Chapter 15

"What kind of price?"

He really was like an eel, impossible to get a grip on.

Chen Dengxing was anxious to know whether Gu Jinshui had Blood-Infiltrated Jade, but he knew better than to press. He merely stroked his beard and sighed. "Blood-Infiltrated Jade is another matter entirely. A piece no bigger than a thumbnail would be worth at least a house."

A house?!

Gu Jinshui's head buzzed.

Chen Dengxing went on, "The last time anyone sold Blood-Infiltrated Jade was back in the Republic of China era. Do you know how much they got for it?"

"How much?" Gu Jinshui couldn't hold back his curiosity.

Chen Dengxing held up six fingers.

"Six hundred silver dollars?" Gu Jinshui ventured.

Chen Dengxing scoffed. "Six hundred? In your dreams. Six thousand US dollars. A foreigner bought it and took it overseas. I reckon he made at least twice that when he resold it."

Gu Jinshui's heart hammered.

Now he understood what his master meant when he said a man could be poor one day and rich the next.

He had thought he earned a decent amount already, but compared with people like that, his money was nothing.

Perhaps Chen Dengxing's words had shaken him. Even with the two hundred in hand, Gu Jinshui wasn't as excited on the way back as he had expected.

After leaving Chen Dengxing's alley, he took a turn around Panjiayuan, but he couldn't spot anything nearly as good as Blood-Infiltrated Jade.

That figured.

Something like that was a rare stroke of luck.

He had been lucky enough to see one a few days ago. What were the odds he would see another?

Maybe I should ask Shanhu and the others to find out who bought it. Gu Jinshui pondered the idea as he carried his packed roast duck back to the Compound Courtyard.

Before he even reached the courtyard, he heard Huang Xirong's shrill, triumphant voice. "Look, everyone! Look at the gold ring my son bought me! This little thing cost nearly a hundred yuan!"

"Auntie Huang, has your Jianshe struck it rich?" The women gathered around Huang Xirong all looked envious.

One of them tried to touch the ring on Huang Xirong's finger, but Huang Xirong slapped her hand away. She tossed her head proudly. "He certainly has! Our Jianshe has a good eye. He went to Panjiayuan, spotted an antique, and it turned out his director collects things like that. He paid Jianshe a fortune for it. Guess how much Jianshe made?"

Gu Jinshui had meant to go straight inside. If those women surrounded him and saw the roast duck, they would make snide remarks, then egg on their grandchildren to come asking for the duck carcass to take home for soup.

The carcass wasn't worth much, but simmered with some radish and cabbage, it was still a dish.

But at the mention of Panjiayuan, Gu Jinshui stopped. He turned to Huang Xirong, whose face was glowing with pride. "Auntie Huang, Jianshe knows antiques?"

When Huang Xirong saw him, her waving arm froze, and guilt flashed across her face.

Song Jianshe had come out to fetch water. Seeing Gu Jinshui apparently fishing for information, he hurriedly set down his bucket and came over. "Jinshui, my mother's talking nonsense. Mom, Da Bao's crying. You'd better go home."

As he spoke, he tugged Huang Xirong toward their room.

"Hey, don't go! Jianshe, tell us, did you really make money?" several of the women protested.

"Exactly. If you can afford a gold ring, you must have made a few hundred at least."

Widow An's eyes were red with envy. "Does the state even allow people to trade antiques now? Watch out, or someone will report you and you'll end up behind bars."

"You old—"

At Widow An's words, Huang Xirong's face darkened. She raised her hand to slap her.

Song Jianshe couldn't let his mother make a scene. He hauled her back into their room and slammed the door, shutting out the inquisitive stares.

"Son, why did you drag me in here?"

Huang Xirong's face was red with anger. She rolled up her sleeves. "Let me out! I'm going to teach that old whore Widow An a lesson. First she talked about your sister, and now she's talking about you. If I don't knock her flat, she'll never know what your mother can do."

