8: Chapter 8 Kangxi Spending Money

Half an hour later, the new landlord hurried over.

He was a man in his forties, dressed in a simple jacket with an honest face and a genuine look in his eyes, forming a sharp contrast with that shrewish Sister Wang from before.

During the signing of the contract, the man learned that Hu Tian was a young man from out of town who had just graduated, and he couldn't help but sigh with emotion.

"I also came here from out of town to make a living. When I was young, I lived in those dark basements that never saw the light of day, so I know how hard it is for you young people."

The man said earnestly while signing, "Although this apartment is a bit expensive, it's comfortable to live in, which gives you the energy to work. If you need any help in the future, just ask. If I can help, I certainly will."

A warm current surged in Hu Tian's heart, and he thanked the man repeatedly.

This feeling of being understood and respected filled him with a sense of belonging in this new environment.

The rent was paid in full for six months, totaling twenty-eight thousand eight hundred yuan, and Hu Tian paid without hesitation.

Holding the heavy keys, he walked into the new apartment that was now his own.

Standing in the center of the spacious and bright living room, with sunlight streaming in through the floor-to-ceiling windows, Hu Tian took a deep breath. The air was filled with a faint, fresh scent of furniture, with no trace of the musty smell left.

This was the beginning of a new life.

Early the next morning, Hu Tian got out of bed.

Standing in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows of his newly rented apartment, watching the sunrise in the distance with golden light spilling over the city, an irrepressible excitement surged in his heart.

The one hundred and sixty thousand yuan he had gained from that Qing Dynasty imitation bronze censer last night had not only solved his survival crisis but also made him fully understand the true value of the Treasure Hunting Radar.

A ten-meter range was still too small; he had to upgrade it as soon as possible!

Hu Tian thought to himself that according to the system's prompts, he needed another thirty energy points to expand the radar range to twenty meters.

And the only way to obtain energy points was to find and acquire antiques or treasures with historical significance. The system would then, through an unknown method, absorb an unknown kind of 'charm' from them to increase the energy of the Treasure Hunting Radar System.

After a simple breakfast, Hu Tian headed straight for Antique Street.

Today was Saturday, and Antique Street was much livelier than usual.

Various stalls were packed tightly together. The sounds of hawking and bargaining rose and fell, and a constant stream of tourists and collectors made the place exceptionally bustling.

This time, Hu Tian didn't wander aimlessly like he did yesterday. Instead, he started from the entrance of the street and carefully scanned the stalls, meter by meter.

He walked very slowly. On the surface, he was just strolling casually, admiring the trinkets by the roadside, but in reality, the radar interface in his mind was refreshing at high speed, not missing a single trace.

Most of the items on the stalls were gray dots, which the system deemed as junk with no value.

Occasionally, there were a few pale white dots representing old items with some age, but their value was low—only a few hundred yuan or so. They were insignificant and not enough to catch Hu Tian's attention.

An hour passed, and although Hu Tian's legs were a bit sore, he had still gained nothing.

Antique Street was not short, and the stalls were dense. Hu Tian walked and stopped, pretending to be indifferent, while in fact, every corner had been rigorously scanned by the system.

At noon, the sunlight was a bit dazzling. Hu Tian arrived in front of a familiar stall.

The stall owner was a big fatty, lying on a dilapidated reclining chair with his eyes closed, resting. His belly rose and fell with his breathing, like a small hill.

The stall was filled with all sorts of miscellaneous small items: copper coins, jade pendants, porcelain shards, seals, and charms, all piled up in a mess as if it were a heap of scrap.

Wasn't this the exact stall where Hu Tian had bought the stone that carried the Treasure Hunting Radar System the day before yesterday?

Hu Tian pretended to squat down casually and swept his gaze over the stall.

On the radar interface in his mind, gray dots were densely packed over a large area, with only a few faint white lights flickering occasionally, failing to pique any interest.

Just as he was about to stand up and leave, a striking light point suddenly lit up on the radar interface!

It was a faint blue, appearing exceptionally dazzling amidst the pile of gray and white.

