Chapter 7618
People Should Have Dreams
Xiao Chen was amused by her charming and pleading expression, and most of the coldness and displeasure in his eyes instantly vanished. He shook his head and smiled helplessly.
"Okay, I'll go with you tomorrow. But let me make this clear: if we find something suitable, I'll help you choose; if we don't, I won't force you to buy it."
"That's great! Thank you so much, Xiao Chen!" Yun Yuyan was so happy she almost jumped off her chair, her face beaming with joy and her eyes filled with undisguised anticipation.
Xiao Chen picked up a piece of green vegetable with his chopsticks, put it in his mouth, and suddenly remembered something, so he teased:
"However, I must remind you that nine out of ten people who collect antiques are tricked into it. They all dream of finding a bargain and getting rich, but in the end, most of them lose everything."
If you're going in with the dream of getting rich quick, wake up now, or you'll get scammed without even realizing it.
Yun Yuyan pouted and said with a look of disgust:
"Why are you like my mom, pouring cold water on my enthusiasm before I even leave the house? It's such a downer. I'm not going there hoping to get rich; I just want to buy a suitable gift for my client to help us close the deal, okay?"
Xiao Chen smiled and stopped teasing her. He lowered his head and continued eating. The atmosphere at the table was warm and comfortable. The unpleasantness at the hot pot restaurant had been completely dispelled by the rich aroma of the food and the cozy atmosphere.
The next morning, just as dawn was breaking, Xiao Chen got up. He drove his unremarkable white domestic car and waited for Yun Yuyan at the villa entrance.
Not long after, Yun Yuyan got ready and went out, dressed in a smart casual outfit that made her look exceptionally refreshed.
Yun Yuyan sat in the passenger seat, wearing headphones, listening to music and looking at the scenery outside the window with a relaxed expression.
After a while, she took off her headphones, her face filled with a dreamy longing, her eyes sparkling, and turned to look at Xiao Chen.
"Xiao Chen, imagine if I bought an inconspicuous little bowl for ten yuan on the antique street, and then when I got home I found out it was actually a genuine piece from the Ming Dynasty imperial kiln, worth a billion yuan, wouldn't that be amazing!"
"Then I'll quit my job and never have to work again. I can eat, drink, and have fun every day—how carefree!"
Xiao Chen's lips twitched violently. Looking at Yun Yuyan's dreamy expression, he asked with a mix of helplessness and amusement, "What were you listening to just now? You were so engrossed that you even dreamed of finding a bargain."
"A treasure hunt novel!"
Yun Yuyan's eyes lit up instantly, filled with longing, and her tone became excited.
"The main character in the story spent five yuan at a flea market to buy an inconspicuous broken bowl. When he got home and had it appraised, it turned out to be a Chenghua doucai porcelain from the Ming Dynasty. The auction house immediately valued it at eight hundred million yuan!"
That's like becoming rich overnight! Even if you have to pay taxes, you can live comfortably. I wonder if I'll ever have that kind of luck.
Hearing Yun Yuyan's words, Xiao Chen was both amused and exasperated: "Sister, you know that's just a novel. The author made up the story to attract readers. It's not that exaggerated in real life."
"It's not that there are no bargains, but they are extremely rare. After all, no one in the antique business is a fool."
"Of course I know that," Yun Yuyan stuck out her tongue. "But everyone has to have dreams, right? What if I just happen to stumble upon something amazing?"
"As you said, finding bargains does happen in real life, and quite a few people have made a fortune from it. Some have even opened their own museum with the money they made from finding bargains."
Xiao Chen sighed: "I don't deny that some people make a fortune by taking advantage of loopholes, but you have to understand that for every person who succeeds, there may be a thousand or ten thousand people who fail, or even go bankrupt. You're only seeing the ones who are eating meat, not the ones who are cutting their own flesh."
"Have you heard of survivorship bias? Many news stories only talk about success stories, but hide the failure stories. Don't fall for it."
Yun Yuyan pouted, somewhat dissatisfied: "Why do you always pour cold water on people? Can't you encourage them? Can't I at least dream a little?" Xiao Chen smiled: "Dreaming is fine, I just want to tell you not to be fooled and end up counting money for someone else. The antique business is too murky."
"Xiao Chen, I feel like you're even more talkative than my mom... Don't worry, I'm not stupid. I know you're doing this for my own good, otherwise I wouldn't have invited you to come with me to buy antiques. I'm afraid of being scammed."
Yun Yuyan stuck out her tongue and smiled mischievously.
Xiao Chen nodded and said nothing more. Yun Yuyan was no longer a child; she understood very well what it meant to hear honest advice, even if it was unpleasant to hear. He didn't need to say much more.
A few minutes later, Yun Yuyan took off her headphones again. The coquettishness on her face faded, and she suddenly became serious. She turned to look at Xiao Chen and asked softly:
"Xiao Chen, don't you think everyone needs to have dreams? Even if you can't achieve them in the end, just thinking about them every day is nice. I think, what's the difference between a person without dreams and a salted fish?"
Xiao Chen paused on the steering wheel, remained silent for a moment, then looked straight ahead at the road, his tone calm and solemn:
"Dreams are acceptable and necessary; they give people something to strive for and motivation."
He paused, then added, "But you can't live on dreams alone. No matter how beautiful your dreams are, you have to work hard and be down-to-earth. Otherwise, even the most beautiful dreams are just wishful thinking and will eventually come to nothing."
Yun Yuyan thought about it carefully, nodded, and agreed: "That's true. If you only think about it but don't do anything, you won't get anything."
As the two chatted, the car arrived at the antique street.
The streets were too narrow, so they had to find a parking lot some distance away to park before walking into the antique street.
Seeing the dazzling array of antiques and curios, Yun Yuyan became excited once again. She took Xiao Chen's arm and looked around, wishing she could visit every single antique shop in the area.
"Xiao Chen, which antique shop should we go to? This is my first time here, and I'm overwhelmed by all the options."
Xiao Chen looked around and his gaze settled on an antique shop: "Let's go check out that Yajixuan first. I found a nice thing here last time, let's see how lucky we are this time."
"You truly are an expert. It was the right decision to invite you today, otherwise I would have been wandering around in circles, not knowing where to go."
When Yun Yuyan saw these shops, apart from a few minor differences in decoration, they were almost identical. If she had to choose, she would be at her wit's end.
Fortunately, Xiao Chen was there.
The owner of Yajixuan is surnamed Fang. He is not old, only in his forties, and he dresses like a pawnshop owner from the Republican era.
He was dressed in a long robe and was very polite.
Seeing Xiao Chen bring Yun Yuyan in, he hurriedly went to greet them.
Because he remembered that the last time Xiao Chen bought a blue and white porcelain brush pot from the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, it cost three million yuan without any haggling. He was definitely a big customer.
Major clients, of course, need to be well maintained.
"Oh, Mr. Xiao, you've arrived! Is this your wife?" (End of Chapter)