Chapter 11: The Blond Kid
Xu Youyou looked at him with a half-smile.
The squinty-eyed vendor rubbed his nose awkwardly and said, “Of course, if you really like it, I’ll take a loss—forty yuan, and it’s yours. Consider it making a friend.”
Xu Youyou pulled out her phone, opened a popular orange app, and snapped a photo of the dou cai cup. A link immediately popped up.
The exact same cup was selling online for just thirty yuan.
Lowering his voice, the squinty-eyed vendor said, “Miss, if you really want it, I’ll sell it to you for forty yuan. I still gotta make a little money, and you save the wait for delivery—fair deal, right?”
Xu Youyou nodded indifferently and bought the dou cai cup. However, the system’s indicator remained on the stall, now pointing directly to the empty spot where the cup had been.
She glanced at the spot—it was just a piece of newspaper from last week, nothing that seemed remotely valuable.
The system’s signal kept flashing urgently, the speed increasing with every second.
Having dealt with the system many times, Xu Youyou had developed a sense for its patterns. The urgency probably meant she had arrived too early—the real opportunity hadn’t appeared yet.
To pass the time, she continued browsing through the squinty-eyed vendor’s wares, casually purchasing anything that caught her eye.
The vendor was overjoyed. Even though she bargained hard for fake items, a sale was still a sale. Some profit was better than none.
“Miss, you clearly have a sharp eye. I actually have a rare treasure at home that I wouldn’t sell to just anyone—but you, I’d make an exception…” the vendor began.
Xu Youyou glanced at him casually and cut him off, “Oh, not interested.”
His attempt to con a big spender was foiled again. He cast a resentful glance at her expensive handbag resting casually beside her.
In the antique business, having a keen eye was crucial. One look at Xu Youyou’s designer bag told him she had serious money—too bad he couldn’t seem to swindle any of it.
As they spoke, a strong, acrid smell of cigarette smoke wafted over. A young man with bleached blond hair, looking to be in his early twenties, sidled up to the stall. He fished something out of his pocket and held it out mysteriously.
“Boss, I’ve got something good to sell!”
The squinty-eyed vendor barely paid him any attention.
Xu Youyou, on the other hand, gave the blond kid a hard look. His bloodshot eyes and twitchy, overly excited demeanor were impossible to miss. The smell of smoke clung to him like a second skin—he seemed suspicious in every way.
The system’s indicator locked onto the object in his hand.
The vendor took a glance at the item and snorted dismissively.
“So it’s just a fake dou cai cup. Kid, did you lose your head gambling and now you’re trying to scam me?” he scoffed.
The blond kid insisted, “This is real! It’s worth a fortune!”
The vendor turned to Xu Youyou, chuckling. “Look, miss, it’s identical to the one you just bought.”
Xu Youyou cast a glance at the item, her heart pounding with excitement beneath her calm exterior. She shrugged nonchalantly. “Well, good things come in pairs. I bought the first one for forty yuan—why not sell me this one too?”
The blond kid shook his head furiously, his eyes darting around. “No way! This is a family heirloom! At least… thirty—no, forty thousand yuan!”
Xu Youyou and the vendor burst out laughing together.
The vendor scoffed. “Come on, kid. I know your family inside and out. Your gambling-addict dad already lost everything. And let’s be honest—your family’s been poor for three generations. Where would you even get a treasure like this?”
The blond kid protested stubbornly, “This is different—I dug it up myself!”
The vendor snorted. “Oh, really? And where exactly did you ‘dig’ it up? You a grave robber now? You barely have the guts to pickpocket, and suddenly you’re looting tombs?”
His words struck a nerve. The blond kid’s expression flickered with guilt, but he stuck to his claim. “It’s still a treasure!”
He had gone through serious trouble to steal it. The fact that the original owner had hidden it so carefully convinced him it had to be valuable.
The vendor rolled his eyes. “If you really think it’s worth something, take it to Bogu Zhai and see if the big boss there will buy it.”
Bogu Zhai was the largest antique shop on this street, known for handling genuine artifacts—but they also charged sky-high prices.
The blond kid visibly flinched at the suggestion. If he had the nerve to go to a legitimate dealer, he wouldn’t be here trying to peddle his goods to a back-alley vendor.
The vendor added, “I’m only giving you this advice because I watched you grow up. If you sell it to this nice lady, you’ll at least get forty yuan. With anyone else, you’d be lucky to get ten.”
The blond kid hesitated.
Xu Youyou, sensing her opportunity, casually pulled out the fake dou cai cup she had just purchased.
One glance, and it was clear—the two cups were nearly identical.
She sighed dramatically, “Forget it. If he doesn’t want to sell, I’m not that eager to buy. I thought it’d be nice to have a matching pair.”
Her tone was so casual and carefree that neither man suspected a thing. The vendor didn’t even blink—after all, she had been spending money recklessly since she arrived.
The blond kid, realizing his only potential buyer was about to leave, caved. “Fine! I’ll sell it—but not for forty yuan. A hundred!”
Xu Youyou gave him a sidelong glance and snorted, “I may be rich, but I’m not stupid. I was willing to give you the benefit of the doubt—but if you’re gonna play games, I’ll just order another one online.”
She turned to the vendor, narrowing her eyes. “You two aren’t running some kind of scam together, are you? Trying to swindle me out of a few dozen yuan?”
The vendor raised his hands in mock horror. “Miss, come on—I’m not that desperate. If I wanted to scam someone, I’d aim for thousands, not a measly few bucks.”
Seeing no other choice, the blond kid sighed heavily. “Fine. Forty yuan. I’m just unlucky today.”
