Chapter 33: I'm Not Selling Anymore

Lin Sicheng and Gu Ming are sworn brothers in the most serious sense.

That was back in the nineties, when every trade was in chaos, including antiques. So, unsurprisingly, the old man was targeted.

The process was harrowing; if not for the good luck of running into Gu Kaishan, the old man would have lost his life.

Since then, the old man gained an extra grandson. So, when Gu Ming calls him "Grandpa," it isn't just empty talk.

The two grew up playing together; when Gu Ming asks him for help, he has to help even if he has to skip class.

It isn't complicated: an elder in the family of the girl he is pursuing has a birthday, and the elder likes old objects, so the girl has been scouting for something to suit his taste for a long time.

It just so happened that Gu Ming found out, and he volunteered, saying his foster grandfather and foster brother were both experts.

The girl didn't believe it at first, so Gu Ming directly took a photo of his grandfather's old work ID. The girl took one look and went, "Wow": Xida Cultural Relics Protection professor, archaeology Expert...

But the foster grandfather was out of the question, as he was still in the hospital, so only the foster brother could be sent out.

Lin Sicheng was, of course, happy to oblige: Gu Ming could date anyone he wanted, as long as it wasn't that person from his past life.

A woman who loves to travel alone, loves playing mahjong, and plays all night long—it's hard for her not to cheat...

Just as he was secretly turning this over in his mind, with a "squeak," the taxi stopped at the entrance of the residential compound.

Gu Ming and the girl were sitting in the back seat; the girl had a ponytail, fair skin, and very delicate features.

"Xinfang, this is Lin Sicheng, whom I've often told you about. He's studying Cultural Relics Protection at Xida, a senior this year... This is Li Xinfang, my colleague at the hospital!"

The girl was poised and natural: "Hello!"

It really wasn't that one from his past life?

Lin Sicheng perked up: "Hello, hello, you haven't eaten yet, have you?"

Gu Ming blinked his eyes: "We already ate when we came; you haven't?"

You dog, why didn't you say so earlier? Standing at the entrance of the compound for nothing for so long?

Cursing inwardly, Lin Sicheng sat in the front passenger seat: "I've eaten too. Where are the items? Let's go straight there."

"At Xicang!"

Upon hearing Xicang, Lin Sicheng's heart went half cold: he had been gearing up, ready to show off his skills to help Gu Ming save face.

But Xicang... even if Ma Weidou came, he'd have to leave empty-handed. One can imagine the quality of items the girl scouted herself, right?

But it didn't matter.

If it really came to it, he would just ask Senior Brother Hao for help; what kind of items didn't Rongbaozhai have?

In the blink of an eye, the taxi started, and half an hour later, they arrived at Xicang.

Perhaps because it was morning, the smell wasn't as heavy as the last time he came. There were also very few people, just a scattering here and there.

The girl led the way, and the three of them entered a jade shop.

It was much larger and brighter than the one Lao Song had last time, with rows of glass display cabinets and very bright spotlights.

The materials were of all kinds, and the vessel shapes were Five Flowers and Eight Gates.

They must have come often; as soon as they entered the door, the boss came up to greet them.

"Dr. Li, here to see that string of Court Beads?"

"Yes, please, boss, take it out and let my friend have a look!"

The boss nodded and glanced behind her, a trace of disappointment appearing on his face: the person brought this time, why so young?

Young means no experience, no eye for quality; what kind of decision could he make?

By the end, nine times out of ten, he would say: "I can't be sure either..."

Forget it, the customer is God; he was just waiting for this sale to get through the New Year.

Sighing inwardly, the boss went into the back room and brought out a box.

Li Xinfang was very direct, handing it back: "Lin Sicheng, I'll trouble you!"

"It's my duty!" Lin Sicheng took it.

It was palm-sized, slightly heavy in the hand, with a deep wood color and a faint scent of agarwood.

The box was quite authentic, genuine Hainan Yellow Rosewood, and it was quite old, at least from the late Qing Dynasty.

However, the carving and lacquer work were both average; it must have come from a small workshop.

Taking a glance, Lin Sicheng opened it, and a faint green glow met his eyes.

