4: Chapter 4 Abundant Wealth

Quancheng has six or seven antique markets, as well as many scattered antique shops not located within these antique markets.

According to statistics, there are over a thousand formal antique shops with business licenses.

There are also thousands of peddlers who do not have licenses but rent stalls inside the antique cities.

Those setting up street stalls are even more numerous, making it impossible to count, but it is estimated that the number can exceed ten thousand during weekends and holidays.

Among them, the most popular places are definitely the street stalls.

Of course, the places with the most fake goods are also the street stalls.

Things at street stalls are cheap, and if you have a good eye, you have a chance to pick up a bargain.

Antique shops have more authentic items, but the prices are also high, which average people cannot afford; even standard items displayed in antique shops start at five figures, and they are simply not intended for ordinary families.

Han Jingyang cannot afford them either.

Because he currently only has a little over eight thousand in disposable cash.

Yes, that is right, he only has a little over eight thousand in cash right now.

That is because he paid one year's rent in advance, otherwise he would not even be able to afford the rent.

So right now, he can only browse the street stalls.

Of course, he could only browse the street stalls before as well.

It is just that his goal is completely different now.

Before, he had to search for that tiny chance of picking up a bargain among the vast sea of fakes.

But now, he can just close his eyes and touch things randomly.

Anyway, his goal is appraisable items; as for whether these items are new or old, real or fake, complete or broken, it does not matter.

So, as soon as he arrived, he started touching everything.

Like he was playing around, he had to touch every single authentic or fake antique on every stall, not even sparing modern crafts like gourd bracelets.

There is no other way.

He has appraised too few items and has not figured out the patterns yet.

Only after the number of data samples increases can he summarize more patterns, and only then will he be more efficient.

For now, he can only use this clumsy method, striving not to miss any possibility even if it wastes time.

He was touching things with great satisfaction.

But the stall owner was not pleased: "If you are not buying, do not touch randomly. Keep messing around and watch out, or I will beat you up."

The stall owner had mistaken Han Jingyang for a child causing trouble.

Han Jingyang, however, did not care at all: "Not even letting people look?"

He continued to touch everything while speaking.

Beat him up?

In this day and age, such 'noble people' are rare; if this stall owner dared to lay a hand on him, he would dare to lie down.

The stall owner glared: "You call this looking? This is blind groping, this is just fucking causing trouble!"

"Why are you so anxious? I have not broken anything, and besides, if I break it, I will pay for it. Why are you glaring?"

"You, you..."

Han Jingyang's movements stopped at that instant.

A system notification was triggered.

Looking down closely, it was a root carving of a three-legged toad.

He did not know what kind of tree root it was carved from, but it was covered in grime on the outside, as if it had been smoked by kitchen fumes, greasy and black, so dirty it was hard to look at. He could only make out the general shape. Judging by the patina, it had some age, but it definitely would not be very old; after all, it was a root carving, a wooden object, and having been smoked like this, anything with significant age would have long since perished.

Han Jingyang clicked "No" and looked up to ask the stall owner: "What is the price for this wooden lump?"

"What wooden lump? This is a root carving, an item from the Republic of China era."

"Do not talk nonsense, just give me the price."

"Six thousand."

"Keep it for yourself to play with," Han Jingyang said, putting down the root carving and turning to leave.

The stall owner got anxious: "At least make a counteroffer."

"One final price, two hundred."

"This..." The stall owner wanted to raise it, but seeing Han Jingyang making a move to leave, he hurriedly stopped him: "Fine, fine, fine, two hundred it is, just to make the first sale of the day."

He paid the money and took the item.

Han Jingyang re-appraised it.

"Name: Republic of China Root Carving Three-Legged Toad."

"Grade: Rank 7."

"Attribute: Wealth Attraction +2."

"Skill: Wealth Pouring In."

Holy shit?

It has a skill?

And it is "Wealth Pouring In," which is exactly what he needs most.

What does he lack right now?

He lacks money.

If this "Wealth Pouring In" skill could be activated and take effect immediately, just like "Prolonging Life," would that not mean he would have money coming in right away?

It is just that...

The white light contained within this root carving remained completely still.

What is going on?

He even tried stuffing the root carving three-legged toad into his shirt, but he could not trigger the skill effect.

Han Jingyang's excitement cooled slightly, but he was not anxious because this root carving was real, and its attributes and skills were solid. Besides, sooner or later he would figure out the relevant rules while it was in his hands, so there was no need to rush for now.

He packed away the root carving three-legged toad.

Han Jingyang continued to browse the stalls.

Unfortunately, he gained nothing for the next half hour or so.

This made him realize that common, clumsy low-quality imitations, fabricated items, damaged goods, and assembly-line crafts found on the stalls could not possibly be appraised as treasure with attributes.

Excluding these, Han Jingyang directly changed his mode, leaving these items out and only looking at old items, complete pieces, and purely handmade or semi-handmade crafts.

After such exclusion, there were very few things worth looking at on the street stalls.

But Han Jingyang's efficiency increased significantly.

And soon, he had another discovery.

This was a bronze standing statue of the Old Longevity Star, in perfect condition, also with traces of smoke and fire, though likely from incense candles. Some parts were covered in a thick, pitch-black layer of oxidation, while other parts had been wiped until they shone brightly.

This was a genuine, authentic old item.

Judging by the patina, it could be from the mid-Qing Dynasty to the Republic of China era.

But looking at the material and casting technique, it could only be from the Republic of China era.

The smelting, casting, artistic aesthetics, and craftsmanship levels were all different; for an expert, it was distinguishable at a glance.

After looking at it.

Han Jingyang clicked "No" and asked for the price.

This stall owner looked quite sincere: "It is an old item from the Republic of China era, just give me a thousand."

This price...

Han Jingyang was a little hesitant, as it was just a tiny bit higher than the market price.

This kind is the hardest to haggle over.

Because the person knows their stuff and did not ask for an exorbitant price, just a little higher than market price; haggling further down would make him seem unreasonable.

So Han Jingyang did not dilly-dally: "Fine, wrap it up."

A thousand it is.

Anyway, it would definitely appreciate in value after appraisal; even if it were the lowest rank 7 item, and even if it only added 1 point of attribute, it would still be a profit.

Once he made a name for himself, plenty of people would be willing to open their wallets.

He got the bronze Old Longevity Star.

Han Jingyang appraised it directly.

"Name: Republic of China Bronze Standing Statue of the Old Longevity Star."

"Grade: Rank 6."

"Attribute: Longevity +4, Auspiciousness +1."

"Skill: Prolonging Life."

Holy shit!

Another "Prolonging Life" skill.

This one definitely could not be given away as a favor; it had to be sold for a high price.

Furthermore, this was Rank 6, the attributes were good, and it had dual attributes—Longevity and Auspiciousness totaling 5 points, which was quite good.

Although he did not know what this Auspiciousness was for, it certainly was not a bad thing.

Han Jingyang was overjoyed.

He picked up the bronze statue and left.

Getting two such treasures in one morning was very worthwhile.

It is safer to have it in his pocket.

Getting these two treasures back and settled first was the right way to go; this place was crowded and full of prying eyes, and if something went wrong, he would not even be able to find a place to regret it.

However, just as he was about to leave, an Old Man stopped him: "Young man, that bronze statue from just now, could you let me see it?"

Just what he was afraid of.

Han Jingyang immediately became alert, hugged the two treasures to his chest, and took a step back, but then widened his eyes in surprise: "Mr. Zhou?"