Pick up bargains in Chinatown and make 10,000 times the profit at the beginning

Chapter 54: The Three Treasures of Prince Beile

Suddenly, Zhou Zhiming's stomach made a few "gurgling" sounds. When he checked the time, he realized it was past dinner time.

Zhou Zhiming asked Lin Yuan: "Brother Lin, it's already very late, shall we go eat first?"

"Speaking of which, I'm a little hungry, so let's go eat!"

Zhou Zhiming suggested going to a Michelin restaurant. He felt that when treating Lin Yuan to a meal, it had to be high-end, but his uncle seemed to have a better choice.

"You have been here for so long and I guess you haven't had any authentic hometown food, right?" the uncle said to Zhou Zhiming and the other students.

Zhou Zhiming shook his head. "I eat it often. When I first came out, I couldn't adapt to the school's food, so I went to find Chinese restaurants. I've been to all the Chinese restaurants around here that are a little bit famous. But how can I put it? I always feel like something is missing."

Uncle: "That means it's not authentic! If a restaurant is a little famous, they usually change the taste to cater to the local customers."

I know a good Sichuan restaurant. Can you guys handle spicy food?"

Everyone nodded, except Zhou Zhiming, who hesitated for a moment and said, "Brother Lin, then you guys go eat first. I'll treat everyone to a big meal another day."

Lin Yuan smiled and said, "Okay! We'll have plenty of opportunities to meet each other in the future."

Zhou Zhiming left in a hurry.

"No, why is he walking towards the dormitory? This is not his school."

Li Qiushui curled her lips: "Can't you see it? Go pick up that cheerleader captain from before!"

Everyone: "..."

They act quickly and are really brave.

Led by his uncle, Li Qiu Shui and his group came to the Sichuan restaurant.

They ate and talked at the same time. Li Qiushui, Qiao Yufan and Huo Qingtong asked about Lin Yuan's schedule for tomorrow. Having tasted the sweetness, they naturally wanted to make more extra money with Lin Yuan.

"Tomorrow? We're going to Los Angeles tomorrow." Lin Yuan told them.

"Brother Lin, can we go with you to broaden our horizons?"

Lin Yuan asked: "You don't have classes tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow is the weekend!" Qiao Yufan replied.

"That's fine! More people means more fun, as long as it doesn't affect your studies." Lin Yuan said that he really didn't care.

Lin Yuan was not unaware of what Li Qiu Shui and the others were thinking.

However, he didn't care. He and his uncle ate the meat anyway, so what if they had some soup? He could take Paul and Henry, two foreigners, with him, so it wouldn't hurt to take his compatriots with him.

When Huo Qingtong and the others heard this, they immediately became happy again.

"To go to Los Angeles, should we take a plane, take a car, or rent a car? I suggest renting a car," Qiao Yufan suggested.

Although airplanes are fast, it still takes quite a bit of time to wait for boarding.

They are only about 500 to 600 kilometers away from Los Angeles. If you drive there, it will take five or six hours. The most important thing is that it will allow Brother Lin, who has just arrived in the United States, to appreciate the scenery along the way.

"Can't we take the high-speed rail?" Lin Yuan asked.

He had previously seen that the first high-speed rail in the United States connected Los Angeles and San Francisco, and was called the "Western Bright Line."

Qiao Yufan explained: "The United States does not have high-speed rail in the true sense. The so-called high-speed rail they have has a maximum speed of only 200 kilometers per hour. To put it bluntly, it is just a bullet train."

As for the so-called Western Bright Line, it is currently under construction, but there is a big question mark as to whether it can be successfully completed.

Anyone who understands the situation in the United States would guess that there is a high probability that this project will become an unfinished project.

When it comes to high-speed rail, Henry and Paul, two true Americans, are too lazy to complain.

Don't even count on the high-speed trains. The subways are a mess.

"Really? Then let's rent a car." Lin Yuan said casually.

After discussing these, everyone agreed on the departure time for tomorrow, and Henry and Paul were responsible for renting the car.

After the meal, everyone dispersed.

Lin Yuan and his uncle were planning to go to Uncle De or Boss Lei's place, but Uncle De sent a message saying that he was downstairs.

"Uncle De is at our doorstep, let's go back quickly." said my uncle.

When they returned, they saw Uncle De playing with the walnuts while talking to an older man. The old man was holding a bird cage with a black bird in it that could talk.

"Okay! Mr. Qi, please come to my shop when you have time." Seeing Lin Yuan and the others coming back, Uncle De stopped the topic in time.

The old man also understood the situation and nodded with a smile: "Okay! We'll talk again when we have time."

The two of them seemed to regret that they met too late.

The old man walked away leisurely.

Lin Yuan stared at the other person's birdcage.

"What are you looking at? Do you like raising birds? I'll take you to the flower and bird market someday." The uncle said to Lin Yuan, thinking that Lin Yuan liked birds.

He didn't think the black bird was pretty, and if he wanted to raise a bird, he would raise a canary, a parrot or something brightly colored.

Uncle De laughed and scolded: "You only have eyes for that bird? Xiaolin likes someone else's bird cage."

He admired Lin Yuan's vision even more.

This young man has a very sharp eye! It seems that he often picks up bargains these days, not just because of luck, but also because of his strong ability and huge potential.

The uncle then realized: "Is that bird cage a treasure?"

He knew that some people collected bird cages, and some of them were indeed very valuable.

There was a nursery rhyme during the Qing Dynasty: "Lord Beile has three treasures in his hand: a ring, a walnut, and a bird in a cage."

The Chinese have been playing with birds for at least a thousand years.

According to historical records, the phenomenon of raising birds in cages began to appear in the Spring and Autumn Period. By the Tang Dynasty, the Chinese people had gradually formed a trend of keeping birds. After the Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties, raising birds and playing with cages had become a very common popular leisure and cultural activity.

As a tool for raising birds, bird cages have undergone thousands of years of changes. From being used simply for raising birds in the beginning, they have gradually evolved into pleasing handicrafts.

"That should be a Nanlong." Lin Yuan said.

Uncle De applauded and praised, "That's right! Xiaolin has vision and insight."

There are many schools of bird cage making in China. Generally speaking, bird cages are mainly divided into two major factions: the southern school and the northern school.

If we break it down, it includes the Beijing School, Shanghai School, Sichuan School, Jiangsu School, Guangdong School, Zhejiang School, etc. Moreover, each region has a distinct regional characteristic. The craftsmanship of bird cage making in different places, such as appearance, carving, materials and specifications, etc., are unique to the artists in each place.

Among all kinds of bird cages, bamboo bird cages are the most tasteful and common. This is related to the spiritual connotation of "high moral character" given to bamboo by the Chinese.

However, bamboo is easy to obtain and very cheap, so in the eyes of some collectors, bird cages made of precious materials such as rosewood, ivory, and mahogany are the best.

Bird cages made of rosewood, mahogany, ivory and other materials have always been special varieties in traditional crafts. In recent years, the prices of these precious materials have risen, especially ivory, which has long been banned from use, so collectors often like to choose this type of bird cage as their collection.

"Uncle De, please stop praising me. Everyone can tell that it's Nanlong!" Lin Yuan said helplessly.

Uncle De raised his finger and pointed: "He doesn't know."

Uncle: “…”

(End of this chapter)