After the Wine Shop received that batch of operating funds, Zhou Dagen managed to recover several debts owed by hotels, and the operations of the Wine Shop finally started to run on the right track. However, Su Ziceng visited the Wine Shop even less frequently.
On the weekend, following the suggestion of Yan Wuxu, Su Ziceng sought out Secretary Wang again, and they went to Subi Auction House together.
Compared to when Chang i was in charge, the auction house now seed like an undernourished child who hadn’t been fed enough milk. In just half a year, both the interior decoration and the staff were irregular and uneven. The items up for auction were mostly rejects left over after Chang i’s "selection."
"The oldest pieces are just a batch of ash-green celadon basins left over from the official kilns of the Ming Dynasty, and even those are missing a piece," Secretary Wang, though not professionally involved in antique appraisal, had spent a long ti by Su Qingzhang’s side, attended various occasions, and often heard explanations from knowledgeable people. With a hobby of collecting porcelain, his eye for it had improved over ti.
"I originally thought all these pots and pans were pretty much the sa, so I gathered so, but after having them appraised, it turned out they were all fakes," Yan Wuxu had also put in so effort to collect items from various places, but most of them were of recent vintage and not very valuable. Accumulating them took up space and, over ti, he lost interest.
"You can’t find real treasures near Mo City," Secretary Wang then analyzed. Mo City used to be a fishing village, and its only connection with Other Countries was a rugged and uneven mountain road. The city had neither a porcelain kiln nor a transportation route. Porcelain that ca from outside the city would be nearly shattered by the ti it passed through the mountain roads. Hence, if soone could indeed collect anything in the city, it would likely be the unbreakable clay basins worth almost nothing. Or perhaps the few old families in the city might still possess so valuable antique treasures. "When starting the auction business, the chairman analyzed it thoroughly. We either had to venture out to ancient cities within the country, like Bianjing City, or go overseas. Before the liberation, many treasures made their way out of the country and into the hands of foreigners."
The old ginger is spicier, as they say. Given Secretary Wang’s pointers, Yan Wuxu and Su Ziceng began to see a clearer path forward. Su Ziceng thought: "In a few days, Kelly will start her sumr vacation. By then, we can tidy things up and take a trip inland. We might be able to find sothing useful."
Beyond that, Secretary Wang also suggested that Yan Wuxu hire so hands to travel around rural and remote areas of the country. Those regions, not as developed as the coastal areas, may still have authentic items that have been handed down from older generations among the farrs.
"Aren’t you going to see Hang Yishao? I heard he got injured a while ago and still hasn’t recovered," Yan Wuxu had earlier heard from Su Qingzhang about how Hang Yishao seed like a changed person, refusing to et anyone and being unusually irritable, which made Hang Mu very anxious multiple tis.
Su Ziceng still rembered how Hang Yishao was brazenly harsh towards him on the yacht that day while under the influence of alcohol. He frowned and pretended not to hear, "The most important thing right now is to find a few trustworthy people,"
Secretary Wang was only temporarily borrowed from the Su Family, and in these few months, he could help sort out the accounts and recruit so useful hands.
"How about bringing Brother Han over?" Yan Wuxu had considered for quite a while. Her younger siblings were all too young to be of help, and Mrs. Yan, barely literate, would not be much use and might end up the subject of gossip. But Boss Han was different; he worked efficiently and had a way with words, making him soone who could help.
With Yan Wuxu taking the lead, Boss Han also agreed to co on board, which sowhat surprised Su Ziceng. After all, hiring soone who had once harbored feelings for Yan Wuxu might be awkward. However, after learning that Boss Han had recently beco close to an "admired" new female employee, Su Ziceng felt more at ease.
The neglected Hang Yishao’s injuries were mostly healed, but every ti he drank water, there was still a faint pain in his ribs, as if the cracked gap wanted to act up from ti to ti. Throughout his illness, many ca to visit, but Hang Yishao kept them all out. Fei Qing and Chang Chi were sowhat better off, being able to make it into Hang Yishao’s room.
Hang Yishao’s room faced south, and in the sumr, it was always blessed with a refreshing natural breeze, which he loved. During the several years when air conditioning beca popular in Mo City and nearly every affluent household got one installed, he alone preferred to sleep shirtless throughout the night with the windows and doors open, letting the southern wind blow in.
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