Chapter Five, The Fool Who Buys Old Books.
Lin Yi often visits second-hand book stalls and has some knowledge about collecting old books.
Dong saw Lin Yi pick so many books at a glance, and his heart was filled with joy.
Lin Yi opened the box and took a look. It was filled with comic books such as "Peacock King," "Yu Yu Hakusho," "Captain Tsubasa," and others. While Lin Yi was flipping through them, a hint of fragrance wafted over, the same orange scent as last time. Lin Yi sniffed and quickly followed the scent to find a large set of books within the comics - "Dragon Ball," Hainan edition, first edition in 1991, a total of 78 books. The entire set was protected by plastic film and bound with fine threads, and even if the condition was not perfect, it was still at least a 9.5. The same orange scent as last time. Lin Yi sniffed and quickly followed the scent to find a large set of books within the comics - "Dragon Ball," Hainan edition, first edition in 1991, a total of 78 books. The entire set was protected by plastic film and bound with fine threads, and even if the condition was not perfect, it was still at least a 9.5.
Just as he was thinking, a hint of apple flavor came from inside. It was slightly stronger than the previous hint of orange flavor. Could there be something good inside? Lin Yi's heart was excited and almost revealed it.
Dong raised his chin arrogantly and said, "I won't open these books to sell them. If you want them, you can buy them all at once."
He waited for the child's reaction. Sure enough, the child waved his hand in a spendthrift manner, without even counting, and said, "Then let's go with 150, how much is that?"
Lin Yi pretended to be very interested in the other books in the warehouse, in order to divert Dong's attention.
Five types of books in total cost 110 yuan. Dong Eyeglasses generously gave a discount, totaling 100 yuan.
Five hundred received in an instant, fifty deducted for buying books, making a profit of four hundred and fifty!
In 1990, Liaoning Science and Technology Publishing House published the medical book "Theory of Qi and Blood", with the first edition and first printing, with a print run of 2006 copies.
Many books have different publication and printing times. The first edition and first printing of a book is the earliest "original" version, while subsequent printings and editions may have modifications, deletions, additions, etc. that compromise the "originality" of the book. For collectors of old books, this is a serious flaw. Therefore, the first edition and first printing are important for collecting old books.
Lin Yi walked over, opened the box, and saw that it was full of sketches and drafts, probably things that Dong Yanjing didn't want.
Regarding versions, there is only one principle, which is "one edition, one printing" is often the best.
Upon seeing Lin Yi, Dong with his glasses on leisurely formed a circle with his eyes and said, "Brother Lin, I suffered a great loss in order to collect these books for you. The seller raised the price at the last minute and insisted on charging 2 yuan for each book. What do you think we should do?"
Lin Yi frowned slightly.
For Dong Glasses, these things are basically garbage, taking up space in the warehouse. It's better to give them as a gift to this fool.
The "Five-Year Primary School Chinese Textbook" published by People's Education Press in 1980, consisting of ten volumes in total, from the first to the tenth volume.
Lin Yi thought to himself and asked, "How much does this set of 'Dragon Ball' cost?"
Dong Glasses just remembered the rules here, that you should take off your shoes when entering someone's house. He rubbed his heels together and took off his shoes, revealing socks with big holes, filling the room with an unpleasant sweaty smell.
Suppressing the excitement in his heart, Lin Yi calmly said, "Alright then, I'll do as you suggest—hmm, since I'm here at your warehouse, I'll take a look at some other books."
In general, "vintage" items become more valuable as they get older, especially now when it is rare to find books from the 1950s and 1960s. Books from the 1970s and 1980s have also entered the collectible phase, while those from the 1990s are considered potential investments.
What kind of book is it? I don't want magazines or anything like that," said Mr. Dong, while his eyes glanced towards the inner room.
Fortunately, at this moment, the naughty child pulled out a box full of comic books. All the comic books inside the box were together with the "Goddess Saint Seiya" received last time. However, Dong, the glasses-wearing person, was afraid that they would not sell, so he did not dare to take the risk.
