“Dead pawn? Live pawn? What do you mean?”
Meng Xiaoyu asked in confusion after hearing the shopkeeper’s words.
“Oh, you might not know, but our pawnshop has two types of pawning. The first type is a live pawn, where we estimate the value of your item. Once both parties are satisfied, we give you the money along with a pawn ticket. The pawn period is one year, and within this year, you can redeem your item at any time with the ticket. Of course, we will charge interest based on the duration of the pawn. If you don’t redeem it within a year, the ticket becomes void, and the item becomes a dead pawn, meaning it belongs to our shop. The second type is a dead pawn, where we also pay you the estimated value of the item. Unlike the first type, we give you a receipt stating that the item is sold to our shop and cannot be redeemed.”
The shopkeeper explained the difference between a “dead pawn” and a “live pawn” in detail to Meng Xiaoyu, then asked again, “Have you decided? Dead pawn or live pawn?”
After thinking for a moment, Meng Xiaoyu said, “I’ve decided on a dead pawn. After all, who knows if I’ll ever come back here after today?”
“Alright, since you’ve decided, please take out the item so I can appraise it and give you a price.”
“Okay, I’ll take it out now.”
Meng Xiaoyu said as she pulled out a folded poster from her small backpack and spread it open.
“I want to pawn this painting. How much is it worth?”
“This is… this…”
The shopkeeper was stunned and speechless upon seeing the poster.
Seeing the shopkeeper’s reaction, Meng Xiaoyu asked, “Is there something wrong with this painting? Or do you not accept paintings?”
“We do, we do. Not only is there nothing wrong with this painting, but it’s also an absolute masterpiece. May I ask where you got this painting? Do you know who painted it? I’ve never seen such a lifelike painting; the figures look as if they could come to life. It’s truly a work of art!”
The shopkeeper praised the painting while examining it.
Hearing the shopkeeper’s praise, Meng Xiaoyu’s mouth twitched slightly.
She thought to herself, “Should I tell him that this so-called masterpiece is actually a freebie I got from a Taobao shop before I traveled here? Should I tell him that this work of art, which he calls a masterpiece, was something I was planning to throw away as trash but forgot to because of my unexpected time travel? Of course not. If I did, they’d think I’m crazy.”
After this internal monologue, Meng Xiaoyu began to fabricate a story.
“I don’t know who painted this. All I know is that it was passed down from my ancestors. My grandfather told me that a Taoist priest gave this painting to our ancestor. The priest said that the seven beautiful women in colorful armor holding swords are the daughters of the Jade Emperor, known as the Seven Fairies. The ugly monster opposite them is the Great Demon King Piccolo, who once caused chaos in the heavens.”
Meng Xiaoyu couldn’t remember the name of the villain from the TV series “The Seven Fairies,” so she randomly used the name of the villain from “Dragon Ball,” thinking, “They don’t know who Piccolo is anyway, so it doesn’t matter.”
She then looked at the shopkeeper and said, “That’s all I know. How much is this painting worth?”
“Given what you’ve said, this painting is even more valuable. Are you sure you want to sell it to our pawnshop?”
The shopkeeper asked, somewhat incredulously.
“Sigh…”
Meng Xiaoyu sighed and continued her story, “I don’t want to sell it, but my family is no longer in this world. I’m just a helpless girl with no other options, so I have to sell this family heirloom.”
She put on a sad expression while thinking, “I’m not entirely lying. My family really isn’t in this world, so God, please forgive me.”
“Oh, I see.”
The shopkeeper nodded understandingly.
“In that case, how much do you want for this painting?”
“I want…”
Meng Xiaoyu made an eight with her fingers.
“Eighty thousand taels?”
The shopkeeper asked, seeing her gesture.
“Eighty… eighty… eighty thousand taels?”
Meng Xiaoyu stammered.
“Eighty hundred thousand taels?”
The shopkeeper thought she was dissatisfied with the price and raised it.
“Eighty… eighty… eighty… hundred… thousand taels?”
Meng Xiaoyu stammered even more.
Seeing her reaction, the shopkeeper thought she was still dissatisfied and said, “Although this painting is indeed a rare treasure, eighty hundred thousand taels is already very high. If we go any higher, our pawnshop won’t have enough cash. How about I add a bit more and make it eighty-eight hundred thousand taels? If you agree, we can make the deal.”
“Eighty-eight hundred thousand taels?”
Meng Xiaoyu was no longer stammering.
“Yes,” the shopkeeper quickly said, fearing she might change her mind.
“Deal, the painting is yours,” Meng Xiaoyu said quickly.
She couldn’t believe that a small town pawnshop had so much money and that a poster she was going to throw away was worth so much.
She was overjoyed.
Seeing her agree, the shopkeeper breathed a sigh of relief.
He quickly instructed his assistant to get the money while he continued to admire the painting.
Soon, the assistant returned with a box.
The shopkeeper opened it and handed it to Meng Xiaoyu, saying, “Here are eighty-eight hundred thousand taels in banknotes. Eight notes of ten thousand taels, seven notes of one thousand taels, one note of five hundred taels, four notes of one hundred taels, and ten notes of ten taels. Please count them and sign the receipt if everything is correct.”
Meng Xiaoyu counted the money, signed the receipt, and put all the banknotes except one hundred-tael note into her small backpack.
She nodded to the shopkeeper, thanked him, and left the pawnshop.
Meng Xiaoyu walked to her next destination, a clothing shop.
She needed new clothes because the ones she wore when she traveled here were unsuitable for this ancient society.
The clothes she was wearing now belonged to Han Rubing and her sister, but they didn’t fit well, and she didn’t like wearing white.
So, buying clothes was her first priority after getting the money.
After picking out a few outfits for herself and two for each of the Han sisters, Meng Xiaoyu paid and left the shop.
She changed into a pink-purple outfit she had just bought and decided it was time to head back.
She didn’t want the sisters to get impatient and leave without her.
On her way back, she also bought a light pink oil-paper umbrella, thinking it could be used for both rain and sun protection and that it was beautiful.
