Chapter 101 Being a middleman

Shi Yue touched it carefully. Yes, it felt smooth and sticky, just like the Hetian jade he had touched in Panjiayuan some time ago.

He looked up at Yao Dazui and asked curiously, "Auntie Yao, where did you get this?"

Yao Dazui tsk-tsk-tsked and said, "Why do you care where I got it from? Just tell me if it's an antique."

Shi Yue smacked his lips and said, "To tell if it's an antique, I'll have to take another look."

"Hey, didn't you look at it for a long time just now? Didn't you see anything?" Yao Dazui was anxious.

Shi Yue glanced at Yao Dazui and said, "That's not the case. I still figured out his reputation."

Yao Dazui: "What's the name?"

Shi Yue: "The jade quality of this snuff bottle is quite good, it should be Hetian jade."

"Hetian jade? Is it valuable?" Yao Dazui didn't understand these things. She only cared about whether this thing was valuable.

Shi Yue nodded: "Hetian jade is one of the four famous jades."

Yao Dazui: "Then my snuff bottle will definitely sell for a good price, right?"

Shi Yue smiled and said, "That depends on what price you have in mind."

His previous visit to Panjiayuan was not in vain. He actually knew a little about Hetian jade.

He said, "Hetian jade is also divided into different regions of origin, colors, and textures. For finished utensils like yours, they are also divided into the craftsmanship and age of the utensils."

Yao Dazui nodded confusedly and asked, "Well, how much do you think my snuff bottle is worth?"

Shi Yue: "This is yours?"

He thought for a moment and said, "I can't really say for sure, but I'd estimate around 10,000 or 20,000 yuan."

Yao Dazui exclaimed and asked, "Can you really sell so many?"

Shi Yue stroked the carved patterns on the snuff bottle, nodded, and said, "This is still a conservative estimate."

Hearing this, Yao Dazui's eyes and eyebrows were filled with joy.

Shi Yue: "Then you can tell me now, where did you get this thing?"

Yao Dazui carefully rewrapped the snuff bottle with toilet paper, then stuffed the wrapped snuff bottle into his small cloth bag. Finally, he put the cloth bag back into his shirt pocket before answering Shi Yue's question: "Oh, this is my snuff bottle. It was passed down to me by my mother."

Shi Yue: "In that case, this thing must be quite old. Why did you only remember to ask the price now?"

Yao Dazui said, "Oh, don't mention it. I didn't know how valuable this thing was before. My mother was the same. When she passed it to me, she didn't mention its origin. She just said that she had raised it since I was a child. She said that since I was getting married, she gave it to me and told me to keep it as a reminder and look at it when I miss her."

At this point, she said in a slightly complicated tone: "It's a good thing that I kept thinking about her, so I didn't throw this thing away, otherwise I would have suffered a huge loss now!"

Shi Yue was curious: "Then how did you find out that this thing is valuable?"

Yao Dazui said, "You're wrong. I didn't find this thing valuable at all. I put it on the coffee table the other day and my son saw it. He took a look and said that my snuff bottle looked similar to the antique snuff bottles that the leaders of their unit spent thousands of dollars on. Well, I thought at the time that this snuff bottle is also old, maybe it's an antique. So I wanted to ask you to take a look at it for me. After all, you are the only person I know who understands this thing."

Shi Yue nodded and said, "Your son is right. If I'm not mistaken, your snuff bottle should be from the Qing Dynasty."

Yao Dazui's eyes widened: "Is it really from the Qing Dynasty?"

Shi Yue: "Yes, that's right. Judging from the overall shape of this pot and its craftsmanship, it should be from the official kiln during the Qianlong period. This is why I estimate that this pot can be sold for 10,000 or 20,000 yuan."

Yao Dazui understood: "Oh, so if this thing of mine wasn't an antique, it wouldn't be sold at this price?"

Shi Yue nodded: "Yes, if it wasn't an antique, it should only be sold for a few thousand yuan."

