The hour was late! Chen Lan no longer took out items one by one to examine them carefully. Since the system had already scanned everything, and it was all displayed on the system's screen, confirming these items were genuine antiques, Chen Lan figured as long as they were real, it was fine!
With that thought, Chen Lan nodded to Jia Yao. Jia Yao immediately understood that these items were real and could be accepted. He then lowered his voice and asked, "Brother Hu, what price are you asking for these twenty boxes of antiques?"
Seeing that Jia Yao had finally inquired about the price, Brother Hu felt that his decision to use antiques to settle the debt was indeed the right one. He steadied his nerves and decided to double the price he had paid for these items to quote the total price for the batch to Chen Lan and the others.
Brother Hu stared intently at Jia Yao's expressionless face and cautiously stated the price: "These twenty boxes of antiques will be worth a total of twenty thousand yuan towards the debt!"
Hearing Brother Hu's quoted price, Jia Yao remained silent for a long time, unsure whether he agreed or disagreed. Brother Hu began to regret his price, feeling it might have been too high. He clenched his hands and nervously watched Jia Yao's impassive face.
After a while, Jia Yao cleared his throat softly, glanced unobtrusively at Chen Lan, and then slowly said, "Alright! It's a deal! Although the price is a bit high, since we previously agreed to accept your twenty boxes of goods at double the price, we will absolutely keep our word."
After saying this, he looked at Chen Lan, who then spoke, "Brother Hu, that's settled then! These twenty boxes of antiques will cover forty thousand yuan of the debt. How will you handle the remaining fifteen thousand yuan?"
Brother Hu thought for a moment and then asked, "I still have some gold jewelry and two properties that I've acquired. Do you want to see them?"
After saying this, Brother Hu looked up at Jia Yao. Seeing that Jia Yao didn't object, he immediately said to Chen Lan, "Rest assured, these are all good things. If I couldn't gather the fifteen thousand yuan debt right now, I'd really be reluctant to use them to settle the remaining debt."
Chen Lan smiled and waved her hand, saying, "Brother Hu, no need! As the saying goes, a true gentleman does not covet what others cherish! Let's use the two properties to settle the remaining debt. Where are these two properties located?"
Hearing Chen Lan agree to use the properties to settle the remaining debt, Brother Hu, fearing she might change her mind, immediately stood up from his seat and said, "Young lady, please wait a moment. I'll go get the property deeds for you right away."
Without waiting for Chen Lan to respond, he scurried off into the room behind him. In a short while, he reappeared with a dark purple wooden box in his hand and offered it to Chen Lan.
Chen Lan took the small box and found it to be quite heavy. The surface of the box was deep and elegant, with beautiful wave patterns and stripes. Chen Lan lightly touched it, feeling its smooth texture, and vaguely detected a faint, pleasant fragrance.
Curiously, Chen Lan activated the system's scan function with her mind. The system screen displayed: "Small Leaf Sandalwood."
Chen Lan thought to herself, it seemed this Brother Hu really had acquired quite a few good things, as even the wooden box holding the property deeds was extraordinary.
After all, "Sandalwood" is also known as "Divine Wood" and is hailed as the "King of Woods." It is said that small leaf sandalwood is a divine wood that embodies the essence of heaven and earth, symbolizing good fortune, peace, and prosperity.
The Compendium of Materia Medica records that small leaf sandalwood can stop pain and bleeding, regulate qi and blood, and its emitted fragrance is also beneficial for the heart, liver, and kidneys.
Furthermore, small leaf sandalwood possesses the effects of calming the spirit, promoting circulation, and improving sleep quality.
If this small leaf sandalwood could be made into bracelets for her mother-in-law, her own mother, and Mrs. Liu to wear, it would be wonderful. The faint fragrance it emitted could help alleviate and improve their sleep quality.
With this thought, Chen Lan directly asked, "Brother Hu, have you received any bracelets made of this material?"
Brother Hu thought for a moment, recalling seeing such items before but not remembering where they were put. He shook his head and said, "I've seen them a few times, but I can't recall where I put them. I really have no memory of it now."
He then turned to Monkey and asked, "Monkey, do you remember if we've received any bracelets made of this wood?"
Monkey, seeing that Brother Hu had finally asked him, immediately replied, "Yes! We received quite a few! They were all given as extras, Brother Hu, you've forgotten!"
Hearing that there were indeed some, Brother Hu asked, "Where are they? Why haven't I seen them? Hurry and get the key, go to the storeroom, and bring them all over for this young lady. Women like these things."
Monkey took the key and left. Before long, he happily returned, carrying a dusty wooden chest as large as a sleeping pillow.
Upon seeing the dusty chest, Brother Hu quickly reached out and took it, placing it on the table. He began to wipe the dusty wooden chest with his sleeve, scolding, "Monkey, can't you wipe the box clean before bringing it in? Look at what you've done!"
Chen Lan smiled and said, "It's alright, it's alright, it doesn't matter. It's just a bit of dust. I imagine he was afraid we were waiting impatiently!"
Monkey replied with an embarrassed smile, "Yes! I was afraid our esteemed guests would be kept waiting, so I forgot to wipe the chest! Esteemed guest, I apologize! I really didn't mean to do it! Please don't mind!"
Chen Lan smiled and waved her hand, then opened the chest Brother Hu had pushed over. A wave of sandalwood fragrance assailed her nostrils. Inside, she saw a box filled with bracelets of various sizes, lengths, and materials.
Chen Lan opened the system scan function with her mind. The system indicated that most of these bracelets were made of sandalwood and small leaf sandalwood. Chen Lan glanced at the system time and realized it was getting late. She couldn't afford to delay any further. Without picking up each bracelet to examine it, she said, "Brother Hu, I won't look further. Let's use this entire box of bracelets to settle the remaining fifteen thousand yuan of the debt!"
Brother Hu quickly waved his hand and replied, "That won't do! You'd be losing too much. To be honest, these bracelets were all given as extras, and I didn't spend a single cent on them. So, I can't be greedy. Let's stick to the original agreement. Let's have you take the two properties to cover the debt."
With that, he pushed the small leaf sandalwood box containing the property deeds towards Chen Lan.