A few days later, the date became March 16th, and Wang An and his companions' fur business officially launched.
After so many days of recovery, the swelling on Wang Li's body and face had gone down significantly. Although there was still some puffiness, at the very least, he could open his eyes.
Of course, this was thanks to the large amount of herbal medicine Wang An had obtained from Fang Xiu'e; a combination of internal medication and external poultices had made Wang Li look far less terrifying.
Over the course of the day, Wang An spent a full 100,000 yuan or so purchasing furs and bear gallbladders.
However, over 90,000 of that was spent on furs, while only a few thousand were spent on items like bear gallbladders, ginseng, and musk.
The reason he was able to spend over 100,000 yuan was that this was the first time Wang An and his group were buying furs, and people had a significant backlog of stock on hand.
By the next "Day of Six," which would be March 26th, Wang An felt that spending even 5,000 yuan would be a good result.
***
Two days later, two Jeep 212s and two Santana sedans—which were very rare for that era—drove together into Wang An's home in Kaoshan Village.
As soon as the cars entered the yard, a pack of dogs and wolves began barking and surrounding the four vehicles. Their posture suggested they were ready to tear the cars to shreds at any moment.
However, as soon as the people stepped out of the cars, the dogs and wolves immediately quieted down.
Clearly, Wang An's dogs and wolves recognized the visitors.
Hearing the barking, Wang An walked out of the house.
He saw He Liang, Ma Guoqiang, Wu Dong, and Wang Shuai, along with seven men wearing suits under cashmere overcoats, already standing in the yard.
Wang An was momentarily stunned, but he quickly realized that these seven people were likely the ones from Hong Kong that He Liang and Ma Guoqiang had mentioned a few days prior.
The last time He Liang and Ma Guoqiang had visited, Wang An had originally wanted them to take all the Xiaonanyao porcelain and handle it directly; after all, he trusted these "second-generation" heirs completely.
Unfortunately, the two had refused, taking only the moose head, the musk deer head, and the animal tusks they had personally selected.
They had said that once they contacted the people from Hong Kong and found out when they were coming, they would personally bring them over.
What surprised Wang An, however, was that for just some ordinary porcelain, did the Hong Kong side really need to send so many people? This seemed far too much of a commotion.
Could it be that while this batch of porcelain wasn't worth much in his hands, it was quite popular in Hong Kong?
Though he thought this, he certainly couldn't say it aloud.
As Wang An walked toward them with a smile, he heard He Liang say cheerfully
"Xiao An, we've found a buyer for those ceramics of yours. This is the big boss from Hong Kong, Mr. Zhang Zhenbang, hahahaha..."
As he spoke, He Liang pointed to a middle-aged man in his thirties.
Wang An was quite shocked upon seeing this man and hearing his name. In the peak of his previous life, Wang An had dabbled in antiques for a while to appear cultured, and he had seen this man back then.
The Zhang family of Hong Kong was considered an antique dynasty, and this man was the adopted son of the Zhang family. He had always helped the Zhangs manage the family business, but he didn't have much fame, remaining a low-profile existence.
Turning back, He Liang pointed to Wang An and said to Zhang Zhenbang
"Boss Zhang, this is the little brother I told you about, Wang An."
Wang An nodded and smiled in greeting. Just as he was about to speak, Zhang Zhenbang stepped forward enthusiastically to shake his hand, saying in somewhat non-standard Mandarin
"Hello, Mr. Wang. I've heard much about you. Young and promising, truly young and promising!"
Wang An was momentarily stunned, mainly because he wasn't quite used to Zhang Zhenbang's scholarly way of speaking, or rather, his "socialite" rhetoric.
Northeasterners were traditionally straightforward and weren't accustomed to speaking this way.
However, Wang An had been a wealthy man in his previous life before entering the "fence," so it wasn't that he didn't know how to use this kind of rhetoric. Thus, Wang An immediately beamed with a smile, waving his hands repeatedly and saying very humbly
"Boss Zhang flatters me; I don't deserve such praise, I really don't. Just call me Xiao An. I am but a commoner of the mountains; the words 'promising' truly do not apply to me. Boss Zhang, you are the one who is a titan of industry, a dragon among men."
Wang An's words weren't entirely flattery. Compared to the wealth of the Hong Kong Zhang family, Wang An's net worth was likely not even a drop in the bucket; they weren't even on the same level, and there was nothing to compare.
After speaking, Wang An shifted his gaze toward He Liang and Ma Guoqiang.
The phrase "young and promising" was actually quite fitting for him—setting aside his identity as a reincarnator, it was already impressive that a peasant from the deep mountains could build this estate in just over three years.
But for Zhang Zhenbang to say this, it was obvious that He Liang and Ma Guoqiang had been bragging about him.
Noticing Wang An's gaze, Ma Guoqiang immediately smiled
"We told Boss Zhang about your mountain hunting; he's actually quite interested in that."
Only then did Wang An understand why Zhang Zhenbang called him "promising." After all that, it was just because of hunting?
How boring!
After a few more pleasantries, Wang An beckoned everyone
"Come, come, everyone come inside. Why freeze out here? It's terribly cold."
At Wang An's invitation, the group walked together toward the house to the west.
After chatting for a short while inside, Zhang Zhenbang got straight to the point
"Mr. Xiao An, we have come for the batch of Xiaonanyao porcelain in your possession. Time is precious; why don't you let us appreciate them now? After seeing the items, we can discuss the price in detail, and then we can arrange the auction matters as quickly as possible."
Wang An looked at Wu Dong, He Liang, and the others. Seeing they had no reaction, he nodded without hesitation
"Sure. The things are all in the storehouse. Shall we go straight there, or should I move them into the house?"
Hearing this, Zhang Zhenbang suddenly said with great interest
"I heard from Mr. He and Mr. Ma that there are many other good things in your storehouse, Mr. Xiao An. I wonder if you would mind if we appreciated those as well?"
It was clear that Zhang Zhenbang had some knowledge of what Wang An kept in his storehouse.
Wang An was stunned and instinctively looked at He Liang and Ma Guoqiang. He felt that everything he had placed in the storehouse had been told to Zhang Zhenbang by the two of them.
And the reason Zhang Zhenbang had traveled thousands of miles to Kaoshan Village was partly for the porcelain, and partly, perhaps, for those animal bones and such.