Chapter 468: Xiguan Mansion

Seeing Ye Anning say nothing, Ye Anlan poked her: "Are you going to call, or am I?"

"Call what?"

"The phone, of course?" Ye Anlan said as if it were obvious, "Let my dad help introduce a collector; he knows a lot of people."

Ye Anning didn't know how to explain: the people Lin Sicheng was looking for were not proper collectors at all.

In fact, they couldn't even be considered collectors...

She shook her head: "It's not great to trouble Fourth Uncle, next time!"

Is it because she feels Lin Sicheng and my dad aren't very close?

If I have Lin Sicheng host a table tonight and we have a meal, wouldn't they be close?

Thinking this to herself, Ye Anlan was just about to say something when Ye Anqi interrupted: "Anlan, if we want Fourth Uncle's help, Anning will ask herself. Don't take it upon yourself."

In fact, it wouldn't even be Ye Anning's turn to speak: at this moment, isn't Wang Sanshu just having tea with Fourth Uncle?

Ye Anlan realized belatedly: if there were a need, Wang Sanshu would have spoken up himself. It seems there must be other arrangements.

Besides, Ye Anning had clearly stated just now: Lin Sicheng has an incredibly sharp eye; he earned tens of millions just by picking up leaks.

But then again: what does having a good eye and a good memory have to do with whether or not one gets cheated?

That relies on experience, on worldly wisdom...

"Then I'll have my dad find two Appraisers to come over!" Ye Anlan looked at Ye Anning, "Their eye for things is definitely good enough, and most importantly, they are locals: they have close connections and a wide social circle. They are definitely more reliable than those two swindlers."

Seeing her blinking eyes, Ye Anning was caught between laughter and tears: Ye Anlan was afraid that Lin Sicheng was too inexperienced in the world and would get cheated.

She must be thinking: Lin Sicheng is something else; knowing how deep the water is in this industry, and knowing those two are swindlers, he still dares to let them be his guides? Isn't he afraid these two swindlers will lead him into a den of thieves?

But the problem is: Lin Sicheng only looks simple on the surface; that face of his is purely for deceiving people...

She hesitated slightly: "Making Fourth Uncle owe a favor, isn't that a bit much?"

"Psh," Ye Anlan looked disgusted, as if to say: Ye Anning, you really know how to put on an act.

It's not like I'm asking my dad to call some leader to get some difficult task done, is it?

Just finding a local snake who knows how to appraise and has social connections to point the way—what kind of favor could that possibly be?

Ye Anning sighed: she couldn't exactly say that Lin Sicheng is an old hand and no one can cheat him.

Hesitating, she looked at Lin Sicheng, and Lin Sicheng nodded: "Trouble Cousin Ye!"

Of course, there was no need to guard against swindlers; they couldn't cheat him even if they wanted to. Besides, Feng Sanjiang wouldn't, and wouldn't dare to.

But this time, the goal was to find clues about those Japanese porcelains. Guangzhou has deep roots with Nanyang and Malaysia; more friends mean more paths, and perhaps they might be able to ask something useful.

"What kind of trouble is this?" Ye Anlan waved her hand dismissively and immediately took out her phone to make the call.

She didn't waste words and got straight to the point: "Dad, help me invite two people who know how to appraise; we're going to stroll through the Old Street this afternoon... Yes, find the kind who know how to look at things and have connections, so we don't get ripped off..."

I don't know what was said on the other end, but after just two or three sentences, Ye Anlan hung up and made an OK gesture: "Done!"

"Thank you, Cousin Ye!"

"Tsk, Lin Sicheng, can you not be so polite?"

"Alright!"

While saying alright, Lin Sicheng smiled politely again. Ye Anlan realized belatedly: with a personality like this, saying anything is a waste of breath. As they spoke, Tao An and Fang Jin entered the private room, carrying several large bags: congee with lean meat from Tang Liyuan, Three-Excellence Congee from Wu Zhanji, stir-fried field snails from Zhen Yi, and grilled oysters.

There was also beef offal, wontons, rice noodles, double-skin milk, mango pomelo sago... the two of them could barely carry any more.

At the same time, the dishes from the restaurant began to be served: white-cut chicken, soy sauce chicken, roast goose, steamed river seafood, mantis shrimp... for a moment, the fresh aroma filled the air. Thinking Lin Sicheng might not be used to the food, Ye Anqi had specifically ordered a few fusion dishes, but unexpectedly, Lin Sicheng went straight for the Cantonese dishes.

And he knew exactly how to eat: without even using his hands, he clamped the shrimp with his chopsticks, bit off the head first, then tore it gently, leaving only an empty shell on his chopsticks.

The field snails were the same: even native Cantonese like Tao An and Ye Anlan had to use their hands, but Lin Sicheng only used chopsticks and a toothpick. One hand to hold, one hand to pick.

Ye Anlan even tried to learn, but it was useless: in Lin Sicheng's hands, the chopsticks were as flexible as if they were extensions of his fingers. But in her hands, they felt like holding two clubs; let alone clamping the shell to pick out the meat, she couldn't even pick up the snail.

