Chapter 601: Something's Wrong

Leaving the appraisal agency, Li Yuejin happily drove his third-hand Suzuki straight to Liu Jinyou's house in Dongsi.

Ever since he sold the blue and white jar to Liu Jinyou, and later sold several other antiques worth hundreds of thousands, everyone who now handed antiques to him to sell knew that he had a rich big customer who paid very decisively, usually specifying that he sell to Liu Jinyou.

However, he also had his own schemes. Liu Jinyou was a big tycoon himself and was also the uncle of Wang Yan's ruthless wife's family. If something happened, let alone others, Han Chunming would beat him to death. So every time he got an item, even though he already had an appraisal certificate, he would still go to a professional testing agency to test it again, which could be considered cautious.

But in the final analysis, his understanding of these things was limited to knowing what was what, being able to brag and say a few pieces of trade jargon, but when it came to a deeper understanding of antiques, he had none at all; he was just doing the work of buying and selling. Ordinary things were naturally fine, but these were antiques where it was hard to tell real from fake. If they were real, that was fine, but if they were fake, that was trouble.

However, he couldn't see those troubles. Anyway, so far, he had been doing it for a year, and it had been very smooth and had a good reputation. This also made him never think about what to do if the items were fake.

Arriving at the alley of Liu Jinyou's house, he familiarly took the items and entered through the already open gate.

He looked at the group of people cooling off under the tree in the courtyard and greeted them: "Master Liu, Sister Hou, yo, Master Hou is here too."

Liu Jinyou nodded smilingly: "I heard you brought Ming dynasty porcelain. My eye for this is a bit lacking, so I invited my little son-in-law here to take a look."

Old Hou lazily sat up straight from the lounge chair and pointed at the stone table in front of him with the fan he was holding: "Stop with the nonsense, take the items out and let's see."

Responding, Li Yuejin placed the items on the stone table covered with a table mat, muttering while fiddling with them: "Two days ago, I found another Qing dynasty blue jade patterned thumb ring, but it's not from any famous person, has no special markings, and is hard to date, roughly mid-Qing dynasty. I thought such a small trinket worth a few tens of thousands would be easily taken by you, so I brought it along. You guys take a look."

Old Hou picked it up, looked at it for a while, and nodded at his old son-in-law.

Seeing Old Hou nod, Li Yuejin laughed: "See, it's real. For the things I bring to Master Liu, regardless of whether the previous owner had an appraisal certificate, I have to go get it appraised again."

Liu Jinyou put down the jade thumb ring and waved his hand: "Be quick, take out that Ming dynasty blue and white porcelain you mentioned."

"Here it is." Li Yuejin smiled and took out a spring vase from the box, and also took out the appraisal certificate, placing them together on the table.

Without waiting for Liu Jinyou to speak, Old Hou first picked up the spring vase and examined it, first looking at the reign mark on the bottom, then turning to look at the body of the vase, muttering while acting: "Jiajing reign mark blue and white lotus pattern jade spring vase..."

Under the gaze of the other three, he used a high-intensity flashlight and a magnifying glass, looking at it inside and out for a long time. He glanced at Li Yuejin, gently put down the spring vase in his hand, and didn't speak, but instead looked at Hou Sue sitting on the side: "Go, add some water. On such a hot day, this kid hasn't even had a sip of water since coming over."

"No need, no need, I'm not thirsty."

"Drink some water. He hasn't looked at it yet, so just wait. I'll go get you a glass of iced lemon water to cool off. We're old and can't drink it, but you're still fine and can drink it. Sit down, I'll be back in a moment."

As she spoke, Hou Sue got up and went into the kitchen behind her. Li Yuejin, who didn't realize the seriousness of the problem, still sat there smiling, watching Liu Jinyou judge whether it was real or fake.

Liu Jinyou held the jade spring vase in his hand and felt more and more ashamed the more he looked at it, because no matter how he looked at it, it was real. Although his level wasn't great, it was still stronger than many people's; after all, he had many real things and had that mysterious feeling. But the problem was, according to what was agreed upon earlier, Old Hou's attitude made it clear that this thing was fake, and he felt particularly powerless.

