Chapter 747: Picking Up a Bargain

Liu Guangtian and Liu Guangfu, the two brothers, had been following Xu Damao to learn antique appraisal for over ten days, and they already felt like they were half-experts.

The two of them took ten thousand yuan from Xu Damao and patted their chests, guaranteeing, "Damao, we're going out to collect items now, just you wait and see!"

Xu Damao leaned back in his chair and said slowly, "You two go to Wang Village in Tongzhou and look around; there are some old things in that village. But I'll say the ugly things first—the people in that place are more cunning than the next."

"Brother Damao, just put your heart in your stomach! As for the eye for appraising antiques, we aren't as good as you. But when it comes to reading people? Our brothers have been mixing in society for so many years, what kind of monsters or demons haven't we seen? Our ability to read people is no lower than yours," said Liu Guangtian.

Xu Damao snorted irritably, "Guangtian, I'll say it again—the antique business is murky. Those country folk look rustic, but every one of them is as sharp as a monkey; don't end up being sold by them while you're still helping them count the money."

"Don't worry, don't worry!" Liu Guangtian rubbed his hands, grinning as he leaned in, "Brother Damao, why don't you lend us that motorcycle of yours to ride? Wang Village isn't close."

Seeing the two of them so full of confidence, Xu Damao felt a bit uneasy and waved his hand impatiently, "Be careful!"

Liu Guangtian climbed onto the motorcycle, Liu Guangfu hopped onto the back seat, and with a twist of the throttle, the two of them sped off like a bolt of lightning toward Tongzhou.

These two were originally from a background of hoodlums, and the strings in their brains were different from normal people.

Upon arriving near the village, the first thing they did wasn't to find the Village Chief, but to find the local thugs.

Their minds were full of the underworld: a strong dragon doesn't suppress the local snake; if you want to collect items on someone else's turf, you first have to connect with the people on the ground.

Before long, a young man wearing a black cotton-padded jacket approached. This person had a pair of shifty eyes that darted around, sizing up Liu Guangtian and Liu Guangfu from head to toe.

But after staring at each other for a moment, the local thug couldn't hold out—Liu Guangtian and Liu Guangfu's eyes were fiercer and more ruthless, a kind of ruthlessness truly honed in prison.

The expression on the young man in the black cotton-padded jacket immediately turned ingratiating: "Two brothers, you're from Si Jiu Cheng, right?"

Liu Guangtian also knew how to gauge the situation; he pulled a cigarette from his pocket, handed it over, and asked with a smile, "What should I call you, brother?"

The local thug took the cigarette, put it in his mouth, lit it, and took a blissful puff before saying slowly, "Everyone in our village is surnamed Wang; my name is Wang Hui."

Liu Guangtian leaned forward and lowered his voice, asking as if they were meeting for a secret deal: "Brother Wang Hui, I heard... there are quite a few pieces of old furniture in your village?"

Wang Hui's eyes darted around, and he said ingratiatingly, "Big Brother, so you came to collect old items? Then you've found the right person today. In all of Wang Village, I know exactly what is hidden in whose mouse hole like the back of my hand."

Liu Guangtian nodded and didn't beat around the bush: "Then could I trouble you to lead the way for us? Once the deal is done, there will be plenty of benefits for you."

Wang Hui didn't say a word, his fingers making a gesture of rubbing money together.

Liu Guangtian understood perfectly, pulled ten yuan from his pocket, and slapped it over: "My name is Liu Guangtian, and this is my younger brother Liu Guangfu. Take us to see whose house has old furniture. If we can collect some items, there will be another fifty for you."

Wang Hui took the money, and his chatterbox opened up: "Speaking of our Wang Village, the most impressive one is the house at the head of the village. The man is named Wang Gui. What's impressive about him is—he married the daughter of a high-ranking Manchu official... there really are quite a few good things hidden in his house. But this guy is also strange, appearing and disappearing like a ghost; he takes one thing out today, and by tomorrow it's gone again. Usually, you have no idea where he hides his things."

"Really?" Liu Guangtian's eyes lit up.

Wang Hui nodded and continued: "That wife of Wang Gui's, her surname is Jin. She caught a strange illness; no matter how much she eats, it doesn't help, and she gets thinner and thinner, looking like a stick of firewood. Wang Gui is actually quite good to his wife. When that woman married into the family back then, she brought a lot of good things from her maiden home. Afraid of people knowing, she buried them all underground. Just a few days ago, someone collected something from his house; I heard it was some kind of General Jar, from an imperial kiln, worth a ton of money!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Guangtian's eyes brightened instantly, and he hurriedly asked: "Brother Wang Hui, if you can take us over there and we collect some good things, I, Liu Guangtian, am definitely not the type to treat a friend poorly."