After trying several times without success, Ye Anlan looked at Lin Sicheng, looking amazed: "Anning, how are his hands so nimble?"

Ye Anning pursed her lips: what's so special about that?

She had seen Lin Sicheng use an eight-centimeter-diameter brush to paint veins on flower stems thinner than matchsticks.

Seeing Ye Anning not speaking, Ye Anlan didn't know what she was thinking, her eyes rolled slightly, and she giggled.

As smart as Ye Anning was, and having grown up together, how could she not know what she was thinking?

Ye Anning glared at her and gave Ye Anlan an elbow.

They were all young people with cheerful personalities; although they had just met, the atmosphere at the table became increasingly lively.

Especially Lin Sicheng, who had high emotional intelligence, was humorous, and was attentive to everyone.

As they chatted, the three siblings discovered: it seemed like Lin Sicheng could talk about anything?

Oh no, it seemed like he understood everything?

Ye Anqi was in the Maritime Trade Department, which is rare enough—in any case, Xijing definitely doesn't have this unit—but Lin Sicheng still talked about it with great expertise. Ye Anlan's profession was even more obscure, one could even call it rare: the International Economic and Technical Cooperation Exchange Center of the Ocean Bureau. To put it bluntly: an international maritime affairs negotiator.

For example, fishing across borders, or oil tankers leaking oil; as long as it didn't involve the military, this department was basically responsible.

And this position of Ye Anlan's, many people hadn't even heard of it, and didn't even know which department it belonged to. But Lin Sicheng could still chat back and forth with Ye Anlan.

He knew the content of her work, and even more so the nature of her work, what aspects it involved, what the focus was, and even what techniques were used; he was crystal clear about it all.

It was as if Lin Sicheng had been doing it for many years.

They were close, and he might even become a relative. If it were anyone else or any other occasion, Ye Anlan would have suspected that Lin Sicheng had investigated her. Taking advantage of the moment when Lin Sicheng was chatting with Tao An, Ye Anlan looked amazed: "Ye Anning, how does he know everything?"

Ye Anning pursed her lips: what else?

Otherwise, how could my mom and dad praise him so highly?

Eating and chatting, about two hours passed, and they were full and satisfied.

Ye Anqi paid the bill and added three hundred in service fees as compensation for the takeout food.

The group walked out of the hotel in a grand manner. As if they had been waiting outside for a long time, just as they stepped down the stairs, Feng Sanjiang and Ding Aqin came up to greet them. "Lin Shifu, the plates have been sent over, to the Panyu Lianhuashan Ancient Kiln Site Restoration Workshop..."

"This place uses an authentic Dragon Kiln wood-firing process, so the technique is definitely not a problem. I specifically asked Master Zhai (the workshop owner) to watch the fire himself..." Feng Sanjiang had indeed put in the effort: if you talk about Colored Porcelain, the best at Imitating the Ancients is definitely the Guangzhou Zhijin Colored Porcelain Craft Factory. But if you talk about firing Imitating the Ancients porcelain or other artistic porcelain, Lianhuashan is more suitable.

During the Southern Song Dynasty, Lianhuashan produced imitations of Ge ware and Secret Color Porcelain. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the majority of blue-and-white and Colored Porcelain in the Lingnan region came from the Chaozhou kilns, with a smaller portion from Lianhuashan.

The key is that the kiln fires basically never went out; they were still firing during the Republic of China.

Lin Sicheng smiled: "You two have worked hard!"

Feng Sanjiang and Ding Aqin hurriedly bowed: "Master Lin, you are too kind!"

Watching the three of them talking there, Ye Anlan curled her lip and gave Ye Anning a look. It was as if she were saying: "If they are offering favors for no reason, they are either treacherous or thieves." Lin Sicheng is the same; since he knows they are swindlers, why is he still being so polite to them?

Ye Anqi, however, was lost in thought: It is possible that Lin Sicheng does not understand. After all, he is too young and specializes in Artifact Research, so he does not have much energy and might not understand the twists and turns of society.

But to say that Wang Sanshu does not understand either, that is a bit of a joke.

Wang Sanshu must know that these two are swindlers, yet he still let Lin Sicheng have contact with them; there must be some reason for it.

Just as these thoughts were turning, Ye Anlan's phone rang: the two Appraisers arranged by her father had arrived.

One man and one woman, both in their forties, very spirited and very polite.

Ye Anlan introduced them briefly, saying they were siblings and friends from home.

But the two could tell: whether they were siblings or so-called friends, they were all either wealthy or noble.

First, look at their attire; second, look at their temperament. The Ye family descendants go without saying, but the key is this one surnamed Lin: vaguely, at least four people were looking to him for cues.

Two men and two women; two of them were relatively young, and the remaining two were in their thirties.

Especially that older pair: their hands were as black as if stained with ink, which showed at a glance that they were experts in the trade.

The two immediately guessed roughly: these people must have come from out of town and certainly have a good eye. They were just afraid of being fleeced because they were unfamiliar with the place, which is why they specifically invited the two of them over.

Since they were local experts, of course, there was no problem.

After a brief introduction, the group walked toward the Guwancheng.

