Era: Starting from divorce from female college student

Chapter 208: My parents are dead, I need to burn some paper if I have any questions!

On February 5, 1960, the ninth day of the first lunar month, snow fell again in Beijing.

The snowflakes were not big, but they seemed to bring hope to people. After all, the sky was gloomy at this time, and it looked like it might snow heavily.

For the past 59 years, the whole country has been in drought for so long and has suffered from extreme water shortage.

Therefore, if it were to snow heavily in the capital at this time, it would be a really good thing.

Zhao Mancang stepped on the snow and walked quickly towards Xizhimen Pigeon Market.

A few days ago, he helped complete an operation and turned and left the operating room in the surprised eyes of Hua Yunlong and others.

Zhao Mancang had long been accustomed to celebrations without cheers.

After that, his life returned to normal. He trained and went home every day. It was not until this morning that he thought about dealing with the 260,000 yuan in cash in the system space.

In fact, for Zhao Mancang, there was no need to deal with the 260,000 yuan in cash.

The reason why he came to Pigeon City was actually to try his luck and see if it was possible to meet tool people like Yuan Yushan and Ma Jiugong again.

From January 21st to now, Zhao Mancang has been staying at home with Lin Wan and the others for half a month. Although it is not a long time, he also has to do some of his own things.

When Zhao Mancang walked into Pigeon City and saw nearly five hundred people inside, he was stunned.

Is it so rampant now?
In fact, he didn't know that no one was in charge of Pigeon City now, and even the patrolling armband team was nowhere to be seen.

It’s not that we don’t care, but that we can’t care.

There are even temporary farmers' markets outside Beijing. This is something Zhao Mancang only found out after entering Pigeon City.

If he had known this earlier, he would have come out to the market earlier.

There are many goods sold at the stalls, but they are basically food, and most people still use barter.

To be more precise, they all wanted to exchange food.

Last year, there was a serious food shortage and the price of food in Pigeon City kept rising.

If Zhao Mancang had not transported more grain and large trucks from abroad, and allowed Ma Jiugong and others to owe part of the money, the food shortage in the capital would have been even more serious.

Last year, the capital city mobilized only 2.6 billion jin of grain from other places, 100 million jin less than the previous year.

It’s not that we are reluctant to mobilize more food, but that we need to distribute more food to places that need it more.

The rural areas around the capital were also short of food. Many people wanted to go to Yanshan to hunt or pick wild vegetables, but it was useless.

There are not many wild animals in the mountains. Only in September and October, when migratory birds from the north migrate south, is it possible to encounter migratory birds that are temporarily resting.

But how can these migratory birds that can fly in the sky be caught so easily?
So many people can only stare blankly.

They are not Big Black and Little Black, they have first-class hunting ability.

"Comrade, what is this? How much is it?"

Zhao Mancang walked around and saw someone selling Chinese medicines such as Polygonum multiflorum and ginseng, so he squatted down and asked.

Of course he knew Chinese medicinal herbs like Polygonum multiflorum, but he didn't recognize the piece of animal skin next to it. It looked like the skin of a roe deer, but there were no velvet antlers or antlers.

There are many treasures in the mountains, which are Chinese medicinal materials, such as deer antlers, which have the effects of strengthening muscles and bones, promoting blood circulation and reducing swelling, and warming the kidney yang. They are suitable for treating kidney deficiency, muscle and bone pain and other diseases.

"This is deerskin."

When the old comrade who was setting up a stall looked up, Zhao Mancang could see the wrinkles on his face, which were as crisscrossed as mountains and ravines, and a bit scary.

To be honest, Zhao Mancang had met quite a few people, but this was the first time he had seen an old man with so many wrinkles on his face.

The other person's skin was a bit dark, and he seemed to be an old hunter.

Of course, people have displayed Chinese medicinal materials such as deerskin, Polygonum multiflorum, and ginseng, which almost reveals his identity.

The old comrade wants to exchange for food, preferably sweet potatoes and corn flour. If that is not possible, then rice will also be fine.

For a northerner, eating rice is a helpless act.

Because the price of wheat flour has always been very expensive, even old hunters do not have that much spare money to buy food.

What's more, the market environment at the moment is like this. Food shortage is very serious and the price of flour is rising again and again.

Sweet potatoes and corn flour are both coarse grains. Even if the prices rise, they are still food that ordinary people can afford.

The bag in Zhao Mancang's hand could naturally contain sweet potatoes and corn flour.

