Chapter 38: I Have to Take Back What I Just Said
“It's a small oil dish. I bought it from a stall that sells pieces of broken porcelain.”
Su Xiaofan said casually, his face showing complete indifference, as if the item inside the bag were something he could throw away at any time.
He was putting on an act again. Su Xiaofan had no choice. Since he had secrets he couldn't reveal, he couldn't afford to attract too much attention.
Besides, the world of antiques was vast and incredibly diverse. There were so many different categories that most people could spend their entire lives studying just one specialty. Someone as knowledgeable as Jing Shizhen was extremely rare.
Especially miscellaneous antiques and porcelain—they were two completely different categories, and both were major fields in their own right. Given Su Xiaofan's age, it was absolutely impossible for him to have mastered both at the same time.
The late-Ming Huanghuali brush pot made by Chen Zisheng alone had already caused Su Xiaofan to stand out far too much.
If the Song Dynasty Ding Kiln brush washer in his bag turned out to be another treasure he had deliberately picked up, the collectors in the capital would probably drag Su Xiaofan away the very next day and examine him to see whether he had a pair of golden eyes.
Originally, Su Xiaofan had planned to quietly make his fortune and wait for things to cool down before finding a way to bring out the brush washer. But now Jing Shizhen's hand had already reached the bag, so there was no way for him to hide it.
Therefore, Su Xiaofan had to give everyone the impression that he had obtained the brush washer by pure chance, simply because he had been lucky.
After all, if someone knew that this dish was actually a Ding Kiln brush washer, would they really treat it so casually?
“You certainly dabble in all sorts of things. You buy miscellaneous scholar's objects, and now you even dare to buy porcelain.”
Jing Shizhen smiled as he opened the bag. Because porcelain performed so well at auctions, counterfeiting porcelain was the most prevalent form of forgery in the antique trade. With modern technology, many people could make fakes that were almost indistinguishable from the real thing. The waters in this field were extremely deep.
When Jing Shizhen opened the bag and saw several broken porcelain fragments together with an intact piece of porcelain, he couldn't help frowning.
“Xiao Su, couldn't you at least find something to wrap this porcelain in?”
Jing Shizhen frowned at Su Xiaofan.
How could broken porcelain be placed together with an intact piece? Even a beginner shouldn't make such a basic mistake.
“Huh? I just casually put it into the bag at the time and forgot about it afterward.”
Su Xiaofan knew that the more casually he spoke, the less likely others would be to suspect him. Just think about it—if someone knew that this dish was a Ding kiln brush washer, would they really treat it this way?
As for whether Jing Shizhen could identify this Ding kiln brush washer, Su Xiaofan thought the possibility was quite high. After all, Jingxin Hall dared to advertise a guarantee of “ten times compensation for a fake,” so its appraisers' eyesight must be extraordinary.
“What if this really is something good and it gets scratched?”
Jing Shizhen glared at Su Xiaofan. Although he didn't think the object Su Xiaofan had casually picked up could possibly be valuable, the world of porcelain was far more complicated than miscellaneous antiques.
“Huh? These broken porcelain pieces are all Ding kiln. You've got a pretty good eye, kid.”
Jing Shizhen first picked up several fragments and carefully examined them. Ding kiln white porcelain had its own distinctive texture, making it relatively easy for an expert to identify.
“This thing...?”
When Jing Shizhen picked up the carved Ding kiln brush washer, his brows tightened again. Based on his experience, this thing was definitely not the “oil dish” Su Xiaofan had claimed it was. It was a brush washer.
When experts examined antiques, they sometimes relied on instinct as well. The moment Jing Shizhen picked up the brush washer, he had an immediate feeling that it was genuine.
Whenever Jing Shizhen had experienced this feeling in the past, there was a very high chance that the object was authentic. He had been wrong before, but such cases were extremely rare.
“Wait a moment.”
Jing Shizhen's expression became serious. He put on a pair of gloves, then put on his glasses and carefully examined the brush washer with a magnifying glass.
“Xiao Su, did you find another good piece?”
Zhao Zhengshan had known Jing Shizhen for more than twenty years and often asked him to appraise items, but he had never seen Jing Shizhen take something this seriously.
“How would I know?”
Su Xiaofan pretended to be completely clueless and shook his head.
“I just found it among a pile of broken porcelain. Including the oil dish and the porcelain fragments, I spent a little over nine hundred yuan altogether.”
“You... How are you so lucky?!”
Zhao Zhengshan's face was full of envy. He had been collecting antiques for almost twenty years.
During all those years, he had certainly found some bargains, but his biggest find was a copper coin he had bought fifteen years ago for fifty yuan. After appraisal, it was worth twenty thousand yuan.
Compared with the treasure Su Xiaofan had found today, his discovery was nothing.
“Maybe there are just a lot of good things in Yanjing.”
Su Xiaofan merely rubbed his hands and smiled, while looking expectantly at Jing Shizhen, who was still examining the item.
“I've lived in Yanjing for almost ten years and never found anything this good.”
Zhao Zhengshan could only roll his eyes at Su Xiaofan's words.
“Uncle Jing, what is this oil dish? Is it worth anything?”
Seeing Jing Shizhen put down the magnifying glass, Su Xiaofan immediately leaned over and asked.
“What oil dish? Don't talk nonsense when you don't know what you're talking about.”
Jing Shizhen glanced at Su Xiaofan.
“You two sit here for a while. I still need to examine it. I'll come out and tell you the results later.”
Holding the brush washer, Jing Shizhen hurried into the inner room.
Su Xiaofan and Zhao Zhengshan looked at each other, neither of them knowing what he had gone inside to do.
“Uncle Jing went inside to use the testing equipment.”
Tong Dongjie, who was sitting nearby, seemed to know something about it.
