Looking at the unchanging decor of the restaurant, Zhuang Rui couldn't help but recall the scene from last year. It was in the small garden on the second floor of this restaurant that he received Qin Xuanbing's first kiss.
"Oh, I remember now, young man, your surname is Zhuang, right? Come, come in and have a seat. And what about Miss Qin?"
Upon hearing Zhuang Rui's words, the boss immediately remembered that although there were many handsome men and beautiful women who came to Lhasa for tourism, there were few who could compare to Qin Xuanbing. As for Zhuang Rui, he was only remembered by the boss because of his wife.
"Hehe, we're already married. She's pregnant, so she didn't come this time..."
Zhuang Rui replied with a smile.
Perhaps the owner felt that Zhuang Rui, who looked rather ordinary, was not a good match for that beautiful lady? The restaurant owner was taken aback for a moment upon hearing this, but then laughed and said, "Congratulations! How about we go upstairs and relive those sweet memories?"
"Forget it, sitting up there in this weather, you'd be roasted alive in less than five minutes..."
In Tibet during July and August, the temperature difference between day and night is very large. During the day, the temperature is around 30 degrees Celsius, similar to that in the inland areas, but at night the temperature drops sharply, sometimes even below 10 degrees Celsius. It was just past noon, and Zhuang Rui didn't want to go up there and get a tan from the high altitude.
Looking around, Zhuang Rui saw that the restaurant wasn't too crowded. He found a four-seater sofa by the window and said, "Boss, give me a steak rice bowl, medium-rare. Also, could you please get me about 10 pounds of fresh beef and lamb?"
The beef and mutton were for the white lion. When he was young, the white lion was willing to eat some cooked food, but after his teeth grew in, he only ate raw beef and mutton, and each meal was at least ten kilograms. Every month, the money spent on the white lion's food alone exceeded ten thousand yuan.
Zhuang Rui had considered buying some goats and calves to keep in the courtyard so that the white lion could hunt for them on its own. However, he thought that the scene would be too cruel and might frighten Ya Ya and Nan Nan. Moreover, after telling his mother, he was severely scolded by Ouyang Wan, so Zhuang Rui had no choice but to give up the idea.
"Alright, Zhuang Sheng, your Tibetan Mastiff is the best I've ever seen..."
The boss gave Zhuang Rui a thumbs up and ran to the back kitchen to get busy. He was both the owner and a waiter at this restaurant, and only hired a few temporary workers to help out when things got busy at night. It was a lifestyle choice that the boss enjoyed.
"Brother Zheng, over here..."
Before the food was served, Zhuang Rui saw Zheng Hua walk in, followed by the religious affairs bureau staff member who had guided him that morning.
"Hey bro, why are you only coming out now...?"
After exchanging greetings with Peng Fei and Gegu Lama, Zheng Hua sat down opposite Zhuang Rui. He wanted to pat Zhuang Rui on the shoulder to show his affection, but when he saw the white lion lying at Zhuang Rui's feet, he withdrew his hand.
"Mr. Zhuang, why didn't you call me? We could have arranged a restaurant for you..."
The staff member also spoke up, saying that all the staff at the Religious Affairs Bureau had been very busy these past few days, and even the director had reception duties. He had entrusted Zhuang Rui to this staff member for reception and had given him a few special instructions, so the staff member was a little uneasy when he saw Zhuang Rui come out to eat by himself.
Zhuang Rui took the staff member's business card, knowing his surname was Zhang, and said with a smile, "Section Chief Zhang, no need to be so polite. I've been to Lhasa before, so I'm quite familiar with it..."
As they were talking, the white lion's food was brought over. Tibet may lack other things, but it certainly has no shortage of beef and mutton. Watching the white lion open its mouth and tear into the raw meat in the bowl, Zheng Hua suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.
Zhuang Rui knew that the way the white lion ate was something most people would find hard to accept, so he quickly changed the subject, saying, "Brother Zheng, what good things did you buy..."
"Hey, I bought a lot of stuff, but it's probably all fake, right? Let me see..."
Sure enough, upon hearing Zhuang Rui's words, Zheng Hua became excited. He put the large bag he was carrying on the table, pointed to a brass prayer wheel, and said, "Brother, take a look and see if this is real. The person selling it said it was used by a Living Buddha..."
Zhuang Rui couldn't help but chuckle upon hearing this. This guy is a seasoned businessman, how could he believe something like this?
"Brother Zheng, if someone tells you it was used by the Buddha, would you believe them?"
Zhuang Rui teased Zheng Hua, picked up the prayer wheel, and gently swayed it from side to side in his hand.
Prayer wheels are the most common ritual implements in Tibetan Buddhism. Inside the prayer wheel are Tibetan scriptures or mantras, and rotating it clockwise is equivalent to reciting them.
In Tibet, you can see believers everywhere, regardless of age or gender, holding prayer wheels and turning them continuously. This is because many Tibetans, especially the elderly, cannot recite scriptures fluently, so they use prayer wheels instead.