Hu Tian was shocked. He suppressed his inner ecstasy, steadied his emotions, and followed the position of the light point with his gaze.

It was a charm coin (folk currency), casually thrown into a pile of miscellaneous items in the corner of the stall. Its surface was covered in thick copper rust and dirt, looking unremarkable and even a bit ugly.

The system prompt immediately appeared in his mind, with information so detailed it was staggering: [Item: Qing Dynasty Kangxi Era "Peace Under Heaven" Charm Coin] [Date: Circa 1670 AD (Early Qing Kangxi)] [Condition: 85% Intact] [Provenance: Originally a family heirloom of a wealthy merchant family in Jiangnan, used for warding off evil and praying for blessings. Lost during the wars at the end of the Qing Dynasty, later picked up by a farmer, and passed down through generations until the 1980s, when it was sold as scrap copper due to poverty and eventually ended up here.]

[Detailed Flaws: The surface is covered by approximately 40% oxidized copper rust, causing local patterns to be blurred; there is slight wear on the edges; most importantly, there is a distinct deep scratch on the front of the coin, caused accidentally by the stall owner three days ago while clearing miscellaneous items with an iron hook, severely affecting its aesthetics and value.]

[Market Value: 40,000 - 80,000 Yuan (Unrestored State)] [Restoration Potential: If professionally restored, removing surface rust and protecting the patina, the integrity can be improved to over 95%, with an estimated market value of 120,000 - 160,000 Yuan.]

Hu Tian held back his inner excitement, reached out to pick up the charm coin, and examined it carefully.

The front of the charm coin was cast with the four large regular script characters "Peace Under Heaven," surrounded by auspicious patterns; the back featured exquisite auspicious cloud motifs.

Although mottled with rust, through the layer of rust, one could still see the exquisite casting technique; the characters were deeply carved and full of spirit.

However, that shocking scratch, like a scar, lay across the character "Heaven," making Hu Tian feel a pang of regret.

Such a good item had been ruined like this by this fatty!

If not for this scratch, the value could have been at least twenty percent higher.

"Boss, how much for this?"

Hu Tian asked casually, trying to keep his voice calm.

Hearing someone asking for the price, the fatty stall owner lazily opened his eyes, his small eyes squinting into slits.

His gaze landed on the charm coin in Hu Tian's hand, paused for two or three seconds, and a mischievous smile curled at the corner of his mouth.

"Yo, isn't this the young brother from the other day?"

The fatty boss's voice was loud, carrying a touch of worldly slickness, "What's up? You bought a broken stone the other day, and today you're here to hunt for gold again?"

Hu Tian's heart skipped a beat; he had been recognized.

His fingers gripping the charm coin tightened slightly, but his face remained calm as he smiled faintly, "Boss, you have a sharp eye and a really good memory."

"If I didn't have a sharp eye, I wouldn't be able to do this business!"

The fatty boss slightly raised his eyelids, his gaze circling Hu Tian's face, seemingly assessing his purchasing power, "You seemed quite straightforward the other day. What kind of bargain are you looking to pick up today?"

He drew out his words, clearly not wanting to bother with Hu Tian, and glanced at the charm coin in Hu Tian's hand, saying lazily, "That? Take it for fifty. No bargaining. If you think it's expensive, don't buy it."

Hu Tian put on a look of disdain, pointed at the scratch, and frowned, "Boss, the condition of this item is too poor, isn't it? Look at this big scratch; it even damaged the character. And there's so much rust. Can you make it cheaper? How about twenty?"

"Twenty? Are you kidding me!"

The fatty boss rolled his eyes, leaned back on the reclining chair, and waved his hand impatiently, "Then don't buy it. It's worth more than twenty even if I just keep it as a specimen. Take it or leave it at fifty. If you aren't buying, get lost; don't disturb my sleep."

As he spoke, he closed his eyes again, with an attitude of "I don't care."

Hu Tian hesitated for a moment, appearing to go through an intense internal struggle, before finally sighing and pulling out fifty yuan to place on the stall, "Fine, considering it's not easy for you either, Boss, I'll take it. I'll just treat it as paying for a lesson and play with it when I get back."

