50s: Starting with a storage ring

Chapter 479 I want them all
After reminding the Beijing Hotel, Sun Zhiwei successfully checked into a single room on the 10th floor.

After putting his suitcase in the room, he went downstairs to the counter to exchange $1 in foreign exchange certificates, and then walked to the square with a small backpack.

It wasn't until the afternoon that he turned into the National Museum next to the square.

After touring the museum, he was led by staff to the foreign visitor service department. The process felt familiar to him.

Upon closer reflection, isn't this just like the tourist shops at the exit of modern scenic spots after the tour? So this process already exists!

The staff member, with a stiff expression, introduced the various calligraphy and paintings hanging on the wall. Although they rarely sell, this step still had to be taken.

But after his introduction, the Hong Kong businessman in front of him showed great interest in the calligraphy and paintings on the wall and began to ask him questions about them.

Seeing that things were looking promising, the staff were overjoyed and began to introduce the products with even greater enthusiasm.

Sun Zhiwei lived up to expectations and bought seven or eight paintings recommended by the staff, but the total price of these seven or eight paintings was less than 100 yuan.

After he paid and received the packaged calligraphy and painting from the staff, he asked the staff to call the head of the service department.

"I really like these calligraphy and paintings. I wonder if there are any restrictions if I buy them in bulk?"

"Restrictions? There are no restrictions at all. These are all items that the country allows to be bought, sold, and exported." The person in charge was not wrong.

At that time, the state's propaganda on cultural relics was: "Cultural relics are considered waste products. We encourage exchanging old for new. Exporting cultural relics abroad can earn foreign exchange to support national construction."

As a result, in the past two years, antique shops have begun to acquire cultural relics from the public on a large scale, sometimes collecting a truckload in a single day.

But at this time, the purchase price was very cheap. Ordinary cultural relics were usually only a few yuan each. A collection point could collect hundreds of items a day, and sometimes they couldn't even spend the 200 yuan advance payment for the purchase.

After the collected cultural relics are appraised, those with high value are sent to the head office and then distributed to museums and research institutions in various regions.

The rest would be divided into three categories. The first-class items would be sold in the store's 'inner counters,' usually upstairs, exclusively for high-ranking officials and well-known cultural figures.

The second category is sold in the "China OTC market" and is aimed at the general public.

The third category consists of mass-produced goods that can be exported and sold in stores; these are what are known as 'outer shelves'.

The paintings and calligraphy in the museum that can be considered cultural relics are all kept inside. What is put out for sale are the stockpiled inventory, which are mostly works by modern painters.

Many painters are not only alive, but also very prolific, making a living from their work and often exchanging their paintings for money at art shops.

This resulted in a large backlog of modern paintings in the warehouse.

As you can tell from the prices listed here, these paintings and calligraphy works were not cheap when they were acquired back then. Even a small piece would cost the painter tens of yuan.

Now we have no choice but to sell at a loss and go on a fire sale.

When Sun Zhiwei heard the person in charge say that there were no restrictions, he stopped pretending and said directly to the person in charge, "How many do you have here? I'll take them all."

These words stunned not only the person in charge but also several staff members standing nearby.

After a short while, the person in charge realized what was going on and sincerely said to Sun Zhiwei, "We have too many calligraphy and paintings here. I suggest you choose the ones you like to buy."

The person in charge was worried that he didn't have enough money. "How many paintings and calligraphies do you have here? Could you give me a rough estimate? How much would it cost to buy them all?"

“Sir, we have more than 9000 paintings and calligraphy works here. If you want to buy them all, it will cost at least 20 yuan.”

"20, that's alright. How about this, I'll pay a deposit first, then we'll sign a contract, and we'll complete the transaction once I get the rest of the money. What do you think?"

"Sir, are you sure you want to buy all the calligraphy and paintings here?"

"Yes, I'm sure. I really like these works, and as you just said, there are no restrictions on this kind of transaction."

"As long as I have the money, a fair buy and sell transaction is all that matters. What is there to hesitate about?"

The person in charge thought it made sense; as long as the other party paid a deposit, even if the transaction didn't go through, they could still make money from the deposit.

The cost they incurred was simply to package the calligraphy and paintings.

After thinking it through, the person in charge readily signed the purchase contract with Sun Zhiwei, and Sun Zhiwei left the entire 9915 yuan as a deposit.

The two parties agreed to complete the transaction three days later, and then Sun Zhiwei left with the seven or eight paintings and calligraphy pieces he had just purchased.

Back at the Beijing Hotel, he showed the front desk the purchase contract and explained that he needed to exchange tens of thousands of US dollars in two days, so that they could prepare in advance.

This is similar to how you need to make an appointment in advance to withdraw a large sum of cash from a bank. The Beijing Hotel is not a bank and cannot possibly keep hundreds of thousands of foreign exchange certificates on hand at all times.

As for exchanging the currency himself at the bank, that would be much more troublesome, requiring many procedures and proofs. It would be much more convenient to exchange it directly at the Beijing Hotel.

Around dinner time, Sun Zhiwei left the Beijing Hotel to go home for dinner.

After dinner, he explained to his family that he would be away from home for the next few days, and that night he stayed on the 10th floor of the Beijing Hotel to rest.

For the next two days, Sun Zhiwei continued to wander around various tourist attractions during the day and went back to the Beijing Hotel to sleep at night.

On the morning of the third day, he came down from the tenth floor with a backpack full of US dollars and exchanged them for 20 yuan in foreign exchange certificates at the hotel's exchange counter.

Then he was about to leave the hotel with a bag of money to complete the transaction. Upon hearing this, the hotel manager even sent someone to escort him to the nearby National Museum.

We can't refuse to deliver it. The customer is carrying so much money; if he gets robbed on the street, he'll be held responsible.

Fortunately, the museum was just across the street; otherwise, he might have sent armed guards from the hotel to follow Sun Zhiwei.

Today is the agreed transaction date, and the head of the foreign visitor service department has been anxiously waiting at the counter since the museum opened.

Even the museum director has sent people to wait here, ready to get the latest news and report it to the director at any time.

When they saw Sun Zhiwei carrying a backpack and being escorted in by two staff members in Beijing Hotel uniforms, the head of the foreign guests service department felt relieved.

He warmly stepped forward, shook hands with Sun Zhiwei, and then said to him, "These past few days, we mobilized all our employees to work overtime, and finally we finished packaging all the calligraphy and paintings."

Sun Zhiwei followed him to the back warehouse, where eighteen antique rosewood chests were already placed, each chest filled to the brim.

(End of this chapter)