Hero

When Li Mo rushed to the east gate, Liu Chuanqing was drinking a cup of milk tea. The wrinkles on his face relaxed.

"I don't have a share of the milk tea?"

"It doesn't taste good at all. Just drink some mineral water. It's healthy."

Master, is there anyone as stingy as you? Li Mo nodded, which was rare. Although there were some accidents during today's interview, the final result was good. It meant that he had received the recognition of the professors.

"Master, since I don't need to participate in the upcoming assessment, I'm prepared to go to the Panjiayuan Antique Market to take a look. Do you want to go with me?"

"I don't have as much energy as you. I don't want to run around. Besides, I have to meet an old friend tonight. Go back to the hotel and rest early. Don't play around."

"Got it."

"Little Mo, my girl called to ask about your situation previously. Don't forget to reply to her when you're free."

Liu Chuanqing was naturally talking about Yingying.

"Alright, I'm leaving."

Old Liu took a sip of milk tea as he watched Li Mo leave.

"The taste is really good, but it's a little expensive."

Li Mo checked the map on his cell phone. It was quite a distance from Panjiayuan Antique Market. Fortunately, there was a subway that went straight there.

"Hero!"

Li Mo had just walked into the subway when someone patted his shoulder from behind. Her voice was filled with surprise.

"It's a small world. We meet again."

Li Mo turned around. It was the girl he had fought with last night. She was wearing a light-colored windbreaker, white sneakers, and a fashionable small bag. She looked youthful and energetic.

"What a coincidence. Where are you going?"

Li Mo smiled. He was in a very good mood at this moment. She could be considered half an acquaintance in the capital.

"It's my best friend's birthday tomorrow. She likes to collect stamps and is going to the stamp market to find a few different gifts."

"Where's the stamp market?"

"The area around the Panjiayuan Antique Market sells antiques. Although there's a high chance that the things are fake, it's very lively every day. If you want to play, you can consider it. Just remember not to ask for a price casually."

"I'm just strolling around. Anyway, I'm not familiar with this place. Why don't I follow you?"

"Alright, I'll be the tour guide, and you'll be my escort. You can call me Caicai. How should I address you, Hero? Forget it, Hero is still the best."

This young lady called Caicai had a personality.

"Wait here. I'll go buy the tickets."

Caicai quickly brought over two subway tickets and stuffed one to Li Mo. When she smiled, two cute dimples appeared on her face. She whispered, "Hero, you're popular online."

"What became popular?" Li Mo held his ticket and followed behind her.

"Don't you know? The Internet is filled with videos of you fighting with the local hooligans last night. Fortunately, it's dark at night. You dealt with them quickly and couldn't see your true appearance. Otherwise, you would be in trouble."

"Those hooligans still dare to take revenge on me?"

"They're already scared out of their wits. After someone exposed on the Internet that we left, those injured people didn't dare to call the police and called their friends to send them to the hospital. What I mean is that if you reveal your true appearance, no matter where you go, people will recognize you. It'll be so troublesome to be surrounded like our national treasure, the panda."

"The subway in the Capital doesn't have any other advantages other than having more people. Follow me closely and don't get separated."

When the two of them walked out of the subway entrance near the Panjiayuan Antique Market, Caicai took a deep breath of the air outside. "I shouldn't have come out to wander around during the weekend. If you hadn't protected me today, I would have fainted from suffocation. Hero, I think you're at most four to five years older than me. Why don't you wait for me for six to seven years? I'll be your girlfriend then. How about that?"

Li Mo smiled without saying anything. Are children nowadays so mature?

"If you don't answer, it means that you've tacitly agreed. It's a deal."

They were just strangers who met by chance. How could they meet again?

"Hero, I'll treat you to a cup of Matcha."

The milk tea was a treat from Caicai. It was paid for by Li Mo.

The matcha's taste was a little strange and he was not used to it. However, with the talkative Caicai chattering beside him, he was too embarrassed to throw it away.

"Hero, after the traffic light, turn left to go to the stamp market, and turn right to go to the Panjiayuan Antique Market. I'll show you the horizons today. If you're lucky, you might be able to see antiques worth millions."

The stamp market was set up in an old Chinese building. Most of the people who entered and left this place were old. Occasionally, a few young people could be seen bargaining.

