The shop owner casually picked up an automatic banknote counter, put the stack of hundred-yuan bills into it, checked them several times with a "swish, swish, swish" sound, and then pocketed the money with a big smile on his face.
However, the shop owner didn't plan to introduce any more items to Professor Meng today. With such a talented student by his side, it would probably be difficult for him to make money off Professor Meng.
"Old man, do you still have any items like this? Preferably something that reflects the local culture, it doesn't have to be from the government..."
But instead of the shop owner seeking out Professor Meng, Professor Meng approached him. Professor Meng's initial motivation for collecting was research. Regardless of the antique's monetary value, as long as it reflected certain aspects of the social structure of the time, he wanted to acquire it and savor it at home.
"That's all, Professor Meng. We're old friends. To be honest, this thing is something a friend of mine is in trouble with, and he entrusted it to me to sell..."
The shop owner didn't seem to be lying. Professor Meng looked somewhat disappointed and asked, "Does your friend have any similar items?"
This set of Huizhou folk porcelain is indeed very representative. Professor Meng wants to collect more pieces and explore the regional Chinese culture they contain in his spare time. For him, this is a very meaningful thing.
"Oh, Professor Meng, I'll tell you everything. Look, it's that shop across the street that's closed now. My friend used to sell the Four Treasures of the Study, but he got scammed recently and spent 8 million RMB on a supposedly Qing Dynasty Yongzheng gilded Buddha statue."
Later, when I took it out for people to see, they were shocked to find that the whole thing was made of copper plating, but it wasn't even copper inside. It was all made of molten iron poured into a mold. It wouldn't even be worth 20 yuan as scrap metal.
So, the 8 million was all borrowed from various sources, and now it's all stuck in my hands. My friend has no choice but to sell some of his collection, and even that shop is being sold off..."
When the shop owner talked about this, a hint of reluctance appeared on his face. Although eight or nine out of ten items they sold were counterfeit, it was still unacceptable for them to be involved in this situation.
Nobody's money comes from thin air. Although Panjiayuan has a large flow of people, the antique business is known for its slow turnover, sometimes taking three years to make a profit before it can sustain itself for three years.
That boss worked here for seven or eight years, but only made a fortune of three to five million. And there are many people here who are not as successful as him. Eight million is a huge sum of money.
"Boss, are you talking about that Boss Zhao?"
Zhuang Rui vaguely remembered the owner of "Shuyazhai"—a fair-skinned, plump man in his forties, who was quite witty and refined. Zhuang Rui had dealt with him when he bought the set of writing implements for Old Master Gu.
"Yes, that's him. Old Zhao is in a terrible state now. The New Year is almost here, and he doesn't dare go home. He's hiding from creditors everywhere. Sigh, you really can't predict people. Once they fall into greed, they're doomed..."
After shaking his head and sighing for a while, the boss said, "Please have a seat, I'll make a phone call..."
"Hey bro, I see you're pretty bored all the time, why don't you open a shop here and have some fun?"
Ouyang Jun, who was sitting on the sidelines, feeling a bit bored and bickering with the two girls, suddenly blurted out this sentence.
"Me? To take over an antique shop?"
Zhuang Rui was taken aback by Ouyang Jun's words, then shook his head and said, "Fourth Brother, don't joke with me. I'm so busy all day long, how could I have time to manage an antique shop? I think you're the one who's just bored..."
Zhuang Rui reflected on his experiences over the past year and realized he hadn't had a moment's rest. His eyes had undergone strange changes for over a year, and his life had changed dramatically.
Although I'm not short of money now, it seems like I have less and less time. I haven't yet experienced the leisurely life of making money, building a villa by the sea, spending my days with a beautiful woman, and fishing under a parasol.
Professor Meng, who was examining the porcelain set, suddenly spoke up: "Xiao Zhuang, if you had that kind of money, you should really consider this gentleman's suggestion..."
“Professor Meng, but I really don’t have time. I’ll be starting my graduate studies with you this fall, how will I manage this shop then?” Zhuang Rui didn’t expect even Professor Meng to say the same thing. He really couldn’t see what the benefits of taking over a shop would be. Was he supposed to wear a long robe and stand at the shop entrance every day to “greet customers”? “Hehe, your Uncle De told me that your purpose in pursuing graduate studies is to enrich your theoretical knowledge. You can choose to take my courses, and you don’t need to go to the site, so you have plenty of time. Opening a shop in Panjiayuan is not a simple matter. There are many relationships to manage, which is actually a kind of training for you, and it’s also easy to find some good stuff…”
"Is it easy to find good stuff?"
