Chapter 492: Customs Detained It

After resting for another two days, New Year's Day had passed.

Since he was idle anyway, Lin Sicheng finished painting the two porcelain plates from before and had Feng Sanjiang help fire them.

Including the one belonging to Ye Anlan, the three colored plates were set on the table; the figures were vivid, and the colors were bright.

Ye Anqi and Tao An truly did not know much about porcelain, but they at least had a basic sense of aesthetics and knew whether something looked good or not.

If one had to make them describe it, two words could summarize it: beautiful, exquisite.

Holding the Guan Gong Plate, Ye Anqi could not put it down, and his laughter never ceased. Tao An kept taking pictures with his phone, his mouth stretched to the base of his ears. Only Ye Anlan, with a mournful face, felt as if her guts had turned green with regret.

When painting them before, it felt like there was no difference between the three plates. But who would have thought that after firing, the difference would be so great?

It was not that they were not good-looking, nor was it that Lin Sicheng's craftsmanship was poor; he had painted with great care, and the brushwork of the three colored plates was on par.

The difference lay in the value.

Her father had said it himself: if he were to buy it, he would give at most two or three thousand for this one of Ye Anlan's.

But for that Guan Gong Plate of Ye Anqi's, as long as it didn't exceed ten thousand, he would pay on the spot.

Tao An's San Niang Teaches Her Son Plate was even more expensive; selling it for twelve or thirteen thousand would be no problem at all.

Ye Anlan just couldn't understand: they were all painted by the same person, why was the gap so large?

Seeing her twisted face, Ye Anning gloated: "I reminded you several times, but you wouldn't listen; regretting it now?"

Ye Anlan glared at her and sighed: money can't buy foresight.

"Don't worry, wait until he's not busy one day, and he'll paint another one for you!"

It wasn't that Ye Anning was being polite, but for Lin Sicheng, it really was just a matter of convenience.

Ye Anlan rolled her eyes: "Really?"

"Pfft," Ye Anning looked disgusted, "Can you be any more hypocritical?"

The two laughed and joked, and Ye Anqi put the plates away, saying he would arrange lunch.

Lin Sicheng said he would arrange it.

It wasn't that he was embarrassed; it was truly that eating Cantonese food every day had turned the faces of Wang Qi Zhi and Zhao Xiuneng green. Upon hearing the words "seafood," the scalps of both men would go numb.

This included Ye Anning as well; having grown up in the north, she always felt Cantonese food was too bland.

Saying they would go, they went; Lin Sicheng picked up his coat: "Let's go, Aiqun Mansion!"

Ye Anqi was stunned: "What are we eating, Western food?"

Lin Sicheng shook his head: "Eating Northwest cuisine!"

Ye Anqi recalled: Aiqun Mansion had Northwest cuisine? How did he not know?

Aiqun Mansion was on Changdi (the new Pearl River embankment), roughly equivalent to the Bund in Shanghai. During the Republic of China, that area was the commercial Center of Guangzhou, where every inch of land was worth an inch of gold.

There were extremely many hotels there, no shortage of time-honored restaurants, and even the country's first revolving restaurant in the sky.

But Northwest cuisine... he had absolutely no impression of it?

Ye Anlan loved to shop, and Tao An loved to have fun; the two had been to Changdi many times and likewise had no impression.

"I heard it from a friend, we'll see when we get there. If they don't have it, Western food is fine too..."

The group was indifferent: there were plenty of hotels in that area anyway, and they were all quite distinctive.

The group left the suite and called Wang Qi Zhi and Zhao Xiuneng. Upon hearing they were going to eat Northwest cuisine, the two were more than just active.

Eating Cantonese food every day, if they were to tell the truth: their mouths were almost fading to the point of having no taste at all.

It wasn't that it wasn't delicious, but the environment of a place shapes the people who live there...

Driving three cars, the group headed to Changdi in a grand procession.