He let out a long breath, looked at Hou Sue, who was coming out of the kitchen with a glass of ice water, and their eyes met. Confirming there was no problem, he asked smilingly: "Where did you get this treasure this time?"

"Thanks to your blessing, it's known that I have a big customer like you who pays so readily. The reputation has spread, and someone heard about this from a friend and contacted me. They said they had a setback in business and urgently needed money, so they sold this treasure to save the situation. You say, is this Jiajing blue and white porcelain something an ordinary person can afford? It has to be you."

Liu Jinyou waved his hand smilingly, pushed his glasses, and asked: "Stop with the useless talk, no need to flatter me. Tell me, how much does the owner want for this spring vase?"

"Master Liu, we've cooperated so many times, let's stick to the old rules: one price, two million."

Li Yuejin held up two fingers, looking at Liu Jinyou expectantly. Because the owner urgently needed money, the commission given was very high. If this deal went through, he could retire at home this year.

Hou Sue slapped Liu Jinyou: "Two million is not cheap. Don't be so reckless this time; take a good look again. Yuejin, drink your water. That money didn't come from a strong wind."

Although this reaction was somewhat unexpected, Li Yuejin didn't take it to heart. Although he had sold many things to Liu Jinyou before, most of the prices were under a million, and the most expensive was only eight or nine hundred thousand. This time it reached two million, let alone the buyer, even he, the middleman, was trembling a bit. Two million, a number he didn't even dare to dream of.

He drank the honey lemon ice water smilingly, watching the chubby old couple opposite him putting their heads together. Suddenly, he said "ah" and turned to look at Old Hou, who was fanning himself: "Master Hou, you just looked at it once, but didn't say if it was real or fake?"

Old Hou looked at him smilingly: "I didn't say. Isn't he looking at it now? Little thief, you tell me, is this real or fake?"

"I say it's real." Li Yuejin picked up the appraisal certificate on the table and placed it in front of Old Hou: "Look, an appraisal certificate from a professional agency. Can this thing be fake? Besides, the previous owner said he bought this thing a few years ago and spent a million at the time, so how could it be fake? No, Master Hou, I hear what you mean, you think this thing is fake?"

"You kid, you really were sold and are still counting the money for them." Old Hou closed his fan and pointed at him: "If you want to earn this money, you have to have the ability. You keep talking about the rules of the trade; what kind of fart rules does the trade have? You kid can live until now, just go burn high incense."

"No, Master Hou, what do you mean? Why don't I understand? What is all this?"

Old Hou looked at him smilingly and tilted his head toward behind him: "Turn around and look, and you'll understand."

Li Yuejin turned around in confusion. At this look, his eyes popped out, and his body on the stone stool couldn't control its balance. Following the force of his turn, he stood up and stumbled a few times. Fortunately, the police who had already entered the gate subconsciously stepped forward to help, so he didn't fall.

Yes, it was the police. When Hou Sue went into the kitchen to get ice water for Li Yuejin, she had already called the police. Less than three hundred meters from the door was a police station. From the time the police call was made to the police center assigning the task, it was only a few minutes.

Very careful, very cautious. After all, the three of them were all old and frail, and didn't have the physical strength of Li Yuejin, who was only forty-something. Even if they all went up, it would be useless. Regardless of whether Li Yuejin jumped over the wall in a hurry or broke the fake Jiajing blue and white porcelain, neither was a good result. So they chose this way to stabilize Li Yuejin and also avoid trouble.

"Are you Hou Sue?" a policeman asked.

Hou Sue nodded: "It's me."

"Regarding the antique forgery and fraud you reported, please tell us the specific situation."

"Wait, what antique forgery and fraud? Sister Hou, Master Liu, Master Hou? I didn't scam you guys! Besides, if you don't look at the monk's face, look at the Buddha's face. You guys have been friends with my brother Wuzi for so many years. If you don't buy it, don't buy it, no need to make such a scene, right? Comrade Police, listen to me, I'm just a broker, a middleman. Others hand antiques to me, and I find people to sell them to earn a commission. This has nothing to do with me!"