The fatty boss grabbed the money and stuffed it into his pocket without even lifting an eyelid, muttering, "Young man, you have to pay tuition to play this game. Be more careful next time."

Hu Tian carefully tucked the charm coin into his inner pocket and stood up to leave.

Just a few steps away, the system's crisp notification tone rang in his mind: [Congratulations to the host for successfully acquiring a premium treasure: Qing Dynasty Kangxi Era Charm Coin!]

[Obtained energy points: 40 points.]

[Current accumulated energy points: 100 points, upgrade conditions met.]

[Upgrade Treasure Hunting Radar range to 20 meters?]

Hu Tian suppressed his inner ecstasy and quickly muttered in his mind, "Upgrade!"

[Upgrading radar...]

[Upgrade complete. Congratulations to the host. Current Treasure Hunting Radar scanning range is 20 meters. Current remaining energy points: 0.]

The next second, the radar interface in his mind vibrated slightly, and a warm current flowed through his entire body.

The original ten-meter scanning range instantly doubled, becoming a huge circular area with him as the center and a radius of twenty meters.

A twenty-meter range!

Hu Tian stood where he was, re-sensing the new radar range.

His field of vision was wider; the area he could scan was almost four times larger than before!

This meant his scanning efficiency would be greatly improved, and those treasures hidden deep away would have nowhere to hide.

Just as Hu Tian was excited about the radar upgrade, the system notification tone rang again: [Congratulations to the host, the Treasure Hunting Radar System has upgraded to Level 1!]

[New function unlocked: Restoration.]

[Function description: The system can automatically identify item flaws and provide detailed restoration suggestions, including cleaning methods, restoration steps, and required tools and materials.]

[Special skill reward: Restoration Master skill.] Just then, a massive stream of information surged into Hu Tian's mind.

Porcelain restoration, bronze rust removal, calligraphy and painting remounting, jade polishing, wood reinforcement...

All kinds of knowledge about antique restoration poured in like a tide—from theory to practice, from tool usage to techniques, he mastered it all.

Those originally obscure and difficult professional terms were now crystal clear in his mind, as if he were an old master who had been immersed in this field for decades.

Hu Tian subconsciously looked at the Kangxi charm coin in his hand. The glaring scratch and heavy rust were no longer problems in his eyes, but tasks waiting to be solved.

Hu Tian was stunned; this ability had come at just the right time!

He looked down at the rusty, scratched Kangxi charm coin in his hand. With a thought, the system interface immediately popped up a detailed restoration plan: [Item: Qing Dynasty Kangxi Era Charm Coin] [Current Condition: 85% Intact] [Main Flaws: Surface covered by approximately 40% oxidized copper rust, local patterns blurred; slight edge wear; deep scratch on the front (man-made damage).]

[Restoration Suggestions: Soak in warm water for 24 hours to soften the surface rust (water temperature controlled at 40-50 degrees; do not make it too high to avoid damaging the patina). Use a soft brush combined with diluted white vinegar (ratio 1:10) to gently brush the rusted areas; avoid using excessive force. Rinse repeatedly with clean water to remove acidic residue. For the scratch: Use a very fine agate knife to gently scrape the edges of the scratch to make it transition naturally with the surrounding patina (requires extremely high skill; operate with caution). Dry with a cotton cloth, apply a thin layer of Vaseline to protect the surface and insulate it from air to prevent further oxidation.]

[Expected Result: After restoration, the condition can be improved to 94%-95%, and the estimated market value can reach 130,000 - 160,000 Yuan.]

Hu Tian gasped; this was too detailed!

It not only pointed out the problems but also provided clear instructions for the specific restoration steps, chemical ratios, and even the method for dealing with that damned scratch.

Moreover, the value would directly double after restoration!

With his current ability as a Restoration Master, although the scratch could not be completely erased, he could skillfully handle it to blend it into the patina, turning waste into treasure.

He suppressed the excitement in his heart.