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Published at 10th of May 2018 08:00:36 AM


Chapter 32

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Antique Market Leftovers (3)

“Haha, this girl talks big, why don’t you tell uncle how much you got that twisting circlet for?” That person laughed.

“It’s very expensive, it took five kuai!” Yang ZiMei raised her face to say. For people who see his matured looks in contrast with her childish adorable facial features, they wouldn’t be able to bear but want to reach out and pinch those cheeks.

“Yes, five kuai sure is expensive, haha.” There were many others from the side who let out a smile, they thought this little girl was very interesting.

Yang ZiMei couldn’t be bothered with them and waited for her appraisal results to see who’d still be smiling afterwards.

Several pieces appraised in the front were also counterfeits. The uncle that snickered at her a moment ago and had spent five thousand kuai on a blue and white vase, was determined by the appraiser to be an imitation worth at most, a hundred kuai. He was so mad that he smashed the vase on the spot.

Yang ZiMei’s little figure stood before the appraiser’s high table while the appraiser only saw a little white hand lift up an antique twisting circlet. He stood up and bent over to look at Yang ZiMei.

“Mister, please help me check this!” Yang ZiMei said in a juvenile tone with an earnest face.

The appraiser originally wanted to tell her to go home to play when he glanced over the twisting circlet and thought it seems special. He might-as-well took it and carefully examined.

The more he looked, the more his expression became surprised and serious. As he looked more carefully, he brought out a thick book and repeatedly compared it for a while.

From his attitude, the observers were able to pick up on a certain scent.

“No way right? Could what that little girl had be the real thing?”

“Heard that it costed five kuai, it can’t really be the real thing right?”

“What would a kid understand about the leftovers, I don’t believe her luck is so good that she could just randomly pick up a genuine item. How would the rest of us live?”

“Hard to say, look at how Master Song’s expression is so earnest, he wasn’t even this serious when examining that furnace a while ago.”

……

The crowd commented one after the other. Seeing that the appraiser couldn’t come to a conclusion after examining for half an hour, the impatience bought up another commotion.

After a long time, the appraiser very carefully held the twisting circlet as if it was a treasure and asked Yang ZiMei: “Little girl, where are your parents? I want to discuss something with them.”

“Mister, if there’s a matter, you can discuss with me. That’s something I bought and has nothing to do with my parents. Besides, my dad hurt his leg so he’s in the hospital and can’t come.”

“This needs to be discussed with adults, does your family have any other adults? I’ll help you phone them over.”

“Mister, are you trying to say my item is the real thing?”

The appraiser nodded.

The crowd gasped in a big breath.

Ahh the heavens, that thing purchased with five kuai was unexpectedly a genuine article. That little girl’s luck is simply too good.

“Master Song, what origins does this twisting circlet have? It looks very ordinary.” The furnace old man from before hadn’t left and asked out of curiosity.

“This bronze dates back to the Shang Dynasty but the gilding technique, from my antiques understanding, should be from the Warring States period. However, this twisting circlet seems to contradict this assertion.” Within the appraiser’s eyes shone excitement as he said, “This is definitely a history making antique discovery kind of treasure. [1]

Yang ZiMei couldn’t really understand his meaning but knew that her twisting circlet had a long history and should be worth a lot.

“About how much would it be worth?” The nearby crowd sucked in a breath and prudently asked.

The appraiser shook his head, “The value is not something I can estimate. If it could be acknowledged for the antique’s historic significance, it would be a priceless treasure that could be auctioned at a sky-high price. If it’s a general Shang Dynasty bronze article, it would be worth three hundred thousand.”

The crowd deeply gasped in another breath of cold air.

Not to mention any sky-high price, three hundred thousand to the present people was already a sky-high amount. The cost of housing at the time was two to three hundred kuai a square, three hundred thousand could buy ten of those hundred square apartments. To the present, it’ll be on the rank of a house sister. [2]

1. Shang Dynasty (1600-1046 BC). The Warring States period (475-221 BC)

2. At first, I thought it was a play on words of rich sister and apartment rich but it might also be a reference to the Gong Aiai case 





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