Reborn Rich: Prices Dropped, My Savings Didn't

It was another overcast, rainy day.

Cecilia Sterling accompanied Saul Thorne to an antique shop called "Hidden in the City."

"Well, look who it is!"

The moment they entered, the shop owner, who was sitting in a mahogany chair, saw Saul and stood up to greet him warmly.

Saul held Cecilia’s hand, casually placing his folded umbrella in the bamboo basket by the door before speaking. "It’s rainy and foggy. The drive was a little slow."

The shop owner said, "No problem," while his gaze fell on Saul and Cecilia’s joined hands. Then, he discreetly raised an eyebrow.

’He has a girlfriend?’

"Let me see the item," Saul said.

The shop owner nodded and turned to go into the back room.

Meanwhile, Cecilia began to wander around the small shop, her curiosity piqued.

She had never been in an antique shop before. This one didn’t seem particularly special; tables were piled high with a chaotic assortment of objects. Strings of beads were tangled around a teapot, and scrolls of calligraphy were stuck in a bronze tripod. You couldn’t tell which items were valuable.

In fact, they all looked rather worthless.

There were also some items arranged neatly, but Cecilia didn’t know anything about them and couldn’t make heads or tails of it.

Saul followed beside her. Seeing her serious expression, he couldn’t help but remind her softly, a hint of a smile in his voice, "Don’t bother looking. Nothing you see out here is any good. You’ll see the real treasure in a moment."

Cecilia nodded and followed Saul to sit on the mahogany sofa.

A short while later, the shop owner came out, carefully cradling an exquisite box. "Take a look. Please handle with care."

Saul opened the box. Inside was a remarkably elegant tea set: one teapot, four teacups, and some strange-looking tools Cecilia didn’t recognize.

The shop owner began to explain, "This is the ’Green Red Sand.’ The pieces are from the Khaganate Dynasty. The teapot looks green now, but it turns red when heated. It’s because it was fired from a special type of sand. This technique was one of the Khaganate Dynasty’s legendary skills, a craft that made them famous for centuries. Modern technology can replicate it, but an expert can spot the difference between a fake and the real thing at a glance. You’re a connoisseur, so I won’t bore you with the details."

Saul picked it up and examined it for a moment before nodding lightly.

The set was old, so it certainly wasn’t flawless. But that was part of an antique’s charm. ’Weren’t its imperfections a kind of beauty in their own right?’

’Most importantly, Mr. Thorne is sure to love it.’

"200," Saul said slowly, starting the haggling process.

The shop owner gave him an ’are you serious’ look and shook his head. "Didn’t we agree on 220? You have to let me make a little profit!"

"You’ll still make plenty at 200. I’m not in a hurry. Think it over."

The owner pouted helplessly. ’Could he really say no?’

But Saul was right. He could still make a profit at 200. He had intentionally inflated the initial price because he knew Saul would bargain.

"Fine. Since it’s the first time you’ve brought your girlfriend here, I’ll consider it my congratulations to you," the owner said, showing his smooth-talking skills.

Cecilia smiled when she heard this and thanked him on Saul’s behalf. "Well, thank you very much, sir."

Back in the car, Saul carefully stowed the box away before turning to Cecilia and asking again, "Baby, are you sure you won’t come with me?"

Cecilia looked at his handsome face, reached out to touch his chin, and nodded. "This is a big event for your family. Your grandpa’s birthday celebration is sure to be grand, and it wouldn’t be appropriate for me to go. I don’t want our relationship to be saddled with a bunch of complicated social obligations out of nowhere. I just want to be your girlfriend. That’s enough for me."

Saul looked at her, his eyes filled with tenderness and love.

"The way your little brain works is really different from everyone else’s." With that, he leaned in and impatiently kissed her.

It was another long, lingering, wet kiss.

Afterward, Saul held Cecilia’s face in his hands and said earnestly, "I respect your decision. Should I take you back to school first, then?"

Cecilia nodded.

On the way back to school, Cecilia casually asked, "You really know your way around antiques, huh? The owner just now called you a connoisseur."

Saul glanced at Cecilia with a smile in his eyes before explaining, "My grandpa is the real expert. I just grew up around him and saw a lot of fine things, so I’ve picked up an eye for it. I can generally tell if something is genuine."

Cecilia understood. "In that case, your grandpa will definitely like this tea set."

"I hope so. This tea set is quite rare. I’m just hoping it’ll make him happy enough to pull some strings and get me back into the Detective Unit."

That was what Saul really cared about.

"But if I really do go back to the Detective Unit one day, I’ll definitely be even busier than I am now. It’ll be harder for us to see each other often," Saul said, glancing at Cecilia cautiously to gauge her reaction.

"Just do what you want to do. Never compromise your own happiness by putting me first. I can’t bear that kind of responsibility." Cecilia turned her head to look back at him and said bluntly, "Because I’m the same way. In my heart, I will always be the most important person to myself."

Saul looked like he wanted to say something but held back, yet his eyes shone with irrepressible admiration and delight.

’His baby, how could she be so transparent and open, and so completely unreserved in expressing herself?’

’Whatever she thought, she said it without hesitation. What you saw was what you got. It made their relationship easy and pleasant, free from any second-guessing.’

In that moment, his mood lifted. He had been genuinely worried about Cecilia’s reaction, afraid she would overthink his words and become unhappy, but she hadn’t.

’It was he who had been overthinking things.’

At the main gate of the school, the car slowly pulled over to the side of the road. The rain outside had just stopped.

"Wish your grandpa a long and happy life."

Before getting out of the car, Cecilia said playfully, then took the initiative to pull Saul’s head toward her and give him a kiss.

Saul’s hands, full of excitement, began to wander, but Cecilia pushed him away at just the right moment. "I’m going now!"

Before Saul could say anything, she pushed open the door, hopped out of the car, and ran through the main gate without a backward glance. Saul watched her until her figure disappeared from view before finally looking away.

He took a moment to compose himself before starting the car again.

A garden villa, hidden halfway up a mountain in the northern suburbs of Lorcain, was filled with many of Lorcain’s most prominent figures today.

It was the sixty-sixth birthday of the Thorne family’s patriarch, Mr. Thorne. Anyone who received an invitation was obliged to show up and pay their respects.

The party was in full swing when Saul arrived. He carried his gift and headed straight for the main villa. As soon as he walked in, he saw Mr. Thorne surrounded by old friends, laughing and chatting. A smile spread across his face as he walked over quickly. "Grandpa, happy birthday!"

Seeing his grandson, Mr. Thorne’s smile grew even wider. He quickly waved him over. "My dear grandson, you’re just in time! We were just talking about the younger generation. Mr. Gardner’s granddaughter is here, too. She’s about your age. Come and meet her."

As he finished speaking, a young woman with exquisite makeup stood out among the group of elders. The moment she saw Saul, she was captivated by his righteous air and handsome features, and she shyly lowered her gaze.