Chapter 59: Second-hand Goods (Repair Name) ...
Chapter 59: Second-hand Goods (Repair Name)
They made quite a bit of noise, but it wasn't surprising since everyone in the neighborhood knew they were new arrivals.
After all, it's the same for everyone who moves. There are always things missing, and it takes a few days.
Uncle Zhang, who lived across the street from them, was quite perceptive and even came over to give him some advice: "Look, for furniture, dishes, and other things, you can go to the recycling station or the scrap yard. You can pick anything you want for just a few cents or a dime."
He leaned over and whispered, "These were all brought here by the young soldiers after they raided the house. Some were good, some were broken. You can fix them up yourself and use them later."
Yan Jiuru felt something in his heart, smiled, handed over a cigarette, and thanked Uncle Zhang.
***
It was still early, so Yan Jiuru gathered with his father and grandfather to chat.
So, we guys just had a quick meal to fill our stomachs, some rode scooters, some rode bicycles, and all of us went to the second-hand goods station that Yan Jiuru had selected with his spiritual sense.
"Hey, tricycle, want to pick up some work?"
Dad Yan was stunned for a moment, then he smiled when he saw someone waving at him on the side of the road. He almost got the job.
"I have something to do and can't pull it." Yan's father replied loudly.
Then he said to the old man happily, "It seems that I bought the right cart. Maybe I can earn some money by doing some work."
Unfortunately, my son showed them a way and said they could exchange tofu for "second-hand goods".
Whether it's from the Qing Dynasty, Ming Dynasty, Tang or Song Dynasty, old furniture or porcelain, now everyone is short of food, one or two pieces of tofu can be exchanged for a bowl, and in twenty or thirty years they may be worth a thousand or eight hundred.
As for not knowing how to change it?
My son said that no matter what it was, if there was an extra plate of tofu or a piece of tofu missing, he could exchange it or not, because it would be useless if they took it away now.
The main point is to be casual, as long as there are three or five pieces that can be sold at a good price in the future, it will be worth it.
***
Yan Jiuru was also given an idea today by Uncle Zhang's "hint".
His father and grandfather would be bored if they were idle, so it would be better to find them something to do.
This job is not tiring. The back rooms of the house are idle anyway. He can take them over and take a look at them. He can always sell them when the market is good in the future.
Who knows, these things may make him richer than the small and large yellow croakers he picked up.
Let’s not talk about these later things for now.
***
The first time Yan Jiuru came to the second-hand goods station, he handed a Daqianmen cigarette to the old man on duty.
The old man waved his hand in a friendly manner and said, "Go ahead. The small ones get one cent, the big ones get one dime. Come out and settle it together."
The second-hand goods station has a very large yard. Once you enter, half of the yard is filled with old furniture.
Their family is really short of it.
The furniture left by the Xue family was mainly in the main rooms of the second and third courtyards. The furniture in other rooms had been moved away by the people who moved in earlier.
Xue Litong could only grit his teeth and swallow this loss.
So, when Yan Jiuru was willing to give him a small yellow croaker as a supplement, he was so moved that he burst into tears.
As for Yan Jiuru not wanting them to hold him accountable in the future, he didn't even dare to think about it.
***
Dad Yan doesn't have much experience, but Grandpa Yan knows some old people.
He whispered to his children and grandchildren, "This heavy table is made of golden wood. It was used by the royal family in the past. I think it's quite good. Let's move it over."
"This bed is made of wenge wood, and the carvings are a little damaged. It won't affect your use, so move it over."
"Hey, this is an eight-panel carved huanghuali wood screen. The top one can be used if replaced. Move it over."
"Move these tables, stools and chairs over there."
"Well, Boss, you and Jiuru can carry the goods back first, and Rushan and I will continue to pick them here."
Yan Jiuru gave the old man a box of Daqianmen, and all the furniture cost a total of two dollars.
It’s not a lot, but it’s not a little either.
***
His father couldn't carry all the things on one cart, so Yan Jiuru called for another one nearby.
When he came back, his grandfather picked up a lot of tables, chairs, benches, chests of drawers, chests of drawers, top cabinets, boxes, cupboards, Luohan beds, treasure cabinets, desks, altars, drum stools, dressing boxes, fruit plates, food boxes, etc. He packed the big items with the small ones and shipped them in several trucks for three or five dollars.
