Go back to the prosperous days and become a layman

Chapter 485 484 Liulichang

The next day, June 12th, Sunday.

After having breakfast, Tang Zhitong packed up and went out with the air gun on his back.

Xiao Wang thoughtfully prepared dry food and water for her man, fearing that he would go out without food or water.

However, after Tang Zhitong went out, he did not go to the suburbs, but went to Liulichang.

As we all know, Liulichang is a place where antiques, calligraphy and paintings are sold.

There are many people in the old city of Sijiu who have family wealth, including the elderly, the down-and-out capitalists, and so on. It is inevitable that some of them have family wealth.

Food is in short supply this year, and some families who are short of money would sell some calligraphy and paintings, and then use the money to "exchange" for food coupons to fill their stomachs.

Several decades later, there was an actor whose ancestors owned a silk and satin shop and now lived by the lake.

Of course, he is still a child now, younger than Fengzhi and Jingmin.

According to his own public statement on the show, something happened in his family two years ago, and it was from that time that he began to sell his family's collections.

There are generally three ways to sell antiques, calligraphy and paintings.

The first way is to sell it to stores, which makes money quickly but the price cannot be high.

The second way is to sell it to someone you know. The price may be a little higher, but many people will not do this due to face.

The third way is to set up a small stall in Liulichang, put the goods in front of you, and let the customers who shop around to choose. As for whether you can sell them or not, it all depends on luck.

Antiques, calligraphy and paintings are not controlled items. As long as they do not block the door of the antique shop, the store will not bother to regulate them.

There is conflict between the stalls and the stores, but it is not that big.

The business in stores is guaranteed, but a small stall may open today and disappear in two or three months. Those who are really rich will not choose a small stall.

The people on the street turn a blind eye to this kind of thing. There aren't so many jobs on the market, so we have to find a way for these people to make a living, right?

As for the legendary "black market", Tang Zhitong had heard of it, but it was very different from the market.

At least for now, no one dares to organize transactions in the alleys and charge "tickets".

The black market basically deals in various bills. As long as the money is in place, there is nothing they can't get.

Ticket scalpers are mostly concentrated at the park entrance or inside.

As far as Tang Zhitong knows, ticket scalpers in Dongdan Park are quite active.

Firstly, the pattern of the east being rich and the west being noble has not changed much. There are mostly wealthy people around here, and the market is relatively large.

Secondly, this place is easy to hide, and thirdly, if someone comes to catch you, it will be easy to escape.

The money and goods are exchanged in the time it takes to pass a cigarette. It is difficult to catch them unless you go fishing.

As for where the ticket scalpers got the tickets, Tang Zhitong didn't want to guess. It was not his concern.

This is also one of the reasons why Tang Zhitong is unwilling to get involved in this kind of market. He thinks that some things he does are very covert, but if these things touch the interests of certain people, then these things will not be so covert.

When they got out of the alley, there was no trace of the air gun, bicycle, backpack and water bottle. They were all taken into the space by Tang Zhitong.

The two-cent fee for viewing the car is not expensive, but you have to come back to pick up the car after strolling around, which is a bit tiring and a waste of energy.

There are many small stalls in Liulichang. Tang Zhitong strolled around, stopped to look, but couldn't buy anything.

Tang Zhitong wanted to find some good wood. Since he was going to make a comb for Xiao Wang, pine or elm would not be suitable. It had to be at least rosewood.

"Comrade, can I take a look at this?" Tang Zhitong squatted in front of a stall and saw a small gadget that was interesting.

"Okay, you can look." The vendor squatted behind the stall, put his hands in his sleeves, and nodded. It was cold, and he had no intention of taking out his hands.

After the vendor agreed, Tang Zhitong picked up the item and looked at it carefully. It was black and plain in appearance, but it was quite heavy in the hand.

If you put it to your nose and smell it, you can smell a faint fragrance that can be compared to sandalwood.

"Hey, comrade, you have a good eye. This is an item that has been passed down in an orderly manner. It came from Boss Mei's troupe." Seeing that Tang Zhitong was interested, the vendor started to talk more.

"Oh? What is it used for? It looks weird." The material is right, but the appearance is weird, so Tang Zhitong asked casually.

The vendor's smile froze, thinking you didn't know it? But he still explained to Tang Zhitong: "This is called a sandalwood board, also called a yazi or a bangban, and it's used for drums in opera troupes."

"Oh, now that you mention it, I understand more. Just give me a price." Tang Zhitong looked at the size. It was nearly thirty centimeters long and seven or eight centimeters wide. Although it was a bit thick in the middle and had a hole in the middle, it could be polished and avoided later and would not affect the making of a comb.

