Chapter 133: Is Your Eye for Quality Just Average?

Without some benefit, why would anyone help you find things?

So Lin Sicheng returned the Copper Fish.

Furthermore, with this item in his hands, other than donating it, it had no use at all. It was equivalent to Lin Sicheng spending nothing, yet having Li Jinqian do him a favor worth two billion.

But not only did he do the favor, Li Jinqian even wanted to give him two more pieces; could it be because he took a liking to Lin Sicheng's good looks?

Of course, it was because the gang was in urgent need of such talent. And it wasn't just a current shortage, but a constant one.

Even before being investigated, Chen Wei and Li Jinqian had still pulled off deals buying items worth tens of millions for a few hundred thousand.

But don't be surprised; over ninety percent of grave-robbing gangs are of this type. Chen Wei and Li Jinqian are already considered quite top-tier...

With thoughts swirling randomly, Lin Sicheng stood up.

Li Jinqian also stood up, pondering for a moment: "How about I take Brother Lin to see the Treasury!"

Lin Sicheng smiled slightly and shook his head gently: "It's quite good right here!"

No need to guess, the so-called Treasury must be full of Raw Pit Goods.

Here, however, it was different: these were basically all collected by Chen Wei and Li Jinqian through legitimate channels. One reason was to deceive the public, the second was to exchange with peers. Most importantly, it was for money laundering and gift-giving.

Of course, it is estimated that among them are also Cultural Relics unearthed around '49 that skirt the edges of policy, as well as some more sensitive items that qualify as First-Class Cultural Relics, just like that Copper Fish.

Items like these can only be collected or used as specimens for Artifact Research.

The rest can basically be acquired and traded even more easily.

Sweeping his gaze across, Lin Sicheng sighed: "Manager Li has a good eye!"

Li Jinqian smiled reservedly: "I wouldn't call it a good eye, it's all thanks to friends giving me face!"

That was certainly true.

Back in the old days, Chen Wei was the "General Manager of the Seven Provinces and Cities Grave Robbing World," and Li Jinqian was the second-in-command. With connections in both the underworld and the legitimate world, friends in the Jianghu naturally gave them face.

Thinking secretly, Lin Sicheng walked to a shelf.

This shelf mostly held rubbings, which is using ink or pigment to coat a stele or vessel, then using rice paper to rub off the text and patterns on it.

So-called epigraphers, besides studying limited physical objects, actually use this type as their primary research sample.

There are many sources, but for things to be placed here, there is only one path: ancient tombs.

Lin Sicheng didn't have much interest in this type, so he just swept past it. But just as he lifted his foot, he paused, his eyes looking at the middle shelf.

A piece of three-foot rice paper was covered in rubbings of text, and at the very top, it was imprinted with a strange-looking animal.

It had scales and claws; at first glance, it looked like a crouching Crocodile. In reality, it was a Fuxi, the eighth son of the dragon in legend.

Also known as Chihu, it loved literature throughout its life, so it was placed on stele inscriptions and often served as decorative patterns outside of Epitaphs.

It is not strange to have this decorative pattern on a rubbing, but what was strange was the inscription: "Since the land rent has a fixed quota, descendants must not increase the amount; all overdue rent must not accrue interest, so as not to severely distress the villagers. Only strive to collect diligently in time, so as to avoid losses..."

If he remembered correctly, this should be the family rules of the Zheng family of Pujiang, the Zheng Righteous Household, who stood for eight hundred years from the Song to the Qing dynasties and were personally granted the title "Jiangnan First Family" by Zhu Yuanzhang.

Lin Sicheng had seen related Cultural Relics; the Forbidden City had Zheng family engravings from the Ming and Qing dynasties. But this was his first time seeing a stele rubbing.

Looking again at the Fuxi on top of the stele, Lin Sicheng suddenly realized: could this be an Epitaph?

But in his past life, he had never heard of the Pujiang Zheng Righteous Household Ancestral Tomb Cluster being robbed, so where did this stele rubbing come from?

The key was that a single robbery would involve thousands of tombs...

Seeing Lin Sicheng looking particularly serious, Li Jinqian glanced over: "Brother Lin likes this type?"

Lin Sicheng smiled: "As long as it's a good thing, I like it."

The two smiled and moved on, walking a few more steps, and Lin Sicheng stopped again.

This shelf, however, contained silk fabrics.

Brocade, damask, satin, gauze, silk, patterned silk, and even half a bolt of tapestry.

It was hard to judge the dynasty at a glance, but they were at least all pre-Qing. The key was one of the straight-collared, front-opening shirts.

