“Keeping my voice down is fine, but selling these three jade carvings for 500,000 seems a bit steep. Shouldn’t there be four to make it complete?”
Xu Fei chose to respect the seller, squatting down to meet him at eye level, and then symbolically tried to negotiate the price.
In truth, haggling wasn’t his intention. Although Xu Fei wasn’t exactly a billionaire, he could easily afford these items.
His main goal was to see if the seller could complete the set of four, which would be the perfect outcome in Xu Fei’s mind.
In fact, Xu Fei had even considered that if the seller could provide all four, he wouldn’t mind paying a higher price without hesitation.
But just as he finished speaking, a mocking voice came from behind.
“Boss, don’t sell to him. How about selling to us instead?”
Hearing this, Xu Fei wasn’t the least bit surprised. A faint smile appeared on his lips.
“Hmph, I didn’t expect you three rats to dare show your faces in broad daylight!”
“You! What do you mean by that? How are we rats? We’re here to buy things!”
“Exactly! Not only are we not haggling, but we’re also raising the price! 700,000, no bargaining! Boss, give us a straight answer—will you sell or not?”
The three members of the Red Buddha Society behind him raised the price by 200,000, which caught Xu Fei off guard.
Hearing this, the stall owner seemed visibly excited, his bamboo hat almost slipping off his head.
“You… you’re really willing to pay 700,000 for these jade carvings?”
The stall owner pointed at the three jade arhats in front of him.
“Of course! A gentleman’s word is his bond! We’re three living, breathing people standing here. Do you think we’d run off?”
Seeing the seller’s hesitation, Xu Fei felt that if he didn’t make an effort to persuade him, he might miss out on the opportunity.
But Xu Fei didn’t want to engage in a vulgar bidding war. For one, he wanted to avoid unnecessary attention and misunderstandings. Secondly, when choosing a container, one’s heart should be as calm and uncontentious as jade.
In the end, Xu Fei decided to try to win the seller over with a few heartfelt words.
“Little monk, even though they’re offering a higher price, I was here first. Besides, buying jade is all about fate and connection. Can you really bear to let these three jade arhats go home with these rough individuals and suffer?”
Xu Fei had long since used his insight to read the little monk’s inner thoughts. His gaze even lingered on the monk’s chest for a moment.
The little monk had been torn between two fears: one, that the jade arhats wouldn’t fetch a good price, delaying his plans, and two, that they might fall into the hands of someone who wouldn’t appreciate them.
So Xu Fei believed his words would resonate deeply with the seller.
Unfortunately, as the saying goes, man proposes, but heaven disposes. Just as the little monk was about to speak, his phone rang.
“Hello… What? How could this happen… Alright, alright, I’ll come back right away!”
After hanging up, the little monk seemed to make a decisive choice. He pointed at the three members of the Red Buddha Society and said, “700,000, cash on delivery!”
“No problem! The money will be here right away!”
“Did you hear that? He’s selling to us. Get lost!”
The three members of the Red Buddha Society were now gloating. Seeing the seller’s final decision, Xu Fei could only shake his head and sigh softly.
