Chapter 404 "Big Harvest"

Yan Jiecheng explained sincerely: "Brother Liu, don't worry, this place is an abandoned old warehouse of the supply and marketing cooperative. It is in a hidden location and few people know its specific purpose. We have recently exchanged a lot of old items, so we temporarily placed them there."

"Yes, you did the right thing. There is nothing wrong with being careful and cautious. Thank you for your hard work." Liu Zhiye was delighted after hearing this, and then asked quickly: "Jie Cheng, how is the quality of the antiques you collected this time?"

Yan Jiecheng lowered his voice and whispered in Liu Zhiye's ear: "My master said that this batch of goods is of high quality. There are some treasures that have been passed down from generation to generation, and some fine products that have flowed out of temples, Taoist temples, ancient buildings and other places. Most of them are rare treasures, and many have reached the level of national treasures. The number is quite considerable..."

"There were many more that were of average quality. Since there were too many, we didn't dare to make it too obvious. We just watched them all being destroyed, batch after batch. It made me sad..."

Liu Zhiye knew that these people could collect a lot of antiques, artworks and old objects, but he didn't expect them to be so generous and to dig deep. He was secretly glad that he was able to preserve some precious antiques and cultural relics with historical value in time, otherwise the consequences would be even more serious than this.

Liu Zhiye pondered for a moment, and said to Yan Jiecheng in a firm tone: "Don't be stingy with the funds. Anything that can be settled with money is not worth mentioning. No matter how much it costs, as long as you can ensure the safety and properly protect these precious old objects, it will be a success.

Remember, safety comes first. You guys should avoid direct contact with them and find some reliable agents to handle the acquisition. Is that clear?"

"If it's impossible, we have to give up. Now we have plenty of opportunities to acquire these things. There's no need to fight to the death with them..."

Yan Jiecheng could sense Liu Zhiye's concern for everyone's safety from his words, and a warm feeling welled up in his heart. "Brother Liu, we appreciate your kindness," he responded sincerely, "Although we are not brave and fearless, we are always cautious. If there is really an unpredictable danger, we will not blindly act recklessly and joke about our own safety."

Liu Zhiye raised his lips slightly, nodded slightly, said briefly "wait a moment", and then walked into the inner study. Not long after, he returned with a suitcase in hand, his movements were neat.

He tapped the box lightly, and said calmly, "There is 100,000 yuan in cash and 20 small yellow fish gold bars in the box. You can take them and use them to deal with the leaders of various factions. As for how to act, you should know what to do, so I don't need to say more."

"In short, it can be summed up in one sentence. Make more friends and fewer enemies. Keep a low profile and make a fortune quietly. Do you understand?"

Yan Jiecheng nodded slightly and said firmly: "Brother Liu, don't worry. We have been working with you for so many years. If we don't make any progress, we will be ashamed of your cultivation. When the time comes, you don't have to do anything. We will find a piece of tofu and bump into it head-on to have a good time!"

Hearing this, Liu Zhiye laughed heartily, patted Yan Jiecheng on the shoulder, and said firmly: "Okay, I have let it go. Jiecheng, go back and tell Damao and the others to wait patiently for a few more years. When the time is right, I, Brother Liu, will lead you to glory together."

When Yan Jiecheng heard this, a gleam of trust flashed in his eyes, and he believed Liu Zhiye's promise without a doubt.

After years of friendship, they knew Liu Zhiye's character very well. Every promise he made was as reliable as gold and stone, and he never broke his word. He responded solemnly: "Brother Liu, we swear to stay with you until the day when you can realize your ambitions."

Liu Zhiye smiled with relief. He didn't expect that his first "little brother" who he accidentally subordinated would bring him such a big surprise.

The rapid growth of Yan Jiecheng, Xu Damao, Sha Zhu, Liu Guangfu and others, plus the later joining of "Polan Hou", this small team that acquired antiques and artworks actually brought such a great miracle to Liu Zhiye's antique collection business.

Perhaps in the near future, the number of antique artworks in his private collection will be so large that many provincial museums will be unable to match it.

Like the famous collectors of the Xia Dynasty in later generations, Wang Shixiang, Ma Weidu, Yang Zi, Ma Dingxiang, Yang Yongtai, Pan Jianchuan, Ye Maozhong, Zhang Zongxian, Liu Luanxiong, Zhai Jianmin, Gao Lingmei, Zhan Yunbai... The things collected by these people are not at the same level as those in Liu Zhiye's hands. All of them combined are not enough to beat him alone.

