Chapter 7: Chapter 7: Tai
Looking at the bustling crowd of diners, Wang Daoyi struggled to swallow his saliva. It was just too enticing. But feeling his pockets, Wang Daoyi turned his gaze away. After spending a month in the ruins and then having a meal at the Qianyan Army camp after coming out, followed by half a month of meal expenses with the caravan on the way to Liyue, he no longer had any Mora in his pockets.
If he didn't quickly deal with the antiques in his hands, he would be sleeping on the streets tonight.
In the kitchen of Wanmin Restaurant, Xiangling was busy cooking, while chef Mao was assisting her by arranging dishes and cutting vegetables.
As a junior chef at Wanmin Restaurant, Xiangling's culinary skills received praise from the vast majority of customers. As long as Xiangling was at Wanmin Restaurant, most customers would request dishes made by her.
It seemed that chef Mao enjoyed this arrangement. Perhaps seeing his daughter's dishes being appreciated by customers brought him more joy than having his own dishes appreciated.
Because the junior chef often made some strange and curious dishes for regulars and friends to taste. These peculiar dishes sometimes left regulars and friends unsure whether Xiangling was playing a prank on them or genuinely experimenting with new dishes.
After finishing a dish of boiled black bass, Xiangling plated it and handed it to chef Mao, then glanced outside Wanmin Restaurant to see how many customers were left. Just then, she spotted a young man of about sixteen or seventeen years old, gazing in the direction of Wanmin Restaurant with a hungry look. Seeing the young man's hesitant expression as he touched his pockets, it seemed he was facing some difficulties.
Thinking this, Xiangling continued working without stopping, preparing to check on him later when she wasn't busy.
When her hands were free again, Xiangling glanced in the direction where the young man had been, only to find that he was no longer there.
"I'll check on him later when I'm done. If he's hungry, I'll treat him to my latest culinary creations!"
With this thought in mind, Xiangling refocused her attention on the stove.
Suppressing his appetite with difficulty, Wang Daoyi left Wanmin Restaurant and finally found the antique shop Xingxi had mentioned. It was a small shop filled with goods, including porcelain, calligraphy, and paintings, resembling an antique shop even more than Mingxing Jewelry.
Atai sat idle in the shop, somewhat bored. Initially, he was pleased when his master assigned him to guard the shop. After all, it was an effortless task, just showing off to passersby. Although it wasn't a lucrative job, it was easy and could be considered a cushy one.
But it was also undeniably boring. His master hadn't brought any new treasures for a long time, and everyone around knew that nothing in the shop was for sale anymore. Fewer and fewer people came to hear him show off.
Day after day, bored out of his mind sitting in the shop.
Tai felt like his life was being wasted.
Suddenly, he saw a young man walking into the shop.
Ah, a newcomer.
Atai's mood brightened rapidly, like the sky after rain.
"Hey! Come and take a look! Each of these is a rare treasure!"
Wang Daoyi knew this person wanted to show off to him, but he didn't interrupt. Instead, he cooperatively asked, "What do you have here?"
"Oh! You're interested! Let me tell you about it—"
Immediately, Tai took a bottle from the counter behind him.
"Take a look at this bottle. Although its appearance is ordinary, it's quite old. This alone can be exchanged for half a meal at Huayan!"
Seeing Wang Daoyi's interested expression, Tai seemed to regain his initial joy. He then took out an incense burner and a teapot from behind.
"And this incense burner, it's said to have been worshipped in front of Lord Rock for a thousand years, and it's already imbued with divine aura!"
"And this teapot, it was once used by Geo Archon himself, truly one of a kind..."
Watching Tai start to introduce (show off) these antiques endlessly, Wang Daoyi felt his stomach constantly sending signals of hunger.
He had to speak up and interrupt.
"Brother, I know the value of these antiques, and I know you're just displaying them. I was introduced here by Miss Xingxi from Mingxing Jewelry to sell antiques."
Interrupted mid-spell, Tai looked displeased, but upon hearing that it was Miss Xingxi who had introduced him, he reluctantly put on a smile again.
"Introduced by Miss Xingxi, eh? Come with me to the back, let's see what treasures you have!"
Saying so, Tai led Wang Daoyi to the back.
In the back room, Atai seemed to have adjusted his mindset, and his smile became more genuine.
"Take out your treasures and place them on this table. We won't handle them directly!"
Atai pointed to a square table nearby, indicating for Wang Daoyi to place the treasures there without handing them directly to him.
Wang Daoyi nodded. This felt somewhat reminiscent of antique trading in his previous life.
Opening his treasure bag, he took out two cups wrapped in cloth and a bone bowl.
After some thought, he decided to keep the cloth-wrapped bundle containing the Bone Porcelain Tableware in his bag. He remembered that the information about the bowl mentioned some mysterious properties, indicating it might be an extraordinary item that could be useful in the future, so he decided not to sell it.
He placed the three antiques on the table, then gently unwrapped the cloth covering two of them, revealing their appearance.
The agate beast head cup was exquisitely crafted from fine materials, with the vibrant colors and textures of the jade material cleverly carved. The cup resembled the head of a beast with horns serving as handles. It had delicate gold caps on its mouth, with finely detailed eyes, ears, and nose.
"The cup is carved in a round carving technique, with vivid and beautiful shapes. It resembles the head of a reclining beast, giving it a natural and lifelike feel. This is a rare treasure!"
Reluctantly putting down the agate beast head cup, Tai turned to the emerald-inlaid dragon tooth cup. Compared to the exquisite appearance of the agate cup, the dragon tooth cup seemed somewhat plain. However, Tai didn't underestimate it. With his keen eyesight, he immediately recognized the material of the cup, which resembled dragon teeth that flowed out of Mondstadt's Snow Mountain.
"Its color resembles jade, with blood-colored veins inside. It feels cool to the touch and is likely a unique and precious type of tooth, even if it's not from a dragon."
Putting down the dragon tooth cup, Tai looked at the two treasures, feeling a bit awkward. In front of these treasures, his earlier show-off antiques seemed to pale in comparison.
"These two are both rare treasures. They may be of inestimable value. I don't have the authority to set prices for such valuable treasures. To trade these, I need to report to my master and find an expert to appraise them."
Tai's face showed a hint of excitement. It had been a long time since he felt this excited. If his master purchased these two treasures, then as the manager of the antique shop, he would have the opportunity to carefully admire these treasures.
"If the young master decides to sell these two treasures, may I inform my master?"
"Since I've come here, naturally, I intend to sell these treasures. However, if the manager goes to inform your master, how long will it take for him to come and go?"
"Young master, rest assured. My master invited Mr. Zhongli from the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor to have tea and listen to books at the Tian Tiezui today. It's nearby. Please wait a moment, I'll be able to call my master back in just the time it takes to brew a pot of tea!"
!!! Zhongli?!?
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