After finding a place to park, Lin Sicheng led the group, walking along the river embankment.

They crossed Jinghai Road, arrived at Yide Road, and finally ducked into a small alley.

Before they even reached the front, a resonant operatic singing voice drifted over, and Wang Qi Zhi and Zhao Xiuneng quickened their pace.

Arriving at the door, they saw the black sign with gold characters, and the two were as if stunned: Qinyunxuan?

Just by listening to the Qin opera playing from the speakers, one knew it was an authentic Northwest restaurant.

The place wasn't big, just a two-story building, and it was in a deep alley; how did Lin Sicheng know about it?

His friend told him?

Did he have friends that Wang Qi Zhi and Zhao Xiuneng didn't know about?

Amidst their suspicion, the two stepped onto the threshold. Just as they entered the shop, the scorched fragrance of oil-splashed chili mixed with the aroma of minced meat drilled into their nostrils. The two looked at each other: "Oh~"

When a native of Shaanxi goes to another place, if they want to eat Shaanxi food and want to know if the shop is selling dog meat under a sheep's head, they just look at the menu: do they have Oil-Splashed Noodles, do they have Sausage Noodles.

If they want to know if it's delicious, they sniff the air: a native of Shaanxi knows with one sniff whether the shop is run by outsiders or by people from Shaanxi. Smelling this scent now, it was just two words: authentic!

Seeing people enter the shop, a woman around thirty years old came up to greet them.

Lin Sicheng didn't even need to look at the menu: "Give us the largest private room; Steamed Mutton, Gaoli Meat, Gourd Chicken, Steamed Pork, Pig Trotter, braised trotters... Three Skin Shreds (special sheep tripe), Money Meat (cured donkey leg) if you have them, one of each... Additionally, steam a fresh sea fish, and match it with a few of your signature Cantonese dishes and vegetable dishes..."

"For soup, bring a Steamed Basin; if you don't have that, then serve the Pot Fish; if you have both, serve them all... For staples, we want three kinds: Sausage Noodles, Oil-Splashed Noodles, and Noodle Skin, a few bowls of each... Hmm, also bring two pieces of pot helmet bread..."

Lin Sicheng spoke extremely fast, and the woman recorded just as quickly; in the blink of an eye, she had filled a sheet of paper.

The key was that she just recorded without asking, let alone saying this dish wasn't available or that dish wasn't available?

This meant that everything Lin Sicheng ordered, they could all make here?

Just these items he ordered were all the most authentic Guanzhong cuisine.

What was even rarer was that they actually had Noodle Skin and pot helmet bread?

With these two items, believe it or not, eight out of ten Cantonese people wouldn't even know what they were.

Selling them in this place, they might not even sell one portion a month...

Wang Qi Zhi looked amazed: "Run by a native of Shaanxi?"

"Yes, after the failure of the Second Revolution (the war against Yuan Shikai initiated by Mr. Sun), Yu Youren and Han Wangchen were wanted by the Yuan Shikai government; when they went to Japan to seek refuge, they once lived here for a period of time..."

"Later, it was bought by Zhou Wenhuan, who named it 'Northwest Hall', specifically to raise military funds for the Northwest Army... In the eighties, Zhou Wenhuan returned to the country, bought these two floors, and renamed it Qinyunxuan..."

The three people Lin Sicheng mentioned were all from Shaanxi; the first two were members of the Tongmenghui and famous politicians during the Republic of China.

The latter was a tycoon in Shaanxi during the late Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China. In the late Qing period, the "Yutaifeng" firm operated by the Zhou family spread across Tianjin, Luzhou, Wuhan, and Chongqing. By the Republic era, Yutaifeng was passed down to Zhou Wenhuan, who funded Feng Yuxiang's uprising... After the Xi'an Incident, he was wanted by the Nationalist government, fled with his whole family to Hong Kong, and only returned in the eighties.

"Is this Mr. Zhou still alive?"

