Chapter 75: Another Case to Reopen?

At eight o'clock, Lin Sicheng arrived at the school on time, and the teacher and student took a moment to eat a Bowl of Huchun.

They arrived at the Shijian at ten minutes to nine, where Guan Xingmin was waiting downstairs early with two Section Chiefs.

As soon as the two stepped out of the car, Guan Xingmin walked up quickly: "Professor Wang, thank you for your hard work!"

Wang Qi Zhi joked half-heartedly: "Director Guan, I didn't work that hard last time; the one who worked hard was Lin Sicheng!"

Understanding the hidden meaning behind the words, Guan Xingmin immediately guaranteed: "Secretary Wang, you can rest assured. Whoever deserves the credit will absolutely not lose it; the leaders remember everything!"

As he spoke, he gave Lin Sicheng a reassuring look.

Amidst the joking, the group entered the building.

Wang Qi Zhi had always been swift and decisive; if he could do something a second earlier, he would never delay it by a second. He declined Guan Xingmin's suggestion to "go to the Reception Room for a cup of tea first," went straight to the authentication room, and changed into a white lab coat upon entering.

Lin Sicheng acted as an assistant, the Section Chief and the female police officer from before were still recording, and Guan Xingmin accompanied them.

All the physical evidence was laid out on a long table, over twenty items of various sizes. A casual glance, and "whoosh," the eyes of the teacher and student suddenly lit up:

In the middle of the long table stood an object about half a meter high, greenish all over, and shaped like a wine jar.

On top of the "wine jar" stood a tiger.

No one made a sound; the two stepped forward in unison.

First they looked, then they touched, then they tapped, and they even worked together to lift it up to examine the bottom.

Then, the teacher and student looked at each other, silent.

Could it actually be... real?

An eye-opener: to actually see a national treasure here?

This thing was at least from the Han Dynasty or earlier; if it was unearthed from a tomb, the tomb owner was at least a feudal lord. For example, in the tomb of Zhongshan Prince Liu Sheng, an ancestor of Liu Bei, an identical piece was unearthed in the Mancheng Han Tombs.

The key is that from the Spring and Autumn period to the Han Dynasty, only about twenty such artifacts have been unearthed in total. Without exception, all were preserved in an oxygen-free environment. Those on display in Museums are all replicas.

So where did this one come from?

The key is, how was it cleaned into this state?

The two looked grave and remained silent. Guan Xingmin thought there was something wrong with the item and started to get nervous, before Wang Qi Zhi finally let out a breath:

"Broad shoulders, narrow waist, flat top, straight mouth!"

Lin Sicheng also nodded: "The base has interlocking cloud patterns; it should be a ritual vessel!"

Wang Qi Zhi: "A Humu, originating from the Zhou, used for sacrifices, celebrations, and battlefield command!"

Lin Sicheng: "The original vessel used gold-inlay craftsmanship, decorated very densely with gold. Later, the gold ornaments were pried off, and the copper rust was washed away. But the acid was too strong, and the patterns were destroyed."

Wang Qi Zhi picked up the Magnifying Glass again, looking back and forth: "What about the era, Qin or Han?"

Lin Sicheng also lowered his head: "The shoulder and the ring have string bands, with three leaves hanging below; the interlocking cloud pattern is a cloud-and-thunder pattern set against diagonal hexagons... it should be Western Han, and early Han at that!"

The teacher and student went back and forth, the Section Chief and the female police officer recorded non-stop, and after checking the data, they praised them inwardly: almost word for word.

An early Han Humu, gold-inlay craftsmanship; because the rust-removing solution was too acidic, most of the gold-inlay grooves and surface patterns were washed away.

What surprised them was: it was not strange that the teacher could see it, but was the student's eye for detail also this sharp?

It even felt... a little bit sharper than the teacher's?

Lin Sicheng glanced at it again: "Director Guan, where was it dug up?"

"Longshouyuan!"

Good heavens, Weiyang Palace... combined with the early Han: was it specifically used for playing ritual music for Liu Bang?

A national treasure among national treasures!

In that case, the crime was even more severe: not only did they rob a Western Han imperial palace site, but they also washed a national treasure into this state; wouldn't they be pedaling the sewing machine until it smoked?

"How many years was the main culprit sentenced to?"

"Sentenced?"

Guan Xingmin made a gesture of shooting a gun.

Lin Sicheng was startled, his heart stirred, and he looked at Wang Qi Zhi.

Wang Qi Zhi thought for a moment and shook his head.

As the saying goes, like attracts like; although the teacher and student had not been together for long, their rapport was top-notch.

Lin Sicheng: Teacher, can this thing be restored?

Wang Qi Zhi: It can be restored, but it takes too much time and has no benefit: it can't be sold, there might be a little honor, but at most the Public Security Bureau and the Museum will each give a certificate of merit!

It would be better for you to restore a few more pieces of porcelain...

Lin Sicheng nodded: That's true, it's better to send it directly to the Provincial Museum; there are plenty of experts there.

Unable to understand what this pair of teacher and student were hinting at, Guan Xingmin did not yet know that a credit had flown away right before his eyes.

Without further picking, the two continued to look down from here, and truth be told, there were quite a few good things.

