Chapter 52

When Li Man Cang and his son went to find Boss Hong in twenty-li slope, Cheng Duo also arrived. However, he wasn't in a hurry like Li Man Cang, so by the time he set off, it was already broad daylight, and they didn't cross paths.

Thirteen wolf pelts were as light as a feather to Cheng Duo. He walked the twenty li without breaking a sweat.

Before entering the city, Cheng Duo took out two glass jars and a bottle of white liquor, wrapped them in a cloth bag, and tucked them under the wolf pelts.

Shopkeeper Sun of the fur shop, still remembered Cheng Duo. When he saw that Cheng Duo had brought thirteen wolf pelts in such a short time, he was both surprised and grateful that his wife had made a good connection during the last price negotiation.

Otherwise, if Cheng Duo sold the items to another fur shop, he would have lost this formidable customer!

"Oh, why didn't the honorable lady come with you this time?" shopkeeper Sun greeted Cheng Duo with a smiling face.

Cheng Duo was taken aback for a moment before realizing that he was referring to Yong Ge. Shopkeeper Sun, had an exceptional memory. He remembered Cheng Duo even after two or three months since they last met!

Cheng Duo clenched his fist and cleared his throat. "He needs to take care of things at home. I'll bring him out next time to have some fun."

"I see…"

This time, shopkeeper Sun, offered an even greater discount. Cheng Duo initially estimated that he could get around seven or eight taels for the wolf pelts, but after shopkeeper Sun made his calculations, the offer was close to eight taels and five hundred wen.

Cheng Duo was pleased and sold them without haggling. As he was about to leave, shopkeeper Sun saw him off warmly, repeatedly saying that he should come back if they had more valuable items to sell.

Seeing shopkeeper Sun's enthusiastic demeanor, Cheng Duo hesitated for a moment and asked him, "Do you know anyone who might be interested? I want to sell two items."

"What items?" shopkeeper Sun couldn't imagine that Cheng Duo would pull out a cloth bag covered in wolf hair and dust from under his backpack, and from it, he took out two sparkling and translucent treasures, like exquisite glass made from the finest materials.

It was truly… an extraordinary sight!

"Oh, put it away quickly! Aren't you afraid of attracting the attention of thieves and bandits?" shopkeeper Sun looked as if he was facing a great enemy, repeatedly urging Cheng Duo to put the items away, but he himself didn't dare to touch them.

The workers in their shop heard the commotion and wanted to come over to see what was happening, but he scolded them and sent them away.

Shopkeeper Sun was very tactful and didn't inquire about the origin of the treasures. However, he also saw this as his opportunity and thought for a moment before saying to Cheng Duo, "If you sell these two glass bottles to Treasure Pavilion, you'll definitely be pressured to lower the price. It's better to sell them directly to wealthy collectors who appreciate such items."

"I happen to know a generous young master. If Brother Cheng trusts me, shall I take you to meet him?" 

Cheng Duo had no reason not to trust him and quickly nodded. "Then I'll trouble shopkeeper Sun. If we sell them at a good price, I'll give you a one percent commission."

Upon hearing about this unexpected opportunity, shopkeeper Sun immediately abandoned his business and instructed his assistant to look after the shop. He personally led Cheng Duo out of the store.

Because Cheng Duo was carrying these "precious items," shopkeeper Sun was extremely cautious during the journey. He kept looking around, especially when they entered narrow alleys. Cheng Duo felt that shopkeeper Sun resembled someone doing underground work and almost burst out laughing.

Shopkeeper Sun didn't know what to say to him, as Cheng Duo was casually walking around with the bamboo basket. What if someone stole the items from behind him without him even noticing!

Fortunately, Cheng Duo was tall, and ordinary people didn't have such long arms. So after shopkeeper Sun reminded Cheng Duo once, and seeing that he refused to listen, he let it go.

When the two of them knocked on the door of an exquisite courtyard, shopkeeper Sun explained their purpose and was ushered in by the steward. Only then did shopkeeper Sun feel relieved.

"Come, Shopkeeper Sun, have some tea." Cheng Duo pushed the cup of fragrant tea brought by the steward towards Sun, in a relaxed and generous manner that didn't resemble a rustic farmer at all.