Li Yuejin raised both hands, palms forward, in a gesture of surrender, explaining anxiously. He was very anxious; he didn't understand why, when things were going well, they called the police, and even called it antique forgery and fraud?

"Did I tell you to speak? Stand still!" For this guy who looked wretched at first glance, the police didn't have a good tone for the words he said. They shouted at Li Yuejin, let the person who came with them watch him, and then sat on the stone stool, opened the notebook they brought, and took out a neutral pen: "You speak, I'll record the case briefly first, and then we'll go back to the station for further investigation. We still need you guys to cooperate."

"Everything is easy to say." Old Hou waved his hand: "The matter is not complicated. This kid brought a fake Yongzheng reign mark blue and white flower and bird pattern jar to sell before the New Year last year. Later, on the 30th, our relatives and friends were eating together when we realized it was fake. At that time, we were suspicious that someone was specifically forging to scam us, so we said if this kid brought fake blue and white porcelain again, there was likely someone behind it. This kid just delivered it to our door, bringing such a fake Jiajing reign mark blue and white lotus pattern jade spring vase, asking for two million."

"According to my judgment, this piece and the previous jar likely came from the same person, so this confirms that someone behind the scenes is specifically scamming us. As for this kid, he should also have been scammed and doesn't know much at all. However, Comrade Police, we have a suspect. When a group of our friends were drinking, someone brought a Qianlong reign mark blue and white cloud and dragon pattern plum vase. That piece is of the same lineage as this one."

"Good, this old gentleman, we understand the situation you described. But forgive my presumption, how can you be so sure about the authenticity of those porcelains?"

"Unworthy, I am a council member of the China Collectors Association, a consultant to the Ceramic Collection Committee, and an external researcher at the Palace Museum."

Old Hou patted his chest, closed his fan, and clapped his hands, speaking sonorously. It wasn't that he was showing off, but just to prove the authenticity of his judgment...

His words were naturally true. The confused Li Yuejin, as the suspect in the current case, was taken back to the police station to cooperate with the investigation. However, it wasn't that he couldn't make a phone call, so he hurriedly called his wife, Meng Xiaozao, and asked her to find Han Chunming, and then find Liu Jinyou and Old Hou to plead for mercy and go to the police station to save him. Han Chunming didn't know what was going on, but hearing about pleading for mercy, he called Wang Yan. After all, that was Su Meng's uncle, and Wang Yan's words carried weight.

When he received the call, Wang Yan was at the Ink Building drinking tea and enjoying calligraphy and paintings, very leisurely. It wasn't just that he was leisurely now; he had been leisurely for over ten years. After he had reproduced the technologies he mastered step by step, or clarified his goals, he had nothing to do. He only occasionally went to various project teams to take a look, guide the work, and copy data. When he had nothing to do, he would digest and absorb it himself. So he had no serious business now, just doing things he liked to pass the time, starting his retirement life once again.

So after receiving Han Chunming's call, he simply drove the Santana, which was already sixteen years old, to the police station. Old Hou and the others hadn't arrived yet, but Han Chunming had already called him. At this moment, the group of people was still there cooperating with the investigation.

When he arrived slowly at the police station, Han Chunming had long since arrived and had already understood the relevant situation. So after seeing Wang Yan, he expressed his position for the first time: "Master Wang, I know the situation. I've told this Li Yuejin before, but he just wouldn't listen. Later, I couldn't be bothered to care. But I didn't expect him to scam Uncle, and he even succeeded once. This time, let him learn a lesson. Save him from being disloyal and colluding with others to scam his own people. Let's see if he dares to do it again in the future. He has no brain at all, being scammed and still counting the money for others."

Wang Yan waved his hand: "Alright, it's already this time, what's the point of saying those things? Just don't blame me for hiding it from you."

Han Chunming looked like "don't underestimate me": "I know you were afraid I'd be soft-hearted and talk too much, scaring away the big fish behind him. If I didn't understand this little thing, wouldn't I have lived half my life in vain?"

"Actually, even if we didn't start from Li Yuejin, in any link in the middle, or at Cheng Army Supervisor's place, we would eventually find Li Yuejin. No matter what, he is the final participant; he can't run. You find him a good lawyer for a not-guilty defense, striving to solve it with a fine. Otherwise, if he really goes in for a few years, he's secondary, but there's still Xiaozao, and it will affect the children's future."