Now his system space can hold 200 million kilograms of grain at a time. In a small market like Pigeon City, the items obtained or traded can easily be accommodated.

After completing the transaction with the old comrade, Zhao Mancang continued to stroll around.

He traded away Polygonum multiflorum, deerskin, ginseng, etc. These are all good things that may not be used in normal times, but when you really need them, you may be more than happy to get them.

So if you encounter it, just take it down. Anyway, it is stored in the system space, so there won’t be any problems.

"Comrade, do you have any food left? I'd like to exchange it with you."

Before he had taken a few steps, Zhao Mancang was stopped by someone. It was a middle-aged man who looked very thin. He was holding an empty flour bag and looking at him expectantly.

The other party probably saw the transaction between him and the old comrade, so he quickly stepped forward to stop him.

In today's pigeon market, food is the real hard currency, and everything else is empty.

"Oh, what do you have?" Zhao Mancang raised his eyebrows and showed an interested expression.

The result was exactly as he expected. The other party was indeed an old man.

The reason why Zhao Mancang came to Pigeon City to stroll around was naturally not because he was really bored. In addition to wanting to see if it was possible to meet an experience value tool, he also wanted to see if it was possible to meet those old people.

These old people have a lot of good things in their hands, and gold bars and antiques are the most valuable things in their hands.

Although, there are indeed many good things among the antiques. Zhao Mancang naturally wants to go shopping to see if he can find any good things.

The other party was quite proactive. He introduced himself as Wu, and then asked how much grain Zhao Mancang had. He wanted as much as he could.

Hearing the other party's outspokenness, Zhao Mancang couldn't help but laugh and said:

"I do have hundreds of thousands of kilograms of grain. Comrade Wu, can you really eat it all?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the old man and young man surnamed Wu were stunned, their faces full of disbelief.

Damn it, are there really hundreds of thousands of kilograms of grain?
Seeing that the other party didn't believe him, Zhao Mancang didn't get angry. He smiled and shook his head, "Since you don't believe it, then forget it. Tell me what valuable treasures you have. Otherwise, I won't sell my grain to you casually."

As for gold, Zhao Mancang already has a lot of it, so it is dispensable. However, he can look at antiques. If he can find something good, he will definitely not let it go.

At this point in time, it can be said that it is the only time for him to purchase a large number of high-quality antiques. After one or two years, even if he wants to buy some antiques, it is estimated that there will be no way.

It is almost impossible to sell truly top-quality antiques unless the family has fallen on hard times.

As for when the Siberian cold wind passes through, it is possible that top-quality antiques will appear at that time, but if Zhao Mancang wants to obtain such top-quality antiques at that time, he will probably have to use some means.

"I have money, small yellow croakers, and antiques"

Hearing what the Qing Dynasty veteran surnamed Wu said, Zhao Mancang directly pointed out that he was interested in antiques, but did not need money or gold.

Zhao Mancang's words immediately surprised the old man surnamed Wu, but he was very happy in his heart.

why?

Because the antique business is almost synonymous with fraud and deception, and Wu Xinqi used to specialize in the sale of fake antiques.

During the Anti-Japanese War, Wu Xinqi and other old people were often cheated. Many of their good things were snatched away by the Japanese devils like Kimura at gunpoint.

There was no way. Soldiers Kimura had traitors leading the way. These traitors were quite hateful. They also knew that Wu Xinqi and his group of old men had a large number of antiques, and they were extremely precious antiques.

In order to enrich themselves and to please the soldiers of Kimura, the Japanese invaders did a lot of harm to Wu Xinqi and other old people.

Finally, Wu Xinqi and others were forced into a corner and directly started the counterfeiting mode, bringing out many counterfeits that could deceive experts and even many antique collectors who had been around for decades and might not be able to tell the authenticity.

This can also be said to be the case that Wu Xinqi and his group had deceived a lot of Kimura soldiers back then.

Because of the fraud, there are still many counterfeits in Wu Xinqi's house. He has been worrying about how to sell these things. He didn't expect that Zhao Mancang would actually come to his door. This is really a case of searching for something in vain!

So Wu Xinqi was very happy and rushed home with Zhao Mancang.

Yongxiang East Lane near Xizhimen is actually not very far from Zhao Mancang's Dongguanying Hutong.

After Wu Xinqi brought Zhao Mancang to this alley, he asked the latter to wait in the alley while he went home to get the antiques.