Zheng Hua's prayer wheel is very finely crafted. The scriptures inside are carved on the inner wall of the prayer wheel, not made by rolling up paper and putting it into the wheel. Moreover, turquoise is inlaid on the surface of the prayer wheel, making it look like a nice object.
After examining it for a while, Zhuang Rui returned the prayer wheel to Zheng Hua, saying, "This thing is alright. It should have come from a temple and is worth a thousand or eight hundred. But it's not a Living Buddha's ritual implement, otherwise it wouldn't be so cheap. Keep it safe and play with it..."
"Really? Hey, I bought it for 500 yuan. I'll take it back to Grandpa..."
Upon hearing Zhuang Rui's words, Zheng Hua smiled happily.
"After we finish eating, I'll go and find a prayer wheel too..."
Zhuang Rui suddenly remembered that Qin Xuanbing was also a Buddhist. She couldn't wear the dzi bead, so getting her a good prayer wheel would be a good idea. If he could get some Buddhist artifacts, that would be even better.
Generally, items that have been blessed and consecrated by eminent monks can be called Buddhist artifacts. Of course, Buddhist artifacts are also divided into three grades: superior, middle, and inferior, depending on the time of the blessing by the monk. For example, Zhuang Rui's string of dzi beads is considered a priceless treasure by Buddhists.
Folklore says that Buddhist artifacts can ward off evil and bring good fortune. Zhuang Rui didn't believe it at first, but after seeing the power of vows at the Jokhang Temple today, he was somewhat swayed. The comfort that the power of vows brought to the soul was something Zhuang Rui had already experienced.
"Alright, brother, I absolutely trust your taste. You'll have to pick out a few for me later..."
Upon hearing that Zhuang Rui was going to buy something, Zheng Hua's eyes lit up immediately. He had attended the opening ceremony of Zhuang Rui's museum and was well aware of Zhuang Rui's status in the domestic antique world. He knew that Zhuang Rui had definitely earned the museum through his own abilities.
Zhuang Rui smiled and agreed. His steak rice arrived just then. Without even greeting Zheng Hua, Zhuang Rui wolfed it down. After finishing a large piece of steak, he finally felt a little better. People living in high-altitude areas are prone to hunger.
"Mr. Zhuang, the bill has been paid..."
Just as Zhuang Rui was about to pay the bill, Section Chief Zhang returned with the invoice. He was in charge of hospitality now, and he couldn't let the guests pay for their own meals.
"Brother Zhuang, let's go. Let's hurry up and browse around some more. I just saw a shop that looks like it's run by a foreign girl. Let's go check it out..."
Zheng Hua was already impatient. After tidying up the things she had bought on the table, she pulled Zhuang Rui and walked out, saying, "Tomorrow I'm going to see the Panchen Lama with Grandpa. Maybe I can get an initiation from the Panchen Lama. I need to prepare some nice khatas..."
“Brother Zheng, when the Panchen Lama bestows blessings, why would you need to present a khata?”
Zhuang Rui laughed upon hearing this, recalling how he had foolishly tried to give a hada (a ceremonial scarf) to the Living Buddha to wear around his neck last year.
"Huh? It really is a shop run by foreigners..."
Led by Zheng Hua, the group soon arrived at a shop selling various handicrafts.
Chapter 724 Buddhist Instruments (Part 2)
Barkhor Street is a must-visit for all tourists coming to Lhasa. It is very bustling, and the shops here are naturally very valuable.
The craft shop that Zheng Hua brought Zhuang Rui and the others to was not very big, only about ten square meters. The goods displayed inside were all common Tibetan crafts. The only unique thing was that the owner was a foreigner.
To be precise, the owner here is a foreign woman, not very old, with a fair face and a few freckles, wearing a braid, and she is bargaining with the customers in English and with gestures.
"Brother Zheng, there probably won't be any old items here. Let's go to some shops run by locals instead..."
Zhuang Rui glanced at the goods displayed at the shop entrance. The bundles of hadas (ceremonial scarves) and items such as Thangka paintings and small Tibetan knives were clearly made using modern techniques and were not particularly interesting.
Of the customers browsing in the shop, eight or nine out of ten were drawn in by the proprietress.
"Hello, everyone, please come in..."
When the foreign girl saw Zhuang Rui and his group standing at the door, she quickly came out to greet them. Although her Chinese wasn't very fluent, her enthusiasm was genuine.
As the saying goes, one shouldn't hit a smiling face. This foreign girl was so enthusiastic, it would be too much of a breach of Chinese hospitality to just turn around and leave. Zhuang Rui and the others could only go into the store, thinking they would take a look around before leaving.
Although Gegu Lama and Section Chief Zhang did not go in, the place was not big to begin with, and Zhuang Rui and his two companions still felt a bit crowded after entering. There were people queuing up at the door to pay, and an eighteen or nineteen-year-old Tibetan girl was collecting payments.
However, as soon as the white lion entered the store, it startled the tourists from other places, who all scrambled to the sides, thus making room for Zhuang Rui and his group.
"Let's go inside and take a look..."
