Chapter 43: The Stone Carvings of the Republic

  "This is someone who deliberately made it look like jadeite, Nanyang jade itself and jadeite are very similar, after a little processing ordinary people can't tell the difference!"

  Wu Xiaoli slowly said while flipping through the jade carvings, at first glance she thought it was jade too. The stall owner's endless stories immediately raised her suspicions, and after careful identification, she found that this was actually a fake made in Nanyang.

  Nanyang jade is also a hard jade, with a hardness similar to that of nephrite, and its color is very similar to that of nephrite. Some unscrupulous businessmen take advantage of these characteristics to create counterfeit products for huge profits.

  Li Yang carefully looked at that Nanyang jade, his palm moved with a special ability, instantly enveloping them all inside.

  Li Yang's face suddenly turned red, and he lowered his head slightly, causing Wu Xiaoli to look at him with a puzzled expression.

  When the special ability is activated, everything around Li Yang becomes transparent, including Wu Xiaoli beside him, Wu Xiaoli's underwear and everything inside her underwear are all in Li Yang's mind, of course, what Li Yang sees is a three-dimensional image.

  But even so, Li Yang still saw those blood-boiling things clearly, and didn't even analyze the mood of Nan Yang Cui, let alone others, who were directly ignored by Li Yang.

  It was actually a scene that Li Yang had seen once before in Qingdao, when his special ability first appeared on a large scale, but at that time, both Li Yang and Wu Xiaoli were in danger, and Li Yang didn't have the mood to watch everything.

  But now it's different, Wu Xiaoli is by his side, and even the faint scent of Wu Xiaoli's body can be smelled by Li Yang. In this situation, a man would probably have other thoughts. Li Yang is no exception.

  "Look at things, look at things!"

  Li Yang forced himself to ignore Wu Xiaoli and focus his attention on the Nan Yang Cui ornament. As soon as he shifted his attention, Li Yang immediately discovered that something was off. The ornament in front of him was not made of jadeite at all, except for its appearance, it was completely different inside.

  "What is that?"

  Li Yang was stunned for a moment, and in front of him, the stall owner had many carvings, including jade carvings, stone carvings, and wood carvings. What Li Yang found was a large Maitreya Buddha painted stone carving, with a patch of crimson red on the belly of the stone carving.

  “300！”

  Wu Xiaoli didn't know about Li Yang's little thoughts, she glanced at him and then ignored him, thinking for a moment before giving the stall owner a price.

  "Little auntie, this is a good piece of jade from Nanyang even if it's not the best quality. Three hundred is a bit too low, how about one thousand?"

  The stall owner immediately made a painful expression, but his eyes rolled around and secretly took a glance at Wu Xiaoli.

  "One thousand? You think this second-grade Nanyang jade is worth one thousand? At most it's four hundred, otherwise I won't sell!"

  Wu Xiaoli stood up as she spoke, this quick southern Yang jade carving is still passable, after all it's meant to deceive people into thinking it's jade and selling it as such, but here you can buy real good quality jade, probably no one would believe that, even if they couldn't tell the difference, they wouldn't buy it here.

  "No, no, miss, it's not about the business deal, it's about the intention. Look, I'll give you a good price, 500, this is my wholesale price, I really can't go any lower, if you want it, I'll let you have it!"

  The stall owner hastily stopped Wu Xiaoli, this Nanyang jade pendant has been here for almost a month. Originally, he wanted to cheat an ignorant person into buying it at a high price, but now people are too clever and don't believe that they can still find a bargain here. Since it hasn't sold out in such a long time, he can only quickly get rid of it. If not, the longer it stays, the more unfavorable it is for him. Later, others will think that he sells fake goods here and won't buy anything from him again.

  "Five hundred!"

  Wu Xiaoli stopped and thought for a moment before taking out her wallet from her bag and handing five red tickets to the stall owner.

  This Nanyang jade pendant is at least decently crafted, and the price of 500 is not high. Moreover, Wu Xiaoli is very clear that the Dushan jade mine has been shut down, and Nanyang jade will only appreciate in value, not depreciate. Buying it for 500 will absolutely not be a loss. The only regret is that it looks too much like feicui (a type of jade), giving people an insincere feeling.

  Wu Xiaoli took the thing and wanted to walk out. This Nanyang jade pendant was not something she was satisfied with, and she still wanted to continue shopping.

  "Wait, Xiaoli!" Li Yang hastily called out to her and pointed at the stone carving with something in its belly that he had seen earlier, asking: "How much does this one sell for?"

  "This is a stone carving of Maitreya Buddha from the Northern and Southern Dynasties period. If you want it, little brother, it's just 10,000 yuan!"

  The stall owner immediately smiled and said to Li Yang, "This stone carving is indeed an old object, but it's far from having the history that the stall owner claimed."

  "Ten thousand? You're kidding me!"

  Before Li Yang could say anything, Wu Xiaoli had already rushed over. In Wu Xiaoli's eyes, Li Yang was now like a fool waiting to be slaughtered.

  "Miss, don't break the rules!"

  The stall owner's face changed faster than flipping a book, immediately showing a dissatisfied expression. In the antique business, there are rules to follow: when others are looking at things, you can't speak randomly or quote prices; you have to wait until they're done before you can look and talk.

  Li Yang didn't pick up the stone carving, but he had already asked the price, which meant that this business had begun, so the stall owner would say that to Wu Xiaoli.

  "Who are you to teach me what's right and wrong? He's my boyfriend!"

  Wu Xiaoli let out a hum, Li Yang stared blankly at Wu Xiaoli for a moment before lowering his head again.

  The stall owner's eyes rolled again, and his face suddenly turned into a brilliant smile: "So that's it, sorry about that. Your boyfriend has taken a liking to this thing, I won't lie to you, this is a stone carving from the Republic of China era, at least worth 1,000 yuan!"

  It's true that rules are rules, but they don't apply to everyone. For a family, it's like one person. If Li Yang is Wu Xiaoli's boyfriend, then they're like one family, so Wu Xiaoli has the right to speak up here.

  "Five hundred!"

  Wu Xiaoli directly haggled and only after speaking did she think that this was what Li Yang wanted, why should she help him haggle?

  "Little auntie, don't be so ruthless, I'm really not lying to you. If you and your boyfriend really want it, I'll let it go for 800, the price can't get any lower!"

  The stall owner smiled wryly and shook his head. This price was really very reasonable. Wu Xiaoli hesitated for a moment, then looked at Li Yang.

  "It's eight hundred, I'll take it!"

  Li Yang immediately took out the money. He couldn't tell if it was genuine, but he could read people. The stall owner's expression made him feel that they had already reached the bottom price. Eight hundred yuan was in line with the market value of this stone carving. In fact, Li Yang was very clear that even if he bought this stone carving for 10,000 yuan, he wouldn't lose money.

  Hand over the money and take the goods, Li Yang hugged the Maitreya Buddha stone carving and walked to Wu Xiaoli's back, grinning. This stone carving is really not small, its body is more than 30 centimeters high, and its belly is more than 10 centimeters long. It's quite heavy when held in hand.

  "This stone carving is indeed from the Republic of China era, but the craftsmanship is quite ordinary. I really don't know what you want it for?"

  Wu Xiaoli muttered to herself, ignoring Li Yang as he continued walking forward. Li Yang chuckled to himself, unable to reveal the secret for now. When Wu Xiaoli saw what was inside Maitreya Buddha's belly, she would definitely be shocked out of her wits.