After careful consideration, Chen Zikong positioned the customer base of this treasure spring as foreigners who have just arrived in China and those who are about to leave China. People who have just arrived in China know nothing about antiques, while those who are leaving are preparing gifts for their relatives after returning home. This ancient money box with Gu Hongming's notes and Xuantong Emperor's inscription is the most suitable gift.

  Collecting copper coins, customizing wooden boxes, are all extremely simple things. Adding velvet cloth and pure silver plaques, the cost can also be controlled within three yuan. The important work lies in how to sell them.

  Here is the translation:

  It's time for Miss Yao to take action. She put on her most beautiful clothes, took out a beautifully crafted ancient coin box, and came to the Liu Guo Restaurant for promotion. She was originally eloquent and fluent in English, and was also a regular customer of the Liu Guo Restaurant, so she quickly won over the manager. The sample and sign were soon placed in the store on the first floor of the restaurant, marked as "Qing Dynasty Forbidden City Warehouse Copper Coins", which were used by the emperor to pray for national peace and security every year during the worship ceremony, making them extremely valuable. Limited to 9 sets, each set costs $100, sold out as soon as possible.

  One hundred dollars, equivalent to three hundred and fifty taels, is not expensive at all for a copper coin with special significance. The nanmu wooden box is exquisitely made, and inside it are almost all the coins from the Shunzhi dynasty to the Xuantong dynasty, ranging from large to small, including copper and iron coins. What's even more astonishing is that Miss Yao somehow found a blue-feathered guard wearing a yellow horse cloak standing beside it, pretending to be guarding it, as if to prove that this thing really did come out of the Qing palace.

  Those who can afford to stay at the Liu Guo Hotel are not ordinary people. The cheapest room here costs six yuan per night, and many high-ranking officials have been staying in suites for months on end. European diplomats come and go frequently, and a hundred yuan is really nothing to them. On the contrary, if the price were ten yuan, I'm afraid no one would be interested.

  Within a day, the nine sets of limited edition copper coins were snatched up, and Chen Zikun and Yao Yilei got their hands on $900, which was equivalent to over 3,000 taels. Miss Yao regained her former lavish style, giving generous tips to everyone she met, and amidst a chorus of flattery, she left the Liu Guo Restaurant and got into a car.

  Of course, it was Chen Zikun who drove the car. He had already learned to drive under Yao Yile's guidance and arrived at the pawnshop with money to buy back the mortgaged jewelry that had been dead for a long time.

  Chao Feng apologetically told them that the jewelry had already been sold.

  Yao Yilei asked: "So fast sold, who bought it?"

  In the morning, it makes a "zhi zhi wu wu" sound, but what it says is unclear.

  Yao Yilei threw a banknote over and immediately got an answer: "The few pieces of jewelry you had were taken away by Yao Cizhang."

  At this time, Chen Zikong noticed that there was a bicycle in the pawnshop, which seemed to be familiar. He asked the shopkeeper to open the door and take a look. It was an Alpes brand from Switzerland. The celluloid edge of the handlebars had some wear and tear, which was exactly the scratch he and Lin Wenjing made when they were learning to ride in the alley.

  Memories floated to the top of his mind, new people had replaced old ones. Looking at Yao Yire's happy and lovely face beside him, Chen Zikun heard a sigh from the bottom of his heart.

  He still spent money to buy a bicycle, but did not tell Yao Yilei the origin of this car. He also bought a new British-made three-gun brand bicycle and asked Mr. Johnston to send it into the Forbidden City as a bonus for Puyi.

  ……

  In the Liuguo restaurant, someone sold copper coins at a gold price. This matter immediately spread to Liulichang. The surrounding area of Liulichang is full of experts in selling antiques and calligraphy, but there are not many people who play with ancient coins. Because this thing is really not rare, especially the Qianlong period's coins have not completely exited circulation, they can be found everywhere on the street, even children sew copper coins into their chicken feather dusters to play.

  Even if it's playing with ancient coins, it's collecting Spring and Autumn, Warring States, Qin and Han dynasties' coins, such as knife-shaped coins, spade-shaped coins, Qin half-liang, Han five-zhu, who plays Kangxi Tongbao? But there are still people doing this, and they even blew it up, saying that it was used by the emperor to worship heaven. A box of broken copper coins can be sold for 350 yuan, a sky-high price. This matter spread in Liulichang, making business people very angry.

  "It's just something like that, at most worth five yuan, and it's still the money for buying a box." someone said.

  "Damn, still five bucks, I think even one and a half isn't worth it. These shameless scammers have lost all face for our antique business!" Someone cursed like this.

  All talk and scold, this group of people's minds immediately became active, they gathered a large pile of Kangxi Tongbao and Qianlong Tongbao, also using nanmu wood boxes to hold them, and hurriedly sent them to Dongjiaomin Alley and the Six Nations Restaurant to sell to foreigners. The small abacus was calculated to be quite good, you didn't sell it at an exorbitant price, but we deliberately sold it cheaply, we weren't greedy either, each set could be bought for just 50 big dollars.

  But when you get there, foreigners don't buy it at all, they just take a glance and say: "No, no."

  The money changers also slightly understood foreign languages and knew that was not what it meant, so they quickly explained: "They are all the same copper coins."

  The foreigner said, "What they have is a rare edition from the inner circle, but what you have is probably something picked up from the streets. You can exchange it for a bunch with just one yuan, and yet you dare to sell it for fifty yuan. Are you crazy?"

  The money boys say: "What's so special about limited editions? They're all the same."

  The foreigner said: "We've asked Mr. Zhāng Shìdūn and he confirmed that it's indeed the emperor's handwriting, are we supposed to distrust a British gentleman and trust you cunning Chinese instead?"

