Chinanews, Shanghai, Apr. 17 – Searching for secondhand goods is no longer regarded as a shameful thing. Nowadays, many people in Shanghai enjoy the fun of idling about the city in their spare time to hunt for something valuable. Looking for used goods has become a fashion. Mr. Ma recently spent 6,000 yuan for an old-style rosewood table. “You see, the legs of the table are durable and the quality is very good. The pattern of the table is finely made and it can serve as an article of my collection. It's a really good buy,” he told this reporter. In the past, artisans were not flippant about making furniture. Since they were not keen on seeking wealth, they could settle down to make real artistic works. No wonder that people nowadays love their products, said Mr. Su, manager of a large rosewood furniture store in Shanghai. Insiders estimate that there are at least 50-60 stores in Shanghai that sell used goods. Apart from furniture stores, business of stores that sell secondhand jewelleries booms as well. Recently, bookstores that sell secondhand books have reappeared in Shanghai. Some books were made during the late Qing Dynasty while other books during the 1980s. These bookstores enjoy a large patronage. 50-year-old Mr. Zhang told this reporter that in recent years, there were too many books about fashion or leisure. New good books might sell at very high prices. So he'd rather go to secondhand bookstores to look for books that are good yet not expensive, he said. In fact, many people in Shanghai like to drop into the stores that sell secondhand things, like Mr. Zhang does. Many Shanghainese, after spending big money for an expensive apartment house, like to decorate their new houses in an old style. These houses might appear modern from the outside, but once you walk in, you will find that the house is full of old things with a strong reminiscent atmosphere.
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