Lin Sicheng shook his head: "Mr. Zhou has passed away; this was opened by his eldest son... He left in a hurry at the time, and he was left behind in the country, only reuniting in the eighties..."

"At that time, he was a chef at the Xi'an Hotel. He lived in Hong Kong for two years, but because he wasn't quite used to it, he returned to Guangzhou and then opened this Qinyunxuan."

Wang Qi Zhi suddenly realized.

When it came to Cultural Relics, antiques, and historical allusions, Lin Sicheng understood more than anyone.

This restaurant had such a long history that it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it a Cultural Relic from the revolutionary period; it was not strange at all that Lin Sicheng knew this place. No wonder this restaurant could make any Guanzhong dish?

After chatting for a while, the cold dishes were served, and the noodles were brought up as well.

Then, "Slurp, slurp~", "Slurp, slurp..."

In the blink of an eye, there were six empty bowls on the table.

In another blink, there were six more empty bowls.

Ye Anlan was stunned.

It was fine for the four men; they had big appetites and ate fast, which was normal.

What surprised her was that Ye Anning and Li Zhen could actually eat so much too?

Especially Ye Anning; the sisters had been together every day these past few days, so when had she ever seen her eat like this?

Ye Anning, however, didn't care at all, wiped her mouth, and went to pick up a third bowl, but there were no more noodles on the table.

Lin Sicheng had deliberately not ordered more; the bowls were the size of a fist, and ten or so had been served in total. Otherwise, what would they do with all the remaining dishes?

Ye Anlan dipped her chopsticks into the soup and smacked her lips: "Is it that delicious?"

Ye Anning pursed her lips: "Isn't it the same when you go to Beijing?"

That was true.

As soon as Ye Anlan arrived in Beijing, she would search the streets for Cantonese restaurants.

After a while, the hot dishes were also served; the Shaanxi cuisine was authentic, and the Cantonese cuisine wasn't bad either.

They didn't drink white spirits, but warmed two pots of yellow wine and had a few small drinks.

Halfway through the meal, Ye Anqi asked about Lin Sicheng's upcoming plans.

"Nothing much these few days, just wandering around. Going to Hong Kong on Saturday to check out the Sotheby's autumn auction..."

"When are you going abroad?"

Lin Sicheng calculated: "Should be mid-month!"

After all, it was abroad; it wasn't possible to just go on a whim, at least they had to find some leads.

According to the previous plan, they were to ask Chen Weihua in Hong Kong to help make contact and introduce a few local Chinese collectors.

Chen Weihua did make introductions, but after Wang Qi Zhi inquired, he felt they were all a bit lacking.

One reason was that the few people he introduced had average local influence, and the other was that their relationship with Chen Weihua was just that of ordinary clients. Doing business or exchanging pleasantries was fine.

But if they were asked to help find rare ancient porcelain, especially the kind dug out of tombs, that would be forcing them.

Singapore was a bit better, but Malaysia and Indonesia were both Muslim countries...

However, they were lucky to have met Peng Yanzhi and Chen Shiquan. Relatively speaking, Lin Sicheng's relationship with these two was closer. Furthermore, these two really did have channels in this area.

Especially Chen Shiquan; a considerable portion of his collection was acquired from overseas Chinese collectors.

Chen Shiquan had already made arrangements; after Hu Pangzi arrived and they finished watching the Hong Kong autumn auction, they would set off.

Ye Anqi was quite regretful: "I was going to invite a few friends and ask you to go out to sea to have some fun, go fishing, and see the islands..."

Before he could finish speaking, Ye Anning started to pout. Ye Anlan was more direct, glaring at him: "Second Brother, don't you believe I'll tell on you to our eldest uncle?" Ye Anqi wasn't afraid at all: "Tell if you want, didn't you hear me say it's taking Sicheng fishing..."

Ye Anlan let out a "Hmph": "Then why don't you invite me and Anning, and why don't you invite Wang Sanshu?"

