Chapter 273 Scrap Metal Recycling Station Taobao
Qin Xiaoxiao and Su Lu exchanged a glance and plunged into the warehouse.
After discussing it, the two of them decided that each of them would search two warehouses. Su Lu would find the things that were desirable and put them together. Then, he would ask Qin Xiaoxiao to collect them. To avoid suspicion, Su Lu would be responsible for finding two pieces of furniture to make up the numbers, because he knew about wood and might be able to find some good wood that could be sold for a high price in a few years.
After Su Lu left, Qin Xiaoxiao rushed to the two warehouses on the right. The middle one was a room that stored metal, and half of it was occupied by various furniture.
Qin Xiaoxiao stared at the furniture with shining eyes, then touched it. It was covered in dirt, proving that the furniture had been there for a long time.
With no time to waste, Qin Xiaoxiao specifically chose furniture that was well-maintained, because ordinary people's furniture is generally worn out, while only wealthy families use better materials and take better care of it.
None of the furniture in the room was intact. Apart from the severely worn pieces, Qin Xiaoxiao only picked out three pieces, along with a few table legs.
Qin Xiaoxiao picked up the table and noticed that one of the table legs was a bit too heavy. Taking advantage of the fact that no one was around, Qin Xiaoxiao put the table leg into her spatial storage.
Of the remaining three pieces of furniture, there was a cabinet that didn't seem old. Qin Xiaoxiao felt around inside but didn't find any hidden compartments, so she tossed it aside. There was also a table that looked worn out, but when Qin Xiaoxiao approached it, she smelled a fragrance similar to the scent of the chests made by the Wen family in her space. Qin Xiaoxiao concluded that the table must have been made of good materials.
The Wen family's chest was made of camphor wood, but this table had a different grain, a milder smell, and a yellowish color, leading Qin Xiaoxiao to suspect that it was made of huanghuali wood.
The table was missing a leg. Qin Xiaoxiao rummaged through a pile of table legs and found one that was the right size and thickness to match the table. She planned to see how Su Lu was doing later. If he didn't have anything good to take, she would put the table out in the open and take it with her.
The last item was a small wooden box that Qin Xiaoxiao found in a dressing table in the corner of the warehouse. The box was empty, but judging from the carvings and lock plates, it was definitely an old item. Qin Xiaoxiao didn't look at it closely and put the box into her space.
Qin Xiaoxiao turned her head and fixed her gaze on a pile of iron-framed beds.
Metal frame beds can be disassembled and reassembled when needed, with wooden boards placed on top to form a bed.
Metal-framed beds aren't cheap, and families who can afford them are definitely not short of money. According to Qin Xiaoxiao's experience, elderly people usually like to hide money in the metal pipes of their metal-framed beds because they're so thin that it's hard to see them from above without a flashlight, and most people wouldn't think to hide money there. (My maternal grandparents hid money in the steel pipes of their metal-framed bed.)
Qin Xiaoxiao rummaged through her spatial storage and pulled out a thin, hard iron wire. She poked it into each of the iron pipes one by one, but after poking sixteen or seventeen pipes, they were all empty. Looking at the eight or nine iron pipes next to her that she hadn't poked yet, Qin Xiaoxiao was somewhat disheartened.
Clinging to the last glimmer of hope, Qin Xiaoxiao continued poking at each pipe one by one. In the fifth-to-last iron pipe, the thin wire stopped halfway through. Qin Xiaoxiao was stunned for a moment, then overjoyed. She took out a flashlight from her spatial storage and shone it inside. She found that there was indeed something blocking it, so she quickly took a hard wire and continued poking it in.
The pipe was badly blocked, and Qin Xiaoxiao had to use a lot of effort to push the stuff out.
A long, rectangular object wrapped in newspaper was pushed out of the iron pipe. Qin Xiaoxiao estimated that it was probably three bundles of money rolled together and lined up to be put in.