"They don't dare to take me back. It seems there is something strange."

Watching the other party leave, Zhao Mancang immediately smiled and guessed secretly.

He has dealt with many old people and young people, such as Wu Siwei introduced by Meng Deqing, and many Run people, among whom there are probably many old people and young people.

Of course, the group of the old and the young is quite large. Some of them have already become capitalists, while others are still at the stage of cheating, deceiving, and living a life of idleness and waiting to die.

After a while, Wu Xinqi came over holding several antiques.

"Comrade Li, these antiques are all great things. Look at this piece of jade, isn't it beautiful?"

As soon as he arrived, Wu Xinqi couldn't wait to take out a piece of jade and show it to Zhao Mancang under the light of a kerosene lamp.

The latter only took one look and concluded that this thing was a fake and not a real antique.

Although his current antique appreciation skill is only level three, it is enough for the time being.

Besides, he didn't want to be an antique expert, but he needed to find some top-quality antique treasures. Since Wu Xinqi was so wary, forget it.

"Comrade Wu, this thing is indeed a good one, but I'm not very interested. I want to ask if you have any extremely valuable antiques?"

The words were not said very directly, but Wu Xinqi was originally in the antique business. When he heard what Zhao Mancang said, he immediately knew that the other party was definitely an expert.

He immediately put away his contempt and felt speechless about the batch of counterfeits in his hands. It seemed that they could not be sold again.

"Comrade Li, what kind of antique do you want? If I don't have it, I can ask for it for you."

"Comrade Wu, my needs are simple. I want some antiques like calligraphy and paintings used by the emperor, jade, and so on. I know they'll be expensive, but that's okay. As long as we can reach an agreement, I can still afford the price."

After a pause, Zhao Mancang continued:

"But I'm saying this right up front. If it doesn't meet my requirements, don't blame me for finding fault."

How could Wu Xinqi dare to underestimate the other party again? He immediately smiled and nodded, agreeing to the matter.

However, since this was their first meeting, Zhao Mancang didn't let the other party make a wasted trip. "I'm not very interested in these things of yours, but if you're willing to give me a fair price, I can take them all."

"Really?" Wu Xinqi didn't expect there would be a sudden turn of events. He was overjoyed and immediately quoted prices for these fakes.

Zhao Mancang shook his head upon hearing this and said, "Comrade Wu, I'm sorry. I gave you the opportunity, but you couldn't seize it."

He simply felt that these fakes were so realistic that ordinary people would not be able to tell the difference. For example, the blood fat jade was not real natural blood jade at all.

In ancient times, people believed that a gentleman should be compared to his virtue by wearing jade, and many people liked to wear jade to symbolize their noble character.

So many people know that Hetian jade and Lantian jade are priceless jades, and in ancient times there were jades with blood-red infiltration. Because ancient jade with red infiltration is priceless, and things are precious because they are rare, so such blood jade is the best thing that others dream of.

The origin of blood jade actually comes from folk legends.

During the feudal dynasty, many people believed in ghosts and gods. Some people thought that although the soul was immortal after death, the mortal body would decay.

Therefore, in order to prevent the body from decaying, a piece of jade, also called a jade plug, would be placed in the seven orifices of the dying person.

After the person takes his last breath, the jade in his mouth will immediately enter the throat of the corpse.

After who knows how many years, this piece of jade will produce a strange blood-red color after absorbing the rotten blood of the corpse, which is the legendary blood jade.

Such priceless blood jade is also the antique that tomb robbers are most keen to find.

Real blood jade is naturally hard to come by, because it takes an extremely long time. Not many people are willing to wait, nor can they wait.

With such a huge demand, naturally some people take risks and create the so-called fake blood jade.

It was mentioned in the "Yu Ji" of the Qing Dynasty that jade merchants used the juice of rainbow grass to artificially infiltrate jade.

However, rainbow grass is scarce and not inexhaustible. In the end, those unscrupulous merchants began to think of using living creatures to grow jade.

This includes the lamb leg jade in Wu Xinqi's hand, as well as the famous dog belly jade.

In short, to put it simply, antique counterfeit dealers like Wu Xinqi have many ways to commit counterfeiting.

Real blood jade is completely different from lamb leg jade, dog belly jade or rainbow grass jade.

Last but not least, Zhao Mancang is not interested in blood jade at all.

Instead of wearing good jade, he has to wear blood jade used by a dead person. Aren't you a stupid fool?