Zhuang Rui noticed that there were quite a few old-looking items on the innermost shelf, so he quickly called out to Zheng Hua and went over there.
"Hmm, the stuff here is pretty good..."
Zhuang Rui picked up a Tibetan silver ornament, a look of surprise on his face.
"Brother Zhuang, what's wrong? Didn't you say this place is full of modern handicrafts?"
Following behind Zhuang Rui, Zheng Hua asked, and also pretended to take a string of Tibetan silver necklaces from the shelf to look at them.
Zhuang Rui shook his head and said, "It's different, Brother Zheng. Go and try to get some information out of the shop owner. Ask her where these things came from..."
Zhuang Rui hadn't looked at the other items yet, but the thirty or forty pieces of Tibetan silver jewelry displayed here were genuine old Tibetan silver, at least a hundred years old, and could be considered antiques.
"Okay, I'll go ask..."
Zheng Hua walked straight to the door and started chatting with the foreign girl in English.
Zhuang Rui turned to Peng Fei and said, "Peng Fei, these are nice things, all old Tibetan silver. Pick some for your wife to take with her..."
In the words of Tibetans, Tibetan silver is actually just white copper, with very little silver content. Old Tibetan silver generally contains 30% silver and 70% copper, while modern imitations simply remove the 30% silver and are made entirely of white copper.
The origin of Tibetan silver ornaments is that before liberation, Tibet was very poor and backward, and silver was scarce. To avoid alkaline corrosion, silver was added to other metals, and over time it became a craft.
Pure silver jewelry is more exquisite, and the stones it is set with are mostly genuine turquoise, red coral, etc. The quality of the stones is better, and its brightness is also stronger than that of Tibetan silver. In comparison, Tibetan silver appears more rustic and primitive.
Modern sterling silver jewelry is more expensive than Tibetan silver jewelry. However, antique Tibetan silver jewelry is extremely precious and rare, and can rarely be found on the market.
The jewelry that Zhuang Rui looked at all had a faint white spiritual aura, which meant that these Tibetan silver ornaments were made according to traditional techniques and had a certain collectible value.
"Brother, I've found out..."
As Zhuang Rui was browsing through the Tibetan silver jewelry, Zheng Hua squeezed back in and said, "That foreign girl is British. She loves Tibet, so after visiting here, she didn't want to go back and opened this shop..."
"Brother Zheng, I didn't tell you to go pick up girls, why are you telling me this?"
Zhuang Rui interrupted Zheng Hua, both amused and exasperated. This foreign girl's nationality was none of Zhuang Rui's concern.
However, Zhuang Rui found it difficult to understand the personalities of these foreigners. They would come to a strange place, feel good about it, and then not want to leave. This was very different from the Chinese people's reluctance to leave their homeland. At least Zhuang Rui would never do such a thing.
A little embarrassed by Zhuang Rui's words, Zheng Hua laughed and replied, "Brother, you underestimate my standards! If we're going to find someone, they'll at least be from the British royal family..."
Zheng Hua wasn't exaggerating. Given the Zheng family's influence in Hong Kong and the UK, finding some distant princess with royal blood wasn't impossible.
"Alright, stop showing off, tell me where these things came from..."
Zheng Hua didn't have the arrogance of those "gentlemen" in Beijing. He had interacted with Zhuang Rui a few times, and the two had a pretty good relationship, so Zhuang Rui spoke to him rather casually.
"Uh, everything on this shelf was collected by that foreign girl from Tibetan herders and monasteries. She often goes back to the pastoral areas and interacts with those Tibetans..."
Zheng Hua's words put Zhuang Rui at ease. No wonder there were so many old objects. When Zhuang Rui chatted with Renqing Cuomu before, he heard him mention that Tibetan girls would bring many colorful gold, silver, and jade ornaments as part of their dowry when they got married.
This practice has been passed down through generations, resulting in many Tibetan households having items such as jewelry made of Tibetan silver.
"Hey Lei, what do you want to buy? Something cheap?" Zhuang Rui was talking to Zheng Hua when the foreign proprietress walked over at some point. She wasn't afraid of the white lion next to Zhuang Rui and took the initiative to greet him.
"Let's use English..."
Seeing that the proprietress was struggling to speak Chinese, Zhuang Rui said in English, "I really like all these things. How much does it cost in total?"
"You want them all?"
The foreign girl exclaimed in surprise.
You should know that there were thirty or forty pieces of Tibetan silver jewelry on that shelf alone, plus a few Thangkas, turquoise, and ashtrays made of yak bone, totaling about sixty or seventy pieces of handicrafts.
"Yes, all of them..."
Zhuang Rui nodded. It's still quite difficult to buy genuine Tibetan handicrafts these days. Most of the handicrafts displayed on the other shelves are from Yiwu, Zhejiang. There are plenty of such things at the small commodity wholesale market on Beijing East Road in Lhasa.
Seeing so many old handicrafts, Zhuang Rui naturally had to buy them all, even if it meant taking them back as gifts. Besides, the people living in his courtyard house now could consume more than half of them.
"Oh, you're so generous, I need to do the calculations..."