Wanfu Pawnshop was located in the north of Pingkang Fang. Its location was neither too good nor too bad.
The facade of the pawnshop seemed a bit smaller than that of Changxing Inn. However, the thick, black-lacquered, camphor-wood carved gate still showed its former glory.
After all, those who ran pawnshops usually had some money.
Ordinary families couldn't afford to engage in such a business that involved handling valuable items.
It was a pity that once one accidentally got involved in official troubles, no matter how wealthy they were, they would end up with their family ruined and themselves dead.
Now, there were only two faded seals pasted on the black gate. They were like two cold chains, locking away all the former glory and leaving only endless desolation.
This shop had been seized by the government. There was no need to go through a real - estate broker for the transaction. As long as one got the permission from the Ministry of Revenue and paid a certain amount of deed tax, they could take it over.
Old Li knew they were coming to inspect it, so he had already taken care of all these matters.
He took out the key, tore off the seals on the gate, and opened the big door of the pawnshop.
"Back in the day, Wanfu Pawnshop was quite well - known in this area. When the wealthy people around needed some quick cash, they liked to bring their valuable items here to pawn."
"The chief appraiser here was amiable and had a sharp eye. The shop had been in business for over a year. People said that the feng shui of this place had changed... Alas, who would have thought that in the end, it still couldn't escape its fate."
The room wasn't lit. There was only a narrow, carved window lattice on the upper part of the tall door panel, making the hall even darker.
Even so, one could still tell that the inner pillars and door panels were made of good materials.
The counter was very high. A short person would almost have to stand on tiptoe to reach it. This was a common specification for pawnshops.
In one corner of the counter, there was a celadon jade - pot spring vase with elegant patterns, showing the former owner's taste.
It was a pity that the plum blossoms inserted in it had already withered, leaving only shriveled branches and yellow, shrunken petals.
Li Wanming didn't understand pawnshops. She walked around but didn't notice anything special, nor could she find the nine - headed gold - devouring beast.
This pawnshop, just like Changxing Inn, was ordinary and unremarkable.
Those scary legends were probably just rumors spread by the common people. Seeing that something bad had happened to the shop, they made up these stories to scare themselves.
The common people, after all, loved strange and curious things.
However, Li Wanming wasn't in a relaxed mood. Instead, she felt more heavy - hearted than when she was inspecting Changxing Inn.
Among these three shops, she was most afraid of the pawnshop.
Because the pawnshop business was extremely complicated.
Firstly, it required a large amount of capital in the early stage.
Without enough money as a foundation, it couldn't support the daily cash flow.
Secondly, it needed an experienced and sharp - eyed chief appraiser who could be responsible for appraising items, setting prices, and deciding whether to accept items for pawning in the shop.
With a reliable chief appraiser, the pawnshop's business was half - successful.
If the chief appraiser made a mistake, then like the previous Wanfu Pawnshop, the shop would collapse overnight, and the owner's family would be ruined.
Finally, one had to know how to sell unredeemed items.
The items that entered the pawnshop were often gold, stone, jade, antiques, and cultural relics. If they weren't redeemed on time, they became unredeemed items. One had to have a certain connection with various jewelry shops, antique dealers, and even real - estate brokers in the capital to be able to sell these unredeemed items smoothly.
Li Wanming knew fewer people in this regard than Old Li. She was almost completely inexperienced.
In addition, one also needed a certain amount of underworld influence.
Everyone knew that pawnshops had money, so it was inevitable that some thieves with bad intentions would come to extort money.
Li Wanming wasn't afraid of the obvious threats.
She had seen Lu Ping and Wu Yao's fighting abilities. They were more than capable of guarding the shop. If necessary, there was also Xiao Jingnan.
However, she had no way to deal with the hidden tricks.
If someone didn't use weapons but just splashed a bucket of feces on the door every now and then, it would be unbearable.
Therefore, the owners of pawnshops had always been tough characters who could move freely in both the white and black worlds and were well - connected with all kinds of people.
Li Wanming was such a "tough character" in Fujian.
However, now the identity of a refined young lady restricted her.
As a result, when she needed to be "tough", she didn't know how...
So, she didn't meet any of the four necessary conditions for running a successful pawnshop.
Li Wanming got back into the carriage, looking a bit dejected. She told Xiao Jingnan about her concerns.
Old Li, who was sitting beside them, was startled and frowned, saying, "Why does it seem to Miss Cheng that opening a pawnshop is more difficult than opening a haunted inn?"
Li Wanming said weakly, "Because when opening an inn, you deal with ghosts. When opening a pawnshop, you deal with people."
People were much more difficult to deal with than ghosts.
Xiao Jingnan comforted her, "It's okay. We still have the next shop. Maybe the next one will be more normal."
The paper - making shop in the south of the city wasn't far from Wanfu Pawnshop. They just needed to cross a street and turn two alleys to get there.
This shop wasn't located on the main street but at the end of a small alley. It looked very unremarkable.
If it weren't for the white lantern hanging above, Li Wanming might not have found it.
Different from the previous two shops that had been vacant for a long time, this paper - making shop was still in business.
Xiao Jingnan was right. It was very normal - its business was very poor.
Old Li led them into the alley. "Miss Cheng, I've also inquired about this paper - making shop. There's nothing strange about it. It's just that the business is bad. Sometimes, they can't even make a single deal in one or two months. Fortunately, the shop belongs to the owner himself, so the expenses aren't high. That's why they've been operating like this half - dead."
He walked into the shop and shouted inside, "Boss, the noble guests who want to take over the shop that I told you about this morning are here!"
There was no response from inside.
Old Li scratched his head. "Hey, I'm sure I just told him this morning..."
He asked Li Wanming and Xiao Jingnan to wait a moment and went inside to call the owner.
Li Wanming stood at the door and already knew why the business of this shop was so bad.
Because the paper - made items here were too ugly!
A mess of white, gray, and shapeless ugly things. At first glance, one couldn't even tell what they were!
Other paper - making shops would make things like paper money, gold and silver paper ingots, paper people, paper horses, paper boys and girls, and paper livestock and poultry. Although they might not be lifelike, they at least looked like something. At least people could tell what they were at a glance.
Some more skilled ones could even use white paper and bamboo to make pavilions, palaces, and buildings. They were extremely delicate and luxurious, just like the real ones.
But this paper - making shop...
Li Wanming picked up a "gold ingot" on the table. It was just roughly covered with a layer of yellow paper, and the covering was very uneven. The "gold ingot" looked like a moldy steamed bun, cheap and ugly.
As for the paper people beside it, Li Wanming didn't even want to call them paper people.
It was just a paper tube with the same thickness from top to bottom. There were only three circles drawn on the top to represent the eyes and mouth...
With such poor craftsmanship, it was no wonder the business was bad!
After a while, Old Li came out from inside. "Miss Cheng, the shop owner is drunk inside. I can't wake him up no matter what."
He wiped the sweat from his head, looking very embarrassed.
"It's okay. If you've really decided to take over this shop, just let me know. I'll come back and talk to him. Anyway, this is his own shop. Whether to rent it out or not is up to him alone."
Drunk?
For such a poor - quality shop, an ordinary person would be grateful and eager to sell it as soon as they heard someone wanted to take it over.
But he was drunk...
Li Wanming walked further inside. She smelled a strong smell of alcohol and heard deafening snores.
Well, not only was his craftsmanship poor, but he was also lazy.
No wonder the business was bad.