She crouched down and opened the box; sure enough, it was money. Without bothering to count how much there was, Qin Xiaoxiao quickly put the money into her spatial storage.
After poking through the remaining four iron pipes, and then stuffing three rolls into another iron pipe of the same color, Qin Xiaoxiao knew that the warehouse was almost finished.
Looking at the time, about twenty minutes had passed. There was no time for her to think any further, so Qin Xiaoxiao quickly went to another warehouse.
This warehouse was used to store books and newspapers. Because it was damp, it smelled unpleasant. Qin Xiaoxiao pinched her nose and went in to start rummaging through the warehouse.
Qin Xiaoxiao wasn't interested in ordinary books; she only picked out the newer ones to read.
She had read a novel in which the female protagonist saved money by hiding it inside books, and later used that money to make a fortune and successfully turn her life around, slapping the faces of those scoundrels in the face.
After searching through most of the warehouse without finding any money, Qin Xiaoxiao unexpectedly found a stamp collection assembled from cardboard and yarn.
Upon opening and scanning the pages, Qin Xiaoxiao was surprised to find a whole sheet of "The Motherland is All Red" stamps and monkey stamps inside.
Qin Xiaoxiao swallowed twice, then quickly put the item into her spatial storage, intending to look at it more closely when she got back.
Qin Xiaoxiao got really excited and sped up her search. And sure enough, she actually found twenty yuan in a book and put it into her spatial storage.
Besides these, there were also some calligraphy and paintings in the warehouse. She knew nothing about them, so after thinking about it, she put them aside and decided to ask Su Lu first.
A short while later, Su Lu came over and gave Qin Xiaoxiao a wink. Qin Xiaoxiao quickly ran out and, under Su Lu's direction, retrieved a piece of furniture and two boxes from Su Lu's two warehouses. She also helped Su Lu carry two relatively intact wardrobes and two chairs out of the warehouses.
When paying at the door, Qin Xiaoxiao moved the table she had her eye on outside again. After asking Su Lu, she didn't accept any of the calligraphy or paintings, because Su Lu felt that these good things wouldn't easily appear here, and it would be a loss if someone found out.
Upon arriving at the gate, Su Lu chatted with the old man at the gate with a smile, and casually slipped him a pack of cigarettes and five yuan. Adding the twelve yuan he paid, he spent a total of seventeen yuan plus two packs of cigarettes.
The two carried the furniture out of the scrap yard one by one. The gatekeeper, having received a bribe, even helped carry two pieces. Finally, Qin Xiaoxiao shamelessly took a bundle of newspapers with her.
Once everyone was out of sight, Qin Xiaoxiao quickly stored everything into her spatial storage and made her escape.
The two brushed the dust off their clothes and went straight to the supply and marketing cooperative. They bought some pastries and a few yards of floral cloth at the grocery store before preparing to return to the village.
Once they got home and closed the door, they both breathed a sigh of relief. Instead of rushing to see what they had collected, they prepared to boil water, cook, and get some rest, planning to talk about it after dark.
After the two took a shower, Qin Ye came to their door and invited them to come home for dinner.
Qin Xiaoxiao and Su Lu didn't stand on ceremony and followed Qin Ye back to the Qin family home. After dinner, Qin Feng told Qin Xiaoxiao and Su Lu that spring plowing would begin the day after tomorrow, and the two of them had to work hard this time, otherwise they wouldn't get any work points. At the end of the year, not only would they not get any grain, but they would also have to pay money out of their own pockets.
Upon hearing that work would begin the day after tomorrow, Qin Xiaoxiao and Su Lu returned to the educated youth compound with pained expressions and dejected heads.
The joy of finding something good during the day vanished instantly. The two lay on the kang (a heated brick bed) staring at the ceiling, feeling that the future was bleak.
"I thought I could rest for a few more days, but alas, I have to start working in the fields again."
With a look of utter despair, Qin Xiaoxiao covered her head with the quilt, then quietly reached out and grabbed Su Lu's large hand.
(End of this chapter)
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