Chapter 63: Even if the deal falls through, the goodwill remains!

Zhang Bo grew up playing in the antique street. With his family running a shop right here, he had been immersed in this environment since childhood and possessed a deep understanding of antiques. When it came to items like ceramics, ancient coins, or bronze currency, a single glance was all he needed to mentally estimate their approximate value. His nickname, "Little Tingquan of Panjiayuan," was certainly not earned for nothing.

However, the Melo pearl that Jiang Tao brought in today was an extreme rarity, found only once in tens of thousands of melo melo shells. Furthermore, jewelry was not the primary business of Zhang Bo's family. This time, the matter had touched upon a blind spot in his knowledge.

"Hold on a second, my friend. Let me give our boss a call and ask him. I'm a bit unsure about this treasure of yours."

Whenever Zhang Bo encountered a dilemma he could not resolve, he would consult his father, who went out fishing every single day. Despite the old man rarely visiting the shop anymore, his approval was still strictly required for any transaction exceeding one hundred thousand.

"Hey Dad, take a look at this. Should we acquire it, and at what price?"

As the video call connected, the phone screen displayed a man wearing a green military greatcoat and a Lei Feng cap, fishing on a frozen lake. The man looked to be in his early sixties and was none other than Zhang Long, the owner of Boya Auction House.

"Oh ho! A Flame Pearl! A rare and fine piece indeed! Moreover, judging by the look of it, it's a freshly unearthed specimen."

On the other end of the line, Zhang Long recognized the Flame Pearl at a single glance and was certain beyond doubt that it was genuine—even managing to deduce that the bead had just recently come to light. Having worked in the auction industry for decades, if he lacked even this basic level of discernment, he would have wasted his career entirely.

Zhang Long asked, "How much is the customer asking?"

Zhang Bo answered truthfully, "One hundred and twenty thousand."

"That's a bit too expensive. Our profit margin would be razor-thin. We can offer a maximum of one hundred thousand. Ask him if he's willing to sell at that price. If not, tell him to wait a bit longer."

"Alright then! You go ahead and get busy!"

Zhang Bo heavily emphasized the word "busy," clearly expressing his deep resentment toward his old man, who went out to enjoy fishing every single day while leaving him chained to the shop.

"You rascal, how about I give you an extra twenty thousand in pocket money for this month?"

"That's what you said! Got it! Take your time fishing, I'm going to go attend to my customer."

Hearing that he would receive an extra twenty thousand in pocket money for the month, Zhang Bo immediately felt relaxed and delighted!

After ending the call with his father, Zhang Bo returned to Jiang Tao holding the Melo pearl.

"My friend, our boss says the absolute highest we can offer for your pearl is one hundred thousand. If you can accept this price, we can settle the deal right here and now with cash."

Zhang Bo's expression was entirely sincere. Even if this particular transaction fell through, there might still be opportunities for cooperation in the future. In business, harmony is paramount, especially in the antique trade, where repeat customers were far more important. It was no exaggeration to say that seventy percent of the annual profit of Zhang Bo's family shop came from regular patrons. Cultivating a few more loyal clients would ensure they were well-fed and provided for every single year.

"Sorry, I won't sell for one hundred thousand. That's still quite a bit too low."

Jiang Tao did not harbor any resentment or irritation simply because the transaction failed; a warm smile remained on his face. Buying and selling were matters of mutual consent, and there was no logic in forced trades. Business might fail, but courtesy should remain. The intelligence system had valued this Melo pearl at one hundred and twenty thousand, and the price offered by Zhang Bo fell short by a full twenty thousand. Since Jiang Tao was not in urgent need of money right now, he naturally had no intention of letting it go so easily.

"Well then, my friend, feel free to look around elsewhere. If you run into the right buyer, you might be able to get a bit more. But if you don't find anyone offering a higher price than us, you are always welcome to come back."

As he spoke, Zhang Bo handed the Melo pearl back to Jiang Tao and smiled. "Let me give you a small box. Precious pearls deserve precious cases, and it'll look much classier when you take it out."

With that, Zhang Bo turned around, retrieved a palm-sized small box from a wooden cabinet nearby, and handed it to Jiang Tao. For jewelry boxes of this kind, buying them in bulk only cost Zhang Bo's family three or four yuan each. If he could win Jiang Tao's favor and develop him into a regular customer, it could yield thousands or even tens of thousands of times the return! The valuable banknote Jiang Tao had previously cashed out here had already netted Zhang Bo's family a profit of over ten thousand yuan.

"Thanks. How much is this box? Let me scan and pay you."

After accepting the jewelry box, Jiang Tao took out his phone, ready to settle the payment.

"It's just a worthless little trinket, and I said I was giving it to you as a gift. There's no way I could take your money. Just take it and use it as a token of friendship between us. If you have anything else you'd like to sell in the future, remember to come to us first. We will definitely offer you our most sincere price."

Despite his youth, Zhang Bo was quite sophisticated in worldly matters, and a few well-chosen words earned him a great deal of favorable impression from Jiang Tao.

"Alright, thanks then."

Seeing that the other party firmly refused to take his money, Jiang Tao stopped standing on ceremony, casually placed the Melo pearl inside the jewelry box, and turned to leave.

Suddenly, Zhang Bo called out, "Wait a second, my friend... Let's add each other on WeChat so it's easier to stay in contact if you need anything in the future."

"Sure, I'll scan you."

More friends meant more paths; Jiang Tao took out his phone, scanned Zhang Bo's QR code, and added him as a contact.

Having added each other, Jiang Tao finally stepped outside and continued strolling along the antique street. Along the way, he visited four more jewelry recycling shops to consult on prices. Among these four recycling dealers, the lowest offer was only sixty thousand, and the highest was merely ninety thousand. After making the rounds, the one hundred thousand offered by Zhang Bo's shop turned out to be the highest price after all!

However, Jiang Tao was in no rush to return to Zhang Bo to complete the sale, deciding to wait and see a bit longer. This item had no expiration date or risk of decay, so there was no hurry to unload it.

He continued wandering around the antique street until noon, found a small local restaurant nearby, and ordered a simple lunch of shredded meat stir-fried with flatbread.

After eating his fill, with nothing else planned for the afternoon, he resumed strolling along the antique street until past six o'clock in the evening. Today, he did not rush back to the Xiaoshahe area by subway; instead, he checked into a Hanting hotel near the antique street.

During the few days leading up to the New Year, he intended to anchor himself right here by the antique street and lock horns with the antique market. He wanted to test whether increasing the frequency of his visits would raise the probability of triggering antique-related intelligence. If he could manage to pick up a leak and unearth an antique worth hundreds of thousands or millions, just like the protagonists in online web novels... wouldn't he instantly experience a massive surge in wealth?

After completing the check-in procedure, Jiang Tao first ordered a large plate of braised chicken noodles through a food delivery platform. While waiting for the meal to arrive, he took a comfortable hot shower in the bathroom. The rented room he currently lived in naturally lacked a bathroom, making bathing extremely inconvenient. In summer, he could go shirtless to the public water pump to wipe himself down, but winter made that impossible.

There was indeed a public bathhouse in Xiaoshahe Village with reasonable fees—only eighteen yuan—offering both showers and soaking pools. However, according to Liu Zhiyuan, there were many soap-droppers lurking inside, and Jiang Tao truly did not dare to venture into that dragon's pool and tiger's den.

Ten days had passed since his last bath, and after scrubbing down thoroughly, he felt as light as if he had lost a few pounds.

Ding-dong, ding-dong, ding-dong—

While he was in the shower, his phone lying on the bed flashed continuously, receiving several voice messages sent by Zhang Bo.