These people are by no means ordinary people. Although they may not be well-known at present, they will surely be the celebrities in Xia country's collecting world in the near future.

For example, Wang Shixiang, this famous cultural relic expert and scholar, is a leader in cultural relic appreciation and collection. He enjoys the reputation of "the first player in Beijing", and his influence and attainments are evident.

Let’s talk about Ma Dingxiang again, the leader of the Xia Dynasty’s numismatic community and a giant in the coin collection community. He devoted his entire life to the collection and research of coins. His contributions and achievements are well-known in the industry.

As for Hu Ruosi, he is a master in the field of guqin collection. He has spent his entire life collecting hundreds of guqins from various dynasties, especially those from the Ming and Qing dynasties. The richness of his collection is breathtaking.

When talking about collecting, we have to mention Ma Weidu, who is a true collector.

Ma Weidu used his experience and rich knowledge to create a lot of wealth for himself, and later lived within the second ring road of Beijing.

We all know that celebrities in the entertainment industry make money quickly, earn a lot, and look more noble than ordinary people.

But in Ma Ye's eyes, those were just short-lived, and some were even embarrassing.

Someone once estimated that Ma Ye's collection is worth at least 100 billion. What about other things besides the collection? Ma Ye has a great influence in society, and he himself has profound knowledge. Those things are worth more than billion, right?
There are several others, such as Liu Luanxiong, who is a wealthy businessman in Hong Kong. His collection mainly focuses on modern and contemporary art. He ranked sixth among the top ten art collectors in the world by ARTnews in 2010 and is the only Chinese collector on the list.

Chen Yongtai, chairman of the Aurora Group, has been committed to the protection and collection of Xia Dynasty cultural relics for more than 30 years.

His art museums in Taipei and Shanghai have become one of the most complete private museums in the world for the collection of ancient Xia Dynasty jades, with a total of more than 6000 pieces.

Ancient Xia Dynasty artifacts, including jade, porcelain, stone statues and Buddha statues, are collected in the Xia Dynasty Art Museum, which is privately organized by Chen Yongtai.

Zhai Jianmin, owner of Yongbaozhai in Hong Kong, is one of the most active antique dealers in the Chinese community.

Yang Zi, executive president of Juli Group, also likes to collect items, such as the Seven Sages Gourd Vase in the Bamboo Forest from the Ming Dynasty and the Chicken Bowl Cup worth tens of millions of yuan.

Later, he paid special attention to collections related to Buddhism, especially Dzi beads.

Yang Zi's collection of more than 3000 pieces of pure Tianzhu cultural relics dating back thousands of years is the first among the world's famous Dzi collectors in terms of both total quantity and quality. Some of the Dzi beads in his collection are the legendary "King of Dzi Beads".

…………

Of course, compared to these people in the future, Liu Zhiye started earlier, and with foresight, he will collect more good things.

He also didn't know whether Mr. Wang, Ma Weidu and others would achieve the same success as they did in their previous lives after he had plundered the Beijing-Tianjin area.

However, Liu Zhiye and his colleagues can only work hard in the Beijing-Tianjin area; if they go further away, they will be out of reach.

Compared with the vast territory of Xia State and the countless treasures on that land, what they are protecting may be just a drop in the ocean, and they have a sense of powerlessness.

On that day, Liu Zhiye was worried that the night would be too long and might cause more trouble, so he and Yan Jiecheng quietly went to the secret warehouse.

The location of the warehouse is extremely hidden and can be traced back to before liberation. It was once a strong military base of the National Army.

After the establishment of New China, this place was taken over by the Beijing supply and marketing cooperative system. Later, due to its remote location, it gradually became deserted.

Yan Jiecheng is now a middle-level manager in the supply and marketing cooperative system, and is in charge of warehousing affairs.

So, without anyone noticing, this place became the secret base for Master Yan Jiecheng and his two disciples.

"Polan Hou" was very satisfied with this place. He was not a sociable person to begin with, and the city was in chaos recently, so he simply moved here.

Firstly, he could protect this considerable number of antique artworks with peace of mind and ensure that they were safe and sound; secondly, it was also to find a piece of pure land, away from the troubles of the world.

Not only does he have no worries about food and clothing here, but the environment is also quiet and pleasant, which is exactly what he wants.

As Liu Zhiye stepped over the threshold, he saw Master Hou at a glance and called out to him affectionately, "Master Hou, you've worked so hard!" He saw "Broken Hou" leaning leisurely on a recliner in front of the warehouse door, with a radio playing softly beside him, a cattail leaf fan in his hand, and the fragrance of tea wafting from the purple clay teapot. He looked relaxed and at ease, displaying a carefree demeanor.