Fortunately, his father brought tarpaulin with him when he went back the second time. He covered the car with it and went back through the back door, so he didn't attract attention.
In the second wave, Yan Jiuru asked Rushan to follow him back, and he went to the house inside the second-hand goods station to look at other things.
He chose this second-hand goods station because it was close to their street and also because this area used to be mostly inhabited by wealthy families, so there were more good things here than elsewhere.
Yan Jiuru found a dowry box that belonged to some unknown daughter-in-law. The bright red primer had peeled off and it didn't look very nice, but the wood was of good quality.
He accurately found a pile of rice paper from a room full of second-hand goods and tied it into bundles in the original way, seven or eight bundles in total.
This place was full of paper. He dug out a few piles of paper wrapped in kraft paper. The kraft paper had been soaked through and had circles of marks on it, and it also had a musty smell.
Yan Jiuru ripped open a hole at the bottom of the paper bundle and took a look. Was it the finest Korean paper? Tsk tsk, he didn't mind it being a little wet.
He picked out several piles and put them together with the bundles of rice paper.
Turning further down, there were boxes and boxes of ink sticks, the finest pine soot ink! Although some of the ones on top were smashed, the ones at the bottom were all good.
There are also several large cans of ink frozen into a lump!
Cinnabar sealed in a jar!
The best yellow paper!
Boxes and boxes of top-quality and exquisite brushes, pen holders, pen holders, pen washers, inkstones, and even a few Taoist scriptures with a few talismans sandwiched in them...
The temples and Taoist temples outside were all smashed and destroyed during the "Four Olds" campaign. Yan Jiuru suspected that the things now were from someone's study or ancestral temple.
All this stuff cost ten bucks to ship! Where's the promised one cent or one dime? Is this all just a gimmick?
Yan Jiuru felt like he had been cheated.
The old man also said, "This big jar of cinnabar is only five yuan. This is right after the New Year. If you come after the 15th, it will be gone."
It turns out that the second-hand goods station is also a scam to deceive fools who think they are smart and want to find a bargain.
As the uncle on duty said, if there really is a leak, will it be their turn?
***
Yan Jiuru retracted his foot that was about to step out and continued to flip.
He originally wanted to stop and let it go, but since others said so, there was no need for him to be humble anymore.
I have to make enough money this time.
Grandpa Yan obviously understood that it was just a coincidence that he was able to find the bargain, so he was naturally not in a hurry to go back.
The grandfather and grandfather turned the second-hand goods station upside down. Fortunately, there was electricity in the second-hand goods station. Yan Jiuru bought dinner for the grandfather and gave him a red envelope, asking him to work overtime.
It was already 9:30 in the evening when the last truck was brought home.
***
This car is all sorts of little things.
There were small table screens, screens for sleeping on the bed, jewelry boxes, money boxes, dressing boxes, ancient books, wooden hairpins, rosary bracelets, belts used by some prince, court beads, ivory tablets. Any gold inlays had long been removed, but the jade and other things were still there;
Other things like crystal bowls, jade mountains, jadeite materials, etc., obviously these things have lost their luster after being neglected, and are not valued by people, so they are thrown together in piles.
Chen Yin looked at the box of crystal dishes that Yan Jiuru had specially brought into the house and asked, "Why did you pick up these glass bowls?"
Yan Jiuru laughed and said, "Fortunately, everyone is like you, otherwise it wouldn't be my turn to pick it up. This is a crystal bowl, okay?"
Chen Yin's face flushed with embarrassment. She snorted and walked away.
Yan Jiuru was stunned: Why am I so angry for no reason?
Yan Niang glared at her son: You are so capable, what nonsense are you talking about!
Dad Yan and Grandpa Yan just looked at him, thinking, "Tsk tsk, you think you're so powerful, but you're still just a greenhorn!"
Little girl Ruyue kept shaking her head and kindly dragged a washboard over, "Brother, you're done. You've offended your sister-in-law. Take it and apologize."
Yan Jiuru looked at the washboard in confusion: "You still know how to use this to apologize?"
Ruyue chuckled and said, "I saw my father using it~"
"Ruyue, you're done now!" The second and third brothers quickly pulled Ruyue and ran, fearing that they would be beaten if they were a step slower.