Zhuang Rui was somewhat interested in this statement, but he didn't understand why a certain store would make it easy to find good things. Didn't it still require a discerning eye?
"Professor Meng is right. If you have a shop, many people who want to sell their antiques will come to you on their own, which will increase your chances of finding good items."
However, things have two sides. There is now a group of professional counterfeiters who are also targeting antique shops like ours. They have set countless traps for us, and if we are not careful, we will suffer a great loss.
To be honest, Old Zhao was tricked into giving away 8 million yuan. Sigh, it's my fault for not stopping him back then…”
The boss finished his call and overheard their conversation. He immediately chimed in, shaking his head as he spoke, indicating that his relationship with Old Zhao was genuinely good and not feigned.
"What price did Boss Zhao sell his shop for? Did he buy the storefront himself?"
After hearing what these people said, Zhuang Rui was actually a little tempted. He was definitely going to get married this year and live in Beijing after the wedding, so he needed to find something to do.
Qin Ruilin in Beijing has professional managers, and Zhao Guodong and Zhou Rui are managing the business in Pengcheng. It seems like I'll really be very idle. I can't just stay at home all day having sex with my wife, can I?
Although Zhuang Rui felt he wouldn't get tired of that, his body had to be able to handle it. Besides, the tiger penis wine wouldn't be ready until next year to have any medicinal effect.
Zhuang Rui's intention to take over the shop was actually to sell some jade items. He didn't want to compete with his own Qin Ruilin for business; he wanted to acquire some collectible jade items, as well as miscellaneous items like Tianhuang stone and chicken-blood stone. Today's appraisal had piqued his interest in these stones as well.
After hearing Zhuang Rui's words, the shop owner shook his head and said, "All the storefronts in Panjiayuan are state-owned; they're only for rent, not for sale. Old Zhao's shop has two floors with a back room, totaling 120 square meters. It's a bit more expensive than mine, at 220,000 yuan a year. Old Zhao rented it for ten years at once, and he still has seven years left. If he can sell the shop, he can pay off his debts and still have a few left..."
Zhuang Rui thought for a moment and then asked, "Boss, I see that business at Panjiayuan seems to be doing quite well, so why can't you sell your products?"
"It's not that there aren't any shops available. To put it bluntly, there isn't a single vacant shop in Panjiayuan right now. Even if you doubled the original rent for Old Zhao's shop, someone would immediately take it over. But Old Zhao is sticking to his price of 600,000 yuan a year and won't budge, so no one is willing to take it over..."
After hearing what the shop owner said, Zhuang Rui did some mental calculations and realized that the amount was indeed quite large. 600,000 RMB a year, 4.2 million RMB in seven years, and that didn't even include daily expenses. It was really unaffordable for the average person, because it was quite normal for antique shops to have no major transactions for one or two years.
"Hey, Old Zhao's here. If you have any questions, just ask him..."
So the phone call the boss made earlier was to ask Lao Zhao to come and collect the money for the porcelain tableware set. Zhuang Rui almost didn't recognize the person who entered the room.
When Zhuang Rui last met Lao Zhao, he thought he was a very refined middle-aged man. But the man in front of him looked disheveled and miserable.
Chapter 535 The Antique Shop (Part 2)
The last time Zhuang Rui met Boss Zhao, he remembered him as a plump, healthy man with a very auspicious-looking face. But now, seeing him again, he looked completely different.
Boss Zhao's face was still quite pale, but it was deathly pale. He had also lost weight, his eyes were sunken, and his hair was long, like that of a literary youth from the late 1980s. It looked like he hadn't washed it for days, and it was almost tangled into little braids.
When Boss Zhao entered the house, he was taken aback to find the inner room filled with people. Looking around, he realized he didn't recognize any of them. He wasn't in the mood for small talk, so he looked directly at the shop owner and said, "Old Na, thank you so much for your help during the New Year..."
"It's alright, Lao Zhao, this is the money from consigning your tableware set. It's a total of eight thousand eight hundred and eighty-eight yuan, please count it..."
