Zhang Shixun reached out and took out the bracelet from his bosom, handed it to Gao Yanei and said, "Yanei, please take a closer look at the goods first."
"Aren't you afraid that I will take your treasure?" Gao Yanei took the bracelet and said half-jokingly.
"Don't worry! Yanei has a distinguished family background. If this is all he has, I'd be blind to think he's that good."
Gao Yanei felt relieved after hearing this and said with a smile: "Don't worry, no matter how good your treasure is, I, Gao Chengzong, will not... Ouch!"
Gao Yanei exclaimed, and his eyes froze, staring at the bracelet in his hand without blinking.
Zhang Shixun saw this, smiled slightly, picked up the teacup and took a sip of tea. The taste was a bit strange.
The way people in the Song Dynasty drank tea was different from that in later generations. They usually made tea cakes first, then ground the tea cakes when brewing tea, and put them into tea bowls and brewed them with boiling water when drinking.
As a person from later generations, Zhang Shixun naturally couldn't get used to drinking it.
Gao Yanei's eyes flashed with excitement. He looked at the bracelet in his hand over and over again, then held it up to the candle to look at the flowers inside. He muttered to himself, but it was unclear what he was saying. It was obvious that he was in a state of obsession.
Zhang Shixun didn't disturb him. He drank tea and looked at the furnishings in the private room.
The two female waiters stared at the bracelet in Gao Yanei's hand with their cherry-like mouths wide open, their eyes wide open, and they were almost stunned.
They are all country bumpkins who have never seen the world!
Zhang Shixun gently placed the teacup back on the table and said to Gao Yanei, "Yanei, turn off the light."
"What?" Gao Ya looked at Zhang Shixun in confusion.
"This bracelet is like a night-shining pearl; its beauty can only be truly appreciated in the darkness of night."
"Ah! Really?" Gao Yanei urged the waitress to extinguish the candles.
The candle went out, and the bracelet emitted a charming light. Gao Yanei held the bracelet in both hands, looking at it in fascination.
After watching the teacup for a long time, Gao Yanei finally woke up from his intoxicated state and told the waitress to light the candle again.
"Tell me, how much do you want to sell it for?" Gao Yanei went straight to the point.
"A house in the capital city must have at least three courtyards, plus ten thousand strings of cash." Zhang Shixun began to ask for an exorbitant price.
Wang Dong, who was standing by, felt his face turn red and his heart beat fast when he heard this. He thought to himself, this guy is so bold that he asks for a house right away. Isn't he afraid of ruining his business?
According to his original idea, it would be good enough if he could exchange this bracelet for a thousand taels of silver.
When Gao Yanei heard Zhang Shixun's offer, a muscle on his face twitched. He handed the bracelet back to Zhang Shixun and shook his head regretfully: "Your price is too high. This bracelet is not worth it."
"Is it high? Why do I feel the asking price is too low?" Zhang Shixun took the bracelet and tossed it in his hand.
Gao Yanei grabbed the teacup, tilted his head back and poured the tea into his mouth. He ignored the tea dripping from the corner of his mouth and said disdainfully: "Trading a bracelet for a three-story house? Dream on."
"An additional 10,000 strings of cash will be added," Zhang Shixun emphasized.
"You might as well just become a bandit." Gao Yanei slammed the table and turned to the two waitresses, saying viciously, "Grandpa's teacup has been empty for ages, and you two are just standing here watching?"
Upon hearing this, the two female waiters were frightened and hurried forward to pour tea for Gao Yanei.
Zhang Shixun sneered.
This is the typical behavior of a dandy. He pretends to be polite at first, but after a while, his dandy nature is revealed.
Zhang Shixun picked up the teacup, took a sip elegantly, and put the cup back on the table.
The waitress who was serving him came forward to refill the tea. Zhang Shixun nodded politely at her and turned to Gao Yanei and said, "Yanei has a distinguished family background and should be well-informed. He should be able to tell whether a treasure is good or not at a glance."
Gao Yanei snorted coldly and didn't respond.
Zhang Shixun continued, "However, you can only make out a rough outline. I'm not exaggerating, but no one in the entire Song Dynasty can identify this treasure. If you don't believe me, feel free to find someone to identify it... I'm laying it on you today: if anyone can explain the origin of this artifact, I'll tear my head off."
Gao Yanei stood up with a jerk, his two fat hands resting on the table, and said word by word, "Master Zhang, are you serious?"
"A real man's word is as good as his nails."
Gao Yanei stood up straight and shouted towards the door: "Old Gao, please let Manager Yin in."
Manager Gao agreed and walked out the door. After a while, he walked in with a skinny old man.
This was clearly prepared in advance, otherwise people wouldn't have arrived so quickly.
The old man bowed to Gao Yanei and said, "Yanei, I will obey your orders."
Gao Yanei pointed at the bracelet in Zhang Shixun's hand and said, "Here is a treasure. Can you help me identify it?"
Zhang Shixun also said, "Shopkeeper Yin, since Gao Yanei invited you here, you must be an expert in jewel appraisal. So please open your eyes and appraise this treasure in my hand."
Zhang Shixun said this and threw the bracelet in his hand across the table.
"Ah!" Everyone present screamed in unison.
As soon as Manager Yin came in, he stared at the bracelet. He had been in the business of appraising treasures for most of his life, but he had never seen such a treasure.
But he never dreamed that the young man would casually throw the treasure to him. He was old and his reaction was slow. When he hurriedly reached out to catch it, it was too late. He heard a "bang" sound and the treasure fell to the ground.
Manager Yin's face suddenly turned pale, and he made a gurgling sound in his throat. His legs went limp and he fainted on the ground.
Gao Yanei also cried out "Ouch!" and hurriedly lay down, sticking out his round butt to grab the bracelet on the floor. Seeing that it was not broken, he breathed a sigh of relief.
As for Shopkeeper Yin who fainted on the ground, he didn't even look at him.
Shopkeeper Gao stepped forward and helped Gao Yanei up. Gao Yanei clutched the bracelet tightly in his hand and roared at Zhang Shixun, "You thief! How could you just throw away such a valuable treasure?"
"Gao Yanei, you're the thief!" Zhang Shixun scowled coldly, "Since it's mine, you can throw it away however you like. Even if you break it, it's none of your business."
Gao Yanei was stunned when he heard this. He looked at the bracelet in his hand, then at Zhang Shixun. Only then did he realize that the treasure belonged to someone else. He snorted coldly and put the bracelet on the table very gently.
Zhang Shixun reached out and picked up the bracelet, saying to him with a half-smile, "Young Master, to be honest, this treasure is not afraid of being dropped at all. Of course, if you hit it with a hammer, you might be able to break it. Do you want to try?"
"Don't!" Gao Yanei shuddered and waved his hands repeatedly to stop him: "You are too scary, you throw things and smash things at the slightest provocation. I almost doubt you were born in a blacksmith shop."
He stared at the bracelet in Zhang Shixun's hand without blinking, not daring to provoke him with words, for fear that if they disagreed, this guy would really break the treasure.
"Where are you from?" Gao Yanei suppressed his anxiety and changed the subject.
Zhang Shixun glanced at Wang Dong and, seeing he remained silent, he said, "We two brothers have returned from faraway Europe."
"Europa?" Gao Yanei blinked. He had never heard of this place.
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