Chapter 70: Selling Treasures (2)

Old Man Jiang’s single sentence, I have it, left me stunned. I knew there were many things in that small room, but the only somewhat valuable items were probably jade, right? How much could that jade even be worth? In my young mind, I figured it probably wasn’t worth a whole house.

I was very naive back then. If I think about it now, I would slap myself. At that time, I had no idea what the value of that room truly was. A house meant nothing at all.

“Master Jiang, how can we use your money?” my father said anxiously.

“Master Jiang, I don’t think your savings are much either. For San Wa Er...” my mother also quickly added.

They were moved, and they trusted Old Man Jiang, but their thinking was the same as mine. How much money could he possibly have? Just think about how he behaved in the village, working for others just to satisfy his cravings.

“Don’t say any more,” Old Man Jiang said. “San Wa Er not having much parental fortune is something destined, but I am also part of that cause. As a boy, he cannot always stay by his parents’ side, and that troubles me as well. I have a rough understanding of physiognomy, and from your faces, you are not people who will be without fortune or money in your later years. I must help with this. Go to the county town. I asked someone this morning, and within three years, the land of China...” he paused, then continued, “To put it simply, within three years, the country’s economic policies will change. If you seize the opportunity, you will gain wealth.”

When he said this, Old Man Jiang’s face turned slightly red. At the time, I did not understand why. Looking back now, I do.

For all these years, he almost never asked anything of others, and he almost never used his abilities to seek personal gain. Yet now he was helping my parents and even taking on a favor, using his skills to benefit his disciple’s family. That was why he felt embarrassed.

He was also afraid of harming us, so he quietly had someone check my parents’ birth destiny charts, confirming that they truly had a turning point of wealth in their fate. Only then did he feel at ease speaking. Otherwise, if wealth that did not belong to them arrived, it could not be kept, and it might even bring disaster after the fortune was spent.

“Master Jiang, we understand you have ability, but even if there is wealth, we only know how to farm. We have no other skills, we wouldn’t be able to grasp it...” my father sighed. As the children grew up, their pressure also increased. Having more money was always better, but...

“I have thought about it. You should buy a house near the high school in the county town. Buy a small building, convert the ground floor into a storefront, and do some small business. Sell notebooks, pens, snacks, things like that. That will do,” Old Man Jiang said.

In fact, he understood even more details. He knew that within three years, the earliest wave of entrepreneurs in China would become wealthy, that commercial fortune would be strong. But he himself had no real concept of business, so this was all he could think of.

Yet even this sounded like pure fantasy to my parents, who had lived their entire lives as farmers. Buying a house in the county town? A small building? Running a business? They did not dare even imagine it.

“Master Jiang, this...” my father was already at a loss for words. He was grateful, but he could not bring himself to say it outright, as in, Master Jiang, have you become too used to wandering and forgotten how normal life works? The plan sounds good, but it is simply impossible.

Old Man Jiang waved his hand, signaling them not to continue. He only asked one question.

“If I give you the money, will you take it or not?”

“No!” my father and mother said almost in unison.

“Absolutely not!”

“If you still refuse, then my relationship with your family ends here,” Old Man Jiang said seriously.

Once he became serious, my parents immediately backed down. The weight of his words left them unable to respond.

My father, however, was more flexible in thought. He had long suspected Old Man Jiang’s identity. Now that Old Man Jiang had even arranged connections in the county town, his suspicions deepened. After hesitating for a long time, he finally asked, “Master Jiang, can you tell us what kind of person you really are, what exactly you do? Sometimes I just can’t feel at ease about it.”

“I am someone who works for the country. It is just that there are not many matters that require me to personally act,” Old Man Jiang said plainly.

“That time you disappeared for seven years...” my father asked.

His understanding was naturally stronger than mine, and he immediately grasped the implication. He realized that Old Man Jiang’s identity was probably extraordinary, that in a rural place like ours, he had already encountered strange and supernatural matters, so there must be hidden experts protecting important affairs in secret.

“That seven years, hehe...” Old Man Jiang said. “I was on a mission. It was not easy. When I started, I was worried I might not make it back, which is why I once said you and San Wa Er might not be fated as master and disciple. But it turns out we do have that fate, haha...”

He spoke lightly, even cheerfully, but aside from me, everyone could sense the danger hidden within those words. Even someone like Old Man Jiang had worried he might not return.

