Chapter 36 The Two Million Vase
A few minutes later, a man even older than Boss Zeng hurriedly parked his electric scooter by the roadside and went into the shop.
"Old Zhou, I'm here!" Boss Zeng called out from afar.
The old man named Zhou completely ignored Jiang Ling's presence and walked straight towards the vase, following the sound.
He took the gloves handed to him by Boss Zeng, put them on, picked up his magnifying glass, and immediately looked at it.
The wrinkled and deep-set hands moved slowly over the bottle, stopping whenever they saw something.
Jiang Ling waited for more than ten minutes and was getting a little impatient.
"Is the identification process complete? I still have some things to take care of at home."
We've been out for too long; one hour here is equivalent to ten hours over there.
Old Zhou then looked up as if waking from a dream, his gaze finally settling on Jiang Ling for the first time.
"This must be the owner of the vase, right? My apologies for not recognizing you earlier. Miss Jiang, this vase is genuine! And a rare gem at that!"
He paused, his tone filled with confusion and disbelief, "But... the state of preservation is truly astonishing! The traces of time are barely noticeable! It... looks like it was just fired, yet it carries the aura of hundreds of years, it's utterly contradictory! May I ask, where did you obtain this bottle?"
Jiang Ling had already prepared her explanation, speaking casually: "I found this in the cellar of the old house. It had been locked in a cabinet, and I only discovered it while cleaning these past few days. I don't know much about antiques. If you two are really interested, please give me a price. If not, I'll take it back; it'll be nice as a vase."
"Yes! Of course we want it!" Old Zhou and Boss Zeng said almost at the same time, afraid that she would change her mind.
Old Zhou glanced at Boss Zeng, then at Jiang Ling, took a deep breath, and announced a number: "Two million! Miss Jiang, what do you think of this price?"
Two million?!
Jiang Ling was shocked! She never expected that the vase that Aunt Dashan had given her so casually would be so valuable!
With just a vase, she managed to get all her money back for her medicine!
I thought that the lack of signs of age would lead to it being judged as a fake, but I never expected to encounter a connoisseur!
"Okay, two million it is!"
Too many unexpected things happened, and she couldn't be bothered to haggle anymore.
A vase, a gold ingot, and two silver ingots brought in a total of 2.18 million.
Looking at the deposit information that popped up in her mobile banking app, Jiang Ling felt like she was walking on cotton.
Before leaving, Mr. Zhou handed Jiang Ling a business card. "Miss Jiang, my name is Zhou Wenyuan. This is my contact information, and my shop address is on it. If you have any items to sell in the future, no matter how small, please be sure to contact me first. I guarantee that the price I offer will be absolutely fair and reasonable."
Jiang Ling was a little embarrassed to accept the invitation while they were still standing in front of Boss Zeng's shop.
"It's alright, this is my nephew. I have a share in this shop, so it's not like I'm stealing business."
Mr. Zeng nodded and smiled in confirmation.
Only then did Jiang Ling accept the business card with peace of mind.
"Okay, Mr. Zhou, thank you."
After the transaction was completed, Jiang Ling did not linger and drove her small electric scooter back to the grocery store.
She hurriedly changed into ancient costume.
When the wooden door was opened again, it was a bright and sunny morning.
Today is the time that Madam Chen arranged to pick up the goods.
At this time, everyone in the village had gone to work in the fields, leaving only a group of children playing by the shady roadside.
Children in rural areas don't have many rules; they play in the fields from a young age.
Eat when you're hungry, sleep when you're tired, get up when you fall down, and dust yourself off.
They are basically free-range.
The sound of children's laughter came, like a magic elixir to heal sadness.
Watching them play, Jiang Ling felt as if she had returned to the happy times of her childhood.
Jiang Ling took out a bottle of plum juice from the refrigerator and a large bag of White Rabbit milk candy.
He waved to the children playing in front of the shop.
Seven or eight children curiously gathered around; the oldest was no more than nine years old, and the youngest had just learned to walk steadily.
Children in rural areas mature early; by the age of ten, they are already learning to help with household chores.
Jiang Ling said with a smile, "Call me 'sister' and I'll treat you to plum juice. Call me 'pretty sister' again and I'll give each of you two candies."
"Sister, beautiful sister!"
"Pretty sister, pretty sister!"
"Piao, Liang, Jie, Jie,"
The words were very simple, but the children immediately shouted them out.
These children were very well-behaved; instead of scrambling, they lined up one by one to get the plum juice and candy.
Older people tend to give way to younger people.
One of the little toddlers, who was only two years old, stumbled over, unable to speak clearly yet.
"Solve it, bright, bright!"
Jiang Ling was charmed by him, so she stuffed two candies into his hand, and then peeled one open and put it in his mouth herself.
The candy was a bit big, and he squeezed out saliva from his mouth. Jiang Ling then took a tissue and wiped the saliva off for him.
The children were playing outside under the scorching sun and were very thirsty. They finished a cup of plum juice in no time.
Put the cups back in their original places neatly, then peel and eat the candy.
In an era of scarcity, sugar was considered a luxury, and people could only enjoy sweetness during festivals and holidays.
So, when the White Rabbit milk candy was put into their mouths, the children all showed happy smiles.
The oldest girl approached Jiang Ling with the candy in her hand. "Sister, can I take this candy back for my mother and brother?"
Jiang Ling looked at the two untouched milk candies in her hand, "But if you give them to your mother and brother, you won't get any?"
The girl lowered her head, as if afraid Jiang Ling would refuse. "Xiao Hua drank the plum juice. My little brother is young, and my mother is not well, so Xiao Hua wants to give them the candy."
"So your name is Xiaohua." Jiang Ling turned around, took two more candies, and leaned down to say to her:
"Keep the candy in your hand for yourself. I'll give you two more, one for your mother and one for your little brother. Don't mix them up, okay? Otherwise, I won't give you any candy next time."
Little Flower looked up, her big eyes brimming with joy. "Thank you, sister! Thank you, sister! Little Flower will definitely not get it mixed up!"
With Xiaohua as a role model, even the slightly more sensible children thought about taking the remaining candy home to share with their families.
Jiang Ling felt sorry for their thoughtfulness and gave each of them two more candies.
After the children left.
As the sun rose higher, the air began to get hot and dry.
For Jiang Ling, who was wearing ancient costume, it was simply unbearable!
But she couldn't install air conditioning in the shop.
Oh, right! She can install a fan!
Drilling two holes in the shop's ceiling to hang two ceiling fans shouldn't be a problem.
Judging from this weather, we need to make arrangements as soon as possible, otherwise there may be a risk of heatstroke.
Just then, several horse-drawn carriages drove up the road. Their wheels rolled over the dirt road, raising a little dust.
The carriages, though arriving at different times, all came to a steady stop in front of the general store.
Jiang Ling was startled!
What happened? What trouble has she gotten into this time?
The carriage leading the way was the Chen family's.
The carriage curtain was lifted, and Madam Wang, the second wife of Chen, gracefully stepped out of the carriage, supported by Xiao Cui's hand.
Following behind, Madam Song, Madam Zhou, Madam Deng, Madam Kong, and Madam Zhao also disembarked from the carriage one after another.
Wang raised her chin triumphantly, glancing at the grocery store with its doors wide open.
"See! You still said I lied to you? The door's open now, isn't it?"
Madam Song, Madam Zhou, Madam Deng, Madam Kong, and Madam Zhao were all shocked.
Why were they turned away every time they came, but Wang opened the door as soon as she came?
Could it be that the Wang family is related to this shop owner? Was it something they specifically instructed them to do?
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com