When the boss heard that his abacus was actually so valuable, he immediately regretted it.
But he didn't dare to ask for the things back in front of everyone, so his eyes kept darting around, trying to think of a solution.
"Gentlemen, may I have a word with you in private?"
Soon, the boss spoke up.
Hu Yuan and Zhong Lao exchanged a glance, feigning hesitation.
"Please rest assured, gentlemen. If I lost money on this item, it was because I misjudged it. I will not make things difficult for you, nor will I ask for it back. However, such a fine item definitely needs a suitable box to be stored in. Please come to the back room and pick one out."
The boss was afraid that Hu Yuan and Old Zhong would not dare to go with him, so he quickly explained.
The person who was supposed to deliver the money to Old Zhong hadn't arrived yet, and they couldn't just leave like that. Besides, Hu Yuan had his eye on something and needed to take things slowly to win over the boss, so he followed them.
The back door of the antique shop leads to a small courtyard, and a few steps further on is the back room the owner mentioned.
"Gentlemen, you've already gotten this bargain today, so I have nothing to say. But when I sell that big jar later, please don't cause any trouble."
At first, when the boss saw that Hu Yuan and his companion were not interested in his prized possessions, he thought they were just ignorant.
Now the boss finally understands: it's not that he doesn't know the value of something; it's obvious that he knows it too well.
So now the boss is worried that the two of them might talk nonsense and prevent him from selling the large cans.
How much did you pay for that thing?
Hu Yuan chuckled, wanting to see if he was being taken advantage of by the boss.
"I bought it for five thousand yuan from a country bumpkin. I knew at the time that it wasn't a genuine Jun ware, but I couldn't find any flaws in it, so I bought it."
In order to get Hu Yuan and the other man to help him, the boss had no choice but to tell them the truth.
"So how much are you planning to sell today?"
Old Zhong raised an eyebrow and asked.
"Since I'm saying it's Jun kiln porcelain, I need to ask for at least 200,000 yuan, otherwise no one will believe me."
The boss hadn't originally planned to pay this price, but he was afraid that Hu Yuan and Old Zhong would think he was too greedy and ruin things for him, so he lowered the price.
"I advise you to give up this idea and honestly tell everyone that it's a fake. Maybe someone will be willing to spend a few thousand dollars to buy it as a decoration. Otherwise, your five thousand dollars will all be wasted."
Hu Yuan shook his head helplessly.
"What are you saying? As long as you two don't say anything, someone is definitely going to buy it at my price."
The boss said unhappily.
"I'm not trying to discourage you, but your price is too high, and the quality of the forgery is quite poor. It's impossible for it to sell for this price."
Hu Yuan advised the boss.
"Yes, whether it's a hobby or a business, everyone who buys antiques is extremely cautious, especially for something worth hundreds of thousands. Nobody will just hand over their money casually. Either they know their stuff or they have an expert around them. But you really can't fool an expert with this. It's best not to get yourself into trouble."
With his hands behind his back, Mr. Zhong spoke to the boss with a serious expression.
"But…"
"No buts. You thought this abacus was useless anyway, and you might have thrown it away someday. Now that Old Zhong spent 100,000 to buy it for you, you've already made a fortune. You don't even need to open the shop for a year. What more do you want? Be careful not to be greedy and try to swallow an elephant."
Seeing that the boss wasn't an utterly wicked person, Hu Yuan thought he should try to persuade him a little more to see if he could turn back from his wrong path.
In the antique business, many people make money by deceiving others, but if you frequently cheat people, you will definitely not have a good ending.
Because one day, you will encounter someone who is unreasonable or reckless.
After some persuasion from Hu Yuan and Zhong Lao, the boss finally decided to abandon his original plan and sell the large jar as a fake.
Seeing that his boss had pulled back from the brink, Hu Yuan agreed to help him out, saying a few good words to help him sell the goods for as much money as possible so that he wouldn't lose too much.
Sure enough, when the three of them came out, everyone else was still there, and they even attracted more onlookers.
"Brother, when you were appraising that Hainan rosewood abacus just now, you were clearly an expert. Why don't you show us this big jar too?"
Hu Yuan was right; he was stopped as soon as he appeared.
"You've all been looking at them for a while now, so you should all have a general idea by now. Besides, when it comes to antiques, it's all a matter of personal taste. Some people like porcelain, some like bronze, and some like jade pendants. What you like is naturally valuable, and what you don't like is naturally worthless. There's no need for me to explain it to you."
Hu Yuan's refusal was practically a calculated move.
“Brother, you’re right, but we’re not good at spotting things. We feel there’s something wrong with this big jar, but we can’t quite put our finger on why. We’d like to ask you for your advice.”
The man pushed up his glasses, clearly having heard Hu Yuan's platitudes many times before, so he didn't pay any attention and simply continued to ask Hu Yuan to help with the appraisal.
"Your intuition is correct. This thing is indeed a fake, but the workmanship is decent. It's handmade, not an art piece. If you like it, buying it as a decoration wouldn't be a bad thing."
As Hu Yuan had planned, he directly pointed out that the large jar was a fake, but he didn't say how he knew.
And they even specifically reminded these people that this was not a craft item, but a purely handmade one.
Because if it were a handicraft, probably no one would want to buy it.
But Hu Yuan wasn't lying; the item was indeed handmade.
"Boss, this guy has already said it's a fake, what else do you have to say?"
Those who expected the items to be genuine were naturally furious, while those who were looking to make money took the opportunity to find fault with the boss.
"I'm so sorry everyone, my ability to appreciate porcelain is really limited, so I was fooled. Even if it's a fake, then you can bid on it, and the highest bidder wins."
The boss didn't mince words and immediately admitted his mistake, going along with the situation.
"Since it's handmade and looks so nice, I'll offer a thousand."
As expected, most people chose to give up, but someone quickly made a bid.
“My family is missing a large jar like this as a decorative piece, I’ll offer 1,500.”
"two thousand…"
“…”
Soon, the price of the large can was raised to eight thousand and it was sold.
In other words, the boss not only didn't lose money, but actually made a profit of three thousand.
That's why they say it's easier to do business with a large crowd. If there weren't a few people who love to join in the fun, the price wouldn't be this high.
But since the owner has clearly admitted that it is a fake, the fact that these people are still willing to buy it under these circumstances cannot be considered that the owner is deceiving them. It can only be said that in their eyes, this fake is not cheap.
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