Perhaps because Zhuang Rui and the others were present, the shop owner didn't accept the consignment fee but gave all the money to Lao Zhao, which made the people in the room feel more respect for the shop owner.
There are many people who add flowers to brocade, but very few who offer charcoal in the snow. Some people even enjoy kicking someone when they're down. The fact that the boss could do this shows he's a very kind person.
"No need to count it, Lao Na, consider this money as New Year's money for the kids..."
This amount of money was just a drop in the bucket for Boss Zhao and wouldn't solve his problems. It seemed that this guy was still a force to be reckoned with even when he was down on his luck, so he casually took out a small stack of money and handed it to the boss.
"No, old man, we've known each other for over 10 years. I was the one who introduced you to this shop. You should keep this money for yourself..."
The shop owner paused for a moment, then continued, "If you ask me, brother, you should sell this shop at a lower price. After deducting the debts, you'll still have several hundred thousand left, and you'll have a chance to make a comeback..."
This Mr. Zhao is quite shrewd. Over the years, he has accumulated a fortune of four or five million. However, he made a mistake this time and lost everything. He still owes more than two million. It can be seen that gambling on stones is not only a matter of heaven and hell, but also playing with antiques is like walking on a tightrope. One wrong step and you will be on a cliff with no bones left.
"Brother, it's not that I don't want to sell it, it's just that the items in the shop are worth hundreds of thousands. If I lose this shop, how am I supposed to sell those things? What's the point of keeping them if I don't transfer them all?"
After hearing the shop owner's words, Old Zhao shook his head helplessly and said, "I've been having a run of bad luck lately, so I won't add to your troubles. You guys are busy, I'll take my leave now..."
Although the man was down on his luck, he still maintained his manners. Old Zhao bowed to the surroundings and turned to leave.
"Hey, Mr. Zhao, please wait a moment..."
Since Zhuang Rui had already set his mind on it, he wanted to ask more questions and called out to Lao Zhao.
"You are..."
When Boss Zhao turned around, the face seemed somewhat familiar. If it weren't for the fact that he had been so busy lately and saw so many people in the store every day, he really wouldn't have remembered who Zhuang Rui was.
"Haha, you have such a good memory! I once bought a set of stationery from your shop..."
"Oh...oh, it's you..."
Old Zhao also remembered this incident, but couldn't recall Zhuang Rui's name. He continued, "Is there anything else, brother? If you still want to buy those things, I'll open the shop door, and you can pick whatever you like..."
Boss Zhao didn't want to close down either. He could make money every day he opened the shop, but there were too many debt collectors. If he dared to open the shop, the threshold would be trampled to pieces.
"Brother Zhao, sit down and talk. Boss Zhuang is interested in taking over your shop..."
The boss pulled Lao Zhao back, helped him to a chair, and brought him a cup of tea.
"Hmm? Mr. Zhuang wants to take over my shop?"
Old Zhao looked at Zhuang Rui with a puzzled expression.
Zhuang Rui waved his hand and said, "I have a thought about that. Let's not talk about the price for now. Mr. Zhao and that other boss are both seniors in Panjiayuan. Could you tell me how the business is in the shops in Panjiayuan?"
"That depends on what kind of items you're selling. For example, the stationery I used to sell was quite popular with foreigners, and I could earn several hundred thousand a year from them..."
Old Zhao paused here, glanced at the shop owner, who waved his hand, signaling him to continue. He then said, "This shop of yours mainly serves regular customers, and some foreigners also come. As for how much it earns, you'll have to ask him..."
"Hehe, my porcelain shop is mostly frequented by regular customers. Thanks to guests like Professor Meng, who patronize it, it accounts for 60% of my turnover. As for the remaining 40%, most of them are casual customers and foreigners. To be honest, the items I sell to them don't really cost much to begin with..."
The shopkeeper's words made Zhuang Rui and the others burst into laughter. His claim that it wouldn't cost much meant he was selling fakes. Given the sheer volume of people at Panjiayuan, even individual customers bringing in 14% of the revenue wasn't a small amount.
Hearing their conversation, Zhuang Rui's heart stirred. Taking over "Shuyazhai" wasn't a bad idea; the Four Treasures of the Study (writing brush, ink stick, inkstone, and paper) were different from porcelain, which existed abroad as well. However, writing implements were a unique aspect of Chinese culture, and in Panjiayuan, they were certainly a point of interest for foreigners.
