74: Chapter 74 Antique Furniture

It was already midnight by the time he left Su Wanyin's house.

Although the woman had tried her best to make him stay, Zhao Jian, whose body hadn't yet recovered, still chose to slip away in the middle of the night.

It was exactly midnight when he returned home.

[Today's Intelligence (Red): Old Black Huang, a villager of Qili Village, has passed away, and his children have already divided the inheritance. The eldest son inherited the ancestral home.]

Being superstitious about things used by the deceased, he wants to dispose of all the furniture and clothing the old man used during his lifetime.

[Among the dozen or so pieces of furniture, there is a Hainan Rosewood chair made during the late Qing Dynasty or early Republic of China, valued at 270,000 yuan.]

Rosewood furniture?

Although Zhao Jian didn't understand why this furniture was so expensive...

...he didn't need to.

As long as he went to collect all the furniture tomorrow, he could make that money.

Going there directly would definitely arouse suspicion.

Nowadays, even if someone hadn't read novels, they would have seen TV dramas.

Old items from the countryside or ancestral chairs could all be valuable treasures.

People wouldn't think of this if they weren't suspicious.

But if he went to collect the furniture, his purpose would be too obvious.

Even if he bought everything as a bundle, they might guess that one of the items was particularly precious and that he was using the bundle to hide it.

They probably wouldn't sell it to him easily.

But if...

Hehe, I've got it.

Time to sleep!

He slept fitfully, feeling as if he hadn't slept at all.

Zhao Jian was still groggy when he woke up.

He vaguely remembered having a brilliant idea last night.

But he couldn't recall it.

He was a little worried.

Could early-onset Alzheimer's be hitting him already?

Not until he got dressed and stepped out the door...

...without seeing the intelligence.

A flash of inspiration suddenly struck him.

He remembered!

He would pretend to be a Cook who handles large-scale banquets for weddings and funerals in the countryside.

Nowadays, the mainstream for cooking is using natural gas as fuel.

But there are still firewood-flavored dishes that exist under the banner of traditional culture.

Although Zhao Jian couldn't taste the difference in texture between dishes cooked with natural gas versus wood.

It didn't matter.

As long as someone believed it.

He wasn't a real Cook; he was just using the title of a Cook to buy furniture.

If the purpose of the purchase was for firewood, it surely wouldn't arouse suspicion.

Before setting off, he contacted his former Landlady.

He knew many people in Xiong City, but to find a Cook for funerals and weddings...

...only a respected local 'Zongguan' would do.

Roughly equivalent to a wedding MC.

He would contact a Cook through a Zongguan.

The Landlady answered the phone quickly.

"Little Zhao, do you miss me? Oh, we're just on different floors; you could've just come up instead of calling."

Zhao Jian couldn't help but cough after hearing that.

Did the Landlady catch a cold? Why was she suddenly acting feverish?

He told her that he wanted to get in touch with a Cook who handled Red and white affairs in the countryside.

To his surprise, the Landlady thought he was getting married and asked dejectedly, "Who's the bride? Have I met her?"

"You've seen her; you see her in the mirror every day, alright!"

Zhao Jian explained again that he wanted to rent equipment to try setting up a stall.

He got the contact information from the Landlady.

The subsequent Zongguan and Cook were much more normal.

By the time he finished negotiating the rental price with the Cook, it was already morning.

Zhao Jian bought a few steamed buns on the way and rushed to the location agreed upon with the Cook.

What he wanted to rent was an agricultural tractor.

Specifically for transporting wood.

It was currently empty, making it perfect for him to go buy furniture.

He paid the deposit, and the Cook acted as the driver himself.

Going to the countryside wasn't like going to a no-man's land, after all.

Zhao Jian didn't dare drive in populated areas.

Even if it was a tractor with a speed of less than 5 mph.

He was familiar with Qili Village.

He had bought a three-legged turtle here and salvaged a watch worth tens of thousands.

One could say this place was his lucky land.

Arriving at this riverside village again, Zhao Jian looked around.

He tried to find that bottle-collecting Elder Sister.

Having an acquaintance lead the way would be much easier than searching on his own.

He found her quickly.

However, as the weather turned cold, the tourist season had ended.

Without tourists, there weren't many bottles left to pick up by the water.

Now, the Elder Sister was selling fried skewers at the old pier.

There wasn't much meat; it was mostly starch sausages and various vegetables.

He asked the Cook to stop the vehicle and ran over to greet her: "Elder Sister, keeping busy?"

"Oh, it's you, Young man. Want some fried skewers? On the house."

The Elder Sister was also very happy to see Zhao Jian.

She enthusiastically offered him fried starch sausages and fried mushrooms.

He happened to want a bite, but there was no need for her to treat him.

He scanned the code to pay and then inquired: "Elder Sister, do you know where Old Black Huang's house is?"

The Elder Sister knew everywhere.

She immediately pointed him in the right direction.

After noting down the route, Zhao Jian's fried skewers were ready.

He split them into two portions.

He ate one part and brought some for the Cook to try.

Following the direction provided by the Elder Sister, he soon found Old Black Huang's house.

White paper was still pasted outside the door, and the gate was wide open.

Three to five people were currently carrying out wooden furniture.

Perhaps because everything was being sold off cheaply, the movers weren't careful.

They didn't care about bumps or scrapes.

They even threw items into the yard as soon as they were carried out the door.

If it weren't for some pieces being too heavy to lift high...

...there wouldn't be much impact when they hit the ground.

Otherwise, they would have long since fallen apart.

Zhao Jian quickly looked into the yard; fortunately, there were no chairs.

Either they were focusing on the difficult pieces first, or the chairs were in a different room and it wasn't time to move them yet.

He walked in without taking the initiative to ask anything.

He just looked at the furniture in the yard, waiting for the owner of the house to strike up a conversation.

Huang Guangmin was Old Black Huang's eldest son.

He had already noticed Zhao Jian as soon as he reached the door.

But he couldn't be sure of the visitor's purpose.

So he chose to wait and see.

However, Zhao Jian's silence caught him somewhat off guard.

As the owner of the courtyard, he couldn't just let a stranger look around his home aimlessly.

He could only walk into the yard and ask, "Who are you looking for?"

"Looking for you."

"I'm a Cook for weddings and funerals. I see you're moving furniture; are these for sale or are you throwing them away?"

Huang Guangmin thought to himself: Before you came, they could have been sold or thrown away. Now that you're here, I'm definitely selling.

"They're for sale."

Zhao Jian nodded.

He pretended to hesitate and turned to leave, then stopped.

Frowning, he asked, "How much?"

Turning to leave was to show he was reluctant to spend money.

Hesitating showed he actually wanted them.

He did this to prevent the other party from not stopping him if he actually tried to leave.

That would have reached a stalemate.

Huang Guangmin saw through it instantly.

After estimating all the furniture, he casually said, "Just give me five hundred yuan."

This was a test.

At this moment, less than half of the furniture was in the yard.

If Zhao Jian agreed easily...

...it would mean there was a treasure among this junk.

Then he wouldn't sell.

If he hesitated, he would casually kick a few pieces to see which one Zhao Jian actually favored.

He'd keep the good one and sell the rest.

Hearing the price, Zhao Jian immediately prepared to leave.

Buying rotten wood for five hundred yuan made no sense.

Even a hint of hesitation would have aroused the other man's suspicion.

Seeing Zhao Jian walking away quickly, Huang Guangmin felt relieved.

It was just ordinary furniture; no treasure here.

He hurriedly shouted:

"Hey, Young man, name a price. If it's too expensive, can't you just make an offer?"