***
I spent most of the day rummaging through old stuff and I'm covered in dust.
Several large pots of hot water were boiled at home for them to take a bath.
After taking a shower, several men returned to the house with steam rising from their heads.
"Is there anything to eat?" Dad Yan touched his stomach and asked for food.
"We have hand-rolled noodles and pickled cabbage and pork stew~" Aunt Yan hurried to the kitchen, and Chen Yin followed her.
***
Yancheng has long-term electricity, so even at nine or ten o'clock in the evening, the main room is brightly lit.
The children were still enjoying the new experience and no one wanted to go to bed early, as if they would be at a disadvantage if they didn't enjoy the electric light.
Grandma Yan looked at the newly bought calendar, flipping through it page by page under the light to find the birthdays of her family members, and then folded a corner of the page.
Perhaps they thought it was fun, so Ruyue and Rushong joined in the fun with their grandmother.
"The 16th day of the first lunar month is Ruyue's birthday, and the 28th day is Rushan's birthday. They both have big birthdays." Grandma muttered, and asked Rushong to take a pen and write down the day on the calendar.
"Grandma, what about me?" Rusong asked himself while lying in front of her.
"You, you're in such a bad situation, August 11th has fallen behind September in the Gregorian calendar.
Your older brother and younger sister both went to school at the age of seven, but you came back crying within a week."
"I only found out after your father asked that the teacher discovered your birthday is after September and told you to come back next year."
Rusong had long forgotten it and couldn't help but ask, "Then why am I reciting it?"
“Then you have to thank the brigade secretary.
That time, several children were sent back, and it was the brigade secretary who went to talk to the school. He said that there were already few children going to school, so what was the point of being dogmatic? A few months short of school didn't count, so everyone should go back to school.
Rusong secretly breathed a sigh of relief and said happily, "Then I'll buy him something delicious to thank him next time I go back."
He snorted again and said, "It must be our school's old Wen who won't let me go. It's so annoying."
***
A large bowl of noodles with gravy was finished by the guys.
Ruyue and Rushong also took some advantage.
"Everyone go to bed! Don't be late for work tomorrow."
"And all of you, do your homework tomorrow. Those who don't should follow the adults and work."
After cleaning up the kitchen, Yan Niang started to chase people away, otherwise, these children would not be sleepy all night.
It's too cold outside in winter and no one wants to work.
The children washed their hands and feet slowly and returned to their rooms.
***
Zhuangzhuang was still excited and refused to sleep, so his mother stuffed a rattle into his mouth and he sat on the kang, shouting "ah ah" and playing with it.
Yan Jiuru entered the room and placed the towel on the washbasin rack, then casually asked, "What are you busy with?"
Chen Yin was putting things into the net bag.
"Tomorrow I'll bring a water bottle, a lunch box, and a dishcloth to work.
A face towel and soap for washing your hands, or maybe some extra clothes for changing into.
"By the way, what are you going to wear tomorrow?"
Chen Yin didn't hear a response. She looked up and saw the man looking at her with an infatuated expression. Her face flushed. She stepped over his toes with her things in hand and glared at him. "What are you looking at? I'll settle the score with you when I have time!"
Yan Jiuru snorted twice and said with a grin, "Wife, how about you step on it a couple more times? Then I won't be angry anymore, okay?"
"Tsk, who cares~"
***
"Oh, oh, oh!" Naonao watched his parents playing, and he didn't want to be left out, so he started waving his little arms and shouting.
Yan Jiuru picked up his son and rubbed his head against his belly to tickle him. The father and son laughed non-stop.
Chen Yin found two newly bought pens, carefully filled them with ink, wiped them clean, put one among Yan Jiuru's work things, and kept the other on her side.
Yan Jiuru looked at her out of the corner of his eye and said, "That's fine for now. We'll go and see tomorrow and see what's missing. We'll fill in the gaps slowly."
"Too."
Chen Yin put down what she was holding, sat there for a while, and then asked, "Will you come back for lunch?"
"Every company has a cafeteria, right? I'm not sure about that, we'll have to wait and see. How about you?"
Chen Yin shook her head. "It's hard to say. Secretaries are busy following their bosses, so it's good enough if they don't have to work overtime."
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