Five days later. Afternoon.
Hai Bing Bath Parlor. Storeroom.
Dong Xuebing was panting as he carried a pile of towels. "Xiao Shi, the guest room does not have enough towels. Let's wash them quickly."
"Ok. You go ahead first." Xiao Shi took out two new bedsheets. "I need to deliver something to the guest room."
"Oh, bring a bag of laundry over. The guest room might not have enough towels."
Xiao Shi nodded and walked out. "Ok."
For the next five days, Dong Xuebing had been washing towels in the bathhouse. He was exhausted and had never done so much work in his life. Although he was feeling impatient, he persevered because of his work. Other than working, he would observe the bathhouse's situation. For example, he knows where the manager's office is, the best place to hide things, who the boss is, etc. But because he was not a high-ranking official, he did not get much information and does not know much.
This cannot go on. If this drags on, even if the antiques are here, they will be moved away sooner or later! I must think of a solution!
Dong Xuebing was walking along the corridor and was about to go to the back to wash towels when someone called out to him.
It was the Crew-cut. "Xie Hao, put down the towels and follow me."
Dong Xuebing was nervous. "Where are we going?"
"A customer in Room 303 needs a massage, and we are short of hands. You go and take over the position." The Crew-cut ordered.
"But I have not learned how to massage before."
"Just do it. Don't you know how to massage?"
Dong Xuebing had no choice but to follow the Crew-cut upstairs. At the end of the corridor, the Crew-cut pointed to the room and told him how to give a massage. Anyway, it is a 40-minute massage. After that, the Crew-cut went downstairs. Dong Xuebing slapped his forehead and did not say anything. He walked over and knocked on the door. A woman inside said, "Come in." He entered the room and closed the door behind him.
A woman in her late thirties was lying on the bed, reading a magazine.
Dong Xuebing asked emotionlessly. "Are you the one who asked for a massage?"
The woman nodded and looked at Dong Xuebing. "Use more force on your hands. Don't be too gentle."
"Ok." Dong Xuebing went to the bathroom to wash his hands before sitting on the bed.
The woman was wearing a white bathrobe, and her neck was bare. She probably wasn't wearing anything underneath. Her figure wasn't bad, and she was a little busty. Her face wasn't particularly beautiful, but at least she still had a hint of charm. The wrinkles at the corner of her eyes gave her a mature charm, and she was quite attractive. Dong Xuebing saw that the woman was not bad looking, and he was not disgusted. It was better than giving a sweaty man a massage.
Dong Xuebing stretched out his hand and touched Yu Meixia's shoulder through the bathrobe.
Hou Qing did not care about the impurities and threw it aside. "Young man, you are quite strong. How long have you been doing this?"
Dong Xuebing replied. "Not long."
"… What's your name?"
"Xie Hao."
"Ok. Good name." Hou Qing looked at Dong Xuebing.
Dong Xuebing was not in the mood to chat with Hou Qing as he was thinking about how to get in touch with those relics.
After chatting for a while, Hou Qing suddenly asked. "How is your boss recently?" She saw Dong Xuebing was confused and asked. "Is he still Mr. Wu? Did he change his manager? "
Dong Xuebing looked at Hou Qing. "I had never met the boss before, and I only know Manager Ma is in charge of this place."
Hou Qing nodded and did not say anything.
Dong Xuebing got interested. "Sis, you know our boss?"
"Haha … I had met him twice, but we did not speak much." Hou Qing closed her eyes. "What is Manager Ma busy with recently?"
Dong Xuebing was already massaging Hou Qing's waist. "Manager Ma doesn't come here often. He only comes here once every two to three days. Maybe Boss has other businesses for him to manage." After that, Dong Xuebing tried to get more information from Hou Qing. He wants to know where Mr. Wu is, but he got nothing.
Forty minutes passed by in a flash.
Hou Qing sat up on the bed and tidied her bathrobe. "Young man, your technique is not bad. It's comfortable."