After saying this, he pulled another hundred yuan from his pocket and slapped it neatly into Wang Hui's palm.

Wang Hui looked down and saw that this guy was quite generous, his face immediately breaking into a smile as he said repeatedly, "Two brothers, follow me!"

Liu Guangtian and Liu Guangfu followed Wang Hui, turning this way and that, until they arrived in front of a house.

This residence was a large courtyard with three sections; it was imposing, but it had been in disrepair for years, and the roof was covered in wild grass. But looking closely—the roof beams, the roof ridges, and those thick, large pillars were made of solid materials; one could tell at a glance that when this house was built, a fortune was definitely spent on it.

Wang Hui shouted at the top of his lungs: "Wang Gui! Brother Wang Gui! You have guests!"

Not long after, a man walked out from the room.

This man was not tall, lean and wiry, with a face that looked like it had been carved by a knife, with sharp, distinct features. He looked to be in his fifties, wearing a plain black cotton-padded jacket, but his eyes were very bright.

Wang Hui stepped forward and said with a smile: "Brother Gui, these two brothers came from the city and want to collect some things. Do you have any in your house?"

Wang Gui smiled honestly, his voice not loud, revealing a sense of sincerity: "Come in and take a look."

Liu Guangtian and Liu Guangfu hurriedly handed over a cigarette.

Wang Gui took the cigarette, didn't smoke it, and tucked it behind his ear.

As soon as the two stepped into the room, it went dark before their eyes.

The light in the room was extremely dim, and it took several seconds for their eyes to slowly adjust.

On the kang lay a lean woman, a quilt covering her body, looking as if there was no one underneath, completely flat and sunken.

From time to time she would cough, the sound light and hoarse, making one's heart tighten just to hear it.

Wang Gui rubbed his hands in embarrassment and sighed: "Don't laugh at me, you two... sigh, the life I'm living is truly pathetic. My wife has diabetes, it's in the late stages, and her legs are rotting away."

Liu Guangtian squinted and scanned the dim room.

The furnishings in the room were as simple as could be—just one large cabinet, and two standing cabinets next to it, all used for clothes.

Liu Guangtian walked over to look, reached out to knock on them, and knew what he was dealing with. These cabinets weren't made of any precious wood, just Old Elm Wood, not worth much money.

Wang Gui spoke up with a smile: "Two brothers, don't bother with those cabinets, they aren't anything good. Take a look at this—" he pointed with his chin, "this kang edge is made of red sandalwood. If you two want it, I'll pry it off for you right now."

Upon hearing this, Liu Guangtian immediately squatted down, used his flashlight to shine on the corners of the Red Sandalwood Kang Edge, and examined it carefully all around.

While looking, he tapped it lightly with his fingers a few times to listen to the sound.

After a long while, he raised his head and said with a firm tone: "This really is red sandalwood. Name your price?"

Wang Gui scratched his head for a long time, hesitating as he held up three fingers: "Then... can you give me three hundred yuan?"

Liu Guangfu and Liu Guangtian were so happy inside they almost couldn't help but laugh out loud.

For something like this, let alone three hundred, if you just turned around and sold it on the black market, fifteen hundred to twenty-five hundred would be a conservative estimate.

Liu Guangtian had followed Xu Damao for over ten days learning red sandalwood appraisal; although he wasn't an expert, he was more than capable of identifying this Red Sandalwood Kang Edge.

Liu Guangtian suppressed his inner excitement and said: "Fine, I'll take this. Do you have any other old items in your house?"

Wang Gui sighed, shook his head, and said: "Not today, come back another day."

At this moment, Wang Hui, who had been standing to the side without a word, quietly winked at Liu Guangtian.

Liu Guangtian understood, nodded slightly, and turned to Wang Gui: "That's fine, I'll give you the money first and take the item with me. I'll come back in a few days to take another look."

After saying this, Liu Guangtian and Liu Guangfu quickly and efficiently used a Rope to tie the kang edge tightly, securing it firmly to the motorcycle. With a twist of the throttle, they sped off like a bolt of lightning toward Xu Damao's antique shop.

Xu Damao was sitting in the shop drinking tea; seeing the two of them carrying the item in, he immediately put down his cup, his eyes fixed on it.

He glanced at the piece of Red Sandalwood Kang Edge, slapped Liu Guangtian's shoulder hard, and said: "I didn't expect you two brothers to have such damn good luck! This thing is at least three or four hundred years old. You two—you've picked up a huge bargain this trip!"