60: Chapter 60 Even small things are cute

"Pah! Nothing good ever comes out of a dog's mouth!" The woman put on her helmet. Venting her frustration, she twisted the throttle, and the motorcycle emitted a plume of black smoke. Only then did she shoot forward.

According to Zhao Jian's earlier estimation, the seven meteorites had fallen in another village. It would take him half an hour to walk there. He only hoped that those three people were blind and ignorant, and had missed the largest one.

Not long after he walked out of the house, a loud noise came from behind him. He looked back. A cloud of dust was rising from the self-built building, expanding upwards. A meteorite! It turned out the intelligence was correct, but there wasn't just one meteorite.

Zhao Jian hurriedly turned around and walked back. A freshly fallen meteorite was not suitable for picking up by hand; it was too hot. He could only wait nearby, bored. It wasn't until he confirmed the stone had cooled down that he wrapped it in cloth and put it into his bag. He wasn't sure about the composition of this thing, so it was better not to touch it directly if he could avoid it.

He was planning to leave when he heard the sound of a motorcycle engine in the distance. It was the three riders coming back. The motorcycle was moving fast and arrived in just a moment.

The 24-year-old "auntie" took off her helmet first and boasted, "We found seven. How about you? Nothing to show for it, right?"

Zhao Jian ignored her and just wanted to leave. He still had to find a buyer when he got back and sell it as soon as possible. Only when money was in his hands would he feel secure.

Seeing him not speaking, the female rider thought she had hit a sore spot. She got on her motorcycle and followed him, not too far or too close, chattering away. "Uncle, Uncle, why aren't you saying anything?" "It doesn't feel good not to make any money, right?" "Say something nice, and maybe this great beauty will reward you with one piece so you didn't waste your trip."

She had kept three pieces for herself. If Zhao Jian had really said something nice and accepted her humiliation, she would have actually given him the smallest meteorite. It was worth about three hundred yuan. But Zhao Jian wouldn't accept it.

He exposed a corner of the stone in his backpack, letting the 24-year-old "auntie" behind him see it. Amidst her shocked gaze, Zhao Jian mimicked her sarcastically: "Auntie, oh my, Auntie, why aren't you saying anything?" "You didn't earn as much as me, doesn't it feel bad?" "If you call me 'Daddy', maybe I'll chip off a small piece and give it to you."

Shock quickly turned into anger. But the anger was soon replaced by shyness. She was actually considering it. Not for the money, just pure liking! But her two companions were there now, so she couldn't bring herself to say it. Zhao Jian noticed the female rider's unusual behavior behind him. He thought to himself: Oh no, she doesn't actually want to earn this money, does she?

There was only one meteorite; the more complete this thing was, the rarer and more valuable it would be. Chipping off a piece might seem like selling it in two parts, but in reality, it would lower the overall value. Zhao Jian couldn't bear it. Fortunately, the female rider remained silent and didn't utter the two words that Zhao Jian feared.

At the entrance of Bafang Village. Zhao Jian waited for a ride-hailing car. The female rider's two companions had already left. She, however, stopped beside Zhao Jian, using her leg to balance the motorcycle. "Uncle, we fought and now we know each other. What's your name?"

She didn't even take off her helmet while speaking. Zhao Jian couldn't see her expression and just thought she was provoking him again. He frowned and mouthed two words: "Daddy!"

The female rider understood. Hidden under the helmet, her pretty face flushed red. Her eyes were even more watery. She also mouthed: "Daddy!" Then she rode off on her motorcycle. Zhao Jian thought to himself: "Lip reading?" He couldn't read lips, but the two words were easy to guess. "Is this bitch cursing at me?" As he muttered to himself, a taxi appeared in his field of vision. His ride had arrived.

Back in the city, he first called the antique shop. When the Shop Owner heard he wanted to sell a meteorite, he immediately said helplessly over the phone: "I deal in antiques, and occasionally I can collect some gold and silver. I really haven't had any contact with the meteorite circle."

After hanging up, Zhao Jian tried contacting a cultural artifact shop. In his view, this thing was similar to walnuts or bodhi seeds; they were all collectibles. But he guessed wrong. The cultural artifact shop wouldn't buy it either. This included jade shops; they also didn't have any involvement in this area. Picked up a treasure, but can't sell it? Zhao Jian thought to himself that if he had known, he would have asked that 24-year-old "auntie"; she definitely would have known the sales channels.

Just as he was planning to search online, his phone rang. The caller ID showed Zhang Tao. After connecting, Zhao Jian listened to his Good Older Sister's plans for the evening. There wasn't anything special. It was just that Zhang Tao had an urge to share. Because he was worried, Zhao Jian's response wasn't very enthusiastic. This subtle emotional fluctuation was immediately detected by Zhang Tao. She asked dotingly: "What's wrong, little brother? You're so listless. Tell your sister about it."

Zhao Jian told her about his trouble of trying to sell a meteorite but having no sales channels. And then, realizing it belatedly, he said: "Who are you calling 'little brother'? I'm not little!" How could a man be called little! Zhang Tao laughed sweetly on the phone, and she teased him dotingly: "Oh my, small is also very cute." "Pah, you're the little one. Just you wait and see how I torment you tonight!"

Zhang Tao stopped laughing. She admitted defeat and said: "Don't, don't. That thing hasn't completely gone away yet, so please don't come and wreak havoc on me." After speaking, she pondered for a moment. Then she continued: "I'll ask President Li about the meteorite. She has a wide social circle, maybe she knows."

He hung up the phone. Zhao Jian had originally planned to go home and wait for news. But his stomach was growling. It was already afternoon. He had casually bought a few steamed buns for breakfast, and at noon, he had just stayed in the desolate village, so there was no opportunity to eat. Now he could have a proper meal. Since he wasn't treating anyone, there was no need to go to a place with high markups. He came across a Sichuan restaurant and went in.

The owner was very enthusiastic. Although there were many customers, he still found time between serving dishes to invite him to a seat. Holding the menu, he asked: "What would you like to eat? If you are waiting for someone, I can serve you a pot of plain water first, and you can call me when you want to order later." Plain water was free. Zhao Jian picked up the menu and randomly pointed at the dishes on it: "Spicy chicken, roasted pepper eggplant, Kung Pao king oyster mushrooms, dry-fried green beans. And a bowl of rice."

Before the owner left, he reminded him: "These dishes are all a bit spicy." How spicy could they be? Zhao Jian indifferently told the owner to go ahead and make them. He had eaten spicy pickled mustard greens when he was a kid. He had confidence in his spice tolerance! But after the dishes were served, his confidence was gone.

A table full of food, and only the rice was edible. He only took two bites of the spicy chicken, and he already felt a burning pain on his lips. If he still had sensation, he would have thought he had been poisoned! With the intention of not wasting food, he tasted a few more bites of the roasted pepper eggplant. He had to admit, the moment the spiciness exploded in his mouth, he didn't think it was delicious. There was only intense pain. But once the spiciness dissipated a little, his taste buds would experience a very wonderful flavor. Zhao Jian thought to himself: Oh no, could my tongue be a masochist!

Tasting it in small bites, after half an hour of struggling, he was finally full. He paid the bill and left. After returning home and taking a shower, before he could even put on his clothes, Zhang Tao called. Her sweet laughter reached Zhao Jian's ears: "Little brother, President Li said she wants it!"