Siheyuan: The romantic and suave Xu Damao

Xu Damao looked at the screen and commented seriously.

"Really? This thing should be worth some money, right? I heard from my husband that other families brought back some tables, chairs, iron pots and other things."

Zhang Meifang frowned slightly, her eyes fell on the object, and said thoughtfully.

"Other people take useful things. This thing is useless at home, so it's good to sell it for some money."

She shook her head slightly, with a hint of disapproval in her tone.

However, Xu Damao immediately retorted after hearing this: "This thing is much more valuable than those ordinary tables and chairs!"

As he spoke, he walked forward and examined the object carefully.

I saw that it was a four-panel screen, and the overall workmanship was very exquisite.

Xu Damao pointed at the old wooden brackets on the screen and said, "Look at this old wooden bracket. It has a deep color and clear texture. You can tell it's quite old at a glance."

Then, he turned his attention to the four paintings of plum, orchid, bamboo and chrysanthemum on the screen and continued to introduce: "Look at the plum, orchid, bamboo and chrysanthemum on it. The colors are elegant, the lines are smooth, and the antique style is antique. It was definitely a masterpiece of a master at that time."

At this point, Xu Damao paused, then suddenly pointed to a line of words on the top of the screen, and said to Zhang Meifang with a smile: "Sister Meifang, come and take a look, do you know what these words are?"

After saying this, he deliberately reached out and touched the line of words, as if he wanted to test Zhang Meifang.

Seeing this, Zhang Meifang raised her lips slightly, revealing a confident smile, and replied coquettishly: "Humph, of course I recognize it! Although I have been learning opera since I was a child, there are teachers backstage who teach us to recognize words. This, isn't it just the word 'longevity'!"

She raised her chin, and there was a hint of arrogance in her eyes.

"Then Sister Meifang, please count how many longevity characters there are on this screen?"

There was a hint of curiosity and anticipation in Xu Damao's tone.

"Okay, let me count."

Zhang Meifang responded with a smile, then carefully took the lantern from Xu Damao, brought it close to the screen, and began to count attentively.

As time passed, Zhang Meifang kept muttering to herself, "One, two, three... ninety-nine, one hundred! Oh, it's a full one hundred!" A look of surprise appeared on her face.

"That's right, this item is the legendary Hundred-Year-Old Screen! According to my guess, it must have been when the old grandfather of a certain landlord's family celebrated his birthday, and the descendants spared no expense to build such a Hundred-Year-Old Screen to express their filial piety and respect."

As Xu Damao spoke, he gently stroked the word "Shou" on the screen, his eyes full of admiration.

"Sister Meifang, take a look at this character for longevity. It is inlaid with mother-of-pearl. You should know that the craftsmanship of making this thing is extremely complicated and intricate!"

Xu Damao couldn't help but express his heartfelt emotion.

"What is mother-of-pearl?" Zhang Meifang asked with a puzzled look on her face.

"The so-called mother-of-pearl is actually the kind of shells commonly found in rivers."

"First, they are carefully polished to make the surface smooth and shiny; then, a small and exquisite saw is used to cut the shells into small square shapes;"

"Then we have to use more sophisticated wire saw tools to slowly saw these small squares into various beautiful longevity shapes."

"The whole process requires full concentration and meticulousness. If there is any mistake, all the previous efforts will be wasted!"

"So, just thinking about it makes me feel that this job is really not easy!" Xu Damao explained patiently, nodding his head to show his agreement with what he said.

"So that's how it is? Damao, then you can quickly estimate how much this thing is worth?" Zhang Meifang asked impatiently.

"About 100 yuan, Sister Meifang, if you sell this, I'll take it for 100 yuan!" Xu Damao's eyes flashed with shrewdness, and he quoted a price. He stared at Zhang Meifang closely, waiting for her response.

Hearing this number, Zhang Meifang's heart suddenly twitched, and a look of surprise appeared on her face. She never thought that this seemingly ordinary thing could be worth so much money.

"Is it so valuable?" Zhang Meifang asked in disbelief, her voice trembling slightly.

"Of course not, Sister Meifang, to be honest, I'll take this thing back and sell it to someone who really likes this kind of stuff. I can at least make another ten or twenty dollars!"

Xu Damao said this confidently, and at the same time he was secretly proud of himself. You know, if this thing was put in the era of his previous life, it would be a precious item that could be auctioned, and its value would be at least in the millions.

However, the times are different now. One hundred yuan is already a good price for him, and he doesn't feel that he has cheated Zhang Meifang.

After all, if Zhang Meifang really ran into those people who came to the village to buy old items, she would probably only be able to sell them for ten yuan at most, or maybe even less!

"Sister Meifang, are you going to sell it or not? If you decide to sell it, I will pay you right now."

Seeing that Zhang Meifang was hesitant, Xu Damao hurriedly asked with a smile, his face full of anxiety.

Zhang Meifang hesitated for a moment, but finally gritted her teeth and nodded: "I want to sell it too! Anyway, this thing is just a decoration at home, it has no practical use."

After saying that, she turned her gaze to Xu Damao, waiting for him to pay.

"Sister Meifang, if I sell this thing, it will be mine?"

Zhang Meifang clenched her teeth tightly, slapped her thigh hard, and shouted loudly as if she had made a great decision: "Okay! Then sell it!" Her voice was particularly loud in the quiet room.

"Okay, then you can leave this thing here for now. I will bring you the money when I leave tomorrow." Xu Damao responded with a smile and a relaxed tone.

"Oh my! This screen is so huge. How can you take it away on such a small bicycle?" Zhang Meifang suddenly reminded, with surprise on her face.

Xu Damao responded with a relaxed look: "Hehe, in that case, I'll have to trouble Sister Meifang to find me a carriage. As for paying the coachman, I'll naturally pay for it."

He said this nonchalantly, as if it was just a trivial matter.

Hearing this, Zhang Meifang couldn't help but look embarrassed, and explained with a wry smile: "Well, although I have lived in this village for some time, except for Sister Man, I have almost no contact with other people. So it's really a bit difficult for me to find a carriage."