"Caicai, there are too many types of stamps here. Aren't you afraid of buying the same ones?" There were especially many merchants in the stamp market. Every one of them has many stamps on display. There were new editions, old editions, and all kinds of used old stamps. They were sorted into stamp books and sold in different categories.

Stamp collecting was unpopular, but it was undeniable that when it came to real rare stamps, the price was extraordinarily expensive.

"Stamp collecting is just a hobby. It's not for the appreciation of collections. I've seen her stamp collection book. There are still three zodiacs missing. I'll just buy three today. I don't ask for the best, but the cheapest."

Alright, giving gifts was a token of appreciation. As long as the token was present, it was fine.

"Boss, I haven't seen you gain weight in a year." Caicai walked to a shop and greeted the boss as if they were close. "Boss must have made a fortune. Look at your face. Your face is flushed and your complexion is rosy."

"Heh, the young lady knows me." The boss was slightly chubby and was eating instant noodles with a ham sausage in his mouth.

"You're really forgetful. Last year, I bought five zodiac stamps here. Now, I'm looking for you again this year to make up for the three missing zodiac stamps."

"Alright, which three do you want? I'll bring them to you." The boss immediately put down the instant noodles happily and took out a mail book with a worn-out cover from the pile of stamps.

"The ox, dog and pig."

"Young lady, we're fated. I only have these three left at the moment. They're a little older and their quality is not bad, so they're more expensive."

"I'm your old customer. Just give me your best price," Caicai said with a mature expression, as if she was a veteran.

"1,000 yuan for each card. There's a 10% discount on all three cards. Little girl, this is for you at a loss."

Caicai's expression did not change. She raised a finger and said, "The price is 300 yuan. Boss, the nominal price of this stamp ticket is only 80 cents. It's already very scary to increase it by 100 times."

The boss's expression immediately changed. "Young lady, there's no one who bargains like you. All these years, I've spent more than this amount on preservation fees and maintenance fees. If you really want to buy them from me, I'll lower the price by another 200 yuan. Consider it my loss, alright?"

"I'll add another 200 yuan to you. Boss, don't treat me like a child. I came to look for you today because I bought them here before. I'll take them away if you will sell them. If you really feel that you're at a disadvantage, I'll turn around and leave."

"Alright, I've met an expert today. Remember to look for me next time."

After leaving, Li Mo smiled and said, "It's the old fox's bad luck to meet a little fox like you. Don't you know him? You're bargaining too hard."

Caicai put away the three old stamps and patted her small satchel. "Who knows that fat middle-aged uncle who's about to go bald? If he dares to ask for an exorbitant price, I'll dare to cut him down to the end. If he's unwilling to sell, I'll find another boss to continue bargaining."

Imp was probably referring to such a child.

"Hero, I've achieved my goal. I'll take you around next. By the way, there's an old roast duck restaurant nearby. I've eaten it a few times. It tastes authentic. Shall I take you to try it?"

Li Mo happened to be a little hungry. He nodded and gestured for her to lead the way. The two of them circled around and prepared to leave through another door.

"Ancient books from the Qing Dynasty. They're very rare old books. There aren't many of them. First come, first served." A man in his thirties was shouting at the exit. There were already more than 10 yellowed books on the ground. They were thread-bound books. The words in them were written in regular script. At a glance, they looked like old books.

The boss shouted as he moved two boxes of books from an old tricycle. Those books were packaged. From the looks of it, they should be hardcover editions used by someone for collection.

With [History of the Tang Dynasty], [History of the Song Dynasty], [History of the Yuan Dynasty], [History of the Ming Dynasty], and [History of the Qing Dynasty], ordinary people would not buy such hardcover versions.

Li Mo squatted down and picked up an old book. When he flipped it open, he realized that the paper inside was stuck together. It was even moth-eaten. If he looked carefully, he could tell that the words were handwritten and not printed. The moldy smell was very strong. He did not know where it was found.

Through his alternate pupils, the old book emitted a faint gray halo. It was indeed an old item from the late Qing Dynasty, but it had become useless after so many years of mismanagement.

If there were no problems with the hardcover versions of the history books of the Five Dynasties, he could buy them back as his collection. He could take them out and read them in depth when he had time. The history books in his bedroom were more varied. There were official and unofficial histories, as well as miscellaneous folk records that had been passed down at some point.