Lin Yi smiled as he browsed through the old books on the iron shelves, with his hands behind his back. There were quite a few old books, at least four to five thousand of them. Most of them were in tatters, either eaten by worms or chewed by mice.
Speaking of "condition", the better the condition of an old book, the newer it is preserved, the more valuable it is for collection. Only those that are in poor condition, even if they have great content value, will be heavily discounted in terms of price.
Emotional: There are too few fools like this. I will definitely take good care of you in the future.
The so-called "print run" refers to the "number of copies printed" stated on the copyright page of a book. Generally, the fewer the number of copies printed, the more valuable the book appears. Books with a print run of only 300 are mostly rare editions, while those with a print run of 1000, 2000, or 3000 are considered scarce editions. Print runs ranging from 4000 to 8000 are considered limited editions. If the print run exceeds ten thousand, then whether it is considered limited or not should not be a concern, unless it is a missing volume in a series or a set of books. Books with a print run of 1000, 2000, or 3000 are considered scarce editions, while those with a print run of 4000 to 8000 are considered limited editions. If the print run exceeds ten thousand, then whether it is considered limited or not should not be a concern, unless it is a missing volume in a series or a set of books.
Lin Yi didn't expect Dong Yanjing to call so soon. When he arrived at Dong Yanjing's old bookstore warehouse, Dong Yanjing was sitting on two boxes, smoking and rubbing his feet.
... ....
Ahem, I will definitely pay attention next time, definitely. Dong's face turned red behind his glasses, rubbing his feet, not knowing where to go.
200 copies will cost 400 yuan.
Dong quietly greeted the mother of the naughty child, touched the 100 yuan deposit given by Lin Yi, even if he spent 50 yuan, there is still profit, what's to be afraid of.
Early in the morning, Dong Glasses arrived at Happiness Community as if he knew the way well. This community belongs to an ordinary residential area. Dong Glasses often comes here and the security guard at the gate recognizes him and lets him in without much trouble.
"Chinese Famous Recipes" is a book from the 1950s. These books are not easy to preserve or find, and they are practical. Each book costs 3 yuan, totaling 30 yuan.
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Before leaving, Lin Yi didn't forget to ask Dong Yanjing if there were any good books for him to keep.
How many books are there in total? Lin Yi smiled, with an indescribable elegance.
Mr. Dong hurriedly extinguished his cigarette and muttered, "It's not easy to make money these days." Then he quickly went up to the third floor.
I'll first see how many there are. Dong Glasses tried hard to suppress his anger, trying to compress his dignity to the level of collecting scrap, because he knew that only at this level could he cheaply take these books.
The naughty child knows Dong Glasses, and Dong Glasses also knows him.
Last time it was said to be 1.5 yuan, now it has become 2 yuan, this Dong eyeglasses really knows how to do business.
"Qi and Blood Theory" is a medical book, so it is more expensive, 20 yuan.
"Selected Paintings and Calligraphy by Qi Baishi" belongs to the category of art books and is relatively expensive, costing around 30 yuan.
Dong, with his hand on his chest, guarantees that it will definitely happen.
After careful examination, whether complete or incomplete, there are a total of 200 comic books. Dong, with a glance, said, "About 150 books—" Feeling a pang of greed, directly took away 50 books.
... ....
Together with the comic books and sketches just now, Lin Yi paid a total of 500 yuan, including 400 yuan.
In general, there are four key elements to consider when collecting old books. Firstly, the era; secondly, the condition; thirdly, the print run; and fourthly, the edition.
From the look and tone of the mischievous child, Dong Yanjing felt like he was being treated as a junk collector. However, he was an educated person who sold books, not one of those uneducated people.
These books are respectively...
Then gritting his teeth, Dong Glasses said, "Okay, deal!"
Not long after, the naughty child pulled out another box of books and placed them in front of Dong's glasses, saying, "Here, just these."
Last time I gave you 45 books for 10 yuan, so how about 150 books for 30 yuan? Dong Eyeglasses waited for the mischievous child to bargain.
Dong was taken aback by the glasses and felt that Lin Yi seemed a bit different from yesterday. He couldn't pinpoint exactly what was different.
The naughty child rarely shows cleverness, "I don't sell those things you don't want either."
