"Oh come on, a deal’s a deal, buying and selling, it’s all about bargaining. How about giving me a price?" 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

"Eighty bucks, not a penny more." Zhang Guoqing said as he headed out. He didn’t believe that these worthless books and broken bottles could fetch such a price at the recycling station.

And you’re talking about someone who knows the value? Heh, everyone in the county has heard stories about this family, and they all disdain any association with them. Let alone anyone nowadays having as much spare cash as the couple.

"Don’t be in such a rush, just the other day someone offered three hundred bucks, man, you should add a little more."

Zhang Guoqing looked at the man holding his arm and frowned slightly. "I don’t have time to haggle with you guys, even if I buy it for eighty bucks, I still need to go back to find customers. After deducting the car fare, I’m only making about ten bucks."

"Haha, let’s take a look at the furniture in the warehouse first. We’re in no hurry, no rush."

Zhang Guoqing glanced at Zhou Jiao, nodded, and the two of them followed him to the warehouse on the west side.

Compared to these ancient books, the couple felt their hearts ache even more upon seeing the piles of dismantled old furniture. The items weren’t many, just about two rows of ancient bookcases, which used to be the largest pieces in the living room, and a disassembled canopy bed, along with a few large wooden chests meant for clothes.

Zhou Jiao, with her sharp eyes, noticed that the carvings on the canopy bed matched those from their previous home in the county. Indeed, it was left by the old man as a memorial.

"So, what do you think? Look at this wood. Don’t mind if the bed’s in pieces; it’s been passed down through generations. If you polish the carvings and put a layer of red paint on it, it’d look no different from a new bed. But that’s just here in the North; in the South, you couldn’t get it for less than five hundred bucks."

Zhang Guoqing sneered a few times, waiting for them to finish speaking before saying, "Who dares to buy this bed now? Tired of living? If I bought it, it’d just be for the wood, and it’d be a hassle to move it around."

"You won’t have to move it; we’ll deliver it to the highway for you. Man, you’re going to need a vehicle to transport that pile of stuff anyway; might as well take it all at once."

Zhang Guoqing hesitated for a moment and then replied, "Your knife is too quick, let’s forget it."

"Altogether, everything here and inside is three hundred bucks, that’s not overcharging, right? If it weren’t for the old man’s instructions on his deathbed, putting this bed out would attract..."

Zhang Guoqing saw him awkwardly shut his mouth halfway through his words. It seemed the old man had given his children and grandchildren a lot of instructions back then, but he had no intention of inquiring about these matters, though he indeed wanted to better raise his three sons after returning.

After contemplating for a moment, Zhang Guoqing glanced at the couple. "If you’d been to the second-hand goods market in the provincial city, you’d know these aren’t worth such a high price, and I won’t haggle with you. Let’s not go with three hundred, once everything is moved to the highway, I’ll give you a hundred bucks. If you’re unsure, I can give you half first."

After they agreed on the terms, Zhang Guoqing dismantled the bookcases, while Zhou Jiao followed them to move a few wooden chests to the living room for packing small items.

After making three full trips with a large trolley through the back door, Zhang Guoqing even helped push the last load to the highway, as it was all wood.

After it was all over, he didn’t trouble the others, giving them the remaining fifty bucks. Watching them happily leave, just as they were about to disappear, unexpectedly, the eldest daughter-in-law of that family sneaked back.

"The fish has come."

Zhou Jiao exclaimed excitedly to Zhang Guoqing. She believed in her husband’s insight and suspected there indeed were many valuables hidden by the old man, just as he had guessed.

"Big brother, good thing you’re still here."

Zhang Guoqing smiled and said, "Big sister, catch your breath first."

"I have some more valuables, but they’re quite pricey. Are you interested? All good things."

"Sure, this is the business I’m in. Who’d turn down business opportunities?"

"Well..." The woman glanced around, "It’s not convenient to do it here."

Zhang Guoqing wisely suggested, "How about this, once the car is loaded up, we’ll come over to your place."

"Alright then, I’ll be waiting for you in the courtyard."

After seeing her leave, Zhou Jiao remarked with a pout, "Such audacity, not worried we might report them."

Zhang Guoqing hugged her with a laugh. The other party must have assumed they were there courtesy of Old Li, so why worry about being reported? They were reluctant to send it over, fearing they’d be cheated. Their main concern would likely be how much they’d get for it.

Sheltered by the forest, it cut down the strong winds, but the night was still rather cold. Zhang Guoqing carefully listened to the surroundings, signaling Zhou Jiao to store the items away.

The couple drank steaming hot ginger tea, slowly making their way to the old man’s courtyard. As soon as they approached the front door, they were invited into the eldest son’s bedroom even before they could knock.

After being chilled by the cold winds for such a long time, entering a room as warm as spring made Zhou Jiao sneeze involuntarily.

Seeing this, Zhang Guoqing’s gaze darkened a little, and he got straight to the point, "It’s getting late; let’s start looking at the goods."

The couple had the same intention, as their nephew was still in the back courtyard, and they didn’t want the younger son’s family to get wind of it. The man spoke up, "I want to exchange some of it for national grain coupons."

Zhang Guoqing nodded, "A hundred or two catties isn’t a problem, more than that isn’t possible."

The man lifted a blanket from the corner of the kang, revealing a large chest, while the woman opened the kang cabinet and carefully took out a wooden box.

Zhang Guoqing’s pupils contracted; he suddenly recalled the lawsuit that had reached the bureau regarding this family, realizing they must have pocketed the old man’s private stash. No wonder they were eager to sell.

It was an unremarkable large wooden chest, similar to what had just been thrown in the warehouse, but once opened, its contents were extraordinary.

——Inside was a shoebox-sized paper box, and in the old thin quilt were a pair of exquisite jars wrapped in silk, along with five scroll paintings.

Soon, the woman opened the wooden box, revealing not just gold but also calligraphy, antiques, jade artifacts including jade pendants, and various other items.

The couple proudly raised their eyebrows to look at Zhang Guoqing, though they failed to provoke any surprise reaction from him. Naturally, such things weren’t enough to bring a smile to his face.

"These have been passed down from our ancestors, but ever since my father passed away, we knew we couldn’t hold onto them. We’ve got no choice but to sell them for peace."

"Big brother, my father repeatedly instructed us to keep these five paintings as mementos. They’re not worth much, so I’ll keep them as keepsakes and sell you the rest."

As for Zhou Jiao, although she hadn’t seen the content of the paintings, she would prefer to just take those five. Jade artifacts and antiques weren’t something she lacked.

She lowered her gaze, suppressing her disappointment. Since they had spoken, no matter how valuable the things were, she wouldn’t force them to sell. As for the jars, she’d seen their value wasn’t very high.

Feeling uninterested, Zhou Jiao turned her gaze, signaling Zhang Guoqing to do as he pleased.

Zhang Guoqing smiled and glanced at the couple, "To be honest, I’m not really interested. You guys know jade artifacts are actually worthless nowadays. If you don’t mind, you should hold onto them. These things are good to leave for your children."

The woman was disappointed and nervously turned to her husband.

"Take another look. These are all top-grade jade. Jade can nourish people, even though now nobody dares to wear them. In the past, ordinary people wouldn’t even have seen them."

Zhang Guoqing agreed with a nod, smiling, "But to put it bluntly, I’m just a second-hand dealer; buying them wouldn’t be of much use. You guys probably don’t know, but nowadays, you can go to a rural area in Jiang Province and trade two pancake-like buns for a large piece of raw jade. If I offer a low price, I feel bad, and a high price would leave me stuck."