"Hello, Xiao Bing. Why are you still not home?"
"Oh, Aunt Xuan. I will be back later. I have something on here."
"Ok. I will not wait for you for dinner. Don't come back too late. Be careful."
"Ok. Don't worry."
After hanging up, Dong Xuebing kept his iPhone 4 and finished his last bite of vegetarian pancake. There were still pedestrians passing by the demolition site, and he had no choice but to focus on writing the report that he will be submitting to Chief Xu tomorrow. When he was almost done writing, it was exactly eight o 'clock. The dark night sky was already pressing down on his head, and there was basically no one around.
It's time!
Dong Xuebing lifted the curtains and walked out of the small restaurant.
The dim yellow street lights illuminated the messy construction site. Because they had not officially entered the construction stage, there were no large excavators or bulldozers, so there were no protective measures at the site, and no one was left to guard it. Other than two gray stray cats and a stray dog with its ears drooping, there was nothing else to be seen. It was dirty, messy, and late, so no one would come here. Dong Xuebing looked at the broken tiles under his feet and sneaked back to the spot he was at in the afternoon. He looked down, and the stone tile was still there. It was the same as when he left it.
Dig!
Dong Xuebing rolled up his sleeves and started to rub his hands until his hands were warm. He squatted down and used his fingers to grab the irregular, cold stone brick and pull it up by his arms. Dong Xuebing was not sure if this piece of land belonged to a courtyard or a resident's house. The tiles on the ground were not cement. It was made of thick and heavy stones. If the workers had not moved some of the stones, it would be hard for Dong Xuebing to move it alone.
Push harder! Push harder! Push harder!
The stone tile was lifted up by Dong Xuebing's hand.
10 cm … … 20 cm … … Dong Xuebing turned the stone tile over.
Dong Xuebing quickly looked around. Seeing that no one had noticed him, he blew gently and patted the soil off his hands. He suppressed his excitement and looked down. It was a box. It was a box that was covered in soil and was corroded beyond recognition. He pushed away the soil on top of the box and opened the lid. Inside, there was a rusty metal box wrapped in a thick plastic sheet. It seems like it had been buried in the soil for a long time … … but not too long.
What is it?
Don't tell me it is some worthless toy? Otherwise, I will have wasted my BACK and the whole afternoon of waiting!
Dong Xuebing gritted his teeth and took out the plastic sheet and the metal box. Dong Xuebing's heart skipped a beat. The box is very light, about the weight of two to three teacups. Dong Xuebing shook the box slightly, but there is no sound coming from it. It should not be gold, silver, or bronze wares. Dong Xuebing's heart sank. He wiped the dirt off the box and then took out the rusty metal box from the plastic sheet. He placed it flat on the ground.
This feeling, it felt like it was filled with paper?
Gosh, don't be like this. If it was a diary or newspaper buried by someone or some child's prank, it would be hilarious!
Dong Xuebing rubbed his exposed hands and took a few deep breaths. He reached out for the metal box and pulled the rusty lid off. He looked into the box under the dim moonlight. Damn! Dong Xuebing slapped his forehead. Damn!
There were only a few books in the box. Other than that, there was nothing else!
It was too dark, and Dong Xuebing could not see clearly. But unless the paper was made of gold, how much can a few books be sold for? 1 RMB? 2 RMB? This should be the price at the recycling center. Damn! I wasted my BACK! I wasted my entire afternoon! Dong Xuebing laughed and shook his head. He carried the metal box and walked towards the street lamp. I had spent so much effort on it. I should at least look at what was written on it.
The light from the street lamp shone on the box.
Dong Xuebing, who had nothing to look forward to, did not care about it. He grabbed one of the books and took a look.
Dong Xuebing was stunned for a few seconds when he looked at the screen.
Wait! Wait!
What was written on it was … 'Reading History'? The Song Dynasty engraved edition of "Reading History"?
Dong Xuebing excitedly flipped through the few booklets at the bottom. Qing Jiaqing's engraved edition of < Mustard Seed Garden Biography >? The Kangxi Emperor's engraved edition of the Three Rites Painting? Lu You's Jiannan Poems? Li Chongshi's Works? Tianxiang Book of Calligraphy? There was even a Tang Dynasty Scripture …. Dunhuang Scripture?!
Damn!
How were these worthless books? They were all f * cking rare ancient books!!
Dong Xuebing had worked in an antique shop for two months and knew the real value of these scrolls. That's why he did not know what to say. This is a surprise! This is an unexpected surprise! Dong Xuebing quickly took out the books from the box and kept them in his bag. He looked at his watch and went back to replace the box lid and the stone brick. After doing all these, Dong Xuebing hailed a taxi by the moat and went straight to Panjiayuan.