"You are too polite."
"What time is your place usually empty at night?" Hou Qing asked suddenly.
Dong Xuebing blinked. "There are still quite a lot of customers before 12 pm. But after 1 pm, there might not be many customers."
Hou Qing smiled and looked at Dong Xuebing. "Ok. If I need you at night … I will call you. What's your number?"
"Huh? I don't have a number. I am only here temporarily, and we do not have enough staff now."
"Alright. I will remember your name. Xie Hao, right? Ok. I will call you if I need you. "Hou Qing took out a 100 RMB tip and passed it to Dong Xuebing." Here. "
Dong Xuebing's mind started to wander. Call me at 1 pm? Damn! Why are you calling me in the middle of the night?
After leaving the guest room, Dong Xuebing continued to work. He went to the workshop at the back to wash the bed sheets and towels. He was so tired that he almost forgot his surname. Dong Xuebing and Xiao Shi returned to their hostel at around 8 pm. They were sweating profusely and lay on their beds to rest. Dong Xuebing is sleeping on the upper berth, and Xiao Shi is sleeping on the lower berth. Xiao Shi had been staying here longer than Dong Xuebing and should be familiar with the rest. But on the first day, Dong Xuebing noticed that the rest of the roommates prefer to talk to Dong Xuebing instead of Xiao Shi.
Half an hour passed.
One hour passed.
No one is sleeping and is talking about women.
Dong Xuebing is not interested and is thinking about how to get closer to the upper level to get closer to the relics. But he had been thinking for the past five days and did not come up with any good ideas. Sigh … I was too naive in the past. I thought everything will be fine if I can sneak in. But now, I did not even get anything valuable. Should I go to the Manager's office to try my luck? It's dangerous!
A little after nine o'clock.
The hostel's door opened, and a Crew-cut walked in. "Xiao Shi! Xiao Shi! "
Xiao Shi was already asleep. He opened his eyes in a daze. "Brother Liu, what's the matter?"
"Get up and follow me. Hurry up. Manager Ma is waiting to see you!" The Crew-cut urged.
Xiao Shi sat up and was confused. He does not know why the Manager called him over. Dong Xuebing was also stunned when he saw the Crew-cut bringing Xiao Shi away. Everyone in the hostel had the same expression and were discussing softly.
"Why is Manager Ma looking for him?"
"That's right. He is just a thief. Do you want to promote him?"
"Thief?" Dong Xuebing asked. "Xiao Shi had committed crimes before?"
A young man sleeping on the lower berth nodded. "I think he had stolen something from a province in the south and came here."
No wonder everyone does not want to talk to him. He is a thief. Dong Xuebing asked. "What did he steal? Wallet? Mobile phone? Or lock picking? "
The young man shook his head. "I don't know the details. I think he had stolen a few antiques during the incident."
Dong Xuebing's eyes sparkled. He felt he had discovered some important clues.
About 10 minutes later, Xiao Shi returned alone. Everyone in the hostel asked him what happened and why Manager Ma was looking for him. But Xiao Shi did not say a word and only shook his head. After that, he went back to his bed. Everyone's attitude towards Xiao Shi was not good, and there's no need for him to be nice to others. After a while, Xiao Shi got out of his bed and went to the toilet.
Dong Xuebing looked at him and quickly followed him. "Wait. I will go with you."
In the corridor outside, Dong Xuebing asked softly. "What did he call you for?"
Xiao Shi was close to Dong Xuebing, and he thought for a while before telling Dong Xuebing. "Manager Ma had shown me a few antiques and wants me to appraise them." He paused for a while and said. "I had dealt with antiques in the past, and Manager Ma might think I know about antiques. But I don't even know what those antiques are, let alone appraise them. If I know how to appraise antiques, why am I here?"
Antiques?
Appraise?
Dong Xuebing got excited when he heard this. He calmed himself down and asked softly. "What antiques are they?"
Xiao Shi shook his head. "There are some vases and some other things. I don't know the name of those antiques."