The Guwancheng is also on Longjin Road, but at the west end, while Xiangqun Restaurant is at the east end, about two kilometers apart.

It was also a coincidence that it happened to be right next to Lihu; this road was full of flower markets, so driving was out of the question, and they could only walk.

It was just as well, it could count as walking off the meal.

It was just mealtime, and the number of people on the street had not decreased, but rather increased; from time to time, one could see carts selling street snacks.

Ye Anning was a foodie, and Ye Anlan was no less so; from time to time, the two would buy some strange things: dace balls, sesame paste, and fried taro cakes.

Lin Sicheng was not picky, eating whatever was given to him.

The two Appraisers accompanied Ye Anqi and Tao An, telling them about the history of the Xiguan Guwancheng.

Ye Anlan did not like to listen, Ye Anning had no time to listen, and the others felt it was boring.

Like Feng Sanjiang and Ding Aqin, they were not only locals of Guangzhou but had even learned their craft there, so they were naturally extremely familiar with it.

Li Zhen and Fang Jin had heard Lin Sicheng talk about it, not only about antiques but also about the different schools.

For example, the terms "domestic goods" and "foreign goods" in the jargon of Grave Robbing originated from Xiguan, Guangzhou, during the Republic of China.

At that time, there were four biggest antique dealers in the country: Jin Bosheng, Yao Shulai (brother-in-law of Zhang Jingjiang), Dai Runzhai, and Lu Qinzhai (servant of the Zhang Jingjiang family).

Regardless of where these four collected from—whether from Beijing, Tianjin, or the capitals of various provinces—they ultimately sold them overseas. The first three basically shipped them out from Shanghai, but Lu Qinzhai shipped them out from Guangzhou. For this reason, he even specifically established a branch in Guangzhou, dedicated to transshipment and receiving goods.

The old site is in the current Guwancheng; it was originally called Laiyuanxuan. It occupied over a thousand square meters, was a full four stories high, and accepted all kinds of Cultural Relics. Over time, this area became the largest distribution center for Cultural Relics in Lingnan, with most people supplying Laiyuanxuan: they would sell the good ones to Laiyuanxuan, and if Laiyuanxuan did not like them or accept them, they would sell them themselves.

At its peak, there were hundreds of antique shops in this area.

And over time, due to various interest relationships, the Traveling Merchant automatically split into three factions:

The first was "foreign goods," headed by Laiyuanxuan, with Huang's as second, and Yonghe as third, specializing in selling Cultural Relics to Europe and America.

The second was "domestic goods": the most famous were Xiangzhenzhai, Taoguju, and Xibaoge. They specialized in collecting what leaked through Lu Qinzhai's fingers and then reselling them to Southeast Asia, South Asia, as well as Shanghai and Beijing.

The third category was what is known in antique jargon as "bundle peddlers": they did not open shops, only gathered goods, and moved from place to place.

Since there were those who collected and sold, there were naturally those who stored: the most famous was Mr. Chen Jiageng, who supported his collection through business. After the founding of the country, he donated to build the Xiamen Overseas Chinese Museum, and just the first batch of donated precious Cultural Relics reached over four thousand pieces.

Besides them, there were Li Guangqian, Hu Wenhu, Fang Wen, Wang Jiqian... every one of them was a modern overseas Chinese leader and a commercial giant in Southeast Asia and South Asia.

The commercial empires they created have now penetrated every aspect of various countries.

According to Lin Sicheng's thinking, he did not ask to know the direct descendants of these families; even if he could just know a driver or a secretary, his trip to Nanyang this time would basically be considered settled.

The problem is, how to get to know them?

Like Chen Weihua, whose business is big enough and who knows many Nanyang Chinese merchants, but the most influential ones do not compare to the secretaries and drivers he wants to know. Unless he asks a teacher for help.

But in the end, he still has to ask Cousin Ye's father and mother to step in, and once he owes that, it is a huge favor.

Lin Sicheng felt: for such a small matter, it is not worth it...

Walking and pondering, they got closer and closer to Lihu, and there were more and more tourists.

Fearing that it would be blocked ahead and they could not get through, the male Appraiser surnamed Yao led them into a small alley.

Outside the alley were high-rise buildings and deafening gongs and drums; inside the alley were green walls and gray tiles, full of antique charm.

The further they walked, the quieter it became, as if they had entered two different worlds.

Fang Jin looked left and right, feeling exceptionally curious: "Guangfu-style dwellings?"

Lin Sicheng nodded: "Yes!"

To be precise: Xiguan Mansion.

Xiguan is the current Li District; the so-called Xiguan Mansion refers to the mansions with Guangfu characteristics built by noble families and wealthy merchants in the surrounding streets during the late Qing Dynasty, centered on the old site of the Thirteen Hongs (now Cultural Park).

There are not many left now, mainly concentrated in the areas of Duobao Road, Fengyuan Road, and Longjin West Road.

Fang Jin looked yearning: "Very valuable, right?"

"Of course!"

Whether in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the Republic of China, or now, Xiguan has always been the commercial center of Guangzhou.

What's more, it is also a historical building designated as a protected area.