slim and slender figure. Jiang Ping even noticed that the young woman’s legs, visible below her skirt, were long and straight, giving her a delicate and frail appearance.

All of this combined gave the young woman a gentle and refined demeanor typical of a southern Chinese woman. Her charming and delicate beauty, which was unique to a well-bred young lady, made Jiang Ping, who had seen many beautiful women in his previous life, feel a sudden admiration.

At the same time, the young woman also saw Jiang Ping inside the door. Completely unprepared, she was naturally startled and involuntarily took a few steps back, looking at Jiang Ping with caution and shouting, “Who are you? Get out, or I’ll call the police!”

Although the young woman was sternly warning Jiang Ping, her clear and pleasant voice had no real deterrent effect. Jiang Ping found that the young woman was not only beautiful but also had a lovely voice. As for fear, he didn’t feel any. If he were really a bad person who had broken into the courtyard, he wouldn’t have been scared by this young woman.

The young woman clearly knew that she couldn’t intimidate this “bad person” who had broken into the courtyard. Seeing that Jiang Ping had no intention of leaving, she quickly took two steps back, preparing to escape, determined to get as far away from this bad person as possible.

At this moment, Jiang Ping also realized that this young woman must be the tenant on the second floor that the elderly woman had mentioned, his new neighbor.

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