From humble beginnings to the pinnacle of life

I pretended to be in a difficult position, frowned, took out my phone, and pretended to check my balance, deliberately stalling for time.

"Brother Guo, it's not that I'm unwilling to pay."

I sighed and said with a troubled expression, "You can see from my appearance that I'm just a gofer. I really don't have much spare cash. I pawned the bracelet before because it was just a temporary measure. Now that business has just started to pick up, all my funds are tied up in working capital, and I really can't come up with 20,000 yuan in cash all at once."

The smile on Fatty Guo's face vanished instantly, and his tone became more impatient:

"Why are you wasting your time here every day if you don't have money? There's no shortage of sincere buyers in the antique business, and plenty of wealthy people are waiting to find a bargain. I don't need to keep waiting for you."

I lowered my eyes, feigning helplessness: "Brother Guo, I really want it, otherwise I wouldn't be wasting my time here with you every day. But I'm really stuck right now. My business is just starting out, and my cash flow is tied up. I can't come up with a large deposit all at once."

Fatty Guo waved his hand dismissively and said bluntly, "That's the rule in the antique business: goods don't stay with idle people. If you can't show sincerity, why should I hold onto your goods?"

I raised my head, pretending to hesitate for a long time, and said through gritted teeth:

"Brother Guo, how about this, I'll compromise. Let me see the bracelet again in person to confirm it's in good condition, and I'll transfer the deposit to you immediately. We can discuss the amount further, but I must inspect the goods in person."

This is my real purpose for coming to the store today.

Fatty Guo's eyes flickered slightly, and he hesitated for two seconds.

He was afraid I would try something funny, but he couldn't bear to let me go, this fat sheep.

In his eyes, I was just someone eager to redeem my beloved possessions, with no background, no connections, and no guts to cause trouble. At most, I could only haggle and talk my way out of things, and I couldn't stir up any trouble.

A few seconds later, he gave in.

"OK."

He got up from the chair, his fat body swaying, and walked to the thick curtain at the innermost part of the shop.

"Just look, don't touch. Pay a deposit after you've looked, otherwise I'll just list the goods for sale today."

I readily nodded: "No problem."

The curtain was lifted, revealing a small, enclosed inner room with no windows, walls on all four sides, and only a spotlight hanging from the ceiling.

In the very center stood a heavy, old-fashioned safe. Fatty Guo raised his hand to enter the password, and with two soft clicks, the safe door popped open.

My eyes immediately fell on the tray inside the cabinet.

A translucent and warm-toned old jade bracelet lies quietly on a black velvet cushion.

The texture and patina are exactly the same.

It's Su Qing's, absolutely.

The weight that had been hanging over my heart has finally been lifted.

The bracelet was intact and had not been replaced by anyone else.

Fatty Guo lowered his head, picked up the bracelet, held it up under the light, and said casually:

"See? Everything's perfectly intact. I've kept it safe for you. Anyone else would have sold it to you long ago. You didn't have a chance to dawdle like this."

I suppressed all my emotions and kept a sincere expression on my face as I said eagerly, "It's really intact, thank you so much for your trouble, Brother Guo."

"It's good that you know how to be grateful."

As he spoke, Fatty Guo put the bracelet back on the tray and locked the safe again.

"Now, let's pay the deposit."

I took out my phone, pretended to hesitate for a long time, and finally transferred a small amount of money.

Not too much, just enough to put his mind at ease, without letting him trap me with real money.

"I'll take this much for now, and I'll replenish the rest the day after tomorrow. Please hold onto this stock for me, and don't sell it to anyone who comes to buy it."

Guo Pangzi looked at the notification that the money had been credited to his account and finally let down his guard.

In his view, I've already been drawn into the game.

Having taken my deposit, in his eyes I was just meat on the chopping block, someone he could manipulate at any time.

"Don't worry." He waved his hand. "Once I take your money, I'll lock the order for you. The deadline is six o'clock the day after tomorrow. It will be void if it's not there by then."

I didn't say anything more, nodded goodbye, and turned to leave the shop.

The moment I stepped out of Guo's Antique Shop, I breathed a long sigh of relief.

Tonight, we'll close the net.

I didn't look back and walked normally down the street, leaving the antique market.

As I reached the street corner, completely out of Guo Pangzi's surveillance range, I immediately sped up, circled into the alleyway of the old residential buildings on the side, and hurried straight to the iron gate of the abandoned residential building from last night.

The iron gate was half open, and Su Qing was squatting in the shadows.

Hearing footsteps, she turned around sharply, her eyes alert. Only when she saw it was me did she relax.

"How is it? Did you see the bracelet?" she asked in a low voice, her first question being about the bracelet.

I crouched down and nodded gently to her: "I saw it. It's yours, locked perfectly in the safe inside his room."

Su Qing's tense shoulders relaxed considerably instantly, and she nodded, saying:

"It's good that it's still here. As long as the items haven't been sent away, we still have a chance."

I nodded and glanced at the time: 11:40 a.m.

There are still twelve hours until the late-night trading session begins.

For the rest of the afternoon, we refrained from taking any further rash actions.

To reassure him, to put him at ease, to make him believe that I really went back to borrow money and scrambled to pay the remaining balance, so that he would lower all his guard.

Su Qing and I left the abandoned building and found a quiet casual restaurant nearby. We had a simple meal and reviewed the final steps of the plan.

As dusk fell, a cool breeze blew across the city.

It's 10:50 p.m.

Su Qing and I quietly returned to the iron gate of the abandoned residential building.

The night was pitch black, the streetlights on the old street were dim and mottled, all the shops on the antique street were closed, and the street was deserted and lifeless.

Only one small window on the second floor of Guo's Antique Shop still had a dim yellow light on.

He didn't leave; he stayed in the shop waiting for the transaction.

Su Qing set up her phone, adjusted the angle slightly, and pointed the lens at the antique shop, capturing every inch of the scene clearly.

Ten minutes later.

In the distance along the main road of the old street, a black car slowly glides into view.

It was the same black van without license plates, still with only faint marker lights on, moving extremely slowly, just like last night.

The car smoothly entered the alleyway, skillfully turned into the narrow alley behind, and stopped precisely in the blind spot of the surveillance camera.

The alley was eerily quiet, with only the low hum of car engines.

A few seconds later, the back door of Guo Pangzi's shop opened slightly.

He was wearing the same dark red linen shirt he wore last night, which made him look particularly gloomy in the night. In his hand, he no longer held the small cigarette box-sized object from last night, but a small brocade box wrapped in black velvet.

Even through the darkness, I could tell at a glance.

It contained that jade bracelet.

He cautiously looked around before quickly walking to the rear window of the van.

The car window slowly rolled down a crack.

A man's hand reached out.

Fatty Guo held the brocade box in both hands and handed it into the car.

The person inside the car took it.

The entire process of transferring stolen goods from the black market was completed seamlessly.

Su Qing kept recording videos on her phone, capturing every movement and every detail clearly.

"The evidence is in hand." Su Qing's voice trembled slightly, a result of excitement that had been suppressed for too long.

I stopped hesitating, took out my phone, and dialed the emergency dispatch number of the local police station with one click.

Just after I finished calling the police, the van's windows rolled up quickly, the engine roared, and it was preparing to leave.

"Trying to run away?"

I gave a low shout, no longer hiding, and stepped directly out from the shadow of the iron gate.

Almost at the same time, urgent police sirens could be heard in the distance.

As it drew nearer, it became increasingly clear.

Fatty Guo's face turned deathly pale instantly, and he froze on the spot.