Chapter 23: Guyue Studio

Duan Rong immediately began to wander through the small alley.

Duan Rong looked at those stalls; some stalls were set up with folding wooden tables, while others simply had a felt mat spread directly on the ground.

Duan Rong glanced at the dazzling array of various antiques on the black felt mat, as well as the stall owners sitting behind them, arms crossed and eyes squinting at people; Duan Rong suddenly slapped his forehead, and a plan immediately came to mind.

"The Devouring Artifact Spirit is related to the passage of time, and aren't these antiques also related to the passage of time?"

"Can't my ability to use the Devouring Artifact Spirit be used to pick up bargains?"

"If I use this thing to pick up bargains, it's much more reliable than those expert masters. The accuracy is comparable to the carbon-14 dating method in archaeology!"

"Go for it!" Duan Rong was overjoyed, imitating the tone of Shi Banyu's voice acting as he shouted: "I am truly too smart!"

Once the thought occurred to him, Duan Rong immediately began to act.

He squatted down at the first stall from the alley entrance and touched the various antiques on the stall one by one!

After finishing the first stall, Duan Rong didn't even straighten his waist; he shifted his buttocks and squatted in front of the second stall next to him.

Without even lifting his head, Duan Rong touched his way through four stalls in a row.

This level of initiative could not help but make one click their tongue in wonder!

Duan Rong put a wooden statue he was holding back onto the stall and cursed inwardly: "Another Unranked one!"

Duan Rong shifted his buttocks, just like someone changing positions while taking a dump, and squatted in front of the fifth stall.

The owner of the fifth stall was a thin, middle-aged man. At first, the stall owners didn't care about Duan Rong's strange behavior, but after he touched his way through four stalls in a row, this fifth stall owner began to grow suspicious.

The thin, middle-aged stall owner saw Duan Rong squat down in front of his stall, lower his head, and start touching things.

"Young man, are you buying or not?"

Upon hearing this, Duan Rong raised his head and said: "If there's something suitable, I will naturally buy it! What, you're doing business, you've laid it all out, and you won't let me look?"

The stall owner wanted to say more, but after looking at the sheathed Ox-Tail Saber in Duan Rong's hand and the Escort Waist Token tied to him, he waved his hand and said nothing more.

The Escort Waist Token tied to Duan Rong's waist bore the mark of the Yuanshun Escort Agency.

The Yuanshun Escort Agency was a force to be reckoned with in Xiangu County.

Moreover, Duan Rong was merely a bit strange and hadn't stolen or robbed anything, so the stall owner didn't feel it was worth his while to make things difficult for him.

Just like that, Duan Rong touched ten or so stalls in a row; with this way of squatting, if he hadn't already had some foundation in Stance Training, his waist definitely wouldn't have been able to take it.

"These unscrupulous merchants, there isn't a single real thing here. Calling this Antique Street, are you trying to fool ghosts?"

As Duan Rong touched, he cursed. He had touched countless statues, lacquerware, bronzeware, and calligraphy and paintings; his fingertips were covered in a layer of grime, yet he had gained nothing.

Just as Duan Rong was feeling extremely depressed, he suddenly froze, staring at a set of data flashing before his eyes.

Artifact: Lady Painting

Spirit Artifact Tier: 6th Tier.

Devouring Requirement: Host Mental Power Level 4 (Not met).

Devouring Effect: Masterful Brushwork Primary Level, Force Through Paper Primary Level, Communing with Heaven and Man Primary Level.

"A 6th Tier Spirit Artifact must have some age to it. It's definitely an ancient painting!"

Duan Rong gripped a slightly yellowed scroll, but he did not open it.

"And looking at the devouring effects, the author of this ancient painting probably has some achievements; it might even be the work of a famous master!"

Duan Rong thought of his past life, of those famous paintings in auction houses that would easily fetch hundreds of millions, and he immediately drooled.

Duan Rong took a deep breath; after touching for so long, he had finally caught a fish!

Duan Rong expressionlessly put the painting scroll he was holding back, then randomly pulled another scroll from the painting jar, opened it to take a look, and said to the stall owner: "Boss, how much for this painting?"

The boss lifted his butt, glanced at the painting Duan Rong had unfolded, and seeing it was a landscape, said: "Five taels!"

