Chapter 10

"Two thousand yuan? I'll think about it." Su Jing actually didn't know the price of sandalwood, but he felt that this old fox's offer was definitely too low.

"Then think carefully. The price I offered is still quite reasonable," Shen Hong nodded and said calmly.

"Jing." Zhao Mengxiang pulled Su Jing aside and whispered, "Are you crazy? It's just a piece of wood. If someone offers two thousand yuan for it, why wouldn't you sell it? It's not every day that you get such a good deal."

"Big Sister, this old man is too cunning. His offer is likely much lower than the actual value," Su Jing smiled. If this piece of sandalwood was really only worth two thousand yuan, he would definitely sell it without hesitation. What else would he do with it?

These strange items from another dimension had given Su Jing many surprises, making him decide to stay here long-term. He planned to hire someone to renovate the old house and build the walls higher to prevent people from accidentally seeing the strange items in the yard. If possible, he wanted to buy the surrounding land to expand the backyard, as he didn't know how many more strange items would appear, and whether his backyard would be large enough to hold them.

All of this required money. Without a job, he only had a little over ten thousand yuan in his bank account, plus the ten thousand yuan he earned from fishing today, totaling a little over thirty thousand yuan, which was far from enough.

"Could a piece of wood be worth more than two thousand yuan?" Zhao Mengxiang thought Su Jing might be overthinking it.

"Really, Big Sister. I heard that there are many types of sandalwood, some of which are as valuable as gold. So don't be in a hurry to sell it; find out more first."

"Alright then." Zhao Mengxiang reluctantly agreed but was very worried, fearing that Shen Hong might suddenly change his mind and not want to buy it.

"Have you made up your mind?" Seeing that Su Jing and Zhao Mengxiang had finished their discussion, Shen Hong asked.

"I've thought about it. I think the price is too low. Mr. Shen, don't try to get a bargain. Give a more sincere offer. If I'm satisfied, I can show you more sandalwood. If the offer is still too low, then forget it," Su Jing smiled.

"You have more sandalwood?" Shen Hong's eyes narrowed, wondering why a rural person living in such a dilapidated house could raise such excellent dogs and cats and have sandalwood lying around casually.

"Of course, I have a lot more," Su Jing nodded.

"Alright, I won't beat around the bush. I need to carefully examine the sandalwood to determine its exact value," Shen Hong's eyes sparkled. Initially, he wanted to get a bargain, as finding a bargain in the antique world was a sign of one's discernment, saving money and gaining face.

However, seeing that Su Jing wasn't easy to trick and had more sandalwood, he gave up on the idea of a bargain. He wasn't sure how much Su Jing knew about sandalwood, and he was worried that if he didn't show sincerity, Su Jing would refuse to talk and hide the other pieces. If he hadn't misjudged, these pieces of sandalwood were extremely rare, and even if he had to spend more money, he wanted to buy them all.

He asked Su Jing to fetch white paper, alcohol, and water. He first took a piece of wood and drew on the white paper, leaving a purple-red mark. Then he wiped the surface of the wood with an alcohol-soaked cotton ball, which quickly turned orange-red. After a series of further tests, his eyes grew brighter.

"To be honest, this is small-leaf rosewood, and it's the highly sought-after full-gold-star small-leaf rosewood," Shen Hong observed Su Jing's reaction, paused slightly, and then continued, "As the saying goes, 'nine out of ten pieces of rosewood are hollow.' The largest piece of rosewood has a diameter of only about twenty centimeters. This piece with a diameter of over ten centimeters is quite rare. If it were an excellent antique with good carving, it would be priceless. Unfortunately, the carving is not impressive. However, the material is large and of top quality, which can be made into many bracelets. Full-gold-star small-leaf rosewood bracelets are very popular... I'll offer you twenty thousand yuan."

"Hmm..." Su Jing remained silent, while Zhao Mengxiang was stunned, grateful that they hadn't sold it for two thousand yuan, or they would have lost a lot.

"Kid, I can assure you that this price is fair. I'm not trying to trick you at all," Shen Hong laughed.

"Alright, I'll sell it to you for twenty thousand yuan," Su Jing's face was calm, but he was secretly delighted.

"Can I see the other pieces of sandalwood?" Shen Hong looked eager.

"Wait a moment." Su Jing went to the backyard and separated the wood from the pile. He had learned a few simple methods from Shen Hong's examination and could tell which were sandalwood and which were not, but he didn't pick them out and instead moved them all over, hoping Shen Hong would examine them all. Even if they weren't sandalwood, they might be other valuable woods.

"This tree root is quite interesting; I'll keep it for now," Su Jing held a tree root, which was likely a sandalwood root. Amazingly, it naturally formed the image of an old Taoist priest, not as vivid as a carving but still impressive in its natural form.

Su Jing put the tree root away and brought a small basket of wood to the living room.

Shen Hong carefully examined them, throwing the miscellaneous pieces aside. Clearly, Su Jing had overestimated, as these were just scrap wood. Shen Hong was pleasantly surprised to find that several pieces were full-gold-star small-leaf rosewood, possibly from the same tree.

After a brief negotiation, the basket of wood was priced at sixty thousand yuan, plus the previous piece, totaling eighty thousand yuan.

"Kid, since I've spent so much money on your wood, could you give me a kitten or a puppy as a gift?" Shen Hong, the old fox, had another idea and casually asked.

"If you want them, you can buy them," Su Jing smiled. To him, they were just stray cats and dogs, and it would be a good home for them to be taken care of by a wealthy family, but he wasn't going to give them away for free.

After discussion, Su Jing decided to sell the yellow dog, a kitten, and a female cat for a total of eighty thousand yuan.

The yellow dog, though fierce, lacked training. Being an adult, it would be more difficult to train, and its loyalty, obedience, and intelligence were yet to be determined. The kitten, though beautiful, might not maintain its good appearance when grown, and it had no pedigree certificate. The price was already quite high. Ironically, Shen Hong thought the female cat had good genes and wanted to buy it to breed, but if he knew that the three kittens' beauty was due to postnatal care, he would be disappointed.

Thus, the small-leaf rosewood, a dog, and two cats were sold, and Su Jing's bank account increased by one hundred and sixty thousand yuan. This was the most money Su Jing had ever had, and it felt like a dream. Zhao Mengxiang was completely stunned, suddenly feeling that her brother-in-law had become truly remarkable since returning from university.

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