Emily Walker was hugging her shoulders, glanced at Mr. Foster, and took a light sip of tea. “Twenty thousand.”

  “Aiyo, even if this piece was put up at an auction, it wouldn’t fetch twenty thousand. You have to let me make a little profit, right? Seventeen thousand, I really can’t go higher.” After a bit of haggling, Mr. Foster surrendered helplessly: “…Alright, alright, eighteen thousand, eighteen thousand. Sigh, if the old man finds out later, he’ll scold me again. Young man, wait a moment, I’ll have Little Anna get the money for you.”

  Eighteen thousand… that’s almost as much as my mom’s annual salary.

  Holding two thick stacks of heavy bills, I swallowed dryly, not even sure how I felt.

  Walking down Liulichang Street, Emily Walker’s high heels clicked with a crisp, confident rhythm. She smiled and patted me. “It’s getting late, I have a dinner engagement to attend tonight, so I’ll head back first. Hmm, tomorrow I’ll go to Panjiayuan for a stroll and pick up a little trinket to give him.”

  Not only did I fail to help her, I even benefited from her presence and sold the jade pendant for a good price. I felt a bit guilty. “How about I go with you tomorrow?”

  “No need. It’s not easy for you to get a summer break—go have some fun.”

  I responded with an “oh,” then added, “Could you not tell my mom about what happened at the antique market yesterday? Just say we ran into each other by chance. Ahem, I’m afraid my parents will worry.” Honestly, not just my parents—thinking back to yesterday still makes my heart race. Eight hundred thousand! I almost ended up deep in debt!

  “You really are a filial child. Alright, I got it.”

  Before leaving, Emily Walker rather unexpectedly exchanged phone numbers with me.

Chapter 6 【Crickets】

  I got home at three thirty. The large, quiet siheyuan was empty. I went to the small kitchen on the east side to get some string beans, then sat on a stone stool under the shade of the Chinese toon tree in the courtyard, picking the beans one by one. I can cook, but my dishes never taste as good as my parents’, so I always wash and cut the vegetables in advance and wait for them to come home to do the actual cooking.

  Dinner was stir-fried string beans with pork and a cold purple cabbage salad.

  Mom ate while nagging as usual: “Now whenever I hear the word ‘marriage’ I get a headache. Why do perfectly good people have to get into relationships? What’s wrong with being single? Is it fatal not to get married?” Hearing this, I almost spat out my food. “Hmph, anyway, in a few days a young colleague from our finance department is getting married. The invitation’s already here. Tell me, how much should I give as a wedding gift?”

  Dad said, “Isn’t a hundred enough?”

  Mom curled her lips. “A hundred? How could I give so little? Everyone else gives at least two hundred!”

  “You’re always trying to keep up appearances!” Dad said grumpily. “After our monthly expenses, we barely have any money left. Can you eat face?”

  Mom slapped the table and glared. “Don’t just blame me! You show off at work plenty yourself!”

  “Dad, Mom…” I put down my chopsticks and went to my room to get a paper package. “Um, there’s something I want to talk about.”

  “What’s this?” Without waiting for an answer, Mom snatched the item wrapped in yesterday’s Beijing Morning Post, opened it, and was instantly stunned. “So much money? Where did you get this? One, two, three, four, five… Goodness! Nearly twenty thousand yuan!” Dad’s face also froze, and he shot me a questioning look. “Speak. What’s going on?”

  I explained honestly: “Here’s what happened. Today, I saw some migrant workers at a construction site near school dig up a Ming or Qing dynasty plaque. It looked pretty good, so I bought it for a hundred and eighty yuan and traded my watch for it. Then I sold it at Liulichang, and that’s where the eighteen thousand came from.”

  Mom gasped. “A hundredfold return? Good son! You really have a knack for this!”

  Being able to help out at home made me feel quite satisfied.

  But Dad wasn’t as happy as Mom. His face turned serious. “Little James, I haven’t made this clear before, but listen carefully—this is the first and last time. From now on, you are not allowed to touch antiques. There’s a lot to learn in this field, and it’s not something you can handle.”

  I casually agreed.

  Maybe he saw my indifference, because Dad’s tone turned stern. “I’m not joking! Did you hear me?”

  Mom gave me a look. “Your dad’s right. Don’t mess with these odd things anymore.”

  “Got it,” I replied seriously.

  The reason Dad was so serious goes back to my grandfather’s generation. Grandpa started out by selling a few family heirloom antiques, and then got into collecting—buying low, selling high, a bit like doing business. But if you walk by the river often, your shoes are bound to get wet. After a few bad deals, Grandpa lost everything and nearly ended up penniless, dying in depression.

  Before he passed, Grandpa left a family rule: No dealing in antiques.

  Dad is a filial son. Since then, even though he’s very interested in collecting, he only looks and never buys—never brought a single piece home.

  Not wanting to dwell on this topic, I quickly told Mom about running into Emily Walker during the day and her wanting to rent a place.

  “Oh, alright, I’ll call Aunt Harris tonight and ask for her.”

  But Dad frowned. “Emily Walker doesn’t have a good reputation at your company, right?” He glanced at me but didn’t say more.