Duan Rong's face darkened, and he said: "Seeing that I'm a new face, you're just trying to rip me off, right! Give me a price I can actually bargain with; opening your mouth and asking for five taels, aren't you just driving people away?"

Duan Rong was actually a bit angry; he only had eight qian of silver in his pocket in total.

"Then how much do you say?" The stall owner looked at Duan Rong with an encouraging gaze.

"Five qian!"

As soon as Duan Rong's words fell, the stall owner snatched the painting directly from Duan Rong's hand, rolled it up, threw it back into the painting jar, and kept a cold face, saying nothing.

"Damn it!" Duan Rong cursed in his heart and said: "Six qian at most!"

The stall owner still looked elsewhere with a cold face, not even looking at Duan Rong.

Duan Rong's eyelid twitched, and he turned and walked away.

He hadn't even taken two steps when the stall owner called out: "Come, come back, six qian and it's yours!"

"Asked for too much!" Duan Rong turned around and muttered.

Duan Rong paid the six qian of silver, rummaged through the painting jar a few times, and pulled out that scroll of the Lady Painting.

The stall owner didn't care at all whether the one Duan Rong pulled out was the landscape from before; the paintings in his jar were all bought at the same price anyway.

The stall owner was happy in his heart that he had made a sale. After all, six qian of silver was enough for his family's food for ten days or so. "Ripped off another idiot!"

With the scroll tucked under his arm, Duan Rong looked around and turned into a shop called Guyue Studio.

The shop assistant at Guyue Studio was named Guan Kui; he was already in his early thirties. When he was in his teens, he had already been working as an assistant under Manager Tang. If you really counted it up, it was almost twenty years.

An antique shop is different from other shops; it often requires welcoming and sending off guests. In this trade, it's usually: don't open for business for half a year, but once you do, you eat for half a year.

Guan Kui was holding a feather duster, slowly and lightly dusting the dust off the counter; this was the temperament he had cultivated after being immersed in the antique trade for a long time.

Everything had to be done slowly and gently; if one was the slightest bit impatient, something might go wrong.

Just as Guan Kui was dusting, he suddenly saw a sturdy young man walk in with long strides. He was wearing brown short-sleeved work clothes, had a square face and bright eyes, a sallow complexion, and greasy hair. In one hand he gripped a sheathed Ox-Tail Saber, and tucked under his arm was a yellowed scroll.

He arrived at the counter, revealed his bright white teeth, and smiled honestly: "Assistant, do you have any calligraphy or paintings? If you have real things, bring them out and let me take a look. As long as the item is right, the price is negotiable!"

Guan Kui blinked his eyes, looking at this person's wind-swept gait and attire; he didn't look like a bug who had been drilling into the antique trade.

Guan Kui smiled noncommittally and asked: "Guest, you want calligraphy or paintings, are you perhaps looking to give them as a birthday gift?"

Guan Kui was trying to probe for information to dig up the other party's background so he could handle the situation.

Duan Rong had spent ten years in insurance in his past life, so how could he not understand these sales tactics? He smiled with understanding, completely ignored the conversational opening, and said bluntly: "You don't need to worry about what I do. If you have the real thing, bring it out and I'll take a look for you. If you don't have the real thing, just say so; don't waste my time!"

Guan Kui thought to himself: Oh, so this is someone here to challenge me, and he's got quite the attitude!

However, the other party didn't use a single piece of professional jargon and was shouting like this the moment he walked in, so he was clearly a greenhorn.

Guan Kui immediately prepared to show him the door, but just as he was about to speak, a cough suddenly came from the Inner Room behind the blue cloth curtain.

Guan Kui's heart skipped a beat; the person coughing was naturally Manager Tang.

Guan Kui glanced at the blue cloth curtain and saw it move ever so slightly.

Guan Kui turned his head toward Duan Rong, smiled, and said: "Wait a moment!"

Guan Kui crouched down, opened the cabinet door beneath the counter, brought out a yellowed scroll with wormholes in both hands, placed it carefully on the counter, and slowly unfolded it.

Guan Kui said with a smile: "Take a look. Can this painting count as something of value?"

(End of chapter)