Chapter One Antiques

  "Hey handsome, wake up~~, hey handsome, wake up~~~" The unusual alarm clock sound heralded the arrival of a new day. Our protagonist rubbed his eyes, got out of bed with a mixture of resentment and helplessness, turned off the annoying alarm clock, and muttered to himself: "Not being able to wake up naturally is the most painful thing in life for me." He kicked off the covers, put on his clothes, and rushed into the bathroom.

  Let me introduce Yang Tianwen, 20 years old this year, looks pretty good, a bit more handsome than ordinary people, but far inferior to those star-level handsome guys. Grew up in an orphanage since childhood, successfully enrolled in XX University at the age of 18, and was assigned to the unpopular Archaeology Department. As for his personality, it's hard to say. He has optimism and also has a tendency to be aloof and not get along with others.

  Yang Tian asked Guan to close the door, ran out of his rented 40-square-meter doghouse, rode a bicycle and flew to school. Breakfast? Forget it, being hungry is not a big deal. The doghouse is very close to the school, and you can arrive in two minutes by bike.

  It may seem spacious for one person to live in a 40-square-meter house, but if you add several rows of densely packed bookshelves, a room full of old books, and an old desk, it feels cramped.

  The school Yang Tianwen attended was just a second or third-rate university, with relatively loose management. As long as you didn't affect the teacher and classmates in class, generally speaking, you could do whatever you wanted. Yang Tianwen was an excellent student who excelled in both character and academics. He had never missed a day of attendance and his grades were also excellent. All this was for that damned scholarship. Without parents to support him, Yang Tianwen not only had to be self-sufficient but also couldn't let go of such free money.

  In college, the relationship between classmates is relatively distant, because except for attending classes, everyone rarely communicates with each other. Yang Tianwen is even more so, after class he rushes home, because there is no boarding problem, so basically only some people's names can be called out, without any deep friendship.

  The archaeology course was scarce and easy, so Yang Tianwen had more time to plan for life. After class, according to common sense, Yang Tianwen hurriedly ran out of the classroom, walking while making a phone call: "Fatty, I searched for a long time last night and finally found it. That piece of jade is really something, worth buying, I'm going over now."

  On the other end of the phone, a thick male voice came over and said: "Qiang Ge, is it another joint venture between us two?" The fat man was one of Yang Tianwen's few friends, all of whom were from the orphanage. However, this fat man had started working early on and hadn't gone to university like Yang Tianwen.

  Half an hour later, Yang Tian asked familiarly and arrived at the city's antique flea market, where some rare and ancient treasures had appeared. Of course, most of them were fakes, but there were still many people coming to dig for gold. After leaving the orphanage, Yang Tian had been making a living by reselling some genuine small items. For example, small copper coins, small Buddha statues, and so on. The cost was low, and the profit was not bad. Generally, if one's eyesight was good and luck was also good, things that were bought for tens of dollars could be sold for hundreds or even thousands.

  After locking the bicycle, I met up with Fatso and squeezed into the crowd. To be honest, most of the people who come here are middle-aged and elderly people who buy and sell some old items, which is also a kind of hobby and a way to pass the time.

  Two people familiarly came to a relatively remote street stall, and familiarly greeted the boss: "God of wealth, where is that piece of ancient jade last time?"

  An old man in his sixties, very spirited, was dozing off in an armchair. Upon hearing the sound, he narrowed his eyes and sat up, saying: "Young fellow, I didn't think you'd be a connoisseur! I said it before, the things I sell are absolutely genuine." The old man's name was unknown to anyone; everyone just called him Uncle Money or Old Money.

  Yang Tianwen smiled and didn't say a word, but Fatso rolled his eyes in disdain. He thought to himself: "I've been hanging around here for over a year, two years already, and I'm still not familiar with it? You can fool outsiders with these words, but I won't fall for them."

  The old man took out a brand new wooden box, opened it and handed it over, saying: "Check it out."

  Yang Tianwu took out the magnifying glass from his pocket and began to study it. The quality of jade is determined by its color and whether it has any inclusions. Of course, if you want to sell it for a good price, it's best if it has some historical significance, such as being worn by an emperor during the Han Dynasty.

  He carefully checked for over ten minutes, and the boss lay on the chair with his eyes half-closed, not urging him to hurry.

  "Not bad, it's true, Fatty gave money!" Yang Tian said as he covered the box. He also took out a dozen or so envelopes with old man Tou's head on them from the inner package and handed them to Fatty. His mouth thanked: "Thank you, God of Wealth."