"Oh! You are here too. We haven't seen each other for a while! You come to see me empty-handed?" Master Hou raised his eyelids slightly and recognized Liu Zhiye at a glance. He couldn't help but show a look of surprise.

"Haha, how could that be? Look at what good things I brought you?" Liu Zhiye chuckled, took out two bottles of fine wine and a net bag of fresh "Shengfang crabs" from his back, and gently placed them in front of "Polan Hou". This was his favorite. "Oh, you are really a timely rain!" A trace of surprise flashed in the eyes of "Polan Hou". He jumped up from the recliner in an instant and quickly stepped forward to take the gift from Liu Zhiye's hand. "I was worried about where to have dinner, and here comes the hard dish..." His words were filled with joy that was difficult to conceal.

"Come on, please sit down and rest for a while. I'll go and deal with this thing. The three of us must have a good drink tonight..." Before he finished speaking, the old man already looked very happy and started to work swiftly.

The attitude of "Prague Hou" towards Liu Zhiye was always the same. He never judged people by their power or status. If he liked someone, he would chat and laugh with him, even if he was a street beggar; if he didn't like someone, even if he was a powerful person, he would just treat him indifferently and ignore him.

In the original drama, "Polan Hou" is a weirdo who doesn't accept charity but likes to eat for free; he cherishes his collection but smashes it to sacrifice to his friends.

He has a stubborn temper, is withdrawn, and behaves eccentrically, but these traits do not prevent him from looking at certain people differently, such as his special attention to Liu Zhiye.

Liu Zhiye also particularly admires the real "Po Lan Hou", thinking that he is a person with a bottom line and a kind heart; a person who does not care about appearance and is not moved by external things; a person who is persistent and sensible; a person who does not care about gains and losses for friendship; a person who can face everything calmly. This is also a responsible, talented, and proud man.

In this way, the two people with an age difference of nearly 20 years became friends regardless of age difference.

"Polan Hou" was happily packing up the crabs brought by Liu Zhiye. As old Beijingers, this was their favorite delicacy after the autumn.

Autumn is finally here, the season of harvest. Old Beijingers have always had a saying of "tasting fresh food in autumn", and crabs are the first choice.

In the early years, Shengfang Town, a swamp on the outskirts of Tianjin Port, was famous for its abundant crabs. When the crabs were shipped to the capital, the big restaurants would first pick the fat, lively and top-quality "crabs".

The second-rate ones are then screened by the big fish shops in the capital, such as the Xisi Fish Shop at the southeast corner of Xisi Pailou, which imports a large number of Shengfang crabs every year. The remaining small and thin inferior ones are bought by vendors at low prices.

At that time, there were many rivers, lakes and branches in the suburbs of Beijing, such as the Wenyu River and Chaobai River in the east of Beijing and the Majuqiao area in the south of Beijing, all of which were rich in crabs. The taste of crabs was no less than that of Shengfang crabs. Street vendors would also buy crabs from these places and sell them in the alleys in the city.

The crab vendors all carry bamboo baskets on their shoulders and wear straw hats and aprons around their waists. They walk while shouting: "Bring me the crabs, big crabs! Fat ones with pointed navels!" "Hey, hey, big live crabs!" In the eighth month of the lunar calendar, the word "pointed navel" is changed to "round navel" when shouting, while the other words remain the same.

The grandmothers and aunties living in the alleys and courtyards in the city would come out to ask prices, look at the goods and make their selections when they heard the shouting.

The vendor tied the crabs together with long, thin and tough horsetail leaves, stringing them together one by one. The crabs were still foaming.

After buying it, put the crab in a large basin of clean water to allow it to vomit out the debris in its stomach.

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When it’s almost time for dinner in the evening, “Polanhou” will tie the crabs with straw ropes and put them directly into the steamer to steam them over high heat.

After waiting for seven or eight minutes, open the lid of the pot. The blue-gray crabs will turn red, very bright, and the aroma of crab will hit you.

The three of them drank wine and ate the crab while it was hot. They opened the crab shell with the pointed belly button, and the white translucent crab roe was revealed.

If it is a round navel, the exposed crab roe is orange-red.

Eating crabs at home is the most economical and affordable, so most people in the old Beijing eat crabs at home.

The rich and powerful, and those with ample money, all go to famous restaurants to eat crabs.