Yao Dazui understands the difference between a few thousand yuan and tens of thousands of yuan.

Although she didn't know how this thing came to be in the possession of her mother, an ordinary citizen, but now that it was in her hands, it was hers.

Shi Yue: "Aunt Yao, do you have anything else to say? If not..."

"Yes!" Yao Dazui smiled sheepishly and said, "Well, Shi Yue, I really do have something that I might need to trouble you with."

Shi Yue: "Tell me, what's the matter? If I can help, I will definitely help."

Yao Dazui said, "Well, it's this snuff bottle of mine. I want to sell it, but as you know, no one in my family, Aunt Yao, knows anything about antiques and collectibles. So I wanted to trouble you to help me see if I can sell it."

Shi Yue was surprised: "Oh, you want to sell this thing? Didn't you say that this was a souvenir your mother left for you? Why..."

Yao Dazui waved his hand: "Well, my mother left me too many memories. If I think about it, it will be the same if I look at other things. This thing is more useful if I exchange it for money."

She pursed her lips and whispered to Shi Yue, "To be honest with you, I want to sell this snuff bottle, but I have no choice. My son's unit is organizing a housing fund-raising campaign, and his father and I want to pool our money to buy him a large three-bedroom house. A bigger house will not only allow his father and I to live there, but it will also be more convenient for him to have children in the future, right?"

Shi Yue nodded: "Chao'er's company is going to build collective housing?"

The Chaoer he mentioned is Yao Dazui's son. He works as a train driver on the railway. Due to his work, he is not often in the yard.

Yao Dazui nodded: "Yeah."

Shi Yue sighed with envy: "That's great, it's worthy of being the railway. The welfare is better than our factory. A few days ago, I heard a colleague complain that our factory has been talking about distributing welfare housing for several years, but there has been no progress."

Yao Dazui said, "Well, our factory isn't as profitable as the railway."

Shi Yue nodded, that’s true.

Moreover, the railways received subsidies from the state, and their factory could not match them in this regard.

Shi Yue didn't dwell on this question, but instead asked, "Did Chao'er and his unit mention how much money they wanted for the fundraising?"

Yao Dazui said, "I told you, a one-bedroom apartment with one living room would cost eight thousand yuan. My husband and I can probably come up with that, and my son has saved a little too, so it's not a problem. But we're talking about buying a large three-bedroom apartment, which is expensive."

Shi Yue: "How much?"

Yao Dazui grinned, looking pained as he said, "A large three-bedroom apartment costs 20,000!"

Hearing the price, Shi Yue said, "It's not expensive, Aunt Yao, it's really not expensive. Houses in our old city cost this much per square meter now!"

He stretched out his hand and made a five sign.

Yao Dazui is not stupid. He knows that the five he meant is not fifty, but five hundred.

She exclaimed, "It's already this high? Oh my, who will be able to afford a house in the future?"

Shi Yue: "That's right, so, you're really getting a bargain by buying a large three-bedroom apartment for 20,000 yuan!"

Yao Dazui grumbled and said, "Whether I'm taking advantage of this or not, I'll have to wait until I buy the house. I haven't saved up enough money yet, so it's a bit early to say that."

She looked at Shi Yue and said, "To be honest, Shi Yue, my family is broke right now. So, whether we can raise enough money to buy a house depends entirely on you. If you can help me sell this snuff bottle and raise enough money for the house, then I can buy it. If not, then I'll have to say goodbye to this house."

"Ouch."

Shi Yue cried out, and said with a deliberately bitter face: "Aunt Yao, you are really putting pressure on me. If I can't sell this to you, will I become a sinner?"

"That's right!" Yao Dazui made a joke and quickly explained, "I was just teasing you."

She said, "To be honest with you, if you can sell this thing, that would be great, but if you can't help me find a buyer, I don't blame you. I really don't blame you. I also know that this thing is different from other things and it's not easy to buy."

