"Good man, good man, may you have peace in your life!" The old beggar turned to Li Yang, clutching his hand tightly in gratitude.
"No need to be polite, uncle. Fill your stomach first, I have something to discuss with you." Li Yang said with a smile.
"Talk to me?"
The begging uncle was stunned for a moment, feeling curious. He had been a beggar for over ten years, and had never met anyone like Li Yang.
However, he didn't ask further. He was so hungry he felt like he was about to faint.
After receiving the money, he first bought a few flatbreads and a bottle of water by the roadside. He then returned and leaned against a shady wall, eating and drinking heartily.
Seeing him like this, Li Yang couldn't help but feel a pang of sadness.
But he was also very curious. He squatted down and asked, "Uncle, didn't I give you several hundred yuan? Why are you only eating a few flatbreads?"
"Kind benefactor, you don't know, but I have an old wife at home. She's sick in bed, so I have to come out and beg. I don't beg for much each day, and I bring it all back for my old wife."
"I thought that as a grown man, going hungry for a meal or two is nothing. But today I suddenly felt dizzy, and only then did I realize I hadn't eaten for three days."
The beggar uncle explained his situation, and Li Yang finally understood.
Li Yang could tell that the uncle wasn't lying. His hands looked very rough, clearly the hands of someone who had toiled their whole life.
However, Li Yang quickly regained his composure, a smile appearing on his face as he said, "Uncle, are you interested in selling me this bowl? I can offer a high price for it."
"This bowl? What do you want it for? It's just what I use for begging, it's worthless." The beggar uncle asked curiously.
"Worthless to you, but very useful to me. How about this, I'll offer twenty thousand yuan for it, are you willing to sell?" Li Yang asked directly.
"How much?"
The beggar uncle was stunned, feeling as if he were dreaming. Twenty thousand yuan was more money than he had ever seen in his life, an astronomical sum.
"If you think twenty thousand is acceptable, uncle, we can trade right now." Li Yang said, taking out money to buy his bowl.
However, the beggar uncle hugged the bowl and repeatedly shook his head, "Young man, I know you're trying to comfort me. This broken bowl of mine is not worth twenty thousand yuan."
"Although I'm too poor to afford food, I still have principles. I absolutely cannot accept so much money. If you truly like this bowl, I'll give it to you now."
Saying this, the beggar uncle handed the bowl back to Li Yang.
Li Yang saw that the uncle was inherently kind, so he said, "Uncle, I'm not lying to you. This bowl is actually an antique. I'm in the antique business, and if I buy this bowl back for twenty thousand yuan, I can still make a few thousand yuan selling it. It's not a loss."
"Antique?"
The beggar uncle looked at Li Yang curiously, scratching the back of his head. "What do you mean antique? Isn't this just a piece of porcelain? I have several more at home."
"Really?"
Upon hearing this, Li Yang's face lit up with joy, and he said directly, "If you have more, uncle, I'll take them all. I'll pay twenty thousand yuan for each bowl, no bargaining."
"Twenty thousand each?"
The beggar uncle was incredibly excited. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Alright then, young man, come back to my place with me. If you can really make money with these bowls, I don't need twenty thousand, I'll be content with ten thousand yuan."
"It was agreed at twenty thousand, how can it be ten thousand? Uncle, please take me to your home first." Li Yang said with a smile.
Following him, the beggar uncle led Li Yang to his home.
His house was not far from here, a very old courtyard house that had not been demolished. It was now surrounded by tall buildings.
The surrounding areas had been demolished, leaving only this small courtyard. When the developers had surveyed the area, they found it of little use, a corner plot, so they left it for them.
The beggar uncle brought Li Yang into the brick and tile house. The interior decoration was also very dilapidated. The walls were not whitewashed but covered with newspapers and some colored prints, looking no different from houses in the last century, possessing a sense of ancient gravitas.
His old wife lay on the bed, paralyzed on one side. Although her consciousness was clear, her limbs were immobile.
"Kind benefactor, please sit here for a moment, I'll go get the bowls for you."
After settling Li Yang, the beggar uncle poured him a bowl of water and turned to fetch the bowls.
A moment later, the beggar uncle returned carrying a thick stack of old bowls. These bowls were all part of a set, looking identical.
Those who don't understand antiques think these things are worthless!
But those who know antiques understand that these bowls are genuine antiques. Although not priceless, each bowl is worth over twenty thousand yuan.
Li Yang's offer was considered very high in the antique world, as he didn't want his customers to suffer a loss.
After Li Yang's appraisal, all these bowls were from the Qing Dynasty. It seemed the beggar uncle's ancestors were quite formidable, with someone having held a high official position.
Otherwise, there wouldn't be so many imperial kiln bowls.
"Uncle, I've examined these bowls, and there are no issues. Each one is twenty thousand yuan, a total of ten bowls, so I'll give you two hundred thousand." Li Yang said with a smile after the appraisal.
"Two, two hundred thousand?"
Hearing this, the beggar uncle was completely stunned!
If he truly had two hundred thousand, he and his wife would not have to worry about food and clothing for the rest of their lives, and he could also set aside some money for his wife's medical treatment.
This was a life he had never even dared to dream of.
"Kind benefactor, are you sure these things are worth so much?" The beggar uncle wanted to confirm again, thinking he must be dreaming.
Li Yang didn't say anything, but directly took out a card and handed it to the beggar uncle, saying, "What I said is true. This card has two hundred thousand yuan in it. You can check it at a nearby bank."
"No need, I trust you, kind benefactor. I'll help you pack these bowls."
The beggar uncle trusted Li Yang unconditionally, believing Li Yang would never deceive him.
While the uncle was packing the bowls, Li Yang's peripheral vision inadvertently fell upon the old woman lying on the bed.
This old woman was about the same age as the beggar uncle, over seventy years old, but her health was failing. Long-term paralysis, coupled with malnutrition, meant that if not properly treated, she wouldn't live for many more years.
Li Yang got up and walked to the old woman's side, carefully examining her and quickly identifying the root of the problem.
"Kind benefactor, I've finished packing the bowls for you, look..."
After packing the bowls, the beggar uncle came over and saw Li Yang tending to his wife. He couldn't help but sigh, put down the bowls, and walked over as well, saying with a deep voice, "Kind benefactor, this is my sick wife. She's been lying here for over ten years."
"I didn't have money to treat her before, so I could only take care of her to the best of my ability."
"Uncle, I can cure her illness." Li Yang suddenly said seriously.