Chapter 690 Stanning
As the saying goes, rivals are enemies. Although the stall owners in this antique market usually laugh and joke when they meet, they all hope that the other will be fooled and suffer losses. So, Old Li's story spread throughout the entire antique market overnight.
At that moment, quite a few antique dealers who usually didn't get along with Lao Li were spreading the story of Lao Li "collecting jade".
Originally, Lao Li planned to sell those jade stones as handicrafts. Even if they were only a few yuan each, he could still make three to five hundred yuan. Every little bit counts. However, after being provoked by the crowd, Lao Li's blood boiled and he did something shameful again.
"Mr. Li, these are all regular customers. You're being a bit impolite..."
The person who said this is a local who frequently visits the antique market.
"Yeah, it's not even worth five yuan, and you're selling it for fifty? That's not fair..."
"Don't say that. Boss Li misjudged the situation and paid his dues, so he should at least make up for it a little bit..."
"Bullshit, isn't it just that he was greedy, got scammed by others, and then came back to scam us?"
Everyone knows that most of his "ancient jade" pieces are actually glass or plastic products. Old Li even quoted a price of fifty yuan each, which angered the tourists watching and they all cursed Old Li for being greedy.
"Brother Zhuang, weren't you leaving? Why are you still here?"
Peng Fei had just heard Zhuang Rui say he was going to the second floor, so he squeezed out of the crowd. But when he looked back and didn't see Zhuang Rui, he probably squeezed back in.
"No rush, let's take another look..."
Zhuang Rui smiled and waved his hand, but his eyes remained fixed on the counter filled with "ancient jade" of various colors.
"If you...you don't want them, fine. I'll just sell them for fifty-one. Take it or leave it. I'm not selling them anymore..."
Old Li was first ostracized by his peers, then subjected to a barrage of insults from the onlookers. His forehead veins bulged, his eyes bloodshot. "Don't you bastards have any compassion? I'm the victim!" he cried. "Only a fool would buy that! Does such jade even exist?"
"Yeah, hurry up and put it away, don't embarrass yourself..."
"Old Li, forget it, it's just 20,000 yuan. Next time I go to the countryside, I'll find a good item and make it back..."
The stalls were so crowded that it disrupted other people's business. Some stall owners tried to persuade Old Li, saying that everyone who's been in the antique market has been fooled and paid their dues. It's really nothing.
"Mr. Li, right? These things are really fifty yuan each? I'll buy two to play with..."
Suddenly, a voice rang out from the crowd, and all eyes immediately turned to Zhuang Rui. Was this young man crazy? He had already said it was a fake, yet he was still willing to spend money to buy it? Glassware like these cost five yuan each and were readily available everywhere.
Old Li, angered by the insults, didn't even raise his head and said, "50 yuan each, not a penny less!"
Old Li was stuck in a rut, stubbornly clinging to his position. He still thought the voice asking to buy jade was just him joking.
"Okay, here's 100 yuan, I'll buy two..."
On the counter in front of Old Li, a pink banknote appeared. The crisp sound of the money hitting the counter made everyone realize that this was no joke.
"You are...you look kind of familiar."
Old Li raised his head and glanced at Zhuang Rui, but for a moment he couldn't remember where he had seen him before.
Zhuang Rui glanced at the jade pieces on the counter and said, "Mr. Li, what about this?"
"Pick whatever you like, whatever you want. I, Old Li, have never gone back on my word..."
When Zhuang Rui mentioned these "ancient jades," Old Li became furious. He had already prepared himself to throw these junks into the moat as soon as he got back.
Without any hesitation, Zhuang Rui stepped forward, pushed aside the cleaned glass and plastic, and began rummaging through the piles of "jade" that looked like clods of dirt, wiping them with his hands from time to time.
"This young man actually came here to pick up bargains..."
"This soil looks like it was made by mixing mud together and then drying it. What's so interesting about it?"
"Yeah, that 100 yuan was wasted..."
The onlookers shook their heads. It's understandable to want to take advantage, but they had never heard of anyone being able to do so in such a place, in front of so many people.
"I'll take this one..."