"Come on, let's hold hands?" Seeing that Tang Zhitong wanted it, the vendor took his hand out of his sleeve.

"Sorry, I don't know how. Just tell me directly. There's no one else around." There aren't many people on Liulichang Street, and this stall is backlit, so there are even fewer people.

"Since you really want it, just give me two dollars." The vendor pretended to be generous, waved his hand and quoted a price.

"It's too high." Tang Zhitong said, putting the drum back.

"Then sir, please give me a price and I'll take a look." The vendor was not in a hurry. As long as the customer didn't leave, there was still hope.

"Let me calculate." Tang Zhitong lowered his head, found a small stone, and started scratching on the ground.

The volume is the product of length, width and height. Take the maximum value of the length, width and height. Three drum plates plus one drum plate have a volume of 0.0036 cubic meters.

Tang Zhitong didn't know how much this thing originally sold for, but that didn't stop him from knowing the price of sandalwood when he was making furniture at the beginning of the year. The unit price multiplied by the volume is the price of the raw material of rosewood.

"The best red sandalwood, one hundred and fifty yuan per square, and three of these, fifty-four yuan." After Tang Zhitong finished calculating, he threw down a small stone, slapped his hands, and gave the price.

"Oh my goodness, man, this price is too low. You haven't added the labor cost, right? Go to a stationery company and have a look around. A sandalwood drum board costs at least one dollar. This price is not good, no." The vendor shook his head at Tang Zhitong's offer.

"Hey, no one would use the real big and good materials to make small objects. These are all made of scraps. I said that one hundred and fifty yuan per square meter is all top-quality mahogany. What's more, yours is an old one and can't be compared with the new ones from the cultural supplies company. What do you think?" Tang Zhitong stood up and looked like he was about to leave.

"No, no, this price is too low. It's not even enough to cover my investment. I can't afford to lose money, right? I see you're serious about it, so let's each make some concessions. How about one dollar and fifty cents?" The vendor bargained, offering to lower the price by fifty cents.

"Haha, let me take another look." Tang Zhitong used his foot to wipe away the traces of writing and drawing, then shook his head and turned to walk out. One step, two steps, three steps.

"Hey, man, let's discuss this again." Seeing that Tang Zhitong showed no sign of turning back, the vendor lost his temper and called Tang Zhitong to stop.

"How much?" Tang Zhitong stopped and turned around, but did not walk back.

"How about this number?" This time the vendor stood up and raised a finger towards Tang Zhitong, it was his index finger, not his middle finger.

"I'll take this number if you're fine." Tang Zhitong stretched out his hand, made the number "eight", and cut off two cents.

"Okay, it's early in the morning, and I'll ask you for a profit. It can also be considered as a sign of opening a new business." The vendor was a little hesitant, but finally stomped his feet and accepted Tang Zhitong's offer.

Pay in one hand and deliver in one hand.

Tang Zhitong continued walking forward with the drum in his hand, and then watched the excitement.

This stall faced the sun, so it was warmer and attracted a crowd of people.

A young man was holding a jade in front of a stall and examining it carefully when he saw an old man leading several colleagues from the police station coming over and holding the vendor down. The young man was so scared that he trembled and dropped the jade on the stall.

"Hey! What's wrong? What's wrong? Why are you arresting me?" The vendor was unhappy and shouted loudly.

"Be honest! Where did you get these things?" the police officer asked, pointing at the things on the ground.

"I collected it! Can't I just earn enough money to make a living? Is there any justice in this world? You're forcing people to death!" The vendor protested with his neck stiff.

"Then do you know where these came from?" The man packed up all the things on the ground.

"I bought it from someone else." The vendor said stubbornly.

"Be honest! Go to the police station and explain everything!" The comrades at the police station did not listen to his arguments and took him away with his belongings.

"Young man, do you know what you have?" The vendor and his things were all taken away, and then the other onlookers started to talk to the young man.

"What? Isn't it a jade cicada?" The young man was still a little confused. He was looking at the jade, and suddenly everything disappeared.

"It is indeed a jade cicada, but didn't you see that it has no hole for threading the string?" the old man pointed out.

"I haven't noticed this. Is there any explanation?" The young man was eager to learn.

"Hey, the one without holes is called a cicada, and it's put in the mouth of people after they die. And the thing you were playing with just now, the thing you called a toothpick cover, do you know what it is used for?" The old man chuckled, showing off a little.