Dong Xuebing took in a deep breath, and his blood was boiling. Xiao Shi's words and Manager Ma's actions had given Dong Xuebing the answer he wanted. There were too many things he wanted to know. Why did Manager Ma ask Xiao Shi to appraise antiques? Even if a thief had access to antiques, he was not a professional. Anyone from the antique shops would be better than him. The only explanation was that the stolen relics from the Provincial Museum were in their hands, and they did not dare to show those antiques to the experts. That's why they got someone who knows how to appraise antiques from their men.
Another piece of information was that Manager Ma's boss might have bought those antiques from the person who robbed the museum. But he does not know if those antiques were real. Maybe those people had prepared fake antiques in advance. Liu Sheng's jade suit might be easy to appraise, but the rest of the antiques might not be so easy to appraise. Manager Ma needs someone who knows how to appraise antiques to help them verify the authenticity of those antiques!
That's right!
That must be it!
Dong Xuebing took a deep breath. He knew this was his chance to enter that circle. I must find an opportunity to get into the enemy's circle!
Just when Dong Xuebing was about to enter the toilet, he saw the Crew-cut walking out.
Dong Xuebing reacted quickly and pretended not to see the Crew-cut. He told Xiao Shi. "Actually, I am in the antique counterfeiting business."
Xiao Shi asked curiously. "Really?"
"Yes. It's a skill passed down from my parents' generation." Dong Xuebing replied.
The Crew-cut was stunned and looked at Dong Xuebing. "Xie Hao."
Dong Xuebing pretended to have just noticed him and walked over. "Brother Liu."
The Crew-cut looked at Dong Xuebing. "Have you made antiques before?"
"No … I am just making things up." Dong Xuebing laughed. He did not admit to anything as he does not want to be too obvious.
The Crew-cut stared at Dong Xuebing. "Come with me!"
An office.
The Crew-cut brought Dong Xuebing into the office. Manager Ma, Ma Wentao, and a few men in suits were sitting in the office.
Ma Wentao frowned when he saw them entering. "What is it?"
The Crew-cut quickly replied. "Manager Ma, I heard this person is in the antique business."
"Oh?" Ma Wentao looked at Dong Xuebing. "Really?"
Dong Xuebing waved his hand. "I am not. I am just making things up."
The Crew-cut's face changed. "Just say what I want you to say! I will not send you to the police station! What's there to be afraid of?! "
Dong Xuebing kept quiet.
Ma Wentao looked at Dong Xuebing and asked gently. "I remember your surname is Xie, right? Xiao Xie, I had bought a few items a few days ago. If you can help me appraise them, you will not need to be a junk anymore. I can promote you to be the lobby manager. If you have any other requests, I can satisfy them. This is a good thing. Don't be afraid, understand? "
Dong Xuebing hesitated for a while and nodded.
Ma Wentao nodded. "Tell me now. Do you know anything about antiques?"
Dong Xuebing 'finally' told the truth under their interrogation. "That is in the past. I had helped a few of my relatives to make fake antiques and sell them. After that, I was discovered by the Police, and I went to Hebei Province to work at Brother Bao's auto repair factory."
Ma Wentao understood why Dong Xuebing refused to admit. He is afraid the Police will arrest him. "That means you know a lot about antiques?"
Dong Xuebing scratched his head. "Just a little."
Ma Wentao thought for a while and asked the Crew-cut to leave. He and a few bodyguards are left in the office. "Xiao Xie, I have a few antiques here. Take a look at them first." Ma Wentao gave a look to a man in a suit, and that man took out a few boxes from a cabinet and placed them on the table. Ma Wentao comforted him. "Don't be nervous. If you can appraise these items correctly, you will follow me in the future. You will be rich."
The man in black opened the leftmost box.