Shi Yue: "Then I'll help you find a buyer?"

"Oh, you agreed to this?" Yao Dazui's face flushed with excitement.

Shi Yue pursed his lips: "Let me give it a try, okay?"

Yao Dazui nodded repeatedly: "Okay, give it a try, give it a try."

She said incoherently: "Well, Shi Yue, don't worry, you won't treat me unfairly. No, no, it's me who won't treat you unfairly. I won't let you do this for free. As long as you can sell this thing, no matter how much you sell, I will take out 10% of it and give it to you. Is that okay with you?"

Shi Yue waved his hands hurriedly: "No, no, Auntie, no need..."

Yao Dazui glared and said, "Why not? Just collect the money you should collect. Don't be embarrassed to ask for money just because we are neighbors. This is the rule and we have to abide by it."

Shi Yue saw that he couldn't refuse and had to accept it.

He nodded and said, "Okay, it's settled then."

"Hey, that's right." Yao Dazui nodded with satisfaction.

Shi Yue: "Have you ever thought about how much this thing would sell for?"

Yao Dazui said, "I haven't thought about that, but you know, I want to buy a house, so this thing should sell for at least 14,000 or 15,000. That, combined with my savings and my husband's, will be enough to cover the cost of the house."

Shi Yue nodded: "Okay, I have an idea now. You go back and wait for news. I will notify you when I find a suitable buyer."

Yao Dazui: "Okay, okay, let's make it a deal."

After getting Shi Yue's promise, Yao Dazui left the Shi family with a smile.

After Yao Dazui left, Shi Yue sat on the sofa and began to think, a suitable buyer, a suitable buyer.

Well, he thought, there really is a suitable sucker who might be interested in Yao Dazui's snuff bottle.

That person was Mr. Gong, who had bought a large blue and white porcelain jar from Shi Yue before.

Speaking of which, Yang Zhiqiang mentioned Boss Gong to Shi Yue a few days ago, saying that Boss Gong had always been thinking about Shi Yue. When chatting with Yang Zhiqiang, he often asked Yang Zhiqiang if Shi Yue had any good things to sell.

Hey, isn't this a coincidence?

Boss Gong wanted to collect some things, and Yao Dazui wanted to buy some. He was the one who made the transactions in between, and the total amount of money he made was more than one thousand or two thousand yuan.

Shi Yue thought happily, could it be that God knew that he had used all his money to buy Lao Qutou's house and had no money left to renovate it, so he sent him money specially?

"Dad~Dad~"

Shi Qiu Shui, who was locked in the room, heard no sound outside, so she pushed the door open and came out. As soon as she came out, she saw Shi Yue sitting on the sofa with a silly smile. She called out to him softly, but Shi Yue didn't respond. She ran over in small steps, raised her hand and waved in front of Shi Yue, but Shi Yue still didn't respond.

Shi Qiu Shui could only push Shi Yue's body, and finally called Shi Yue back to his senses.

Shi Yue: "What's wrong?"

Shi Qiushui pouted: "Dad, I called you many times just now, but you ignored me."

Shi Yue touched Shi Qiushui's head and said, "Ah, I was just thinking about something."

Shi Qiushui's round eyes showed a hint of curiosity, and she asked, "Dad, what were you thinking about just now?"

Shi Yue: "I want to make money."

Shi Qiushui: "What is it..."

Seeing that Shi Qiushui was still trying to get to the bottom of things and wanted to ask more questions, Shi Yue grabbed Shi Qiushui's mouth and said, "Alright, alright, you little gullible girl, you'll know when the time comes, don't ask now."

It’s not that he didn’t want to tell Shi Qiu Shui, but mainly because Zhao Ran was an outsider and there were some things he was not comfortable telling.

Shi Qiu Shui's mouth was pinched into a duck's mouth, and he couldn't speak. He could only make a whimpering sound to express his protest.

