Chapter 2: Selling Goods

Dragging my suitcase through the north gate of the market, the first thing I saw was the tent section. Good heavens, I recall it was a Saturday, and to say it was packed with people would be an understatement.

Bodhi beads, beeswax and turquoise, ceramics and miscellaneous antiques, jade and jewelry, bronzes and weaponry, stone carvings and rubbings, calligraphy and paintings—it truly had everything. I was wide-eyed and overwhelmed, my head spinning from the sheer variety.

Of course, most of it was fake. There were very few genuine items among the stalls under the tents.

I smiled to myself, thinking, "Everything here is fake, but my items were collected by me personally. They are authentic antiques; they should sell out quickly, right?"

Seeing an empty spot in one of the tents, I prepared to lay out my goods.

"Hey, what are you doing?!"

A bald vendor nearby stopped me.

"Setting up a stall," I said.

"Setting up a stall? Is this your spot? Get lost! Beat it, you little brat!"

I gritted my teeth and said, "I want to set up here. Is this even your spot? I'll pay you. How much do you want?"

The bald man’s eyes darted around, and he immediately smiled. "One hundred. Give me one hundred and you can set up."

"What! One hundred!"

"Why is it so expensive?"

He squinted at me and said, "That’s the price. If you aren't setting up, get out. Don't block me from doing business."

I had less than a hundred left in my pocket. Gritting my teeth and after some bargaining, I gave him ninety.

Now, I had only three yuan left to my name.

The bald man kept grinning as he pocketed the money.

Unexpectedly, just as I spread out my cloth and had only arranged half of my items, the antique market’s loudspeakers began to blare.

"Attention, visitors and merchants, the Panjiayuan Antique Market is now closing. Please gather your belongings and leave the market in an orderly fashion. We wish you a pleasant day and prosperous business."

As soon as the speakers sounded, the surrounding vendors began packing up.

I was stunned. I hadn't even finished setting up!

I went to the bald man in a rage. "Give me my money back! The market is closing! I haven't even started!"

"Bah!"

The bald man spat on the ground and glared at me. "Damn you! You didn't set up? You spread your cloth, didn't you! That counts as setting up! Don't even think about getting a refund!"

My eyes turned red with frustration. I grabbed his arm, refusing to let go, and demanded he return my money.

"Get lost, you little bastard!"

He kicked me hard in the stomach.

I was just a kid back then; I was no match for him and was instantly doubled over in pain.

The crowd thinned as everyone packed their goods into tricycles and left. The bald man who had kicked me left as well.

It was the dead of winter. Although Beijing wasn't quite as cold as Mohe, the nights were freezing.

The market security guards, leading large dogs, kept urging me to hurry as they saw me packing up slowly, threatening to fine me if I stayed too long.

Days are short and nights are long in winter. By the time I dragged my suitcase out of the market, it was already dark.

Cold, hungry, and with only three yuan to my name, I sat on a roadside bench for half an hour. I learned that there was an internet cafe near the west side of Huawei Bridge, about two kilometers away.

I dragged my suitcase there, only to find out that the cheapest overnight rate was ten yuan. I didn't have enough.

The idea of staying in an internet cafe was shattered.

It was freezing outside, and I couldn't stand it any longer, so I dragged my suitcase into an ATM lobby.

People came in from time to time to withdraw money, casting strange glances at me.

The floor was cold, and I was too miserable to sleep. I pulled my hood up and curled into a corner.

Two or three hours later, in a daze, I felt someone tapping me.

I looked up and saw a woman in her fifties, holding a small white dog. She was likely a resident from one of the nearby Jinsong apartment complexes.

"Young man, why are you sleeping here in this cold?"

"I just bought two flatbreads, and they're still warm. If you don't mind, have them. I'll leave them here for you," she said, shaking her head as she placed a plastic bag on the red metal fire extinguisher cabinet.

She left, and as my stomach growled, I finally reached for the bag.

The flatbreads were sesame-crusted, crispy and fragrant.

As I ate, I wept.

"Should I just give up?"

"If I go back, won't people look down on our family even more?"

"No, they won't," I told myself over and over. "Xiang Yunfeng, you will definitely become a rich man!"

Eight in the morning.

I arrived at Panjiayuan again. Since I couldn't afford the stall fee, I could only wander around with my suitcase. Whenever I saw someone looking at ceramics, I would approach them and ask, "Sir, would you like to see my ceramics? They are all authentic. If the price is right, I'll sell."

Just then, the market loudspeakers blared again.

"Attention, visitors, please beware of illegal vendors following you. Please keep an eye on your belongings to avoid being scammed."

With that announcement, the person's expression changed, and they hurried away.

I asked several more people, but they all assumed I was a scammer or an illegal vendor!

Finally, I decided to try my luck at an antique shop. I asked the owner if he bought ceramics.

The owner said indifferently, "What have you got? Let me see."

My heart leaped with joy. I laid my suitcase flat and opened it.

"Hmm, these aren't great. They are authentic, I'll give you that. How much do you want for this pair of bile-shaped vases?" He pointed to a pair of late Qing Dynasty blue-glazed vases.

I swallowed hard and said cautiously, "They're late Qing. Can you give me... eight hundred for the pair?"

"What? Eight hundred!"

The owner glared. "One hundred and fifty at most. Take it or leave it?"

"Only one hundred and fifty for the pair?" My heart went cold.

I had collected these in the mountains, endured freezing cold and hunger, and sat through a two-thousand-kilometer train ride on a hard seat. The cost alone was one hundred!

Was I only making fifty yuan?

Red with anger, I immediately started packing them up. Seeing me about to leave, the owner added, "Hey, don't rush! If that's not enough, I'll add twenty. How about one hundred and seventy?"

Suppressing my urge to explode, I felt my asking price was reasonable, yet I had been met with such insults.

"Keep your twenty yuan for yourself!"

When people are angry, they don't listen to reason. Being young and hot-headed, I didn't care about anything else and dragged my suitcase right out of the shop.

I hadn't given up yet; I planned to set up outside the market. But once I got out, I saw the urban management officers confiscating goods. Several vendors selling fakes were having their items seized.

Terrified, I immediately abandoned that idea.

But there is always a way out.

Just as I was in total despair, I met an old man who said, "Young man, Panjiayuan is very crowded on weekends and the stalls are expensive. You should try the Baoguo Temple. I hear the stalls there don't charge fees."

Hearing this good news, I was overjoyed! I grabbed my suitcase and rushed toward Baoguo Temple near Guang'anmen.

The free stalls at Baoguo Temple were my final chance.