In any case, Zhao Mancang would not want these things. Besides, jade is not valuable nowadays, and it is not a large jade ornament. Otherwise, what is the point of getting it?

"Comrade Li, please give me another chance. I'll at least be able to make some money, right?"

When Wu Xinqi heard this, he immediately panicked.

He didn't expect that Zhao Mancang had such a sharp eye, but the other party didn't know at all that Zhao Mancang simply didn't like blood jade. Zhao Mancang only vaguely noticed that something was wrong with the other antiques, but he couldn't tell what was wrong.

The reason why Zhao Mancang wanted to buy these fakes was certainly not for fun or anything else, but simply to sell them to foreigners and make some pocket money.

Foreigners are quite interested in our antiques at the University of Tokyo.

Therefore, if Zhao Mancang deceived the other party a little, it was possible that the other party would be deceived in an instant.

If it was to cheat his own people, Zhao Mancang would certainly not be interested, but if it was to cheat foreigners, he would certainly be very interested.

After exchanging a few words with Wu Xinqi, Zhao Mancang finally spent only 50 kilograms of corn flour to buy these fake antiques from the other party.

There are as many as fifteen antiques, including blood jade.

The two agreed to meet at the same time tomorrow, at the same place, Yongxiang East Lane.

After separating from Wu Xinqi, Zhao Mancang returned to Pigeon City and continued trading with others.

"Huh? What's going on?"

After walking around for a while, Zhao Mancang saw several people watching, and then he saw several children kneeling on the ground, with some crooked words written on the ground in front of them with branches.

They just wanted to get some food so that the four siblings could work.

They came to Pigeon City to find jobs, or to be more precise, they came here to sell their younger brothers and sisters, but they used "finding jobs" as a euphemism, which shows that children who can write have great self-esteem.

Zhao Mancang took a look, shook his head and prepared to leave.

Just as he turned around, his heart softened, and he took out four sweet potatoes from the bag in his hand and put them down, encouragingly:
"come on!"

He didn't need any little brats to help him with his work, but the four siblings in front of him were really pitiful, so he was soft-hearted for a moment and just did his bit to help.

"Thank you, thank you, big brother, we can really work, we are not afraid of hardship." The eldest sister among the four siblings looked to be seven or eight years old, very thin. Zhao Mancang estimated that she might not even weigh forty kilograms.

Seeing the other party kowtow continuously, Zhao Mancang felt deeply moved, alas!

He took out four more sweet potatoes and said:
"I don't need working kids. Where are your parents? Why did they let you out here?"

Of the four siblings in front of me, the eldest sister looks seven or eight years old. She is not tall, thin, unkempt, and wears thin clothes. The other three children are also around three, four, five or six years old. They huddle together, shivering, and trying to keep each other warm.

But a kind person must have given them two old clothes just now. Now they were kneeling on the straw mat wrapped in clothes, with only their pitiful little faces exposed.

It does look pitiful anyway.

"My parents are dead. Big brother, please, we are really able to work. We..."

The eldest sister was still kowtowing with a pleading look on her face.

The four siblings had been in Pigeon City for several days and had only encountered two opportunities. One was when a kind aunt they met a few days ago gave them two old clothes.

But the aunt didn't need the four siblings to help with the work, so they were rejected.

The second chance is Zhao Mancang now. There are eight sweet potatoes in total, and they are quite large. If it weren’t for the eldest sister suppressing them, I’m afraid the three little guys would have stepped forward to take the sweet potatoes and eat them.

Zhao Mancang was speechless. He didn't want to get into trouble. He was just being kind for a moment.

My parents are dead, so I need to burn some paper!
In this day and age, it is really surprising that the four siblings are still alive.

But, given their current situation, how long can they live?

He left four more sweet potatoes, giving a total of twelve sweet potatoes to the four siblings, and then Zhao Mancang left cruelly.

Watching Zhao Mancang leave, eldest sister Hu Xiaocao's eyes dimmed.

But her three younger brothers and sisters didn't care about that. They looked at the twelve sweet potatoes in front of them eagerly and asked, "Big sister, can we eat sweet potatoes?"

Just as Hu Xiaocao was about to pull the twelve sweet potatoes in front of her and share them with her younger brothers and sisters, an auntie next to her rushed out and pushed Hu Xiaocao away:
"Little beggar, get out, this is mine"

Wow!
Hu Xiaocao was pushed to the ground in an instant, but she immediately got up again, with a fierce look in her eyes, and walked forward to bite the aunt.