Court Beads, and Hetian Jasper at that?

The texture was fine, the touch oily and smooth, the color soft—genuine Hetian Mountain Material.

The pores were scattered like stars, the fibrous patterns overlapped, and the traces of the grinding tools were natural and smooth; it was clearly handmade.

There was a matte film formed by long-term oxidation, and the jade quality at the edges of the small holes for the thread was slightly darker, proving it had been handled and polished often for many years.

If one only looked at the beads, they really looked authentic, dating back at least two hundred years, roughly to the mid-Qing period.

There was only one point: the beads were a bit small, and being jade, they belonged to the "miscellaneous treasures" among Qing Dynasty Court Beads, worn by civil officials of the fifth rank and military officials below the fourth rank.

Looking again at the Buddha Head and the Pendant Corner... Lin Sicheng was slightly stunned: something wasn't right?

These few items were actually not from the same era?

Afraid he hadn't seen it clearly, Lin Sicheng took a careful look: that's right, the Buddha Head was mid-Qing, but the Pendant Corner was late Qing or Republic of China.

He pried it open to look at the silk cord; it was indeed a Stone Blue Cord, and it looked quite old, but there were too many loose fibers pulled out from wear.

Leaning in to smell it, Lin Sicheng sighed inwardly: it had been soaked in beef tallow!

The key was that the smell of the beads wasn't right either...

After looking a few times and smelling it a few more, he put the Court Beads back and closed the lid.

Just as he was about to return it, he paused: "Is it okay to just buy the box?"

Li Xinfang was taken aback: "Ah?"

Did that mean it wasn't okay?

Forget it then.

Lin Sicheng placed the box on the counter and pushed it gently inward.

The boss's eyelids twitched: No... what do you mean by that, kid?

If you had asked about the price, said "the price is too high," or simply didn't understand it and said ambiguously "I don't get it," the boss wouldn't have felt any particular way.

But Lin Sicheng didn't ask about the beads, he asked about the box, and with that "I've already seen through you" look, the boss felt like he'd swallowed something foul.

The Water Immortal isn't blooming, are you trying to play the fool with me?

Playing the fool is one thing, but if you go out and spout nonsense, and Doctor Li happens to believe it, who am I going to sell these Qing Dynasty Court Beads to?

As the saying goes, cutting off someone's path to wealth is like killing their parents...

The boss slanted his eyes: "Young man, do you see it clearly or not? If you think there's a problem, just say it directly; don't hem and haw or keep things hidden."

Lin Sicheng chuckled: "I really do know a little bit, so should I really say it?"

"It's fine, go ahead and say it!"

"Alright, the green cord is indeed made of silk, but it hasn't been woven for more than three years. To make it look old, you rubbed beef tallow on the pillar and then kept twisting and winding it...

The Buddha Head and the Pendant Corner are indeed real, but one is from before Jiaqing and the other from after Guangxu, a full hundred years apart..."

"The beads are also real, but they aren't Court Beads, they are Buddhist prayer beads... to put it simply, the kind monks use!"

With every sentence Lin Sicheng spoke, the boss's face turned a shade paler, and by the time he heard "the kind monks use," it had turned green: "My perfectly fine Court Beads of a third-rank official, how did they become monk's... what the hell do you know about appraising?"

"Is that so? I can also smell..."

Lin Sicheng laughed: "Yellow agarwood, capillary wormwood, white cloud, cypress, schizonepeta, clove... plus three types of tea: Wuyi, Lu'an, and yellow tea, and two types of fruit: red dates and walnuts. And five types of dried branches: peach, willow, mulberry, pagoda tree, and paper mulberry..."

"Go find an old master of traditional Chinese medicine: if the scent in the holes of those beads is missing even one of these ingredients, I'll buy these beads, and you can name any price..."

The boss stood there as if frozen, his lips moving, but he didn't dare utter a single word.

He didn't know if there were really that many scents, but he at least knew that before he acquired this string of beads, it had indeed been offered in a temple and hung on a Buddhist shrine for many years.

But what the hell?

He stared at Lin Sicheng, his lips trembling uncontrollably: "I... I'm not selling anymore..."