Shopkeeper Liu couldn't wait for Wang Bin to turn back; he couldn't sit still and suddenly stood up from his stool.
The moment he spoke, he knew he was at a disadvantage in this negotiation. But seeing the genuine work of Zheng Banqiao, he didn't want to miss the opportunity. He finally decided that earning a little less was better than nothing.
As long as he could acquire Zheng Banqiao's paintings, he could charge a hefty price from those who really wanted them. Moreover, just letting others know that he had Zheng Banqiao's paintings would surely attract many regular customers.
Even if these regulars didn't want to buy, just having them visit his shop made them potential customers.
In this business, they might not open for three years, but one big sale could feed them for three years. If they stumbled upon a rare find, it could multiply their earnings several times, or even tens of thousands of times. Of course, there were times when they misjudged, leading to losses that could be several times the investment or even bankrupt them.
Hearing the shopkeeper offer three million, Wang Bin sneered inwardly. "I spent ten million on this, and you think you can get it for three million? Dream on."
Seeing Wang Bin's disdainful expression, the shopkeeper guessed that Wang Bin might know the market value. Gritting his teeth, he said, "How about I offer you five million?"
"Not a chance. I bought this Zheng Banqiao painting for ten million!" Wang Bin saw the word 'greed' written all over the shopkeeper's face and decided to reveal the truth to quash any thoughts of buying his painting.
"What, ten million? Who sold it to you? Tell me, and I'll go scold them for you. That's outrageous! This painting is indeed by Zheng Banqiao, but the market price is at most six million!"
Hearing the shopkeeper's words, Wang Bin was now certain that he had purchased an authentic Zheng Banqiao piece. Although the market price was only six million and he had overpaid by four million, he felt it was worth it.
Firstly, because he was not an expert, if he had gone to buy it himself, he might have spent a billion and still not gotten an authentic piece. Moreover, this was a grandmaster's work.
Besides, it was his master's seventieth birthday, and no price was too high!
It was like when he first emerged from the apocalypse; as soon as he had money, he immediately sent a million each to You Hongfei and Li Xingping. He felt that their friendship was worth a million.
That's just the kind of person Wang Bin was. Perhaps during the apocalypse, he sometimes seemed a bit selfish, but his selfishness was for Officer Miao and others. In his eyes, they were his true family.
Wang Bin didn't bother with the shopkeeper and the staff anymore. His goal was achieved, and he didn't want to linger there. He was truly busy, with many things waiting for him to do.
As Wang Bin walked out of the shop, the shopkeeper immediately took out his phone and edited a message on WeChat.
This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
The antique street merchants had spontaneously formed an antique alliance, and everyone selling antiques on this street was in this group. Many insider tips came from here.
Shopkeeper Liu had made over five million today and was feeling quite pleased, sipping tea on the second floor. Suddenly, his phone dinged with a new WeChat message.
Opening it, he immediately spat out his tea because he saw that Shopkeeper Zhang had posted a message in the group, revealing that someone had just sold a Zheng Banqiao piece for ten million. Although Shopkeeper Zhang didn't know who sold it, he cursed the seller as a major swindler, which was essentially selling him out!
The group, which had been quiet, exploded with activity upon seeing Shopkeeper Zhang's message. Everyone was asking who sold it and demanding a big red envelope.
Seeing the messages in the group, Shopkeeper Liu's mouth twitched, and he cursed inwardly, "Shopkeeper Zhang, you bastard, don't think I don't know. The one who sold the two-million-dollar blue and white porcelain last time was you! You just didn't admit it, and now you're cursing me!"
He couldn't say this because if he did, others would know he was the one who sold the painting. Once the news spread, this group would team up to demand a treat and a red envelope from him.
After thinking it over, Shopkeeper Liu finally gritted his teeth and sent a message in the group asking who sold it and to quickly come out and send a red envelope!
After sending the message, he quickly tossed his phone aside.
After leaving the antique shop, Wang Bin immediately stored the painting in the system space. If such an expensive painting got damaged, it would be a huge loss.
He first went home, put the painting in a safe, changed his clothes, and drove to the workshop. Yesterday, when he talked to Xiao Kai on the phone, Xiao Kai said he had already set up the cameras and barbed wire. Wang Bin wanted to see how the special forces had arranged the security.
Soon, Wang Bin arrived at the workshop. Li Xingping was also there, discussing with three veteran craftsmen how to set up the place and what equipment to add.
When Xiao Kai saw Wang Bin approaching, he quickly opened the gate and let him in, immediately closing it after Wang Bin entered.
As soon as Wang Bin parked his car, Xiao Kai came over to open the car door for him.
"Brother Xiao, you don't need to do things like opening car doors. Just focus on the security here!"
"Okay!"
Previously, Xiao Kai would never have gone out of his way to please someone like this. But in the past two days, he had seen with his own eyes that Wang Bin genuinely cared for him. After learning about many of Wang Bin's deeds from Li Xingping, he admired Wang Bin greatly. So, he sincerely wanted to open the car door for Wang Bin as soon as he arrived.
"Show me the security setup first!"
"Sure, boss, this way, please!"
"There's no need for 'boss' this or 'boss' that. Just call me Wang Bin!"
"Isn't that a bit inappropriate?"
"What's inappropriate about it? It's settled then. From now on, just call me Wang Bin!"
"Ah! How about this, I'll call you Wang Bin when no one else is around, and boss when there are people."
"Deal!"
Wang Bin hadn't expected Xiao Kai to change so much in just two days. From the conversation with the lady boss at the barbecue shop, it seemed Xiao Kai was someone with low emotional intelligence. How did he suddenly become so sharp?
Xiao Kai's significant change was indeed as mentioned earlier; he genuinely thought Wang Bin was a good person and sincerely wanted to work with him. Everything he did came from the heart.
As they walked, Xiao Kai explained to Wang Bin how everything was set up. Wang Bin was very satisfied with Xiao Kai's arrangements. The cameras covered almost every angle, monitoring the entire workshop. Besides the obvious cameras, he had also installed several very discreet ones. The craftsmen's workrooms were also covered entirely by cameras, preventing any theft of gold.
"I'm very satisfied. I think I should give you a raise!"
"No need, I'm already satisfied with five thousand. You not only provide insurance but also bonuses, and that's more than enough! Plus, I've only been here two days, and giving me a raise so soon makes me feel a bit uneasy!"
"Brother Xiao, don't say that. You've already made contributions. How about this, I'll raise your monthly salary to seven thousand."
"What, seven thousand? That's too much!"
"Haha, most people complain about low salaries, but you're the first to complain about it being too high. It's settled then. And when the company grows and you make more contributions, I'll promote you to security chief. Then, don't worry about seven thousand a month; even fifty thousand a month won't be a problem."
"What, fifty thousand a month?"
"Rest assured, as long as you work hard, you'll definitely earn that much!"
"Okay, okay, I'll definitely work hard!"
Hearing Wang Bin's career plan for him, Xiao Kai was very excited. He might not be confident about doing other things well, but security was child's play for him.
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