Although Xiaonanyao was a folk kiln and the porcelain it produced was quite crude and intended for commoners, regardless, these pieces were genuine Ming Dynasty antiques.
They might not be worth a fortune, but who would dare say they lacked historical value? Cultural value? Research value?
Therefore, it was understandable that He Liang and Ma Guoqiang liked to pick through these items; after all, they were selecting the finest pieces from a massive pile of antiques.
Once Ma Guoqiang finished speaking, Wang An saw that the two men were ignoring him, so he turned and left the lower room.
When Wang An entered the house, he saw Mu Xueqing's worried face. In Mu Xueqing's mind, if something could make both He Liang and Ma Guoqiang fret, it had to be an exceptionally difficult matter.
And since such a difficult matter had fallen upon her husband, Mu Xueqing couldn't help but overthink.
Noticing her worried gaze, before she could speak, Wang An told her directly and without concealment
"I've partnered with Brother Wu and Big Sister again to start a motorcycle factory. The factory is short on foreign exchange, so I figured I'd sell those plates and bowls we dug up from the graveyard over in Hong Kong to get some."
Mu Xueqing was stunned for a moment, then asked in astonishment
"A motorcycle factory? Our family is going to manufacture motorcycles to sell?"
Wang An nodded, then shook his head.
"It's like the pharmaceutical factory. Our family are just shareholders; we only take dividends and don't participate in the daily operations and management."
As for Mu Xueqing, aside from being somewhat excited when she saw Wang An bring home money, she had always remained indifferent to how he earned it. It wasn't that she was completely oblivious, but normally she would only ask a simple question or two.
So, after Wang An finished, Mu Xueqing changed the subject, asking with apparent surprise
"Those broken plates and rotten bowls you brought back are actually worth money? And you can even earn foreign currency from them?"
Wang An's expression stiffened, and he gave her a sidelong glance.
"What kind of talk is that? What do you mean 'broken plates and rotten bowls'? Those are antiques! Do you know what antiques are? They are things with historical value, cultural value, and research value."
Mu Xueqing replied nonchalantly
"If they can be sold for money, sell them quickly. Not only are those things useless just sitting there, they're taking up too much space."
Hearing this, Wang An suddenly found himself at a loss for words with his wife.
The main issue was that this woman, like the vast majority of people in this era, had no idea that antiques had started becoming valuable. She didn't know that objects that looked old and useless could potentially change a family's entire life.
Pursing his lips, Wang An suddenly asked
"By the way, wife, your father didn't sell those old books of yours, did he?"
Wang An clearly remembered seeing a fair number of genuine ancient books and records when he first visited his father-in-law's house; he recalled even reminding the old man about them.
Mu Xueqing paused, then said
"He probably didn't sell them. When we went there before the first lunar month, I heard Mother say that one day someone from the village brought some outsiders to my house, but Father didn't even engage with them."
Wang An nodded.
"Mhm, as long as they weren't sold. A single one of those old books is worth at least thirty or forty yuan now, and the price will only go up. Selling them now would be a huge loss."
Mu Xueqing's hand froze, and she asked in disbelief
"Just one book? It's just paper, or maybe wooden slips, and it's worth thirty or forty yuan? I don't believe it."
Wang An was stunned by this and asked with equal disbelief
"Wooden slips? Your family has wooden slips too?"
At this moment, Wang An was extremely surprised!
People knew about bamboo slips, but in reality, wooden slips existed as well; they were just more common in the North, especially in places where bamboo didn't grow.
However, ever since paper was invented, the use of both bamboo and wooden slips declined, and the number of surviving pieces became even smaller.
Mu Xueqing nodded, speaking as if it were the most natural thing in the world
"Mhm, we do. There's probably half a gunny sack left. I remember there were a lot when I was little, but one year, I don't know what was happening, Father hid those wooden slip books everywhere. The ones hidden in the kang holes were all burned, and later only half a sack remained."
Wang An immediately understood what had happened; it was nothing more than people hiding things during the period of eliminating the "Four Olds."
Back then, many books and paintings were forbidden to be read or possessed, and many were destroyed during that time.
After Mu Xueqing finished, Wang An said with a grin
"Looking at this, the ancestors of your branch of the Mu family were no ordinary people. They were likely either high-ranking officials or nobility."
Mu Xueqing said indifferently
"Who knows. Anyway, before I married you, our family's life was miserable."
Wang An didn't bite, but instead laughed.
"Your maiden home has a deep foundation, even having things like wooden slips. I'm telling you, if those things are intact, they can sell for a good amount of money."
Hearing this, Mu Xueqing's beautiful large eyes instantly lit up, and she asked with great interest
"Really? Those things are in rolls. How much could one roll be worth?"
Wang An thought for a moment and said
"At least 200 and up. It mainly depends on the condition and the content. If it's just useless chatter, it might be worth two or three hundred. If it records useful information, it could possibly be worth over a thousand."
Whether bamboo or wooden, besides being cultural relics themselves, the most valuable part was actually the text, as ancient studies researchers could use the writing to infer and study events of that time.
Mu Xueqing stammered, utterly shocked
"Then... then... those wooden slips at my house... wouldn't they... wouldn't they be worth ten thousand or so?"
Wang An said solemnly
"What do you think? If you add in those ancient books and records, your family would have been a 'ten-thousand-yuan household' two or three times over long ago."
Mu Xueqing immediately fell into deep thought. After a long while, she said with a determined look
"Next time I go back to my maiden home, I have to bring some of those wooden slips back. Leaving them to Xueli would be a waste."
After Mu Xueqing spoke, Wang An was momentarily stunned.
He had to admit, his wife was something else. This way of thinking, this perspective, this mindset—it was just too powerful, absolutely powerful!
Regardless of whether Mu Xueqing would actually do it, at the very least, her words made him feel a warm glow in his heart.
Wang An laughed, pulled Mu Xueqing into his arms, gave her several kisses, and then said
"Right, Brother He and Brother Ma are eating at our place for lunch. I'll go prepare some dishes."
Mu Xueqing casually wiped the saliva from her face and lips and said
"How about I go instead? Since when is the man always the one in the kitchen? People who don't know might think I don't cook for you."
Wang An rubbed Mu Xueqing's head and laughed.
"Where did all this talk come from? The chefs at state-run restaurants are all men; by that logic, should they all be laid off? Besides, what's wrong with cooking? I'm not afraid, so what are you afraid of?"
As he spoke, Wang An turned and left the room, heading toward the greenhouse.
In a Northeast winter, serving meat to guests only showed hospitality, but serving fresh green vegetables absolutely proved that your relationship was invincible.
Mainly because in the winter of Heilongjiang Province, fresh vegetables were always more expensive than meat. (End of Chapter)