However, her youngest brother Hu Xiaoming was frightened and burst into tears immediately.

Her two sisters did the same, crying as they came forward to help. They just wanted to get back the sweet potatoes that belonged to them.

But they were just children, how could they be a match for that aunt?
The aunt took one sweet potato in each hand and quickly pushed Hu Xiaocao and her two sisters away. Then she quickly picked up the twelve big sweet potatoes and prepared to leave with a happy look on her face.

But before the aunt had taken a few steps, she was blocked by Zhao Mancang.

"Comrade, isn't this too much?" Zhao Mancang said with a cold look on his face and a very unfriendly tone.

He had good intentions, but he didn't expect to cause trouble for the four siblings.

"What's wrong with me? These sweet potatoes are already on the ground, why can't I take them?" The aunt was a little scared at first, but when she saw that Zhao Mancang had no intention of taking action, she immediately became tough again.

"Put down these sweet potatoes, apologize to them, and leave!"

Zhao Mancang said in a cold voice, his eyes were like knives, and he wished that all his energy could turn into swords and slash at the aunt in front of him.

This kind of person is really too much!
It is said that strange things emerge in troubled times, and this is indeed true.

Faced with the aggressive Zhao Mancang, the aunt wanted to leave stubbornly, but how could Zhao Mancang let her get her wish?
Just as Zhao Mancang stepped forward to take action, the aunt fell to the ground and burst into tears.

At this time, several people came over, but they just watched from a distance and had no intention of saying anything.

Hu Xiaocao and her four siblings were trembling, with complex emotions such as hatred, expectation, and fear in their eyes.

Snapped!
The other party wanted to throw a tantrum, but Zhao Mancang naturally would not be fooled and just slapped him.

Then, without caring about the other party's reaction, he quickly took the bag of food and stood up.

"It's shameful for you to steal other people's children's food!"

After saying that, Zhao Mancang was about to leave, but the aunt suddenly panicked and hurriedly hugged his thighs, asking Zhao Mancang to leave the bag of grain.

There were her own sweet potatoes in it, so how could she be willing to let Zhao Mancang take them away?

Zhao Mancang doesn't care about this.

After warning the aunt, Zhao Mancang handed the bag of grain to Hu Xiaocao and said:
"You guys should leave here quickly. Don't worry, she won't dare to chase you."

Hu Xiaocao was a little panicked and didn't know what to do.

But at Zhao Mancang's signal, she still took the bag of grain, then knelt on the ground and kowtowed to Zhao Mancang several times.

This scene made Zhao Mancang feel very sad.

Children without parents are as worthless as grass and can be bullied by anyone.

After watching the four siblings leave Pigeon City, Zhao Mancang did not leave immediately, but continued to stare at the aunt.

It was not until a long while later that Zhao Mancang turned around and left Pigeon City.

After this happened, he no longer had the heart to continue shopping.

Logically speaking, Ma Jiugong and his team bought a lot of grain from him, and China Resources Company also bought a lot of grain from abroad. Even if the capital is short of food, there should be a limit.

As it turns out, the situation here is far beyond Zhao Mancang's imagination.

In fact, before 1959, the gold reserves in the original time and space were more than 4 million ounces, but by 1962, there were only more than 3 million left.

That is to say, in a very short period of time, gold reserves decreased by more than one million ounces.

In this time and space, even though Zhao Mancang brought back millions of ounces of gold and some US dollar cash from abroad, his pseudonym "Comrade Li" also brought back a lot of valuable computers, atomic bomb equipment, advanced technologies, etc.

That’s it, if the leaders behind Zhao Mancang and Ma Jiugong had not proposed to establish a cooperative relationship, set up a factory in Beijing to supply Wanjia Supermarket.

Otherwise, Zhao Mancang would not dare to let them owe him nearly 500 million US dollars in payment for goods.

Let’s not talk about other things, just take the twelve F104 supersonic fighter jets, each fighter jet sells for million US dollars, isn’t that expensive?

This is not expensive anymore, it’s super cheap.

It can also be said to be a big sale at a low price, otherwise Ma Jiugong and his team simply cannot afford it.

Even so, the total price of twelve such fighter jets is 420 million US dollars.

There are also three IBM 709 and IBM 7090 computers, each costing US$ million, for a total of US$ million.

The 150 tons of gold that Zhao Mancang brought back before the Spring Festival, which is 5.2 million ounces, is only worth 200 million US dollars.

