The stall owner took the money, counted it deftly, and then smiled. Gu Cheng reached out, hesitated for a moment, and finally picked up a "Yuan Datou" silver dollar from the direction Nan Nan had pointed, clutching it tightly in his hand.

The "Yuan Datou" felt somewhat cool. After purchasing it, Gu Cheng smiled at Nan Nan again, extended his hand, and offered her the newly bought silver dollar.

"Gu Cheng, what are you doing?" Nan Nan frowned, unable to help but ask.

"For you!"

Gu Cheng said softly, then just stood there grinning at Nan Nan. Hu Xin, Xiao Dai, along with Zhang Yang and Mi Xue beside them, were all stunned speechless.

The Gu Cheng of the moment was definitely not the one they remembered from before. No one had expected Gu Cheng to become so brave as to publicly buy something and give it to Nan Nan.

In fact, never mind them—even Gu Cheng himself was astonished at this moment, filled with an indescribable apprehension.

He had been stimulated by seeing Zhang Yang and Mi Xue get together so quickly, which prompted this action. The "Yuan Datou" wasn't a bouquet of flowers, but it was something Nan Nan liked, and anything she liked, he was willing to buy.

"Can I take a look at it first?"

Just as Nan Nan was about to shake her head in refusal, Zhang Yang suddenly spoke up. Gu Cheng glanced back at Zhang Yang and immediately nodded.

The "Yuan Datou" landed in Zhang Yang’s hand. He examined the obverse and reverse sides, then nodded.

"A Republic Year Eight 'Open-Mouth Bei' variety. Nan Nan, you have decent luck. Hold onto this money well; it will appreciate in value later!"

Zhang Yang tossed the "Yuan Datou" slightly and spoke to Gu Cheng and Nan Nan with a smile.

The stall owner looked up, casting a somewhat surprised glance at Zhang Yang, but said nothing, resuming the tidying of his small wares.

"What's a Republic Year Eight 'Open-Mouth Bei'?"

Mi Xue curiously leaned closer. She didn't understand "Yuan Datou." But regardless, it was made of silver, so it ought to be worth something.

Zhang Yang smiled, picked up the "Yuan Datou," and said quietly, "We all call this silver dollar 'Yuan Datou,' but there are actually many different types. There are ones minted domestically, and those made in Europe. Plus, each period has variations. Some 'Yuan Datou' are cheap, while others are more expensive!"

Zhang Yang presented the silver dollar to Mi Xue, continuing, "This one is a Republic Year Eight 'Yuan Datou.' A distinct characteristic is that the 'Bei' character below the 'Yuan' in 'Yiyuan' is open-mouthed, which is why it’s also called the Republic Year Eight 'Open-Mouth Bei.' This type isn't commonly seen; it belongs to a rare category!"

Upon Zhang Yang’s explanation, everyone carefully scrutinized the characters on the silver dollar.

The Republican era used traditional characters, which differed slightly from the simplified characters of today. With Zhang Yang pointing it out, they genuinely discovered the open-mouthed 'Bei.' Several of them looked quite amazed.

"This... what's so special about this?"

Hu Xin took the silver dollar from Zhang Yang’s hand and asked with confusion.

They could tell there were differences among the silver dollars, but he didn't quite grasp what that implied.

"You’re really slow. Didn't Zhang Yang just say it? This is a very rare type, so it must be worth more, right?"

Xiao Dai couldn't help but blurt out, asking the question while glancing suspiciously at the stall vendor. She had her own doubts.

If it were truly worth more, the vendor wouldn't have sold it to them so easily. In Xiao Dai's view, the stall owner must know more than they did.

"The current prices are similar; the difference isn't huge yet. The gap will become apparent in a few years!"

Zhang Yang considered for a moment, slowly shaking his head.

Because of their high survival rate, silver dollars didn't command high prices for quite some time; only later did they become actively traded. Currently, only European-minted "Yuan Datou" held significant value.

However, as collecting grew popular, "Yuan Datou" were soon categorized, and these rarer varieties would ultimately appreciate more than the others in the future.

Zhang Yang recalled that in his previous life, an ordinary "Yuan Datou" might have cost six or seven hundred yuan, but the Republic Year Eight "Open-Mouth Bei" had soared to five thousand. Gu Cheng bought this one for thirty yuan, meaning it had the potential to increase in value over a hundredfold in the future.

"You mean, silver dollars will definitely appreciate in the future?"

Mi Xue nodded, being the first to grasp Zhang Yang’s meaning.

"Exactly. Nan Nan, take good care of it. In the future, it can be exchanged for a television set—a very nice one at that!"

Zhang Yang smiled slightly and handed the silver dollar back to Gu Cheng. This silver dollar was authentic. Although Gu Cheng’s current purchase seemed a bit expensive, it was not a loss.

"Exchanging for a TV? That’s an exaggeration!"

Hu Xin leaned his head over again, exclaiming in surprise. He couldn't see how this tiny silver dollar could possibly buy a television.

Televisions weren't as expensive as they used to be, but they still weren't cheap; a decent one was priced in the thousands. A silver dollar bought for thirty yuan seemed utterly incapable of trading for a television.

"You’ll know in time!"

Zhang Yang smiled faintly, then stood up.

