Chapter 258: Inquiring for Information

Zhou Shuren took out the banknotes, "Four hundred taels in total."

Zhulan was stunned. "I remember buying the two shops for 380 taels. Did the price increase this year?"

Zhou Shuren explained, "Merchants have their own sources of information. They are the most informed. They got some news and knew that the court was going to relax some policies. As a result, more people bought shops and the prices went up. According to the market price, each shop increased by 20 taels. I only increased by 10 taels. I wanted to take this opportunity to talk more and test the waters."

Zhulan took the banknote and asked, "Have you figured it out? Do you think it's a trap?"

Zhou Shuren is used to touching his beard, he is addicted to it, "It's not a trick, I took the initiative to bring it up today, and Boss Ma didn't bring it up about antiques, but yesterday we just kept talking, Boss Ma doesn't deal with antiques, he just joined in the fun, betting on whoever he likes, antiques are more elegant, many merchants are willing to watch the competition."

Zhulan thought that she was indeed too cautious. It has only been half a year, and it would not be easy for Wang Ru to get out of the predicament. Even if Wang Ru got out of the predicament, Shi Qing would not relax and would keep a close eye on Wang Ru. Wang Ru was reborn and dared not reveal her true identity. Now Wang Ru was even more afraid of death. Wang Ru must have been very cautious and did not dare to make any big moves. She had the ability to find someone to investigate the Zhou family and then set a trap.

Zhulan was relieved. "I forgot to ask yesterday, what are the rules of the antique competition?"

Zhou Shuren thought it was quite interesting and said, "There are two types of competitions. One is to bring your own antiques to participate. There are ten participants in a competition. The one who can identify all the antiques is the winner. The winner can take all the antiques of the ten people. If the participant brings a fake antique, he must give a real antique to the winner after he fails. If several participants identify the antiques correctly, they will be given an antique provided by the organizer until a winner is found."

Zhulan thought this competition was interesting. "You mean, participants can bring real or fake antiques to the competition, but those who bring fake antiques have to bring an extra real one to the organizer?"

Zhou Shuren nodded, "Yes, so I want to take the jade bracelet I gave you to participate. This pair of jade bracelets is difficult to distinguish, and whether I can win depends largely on it."

Zhulan touched the jade bracelet on her hand and was delighted. "I never thought that this was the real use of it when you bought it."

Zhou Shuren curled his lips and said, "Yeah, I was also quite surprised. We deserve to make a fortune."

Zhulan was curious about the other type of competition, "Aren't there two types? What is the other one?"

Zhou Shuren said, "The other way is to bring money to register for the competition. There are ten people in a game, five levels, and the winner will win half of the registration fee. Each person registers for ten taels, and the winner can take away twenty-five taels."

Zhulan touched her chin, "So more people come to bring antiques, and the organizers open gambling games outside and act as the banker to earn money from the bettors. Oh, by the way, why didn't I hear about this place when I came to Pingzhou last year?"

Zhou Shuren, "There are not many people I interact with who understand this industry, and I go to many businesses, but I don't know the businesses, so I haven't heard about it."

Zhu Lan asked, "Have you figured out how to borrow the help of Brother-in-law Dong?"

Zhou Shuren smiled and said, "You forgot that I helped the county master to identify antiques. It can be seen that Dong's brother-in-law's boss is an antique lover. I just need to show my ability and then wait for him to verify it."

If not, he was afraid that the antiques would be sold forcefully after he won, he wouldn't need to seek help. Ma Dongjia revealed a lot of information that Pinjianlou is also black-hearted. If you are a young and fearless person who has no one to rely on and participate in the competition and win, Pinjianlou will lower the price to buy it. It is easier to get good things than opening an antique shop.

Of course, if you try to force your way through, they won’t dare to offend you, and they will give you a fair price when they sell to you.

He did not think of waiting until he passed the imperial examination before taking the exam. If he had the money earlier, he could make other plans in advance. After all, a scholar was still a Jinshi. In the eyes of Jiangda people, there was basically no difference as long as he did not pass the imperial examination. It would be better to show his value early so that he could avoid a lot of trouble in the future.

I just don't know if he will come across any good antiques when he participates. The last time I went to see an antique, the highest value was four hundred taels. It's a rare opportunity, so I hope to find some good antiques!

Because once he wins, he is not allowed to participate in the competition again, so no matter whether he wins or loses, he only has one chance. If he loses, he will have no antiques to participate in the competition again, and if he wins, he cannot participate in the next competition.

Zhulan's eyes lit up especially brightly, "Can I go with you?"

This is a rare competition, and she wants to go too.

Zhou Shuren felt sorry for Zhulan, since there had never been any entertainment in ancient times. "No."

It's not that he didn't bring her along, but the women he brought along were all young prostitutes who were not respected. Ladies and young ladies of status would not go there. Even in that imaginary dynasty, there were still many places where respectable women were not allowed to go, for fear of being branded as frivolous and ruining their lives.

Zhulan knew it and was a little disappointed. "Ah, being a woman is hard. Being a woman in ancient times was even harder."

Zhou Shuren said, "If I really win this time and make a fortune, I want to go to the capital, and then we can go together."

Zhulan was full of energy again, and could even overcome the bumpy carriage. "Okay, then you must win. If you lose, I will lose my bracelet and I can't go to the capital."

She was really curious about what the ancient capital looked like!

Zhou Shuren cannot lose not only for the sake of money, but also for Zhulan. "I will never let you down."

Zhu Lan thought about it. There were many talented people in ancient times. It is better not to put too much pressure on Zhou Shuren. "We just need to work hard. At least we have tried hard. We will have no regrets if we lose. Even if we really lose, we still have 500 taels of silver. Although the jade bracelet is an antique, it only cost 40 taels. Don't put too much pressure on yourself."

Zhou Shuren smiled and said, "Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."

He is confident here because he really knows what he is doing. I watched a competition yesterday, and no really capable appraisal masters participated. Those who participated were those who thought they had some skills and could win a lot of money. There were really no veterans, so his chances of winning were really high. He has continued to learn about ancient antiques since he came to ancient times, and he is confident that his skills are in his hands.

Zhulan and her husband were counting their money when there was a knock on the door. Zhou Laoer said, "Dad, Mom, I'm coming in."

Zhou Shuren sat up and smoothed his clothes. He changed from lying lazily to the head of the family. He stroked his beard and said, "Come in!"

Zhulan looked at Zhou Shuren speechlessly and put away all the banknotes.

Zhou Laoer and Zhao came in, "Dad, Mom."

Zhou Shuren asked, "What's the matter?"

Zhou Lao Er said, "Dad, we have something to ask you."

Zhou Shuren is such a good person that he can tell at a glance that this is not about Zhou Laoer. "You tell me."

Zhou Laoer originally planned to find out slowly by himself and did not want to trouble his father, but his ability was limited. He went out to inquire twice but gained nothing. When he followed his father to Pingzhou before, he knew that his father was busy with socializing everywhere. Even if his father did not show it on his face, he could feel that his father was tired. He did not think deeply about how capable his father was, he just felt sorry for his father's hardship.

This time when he moved to Pingzhou, he also wanted to find out everything by himself, but his father sent Rongchuan and Mingyun to the academy, and he felt that he did not know his father well enough, so after talking with Zhao, he still had to rely on his father for this matter. If he found out everything by himself, he didn't know when he would be able to find out anything!

Zhou Shuren coughed, "What are you thinking about? Isn't there something wrong?"

(End of this chapter)