Upon seeing this, the mischievous child no longer received any attention and continued to play with their own phone, not even glancing at Dong's glasses.
In 1984, Jilin Fine Arts Publishing released "Selected Paintings by Qi Baishi", in large 8vo format, with a first edition and a print run of only 3000 copies.
"Five-Year Primary School Chinese Textbook", just according to 2 yuan per book, a total of 10 books for 20 yuan.
The mischievous child frowned and said, "Uncle, can you please wash your feet? Last time you came to our house, it made our home smell terrible and I got scolded by my mother."
When the cigarette was almost finished, a couple came down from upstairs and slowly drove away in a red BYD parked on the roadside.
The naughty child once again showed his true colors as a spendthrift. "I still have another box of things in my room. Do you want it? If you do, I can sell it to you for 20 yuan. Hmm, let's make it 50 yuan in total!"
Dong wears glasses and swallows his saliva. He thinks this kid is very impolite and doesn't even know how to pour a glass of water. Well, forget it. I'm too busy making money to argue with you.
Arriving at the building where the last book was received, Dong Eyeglasses first observed the terrain, then took out a cheap cigarette from his pocket, lit it, and smoked leisurely. He felt like one of those underground party members in spy movies, except he looked sloppy and sordid, which made him appear to outsiders like a spy infiltrating the people's ranks.
In 1958, the Youth Industrial Publishing House published a series of small booklets titled "Chinese Famous Recipes" from volume one to volume ten, with the eleventh volume missing, totaling ten volumes.
Proficiently press the doorbell, the anti-theft door opens, and the head of a mischievous child pops out from inside, saying "Come in."
The "Forbidden City Calendar" seems too ordinary, it's only 10 yuan.
The "2010 Palace Museum Calendar" published by the Palace Museum in 2010, is a hardcover edition in 32mo.
Lin Yiben had no intention of buying these junk items, but Dong Yanjing kept chattering beside him. He couldn't just not choose any book, so Lin Yiben closed his eyes and tried to use his sense of smell to pick out some books with a little bit of literary flavor.
Dong squatted down and flipped through it, frowned slightly, because it wasn't books inside, just a pile of sketches, such as figure drawing, dynamic sketches, static sketches, and so on, a whole box full.
Is it really true that only this set is valuable?
Four hundred and five, four hundred and five. It takes a few days of street vending to earn this.
Ahem, these things... are not easy to sell. Dong rarely speaks honestly.
You can see for yourself, I counted 200 books. Dong Yanjing stood up and pushed the box of comics to Lin Yi.
As expected, when Dong heard that Lin Yi wanted to buy other books, he enthusiastically recommended, "These are books on fortune-telling, these are books on qigong, and these are some medicinal books from my collection... I usually don't let anyone come to my warehouse, you're the first!"
Of course, it's not necessarily a good book just because it has a small print run. Some books with little content or self-published by unknown authors are often rare but have little value. Also, don't bother considering some obscure books.
Dong Glasses used to sell these things, but they were not easy to sell. Almost all those who study fine arts go to bookstores to buy new ones. Basically, no one buys these old ones.
After all, I ended up selecting more than ten books, and most of them are in good condition with a rating of 85 or higher. Compared to those shabby ones, they are already considered quite good.
Well, that's all. These are all things my dad collected and gave to me. I don't like them. Feel free to offer a price! The brat seemed indifferent. Not only does he not like reading these books, he also thinks they take up too much space. Getting rid of them as waste would be killing two birds with one stone.
As Dong's glasses rolled, fearing that Lin Yi wouldn't buy it, he kicked another box and said, "Don't say I'm not generous, 400 yuan, and I'll give you another box of these things."
Okay, that's it. Lin Yi, with his keen sense of smell, scanned through the thousands of old books and confirmed that there were no significant "escapees." He then collected those books and let Dong Yanjing do the accounting.
As Dong was about to enter the house, a mischievous child suddenly said, "Shoes, your shoes are off."
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In Dong's mind, beauty bubbles up when he sees Lin Yi, and the more he looks at him, the more handsome he feels.