Chapter 12: You Just Pull Antiques Out of Your Pocket

Chapter 12: Chapter 12: You Just Pull Antiques Out of Your Pocket

She had heard the old man was in his seventies or eighties, but his voice was still surprisingly resonant and powerful.

"I’m here to see you," Hua Buwan answered as she walked inside.

Hearing this, the old man didn’t get up. Since the door was already open, he simply called out, "Then come in."

As soon as Hua Buwan stepped inside, she saw the old man lying in a wicker chair, gently waving a large palm-leaf fan. He looked at her kindly. "Are you here to pawn something or buy something, young lady?"

Feng Chengde sized her up with an amused smile. Having lived for the better part of a century, he had seen all kinds of people. He could tell at a glance that the girl before him was just an ordinary person. She didn’t look like someone who could afford the items in his shop, nor did she resemble a middleman. She was probably just here to take photos for social media. Lately, idle young people loved coming in to treat his shop as a trendy photo spot, making such a ruckus that he barely wanted to open his doors anymore. Many of them also loved shoving their phones in his face to record videos or do live streams. At his age, he had no desire to show his face online. Whenever he found out he had been filmed, he had to go through the hassle of calling in favors to get the videos deleted.

Seeing that Hua Buwan didn’t barge in with a phone held high, he relaxed, quite willing to chat with a polite young person.

"I have a family heirloom here, and I was hoping you could appraise it for me," Hua Buwan said, pulling the gold ingot out of her pocket with the casualness of someone fishing out a cell phone.

Feng Chengde was intrigued and was just about to stand up when he saw her gesture. Watching her pull it out so haphazardly, he figured it couldn’t be anything valuable. He reasoned that if it were a genuine treasure, the girl wouldn’t have just stuffed it directly into her pocket without even a protective velvet box.

Despite his doubts, he maintained a polite smile and reached out to take the gold ingot.

The moment it touched his hand, however, he raised an eyebrow. The weight was right, and the color was excellent—it was likely real gold. When he flipped it over and saw the hallmark stamped on the bottom, his expression shifted, and his entire demeanor completely changed.

Hua Buwan watched as the old man instantly entered a state of utmost seriousness. Ignoring her entirely, he hurried over to the counter, grabbed a velvet tray, and reverently placed the gold ingot on it with both hands. He then pulled out a pair of specialized gloves from a drawer, slipped them on, and took out a magnifying glass to inspect the item repeatedly.

Seeing his reaction, Hua Buwan knew she was in luck. She just wondered how much his appraisal would differ from the system’s quoted price.

A moment later, the old man took a deep breath and looked up at her, his eyes filled with a mix of intense scrutiny and excitement. "This heirloom of yours has been exceptionally well-preserved," Feng Chengde said, giving her a meaningful look.

Hua Buwan didn’t look away, meeting his gaze with a calm and open expression. "Yes, my family cherishes our belongings. It looked exactly like this when my grandparents passed it down to me."

She could lie without batting an eye; showing any hesitation now would mean losing her leverage. When dealing with antiques, as long as one firmly insisted an item was a family heirloom, no one could really dispute it. If she failed to provide a solid origin story, the ingot might just get confiscated, or worse, she could have the authorities knocking on her door to haul her in for questioning.

Though the old man had his doubts, he had no intention of digging deeper.

He smiled and began to explain. "This gold ingot is far from ordinary. It was minted in Dongxuan Country over a thousand years ago, and it even bears the Government’s official stamp. It was typically used to reward meritorious officials.

"As far as I know, only two other gold ingots like this have ever appeared on the market. One is kept in the Huaxia Museum, and the other was acquired by an antique collector in the Capital City. The transaction price for that one was fifty thousand.

"If you want to pawn it with me, my offer will be based on that price. What do you think?"