Lâm Thiên, a 20-year-old freshman university student, lived a life not as fortunate as others. From a young age, his family was poor, and he had to study while helping with household chores. When he grew up and entered university, besides receiving a scholarship from the school, he also had to work many part-time jobs to send some money back to his parents. Because his parents were now old and frail, and also suffering from incurable diseases, they couldn't work. He was the only one in the family who could. He didn't want to drop out, so he had to work hard at extra jobs to earn money for his parents' medical treatment and to cover his own tuition and living expenses.
Because of his poor family background, he didn't have time for girlfriends, ever since he entered tenth grade. Even if he liked a girl, he never had the confidence to confess his feelings. In eleventh grade, on a fateful day, he mustered all his courage to confess to that girl. But unexpectedly, he was rejected. So from then on, he no longer dared to love anyone, and from then on, he developed a fear of emotional attachments. When he first entered university, because he had a rather handsome face, he was liked by quite a few girls in his class. But he paid no attention to anyone, only focusing on his studies. Gradually, his classmates gave him the nickname "Bookworm." From then on, no girls paid attention to him anymore, and because of this, he didn't have a single friend in class, not even many boys.
…………..
– Ring! Ring! Ring!
The school bell signaling the end of class rang. Lâm Thiên tidied his books and then left school.
The archaeology program had very few classes, which was quite relaxed, giving Lâm Thiên more time to earn a living. After class, as usual, Lâm Thiên hurried out of the school building, walking and talking on the phone:
– Fatty, last night I investigated for a long time, and finally found out, that jade piece really has a reputation, it's worth buying. I'm coming over right away.
From the other end of the phone, a mellow male voice replied:
– Brother Tian, so it's us two pooling our money again?
Fatty was one of Lâm Thiên's few friends. Fatty came from an orphanage, and the two met by chance. Fatty also didn't attend university like Lâm Thiên.
Half an hour later, Lâm Thiên, familiar with the city, entered a small market specializing in buying and selling second-hand goods. This place even occasionally featured rare antiques and treasures from various dynasties. Of course, most were fakes, but there were still many people coming to "pan for gold." After leaving the orphanage, Lâm Thiên had always relied on speculating in such items to make a living. He earned a bit of money from small Buddha statues and other trinkets. The costs were low, and the profits were decent. If his discerning eye and luck were good, he could buy something for a few tens and sell it for a few hundreds, or even over a thousand.
After locking his bicycle and meeting Fatty, he squeezed into the crowd. To be honest, most people who came here were elderly, buying and selling antiques and old items, considering it a hobby and a way to pass the time.
The two, familiar with the area, wound their way through to a stall, greeting the owner familiarly:
– Old Grandpa, where's that antique jade piece from last time?
An old man, spry for his sixties, was dozing on a chair. Hearing the voice, he squinted his eyes, sat up, and said:
– Young man, I didn't realize you really know your stuff! I told you, the items I sell are absolutely genuine.
No one knew the old man's real name; everyone just called him Old Uncle or Old Grandpa.
Lam Thien smiled faintly, saying nothing. Fatty, however, shot him a disdainful look. He didn't buy it. Having been knocking around here for over a year, two years, how could he not be familiar with it? "You can only fool other people with those words," he thought. But Fatty wasn't stupid enough to voice his offense.
The old man took out a brand new wooden box. He opened it, offered it, and said, "Have a look."
Lam Thien took out a magnifying glass from his pocket to examine it. The quality of this kind of jade was judged by its deep hue and the presence or absence of streaks. Of course, to sell it well, you also needed a bit of a trick, for example, claiming it was an ancient jade once worn by a Nguyen Dynasty emperor.
He meticulously flipped through and examined it for over ten minutes. The owner lay on his chair, eyes half-closed, not urging him on.
"Not bad, it's real. Fatty, pay up!"
Lam Thien closed the box. He then conveniently took an envelope from his pocket, handed it to Fatty, and said:
"Thank you, Old Grandfather."
