Staying Alive Cautiously in the Celestial Realm and Becoming the Strongest-Chapter 1148: True Proof (24)

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Provincial Town, Back Street of City God Temple.

It was the weekend, and as one of the busiest commercial pedestrian streets in the town, the Back Street of the City God Temple welcomed its best time for business.

The streets, quaint and tinged with the color of antiquity, were bustling with people weaving through the crowd, many of them tourists.

Wang Chen, carrying a leather briefcase, was mingling in the throng.

An hour earlier, he had spent over ten thousand yuan in Yintai City for a brand-new outfit for himself and a pair of Ray-Ban sunglasses, completely transforming his temperament and image.

Halfway through the Back Street of the City God Temple, Wang Chen turned into a side alley.

The alley was short, and beyond it lay another ancient street.

However, there were far fewer tourists and passersby on this street; the shops along it were not selling tourist souvenirs or local specialties, but antiques such as ancient calligraphy, paintings, and porcelain.

This is the famous antique street of the provincial town, similar to the Panjiayuan in Capital City, purported to have a regular ’ghost market’.

Wang Chen had been here once in his previous life, not to buy antiques, but merely out of curiosity.

Today, however, he intended to cash in the batch of Silver Currency he had unearthed.

The activities Wang Chen planned to embark upon next would require a sum of money.

Not familiar with the place, he simply picked an antique shop that looked decent and walked in.

The shop owner was a fat man, sitting behind the counter drinking tea. Upon seeing Wang Chen enter, he stood up with a smile and asked, "Sir, what can I do for you?"

If Wang Chen had still been in his old attire, the owner might not have even bothered to lift his eyelids.

But now, after a transformation and displaying an impressive demeanor, Wang Chen was not someone the experienced owner could take lightly.

The reception was exceptionally warm.

Wang Chen nodded slightly and got straight to the point, "Boss, do you buy Silver Currency here?"

The shop owner’s eyes lit up instantly, replying eagerly, "Yes, of course we buy them!"

Wang Chen immediately took out a piece of Silver Currency from his pocket and placed it on the counter: "How much is this worth?"

"Let me have a look first."

The chubby owner picked up the Silver Currency, examined it carefully, and then said, "This Silver Currency’s quality is average, but it’s genuine. However, this kind of Silver Currency is quite common, so the price isn’t very high."

"I can offer you fifteen hundred for it."

Wang Chen chuckled, took back his Silver Currency, and turned to leave.

The fat owner stamped his foot in urgency, "Ah, we can negotiate the price, don’t go yet!"

However, Wang Chen’s figure had already disappeared at the door.

Wang Chen certainly had his reasons for not entertaining the owner’s offer.

First of all, the batch of Silver Currency he had obtained comprised various types, including some from the late Qing Dynasty, the early years of the Republic, and several foreign pieces.

What Wang Chen could be certain of was that all the Silver Currency was authentic, with some pieces being quite rare.

Because they had been placed in the province museum’s exhibition!

Moreover, even if one hasn’t tasted pork, one has seen it being carried home. After confirming the authenticity, online searches for prices of similar items were straightforward.

The piece that Wang Chen had just taken out was merely to test the character of the shopkeeper.

The owner, taking him for Bai (a novice), had dared to offer fifteen hundred for an item worth thousands, even downplaying it as of average quality.

Wang Chen was not one to indulge such behavior!

However, antique shops typically engage in the practice of buying low and selling high, and after checking with three shops, Wang Chen found they were all much the same.

It was as if all these shop owners were born of the same mother!

As the saying goes, no trader is without guile. Faced with this situation, Wang Chen was neither angry nor gave up.

He stepped into another antique shop called "Treasure House."

The owner of the shop was an elderly man with white hair, dressed in a plain Zhongshan suit and wearing a pair of old-fashioned reading glasses, looking much like a refined private school teacher.

Apart from the old man, there were two middle-aged men and a beautiful woman sitting inside.

They were gathered around a tea table, enjoying tea and a chat, all in high spirits.

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Wang Chen hesitated for a moment.

"Young friend, may I ask what brings you here?"

The white-haired elder who was settling accounts looked up, his smile towards Wang Chen warm and friendly.

After pondering for a bit, Wang Chen still took out Silver Currency and handed it over: "Do you accept Silver Currency here?"

"We do."

The elder took the Silver Currency and admired it for a moment, nodding and saying: "This Silver Currency is a ’North Ocean Dragon’ from the year ’26, its condition is very good, it’s considered a fine piece. If our shop were to purchase it, we could offer you a price of 8,500 yuan."

Wang Chen felt he had come to the right place.

Although the shop owner’s asking price was a bit lower than the price he found online, it was completely within a reasonable range.

After all, the shopkeeper has fixed daily expenses; he definitely needs to make a profit.

"That’s fine."

Wang Chen couldn’t be bothered with small talk, and simply opened his briefcase, taking out the Silver Currency he carried within.

"Please also appraise these."

The elder was a bit stunned.

Because the Silver Currency Wang Chen took out was not just one or two, the amount seemed to be quite plentiful, and he hurriedly grabbed a tray from the side: "Put them here, just put them all here!"

Wang Chen took out a total of seventy Silver Currency pieces, each one in very good condition.

Arranged on the tray, they were pleasing to the eye.

These Silver Currency pieces were carefully selected by Wang Chen, and they only constituted a small part of what he had obtained.

The most valuable few were not among them.

However, taking out so many Silver Currency pieces attracted the attention of three tea drinkers nearby.

One of them laughed and said: "Young man, you’ve brought quite a stash, did you take out your family’s savings?"

Wang Chen ignored the other parties’ probing, too lazy to even give them a glance.

The middle-aged man felt a bit embarrassed and coughed twice into his fist, then chuckled awkwardly.

After the elder appraised all the Silver Currency pieces, he picked up an antique abacus, clicked it back and forth, and finally said: "Young friend, if you are willing to sell all these Silver Currency pieces to our shop, the total will be 680,000 yuan. How does that sound?"

Wang Chen pondered briefly, then nodded and replied: "That’s fine, but I want cash."

It was clear that the other party had left room for bargaining. If he had haggled, it would’ve been certainly possible to raise the price by tens of thousands more.

But Wang Chen didn’t care about this small amount of money!

The elder smiled and said: "No problem, please wait a moment."

In antique shops like this, they typically keep a large amount of cash on hand because some customers prefer cash transactions.

The shop owner quickly brought a heavy black plastic bag for Wang Chen.

Inside were bundles of large denomination bills.

The elder said: "Please count them."

"No need."

Wang Chen took the plastic bag and walked away directly,

Inside were bundles of large denomination bills.

The elder said: "Please count them."

"No need."

Wang Chen took the plastic bag and walked away directly,

Inside were bundles of large denomination bills.

The elder said: "Please count them."

"No need."

Wang Chen took the plastic bag and walked away directly,