Ye Anqi couldn't be bothered to talk to her.

Had anyone ever heard of taking elders and younger sisters along when going out to sea to have fun?

Of course, the people going were all young, and there would be no shortage of female companions. But he wouldn't take Lin Sicheng to anything too excessive.

Who knows, they might be family in the future; if the third uncle found out, he could skin him alive...

He glared: "Ye Anlan, if you don't understand, shut up!"

Ye Anlan sneered: "Fine, I'll shut up!"

In any case, she had made up her mind: as long as Ye Anqi dared to take Lin Sicheng, she would dare to report him.

Ye Anning was quite calm, and Wang Qi Zhi was even calmer: even if Lin Sicheng went, he would only go fishing and look at the sea.

It could be said that Lin Sicheng's leisure life was more puritanical than a Puritan's.

Wang Qi Zhi at least loved to drink, and Zhao Xiuneng went without saying; although he was over sixty, there was nothing a man liked that he didn't love. But Lin Sicheng didn't even play many card games.

It wasn't that he didn't have time, nor that he didn't know how, but that he didn't like it.

After sitting for a while longer, they had Li Zhen settle the bill, and the group went downstairs.

There was nothing to do in the afternoon, so Lin Sicheng prepared to contact Peng Yanzhi and go to the Provincial Museum for a look around.

Peng Yanzhi had mentioned it, Wang Qi Zhi had said so too, and Director Lu had even called specifically to say that if he had time, he should come to the Provincial Museum to give Peng Yanzhi some pointers. This was, of course, a joke; no matter how arrogant or conceited Lin Sicheng was, he couldn't possibly go to a provincial-level museum and start bossing people around.

At most, he would just observe and learn.

If he happened to encounter something he understood, he would certainly not hesitate to exchange ideas.

Thinking this over secretly, the group arrived at the parking lot, and Lin Sicheng took out his phone, preparing to call Peng Yanzhi.

But just as the number was pulled up and before he could dial, the phone gave a "ring-a-ling".

Three characters were displayed on the screen: Feng Sanjiang.

Lin Sicheng answered the call smoothly: "Master Feng—..."

But there was no one speaking on the other end of the line.

It sounded like he was in a building; the sound was very hollow, with leather shoes stepping on stairs, "Clang~ clang~ clang~ clang..."

Just as he was feeling puzzled, there was another "thud" sound, as if a door had been shut.

Immediately after, Feng Sanjiang's voice came through, kept very low, and he was panting: "Lin Shifu, Hu Pangzi is in trouble..."

Lin Sicheng paused for a moment: "Master Feng, don't be anxious, tell me slowly..."

"Okay!" Feng Sanjiang took two heavy breaths, "Last night, Hu Pangzi called, saying he would arrive this morning and asked me to pick him up... But after I got to the port, I couldn't wait for him, and Hu Pangzi wouldn't answer his phone either... It was almost twelve o'clock when someone finally called: he had been detained by Customs..."

"Detained by Customs, which Customs, Hong Kong?"

"No, it's Shenzhen Customs, at Luohu Port..."

Lin Sicheng was stunned for a moment: "What did he bring?"

"I don't know either... After receiving the call from Customs, we went to the port. As soon as we arrived, our phones were confiscated, and then we were locked in a small room and interrogated until now..."

"They asked for basic information and went through our phones... They asked a whole lot of questions, but there was no focus, and I don't know what they were investigating. Finally, after checking our bank statements... they let us out..."

They even checked bank statements?

Lin Sicheng pondered for a moment: the problem shouldn't be too big.

Nine times out of ten, it was because Hu Pangzi brought some relatively sensitive antique that Customs identified as suspected Smuggling, so they detained it.

If it were other contraband, Feng Sanjiang wouldn't have been interrogated for just this short while.

Besides, Hong Kong Customs is no pushover; if the items were truly wrong, Hu Pangzi wouldn't have been able to bring them over at all...