Hearing the big fellow mention a substantial dish, everyone's eyes lit up.
This "substantial dish" was undoubtedly a good find.
After about seven or eight minutes, a hand emerged from the tomb-robbing hole, holding a cloth bag.
The big fellow went over and took the bag, and the attendees couldn't help but crowd around.
"Everyone knows the rules, right?" the big fellow said with a smile, glancing at everyone. "Owl paid the highest deposit, so other friends will have to wait their turn."
"Owl" cupped his hands towards the crowd and walked over with a smile, saying, "Let's see the goods."
Upon hearing this, the big fellow carefully took out a piece of jade stone, about the size of a palm, from the cloth bag.
From its appearance, it seemed to be yellow jade.
This surprised me somewhat. I hadn't expected this tomb to yield such a fine item.
Owl stared at the yellow jade in the big fellow's hand for a moment and said, "The jade is quite good, but I'm not interested in jade."
At these words, the big fellow paused, while the other attendees surged forward, each eager to take a look.
According to the rules, if the primary buyer didn't fancy an item, it would be passed down the line.
When the big fellow called out names earlier, he was actually announcing the order. Owl was first, and I, "Dove," was second.
The big fellow glanced at me, seemingly asking for my opinion. I stepped closer to examine it and felt a stir of interest. This piece of yellow jade, if sold on the market, could fetch at least a few hundred thousand.
Taking it to the White Dragon Jade Horse Tea House for appraisal wouldn't be a bad idea either.
With this thought, I asked the big fellow for a price.
He grinned and said, "Everyone comes to these gatherings for a good time. I've been dealing for a long time, and my reputation is well-known. Since this friend fancies it, I won't ask for too much. A fixed price of twenty."
He naturally meant "twenty" followed by "thousand."
The yellow jade was of good quality, and twenty thousand wasn't an unreasonable price. If it were cleaned up and packaged, selling it for around thirty thousand would be easy.
As I was thinking and about to speak, my foot was stepped on, and not lightly, almost provoking me to curse.
But when I saw who it was, I felt quite perplexed.
"Owl" gave me a look. I didn't understand his intention, but judging by his expression, he wanted me not to buy the yellow jade.
I was a bit confused. What did this guy mean? You don't want it, but you won't let anyone else have it?
But on second thought, he wouldn't do something like that.
Could there be something wrong with the jade?
I cast my gaze back to the jade stone. Just as I was reaching out to examine it, Owl stopped me, saying, "Friend, it's best not to touch these funerary objects before they've been properly cleaned."
His words reminded me that my father had once told me that funerary objects just unearthed at these gatherings, unless handled by the dealers, were generally not touched directly. Instead, they were wrapped in red cloth or similar materials and taken to be "cleaned" by specialists.
This "cleaning" involved finding Taoist priests or monks to chant scriptures to dispel any lingering ill fortune.
Those who deal with funerary objects are often superstitious, and this is one of the customs.
Frankly, I didn't pay much mind to these things, but Owl's repeated "reminders" made me somewhat suspicious.
"Are you going to take it or not?" someone asked.
I thought about it and decided to heed Owl's advice. With a sigh, I put on a reluctant expression and said, "I'd like to, but I don't have enough money... Never mind, I won't take this jade."
Seeing that I also declined the jade, everyone else seemed to muster their strength, eager to vie for it.
Taking this opportunity, I walked to the bonfire, pretending to warm myself, and Owl came over as well.
I nonchalantly added some firewood to the flames and whispered, "Friend, is there something wrong with that jade?"
Owl smiled and said, "The jade itself is fine, but the dealers are too crude..."
"What do you mean?"
"That jade would be worth twenty if it were intact. Unfortunately, it was bumped during the unearthing. It can only be sold for fifteen at most."
"Bumped?" I asked, frowning. "Where was it bumped? I didn't see anything."
Owl smiled and leaned closer to me, tilting his chin. "See the tiger's mouth on the dealer's hand? No matter how he turned the jade, the spot where he held it didn't change. Clearly, he was trying to conceal something."
Seeing that I seemed unconvinced, he added, "Since the gathering began, the big fellow has gone down twice, but both times he came back empty-handed. This means there must have been some problem below. And why was the jade wrapped in cloth when it was handed over?"
I felt that the reasons he provided were too far-fetched, hardly strong evidence.
"You don't believe me?" he asked with a smile.
I didn't answer but asked curiously, "Why did you warn me?"
More than the jade, this was what concerned me.
We were mere acquaintances, and even if the jade had flaws, he had no reason to warn me.
After all, if I were to point out such a flaw on the spot, the big fellow would surely develop a grievance against him. By doing so, he ran the risk of an unrewarded effort.
"I'm very good at reading people. I can tell what type of person someone is with just a glance. You're different from them. Your purpose here isn't just to attend the gathering." Owl smiled enigmatically.
I chuckled and asked, "If I'm not here for the gathering, what do you think I'm here for?"
He looked at me, about to speak, when the jade from the big fellow's stall was bought by someone else. At this moment, another person emerged from the tomb-robbing hole, carrying large bags and bundles, clearly having taken everything from the tomb.
These gatherings emphasized the appetizers, which was the benefit of paying a higher deposit – priority selection in the early stages. However, after the appetizers were served, this rule no longer applied; it was simply a matter of whoever offered the highest price.
To avoid discord, the dealers usually presented good items as appetizers. Many people, having acquired their desired items, would no longer contend for later offerings. Whoever fancied something would generally just buy it.
It was rare for two people to quarrel endlessly over "later courses."
Owl seemed uninterested in the "appetizers" the big fellow brought out, basically forgoing them in every round.
Seeing this, I did the same. I was curious to see what he was actually after.
My purpose here was simple: to buy a piece of antique, which would then provide an excuse to visit the White Dragon Jade Horse Tea House.
It would be best to find a bargain, but if not, it didn't matter as long as I didn't lose money.
The big fellow laid out the "later courses" on the side, much like setting up a street stall.
Owl squatted on the ground, and I noticed his gaze subtly fixed on a celadon-glazed teacup.
The teacup was of good quality, but compared to the "appetizers" before, it was significantly inferior. This teacup would fetch at most a little over ten thousand yuan on the market.
"I'll take this teacup," Owl said to the big fellow. "It's alright to exchange my deposit for this teacup, isn't it?"
Hearing this, the big fellow grinned and said, "Of course, that's fine."
He then called someone over and had them wrap the teacup in red cloth and hand it to Owl.