Beijing Liulichang is probably a place known to everyone—antique appraisal, rare ancient books, stone carvings, calligraphy and paintings, you name it. My home isn’t far from Liulichang; to the west is Hepingmen, and if you walk a few hundred meters along Nanxinhua Street, you’ll see that quaint, antique street.

However, despite its fame, Liulichang is actually much less crowded than other antique markets in Beijing.

That’s because most people dabbling in antiques are hoping to score a bargain, but every shop owner in Liulichang is an industry authority. In other words, on this street, spending a fortune doesn’t guarantee you’ll get something genuine, and anything you buy at a low price is definitely inferior. They simply won’t give you a chance to find a hidden treasure.

After getting out of the taxi, Emily Walker walked alongside me. “I have a client around here. If you want to sell something, you can ask him—maybe you’ll even get a better price.”

“Alright, thank you.” The rain had let up a lot, so neither of us used an umbrella.

“No need to thank me, I should be the one thanking you.” Emily Walker’s charming eyes glanced around. “The environment here is really nice. By the way, my mother came to Beijing to visit me, but my current place is too small, and the rent—paid every three months—is about to expire. Do you know if there are any places for rent nearby?”

A place to live?

I don’t know about other areas, but in the east wing of my family’s siheyuan, Aunt Harris’s house just happens to be vacant.

But I wasn’t sure what kind of relationship my mom had with Emily Walker, so I didn’t dare tell her directly. If my mom didn’t get along with her, wouldn’t my good intentions backfire?

“Why don’t you ask my mom? She should know.” I simply pushed the question to my mother.

“Alright, I’ll ask Sister Green when I go to work tomorrow.”

I have a lot of memories stored in Liulichang. There used to be a white marble bridge here; my dad often brought me to fly kites, and a few of us kids would slide down the sloped stone steps in front of Rongbaozhai. Over time, our feet wore two shiny tracks into the steps. But a few years ago, when Liulichang was renovated, the stone bridge was demolished, and even the marks on the steps in front of the shops disappeared. I’m a nostalgic person, and I always feel that today’s Liulichang has lost the flavor it once had.

Emily Walker took me to a shop called “Tengyuan Pavilion” deep inside West Liulichang.

It was a small storefront, quite a step down from century-old shops like Yidege and Rongbaozhai.

“Mr. Foster, how have you been?”

“Oh, isn’t this Manager Walker?” Mr. Foster, who looked to be around thirty, came out from behind the glass display case. “What brings you here? Please, have a seat. Little Anna, brew a pot of Tieguanyin tea.”

Mr. Foster gestured for us to sit on the rattan chairs in the corner. As he bent down to sit, his eyes swept over Manager Walker’s shapely hips. I’m a man too, so I noticed Mr. Foster’s subtle little move.

Emily Walker casually crossed her legs. “It’s been a while since you placed an order with our company. I thought you’d forgotten about me.”

“How could I?” Mr. Foster laughed. “I still haven’t finished the tea I bought last time. Business is slow, no customers these days.”

“Oh, stop being so modest. One sale is enough to feed you for three years, and you call that slow business?” Seeing his gaze shift to me, Emily Walker placed her left hand on my shoulder. “This is my nephew. Don’t be fooled by his age—he’s an expert among experts. I brought him today to help pick things out, so don’t try to pull a fast one on us.”

Uh, since when did I become your nephew?

“Come on, I wouldn’t dare try to fool you.” Mr. Foster pointed to the display case on the east side. “Everything here is good stuff, take your time and look around.”

Tengyuan Pavilion deals in a wide range of items—jade, jadeite, calligraphy, paintings, porcelain.

After making a round of the shop with Emily Walker, I pointed out two or three decent pieces for her. But genuine items mean genuine prices, and Emily Walker thought they were too expensive, so she didn’t buy any. In the end, she called over Mr. Foster: “My nephew picked out a piece of jade. Take a look at it for him.”

Hearing this, I handed the jade pendant to him.

“No problem.” Mr. Foster looked it over, weighed it in his hand, and nodded. “Ming or Qing dynasty piece, authentic old craftsmanship. Not bad, it’s a fine item.”

“How much do you think it’s worth?” Emily Walker asked.

Mr. Foster replied cautiously, “That’s hard to say—it depends on how much you want to sell it for.”

Emily Walker rolled her eyes. “Come on, Big Boss Foster, we’ve known each other for years. Give me a fair price. If it’s good, the jade pendant is yours. If not, you’ll have to help us find a suitable buyer here in Liulichang. Either way, I’m not leaving until this is settled, so it’s up to you.”

Anyone who can become a sales manager clearly has great people skills.

Mr. Foster gave a wry smile. “Alright, you win. To be honest, it’s a nice piece, but the only drawback is the quality of the jade material isn’t great. If you really work the market here in Liulichang, you might get fifteen thousand for it at best.” He paused for a moment. “Sixteen thousand—that’s the highest I can offer.”

I figured sixteen thousand was already a good price, so I nodded subtly to Emily Walker. This was the signal we’d agreed on before coming.