101 Striking It Rich

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“Hey, Sister Yun, I’m not bragging, but this yellow jade Buddha hanging on your BMW is just perfect. It brings good fortune, wards off evil, and ensures safe travels!” Yang Tang’s mouth ran unchecked, but the part about the yellow jade Buddha matching Yun Luyue’s BMW and guaranteeing all blessings was confirmed by his eagle eye—utterly reliable.

“Really?” Yun Luyue felt Yang Tang sounded like a street vendor hawking cheap goods, leaving her a little uneasy.

“This kind of thing works if you believe sincerely. Trust me, there’s nothing more reliable in my travel bag than this yellow jade Buddha,” Yang Tang said, finally wearing a serious expression.

“Alright, I’ll take it. How much?”

“Sister Yun, why talk about money between us?” Yang Tang shoved the yellow jade Buddha into her hand, displeased. “If it were just about money, I wouldn’t have saved Yao Yao after yesterday’s car accident.”

Yun Luyue wasn’t one to be pretentious; she etched Yang Tang’s kindness into her heart and waved the Buddha in her hand. “Then I graciously accept!”

“That’s more like it!” Yang Tang casually zipped up his travel bag and added, “Sis, I’ve already booked the ticket to Egret Island for tonight. In the afternoon, I’ll need you to show me the places where they trade antiques and treasures.”

Yun Luyue frowned. “Leaving tonight? Why the rush?”

Yang Tang didn’t explain further. “I have my reasons.”

After a moment, Yun Luyue pulled a card that looked almost golden from her purse and handed it to Yang Tang. “If you encounter any trouble on Egret Island, call this number and just give my name.”

Yang Tang accepted the card solemnly but teased, “Sis, what exactly are the three characters of your name?”

Yun Luyue glared at him. “Are you asking for a beating?”

“I just heard people mention your name. Gotta be sure!” Yang Tang smiled slyly. “Clouds think of clothes, flowers think of beauty, spring breeze brushes the railing, dew glistens thick. If not atop the Jade Mountain, then under the moon of Yao Terrace—could these four lines hide the name Yun Luyue?”

Yun Luyue’s eyes softened, lost in thought. When she came back to herself and tried to scold her mystic little brother, he had already vanished from the room.

“Hmph, good thing you’re fast!” she muttered, touching her slightly flushed cheek, her gaze drifting as her thoughts wandered again.

At two in the afternoon, in the mezzanine between the thirteenth and fourteenth floors of the Minjiang Hotel, Yang Tang knew he probably couldn’t have gotten in without Yun Luyue’s guidance—beyond illegal entry, it would’ve been near impossible.

“Tangzi, since you want to offload those items in your bag, follow my lead: rent a temporary stall number at the service desk using my membership and bank cards,” Yun Luyue instructed.

Yang Tang silently nodded and did as told. When he returned, he grumbled, “Sis, why didn’t you say renting a stall costs a million?”

Yun Luyue tucked away the cards without comment. “It saves money this way.”

Yang Tang’s eyes widened. “A million for a stall, and you call that saving money?” He had asked during payment; the stall was only valid that day, and the million was non-refundable.

“You told me your items were worth over thirty million. I was just trying to help you save some cash,” Yun Luyue chided. “Otherwise, an eight percent handling fee? You do the math.”

Yang Tang paused. “You mean using a stall number means no handling fee?”

“Exactly.”

“But I rarely see others rent stall numbers.”

“That’s because they trade fewer items. There’s a rule here: if fewer than three items are traded, whether you rent a stall or not, eight percent is charged.”

Yang Tang was speechless.

Seeing his daze, Yun Luyue poked his forehead with her jade finger. “Tangzi, go claim your table with that stall number and set your items out. I’ll take a stroll and introduce you to some serious collectors.”

Ten minutes later, a banner stood before Yang Tang’s rented stall number 50, inscribed in elegant script: “Resting atop ninefold clouds, the meditation cushion settles true. Beyond heaven and earth’s mystery, these items stand genuine.” On the table were seven white items—three in front, four behind—each tagged with a price starting with six zeros.

