Chapter 616 - 6: Antique Street (Part 2)
The purchase price offered by the Gold Recycling Company is generally somewhat lower than the market price. If it’s 999 pure gold, the company can offer a price of 750 yuan per gram, with the seller bearing the cost of any losses due to testing.
Chen Zhou’s gold bar was not pure enough. After some negotiation, it was finally only bought back at 720 yuan per gram, which is more than forty yuan below the market price per gram, resulting in nearly 20,000 yuan less for the whole bar.
Although Chen Zhou knew that Manager Sun had made quite a bit of money off him, there were no other channels for selling and he urgently needed the money, so he had to agree to this quote.
After carefully reviewing the transaction contract handed over by Manager Sun and confirming there were no traps, Chen Zhou took out the second gold bar.
After testing, they signed the contract, and Manager Sun quickly transferred the sale proceeds minus the loss fees to Chen Zhou’s card.
...
While working at the cement factory, Chen Zhou rarely spent money, but he occasionally had the impulse to buy the latest smartphone, spend on games, or purchase some flashy things on online shopping platforms.
To avoid spending his money recklessly on meaningless things, Chen Zhou would transfer his salary to his mother every few months.
Zhao Chunfang is known as a "frugal woman." To buy fresh vegetables at a cheaper price, she could wake up at four in the morning to be among the first at the morning market. She could also walk two blocks in the summer heat to the supermarket to snap up discounted eggs and detergent.
The Chen family was able to buy this old residential building, thanks to her careful planning and savings.
Such a person, who wouldn’t even buy herself a red outfit for her own birthday, would not touch her son’s salary, let alone use the money for investments or business.
She would just put the money her son painstakingly earned into a fixed-term savings account at the bank, to be taken out when he needed it for marriage or buying a house.
In the first half of the year leading up to his challenge, Chen Zhou hadn’t transferred any money to his mother. By the time he resigned, he still had 31,000 yuan in his account — the money he had saved from the start of the year to September.
For the former Chen Zhou, over 30,000 yuan wasn’t a small sum.
But now, looking at the long string of numbers, 749,655, sent by mobile banking, even after enduring more than fifty years of life’s journey, Chen Zhou still felt a bit disoriented.
His parents’ life savings were just sitting in his bank account.
Seeing this figure, and recalling the setbacks and hardships faced during the challenge, Chen Zhou felt it was all particularly worthwhile at that moment.
...
More than fifty years as a leader had long taught Chen Zhou to keep his emotions hidden, and sitting across from him, Manager Sun only saw him cast a casual glance at his phone screen, unable to detect Chen Zhou’s bewilderment or hidden joy.
Politely pouring the last cup of tea for the discreet major client, Manager Sun exchanged a few words unrelated to gold and arranged to have a meal together in a few days before respectfully escorting Chen Zhou out of the company.
It wasn’t until he watched Chen Zhou take a taxi away that he withdrew the stiff smile on his face, replacing it with a genuine grin.
Despite appearances that the gold market was stabilizing, it was temporary. Based on market trends, the gold price certainly wouldn’t stay at 760 yuan per gram for long, and it might spike again by year’s end.
He had already made nearly 50,000 yuan from this transaction alone, and in a few months, that 50,000 could grow even further.
To earn such a profit just by saying a few words sitting in the office — how could he not be pleased?
Even more thrilling was the realization that this major client apparently had more gold in hand than just this. If he hosted a dinner in a few days, talked more closely, said a few flattering words, and offered some small incentives, he might fulfill his annual targets.
...
With money in hand, one naturally feels secure.
More than 700,000 yuan was enough to buy an old building with a basement in a small town and add a few safes, giving the gold a place to be stored with this money.
Sitting in the taxi, many of Chen Zhou’s worries dissipated with the arrival of the funds.
Handling the four gold coins in his hand, feeling the heavy weight of gold, and staring idly out the car window, he soon arrived at the city’s Antique Street.
Vehicles were not allowed on the street. Chen Zhou got out at the street entrance, gazing inward, where storefronts like Yunshi Studio, Treasure Pavilion, Antique Garden, and Ancient Residence, with their quaint and unique signs, caught his eye.
However, in sharp contrast to these exquisite signs were the sparse pedestrians and several shops with locked doors.
Evidently, the antiques business was not thriving, as the traditional culture appreciated by older generations was not embraced by today’s youth.
As times progressed, young people had their preferred collectibles, while the antique business, popular only among middle-aged and older groups, faced significant impact.
Further compounded by rampant counterfeits and fraudsters, novice entrants into the antique trade paid a hefty tuition fee.
In the long run, both street stalls and goods within antique shops were considered modern crafts with no appreciation potential, causing the shops to hardly have any customers.
Hongshan City lacked a strong traditional cultural atmosphere and couldn’t compare to known large domestic markets like Jingbei’s Pan Garden, Zhengzhou Antique City, or Shanghai Dongtai Road, making its current state seem even more dilapidated.
...
The antique shopkeepers differed from those selling on the street, staying put indoors without going out to hawk their goods.
Chen Zhou, sporting not a single handled piece, nor a jade pendant around his neck, nor a bracelet on his wrist, looked every bit like a fresh graduate, seemingly unrelated to the antique business.
As he walked down Antique Street, it felt as if he were invisible; neither the old folks on the street nor the clerks in the stores bothered to look at him.
Feeling a bit embarrassed by the lack of attention, Chen Zhou was hesitant to proactively inquire.
After walking around the street twice, he finally stopped in front of a store named Yulan Pavilion, looking at the bright yellow sign that resembled "pineapple wood," and stepped up into the store.
The inside of Yulan Pavilion was dimly lit and not too spacious. A row of shelves lined each side of the shop filled mostly with porcelain antiques, save for a few bronze pieces, some pottery, and small items that Chen Zhou didn’t recognize.
A few spotlights illuminated several massive blue and white porcelains, making them look rather expensive.
The modern glass display cases in front of the shelves starkly contrasted with the antique vibe of the wooden shelves.
However, the small artifacts within the display cases seemed more reliable than the porcelains and bronzes, appearing as items ordinary people could afford.
Chen Zhou glanced inside, spotting both chicken blood stone stamps, which the city is known for, and some small jade handled pieces, exquisite carvings in ivory and bone, among other things.
Under the lights, the textures and silky gloss on the handled pieces looked particularly enticing.
Especially one oval, chicken-oil-like yellow and bright handled piece immediately captivated Chen Zhou, sparking a rare impulse to purchase it.
It wasn’t because the handled piece stood out in color among the numerous cultural items, but rather because the small jade stone was carved into a figure not traditionally depicted for good luck, but a dog.
Its floppy ears, curled limbs, and vibrant yellow color reminded Chen Zhou of Lai Fu.
Lingering in front of the handled piece, gripping the gold coins in his hand, Chen Zhou turned his head to find the shop owner after about ten seconds, intending to ask for the price, ready to buy it if it wasn’t outrageously expensive.
Only after turning his head did he realize there was only one person in the shop, and that person had been silently watching him for a long while.
Sitting by the cash register at the furthest part of the store was a short-haired young woman.
She appeared to be around twenty-two or three, with a ruddy oval face, no powder, or lipstick, her messy dark hair hanging loose. Her clear almond-shaped eyes looked curiously at Chen Zhou, seemingly wondering why someone who didn’t appear connected to the antiques business would enter the store.
Ignoring her gaze, Chen Zhou pointed at the handled piece in the display case and directly asked for the price.
"Boss, how much is this?"