"Oh, please stop talking. I feel a little sick." The young man frowned. He had only heard others say that jade cicadas were good and represented a stunning success, but he never thought there were so many details to it.

"What is it used for?" The young man didn't ask, but he couldn't resist the curiosity of others.

"Hehe, during the Han Dynasty, after a person died, it was important to plug their nine orifices, commonly known as Nine-Aperture Jade. A pair of jade eye covers, a pair of jade ear plugs, a pair of jade nose plugs, a white jade cicada bite, and one each in the front and back. The one just now was put in the old man's body." The old man explained as if he was joking, which made the young man feel sick.

The young man was about to vomit, his face was red, and he kept rubbing his fingers on his body. Just now, he was curious and put his finger in there.

"Hey, that's not right. Weren't there two sets just now? Why is there only one with a hole?" someone asked.

"That set is for women. This set is heavily stained. I don't know which ancestor's tomb it was dug out from. It's not unfair to arrest him." said the old man.

"Wow! I've learned a lot. It's a good thing I didn't succeed just now. How unlucky!" The people next to him looked at the young man who had just succeeded with a gloating look.

The young man felt so uncomfortable, nauseous and wanted to vomit, but there was probably nothing in his stomach, so he just dry-heaved twice.

"Young man, when you buy jade cicadas in the future, make sure to choose the ones with holes. It is best to choose the ones with a 'singing device' on the abdomen of the jade cicada, as that symbolizes a stunning debut. Some people who don't understand may think it is unlucky to carve a female cicada that will never make a sound in its entire life." The old man also has a kind side and is quite particular. He explained this to the young man before leaving.

"Thank you, I will never touch this stuff again." The young man shook his head again and again. What about the sayings that jade nourishes people and a gentleman is like jade? Go to hell with that!
As the old man and the young man left, the crowd dispersed in twos and threes.

Seeing that it was still early, Tang Zhitong went into a cultural relics shop because there were wood carvings inside.

There was only one middle-aged man in the shop, carving with a carving knife in his hand.

"Comrade, can you let me see this comb?" Tang Zhitong had never done this kind of handicraft before, so he planned to take a look at the real thing before starting work. It would be great if he could learn some production techniques.

"Sixty cents." The salesman put down the carving knife, fiddled with his hands, took out the comb, and quoted a price.

The material of the comb looks solid, but it is not red sandalwood. However, it looks very beautiful, with a pair of mandarin ducks carved on it.

"Comrade, come and have a cigarette." Tang Zhitong put down his comb and gave way with a sincere smile on his face.

"You can't buy cigarettes cheaply. The store has rules for that." The salesperson was stunned and said as he took the cigarette.

"Look at what you said, I'm not giving you a bargain." Tang Zhitong nodded to the other party, and then said, "This is the situation. My wedding anniversary is coming soon, and I want to give my lover a gift. After thinking about it, a comb is suitable, but I want to make one myself, which is more meaningful. This is my first time and I have no experience. I want to ask you if there are any techniques involved."

"Wow, so you're here to steal someone's skills?" The salesperson was amused. He didn't mind Tang Zhitong being so frank. As for selling one less comb, it didn't matter. He didn't get any commission anyway.

"I really have no other choice. I'm sorry to embarrass you." Tang Zhitong was willing to pay for knowledge. With a smile on his face, he placed an unopened box of Daqianmen cigarettes on the counter.

"It's neither difficult nor easy. It just takes a lot of effort. First of all, you have to get the shape right..." Honesty is a killer skill. Seeing Tang Zhitong talking, the salesperson didn't hide anything. He took a handful of the semi-finished product and told him everything.

"Okay, thank you." After listening carefully, Tang Zhitong thanked him and left.

For the sake of the cigarettes, the salesperson explained in detail and pointed out the direction to Tang Zhitong.

Tang Zhitong did not dare to underestimate the wood carving craftsmen, as their work was very good.

Decades later, some Beijingers with special hobbies like to find girls to have friendly discussions and exchange ideas about physiological structures. After achieving the great harmony of life, they also like to use their "cash ability" to obtain the other party's consent and take a few photos as a souvenir.

When he had collected a certain number of pieces, Jing Ye would go to Liulichang to find a familiar master, leave a copy of the photo with the master, ask the master to carve it according to the photo, and then string them into a bracelet as a souvenir.

This behavior is indeed a bit excessive and should be severely condemned and criticized, but the carving master's craftsmanship is impeccable and lifelike.

If it is well-polished, it looks enchantingly beautiful.

Of course, there is no such behavior now, and everyone is worrying about how to eat one more bite.

(End of this chapter)