Shi Yue released Shi Qiushui's mouth, and Shi Qiushui was finally able to speak. As soon as she regained her freedom, she stared with her big round eyes and complained: "Dad, can you please not pinch my mouth next time? You pinched my mouth so hard that it hurt!"

Shi Yue nodded casually: "Okay, okay, I won't pinch your mouth next time, is that okay?"

As soon as Shi Qiu Shui heard this, she knew that Shi Yue was just trying to fool her. Just like when Shi Yue said before that he would not pinch her face again, he said it but he would pinch it again next time.

She frowned and was angry. To express her anger, she put her hands on her hips, snorted heavily in front of Shi Yue, and then stomped her feet and walked away.

Shi Yue ignored the angry Shi Qiu Shui for the time being. He stood up and walked out. After going out the door, he turned left and entered the house of Old Lady Yang next door.

As soon as he entered the room, he saw a woman in her forties or nearly fifty walking out of Old Lady Yang's room.

When they met, Shi Yue and the woman opposite were both stunned. Finally, Shi Yue reacted first. He said, "Are you the new caregiver who takes care of Old Lady Yang?"

The woman opposite nodded and answered in Mandarin with a slight accent, "Yes, I'm the new caregiver taking care of Aunt Yang. Who are you?"

Shi Yue: "I live next door. Hey, what am I talking about..."

The Tangshan dialect spoken by the nurse was so brainwashing that Shi Yue was led astray unconsciously.

He waved his hand and said again, "I'm the neighbor who lives next door. I'm here to see Yang Zhiqiang. Is he home?"

"Oh, he's at home. Zhiqiang is at home, in his room."

"Oh, okay, then I'll go in and find him myself."

After Shi Yue finished speaking, he hurried to Yang Zhiqiang's bedroom, fearing that he would be a step late and be led astray by her Tangshan accent again.

He didn't even bother to knock on the door, he pushed open Yang Zhiqiang's bedroom door and went in. Yang Zhiqiang was lying on the bed catching up on his sleep. When he heard the noise, he opened his eyes and saw Shi Yue coming in.

He quickly sat up and asked, "Hey, Shi Yue, what happened? Why did you come in so hurriedly?"

Shi Yue waved his hand, sat down and said, "Well, nothing happened. It's just that your new caregiver's Tangshan dialect is too contagious. I just said a few words to her and her accent led me astray. I'm afraid that if I continue talking to her, I won't be able to speak at all."

Yang Zhiqiang chuckled and said, "Why would you say that? Isn't it just that Sister Tang speaks with an accent?"

Shi Yue: "Hey, no, Yang Zhiqiang, where did you find this lady outside?"

Yang Zhiqiang: "Oh, don't mention it. You don't know how much effort I put into finding Sister Tang."

He just opened up and started pouring out his grievances to Shi Yue. "Good caregivers with good personalities and responsible attitudes are hard to find. It's hard to even schedule one in the hospital. And my mom needs a caregiver to accompany her. I searched all the nearby hospitals but couldn't find a suitable one. Later, a kind-hearted older brother saw how worried I was and told me to look for a housekeeping company near the West Railway Station Square. He said I should go and have a look, hoping I could find a suitable one. So I went."

Shi Yue: "Housekeeping company?"

Yang Zhiqiang: "Well, it's called a company, but it's actually more like a labor market. They're full of people from other places who come to work in our city. I asked several people there, but none of them seemed suitable. I finally found Sister Tang, and I thought she was a good fit, so I brought her back. Look, I just got back less than an hour ago, and you're here."

"oh oh."

Shi Yue knew that the labor market was similar to the labor brokerage business in their Dayu Dynasty.

Yang Zhiqiang: "Hey, by the way, why did you come here suddenly? Is there something you want to talk to me about?"

Shi Yue smiled and said, "Well, there's something. I wanted to ask you, is Boss Gong busy lately?"