The reason Jingxin Hall had such a strong reputation and had never made a mistake in its appraisals over the years was not entirely because of expert eyesight. Instrument testing was also necessary to ensure absolute certainty.
“Xiao Su, you've really got some amazing luck.”
Tong Dongjie smiled.
“I come to Jingxin Hall often, and I'm fairly familiar with Uncle Jing. But there are very few objects that can make him go inside and use the testing equipment. I've only seen it happen twice. Your porcelain piece is the third.”
“The first two objects Uncle Jing examined inside were both worth more than ten million yuan.”
Tong Dongjie added one final remark.
“It can be worth that much?”
Su Xiaofan's eyes immediately lit up.
Although he knew Ding kiln porcelain was certainly expensive, his level of access in the antique market had previously been too low. He had never come into contact with such precious objects, so he genuinely had no idea how much one could sell for.
“You'll know when Uncle Jing comes back.”
Tong Dongjie smiled and didn't say anything more.
Although the young man in front of him had managed to find two decent treasures in succession, in Tong Dongjie's eyes, it was simply a matter of good luck. People who truly collected antiques were ultimately judged by their knowledge and cultural foundation.
Jing Shizhen didn't stay inside for very long. After the others had sat outside drinking tea for more than half an hour, he finally came out of the inner room.
“The appraisal is complete. It's a Song Dynasty Ding kiln carved brush washer, more than a thousand years old.”
Without any unnecessary words, Jing Shizhen immediately announced his appraisal results.
“Mm. Although this brush washer is relatively small, its condition is extremely good. There are no missing parts whatsoever. And since it's the famous white porcelain of Ding kiln, it can be considered a fine little piece of ancient porcelain.”
Jing Shizhen looked at Su Xiaofan with a complicated expression.
“For porcelain like this, even if an entire Ding ware kiln site were excavated, you might not find more than a few intact pieces. Yet you actually managed to find one. The odds are even lower than winning the lottery.”
After identifying the Song Dynasty Ding kiln brush washer, Jing Shizhen's feelings were genuinely complicated. The main reason was that he simply couldn't believe such a precious piece of ancient porcelain had been picked up from an ordinary antique market.
“Xiao Su, which stall selling ancient porcelain did you buy it from?”
Zhao Zhengshan spoke up.
“Later, let's go back and have a look together. Maybe there are still some left.”
“Forget it. Finding even one like this means you've struck the jackpot. You think you're going to find a second one?”
Jing Shizhen interrupted Zhao Zhengshan.
“This brush washer is small and doesn't look particularly impressive. Mixed in with other porcelain, it's not easy to notice. But logically speaking, the collectors in the capital shouldn't all be blind. There are plenty of people who know their stuff. So how did not a single person notice it?”
Jing Shizhen couldn't figure it out.
But the fact remained that Su Xiaofan had genuinely just bought it from the antique market. There was no way to fake that.
“Uncle Jing, I'll tell you which stall it was. Why don't you go take a look?”
Su Xiaofan wasn't nervous at all.
He had already planted the groundwork when he bought the broken porcelain. He had specifically asked the stall owner for a white porcelain brush washer. Even if Jing Shizhen went there and asked about it now, the story would still check out.
“How much did you pay for this brush washer?” Jing Shizhen asked.
“I didn't pay anything.”
Su Xiaofan replied weakly.
“What?”
Several voices rang out simultaneously.
Even the normally composed Tong Dongjie widened his eyes.
“Xiao Su, didn't you just say you spent more than nine hundred yuan?” Zhao Zhengshan asked in confusion.
“Uncle Zhao, the broken porcelain cost more than nine hundred yuan. As for this brush washer, I asked the owner for it, and he gave it to me for free.”
Su Xiaofan's voice was very soft.
He was afraid the people present might beat him up. What he had done today was a little too ridiculously lucky.
“Free?”
Jing Shizhen was already speechless.
Even back in the 1970s and 1980s, you still had to pay money to buy things. Jing Shizhen had never encountered such a ridiculously good deal.
“You little rascal!”
Jing Shizhen shook his head with a bitter smile.
“I have to take back what I just said. Your brush washer is the biggest bargain in the antique trade this year!”
“Uncle Jing, how much is this thing worth?”
Su Xiaofan wanted to shift everyone's attention, but more importantly, he really wanted to know the price of the brush washer.
“Five years ago, there was an autumn auction in Hong Kong. At the time, a Ding kiln beast-mask brush washer sold for 120 million yuan. But that beast-mask brush washer was much larger than yours.”
Jing Shizhen thought for a moment.
“Your white porcelain carved brush washer has relatively simple craftsmanship. I think if it were put up for auction, it could probably sell for around 18 million yuan.”
“Eighteen million?”
Su Xiaofan's eyes went completely wide.
Although he had mentally prepared himself somewhat, he still hadn't expected the brush washer to command such an astonishing price.
After taking a deep breath, Su Xiaofan glanced toward Tong Dongjie.
This brush washer was far more valuable than the brush pot. Surely Tong Dongjie would be interested in it too, right?
“Ahem, I don't collect much porcelain.”
To Su Xiaofan's surprise, Tong Dongjie immediately stated that he had no intention of buying the brush washer.
Tong Dongjie was actually feeling rather helpless at this moment.
Spending four or five million yuan to earn Jing Shizhen's favor wasn't cheap, but it wasn't particularly expensive either.
However, if he bought this brush washer, the price alone would be 18 million yuan. Jing Shizhen would then charge another twenty percent for appraisal and commission, plus a considerable amount in taxes. Altogether, it would probably cost close to 30 million yuan.
Even someone as wealthy as Tong Dongjie would find that somewhat difficult to stomach.
(End of Chapter)
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