After picking through the pieces for a while, Zhuang Rui picked up a piece of jade that was about three or four centimeters thick and eight or nine centimeters long. However, the jade was covered in mud, so it was impossible to tell what shape it was, although it was quite large.
"Young man, you've already taken 100 yuan, can you pick another one?"
Old Li's seemingly kind words drew boos from those around him. Even if he gave them all 100 yuan worth of these things, probably no one would buy them.
"No need, I've already bought two. Everyone, please make way, let me out for a moment..."
Zhuang Rui smiled and shook his head, greeted Peng Fei, and then slipped out of the crowd.
Aside from Zhuang Rui himself, among all these people, probably only Peng Fei knows whether Zhuang Rui actually suffered a loss or gained an advantage. Having followed Zhuang Rui for so long, Peng Fei has never seen Zhuang Rui make a mistake when it comes to antiques.
"Hey, why does that young man look so familiar?"
"Yes, I wouldn't have remembered if you hadn't mentioned it, but it does look somewhat familiar..."
"Isn't that Teacher Zhuang from the Spring Festival treasure appraisal show? They look about the same age and appearance..."
"Yes...yes, it's him, it must be him, their accents are the same..."
"Hey, Teacher Zhuang, don't go..."
"Hey, those behind him, stop him! Stop him!" Zhuang Rui hadn't even squeezed out of the crowd when he was recognized, and the antique market was in an uproar.
Whether it's the stall owners in the antique market or collectors and tourists from all over the country, they've only ever seen experts on TV or in the news. Having such an expert right in front of them, and having just bought something from him, is bound to pique their curiosity.
It was a bit like young people chasing after celebrities. Zhuang Rui was immediately surrounded by an enthusiastic crowd. Some people were even pulling at Zhuang Rui's clothes. Zhuang Rui didn't know if someone was trying to take advantage of the situation. He felt that if he hadn't held on tightly, the jade in his hand might have been snatched away.
"Excuse me, everyone, make way! If you don't make me call security..."
Zhuang Rui shouted angrily, "Damn it, I'm not a woman! What was that guy doing grabbing my chest like that?"
"Make way, make way, I'm talking to you..."
Fortunately, just as Zhuang Rui finished speaking, four or five security guards from the antique market rushed in with rubber batons, and they managed to rescue him.
"Damn, I bet seven or eight out of ten fans are just after celebrities, right?"
After being surrounded by several security guards, Zhuang Rui quickly checked his belongings. Fortunately, nothing was missing, and the tracking device that Jiang Hao had given him, which looked like a key ring, was still hanging on his jeans.
"Sir, have you lost anything?"
Henan is known for its tough and fierce people, and many of them practice martial arts. With these tall and burly security guards standing there, no one dared to rush forward anymore.
"No, no, thank you, thank you all..."
Zhuang Rui gave Peng Fei a wink, intending to leave the antique market under the protection of security guards.
"Teacher Zhuang, we didn't do anything to you, why are you in such a hurry to leave..."
"Yes, tell me, is the item you bought real or fake?"
Although they dared not step forward, they still had to speak, and everyone asked questions all at once.
If someone were to say that Zhuang Rui had lost his mind and bought fake jade, probably few people present would believe it. In their minds, how could an expert make a mistake?
One of the shop owners, who knew the security guards, spoke up, "Captain Liu, we don't mean to offend this guest. He's an expert in the antique world, and we'd like to ask him a few questions..."
Seeing that he couldn't avoid it, Zhuang Rui simply pushed aside the security guards in front of him and said loudly, "Everyone, please be quiet. I am Zhuang Rui, but I am not an expert. You don't need to be so formal. I am just like you all, a collector who is very fond of collecting. I am still learning and exploring on this path..."
"See how humble Teacher Zhuang is when he speaks..."
"Yes, the more learned a person is, the more humble they are when they speak..."
"Old Qi, stop bragging about being a jade expert all the time. Compared to Teacher Zhuang, you're miles behind..."
"Hey, hey, how did this get dragged into this? I didn't call them experts; they were the ones who authenticated the objects..."