Therefore, just the three computers and twelve supersonic fighter jets mentioned above are worth one billion US dollars, which requires at least five hundred and fifty tons of gold.

However, how could Ma Jiugong and his men come up with so much gold or US dollars?

So, what else can we do besides owing it?

This shows how scarce the gold reserves in our mainland are.

How is it possible to develop atomic bombs, repay debts, and purchase food without sufficient gold reserves and without any way to obtain more US dollars?
Therefore, in this time and space, China Resources Company did not actually purchase much food from abroad, at least it could not be compared with the original time and space.

It is also because of this that the situation of Hu Xiaocao and her four siblings appeared in front of Zhao Mancang.

The reason why he didn't show up before was because Zhao Mancang was either abroad or stayed in Courtyard No. 7, Denglai Hutong after returning to China. He rarely went out. How could he know the real situation?

After returning to No. 7 Courtyard of Denglai Hutong, Zhao Mancang had completely kept his worries to himself without revealing a single word.

Even Lin Wan, the person beside her, didn't notice it.

In fact, although the couple has been married for more than a year and almost two years, they spend very little time together.

Therefore, it is quite difficult to make Lin Wan realize what Zhao Mancang is thinking.

In the blink of an eye, another day passed. It was still early morning in Yongxiang East Lane, and Zhao Mancang met Wu Xinqi again.

"Comrade Li, today I'm going to take you to a place with a friend of mine. He has a lot of treasures there, and there are countless top-quality treasures. However, his requirements are not low, so it depends on whether you can meet them."

As soon as they met, Wu Xinqi reminded Zhao Mancang.

The latter doesn't take it seriously. What else can they ask for?

At this time, what everyone lacks most is food. What else can we have?
After about half an hour's walk, Zhao Mancang and Wu Xinqi arrived at Ji'ansuo Youxiang. This place was not remote at all, because after exiting this alley, it was Jingshan Back Street.

What is Jingshan Back Street?
That is Jingshan Park, and opposite this park is the back gate of the Forbidden City, so Ji'an Youxiang is the most central place in the capital.

Of course, this location can be said to be good or bad.

why?

Because the area near Ji'an's Right Lane is full of small alleys with twists and turns, it is quite troublesome to navigate. Moreover, large vehicles cannot enter, and only vehicles such as tricycles can enter. So although the location is good, the living environment is indeed not that good.

"Comrade Li, we've arrived. This is the home of my friend Tong Debin."

Wu Xinqi was talking to Zhao Mancang while knocking on the door, and the pride and excitement in his eyes could hardly be concealed.

Zhao Mancang didn’t know why the other party was so happy. Maybe it was because he was a big fat sheep, or maybe it was because the other party was about to see his friend’s exquisite collection?

Not long after, Tong Debin came to open the door. He was a rather tall old man, at least about 1.87 meters tall.

To be honest, Zhao Mancang was a little surprised when he saw the other person for the first time.

Under the dim kerosene lamplight, Tong Debin looked to be at least fifty or sixty years old, but he was about 1.87 meters tall, even taller than Zhao Mancang.

When he walked into Tong Debin's house, a hint of surprise flashed across Zhao Mancang's face again.

Looking at the screen wall of the courtyard, he knew that the other party's family was really good, and the courtyard was at least a large courtyard with three entrances and one span.

The layout of the Beijing courtyard can be seen from the outside, and once you enter, you can see even more.

After passing through the moon gate, Zhao Mancang and the other two came to the main room of the small courtyard. At this time, many precious antiques were placed in the room, and there were also many furniture shelves made of golden nanmu around, on which were placed many porcelain, jade, calligraphy and paintings.

It can be seen that the owner of this house is a dilettante, or he is a wealthy landlord.

If your family is not rich enough, you really can't accumulate so many expensive items such as antiques and jade.

"Comrade Li, this is a piece of mutton-fat jade shipped from Xinjiang Province. Because it is shaped like a buffalo, it has not been carved at all. It is just a natural jade ornament. Back then..."

Not long after entering the room, under the introduction of Wu Xinqi, Tong Debin exchanged a few pleasantries with Zhao Mancang, and then began to point at the piece of mutton-fat jade shaped like a green ox and introduce it.

According to Tong Debin, this green ox jade ornament in his family has been passed down since the Kangxi period.