"Mr. Zhao, may I ask how this whole thing happened?"
After everyone had finished laughing, Zhuang Rui suddenly asked a question.
Old Zhao gave a bitter smile, thought for a moment, and then said, "Sigh, to be honest, this was a trap set by someone else. And those people prepared for it for two whole years. I guess I misjudged them and fell for it. I have nothing to say..."
It turns out that Mr. Zhao has many friends. They often get together to drink tea, chat, and discuss business. Two years ago, he met a friend named Nangong, who was into bronze Buddhist statues. Although his business didn't quite match Mr. Zhao's, they were both collectors and gradually became acquainted.
Nangong later frequently visited Lao Zhao's shop to chat and drink tea. Coincidentally, once when Nangong was in Lao Zhao's shop, someone brought a bronze candlestick from the Warring States period to sell. The price wasn't too high, only 12,000 yuan. However, Lao Zhao wasn't an expert in these things and didn't want to buy it, since it wasn't his kind of thing.
However, after Nangong saw the bronze artifact, he strongly urged Lao Zhao to pay for it, saying it was a bargain. Lao Zhao had known Nangong for over a year, and thinking that spending a few thousand wouldn't be a big deal, he paid for the candlestick.
A month or two later, Old Zhao took the bronze artifact to an auction house for appraisal. To his surprise, it turned out to be quite good, and subsequently fetched a price of 200,000. Naturally, Old Zhao was extremely grateful to Nangong, and the two became even closer.
In Panjiayuan, it's common to see people bringing items to sell at antique shops, which Mr. Zhao is used to. However, he used to never accept anything other than stationery.
Since meeting Nangong, whenever someone came to his door to sell bronzes, he would call Nangong to help him appraise them. Surprisingly, he managed to find several bargains and made a profit of over 300,000 yuan. Moreover, Nangong was extremely knowledgeable about bronzes and never made a mistake by buying a fake.
After two years of getting to know each other, Lao Zhao had come to regard Nangong as a close friend, and he greatly admired Nangong's connoisseurship of bronzes.
Just last month, someone brought another item to Lao Zhao's shop. Lao Zhao knew this person; he was said to have some connections and had sold him things twice before, both of which were genuine, allowing Lao Zhao to make a small profit. However, Lao Zhao was a little uneasy about the item he was selling this time because it was extremely valuable.
The man was holding a gilded Amitabha Buddha statue, in excellent condition. It wore a jeweled crown and was inlaid with various precious gems. The statue was seated in the lotus position on a lotus pedestal. The entire item was exquisite.
The item is good, but the person's asking price is not low either. He quoted 10 million RMB right off the bat, without any discounts.
Old Zhao had been with Nangong for the past two years and had learned some knowledge about bronzes. He suspected that the object came from the imperial palace, so he called Nangong to come and help him take a look.
After Nangong examined the object, it was confirmed that it was indeed an official Buddhist statue cast by the Imperial Workshop during the Yongzheng era.
Because Emperor Yongzheng had once become a monk in place of his father and was a devout Buddhist, the Buddhist statues he cast were all exquisitely crafted and of great value, with very few surviving to this day. They can be considered priceless treasures.
After examining it, Nangong pulled Lao Zhao into the back room and gave his estimate: if this item were to be auctioned, it would be worth at least 12 million.
Having known Nangong for over two years, and knowing that Nangong had never been wrong about bronze artifacts, Old Zhao trusted him implicitly. Furthermore, he had already recognized the object as a royal item, which gave him a preconceived notion. Upon hearing Nangong's words, Old Zhao decided to buy it.
However, Lao Zhao still had some doubts about the price of the Buddha statue, so he called a friend at an auction house to inquire about the value of official Buddha statues made during the Yongzheng period of the Qing Dynasty. After asking, he was completely reassured, as the market price was slightly higher than what Nangong had said.
The item was genuine, and then it was time to negotiate the price. The seller was asking for an exorbitant price, but Old Zhao, having been in business for so many years, naturally decided to negotiate on the spot.
After a heated debate, with the help of his "friend" Nangong, Lao Zhao successfully lowered the acquisition price to 8 million yuan.