America: My Time

Chapter 166 Antiques
Chapter 166 Antiques

“Jimmy, I remember we were wondering why this kid didn’t seize the opportunity of gold futures to raise funds. Now we understand everything. It was all for this day. Although their servers are not quite up to IBM’s top-of-the-line ones, they are cheaper! Look, in just a few days, orders from universities and research institutions have been pouring into Dream World like snowflakes. Who would have dared to think like this before?”

"Boss, this round of financing is still under the same conditions as before, with a small number of shares, and we also have to face competition from Japan. I just don't understand why those shorty guys are so obedient and let themselves be manipulated."

"What's there to not understand? If you had John's abilities, you could do it too. Look at how much money the Japanese banks gave him, and at the lowest interest rates, with almost no risk. Do you think they wouldn't listen? Besides, it's an opportunity for them to make money. How could they not run fast? By the way, Jimmy, let's outsource the production of Nvidia and Dream World to that Taiwanese company, ASUS!"

"Yes, the ASUS company in Taiwan has already received the equipment from Motorola Semiconductor and completed the installation and training. Production is not a problem at all!"

"Impressive, this kid is indeed impressive. Everything is under his control. I wonder what changes will occur at Bell Labs under his management. We should be more vigilant and not give others a chance. This lesson must not be repeated. If another Rockefeller appears, Morgan will lose all face!"

"Boss, I understand, there will absolutely not be a next time!" This kind of thing can happen at any time, and Jimmy's guarantee is of no use at all; it's completely beyond their control!

The press conference dealt a huge blow to many companies in Silicon Valley. The database software that those old guys invested in had clearly failed. Look at Dreamworld's software capabilities, and then look at their own; there's simply no comparison.

Of course, this press conference also had a huge impact on the world, giving everyone another new option when choosing servers, and the quality is good and the price is cheap.

China quickly learned of the US press conference and once again felt the power of Dreamworld and Nvidia; the giants of Silicon Valley truly lived up to their reputation, possessing formidable strength. However, compared to Dreamworld and Nvidia, China paid more attention to another piece of news from Shanghai: Sikorsky. If the acquisition was true, John F. Smith would need to be taken even more seriously. Sikorsky is a giant in the helicopter industry, and a giant in the production of both military and civilian helicopters, with extraordinary influence.

A trip to Shanghai wouldn't be complete without visiting its antique markets. If you're looking for the most authentic antiques, look no further than the official antique shops in Shanghai that specialize in selling Chinese artifacts to foreign buyers. The most professional of these is undoubtedly the Shanghai Antique Shop right in front of John. Since its inception, it has been known as the "largest antique shop in the Far East." After the public-private partnership, it absorbed all the established businesses operating within it, making its scale even more astonishing.

For the Shanghai Antique Shop, on the one hand, they used money to acquire various antiques, paintings, jade artifacts, and other items from private collectors; on the other hand, they also bore the heavy responsibility of generating foreign exchange through exports. That's right, it was all about generating foreign exchange through exports. This situation only came to an end in 1986 when all the cultural relics were returned to museums and no longer sold!
Foreigners like John now face many restrictions, a change made in June 1981. For example, important works by famous modern painters such as Qi Baishi and Xu Beihong are no longer allowed to be exported and can only be sold to people in mainland China; they cannot be sold to Hong Kong, Macau, or Taiwan. Items from before the Shunzhi reign of the Qing Dynasty are also prohibited from export.

After June 1981, the guiding principle of the Shanghai Antique Shop was to make steady profits and avoid excessive spending. Before that, they sold in large quantities. As long as you had money, you could buy as much as you wanted. They were backed by the Shanghai Arts and Crafts Import and Export Company, which handled transportation and customs clearance for customers who bought large cultural relics. No matter how big the item was, it could be shipped out.

John stood at the door for a moment and saw quite a few Europeans, Americans, and Japanese people coming and going, carrying things in their hands and smiling on their faces. Nowadays in China, the three cities with the most foreigners are Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou, with Shanghai having the largest number of foreigners among these three cities.

When foreigners come to China, whether for business, work, or even tourism, they will inevitably bring back some gifts. Antique shops are one of the best places for many foreigners to choose gifts, especially now that the relationship between the United States and China is relatively good, there are even more people coming from China, and the largest group is Japanese. These bastards have taken away a lot of good things from China!

