Although I voluntarily offered to leave during the meeting, it doesn't mean I had no stance.
After the deal with Song Laosan was completed, I did not stay at Changwei Group. Instead, I called Monkey and asked him to come and pick me up.
Even though everyone says Duan Jinyan is a cold-blooded and ruthless guy, he is still my father.
Even though I hate him very much, my hatred is completely different from others'; at least I never thought of killing him.
My departure was a way of showing my attitude to Grandpa Wei. Although I didn't even say goodbye, it wasn't really a falling out. With Grandpa Wei's experience, he would naturally understand my common sense.
Just as Song Laosan said, no matter what the reason for the four families being reunited, this combination will bring huge benefits.
Although the Duan family has returned to the Four Gates, I have different principles from others and have no interest in competing with them. So I returned to Wangyunzhai and continued to run my pawnshop, maintaining a distant attitude.
In less than a week, the payment promised by Song Laosan was transferred into my account through multiple legitimate transactions. After deducting the share given to Monkey and taxes, I still had 2.1 million yuan left.
It's good to be rich.
Although this amount of money may not be considered a huge sum in today's society, it is an astronomical figure for an ordinary person like me.
Having grown up in hardship, and under my grandfather's strict discipline, I didn't have any bad habits. The biggest feeling I got from receiving this money was that I no longer had to do part-time jobs every day, and I could sleep until I naturally woke up.
In the blink of an eye, a month has passed.
After receiving the money, the monkey disappeared without a trace. He had never earned so much money in his life, so naturally he had to go out and squander it.
Song Laosan's financial methods are quite professional. Our money comes from legal channels and has been taxed, so we are not afraid of being investigated.
I can't be as carefree as a monkey. During this time, besides recovering from my injuries, I thought about Duan Jinyan every day, and even dreamed of meeting him several times.
Without exception, they were all nightmares.
Early that morning, I was sitting behind the counter reading "Thirteen Discourses on Antiques" compiled by Dong Qichang of the Ming Dynasty when a Mercedes-Benz G63 parked outside the door. Then Wei Shengnan opened the car door and walked into the room.
She wore a military green outfit and a baseball cap, her hair swaying gently with her body, highlighting her exquisite figure.
I don't know if it's lust at first sight or if my inferiority complex from childhood made me like her strong personality. After getting to know Wei Shengnan at the Tomb of the Demonic Monk, I developed a liking for her, but it was just a liking, not enough to fall in love with her.
Wei Shengnan walked into the pawnshop, looked at the simple furnishings inside, and said with a pout, "I thought this place would be designed like an antique shop, but I didn't expect it to be so simple."
"With limited capital, we only do low-end mortgage business, so there's no need to make a big show of it. That would make customers uncomfortable and think that our store is too big to take advantage of them."
Although I was in a good mood, I kept my face calm: "Miss Wei, what brings you here?"
"Alright, stop trying to be clever with me." Wei Shengnan looked me up and down: "Looks like you're recovering pretty well."
I shrugged slightly: "It's only superficially recovered, but the internal injuries haven't healed yet. You can't lift heavy objects or engage in strenuous exercise."
"I've come today to ask for your help. I have a bronze artifact here, and I hope you can help me appraise it."
As Wei Shengnan spoke, she pulled a bright green bronze jue (a type of ancient Chinese wine vessel) from her bag: "A classmate of mine found something he bought and is passing by here. I'd like you to take a look at it. This thing is..."
"Look at the new ones."
I glanced at the bronze jue in Wei Shengnan's hand: "The rust is too uniform, like fresh rust made with chemical agents, and the patterns on it don't match the era of the vessel."
Seeing that I hadn't even tried, Wei Shengnan made her final conclusion and stood there somewhat awkwardly.
I picked up the thermos on the counter and slowly unscrewed the lid: "You brought me such an obviously fake item, I'm afraid you have ulterior motives?"
"Are you suffering from paranoia? Even if you, Duan Shenxing, were to have your bones crushed and extracted for oil, it wouldn't be worth as much as one of my cars. What could I possibly want with you?"
Wei Shengnan glanced at me sideways: "We members of the Wei family don't need to learn appraisal skills. I just got this from a friend and asked you to take a look at it while I was passing by."
I smiled and looked at Wei Shengnan without saying a word.
Wei Shengnan seemed a little annoyed by my stare: "Hey, a customer has come into the shop, aren't you even going to offer them a glass of water?"
I took out a bottle of mineral water, walked over and handed it to him: "What message did the old man ask you to give me?"
Wei Shengnan paused for a moment, then took the bottled water: "My grandfather hopes you can prepare to go to western Liaoning."
I continued, "Why?"
“A museum director in western Liaoning was a close friend of my grandfather. He received information that a tomb raiding gang had recently entered their territory, and they were probably eyeing a Qing Dynasty prince’s tomb that was rumored to be in the area. He hoped that we could help open the tomb.”
Wei Shengnan paused for a moment: "As you know, archaeological teams are prohibited from conducting initiative archaeological excavations. They can only carry out protective excavations after the tomb has been looted. He needs us to act as a catalyst."
I was somewhat surprised by this statement: "We're tomb raiders, how come he's willing to cooperate with us?"
"This industry is extremely profitable, and there are many unsavory things that you wouldn't even dare to imagine. If I didn't tell you, you probably wouldn't even dare to think about who's involved in splitting the profits!"
Wei Shengnan offered a brief suggestion before changing the subject: "However, this trip to western Liaoning is purely for assistance; we won't take anything. But my grandfather won't let you go for nothing. Whatever item in the tomb you fancy, my grandfather will compensate you with the same amount out of his own pocket."
I smiled and said, "Is the old man really going to mobilize all four gates just because of his personal connections?"
“It’s not four gates, it’s just you.” Wei Shengnan shook her head: “Qu Ruilin returned to the south half a month ago, and Song Laosan has long since disappeared. My grandfather said that with your abilities, you are more than capable of opening a Qing Dynasty tomb.”
"I'm afraid I can't comply with this request. Please convey my apologies to the old man."
I tapped my chest with my finger: "My injury hasn't healed yet, and it's already difficult for me to walk up to the second floor, let alone travel all the way to western Liaoning. However, I can introduce a few friends in the industry to the old man, and they might be able to help."
“This matter is not as simple as you think. After all, it involves government officials. If the people you hired go down into the tomb but don’t let us take the things, it’s hard to explain.” Wei Shengnan waved her hand: “Forget it, I’ll go back and discuss it with my grandfather. I’ll contact you again as soon as I get the results.”
I stood at the door, watching Wei Shengnan's car drive away, and dialed Song Laosan's number: "Has the Wei family contacted you?"
Old Song was clearly still half asleep, and mumbled, "No, why did they contact me? Has something happened?"
I took a deep breath: "The other two doors have made a move."
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