After setting up the machine, Yang Tang settled into the high-backed chair behind the stall.

The entire mezzanine hall was spacious but sparsely trafficked. Occasionally, well-dressed, polished, wealthy patrons passed by. Even these big spenders winced at the prices—two million, five million, seven million, and two items priced over ten million.

Yang Tang wasn’t greedy; his prices were already fair for the trade. Like a bowl of noodles costing five yuan on the street, whose real cost was less than half, yet shops double the price to make profit. Yang Tang, with his eagle eye, could accurately estimate each item’s value but preferred a simpler approach: if an item was worth over a million but less than five million, he’d price it at two or three million. Customers could take it or leave it; it was never a loss.

Good merchandise defies high prices. About a third of those entering this mezzanine were true connoisseurs. Some faces passed by his stall only to linger nearby, clearly intrigued.

Finally, a forties-aged man with a coarse face in a suit couldn’t resist and approached. “Young man, your prices are too steep. Can you go lower?”

Yang Tang replied coldly, “If you take the elevator down to the fifth-floor marketplace, it’s really expensive for wage earners there. Things are cheaper there.”

The man rolled his eyes, biting back irritation. He pointed to a mouse pendant no bigger than a thumb. “Three million for this? Can it be cheaper?”

Yang Tang’s eagle eye activated, and a plan formed. “You’re not buying that mouse for yourself, right?”

The man was startled. “How do you know?”

“I suggest you buy this eight million piece—Lord Fu Xi, known for his temper. Paired with it, within three months, your son will surely calm down.”

Yang Tang’s words made the man’s eyes as wide as cowbells. “How do you know my child’s a son, not a daughter?”

“Nonsense! I sell these kinds of things, of course I have to give you guidance. Otherwise, you’d buy it with no effect and curse me behind my back,” Yang Tang said nonchalantly. “Of course, that was just advice. The money’s in your pocket. Buy or not, your call.”

“I’ll buy! I’ll buy it!” The man no longer hesitated and pulled out a black card. “I’ll pay by card. This eight million one!”

Starting is always the hardest. After this first sale, word of stall number 50 spread. Many came not just to buy but to seek Yang Tang’s insights.

Yang Tang was patient; whenever his eagle eye detected genuine interest, he offered a few words—sometimes enlightening, sometimes thought-provoking—always rewarding. His goods sold fast. At times, several groups nearly came to blows over a single item.

When Yun Luyue arrived with friends to support him, only five or six of nearly forty white items remained. Seeing her, Yang Tang quickly cleared part of the stall for her and her companions. At other stalls, customers might have scattered in protest, but at Yang Tang’s, those seeking his advice simply frowned and stepped aside.

“Hey, Tangzi, why are so many people here?”

“Sis, no choice. Everyone’s happy to support me. Business is booming!” Yang Tang said as he placed his last few items on the table, sticking on price tags.

Upon seeing the prices, the crowd erupted. “I’ll take that thirty-million Guanyin!”

Yun Luyue and her three companions—two men and a woman—were stunned. Only one Guanyin statue sat on the table, ceramic, priced at thirty million? That could buy a whole truckload!

Yang Tang calmly activated his eagle eye and glared at the middle-aged, gaunt-faced customer. “Sir, in the last three months, your relatives have died one after another, and now you only have your young lady left, correct?”

The man stared at Yang Tang for ten seconds, then looked away. “Young man, you’re truly gifted. How do I resolve this?”

Yang Tang said, “Continue as before, but you must buy this nine-million Xuan Ming. Drop three drops of your blood and three drops of the young lady’s blood on it, then place it in the center of your home altar for forty-nine days.” Of course, this was all deduced by eagle eye.

“Alright, young man, as you say, that’s what I’ll buy—the nine-million Xuan Ming!”

The others accepted this as natural, but Yun Luyue and her friends were dumbfounded.

A whirlwind week—please bookmark, bookmark, bookmark!