Originally, this piece of jade was a tribute from Xinjiang Province. Because it is mutton-fat jade, it is as smooth as fat, compact and solid, and has a delicate feel. It has a translucent luster, is soft and layered, and is absolutely the best jade.

What's more, it is naturally formed in the shape of a buffalo lurking in the water. Although it does not look conspicuous without limbs, this piece of jade ornament is absolutely priceless.

The whole piece of jade is not big, only about 23.5 kilograms, but its natural appearance is indeed very pleasing.

It was originally a royal tribute, but was later awarded to Tong Debin's ancestors by the emperor.

Well, Tong Debin was just adding glory to their ancestors. In fact, it was their ancestors who were greedy and embezzled and hid the jade as a family heirloom.

While the other party was introducing it, Zhao Mancang was also carefully examining this mutton-fat jade ornament.

It’s true that it is a very nice ornament to place at home, because mutton-fat jade symbolizes good fortune and family harmony, especially the buffalo shape, which symbolizes diligence, tenacity and readiness to take off. It is an ornament that is hard to come by.

The thing is good, but if Zhao Mancang wants to get it, he will have to rely on Tong Debin's opinion.

So Zhao Mancang was not in a hurry to ask for the price. He just smiled and listened carefully to the other party's introduction.

Seeing that Zhao Mancang didn't say anything, Tong Debin cursed in his heart, and then began to introduce the next good thing.

There are several other jade ornaments, but Zhao Mancang is not very satisfied with any of them.

No matter how good the mutton-fat jade is, it is just a piece of stone. So what?

In addition to mutton-fat jade, there are also jadeite and so on.

However, jadeite in today's era is not as good as mutton-fat jade and is very cheap.

However, the jade ornament in Tong Debin's home should be the top-grade ice-glutinous jade, which looks very beautiful.

But this thing is still a stone, and Zhao Mancang doesn't like it very much either.

Be it jadeite, mutton-fat jade, or even diamonds, the reason why they are so expensive and valuable in later generations is all the result of merchants' hype.

Of course, it is also because of market demand that these jades have become so popular.

But in fact, these things are just stones, to put it bluntly, and their monetary properties are not as good as gold.

As for the jade ornaments in Tong Debin’s home, they may be antiques, but who knows?
"Comrade Li, what kind of antiques do you like? You've been sitting here for ages without saying a word, and I don't know how I can help you."

Tong Debin's mouth was dry, but Zhao Mancang still didn't speak, so he quickly gave Wu Xinqi a look, and the latter immediately understood.

Hearing Wu Xinqi's words, Zhao Mancang smiled:

"I have seen all the antiques in front of me, but I don't like them very much. Although they are all very precious and exquisite antiques, they are still not up to my expectations."

"Honestly, if you two don't have anything better than these, then we'll stop here and talk again next time."

After these words were spoken, Tong Debin and Wu Xinqi looked at each other in surprise.

They really didn't expect that Zhao Mancang had such high standards. Even these jade ornaments and other antiques in front of them were not worthy of Zhao Mancang's attention?

The finest mutton-fat jade, or a buffalo ornament, isn’t that good enough?

There is also ice-glutinous jade, which is already the best jade among jades. What else do you want?
And other items, which one is not a treasure?
After a long silence, Tong Debin suddenly said:

"Comrade Li, I like to study cooking on a daily basis. I know a lot about ingredients in the world, but you know the current situation."

"I've been wanting some delicious seafood lately, the freshest kind, the kind that's just been caught from the sea. I wonder if you could help me get some?"

Zhao Mancang opened his mouth when he heard this: That’s it?
Wu Xinqi had warned him before that Tong Debin had very high requirements, but he didn't expect that he actually asked for seafood.

Although it is said to be the freshest seafood, in reality, it is only frozen seafood that can be obtained.

Tong Debin must have known all this, but he asked for seafood that had just been caught from the sea. It can be seen that he probably knew that such a request was almost impossible to achieve.

Tong Debin would only be able to eat such fresh seafood if he went to Tianjin to join the fishing team.

Otherwise, it's impossible!

In other words, the reason why Tong Debin made such a request was probably to make things difficult for Zhao Mancang. After all, the latter even looked down on buffalo mutton-fat jade ornaments, so he must have been trying to make things difficult for him.

So, let's hurt each other.

"Yes, I can bring you live seafood. I wonder what kind of seafood you would like to have?"

With the system space, Zhao Mancang was not afraid of what the other party said at all, and even had some expectations.

(End of this chapter)