It looked neither yellow nor brown, and was wrinkled. But this was a typical casual garment for a Southern Song Dynasty scholar-official, with Song gauze (jacquard gauze fabric) accounting for over sixty percent, representing the highest level of silk weaving in the Song and Yuan periods.

It was a proper national First-Class Cultural Relic; one wouldn't even need to check where it was unearthed or who wore it while alive—if sent to the National Silk Museum, it could serve as a treasure of the museum.

Even if it circulated on the black market, the price would be at least around ten million. If it were auctioned abroad and went for less than a hundred million, Lin Sicheng would dare to chew it up and eat it.

But here, it was displayed openly on the shelf.

Looking at the price again: 1.2 million.

Seeing him standing still, Li Jinqian blinked: "Zhao Boyun!"

Lin Sicheng was stunned for a moment.

Fine, at least this time he knew where it was dug out from.

Zhao Boyun was a seventh-generation descendant of Zhao Kuangyin, who served at highest as a deputy magistrate of Changzhou County in Suzhou, died in the ninth year of the Jiading era of the Southern Song Dynasty, and was buried in Huangyan County, Taizhou.

Therefore, they only sold it as the official uniform of a Southern Song county magistrate, so of course, it was only worth a million or so.

But this thing was of the same nature as the Copper Fish; buying it back meant donating it, donating it, and donating it—collecting it was impossible. Lin Sicheng was just curious for a moment and satisfied his eyes.

Moving forward again, Lin Sicheng even saw coffin boards of the ancient She people from the Jingning and Taishun areas: just because they were carved with phoenix patterns.

One has to say, Chen Wei and Li Jinqian's scope of business was truly broad: this kind of coffin must have been a hanging coffin suspended in a cliff cave.

Moving further, Lin Sicheng couldn't help but pause, staring at a few porcelain cups on the shelf.

They were very small, with a waist diameter of only about five centimeters, slightly larger than a tea cup, but the shape was like a jar.

Typical Northern Song Dynasty Cizhou Kiln iron-rust glaze; the jar body was covered with brown and white alternating feather-like patterns. At first glance, it looked quite pretty, but holding it in his hand, he knew the jar body was relatively rough and bumpy.

It was as if the glaze had been fired poorly.

Touching the inner wall, there were twelve spiral ridges, which looked more like uneven humidity causing the porcelain body to deform upon sudden heating after entering the kiln.

It seemed Chen Wei and Li Jinqian didn't know the specific use of this item, which was why they marked it so low: twelve thousand for all four jars.

But this thing was a special Xinglin Glaze from the Cizhou Kiln, and it had only one purpose: cupping.

After being fired, it would be soaked for a hundred days in more than twenty medicinal herbs such as cinnabar, realgar, and mugwort ash, and would only release its medicinal properties when heated to over sixty degrees.

Few people know how to use it, unless they are imperial physicians. So, let alone modern times, even back in the Song Dynasty, very few could recognize this thing.

But relying on this thing, Song Dynasty imperial physicians could extract malaria parasite eggs.

As for the truly good stuff, it's even harder to say; there are human blood cells remaining inside the jar, and if things go well, one might be able to test the DNA data of a Song Dynasty emperor.

Even setting that point aside, this is a genuine piece of imperial ware from the Song Dynasty. Whether from the perspective of history, medicine, or science, these four jars are of immense value.

Lin Sicheng nodded: "Wrap them up!"

Li Jinqian leaned in to take a look: "Brother Lin likes this type?"

"It's alright!" Lin Sicheng said calmly, "I feel the craftsmanship has very distinct characteristics; I'll take them back for Artifact Research!"

Craftsmanship characteristics?

It was clearly a firing failure, wasn't it?

Li Jinqian was secretly suspicious, then saw Lin Sicheng pick up a Rhino Horn Cup.

The whole body was blackish, with blood-red threads faintly visible between the bone and jade, as if it were Blood Staining.

The item was indeed quite old, around the middle of the Ming Dynasty, but unfortunately, in pursuit of the jade-like quality of "red jade," it had been dyed with blood before carving, ruining a perfectly good Rhino Horn Cup.

But Lin Sicheng stared at it for a long time, and finally waved his hand: "Wrap it up!"

Li Jinqian glanced at the tag: 260,000?

"Brother Lin, this horn cup has been dyed!"

Lin Sicheng nodded: "I know!"

You know, yet you're still buying it?

Zhao Xiuneng had almost praised this person to the heavens, but it seems his judgment is just average?

With just one look, Lin Sicheng knew what Li Jinqian was thinking, and simply smiled.

It was true that it had been dyed, but this was a Ming Dynasty Blood-Stained Rhinoceros Horn Cup.

A massive bargain found!