Dong Xuebing looked at the antiques and was disappointed. These antiques were not stolen from the museum. Ma Wentao must not dare to expose these antiques to the public and will not show them to an outsider. That's why he used a few antiques to test Dong Xuebing. If Dong Xuebing can appraise these antiques, it will prove he is capable and will get a chance to see the rest of the antiques. After understanding this, Dong Xuebing was more alert. He took a few steps forward and started to look at the item.
Inside was a broken earthenware container. It looked very old.
But Dong Xuebing, who had dealt with antiques before, knows the surface does not mean anything.
Dong Xuebing knew they are using this item to appraise him, and they will not use the real antiques. "This is a fake. It looks old, but it is made by someone. Look here. The marks are too obvious."
Ma Wentao frowned and asked his men to open the next box.
There is a red sandalwood bracelet in this box. It looks like someone had played with it for a long time.
Dong Xuebing thought for a while and felt it should be real. It should be Ma Wentao's belongings. "This is red sandalwood, and the color is fresh. It must be real."
Ma Wentao asked his men to open the last box.
It's a rusty copper coin with the words "Zhi Zheng Bao" engraved on it.
Dong Xuebing knew it is not easy to counterfeit copper coins as the cost is high. He pretended to pick it up and take a closer look. "This is real, and it should be from the Ming Dynasty. There are not many antiques handed down, and it is worth a lot." After saying that, Dong Xuebing looks at Ma Wentao.
What the heck?! Ma Wentao's face had changed, and his lips twitched impatiently. "Alright. You can go back now."
Dong Xuebing paused. "Err … which part did I get wrong?"
The man beside Ma Wentao snorted. "You are all wrong! How can you call this antique expert? "
Dong Xuebing replied. "Impossible."
Before bringing these items over, Ma Wentao had asked an Antique Appraiser to appraise them. He knows the authenticity of these items and knows if they are real or fake. That man saw Dong Xuebing is not leaving and went over to push him out. Dong Xuebing does not want to give up this opportunity and asked him which part he got wrong.
That man smirked. "You think you can fake with your little knowledge? The pottery is authentic from the Stone Age. It's very old and has a high historical value. However, it's not worth much. The red sandalwood bracelet is a fake. It's actually made of wood similar to red sandalwood. It's not worth much. As for the copper coins, the words are all crooked. It's a batch of fake ancient coins. The authentic ones aren't from the Ming Dynasty, they're from the Yuan Dynasty! Alright! Alright! Hurry up and leave! It's a waste of time! "He is the one who brought the items to the Antique Appraiser and knows what is going on.
Dong Xuebing cursed. Damn! Everything is wrong?! He did not expect his standards to be so low!
But it's fine! There is still a chance!
BACK 2 minutes!
… …
… …
Everything changed!
"Xiao Xie, I have a few antiques here. Take a look at them."
Ma Wentao asked his men to take out the antiques.
Time had returned to normal!
"Don't be nervous. If you can identify these antiques correctly, you will follow me in the future." Ma Wentao looked at Dong Xuebing with anticipation in his eyes.
Dong Xuebing took a deep breath and looked at the pottery. He stretched out his hand to touch it. "Most of our counterfeits are old, and it is impossible to make something like this. I think it should be from the Stone Age. But although these artifacts are old and have high historical value, they are not worth much."
Ma Wentao narrowed his eyes. "Show him the next one!"
Dong Xuebing took out the red sandalwood bracelet.
Dong Xuebing felt the wood in his hand and said. "The glue is added later. We often use this method to make the wood look old. If it is real, no one will use this method. This wood should be fake and is worthless." Dong Xuebing said. Dong Xuebing felt the wood in his hand and felt it.
Ma Wentao said. "Next one."
Dong Xuebing continued. "Is it a copper coin? However, the rust was pasted on with the rust scraped off from other bronze wares. I've used this technique when I was making antiques before, and the words are all crooked. It doesn't look like the authentic Yuan Dynasty's Most Genuine Treasure. "
All three of them finished talking.
The men looked at each other in shock.
Ma Wentao banged the table. "Good! Good! Good!"
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