"Yes, I've already called the lawyer before, saying there's a great possibility of avoiding criminal punishment." Han Chunming nodded and said: "Is Cheng Army Supervisor really the one causing trouble behind the scenes?"

"Eight or nine out of ten. Have you seen the items?"

"No need to look. Can I not trust Old Hou? If he says it is, it is."

Old Hou, sitting on the side, laughed and patted the shoulder of his old son-in-law, who was still sulking: "Hear that? As if I could scam you."

Liu Jinyou shook his shoulder and ignored Old Hou. He had become a fat sheep waiting to be slaughtered; it would be strange if he were happy. He was a retired general manager of such a big company; didn't he have face? This group of people kept saying "scam"...

Looking at the disgusting way the old fatty pouted and acted arrogant, Wang Yan smiled: "As long as we follow Li Yuejin to investigate upwards, and at the same time let Cheng Army Supervisor cooperate with the investigation, making him explain clearly where that Qianlong reign mark blue and white cloud and dragon pattern plum vase came from, we can basically clear it up. In these three years, Cheng Army Supervisor bought houses, cars, and opened shops; he definitely scammed a lot. Thirteen years is not a big problem."

In fact, he had evidence in his hands; Cheng Army Supervisor hadn't escaped his control all these years. He wasn't in a hurry to move against Cheng Army Supervisor, just because in the past three years, they only had that one time at Old Guan's courtyard last year, which didn't disgust him. Another reason was to let Cheng Army Supervisor scam a bit more money to increase the years of the sentence.

Han Chunming sighed and shook his head: "This Cheng Army Supervisor is really harming others and himself. This time he has no future. By the time he comes out of prison, he'll be over sixty; what else can he do? What a pity, having to force himself to this point. A person only has seventy or eighty years in a lifetime, and he's spent over twenty years in prison."

Liu Jinyou on the side gritted his teeth and said: "He deserves it. Such a person, it would be better if he died in prison."

The few people talked here for a while, and a policeman walked in: "The Cheng Army Supervisor you mentioned just now, could you please tell us more about Cheng Army Supervisor's situation?"

"Let me say it, we're all from the same courtyard." Han Chunming nodded and talked about Cheng Army Supervisor's two previous times in prison, and then talked about the various things in the three years since he was released.

Although the recording policeman hid it well, he was still quite excited. Because this was a big case; the cars, houses, and shops alone were already a lot of money. He scammed Liu Jinyou out of five hundred thousand before, and this time he wanted to scam two million. So how many people did he scam in the past three years?

And regardless of whether Cheng Army Supervisor did this time, it can be certain that Cheng Army Supervisor has a problem. Buying houses and property in less than a year before, for someone who has been in twice, especially since the second sentence was nine years long, it is likely unrealistic for such a person to make a fortune again in a year in such a rapidly changing era.

Soon, after asking about everything, the police officer stood up with a cheerful smile: "Alright, we understand the situation. You all can go back and wait patiently for the progress of the case. As for the money Mr. Liu was defrauded of previously, if it can be recovered, it will be returned to you at that time. Additionally, please properly preserve the items sold to you by Li Yuejin over the past six months, as those items are involved in this case. I hope Mr. Liu understands."

Liu Jinyou returned a smile awkwardly, nodded, and then let out a long breath, swaying as he turned and left.

Coming outside, Han Chunming said: "Alright, Master Wang, I won't eat with you guys. Xiaozao at home is scared to death, and my mom is also worried. I have to go back and talk to them properly."

"Go..."

Everyone got into their cars. Han Chunming went home, while Wang Yan and the others went to Beichizi Street, just in time to drink a little...

Cheng Army Supervisor didn't go anywhere, just waiting for news of success in his mobile phone shop. But as time passed slowly, he didn't receive a call, and the bank card he had prepared didn't receive a text message notification of a balance change. He had a very bad feeling.

This bad feeling, as time passed, became worse and worse. Feeling that something was wrong, there must have been some change he didn't know about, which made him sit on pins and needles... ===== CHAPTER 602 =====