Chapter 37: Seizing Opportunities

The tea was a fine English milk tea, deliciously sweet and aromatic. However, one shouldn't overindulge, especially when it comes to something as enjoyable as this.

One shouldn't get too lost in such pleasures. A man should prioritize his career.

Soon enough, Tommy delivered all the cars—600 in total. They were all brand new, some imported from Germany, others from the USA, and most were luxury vehicles. These cars were taken straight from the docks' warehouses by the Razor Gang. These pre-war imported cars had been stored away due to official prohibitions.

For the Razor Gang, this was practically a risk-free business. However, Li Yian couldn't say much about it. After all, he was involved in the underworld himself, and sometimes, a risk-free business was just what you needed.

After the delivery of the cars, Li Yian's experience points increased once again by several hundred thousand. But for someone like him, who had seen his fair share of ups and downs, these experience points no longer brought him much excitement.

All that was left was to wait—for the plane to take off, and for him to head to the United States.

Compared to England, the United States offered more opportunities, with a larger market. Just the sugar market alone would provide him with enough resources for the reconstruction of North Borneo.

However, while waiting, Li Yian didn't sit idly by. He drove to the second-hand market. The war had changed many people's lives; even the wealthy were no exception. A simple example was the fact that the highest income tax rate in England had reached 99.25%!

This was the pinnacle of taxation for humanity!

This tax peak had led to many Britons struggling to make ends meet. With rationing in place, many Britons had to turn to the black market, which required money. To earn money, they had to sell off old belongings, leading to the flourishing of the second-hand market.

People bought and sold goods in the second-hand market, trading necessities. Here, you could find everything, even possibly paintings by Picasso—Li Yian had read a report about a property tycoon in the country who had spent millions at an auction to buy back a porcelain vase from the Qianlong period, which his father had exchanged for a can of food at a second-hand market in London during World War II.

Even more ridiculous was the fact that the vase had been a decoration in their kitchen for half a century.

While cans might not fetch you a beauty, they could certainly fetch you valuable antiques.

Seizing opportunities!

Who wouldn't like that!

During the war, London was like a large farm—any place suitable for growing vegetables was planted with them. Not only were various vegetables planted on balconies and in window flowerpots, even Hyde Park had turned into a vegetable garden. Although it was a vegetable garden, the park's pathways were crowded with small stalls, displaying all sorts of things—cameras, watches, tea sets, even old leather shoes, old coats—anything and everything could be found here. Some stalls even had signs that read "Cigarettes Only" or "Food Only."

This was the characteristic of wartime, where bartering was the most popular way of trading.

As Li Yian walked along, he observed the various second-hand goods around him. There were quite a few porcelain items, with almost every stall having some. There were even many items clearly from China.

However, Li Yian was clueless about antiques, but that didn't matter.

After all, he had the system!

As Li Yian bent down to pick up a vase, the system promptly popped up with a prompt.

"Discovered Qing Dynasty Blue and White Porcelain from the Dao Guang period. You can learn the skill 'Antique Identification.' Would you like to learn?"

Sure enough, just by touching it, he could learn a skill!

"Learn!"

Li Yian quickly selected "Yes," and the knowledge of the skill flooded into his mind.

Soon, even as an amateur in antiques, he had a thorough understanding of porcelain. Even an ordinary vase in his eyes could now be recognized for its origin and the era it came from. In the second-hand market, this was definitely an essential skill.

As Li Yian was admiring the vase, the system prompted him again.

"Congratulations! You have discovered a high-quality imitation of a Dao Guang-period blue and white porcelain vase and a painting by Picasso. You can learn the skill 'Artwork Identification.' Would you like to learn?"

Another new skill!

The only regret was that the chicken cup from the Qing Dynasty was a replica and couldn't be considered a family heirloom. On the other hand, the painting was somewhat unexpected.

By Picasso!

Now that was money!