Investors like John are usually accompanied by government officials to prevent any unnecessary trouble. As soon as he and Naoko entered the antique shop, a staff member immediately greeted them in fluent English, saying, "Sir, how can I help you?"

It has to be said that the staff member was very dedicated to their work. John smiled and said, "You can speak Mandarin, I understand you!" The staff member was taken aback at first, this foreigner spoke Mandarin so well, but then his smile returned: "Sir, are you here today to choose something?"

"Yes, I'm thinking of buying some." Although there are many things that foreigners can't buy, I mainly want to acquire items that I can collect or use. In China, there's only one antique shop like the Shanghai Antique Shop, with such a complete range and large quantity of items!
With government officials accompanying him, he was obviously not a fraudster. Under the guidance of the staff, the acquisition began. John immediately told the staff that he only wanted high-quality goods, and that ordinary goods were not worth mentioning. He then directly wrote a cash check for two million and handed it to the staff.

In the acquisition of antiques, I have also accumulated some experience. I don't want to waste time on ordinary antiques. Once the two million cash check is issued, how could the staff not understand John's intention? For such a wealthy person, money is not a problem, but the items must be of good quality.

Everything in the antique shop is clearly priced. As long as it's a high-quality item for sale, John will buy it as soon as the staff introduces it. There's no chance of making a mistake here, and there's absolutely no possibility of being cheated. That's absolutely not allowed!

After browsing the porcelain section, John bought nearly a hundred exquisite pieces. Although they were more expensive than elsewhere, their reliability was a major advantage. For someone who didn't know much about antiques, reliability was paramount; he wouldn't be foolish enough to buy fakes. He was also pleasantly surprised by the staff's generosity.

I bought nearly a hundred pieces in just the porcelain section. I was quite surprised at how many I would have bought in the entire antique shop. This is not 81 years ago. There are many things I cannot buy now. It seems that the two million I offered earlier was a bit too little!

Although John was accompanied by staff, the staff still needed to verify the authenticity of the checks. By the time the staff returned, John and his group had already arrived at the art and calligraphy section. Knowing the checks were legitimate, the staff became even more proactive. They figured they had to fleece such a huge customer; it would be a shame not to take advantage of them. That's what the staff thought, and that's what they did.

As the staff sped up their explanations, John and his group shopped even faster, with several staff members gradually following behind them to record the sales information and then pack the items.

John didn't know much about antiques, nor did he pretend to. He bought everything the staff recommended, and after finishing the calligraphy and painting section, they moved on to the jade section. It must be said that Chinese culture is profound and extensive; there were many precious and exquisite pieces here, dazzling John. Unfortunately, most of them were beyond his means to purchase, which was quite a pity. However, in the precious stones section, there were fewer restrictions; here, he could act without being limited by his social status.

In the area featuring rare stones, they even spotted a fist-sized piece of Tianhuang stone, and it wasn't a raw stone, but a semi-finished product that had already been polished. At that moment, not only John was captivated, but Naoko was too, because seal culture is very important to the Japanese; everyone has their own seal, so these rare stones were their favorite!
John bought out the entire area that was finally available without purchase restrictions, much to the dismay of the staff who regretted not stocking up on better items. Otherwise, they could have sold even more and earned more dollars.

At this point, John noticed that the people accompanying him, who had been shopping with him for so long, were a little tired. So he sat down on a chair nearby, and a staff member brought him tea. Everyone sat down to chat and rest for a while before realizing that it was almost noon and there were still some areas they hadn't chosen. However, he couldn't let everyone stay with him without eating.

Then, after discussing with the staff, he decided to continue in the afternoon, asking them to prepare more high-quality items so he could choose again. He then issued another cash check for three million. This extravagant approach surprised even his own secretary, who was surprised that their boss had such a passion for antiques, having already purchased a batch in Beijing, and now this was another large shipment.

John wasn't worried about the antique shops ripping him off. As for the price, that wasn't an issue at all; compared to what it would be in the future, it was still a bargain. And as long as he liked it, that was enough.

John's plan was good, but unfortunately, things don't always go smoothly. Just as everyone was getting up to leave, one of the secretaries rushed in from outside, carrying a fax.

(End of this chapter)