Reborn in America: I Have an Equipment Slot

Chapter 121 The Sucker

Irving, full of anticipation, reached out and picked up the silver coin.

To his disappointment, the seemingly antique silver coin was not special equipment, but just an ordinary antique.

The woman, oblivious to Irving's change in expression, earnestly introduced the coin: "This silver coin was left to me by my grandfather. It's a coin from the Teddy Roosevelt era. The coin's greatest advantage is its excellent hue. Although the surface is somewhat oxidized, it doesn't affect its value at all."

I previously consulted a collector friend of mine; this batch of coins is very special because none of them were authorized by Congress and they are from 1917.

It was minted directly by the Philadelphia Mint in 1868.

As for the reason why it was not authorized, it seems to be because of the Statue of Liberty on the back of the silver coin, which is said to make the public feel uneasy.

But that's precisely why this batch of coins is a very rare version.

"...

'

Irving looked surprised.

To be honest, after confirming that the coin was not special equipment, he had already lost interest in the silver coin.

But when he heard the other person say that, Irving immediately became interested.

Ordinary antique silver coins may not be worth much money.

However, this special version of the silver coin is definitely a favorite among coin collectors.

Irving picked up a magnifying glass and examined the coin closely.

Just then, the woman took out several documents and a hard-market grading certificate from her LV bag and placed them on the counter.

Seeing that the coin was indeed of good quality, Irving glanced at the documents and coin grading certificate and asked, "How much do you want to sell this silver coin for?"

"$5000!" the woman said without hesitation. "Before coming here, I checked the market price of this batch of coins online. They're generally around $4000 to $5000. My coin is in such good condition, asking for $5000 shouldn't be unreasonable, right?"

Irving frowned subconsciously.

$5000?

How can an antique coin sell for so much money?

Are all coin collectors just suckers?

Irving examined the antique silver coin in his hand again and immediately activated his skill [Appraisal].

To Irving's astonishment, the antique silver coin was actually worth $5000.

Irving fell into deep thought. "It seems you know the market price of this silver coin very well, but unfortunately I can't buy it back for $5000. Otherwise, I wouldn't just not make a profit, I might even lose some money—"

"Although the market price is what it is, we pawnshops need to make a profit when we buy things. If you're willing to sell, I can offer up to $4000," Irving said seriously.

"$4000?" The woman frowned, hesitated for a moment, sighed, and finally accepted the price: "Okay, I'll sell it to you for $4000, but first, I want cash!"

"OK, of course, no problem, ma'am."

Irving smiled, then turned and went into the inner room, where he took out cash and receipts from the safe.

Ayesha, standing to the side, watched as Owen exchanged money and goods with the other party, and then fell into deep thought.

Is a silver coin with a market price of $5000 only worth a maximum of $4000 when it can be recycled?

If that's the case, wouldn't pawnshops be guaranteed to make a profit?

After seeing the woman off, Owen noticed Ayesha's expression and immediately asked, "What's wrong?"

Ayesha was still reeling from the earlier shock when Owen asked her question. She immediately voiced her doubts, "Owen, can I ask why that woman was willing to sell that silver coin for $4000? The market price for that coin is clearly $5000—"

"Oh, darling, I think you've overlooked something."

Seeing Ayesha's puzzled expression, Owen smiled and explained, "Market prices are market prices; they can only be used as a reference. The most important thing for us in the pawnshop business is to make money."

Therefore, the first principle we should follow is to buy low and sell high.

If we were to buy back items at market prices, why would we even need pawnshops? We might as well just turn them into charity events.

The Mexican woman was well aware of this; if she didn't urgently need the money, she could have slowly listed the items online for sale, or even consigned them to auction houses.

But if they urgently need money, pawnshops and other similar establishments are often their first choice.

Ayesha silently wrote these words down.

Just as Irving was immersed in this teaching atmosphere, the bell rang—

As the doorbell rang, a blonde woman wearing sunglasses, a fishbone top, and shorts walked in.

Sensing the other person's demeanor, Owen's eyes lit up, and he immediately greeted her, "Madam, how can I help you? Are you looking to buy or sell something?"

The blonde woman glanced at Irving, then raised an eyebrow. "I'd like to buy a necklace, preferably an older one, something that looks like it has a history. Do you have any?"

"A necklace? Of course!" Seeing that the other person was dressed simply but the clothes were of excellent quality, and he looked like he was not short of money, Owen's eyes immediately lit up.

He turned back to the storeroom and took out a diamond necklace that he had previously received.

"You can take a look at this necklace."

Irving pushed the diamond necklace, box and all, in front of the woman, waiting to see her reaction.

The blonde beauty picked up the diamond necklace, looked it over, and nodded slightly.

However, when she saw the name engraved on the back of the necklace, she subconsciously frowned.

"The necklace is nice, but it's a pity that someone else's name is already on it. Is it the designer's name?"

Owen was about to nod, but seeing the other person's confident demeanor, clearly indicating a well-off family, he immediately had an idea and shook his head: "It's not the designer's name, it's a lady's name."

"The lady's name?" the woman asked, puzzled. "The custom-made necklace?"

"That's right." Owen nodded, then began to make up a story: "This diamond necklace was sold to our pawn shop by a man who said that the woman was the love of his life, very beautiful, understanding, and a perfect partner."

The two grew up together, from school days to their wedding, and were in love for over thirty years. However, an accident took the life of the necklace's owner, and the man spent all his savings to treat the woman.

Left with no other choice, he had to sell the necklace.

"This sounds so touching." Upon hearing this moving story, the blonde beauty's eyes immediately welled up with tears, moved by the tragic love story of the two.

Seeing this, Irving quickly handed over a tissue and then planned to put the necklace away.

But before he could turn around, the blonde beauty called out to him.

"Wait a minute!" The blonde woman wiped away her tears and said earnestly, "How much is this diamond necklace? I want it!"