Like "If you want to eat crabs, go to Zhengyanglou", this is the consensus of many rich people.

Every autumn, Zhengyanglou adds the famous dish "steamed giant crabs". They send people to Shengfang Town in Tianjin Port and Liujiazhuang in western Beijing to purchase them.

In recent years, the "Shengfang Crab" produced in Liujiazhuang in western Beijing has become increasingly famous. Its water quality and growth environment are not only comparable to those in Shengfang Town, but even better.

Thanks to the scientific breeding methods of Liujiazhuang over the years, the "Shengfang crabs" here are not only much larger and better than those produced in Shengfang Town, but also much more affordable. In addition, it is easy to purchase, and it has quickly won the favor of many merchants and ordinary people in Beijing.

August, September and October are the golden period when Liujiazhuang's "Shengfang Crabs" flood the market.

Today, Liujiazhuang not only cultivates the land carefully, but also expands the planting area of ​​"Western Beijing Rice" to the lower reaches of the Yongding River. The current rice fields have reached 50,000 acres.

These 20,000 mu of rippling paddy fields, together with the Yongding River and its surrounding winding rivers and lakes, have given birth to countless plump "Shengfang crabs".

This year, the crab production in Liujiazhuang area is remarkable, and it is expected to exceed 10 million kilograms, which can be called a bumper year.

Although compared with other booming industries in Liujiazhuang, the direct income brought by these tens of millions of kilograms of crabs may seem insignificant.

However, we cannot just look at the surface. The crab farming industry has not only demonstrated its strong and sustainable vitality, but also created a large number of local jobs. The economic effects and social value behind it cannot be ignored.

What is more worth mentioning is that the prosperity of this industry has also invisibly established a brand for Liujiazhuang, and its influence is far beyond the reach of some industries.

This year is a real bumper year. In addition to the increase in the production of Shengfang crabs, fish farming in rice fields and Jingxi rice will also have a bumper harvest.

By late September every year, the Jingxi rice in Liujiazhuang has full grains and golden rice, reaching maturity. The golden "rice waves" rise and fall with the wind, and the scene of a good harvest is everywhere.

This year, the 800 mu of paddy fields in Liujiazhuang are growing better than in previous years. The yield per mu is expected to reach more than kilograms, which is to kilograms higher than in previous years.

This year has been a bumper year with good weather and harvest. There is almost no lodging of the Jingxi rice in the fields, and it is expected that all the rice will be harvested by early October.

Fifty thousand mu of paddy fields are expected to produce 1.2 to million kilograms of rice. If the purchase price is yuan per kilogram this year, this will be a huge income of nearly million yuan.

In addition, the cultivation of freshwater fish in the paddy fields, reservoirs, lakes and winding rivers in the Liujiazhuang area brought in an astonishing profit of 20 to 30 million yuan.

This year, Liujiazhuang's rice field farming and aquatic products business are progressing in tandem, and the total revenue is expected to exceed 100 million yuan. This figure not only demonstrates the vigorous development of the local industry, but will also break the historical record, which is remarkable.

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After having eaten and drunk their fill, "Polan Hou" and Yan Jiecheng tacitly looked for suitable reasons and quietly left.

This empty warehouse was left to the contemplative Liu Zhiye. He immersed himself in the silence alone. The air around him seemed to have solidified, and he was the only one left with the night.

This time his harvest was huge. There were tens of thousands of antiques, cultural relics and artworks of all sizes in this warehouse. Each one was a fine product, a first-class cultural relic or even a national treasure.

Of course, the most numerous are cultural relics of Buddhism and Taoism. No matter from the perspective of craftsmanship, art, culture, religious beliefs, etc., it is undisputed that Buddhist artworks such as Buddha statues and thangkas occupy a very high position in the family of antique artworks in later generations.

If you look at them from an artistic perspective, each statue and each thangka is a perfect work of art. If you look at them from the perspective of a believer, they are so sacred.

Buddhism was introduced to the Xia Kingdom thousands of years ago and experienced several anti-Buddhist movements. The Buddhist artworks that have been passed down are pearls in the antique world.

Among these collections, in addition to art, the most valuable are the materials, especially those like Tianhuang, Chicken Blood Stone, Huanghuali, Agarwood, Red Sandalwood... The materials themselves are rare, and even fewer have been passed down.

After sending the master and disciple away, Liu Zhiye still walked around a few times out of concern. After making sure that there was nothing unusual, he put these things into the space one by one with confidence.

(End of this chapter)