The old goods market was closed, and Dong Xuebing was going to an antique shop north of Panjiayuan Bridge East Road.
Last summer, Dong Xuebing had helped the boss to sell ancient books here.
The taxi stopped, and Dong Xuebing alighted from the taxi. He saw the lights outside Xuan Yu Zhai were switched off, but there was a weak light coming from inside. Dong Xuebing walked over and knocked on the antique wooden door. "Mr. Jia, Mr. Jia, please close the door later. I am Xiao Dong."
The door opened, and a middle-aged man with a mustache appeared. "Xiao Dong? Oh, why are you here? "
Dong Xuebing laughed. "Can we talk inside? It is not convenient to talk outside. "
Mr. Jia laughed. "Ok. But my business is not good this year, and I do not want to hire more people."
"It's not that." Dong Xuebing entered the shop, and the smell of books entered his nose.
Mr. Jia switched on the lights again. "If you are any later, I will lock the door and go to bed. Tell me, why are you acting so mysterious?"
Dong Xuebing was familiar with him in the past and did not stand on ceremony with him. He sat down on a chair and wiped the water from the teacup on the table. Dong Xuebing took out a dozen ancient books wrapped in plastic bags from his bag. "I am here to sell something to you. Oh, I am short of money recently, and I had emptied my savings at home. Can you tell me how much I can sell for?"
Mr. Jia stroked his mustache. "Ancient books?"
"Yes." Dong Xuebing took out a few books and placed them on the table.
"Haha, you are quite good at hiding things. If you have good stuff, you should have brought it to me earlier. Alright. Let me take a look." Mr. Jia put on his spectacles and sat beside Dong Xuebing. He flipped through the books in his hands. "Oh, Three Rites Painting? 4 volumes of Qing Dynasty Kangxi Engraved Book? This is good stuff. "
"How much is it worth?" Ancient books were different from other antiques. Because of the high production cost, there were very few counterfeits. That's why Dong Xuebing asked for the price.
Mr. Jia stroked his mustache. "Hmmm … it is still in good condition. It is worth 4,000 RMB. Eh? Why is the book so damp?"
"Oh, I had kept it in a box at home."
"Oh, is there anything else? Let me take a look. "
Dong Xuebing took out all the books. "Tell me the price. If it is not suitable, I will not sell it. Hahaha."
Mr. Jia pointed at Dong Xuebing and laughed. "Since you are the one who brought these books here, how can I not give you a high price?"
Dong Xuebing will not believe what he said. Who doesn't want to make money in business? But Dong Xuebing had come here was because he knew the boss. Even if Dong Xuebing could not give him the highest price, it should not be too far off.
Boss Jia started flipping through the books one by one. "… Oh, this is' Heavenly Fragrance's Calligraphy ', but it's missing a few volumes. The pages aren't complete, and they aren't well preserved. Look at the bottom right corner. How did it corrode? This is not worth a lot. 800 RMB? 1,000 RMB? That's all … … Oh, this is a Song Dynasty book? < Reading History >? Good stuff. Although there is only one page, there are not many Song Dynasty books left in the world. 6,000 RMB should be enough … … < Mustard Seed Garden >? I can also give you 5,000 RMB for this … … "
Dong Xuebing calculated in his heart.
Finally, Boss Jia shifted his gaze to a scroll. He pulled it open and took a look. He immediately sucked in a breath of cold air. "Tang Scripture … Dunhuang Scripture?" He looks at Dong Xuebing in shock. "You are still able to keep this thing in good condition. Where did you get it from? Is it a family heirloom? "
Dong Xuebing smiled. "I don't know."
Mr. Jia saw Dong Xuebing does not want to tell him and did not ask further. He sighed. "This Tang Dynasty Scriptures … … I will give you 80,000 RMB."
Dong Xuebing was knowledgeable and knew the price of < Dunhuang Scriptures > should be higher. He said. "100,000 RMB."
Mr. Jia shook his head. "I cannot give you 100,000 RMB. You are talking about the auction prices."
Dong Xuebing tried to bargain. "80,000 RMB is too low. How about this? I will sell the rest of the ancient books at the prices you mentioned earlier, and I will not bargain. But you must give me a higher price for the Tang Jing."
Mr. Jia thought for a while and said. "90,000 RMB for this Tang Dynasty Scriptures. I will not go higher than 90,000 RMB."
"… … Fine. Deal!"
"Cash?"
"Ok."
"Ok. I will bring it to you later."
In the end, these ten or so rare ancient books were sold for more than one hundred and ten thousand!
With the 100,000 RMB and a few thousand RMB in Dong Xuebing's bank account, his total net worth was 220,000 RMB!
This was an amount that Dong Xuebing did not even dare to dream of!
He had made a profit again!
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