A Guanyin Bronze Statue with a water-wave hairstyle, with gold threads inlaid on the edges of the monk's robe. The clothing folds and decorations were made by Hammering, the folds were fine and dense, elegant and natural, clearly carrying the "Wu's drapery floating in the Wind" style.

The head was nearly silver-white, indicating a very high tin content, at least over twenty percent. The lower part appeared yellow, close to gold, and the tin content was significantly lower, at most ten percent.

This is a typical casting characteristic of the Grand Preceptor Office of the Tang Dynasty under Emperor Xuanzong; the artistic composition and craftsmanship level were extremely high, which also meant the amount involved in the case was extremely high.

There was also a Song Dynasty Curved Spout Ewer, and three Bronze Mirrors with High Relief from the Yuan and Ming periods; although not official works, the artistic level was quite high.

After looking at a few more pieces, the teacher and student gasped: What is this... Bronze Bo?

It is no wonder the two were so surprised, because this thing was even rarer than the previous Humu; only four have been unearthed in the whole country.

The first three were the Qin Gong Bo unearthed in Baoji, now in the collection of a Level One Museum, the Baoji Bronze Institute, which was where Professor Wang used to work.

The latter one was unearthed from the more famous Zeng Hou Yi Tomb: among which there were fifty-four chime bells, and only one Bo.

This thing had only two functions: one for sacrifice, and two for tuning all musical instruments; it could be called the ancestor of all music.

"Book of Rites": Then play the Huangzhong, sing the Dalu, dance the Yunmen, to sacrifice to the Heavenly God... the so-called Huangzhong refers to the bell.

If one had to make a comparison: the Bo is the elder brother, the chime bells are the younger brothers, and that previous Humu is the youngest of the youngest of the youngest...

The two men could be considered knowledgeable and experienced, yet they were still stunned into a daze, their necks stretching forward in unison.

Just as Wang Qi Zhi brought the Magnifying Glass close, the teacher and student were both taken aback once more.

In the center of the bell's belly, two inscriptions were carved: Dasheng.

Haha, a Song Huizong imitation?

It gave me a start; I thought a fifth "Bo" bell had popped up?

The shape is the same, the size is the same, and even the weight should be more or less the same; Huizong even personally named it "Yellow Bell," but history does not recognize it.

Because the pitch of this bell is half a tone higher than the Bo bell, it is historically known as the Dasheng Bianzhong.

A great many were made at the time, with one set allocated to each prefecture, so there are as many as a thousand of these in existence.

Quite a few have been unearthed, and because their primary function was for "setting the pitch," they are classified as ritual vessels, making their historical value extremely high.

Correspondingly, the prison sentence is also heavy. Do not doubt it; if one dares to dig them up, it is a guaranteed fifteen years or more.

After examining it carefully, there was basically no discrepancy with the previous appraisal results, and the two continued their appraisal.

After appraising a few more items, they finally saw the Kangxi Imitation Xuande Censer that Guan Xingmin had mentioned multiple times, and Lin Sicheng perked up.

The Shijian appraised it as fake, the Provincial Department also certified it as fake, but the Expert hired by the defense Lawyer insisted it was real, so there must certainly be some story behind it.

With these thoughts turning in his mind, he held up the Magnifying Glass and leaned in to look closely:

First, look at the shape: a typical Yajing Furnace with a flat rim and drum belly; the censer body is simple and fluid, the circular foot flares outward, and three nipple-shaped studs are cast inside—simple, yet stable.

Next, look at the material: the texture is dense and firm, with a greenish-gray hue hidden within the jujube red, interspersed with brown spots.

This spot has a specific name: Tangli Spot.

The name sounds very pleasant, but to put it plainly, it is a flaw: the reason is that the Qing Dynasty changed the formula, reducing the copper purity compared to the Ming Dynasty Xuande Incense Burner, and increasing impurities such as iron and sulfur, which caused uneven oxidation at high temperatures.

However, this so-called flaw was only considered such at the time; nowadays, it has become one of the pieces of evidence for "Qing Three Generations" Imitation Xuande Censer.

Continuing to look down: the entire body is covered in Gold-gilding, uniform in thickness; even though it has been buried for three hundred years and most of it has corroded away, the remaining parts are still as bright as new, shining like gold.

Now look at the mark: Great Ming Xuan... Haha, what is this: the "De" character is missing a horizontal stroke in the heart?

At first glance, a forgery?

But on the contrary, it is precisely because this horizontal stroke is missing that the possibility of this item being a genuine palace piece is much closer.

Because there were two places that made Xuande Incense Burner during the Kangxi era: both belonged to the fourteen workshops of the Wuying Hall Zaozuochang, the former being the Casting Censer Office, and the latter the Copper Inlay Office.

This piece should have come from the Copper Inlay Office, where the "De" character was consistently missing a horizontal stroke, implicitly suggesting the Great Ming had no virtue.

But it existed for a very short time; after Yongzheng ascended the throne, it was changed back, and the output was not high. Even fewer remain in existence.

Therefore, don't look at how this thing doesn't seem very eye-catching and is even a bit dirty. If it is a genuine piece, four million would definitely not cover it; the market price should be around six million.

Seeing this, the teacher and student looked at each other: this was already half an appraisal, so why did it feel like this thing... was somewhat real?

It couldn't be that the Municipal Bureau would have to overturn the case again, could it?