He voiced his thanks.
After the payment was made, Lam Thien handed the box to Fatty and said:
"This afternoon, I might not be free. You take it to the bank, rent a safety deposit box, and store it securely. Then go online and contact a buyer."
Fatty was startled for a moment. Although they often did things this way before, the amount of money involved was never this large. He couldn't help but ask:
"You trust me that much?"
Lam Thien heard this, curled his lips into a smile, and said:
"Of course."
Fatty happily nodded, took the item, and left. This jade piece cost nearly two thousand to acquire. It was the biggest deal since the two of them partnered up in business nearly two years ago. Finding a good buyer, they could sell it for at least tens of thousands.
Lam Thien was truly at ease. Firstly, the two of them had known each other for quite a while, and their friendship was deep. Secondly, Fatty's character made it absolutely impossible for him to do such a thing. Dealing in antiques wasn't just about luck; it was more about professional knowledge and excellent appraisal skills. If you couldn't even tell if something was real or fake, what the hell were you doing? In this antique business, one couldn't claim to know everything under the sun, but one had to be clear about more than half of it.
After Fatty left, Lam Thien opened his mouth and asked:
"Old Grandfather, do you have any old books or miscellaneous items? I'd like to take a look."
"No."
Old Man Tài yawned in response.
"You want to read books again, kid?"
Lam Thien had been hanging around here for nearly two years, and anyone familiar with him knew that this kid loved reading the most. Don't let Lam Thien's unassuming appearance fool you; in reality, his IQ was as high as 249, just shy of 250. He possessed the extraordinary ability to never forget what he'd seen; he was absolutely a genius.
Lam Thien wasn't disappointed. He stood up, intending to leave, when suddenly the corner of his eye caught sight of something: a half-inch square stone that the old man used to prop up a chair leg. If it were just a stone, it naturally wouldn't have caught Lam Thien's attention. The key was that the stone's surface displayed a set of ancient patterns. This type of drawing was usually used by feng shui masters for divination, or as an ornament to attract good fortune and ward off evil. In this place, such stones were naturally not rare; there were many types, large and small, with varied forms. But the patterns on this particular stone gave Lam Thien a strange feeling, as if it was calling out to him.
"Old Grandfather, what's that stone underneath? Is it for sale?"
The old man looked down at the chair. He reached down, gently pulled out the stone slab, looked at it, then offered it over, saying:
"Oh, I picked this up in the mountains a while back. It's not worth much, but if you like it, it's yours. Consider it a bonus."
Something that cost nothing, yet piqued his interest, Lam Thien naturally accepted it without ceremony, opening his mouth to say:
"Thank you, I'll be going now."
After wandering around for a bit and finding nothing else of interest, he cycled away, the stone placed in the front basket of his bicycle. Riding alone on the city streets, surrounded by towering buildings, this familiar city always gave Lam Thien a sense of detachment.
He took a stroll through the market, bought some groceries, and headed home. In the kitchen, he quickly whipped up some food, then grabbed a random book from his bookshelf, opened it, and ate while reading. Over the years, only reading could dispel the sense of solitude in his heart. Lam Thien's reading was incredibly varied: official and unofficial histories, military treatises and esoteric arts, Daoist scriptures and imperial court records, astronomy and geography, numerology and astrology – everything imaginable.
After finishing his meal and cleaning everything up, he went to his study desk. Because space was limited, the old, small desk was placed right in front of his bed. He sat down, picked up the cigarettes on the table, lit one, and took a deep drag. A cigarette after a meal was pure bliss, like a god. Then he buried himself in his book again. He had no classes in the afternoon, so he had plenty of time. Having just completed a big deal today, he could afford to rest for a while.
Time passed unnoticed when suddenly, a jarring mobile phone ringtone broke the silence. Lam Thien didn't look up but reached out for the phone next to the desk and answered:
"Hello..."