The old man pointed to the date on the newspaper: "The National Day newspaper from October 1, 1969, is in such good condition that it has great collectible value."
Xing Zhaozhao's eyes lit up: "Can I exchange it for money?"
"If you're willing to pay 300 yuan, I can buy it," the old man said.
Xing Zhaozhao said without hesitation, "Deal."
He traded a piece of waste newspaper for over 100 kilograms of rice—he made a fortune.
Cash on delivery.
Thinking of the stacks of waste newspapers at the recycling station, Xing Zhaozhao couldn't help but ask again, "If I could get another newspaper like this, would you still want it?"
"Still in this condition?" the old man asked.
Xing Zhaozhao nodded: "More or less."
"However, newspapers on other days are not as valuable as the National Day edition, so they won't be priced this high. I'll give you 60 yuan a copy at most," the old man said.
Xing Zhaozhao continued to nod.
That's still a profit.
"If you can get me a complete set for a whole year in this condition, I can give you an even better price," the old man said again.
Xing Zhaozhao's eyes lit up, but she didn't agree immediately: "I have to go back and look for it first."
“However, I’m quite curious,” the old man asked, “after all, more than fifty years have passed, how can you still find newspapers in such good condition? They look like they were just printed two months ago.”
Xing Zhaozhao's lips twitched slightly.
It was printed just two months ago.
"I don't know. It was like this when I found it in the cellar," Xing Zhaozhao said casually.
The old man didn't press further, and seemed quite pleased with the newspaper in his hand.
Nearby, the other elderly men were still examining the jewelry box that Xing Zhaozhao had brought.
"This pattern, this smell, could it be huanghuali wood?"
"I don't know, I don't understand."
"This patina... could it be an antique?"
The elderly men were several hundred years old combined, and none of them knew anything about it.
“I know an old gentleman who does appraisals at an auction house. He just happened to be in Lanyuan recently. Why don’t I ask him to come and ask him?” The old man who bought Xing Zhaozhao’s newspaper was surnamed Wu. Before retiring, he was a professor in the Chinese Department of a university in the provincial capital. He had some connections.
The old men looked at Xing Zhaozhao questioningly, after all, it was her stuff.
Xing Zhaozhao nodded: "Then I'll have to trouble you."
Professor Wu immediately took out his phone and made a call: "Hey, Lao Lu, are you free right now? I have a wooden box here that looks like it's made of huanghuali wood. I don't know if it's an antique. Could you come over and take a look?"
Professor Wu's eyes suddenly lit up with delight after hearing what Old Lu said on the other end of the phone: "Really? That old gentleman is here too? It would be wonderful if we could invite him over. Me? I'm on Renmin Road next to Zhaohong Square right now. Okay, I'll wait for you."
After hanging up the phone, Professor Wu looked at Xing Zhaozhao excitedly and said, "We're lucky this time. Mr. Zhou Huaixi is here too. He'll be coming over later. With him taking the lead, there won't be any problems."
Xing Zhaozhao looked completely bewildered: "Zhou Huaixi? Who's that?"
Professor Wu looked at Xing Zhaozhao in surprise: "You don't even know Mr. Zhou Huaixi? He is an internationally renowned physicist and antique connoisseur who has been on the news many times."
"Oh," Xing Zhaozhao replied casually.
I don't recognize her at all. She's never even watched the local news broadcast.
"When will they arrive?" Xing Zhaozhao asked.
Professor Wu checked the time: "About half an hour later."
Xing Zhaozhao thought for a moment and said, "Then I'll come back in half an hour. I need to go buy some things first."
Professor Wu nodded: "That's fine too."
Xing Zhaozhao then left directly.
"Your wooden box," the old man next to me called out.
It hasn't been taken away yet.
Xing Zhaozhao waved her hand dismissively, "You guys hold it for me first."
The old men: "..."
If it's really made of huanghuali wood, it's very valuable, and she's really bold enough to do that.
Xing Zhaozhao still had some trust in these old men.
Xing Zhaozhao went directly to the pedestrian street to buy the fabric from that vendor.
The vendor isn't selling bed sheets today, but socks—long, thick cotton socks.
Upon seeing Xing Zhaozhao, the vendor beamed with joy: "You've finally arrived, sister! I've missed you so much!"
Xing Zhaozhao looked at the vendor's two obvious dark circles under his eyes: "...What happened to your eyes?"
The vendor lightly touched his dark circles and said with a sullen face, "I was beaten up by my grandpa and my dad."
"Why did they beat you up?" Xing Zhaozhao asked.
The vendor looked indignant and resentful: "I just casually changed the joke about the Jiangnan Leather Factory, it was just a marketing tactic, it wasn't real, yet they ganged up on me and beat me up. I'm their own grandson, their own son, how could they do this to me?"
Xing Zhaozhao: "..."
So he's that old man Xu's grandson. No wonder, I've seen fathers who are a pain in the neck, but I've never seen one this bad.
However, his grandfather was the former factory director of the textile factory, and his father is the current factory director. Why would a perfectly good third-generation family like his be setting up a small stall? It's hard to understand!
"Wow, wow..."
Suddenly, a series of unpleasant cries came from the side.
Then a familiar voice burst into laughter: "Hahaha, I've never heard such an awful voice before, this is hilarious..."
"Waaaaah..."
Xing Zhaozhao's forehead twitched. She turned her head and saw Gao Lianzhou holding a small yellow chick with a big bottom, long neck, and a round mouth. She squeezed it, and it chirped twice. She squeezed it again, and it chirped twice more.
Gao Lianzhou raised her hand and saw Xing Zhaozhao. She ran over excitedly and said, "Fairy sister, what a coincidence! We've run into each other again. What kind of fate is this?"
Xing Zhaozhao: "..."
She was also curious about what kind of fate brought them together and how they always seemed to run into each other.
"What's that in your hand?" she asked, glancing disdainfully at the little yellow chick in his hand.
That's a really awful sound.
"This? It's a screaming chicken! Haven't you ever seen one before? It screams when you squeeze it, it's so fun! I just bought it." Gao Lianzhou said, squeezing it a couple more times. "How about it? Sounds fun, right?"
"By the way, doesn't Fairy Sister have two sons? I'll give this to my two younger brothers to play with; they'll definitely like it." With that, he shoved the screaming chicken into Xing Zhaozhao's hand.
Xing Zhaozhao didn't want it.
Hongfei was alright; she could imagine how noisy the house would become after Hongyu got the toy.
Gao Lianzhou threw the screaming chicken directly into Xing Zhaozhao's basket.
Xing Zhaozhao: "..."
This time, we have no choice but to accept it.
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