Yang Zhiqiang: "Are you talking about Old Gong? He's been okay lately, isn't he? He's busy, after all. He just signed a contract for the brand he promised to bring to the store, so he has a lot to look after in the store. But he's not particularly busy, either, because there are other people taking care of the store's chores, and he just needs to keep an eye on the big picture. Why do you need something from him?"

Shi Yue: "It's not really a big deal. Someone just asked me to produce something. I think he might be interested in it. I wanted to ask if he's busy. If he's busy, I won't bother him."

Yang Zhiqiang: "If you want to publish something, he's definitely not busy! Didn't I tell you a few days ago that Lao Gong asked me if you had anything to publish? So, don't worry and call him!"

He said, "I guarantee that as soon as you call him, he'll rush over eagerly."

Shi Yue smiled and said, "Okay, then I'll go call Lao Gong right away."

Yang Zhiqiang: "Okay, go ahead. I need to catch up on some sleep."

"Okay, I'm leaving."

Shi Yue walked out of Yang Zhiqiang's bedroom and met Mrs. Tang, the caregiver of Old Lady Yang.

Sister Tang smiled and said, "Young man, are you leaving as soon as possible?"

Shi Yue: "Yeah, that's right. I just wanted to ask Yang Zhiqiang something. Now that I've asked him, I'm..."

Sister Tang: "Oh, then please walk slowly..."

You know what, although this lady has a weird accent, she is quite enthusiastic.

Moreover, when Shi Yue came in and out, her hands were always busy working, which shows that she is a dedicated and hardworking person.

Shi Yue nodded slightly and thought that the caregiver Yang Zhiqiang found this time was pretty good.

Shi Yue came out of Yang's house and was about to go to the entrance of the alley to use the public phone to call Boss Gong, but before he could walk out the door, he saw Gao Cuifen and Old Zhang supporting each other as they walked into the door.

Gao Cuifen and Old Zhang both had messy hair and their clothes were in tatters. Shi Yue took a quick look and saw that Gao Cuifen's collar looked like it had been torn into a big hole, as if she had had a fight and lost.

Shi Yue frowned and asked, "Aunt Gao, Uncle Zhang, what happened to you two? Did you go out and fight with someone?"

At this time, Li Xiuying happened to push the door open. Seeing Gao Cuifen's expression, she laughed with glee and said, "Hey, Gao Cuifen, I told you to mind your mouth when you go out, but you didn't listen to me. You went out and talked dirty to others again, so you got beaten, right?"

Gao Cuifen snorted and said, "Li Xiuying, you really don't want me to be well at all, do you?"

Li Xiuying glanced at her and said, "It's not that I don't wish you the best, it's that you, Gao Cuifen, can't do anything good."

At this moment, everyone in the yard was attracted by the sound of their quarrel, and they also saw the miserable state of Gao Cuifen and Uncle Zhang.

Shi Qiu Shui also ran out, came to Shi Yue's side, and stared at Gao Cuifen and Old Zhang with wide eyes.

She had forgotten that she was still angry with Shi Yue. She tugged at Shi Yue's sleeve and said, "Why are Grandma Gao and Grandpa Zhang like this?"

Shi Yue shook his head and said, "I don't know."

Seeing that everyone's attention was focused on her, Gao Cuifen puffed out her chest and said, "Li Xiuying, I'm telling you, I did a good deed today!"

She poked the old man next to her and said, "Old man, tell them what good things we did today!"

"Ahem." Old Zhang cleared his throat and said, "Today, my wife and I went to the market to catch vendors selling counterfeit and shoddy goods!"

Gao Cuifen put her hands on her hips and nodded heavily: "Yes, that's right! We're going to catch the counterfeiters today!"

After hearing this, the guys nearby looked at each other, wondering if there was something wrong with their ears.

Gao Cuifen and Old Zhang actually did something serious?

But why doesn't this sound like something Gao Cuifen and Old Zhang would do?