Siheyuan: The romantic and suave Xu Damao

"What? Why is it so expensive? Didn't you just say it was ten yuan a copy, and you'd give me a discount if I bought more? You're charging me twelve yuan a copy, and you're only giving me a discount if I buy three."

The old man pursed his lips at the person who had just asked the price, then turned and looked at Xu Damao with some confusion.

"Grandpa, you can't say that! These three books are different from other ordinary stuff. They contain priceless treasures passed down by our ancestors! Naturally, the price is higher!"

"No matter how valuable it is, if no one reads it, it's useless to put it on this stall! Give me a discount!"

"Old man, I've already given you a two-dollar discount on each book. It really can't be any cheaper! If you go to this ghost market and ask around, you'll know how much a Qing Dynasty medical book like this is worth. Besides, if the price is a little higher, you'll definitely treasure it more after you buy it back..."

Xu Damao kept chattering on and on, and at the end he threw out such a perverse theory, which almost made the old man with a goatee laugh.

"Okay, I'll take it. But I think the dog you have here is pretty good-looking. It looks a lot like the big yellow dog I have at home. Just give it to me as a gift!"

The old man with a goatee said slowly.

"Hey, that won't do, old man. Well, since you have such good taste, I'll give you this thing as a gift."

As Xu Damao spoke, he picked up a string of black jade bracelets from the side and handed them to the old man with a goatee. A closer look revealed that the beads were quite large, estimated to be about 15mm thick.

"Grandpa, I'll give you a string of this. This is genuine black jade. You are a Chinese medicine practitioner, so you should know its benefits. Just this string alone would cost me several dollars!"

Xu Damao continued, with a reluctant look on his face.

"I was telling you about this clay pot dog. How did you get me such a thing?"

Although the old man with a goatee grumbled in dissatisfaction, he still reached out and took the bracelet.

"This is just an item from the Republic of China period, but the jade quality is really average. How about this, I'll pay you five dollars and you'll give me this puppy?"

As the old man with a goatee spoke, he took out a thirty-five yuan bill and handed it to Xu Damao.

Xu Damao took the money with a smile on his face, quickly put away the thirty yuan, and then stuffed the remaining five yuan into the old man's hand.

"Old man, don't expect to get any bargains from this. To tell you the truth, let alone five dollars, even if you give me fifty dollars, I will never sell it!"

After hearing the conversation between Xu Damao and the old man, several people nearby couldn't help but look over here curiously. Two of them walked straight towards them.

One of the men was wearing a Tang suit, fiddling with a string of 30mm-diameter Huanghuali Buddhist beads. He walked over to the dog figurine, squatted down, and examined it carefully with the weak light of a lantern.

"It's just an ordinary clay dog! You dare to ask for fifty dollars for it? Young people really don't know how to do business..."

The old man with a goatee muttered a few words to himself, knowing that he would not get any bargain this time, so he picked up the lantern and slowly left Xu Damao's stall.

At this moment, Xu Damao and Lou Xiao'e were sitting side by side on the straw mat. They did not disturb those people who were holding lanterns and concentrating on checking the items.

Maybe it was because of the cold weather, the fur stall next door was doing a brisk business. A few customers gathered in groups of three or four, carefully selecting the items they liked, while the stall owner lowered his voice and patiently introduced the products in detail to each customer.

Seeing two customers buying leather hats and gloves, Xu Damao suddenly realized that he also urgently needed a pair of leather gloves.

"Brother, could you please pick out a pair of leather gloves for me? I have several guests here right now and I can't leave."

After all, there are two or three people in front of my stall looking at the goods, and I must not ignore these potential buyers.

"No problem! Don't worry, buddy. I promise to pick you a pair that's big and nice!"

About two minutes later, the fur stall owner threw a pair of exquisite black leather gloves to Xu Damao. Xu Damao quickly put them on to try, and hey! The size was surprisingly suitable.

"How much does it cost? I'll send it to you when I have some free time."

"It doesn't matter if it's money or not, I'm giving it to you, brother!"

The stall owner waved his hand generously, turned around and went back to warmly entertaining other customers.

"Oh, how can that be? We are all in business, and it's not easy! Take it!"

Without saying a word, Xu Damao quickly took out a pack of Daqianmen cigarettes from his pocket and threw it towards the stall owner.

"Oh, thanks, brother!"

The stall owner swiftly caught the flying cigarette packet, opened it and saw that it was the famous Daqianmen. He immediately smiled from ear to ear and thanked Xu Damao repeatedly.

At this moment, a deep and old voice came: "Young man, let me see that bottle."

An old man in simple clothes and with a focused expression looked at the small items such as ivory carvings and jade pendants placed in front of the stall for a while, then his eyes fell on a cloisonné vase next to Xu Damao. He pointed at it and motioned Xu Damao to take it.

"okay!"

Xu Damao responded readily, reached out to grasp the mouth of the bottle, easily lifted it up with one hand, then quickly walked up to the old man and handed the bottle to him without hesitation.

However, something unexpected happened. The old man did not take it, but said to Xu Damao with a serious face: "Put it on the ground, young man, don't you understand the rule of 'porcelain cannot be passed'? If I fail to catch this precious lump and it falls to the ground and breaks, who will be held responsible or my fault?"

The old man said this with a smile, as if questioning Xu Damao's "unprofessionalism" as a person doing business in the ghost market.

"Hehe, the old man is right, but I still know the rules of porcelain. If this thing falls, it will definitely be my fault!"

Xu Damao said with a smile.

"However, I think my hands and feet are quite flexible. Even if the old man doesn't catch it, I can react in time and will never let this treasure fall to the ground."

Xu Damao patted his chest and assured.

"Oh, by the way, there is one more thing. This is not ordinary porcelain. Old man, you have to look carefully."