Pawn Shop: the Legend of Drum

The market drum trade in the old city is as finely layered as the stitches of thousand-layer cloth shoes, and has its own set of methods that coincide with the wisdom of survival. The most precious items are the antique calligraphy and paintings wrapped in sandalwood boxes and covered with brocade - the landscape albums of Qiu Ying from the Ming Dynasty are filled with the fragrance of ink in red silk, and the blue and white porcelain vases from the official kilns of the Qing Dynasty are protected by layers of cotton wool. The drum makers hold magnifying glasses at their fingertips. Under the warm light of the antique shop, even the insect-eaten traces on the rice paper can be distinguished as old and new wounds. Second-class objects are much more down-to-earth. The Eight Immortals table and the Taishi chair are patinated with years of rubbing. The sound of the copper ring knocking on the door contains the stories of several generations. The carved corners of the camphor wood box are covered with the lines of time. When they are opened, the smell of camphor wraps around the folds of old clothes. These smoky household items are often carried on carts by drummers and yelled in the alleys, causing old neighbors to stand on tiptoe and look around, wondering if they can find something good at the bottom of the box. The last level is a solid pile of junk, with rusty iron buckets stacked with chipped coarse porcelain bowls, and faded old newspapers wrapped around a wooden comb with missing teeth. This novel and its characters are purely fictitious. Any similarity is purely coincidental and should not be imitated.