Shao Huairen walked around the wooden table and pulled out the long black stone from under the corner of the table. He took it in his hand and looked at it carefully and weighed it, but he didn't see anything fishy.
, all I saw was that it was covered with dust and debris.
For a moment, he couldn't figure out why Xue Chen fell in love with this black stone. At the right time, the doorbell rang and an old Chinese man walked in. Seeing that it was a good friend, Lao Zheng, he hurriedly said: "Pocket watch
, and I’ll sell it to you for seven hundred dollars.”
Xue Chen paid the money, took the pocket watch and the long black stone, and left with Amanda.
And Shao Huairen's old friend Lao Zheng walked in, glanced at the backs of Xue Chen and Amanda, and asked with a smile: "Old Shao, you made another business and made a fortune?"
Shao Huairen pushed up his glasses and said with a slight sigh: "Get rich? I have always dreamed of getting rich, but I don't have that fate. My father left me such a shop before he died, and my son can't live up to the expectations.
, you can’t make any money, so you still have to rely on me for support.”
When Lao Zheng approached the wooden table, he took another look at the very dangerous clay pots. He naturally knew this little trick of Shao Huairen, and it was really effective. Basically, he could blackmail some money every month by breaking the pots.
, sometimes it’s one or two thousand US dollars, sometimes it’s several hundred dollars.
Because of this, Shao Huairen's reputation in Chinatown is not very good, and he can only rely on his kind face to deceive outsiders.
"Your father has been running the store for more than ten years. Didn't he leave you some good things?" Lao Zheng asked.
"No, my father said that all the money he earned was used to buy this shop. Before he died, I specifically asked him if he had left anything valuable, but what do you think he said?" Shao Huairen said angrily,
"He actually told me that if I read more, write more and practice calligraphy, I can make money."
Lao Zheng laughed and joked: "That's because your father told you to learn more knowledge. Maybe he wanted to tell you that if you practice calligraphy, you can become a great calligrapher."
Studying? Practicing calligraphy? Shao Huairen snorted. When he was young, he had no chance of doing either of these things. On the contrary, he was keen on joining societies and competing for territory with immigrant societies from other countries. When his old father passed away, he would not be too young.
, then he quit the club and inherited the store.
After joking, Lao Zheng asked casually: "What did those two young people buy just now?"
"A pocket watch, oh, by the way, there is also a black stone to cushion the corner of the table. I have to find another thing to cushion the table." Shao Huairen said that he was very satisfied with the business. The pocket watch only cost eight dollars.
It was charged ten dollars.
"Black stone, what kind of stone?" Lao Zheng asked in confusion.
"It's just a long piece of stone. I don't even know where it came from. It's been there for so long. It must have been placed under the table for more than ten years. It may have been left by my father." Shao Huairen said nonchalantly.
.
Lao Zheng is also an overseas Chinese who immigrated. His father was a scholar. When he heard Shao Huairen's description, he was confused: "Are you talking about ink ingots?"
"Ink ingot? What is ink ingot?" Shao Huairen asked suspiciously.
"When the ink ingot melts, it becomes the ink used to write the calligraphy." Old Zheng said thoughtfully.
"Old Zheng, are ink ingots valuable?" Shao Huairen asked nervously.
"Not necessarily, it also depends on the quality of the ink ingots. Some ink ingots are valuable, and some are not." Old Zheng looked more solemn and said hesitantly, "Old Shao, I doubt the ink ingot you sold.
It may be worth some money, and I even doubt that it was left to you by your father."
"Um?"
"Didn't you just say that your father told you to read more and practice calligraphy before he died? Ink will definitely be used in practicing calligraphy. Maybe he just wants you to find the ink ingots he left behind?" Old Zheng was surprised.
He expressed his speculation uncertainly.
"But why didn't he tell me directly?" Shao Huairen said loudly.
While Lao Zheng was thinking about this matter, Shao Huairen's expression changed slightly: "Could it be... because my second uncle was also present at the time, so I didn't want my second uncle to know, so as not to compete with me... It must be like this! It must be!"
"
Shao Huairen suddenly remembered that his father seemed to have something to say to him before he died, but it was inconvenient to say it. It must be to guard against his second uncle!
Lao Zheng looked at Shao Huairen, whose face turned ugly, and was also stunned.
Xue Chen and Amanda walked out of Dad's Grocery Store. He handed the pocket watch to Amanda and said, "I'm giving it to you. Think of it as a gift for you to be my tour guide, although it may only be worth a hundred dollars."
Amanda took the pocket watch and glanced at the other thing in Xue Chen's hand. How smart she was. She vaguely guessed that the long black and dusty stone might be something valuable before leaving the store.
.
"Xue Chen, what is this? It must be very valuable."
Xue Chen didn't mind the dust on it, so he took it directly in his hand. When he heard Amanda's question, he thought for a moment and said: "Is it worth it? Well, it should be considered valuable, but it depends on everyone's standards. I don't think so."
