Millions for a Stone

Although I don't look like a collector, is that how you treat a customer?

Being ignored, Lu Zheng coughed dryly. "Sir?"

"What?" Gu Pingzhong only lifted his head when Lu Zheng greeted him.

"Young man, what do you want?"

He looked like he was in his forties or fifties, but why did he sound like he was in his sixties or seventies?

Lu Zheng grumbled to himself, but he didn't show it on his face. He looked left and right, trying to find something to talk about. "You even sell stone stamp seals, huh?"

Other than the street stalls in the tourist area, there were no other shops that sold the stone stamp seals. After all, they were not very useful.

Hence, even though Lu Zheng this store mainly sold jade jewelry and decorations, Lu Zheng saw a few stone stamp seals in obvious spots.

"Why? You want to engrave a stamp seal? How did you find this place?" Gu Pingzhong finally put down his book and asked with interest.

If a young man needed to engrave a seal, he could go to a stationery store. It was made of crystal and carved by a machine. It could be completed in three minutes.

Since he was here instead, did he want to carve a more traditional seal?

It wasn't easy to meet a young man who was interested in traditional seals. Gu Pingzhong didn't mind having a chat with him.

But ...

Gu Pingzhong looked at Lu Zheng from head to toe. He had no intention of doing business with him.

"No, I saw that you were selling stone stamp seals, so I wanted to ask if you would like to buy from me."

"Buy from you?" Gu pingzhong blinked. He couldn't help but smile and shake his head. "Thank you, but I have my own suppliers."

Gu Pingzhong only did business with acquaintances. He would shop for things on his own. Although there was no price tag for the items, they were all at least 100000 yuan. Gu pingzhong did not think that this young man Lu Zheng would be able to provide anything good.

If it wasn't a bad product, then it was a fake.

"I see." Lu Zheng smacked his lips."Then can I take a look around?"

After a pause, Lu Zheng continued, "I'll pay the appraisal fee. How much is it?"

Gu Pingzhong laughed again."Where did you find such a good stone? Why don't you send it to an auction house or an appraisal agency?"

"They are all scammers!" Lu Zheng shook his head decisively.

These agencies would charge a high appraisal and service fee, he would not fall for their scheme.

Gu Pingzhong looked at his watch. It was still early, and it was rare to have a customer. The customer who had made the appointment would probably only arrive in the afternoon, so Gu Pingzhong waved his hand. "Forget it. It's free. Let me take a look."

Gu Pingzhong assumed that Lu Zheng had been tricked.

"Oh, okay, thank you!"

Lu Zheng walked to the counter, took off his bag, and opened it. He then took out a small sandalwood box and placed it on the counter.

Gu Pingzhong's expression changed even before Lu Zheng opened the box. Although the box was made of the most common sandalwood, the carving technique was ancient. It was not a common modern carving technique.

Even if it was made in modern times, the craftsman must have a legacy.

Gu Pingzhong raised his eyebrows. Before he could express his anticipation, he was dazzled by the bright red stone.

"What a pure bright red color!"

If it wasn't for the box, Gu Pingzhong would have touched it by now. This kind of bright red color was obviously dye.

Not to mention the gold on the underside of the stamp stone. How could anyone get a treasure like that so easily?

However, the sandalwood box made Gu Pingzhong more cautious. He took out a piece of black velvet cloth from under the counter and placed it on the table. He pushed it forward and invited Lu Zheng to take it out.

Lu Zheng understood immediately. As Gu Pingzhong's mouth twitched slightly, he took out the stamp stone and placed it on the cloth.

Gu Pingzhong sighed and shook his head. Then he moved the lamp on the table and shone it on the seal. He took out a pair of white cloth gloves from the drawer.

Lu Zheng's eyes lit up. Professional!

After putting on his gloves, Gu Pingzhong was not in a hurry to pick up the seal. Instead, he first observed it left and right under the light before reaching out to pick it up and looking at it from all directions.

The texture was smooth, without any gaps. It was not made by a mixture of stones.

It was transparent and the color was even. It was not immersed in dye nor painted.

The color was bright red, like clouds and mist, as if it was flowing. It did not look like chalcedony or cinnabar jade, and it was also thick and heavy, heavier and most ordinary bloodstones.

Hiss!

Red with a golden base. It's a top-grade Changhua Bloodstone?

Gu Pingzhong felt his heart beat slower.

"How is it?"

Seeing Gu Pingzhong flipping through it expressionlessly, Lu Zheng asked carefully. He didn't know if the Phoenix Bloodstone was worth anything in the modern world.

This was the only way he could earn money in a short period of time, and he had spent a total of 25 kan!

Gu Pingzhong ignored him and continued to observe, trying to find evidence that it wasn't authentic.

But, he couldn't find it!

Gu Pingzhong looked up at Lu Zheng and asked, "Young man, where did you get this?"

"I bought it from a mobile stall."

"No way!" Gu Pingzhong said in frustration.

What era was it now, they sold authentic things in a mobile stall? The items from the ground would not end up in the hands of the mobile vendors.

"It's passed down in my family!"

"Hehe!"

"It's true. I found it in my grandfather's belongings." Lu Zheng replied sincerely, "he said that it's a rare and precious item. Since you're asking this, does it mean that this item is quite valuable?"

"It's valuable!" Gu Pingzhong replied and put the stone back on the cloth.

"How much is it worth?"

Lu Zheng reached out to take the seal but was stopped by Gu Pingzhong, who handed him a new pair of gloves.

Lu Zheng smiled awkwardly. He put on the gloves and placed the stamp stone back into the box.

Gu Pingzhong pursed his lips as he watched Lu Zheng put the box away in his bag. He muttered to himself for a moment before saying,"this stone is quite big. If someone really likes it, it can reach eight figures."

"Hiss!"

Lu Zheng gasped.

The antique collection scene was so terrifying!

...

"Then, will you accept it?" Lu Zheng's eyes flickered as he asked softly.

"Me?" Hearing that, Gu Pingzhong was stunned. He felt moved, suspicious, alert and hesitant.

Then, he asked, "if I want to buy it, I definitely won't pay eight figures. If you send it to the auction house, you will definitely get more than from me."

Lu Zheng shook his head and said, "there are too many tricks in the auction house. I don't like them."

Of course, this was just an excuse. The main reason was that the auction process was too slow.

Of course, Gu Pingzhong knew that Lu Zheng was just using this as an excuse. Based on the quality of this stamp stone, it could definitely be sent to a proper auction house. Although there were many tricks, there was also a guarantee.

So...

"If I want to take it, I'll have to invite a friend to take a look at it. In addition, the highest price I can offer is eight million. After all, if I want to sell the stone, I'll have to promote it and invite more people to come and admire it."

Eight million was more than what Lu Zheng had expected.

"Alright!"

Lu Zheng slung his bag over his back. "If no one can offer a higher price than you, I'll sell it to you."