Old Qi was a man in his fifties who seemed to be an expert in the field. As he spoke, he glanced at the "ancient jade" in Zhuang Rui's hand, clearly showing some resentment.
There are all sorts of strange and unusual stories in the antique trade, but to find a treasure among the items sold by a con artist who sets up a fake is unheard of. Old Qi simply didn't believe that Zhuang Rui had an ancient jade piece.
After hearing what Lao Qi said, everyone quieted down. That made sense. Although Zhuang Rui on TV was an expert and you could see him calmly appraising objects, that could still be faked. Who knew if it was pre-recorded or rehearsed?
If we're talking about which trade is most prone to counterfeiting, the antique trade is definitely number one. Old Qi's words also raised doubts among the crowd, and their gazes toward Zhuang Rui were no longer so fervent.
"Teacher Zhuang, tell us about the jade you bought. Let us learn something new..."
"yes……"
"Yes, tell me..."
One person in the crowd raised a question, and others immediately chimed in, saying that the proof is in the pudding.
"If I'm going to be out there picking up bargains in the future, looks like I'll have to learn makeup from Xu Qing first..."
Zhuang Rui was a little annoyed, but he still raised the jade in his hand high and broke it in the middle. What was originally a lump of dirt was instantly split into two pieces.
691 Ichthyosaur
"Those...those really are two pieces of jade?"
"No wonder Teacher Zhuang only took one yuan out of the 100 yuan he was given; it turns out someone already figured it out." "He's definitely an expert; his eyesight is different..."
Upon seeing Zhuang Rui split the jade in two, the crowd began to discuss it. Although some people still had doubts, most people believed that Zhuang Rui had definitely gotten a bargain.
"Dude, aren't you being a bit too flashy?"
Zhuang Rui sensed something was wrong. He hadn't really gotten his hands dirty yet. If it weren't for his eyesight, not only would he not be able to tell what was inside that clod of earth, but even Grandpa Gu would have.
"Ladies and gentlemen, fellow collectors, could you please let me say a few words first?"
As the saying goes, "People are afraid of becoming famous, just as pigs are afraid of getting fat." If Zhuang Ruizhi were to help people appraise objects, the bigger his reputation would naturally be, the better. However, Zhuang Ruizhi doesn't make a living from that. If he were recognized wherever he went, he wouldn't be able to find any bargains anymore.
After Zhuang Rui spoke, the crowd stirred for a while before gradually calming down. For these people who collected things through unorthodox methods out of hobby, hearing an expert's comments was an opportunity for them to improve.
There are now some experts who are very famous in a certain category of collecting, and they often hold lectures on collecting knowledge. And it's worth mentioning that the organizers always make a fortune, which shows that people now have a demand for knowledge in this field, which is still relatively unfamiliar to them.
"Friends, after hearing Brother Li's story of paying tuition for being fooled, I've been thinking about something. People say that those in the same trade are enemies, and meeting each other is like meeting mortal enemies. But I think that for us collectors, the most important thing to improve is communication."
This guy, Brother Li, shared his experience of being scammed with everyone, hoping to prevent other friends from making the same mistake. That's why I decided to buy a few stones. I really didn't mean anything by it; I just picked these two because they looked nice to me.
"You probably don't really believe I can see through these clods of dirt and tell whether it's jade or glass inside, right?"
The object in Zhuang Rui's hand was certainly not glass. He said those words simply to divert everyone's attention and stop them from focusing on the thing he had bought.
"Teacher Zhuang is right. If everyone suffers a loss and keeps it to themselves instead of talking about it, then who knows, someone else might make the same mistake next time." For a moment, the people who had been intentionally or unintentionally mocking Old Li were somewhat embarrassed, while the tourists started discussing among themselves.
To be honest, not everyone who collects things is open-minded. They get jealous when others find a bargain, and happy when others make a mistake. Zhuang Rui's words have indeed made many people reflect.
"Teacher Zhuang, what you said is true, we should all reflect on ourselves. But Teacher Zhuang, the item you picked out doesn't seem to be made of glass. Could you clean it and let us all take a look?"