My father’s face turned red with emotion. After a long pause, he finally said, “Master Jiang, even if San Wa Er has to go on missions in the future, even if he has to sacrifice himself, I would still be willing, as long as it is for the country.”

This was the most honest and simple belief of a farmer. My parents’ generation might not have had much education, but their sincerity and righteousness were something later generations could hardly compare to. In spirit, they were perhaps even richer than us.

“I... I am willing too,” my mother added.

Old Man Jiang was moved. He patted my father’s shoulder and, after a long pause, said, “People like you deserve wealth. Your kindness alone in this life is enough to repay your fate. You do not need accumulated virtue from past lives.”

The matter was roughly settled there. After dinner, Old Man Jiang told my parents to come back in a week to collect the money. There would be enough.

That was a bold statement. Enough money.

In my mind, I snorted coldly. My master was just pretending again, like when he played chess. He always acted like a master, but his moves were terrible. Buying a house in the county town... at minimum it would cost a hundred yuan, right?

There was nothing I could do. I was just a country bumpkin. A hundred yuan was already the largest amount I could imagine. Anything beyond that was completely outside my imagination.

“Master, buying a house in the county town, no matter how you look at it, would cost at least 100 yuan, right?” I said.

Old Man Jiang looked at me like I was insane and said, “You little fool!”

Then he walked away gracefully, grabbed a fishing rod from the house, and went fishing.

That night, an oil lamp lit the small room. Old Man Jiang paced back and forth with his hands behind his back, while I fiddled with the ritual tools on the table. Heaven knew what was troubling him.

“These books are ancient texts, many are unique copies. My master spent his whole life collecting them. I also traveled across half of China... there are many valuable Daoist documents. Sigh... cannot sell.”

He went through the bookshelf first and sighed before walking away.

Then he went to another side and examined various miscellaneous antiques.

“These things... sigh... they are all historical relics related to Daoist history. Cannot sell.”

He sighed again and left.

Then he opened several boxes on the shelf. I had always been curious about what was inside, so I leaned over to look.

What was all this?

I turned away disappointed and went back to playing with the ritual tools on the table, no longer interested in those boxes.

Inside were medicinal herbs. Some looked especially ugly, large black chunks. Yet Old Man Jiang had placed them in such beautiful boxes, even jade boxes in some cases. It was simply a waste of good containers.

Of course, I only realized later that I was the one wasting things.

“The medicinal tonics for San Wa Er are already scarce, and several of them can only be used when he is older and has achieved some small success in cultivation. These things are one use less each time. Am I supposed to go beg that second...” he paused. “No, cannot sell. Cannot sell.”

Again, he sighed and walked away.

I felt moved. So my master cared so much about me.

But I was also even more convinced that my master was poor. If the medicine was gone, just buy some from the pharmacy. When I grow up and make money, I will buy plenty for him so he does not have to be so reluctant.

My younger self kept making this promise in my heart. Fortunately, I did not say it out loud, or I would have definitely been scolded and probably hit.

Finally, Old Man Jiang stood in front of several large wooden chests and opened them with a creak.

Once again, I stretched my neck curiously. In my imagination, such large chests were perfect for gold and jewels. There might even be some, since in Old Man Jiang’s stories, Old Li, no, my founding patriarch was someone who would not act unless there were at least two gold bars involved.

Yes, that was very possible. I became excited and immediately overturned my earlier belief that my master was poor, preparing myself to be blinded by treasure.

But...

I saw nothing. No golden light, no treasure glow.

Just as I was trying to look more closely, Old Man Jiang called me over.

“San Wa Er, come here. Close your eyes and help me choose one.”

I ran over enthusiastically and looked inside.

They were long rectangular boxes. One of them was open, revealing a scroll painting.

I knew my master liked to paint, but he usually finished a painting and burned it. He also liked writing calligraphy, but he usually wrote it and burned it as well. So he actually kept so many works?

It seemed my poor master had no choice left and was preparing to sell his paintings and calligraphy. How tragic.

“Then... this one,” I said, not really understanding what I was choosing, and handed him a long box.

He took it, opened it with visible reluctance, and carefully unrolled the scroll.

Inside was a painting of several lifelike lotus flowers. They were extremely beautiful. I could not even describe what made them special, only that they looked very good.

Above the lotus flowers was a seal and several lines of small writing, along with a signature. But that name was not my master’s.