This stall was quite large, holding quite a few genuine items. However, Zhang Yang’s experience from his previous life in collecting had sharpened his eye, and these types of things didn't pique his interest enough to buy. He merely looked, having no urge to purchase.

Gu Cheng held the "Yuan Datou" and offered it to Nan Nan again.

Nan Nan hesitated. Mi Xue whispered something in her ear, and only then did she lower her head to accept it, murmuring a thank you.

Gu Cheng scratched his head sheepishly, but his happiness was evident, his face flushing red.

Nan Nan had originally intended to use the silver dollar to fashion silver jewelry for her mother, but now that was clearly impossible. This was a gift from Gu Cheng, and she had to keep it forever.

Fortunately, Zhang Yang didn't know her original idea; he would have certainly chided her, and besides, once they knew the value of this specific silver dollar in the future, she would regret it herself.

Standing up, Zhang Yang stopped looking at the stalls.

Most of the items at the stalls were common, and even those with some age were ordinary merchandise. Continuing to look would just be a waste of time; it was better to check the shops inside.

Still, if all these real items had been bought, they could have multiplied in value several times over—though it would have required waiting some time.

Gu Cheng’s purchase of the silver dollar had significantly boosted everyone’s enthusiasm for these kinds of things. Xiao Dai even shot Hu Xin a few sharp glances, making Hu Xin stick close behind her with a guilty conscience.

It wasn't that Hu Xin didn't want to buy a gift for Xiao Dai; unfortunately, he often overspent his living allowance and only had about ten yuan on him. He wanted to give Xiao Dai a present, but his desire outstripped his means.

The items inside the shops were considerably better than those outside at the stalls. There were dedicated display shelves for arranging the goods. Zhang Yang entered a shop, took a cursory glance, and immediately nodded.

The quality here certainly couldn't compare to the great antique shops of later eras, but it was vastly superior to the street stalls. Finding a real gem at a street stall truly required immense luck, akin to winning the lottery.

The shop mainly displayed porcelain ware and various carvings. At the current market stage, these were the items that received more attention.

Mi Xue, Hu Xin, and the others followed him in, all wide-eyed as they surveyed their surroundings.

Everyone had visited Fushou Old Town many times, but this was their first time entering an antique shop. Looking at the array of vases and jars displayed, novelty filled everyone's minds.

After a quick look around, Zhang Yang subtly shook his head again.

In this era, his discerning eye was quite sharp. Many sophisticated methods of forgery hadn't emerged yet, and he was familiar with and understood the common techniques used previously. At this time, his judgment was on par with that of some experts.

There were certainly genuine items in this shop, but fakes were equally abundant. Furthermore, many of the beautiful pieces that appeared valuable were actually forgeries. This left Zhang Yang feeling somewhat disappointed.

It made sense—to find an object you quite liked, only to realize upon close inspection that it was fake, was naturally disheartening.

Two people sat inside the shop. When Zhang Yang's group first entered, one person stood up but soon sat back down.

The two were chatting, and no one came over to greet them. Zhang Yang and the others immediately recognized them as students. It wasn't that students never entered this shop before, but most would just look around and then leave.

In this age, very few students were truly into collecting, and even fewer had both the passion and the means.

After examining several shelves of items, Zhang Yang shook his head again and moved toward another section.

This side held more carvings. After only a few glances, Zhang Yang froze abruptly, staring intently at an ivory carving on a shelf.

It was an ivory carving of a Guanyin Buddha statue, quite large, a genuine antique from the mid-Qing Dynasty.

Surrounding this treasure were other ivory carvings, but none were as substantial as this one. This Guanyin statue stood at least twenty centimeters tall, carved from a substantial piece of ivory.

In terms of craftsmanship, this ivory Guanyin was also the finest among the surrounding pieces, suggesting it should be the most expensive ivory item here overall.

However, this wasn't the primary reason Zhang Yang was stunned. Most importantly, Zhang Yang had seen this exact ivory Guanyin statue in his previous life.

To be precise, this item had belonged to him in his past life—a gift from a patient. Now, with nearly everyone connected to it in this lifetime having disappeared, this was the first object he had encountered that related to his past existence.

Even though it was an inanimate object, it carried significant personal history for him.

This realization caused Zhang Yang's mood to become slightly agitated.

"Boss, could I examine this ivory carving?"

Striving to calm his emotions, Zhang Yang pointed to the ivory Guanyin on the shelf and quietly addressed the two people in the shop.

One of the men appeared to be in his forties, the other around fifty. Both were drinking tea directly from their pots while chatting. Hearing Zhang Yang call out, the younger one stood up first.

He looked slightly surprised. Many students had entered antique shops, and some had inquired about prices, but mostly for smaller items. Very few directly asked about ivory carvings.

The shelf facing Zhang Yang actually held items of considerable value.

"Certainly, just a moment!"

The shop owner was slightly surprised but readily agreed. Antique shops often had long periods of quiet business followed by major sales. Since they rarely had customers, letting these students look at the items wasn't an issue.

Of course, he would definitely instruct them to be careful and not touch things carelessly.

………… Minimum two chapters completed. Fifty-five votes reached. Only five more votes needed to hit sixty, so give Little Yu five more votes of support, and today there will be eight updates!

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Continuing to type; more to come! (To be continued)