  The money changer got anxious and said: "Alright, we won't sell for fifty yuan, you give twenty yuan and that's a deal, let's just consider it as making friends."

  The foreigner still said no, and took the money changers to the window of the Liu Guo restaurant, where a "Baoquan" brand copper coin souvenir was prominently displayed. The nanmu wood box had been replaced with walnut wood, and the golden velvet with red silk. Each set was priced at ten yuan, and was openly sold in the window.

  The money lenders have nothing to say for themselves, they are convinced and have no more arguments.

  ……

  Yao Gongguan, Yao Qizhen was sitting in the study smoking a pipe and reading documents, flipping through page after page, but none of the content entered his mind, all were about his daughter's affairs. He deeply knew his daughter's temper, everything had to be done her way, what if she really learned from Tang Shaoyi's daughter, for marrying Gu Weijun, the prime minister's daughter was doing business in the 8th alley with a signboard, where could he put this face of his?

  Just as he was lost in thought, the butler rushed in, panting: "Master, it's terrible! Miss is selling... selling..."

  Yao Cizhang slammed the file in his hand onto the desk: "What are you selling? Speak clearly!"

  "Selling copper coins, at the Six Nations restaurant, peddling copper coins to those foreigners, one box sold for $100, making a huge profit." The housekeeper wiped his sweat and finally finished speaking.

  Yao Cizhang put his heart back in his stomach and thought that as long as he didn't sell himself, everything would be fine.

  The lady also heard the news and came, letting the butler tell the whole story. Yao Cichang angrily said: "Hmph, she really is emulating Zhuo Wenjun, selling wine by the roadside, this is intentionally trying to embarrass me."

  The lady dismissed the butler and asked Yao Zilong: "How much money has our daughter spent from childhood to adulthood?"

  Yao Zichang said: "Even if there aren't 100,000, there are still 80,000... what's the point of asking this?"

  "Lailai spent so much money, has she ever earned a penny herself?"

  Yao Cizhang seemed lost in thought, puffing on his pipe with a series of soft "pffts".

  The wife said: "Lelai now knows how to make progress, this is a good thing. As I said, this matter cannot be blocked, it can only be ventilated."

  "What's your good plan?"

  "Madam said: 'You're well aware of our daughter's temper, she likes to go against you. Now that economic sanctions are no longer effective, we can only resort to a delaying tactic.'"

  "What's going on?"

  "You go call Lele over, I'll talk to her. You just don't interfere with this, got it?"

  Yao Cizhang put aside his pride and personally made the call, but instead had the housekeeper make the call according to Madame's instructions.

  "Miss, madam is seriously ill, she hasn't eaten or drunk anything for three days..." The butler said with a choked voice after dialing the phone.

  Yao Yile couldn't sit still: "Why didn't Father tell me?"

  "The master said not to tell you, miss. You must never come back again. The master said that if he sees you, he will break your legs."

  The phone hung up, Yao Yire worried and anxious, it seems that this time she got into trouble, making her mother ill, and her father didn't let her go home. Humph, then she will definitely go back.

  Just as she was about to set off, she suddenly had a change of heart. No way, what if I get stopped on the way back? Yao Yilei's eyes darted around and she found a small pillow to stuff under her clothes, puffed out her belly and took two steps forward, striking a pregnant woman pose, and smiled slyly.

  ……

  Half an hour later, at the Yao's residence, Miss Yao rushed upstairs in a flurry, only to see her mother sitting comfortably in a rocking chair, with tea and pastries on the table.

  "Lailai, you're here, keep Mom company for a cup of afternoon tea." The lady spoke softly and had a rosy complexion, which didn't look like someone who was seriously ill at all.

  Yao Yilei knew she had been deceived, and was very unhappy, but since she had come, she might as well probe her parents' attitude. She sat down on the chair, deliberately showing off her belly.

  It's hard to know a daughter as well as her mother does. The wife took one look and burst out laughing: "Lei Lei, this isn't how you pretend to be pregnant! You have to tie the pillow around your belly, not your stomach. With it tied around your stomach, people will think you've turned into Pigsy!"

  Exposed, Yao Yire was very angry, took out a pillow and threw it aside, and started eating and drinking.

  "Lele, you've made up your mind to marry that Chen guy, and Dad and Mom can only go along with you."

  Yao Yile's eyes lit up: "Really?"

  "Of course it's true, but our family's Lere is so beautiful and lovely, the son-in-law can't be inferior, or else we'll be laughed at, your father and my face will all be gone, right?"

  Yao Yilei heard her mother's tone relax and asked: "What will it take for you to be satisfied?"

  "It's simple, our Yao family isn't that old-fashioned and stubborn, we don't care about things like matching doors and houses, but at the very least, you need to have some basic abilities, such as graduating from a famous university, having the ability to make money and support a family. We're not asking for someone as capable as your father, just being able to accumulate a net worth of 100,000 within three years shouldn't be too difficult, right?"

  Yao Yile smiled: "Mom, those who chased me before basically met these two standards, but do you know why I didn't choose them?"

  "Why?"

  "Because Chen Zikun is much better than all of them"

  "What's the big deal? He's just a rickshaw puller who knows some martial arts."

  "Mommy, you don't know many things." Yao Yire smiled proudly to herself, thinking, how could I tell you that Chen Zikun is a secret member of the Southern Revolutionary Party?

  ……

  Recommend a new book, "The Carefree Official" by Xiaoxiao Nongmin.

  Most of the official books on this site are in the style of "City Committee Secretary vs. Mountain Mouth Group", although they are exciting, but lack the flavor of officialdom. This book is a truly meaningful official book, with a deep and vivid portrayal of grassroots bureaucrats, and it's quite YD (Young and Dangerous), making it more suitable for high-end readers.

  Book number 138732, a masterpiece of the rebirth of a small farmer.