Of course, that was to be expected. Cheng Duo had seen many large and beautiful gardens before the apocalypse. Although this garden had an antique charm, the carefully crafted artificial hills and precious flowers and trees didn't impress him much. Moreover, the ornaments on the antique shelves in this place didn't seem much different from those found on street stalls selling antiques.

However, it was enough to surprise shopkeeper Sun. Many brave and generous individuals would become timid and apprehensive when they entered such a place. Cheng Duo, on the other hand, remained composed.

"Mr. Sun, what brings you here? Could it be that you have something good to introduce to this young master again…" Xie Yuan, holding a folding fan, entered with a smiling face but froze for a moment when he saw Cheng Duo. "Why is it you?"

"Uh… Mr. Xie recognizes Brother Cheng?" shopkeeper Sun looked at one and then the other.

Xie Yuan felt a little embarrassed. "Ahem, we had a brief encounter…"

It was because Cheng Duo's fierce appearance and timid demeanor left a deep impression on him. Moreover, this was the first time someone thought he was a swindler when he invited them to dinner…

Cheng Duo didn't remember at all, so Xie Yuan reminded him, saying, "I saw Brother Cheng and Honorable Lady on the street last time, and I wanted to invite you both for a meal… Ahem, my family really runs a restaurant business, I'm not deceiving anyone."

Speaking of "deceiving," Cheng Duo recalled, "Oh, it's you."

"Yes, it's me." Xie Yuan looked at him, then at shopkeeper Sun, and asked, "What brings you both here?"

He initially thought shopkeeper Sun had some nice fur to introduce to him, but now it seemed different?

Shopkeeper Sun helped explain, "Well, Brother Cheng has two precious glass bottles that he wants to sell…"

Cheng Duo then took out the two jars from the dirty cloth bag, and shopkeeper Sun successfully witnessed Xie Yuan's pained expression, instantly feeling much better. 

So, it wasn't just him who thought they were extraordinary!

"My goodness, how can you put them in a cloth bag? And keeping them in the backpack, what if they get damaged?" Xie Yuan looked at the two treasures with a pained expression. He wanted to reach out and touch them but realized he was still holding the folding fan. He casually tucked the fan into his waistband and wiped it against his brocade robe before carefully studying the two glass bottles.

Cheng Duo had already noticed that the fan in Xie Yuan's hand seemed to be carved from ivory, with a fan surface as thin as a cicada's wing, embroidered with the pattern of bamboo for gentlemen. And his brocade robe was intricately embroidered with cloud patterns, exquisite in every detail.

And now, Xie Yuan treated these two objects as treasures while neglecting the fan and robe. It seemed like a case of misplaced priorities…

However, in this era, the technology for producing such clear and bubble-free glass probably hadn't been invented yet, so it wasn't a big deal. After all, although these items were made of glass, they would become antiques after a few hundred or even thousands of years.

With this thought, Cheng Duo instantly felt at ease.

"Can this lid be opened?"

"Yes, this jar… the glass bottle has excellent sealing, even if the lid is closed tight and filled with water, not a drop would leak." Cheng Duo said, as he casually opened the lid to demonstrate. To prove his point, he even wanted to pour the tea from his cup inside.

Having lived through the apocalypse, Cheng Duo was accustomed to valuing the practical utility of objects more than their intrinsic worth. Therefore, he wanted to find a purpose for these two glass bottles.

"Stop!" Xie Yuan exclaimed in shock and hurriedly said, "I'll have someone bring clean water."

A servant quickly brought in a bucket of water, and Cheng Duo poured half a jar of water into the glass bottle, then tightly closed the lid and took it out, saying, "This thing becomes a bit slippery when wet. It's best to hold it by the lid, otherwise, if it falls on the ground, it might break."

Hold on, you're still holding it while shaking it!

Xie Yuan saw Cheng Duo gripping the glass bottle, flipping it upside down and shaking it, and his heart nearly jumped out of his throat. Shopkeeper Sun even reached out with both hands beneath it, fearing that if Cheng Duo's hand slipped, he could save it.