"Mom!"

Song Jianshe stamped his foot in frustration. He peered outside through a gap in the window and relaxed a little when he saw Gu Jinshui go inside. Then he turned back, his voice sharp. "Didn't I tell you not to tell anyone how we made that money?"

Song Jianshe knew the money had come through underhanded means, so he dared not let anyone find out.

Besides, he was counting on using the same trick to keep the money coming.

He had made a tidy sum this time. Reselling the Bamboo Carving and Blood-Infiltrated Jade had brought him three or four hundred yuan combined—about a year's wages.

Otherwise, Song Jianshe would never have spent over a hundred yuan in one go on a gold ring for his mother.

Guilt showed on Huang Xirong's face.

"It just slipped out. I won't say another word from now on, I promise."

Lin Lianhua said, "Mom, we shouldn't just keep quiet about trading antiques. We shouldn't tell people we've made money, either. It's best not to flaunt it."

Song Jianshe gave Lin Lianhua an approving look. "Lianhua's right. Too many people gossip in this courtyard. What if someone spreads word that we've made money and thieves come calling? Mom, I think you should put that gold ring away too."

"What? I have to put away the ring?"

Huang Xirong covered her finger, reluctant to part with it. Her heart ached.

But Song Jianshe insisted, so the ring she had worn for less than half a day went back into its box.

Still, the Song Family added an extra dish to dinner that night: braised pork belly.

Huang Xirong's expression finally brightened when she saw the meat.

But when she saw Song Jianshe place a piece in Song Chaohua's bowl, she objected. "What does a girl need meat for?"

"Mom, Xiaohua deserves some credit for this windfall."

Song Jianshe patted Song Chaohua's head. "Xiaohua, if you hear about another chance to make money, be sure to tell Dad."

Song Chaohua was so moved that she nodded vigorously.

Huang Xirong curled her lip, but for the sake of the money, she said nothing more.

Song Jianshe and his wife had reacted quickly, but word that the Song Family had struck it rich still got out. Liang Renyi, who had been keeping a close eye on them, heard about it too.

The next day, Gu Jinshui ran into Song Jianshe as they were both leaving.

"Heading out, Jinshui?" Perhaps because he felt guilty, Song Jianshe's smile was awkward.

Gu Jinshui gave a noncommittal hum and walked out.

"What's his problem? Jianshe, don't bother with him."

Auntie Zhao from the front courtyard beamed at him. "Jianshe, you're not working today? Going to buy more antiques?"

"No. My mother made up all that talk about antiques."

Song Jianshe waved his hands in denial. Seeing Gu Jinshui getting farther away, he hurried after him without another word to Auntie Zhao.

The Eighteenth Day of Being Overheard

Gu Jinshui bought nothing all day. He looked around Panjiayuan without making a move, then bought a box of dumplings from the State-Run Restaurant after dark and headed home.

"Why did you buy dumplings?"

He Chunlian opened the aluminum lunchbox. When she saw the dumplings inside, she frowned.

Gu Jinshui chuckled. "Mom, I remembered you like cabbage dumplings, so I bought them especially for you."

He Chunlian rolled her eyes. "Who doesn't like good food? How did it go today?"

Liang Ying, who was feeding their child rice porridge, looked toward Gu Jinshui too.

Gu Jinshui rubbed his nose and jerked his chin toward the East Wing Room. "Song Jianshe really did follow me. I led him around all day and didn't buy a thing."

Liang Ying frowned. "So he was the one who bought those things you had your eye on before?"

"Almost certainly." Gu Jinshui picked up a dumpling with his chopsticks and fed it to his wife. "I sent Douzi back to ask the sellers whether it was him. They all said he looked familiar."

"That's strange."

He Chunlian set out the bowls and chopsticks, her face full of puzzlement. "No one outside this family knows you learned to identify antiques from your master. How did he know you could pick them out? And how did he buy everything you spotted?"