  After paying the money, Yang Tian handed the box to Paozi and said: "This afternoon, I may be busy, you take it to the bank, rent a safe deposit box first, and then contact the buyer online."

  The fatty was stunned for a moment. Although he had done so before, the number of times had never been so large. He couldn't help but ask: "You're so sure I'll do it?"

  Yang Tianwen listened and smiled slightly, saying: "Of course."

  The fat man nodded happily and left with the thing. This piece of jade was bought for nearly 2,000 yuan, which is the largest deal in two years since the two partners joined forces. If they resell it to a good buyer, they can at least sell it for tens of thousands of yuan.

  Yang Tianwen felt at ease, firstly because everyone had grown up together and their friendship was deep. Secondly, even if the fat man left him, he would absolutely not be able to continue in this line of work. This antique business requires not only luck but also professional knowledge and solid skills for identifying goods. If you can't even tell whether something is genuine or fake, what's the point? In this line of work, I wouldn't say that one needs to know everything under the sun, but at least half of it should be clear.

  After Fatso left, Yang Tian asked: "God of Wealth, is there any old book with residual pages or wild history that I can take a look at?"

  "No." The old man replied in one breath, "You young lad wants to read for free again?"

  Yang Tianwen has been lurking around here for nearly two years, and anyone who knows him is aware that this kid's favorite thing to do is read books. Don't be fooled by Yang Tianwen's unassuming appearance - he actually has an IQ of 249, just one point shy of 250, with the extraordinary ability to memorize everything at a glance, making him a certified genius.

  Yang Tianwen didn't lose hope, stood up and was about to leave, when suddenly he caught sight of something out of the corner of his eye. It was a thick, square stone block, half an inch in size, used by the old man to prop up the chair leg. If it were just a stone block, it wouldn't have attracted Yang Tianwen's attention. The key was that on the surface of the stone block appeared a pattern resembling a compass. A compass is typically used by geomancers to detect wind and water, or as an ornament to ward off evil spirits. On these street stalls, compasses were not rare, with many types and sizes available. However, the compass pattern on this stone block seemed to be naturally formed, without any signs of carving, giving people a sense of unity and wholeness.

  "God of Wealth, what's the name of that stone under your seat? Is it for sale?" Yang Tian asked.

  The old man looked under the chair, used his hand to explore underneath, and gently pulled out the stone slab. He took a look at it and handed it over, saying: "Oh, this thing was something I picked up in the mountains before, it's worthless. If you want it, I'll give it to you, consider it a buy one get one free deal."

  Something that doesn't cost money and is something he's interested in, Yang Tian naturally wouldn't be polite about taking it, opening his mouth to thank him: "Thanks, I'm leaving."

  Wandering around, he found nothing interesting and left on his bike with the stone slab in the front basket. Riding alone through the city streets lined with high-rise buildings, this familiar city always gave Yang Tian a sense of unfamiliarity that was hard to shake off.

  Went to the vegetable market, bought some vegetables and went home. Went to the kitchen, casually cooked a few dishes, picked up a book from the bookshelf, opened it and started reading while eating. All these years, only these books can alleviate the sense of loneliness in my heart. Yang Tianwen's collection is very miscellaneous, including orthodox history, unofficial history, military books, strange gates, Taoist books, astronomy and geography, medicine, divination, astrology, everything is available, except for foreign things, because Yang Tianwen really looks down on those things.

  The Chinese nation has a brilliant civilization of 5,000 years. The greatness of our ancestors and the wisdom of our predecessors are still difficult to fully understand even today when technology is highly developed after thousands of years. A magical book of physiognomy records human nature changes, future destiny with the theory of five elements, can science explain this?

  The changes in the sky are unpredictable and multifaceted, with countless philosophical implications hidden within the twinkling stars. In ancient times, there were already astrological divinations to drive away evil spirits and avoid disasters. Moreover, some alchemists sought the elixir of immortality. The miraculous acupuncture is far beyond the medical skills of today, and the greatness of the ancients cannot be expressed in words. How many people now reminisce about the glorious history and ancient legends?

  After finishing dinner, I cleaned up and washed my hands, then returned to the desk in front of my bed. The small old desk was placed there due to limited space. I sat down with a thud, picked up the cigarette on the desk, lit it, and took a deep drag. A smoke after dinner is heavenly! I felt content for a while, then buried myself in books again. There were no classes in the afternoon, so I had plenty of time. Having just made a big deal today, I could finally take a break.

  Savoring the food, lost in time, a discordant mobile phone ring suddenly sounded, Yang Tianwen didn't lift his head, stretched out his hand to pick up the phone on the table and answered: "Hello?"

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