"You'd better put it down quickly. I believe they won't leak anymore," Xie Yuan said with lingering fear.

Seeing that both of them were sweating profusely, Cheng Duo felt embarrassed to further test their cardiac strength. He held the jars in both hands and placed them on the table.

The two jars were placed side by side, one with water and one without, but both were so transparent that they revealed the details of the tabletop decorations behind them, astonishing the two ignorant people.

"This lid isn't made of glass, right?" Xie Yuan carefully tapped on one of the jars.

Cheng Duo paused for a moment, then said, "Right, it's not… it's made of a rare metal, coated with red paint. It needs to be carefully protected." Otherwise, it might rust.

Fortunately, the step of imprinting trademarks on jars was skipped in the post-apocalyptic era; otherwise, he would have had to explain the characters on the lid.

Xie Yuan studied them for a while and called two stewards from trading firms. Although Xie family primarily ran a restaurant business, they also used a considerable amount of exotic spices and ingredients. The stewards had accompanied the merchant caravans and had gained some knowledge and experience.

The three of them whispered and murmured while looking at the jars, while Cheng Duo had practically examined all the ornaments on the antique shelf. They continued to discuss among themselves.

Shopkeeper Sun, listened attentively from the side, his knowledge limited. Listening to the stewards casually talk about foreign lands, he felt his horizons expand.

"How do you feel, Young Master Xie? Are you willing to accept this pair of glass bottles?" After a while, Cheng Duo approached and asked.

Xie Yuan straightened up, clenched his fist, and cleared his throat. "I want them. I'll take the pair for one thousand six hundred taels!"

"Not acceptable. Two thousand six hundred taels," Cheng Duo countered directly, doubling the price.

"One thousand two hundred!" "One thousand eight hundred!"

They went back and forth, and in the end, they negotiated the price to one thousand six hundred taels, eight hundred taels for each jar. A good deal indeed.

Although Xie Yuan felt the pain in his wallet, he knew that if he brought these two treasures to the capital city, those extravagant and greedy nobles would surely fight over them. However, he couldn't sell them like Cheng Duo did. He would use the most precious camphor wood box, sprinkle them with fragrant spices, and double the price easily.

But with the long journey to the capital city and the fragility and value of these two treasures, he was actually taking a considerable risk.

When shopkeeper Sun heard one thousand six hundred taels, his eyes sparkled! With just a simple introduction, he had earned back the money spent on purchasing the wolf pelts and more!

Not only that, after visiting Young Master Xie, he would surely remember his favor, as would Cheng Duo… It was a perfect opportunity!

After the transaction was completed, Xie Yuan insisted on treating Cheng Duo and shopkeeper Sun, to a meal at his own restaurant. However, as they entered the restaurant, they encountered five or six burly men dressed as foreigners causing trouble inside. The restaurant staff were lying on the floor.

"What's going on?" Xie Yuan's face turned cold in an instant. Just when he finally had the chance to clear his name, this was like a slap in the face!

The restaurant manager wiped the sweat from his forehead and explained, "These foreigners insisted that our dishes have insects in them. Our staff saw them personally; they were the ones who planted the insects."

He initially wanted to compensate them a little to resolve the issue peacefully, but these foreigners made outrageous demands, so he naturally couldn't agree.

Many restaurant owners had encountered this kind of situation. If it were ordinary people, the restaurant staff, numbering over ten, would quickly throw them out. But these foreigners had formidable skills, so he sent someone to the Xie family to call for their household guards, but it would take some time for them to arrive.

After understanding the situation, Cheng Duo, who had deceived Xie Yuan, decided to help him deal with it.

"Brother Cheng—" Just as Xie Yuan was about to stop Cheng Duo, he saw him punch the ringleader who was causing the most trouble, causing him to kneel down.

Xie Yuan: "…"

The remaining men were effortlessly subdued, and in no time, the arrogant foreigners started crying out in strange accents, begging for mercy.

They tried to run away, but Cheng Duo kicked them back with a single kick. "You don't pay for the broken dishes, bowls, and furniture? If you don't have money, you can stay and work as laborers!"

Xie Yuan and the restaurant manager's eyes instantly shimmered: You can do that!