Gu Jinshui was wondering the same thing.

Finding the man who had beaten him to the purchases was a good start. But Gu Jinshui still couldn't work out how Song Jianshe knew he could pick out antiques, or how he had managed to snatch the good pieces Gu Jinshui wanted.

"Never mind that. Trading antiques isn't illegal." Gu Jinshui tugged at the corner of his mouth and pinched his daughter's cheek. Gu Yousi swatted his hand, but he only chuckled. "I'll teach him a lesson first. He'll learn it's not so easy to take advantage of me!"

He hadn't suffered a loss this big since he started making his way in the world!

He was used to taking things from others, not having them taken from him.

Song Jianshe's scheming behind his back left a foul taste in Gu Jinshui's mouth.

Hearing her father's fierce declaration, Gu Yousi felt gratified, but she couldn't help worrying too.

Song Jianshe had always been lucky. Before long, he would save the grandson of an Overseas Chinese man and gain a powerful backer.

Would her father really be all right going up against him?

An Overseas Chinese man? A powerful backer?

Gu Jinshui raised an eyebrow and pinched his daughter's cheek. "You're so little, yet you're already frowning. What's a child got to worry about? Your dad's not afraid of anything!"

That was what he said.

But Liang Ying still had her concerns. That evening, as she sewed children's clothes on the sewing machine, she said, "There's something odd about Song Jianshe's family. If this gets too difficult, let's stop trading for a while. We have enough money at home."

Gu Jinshui put down his book and kissed his wife on the cheek. "Aw, is my wife worried about me?"

Liang Ying blushed bright red. Embarrassed, she rolled her eyes at him. "I'm serious. I earn a decent wage at the factory, and you made plenty from your earlier business. Why do we need to rush to make more?"

Liang Ying was afraid something would happen if Gu Jinshui clashed with Song Jianshe.

There was something strange about the Song Family, and they were no good. She feared they might lash out if cornered.

"Don't worry, honey."

Gu Jinshui put an arm around Liang Ying's shoulders. "I promised your father I'd give you a good life. I haven't forgotten that promise all these years."

Warmth filled Liang Ying's heart, though his words carried a weight of their own.

Gu Jinshui stayed away from Panjiayuan for several days. He didn't need money, and he also wanted to keep Song Jianshe waiting.

Gu Jinshui knew people like Song Jianshe. Once they had made easy money, they got hooked and could no longer look at their regular wages the same way.

And why would they? You could work yourself to the bone from morning till night for thirty days and earn just thirty or forty yuan. But one antique bought and resold could bring in tens or even hundreds.

With that comparison, who could sit still?

Even Gu Jinshui, who earned plenty, felt the itch. Song Jianshe was bound to feel it worse.

Sure enough.

Song Jianshe grew more anxious by the day.

Money was one reason. The other was that his director wanted a Snuff Bottle. The director had asked him to find a good one for his collection, and Song Jianshe had readily agreed to his face. Privately, he was frantic. If he knew how to identify antiques, it would be easy enough.

But he knew nothing about antiques. Finding something worthwhile among Panjiayuan's seventy or eighty stalls was next to impossible.

For now, he had to try his luck and see whether he could snatch whatever Gu Jinshui picked out.

If it wasn't a Snuff Bottle, some other antique might do.

Then the weather cleared.

Early that morning, Gu Jinshui told his family, "I'm going to the East District today. I'll be home late."

Song Jianshe heard him from inside his room and was delighted. He quickly asked his mother to go to the bureau later and request leave for him, then put on a dog-head hat and followed Gu Jinshui out.

Gu Jinshui seemed not to notice. With his hands in his pockets and a carefree swagger, he got off the bus and headed straight for Panjiayuan.

Song Jianshe followed him all the way. When he saw Gu Jinshui approach a stall displaying snuff bottles, he could barely contain his glee.

It was as if heaven itself were helping him. The very thing he wanted had appeared.