If you’re wrong, it should be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, and we’ll have to wait until its true identity is revealed before we can be sure.”
"Hundreds of thousands of dollars..." Amanda's eyes suddenly lit up and she asked curiously, "What is it?"
"Ink ingot." Xue Chen turned to look at Amanda's delicate and beautiful Western face, "Do you know what ink ingot is?"
Although Amanda can speak Chinese very well and has enough knowledge about China to be able to live in China without any obstacles, her understanding of the more profound Chinese culture is still very limited.
As the two of them walked towards the entrance of Chinatown, Xue Chen charged Amanda and started explaining.
"There are four treasures of the study in China, which are brush, ink, paper and inkstone, namely brush, black ink, rice paper and inkstone." Xue Chen showed Amanda the long ink stick in his hand and said, "This is black ink."
"Ink... I've seen it before, shouldn't it be liquid?" Amanda asked in confusion.
Xue Chen smiled: "Yes, only liquids can be used for writing. However, in ancient times, liquid ink was difficult to preserve and would stink after a long time. So people invented ink ingots, which were used to compact the ink with molds.
When the time comes, soak the inkstone in the spring water and slowly grind it to produce black ink."
Xue Chen held the ink ingot in his hand and glanced down. He was surprised to see a nice thing in such a small grocery store.
What's even more bizarre is that the shop owner didn't know the goods and used an ink stick to pad the corner of the table? It can be seen that he must be a person without much education, otherwise as long as he has a little understanding, even if he doesn't know the true value of this ink stick
, and would not be such a waste of natural resources.
He didn't mind keeping it for himself to prevent the pearl from getting dusty.
Moreover, the old gentleman's character really made him look down upon him. Selling an old pocket watch at a high price was nothing to him, it was normal, but deliberately placing the pottery pot in a position where it could easily be knocked off, in order to blackmail customers, was such a behavior.
That's so disgusting.
When the two of them were about to walk out of Chinatown and arrived at the parking place, suddenly a small car that looked a little older came roaring from behind, braked with a squeak, and stopped in front of the two of them.
Shao Huairen and his friend Lao Zheng from Dad's Grocery Store jumped out of the car.
Shao Huairen stared at Xue Chen closely. When he saw the ink ingot in Xue Chen's hand, he shouted excitedly: "Give me back my ink ingot!"
Amanda turned to look at Xue Chen and whispered, "Yeah, he seems to know."
Xue Chen didn't expect this. How could he suddenly know that this was an ink stick? If he had known it a long time ago, he wouldn't have used it to pad the corner of the table. He turned his attention to another old gentleman, faintly
I guessed that maybe I got some tips from this person.
"Didn't you hear what I said? Return the ink ingot to me quickly!" Shao Huairen stepped forward with excitement on his face, clenching his fists, eyes wide and fierce, and there was still the kindness and amiability he saw at first.
On the contrary, it is very ferocious.
Xue Chen looked at Shao Huairen indifferently, raised the ink in his hand, and said, "Is this what you are talking about?"
"Not bad!" Shao Huairen said without blinking.
"But I bought it and it already belongs to me. Why should I give it back to you?" Xue Chen said.
Lao Zheng stepped forward and scolded: "I think this should be an old ink ingot. It must be worth some money, but you only spent seven hundred dollars. Now that Lao Shao has discovered it, why not return it to the original owner quickly! Otherwise!
, we can call the police!"
Xue Chen smiled, his eyes full of sarcasm: "Calling the police? I bought this thing openly. Didn't I pay for it? Did I force him again? None, and it was fair and just. I paid the money with one hand and delivered the goods with the other hand.
, even if you call the police, what will happen?"
Whether it was Shao Huairen or Lao Zheng, they were all speechless by Xue Chen's words and didn't know how to refute.
Shao Huairen glared: "Don't talk so much nonsense. I have already called my son. He is from the club. If you dare not give it back to me, little kid, you won't be able to leave! Don't ask for trouble!"
If it weren't for time, Shao Huairen, who had been in a club when he was young and had fought with others for many years, would have robbed it himself.
After he realized that the long black stone he had been lighting under the corner of the table for many years was the legacy left to him by his old father, his heart almost exploded. He had always dreamed of getting rich and being able to earn a large sum of money to support his retirement. It turned out that he had been sitting there all this time.
On the Jinshan Mountain, you just don’t know it!
Fortunately, Lao Zheng reminded him to go out and chase him quickly, where he blocked the two people who were leaving.
"Let me say it for the last time. I bought this ink through normal and legal channels. It already belongs to me. No one has the right to take it from me."
Shao Huairen, who had a more personal side, said, signaling to Amanda, "Let's go."
"You...stop!" Shao Huairen and Lao Zheng shouted together!
At this time, the conflict between the two sides has attracted the attention of some passers-by, who stopped and watched from a distance. (To be continued)