Yu Hua asked the staff about the origin of the blue and white pastel bottle. Fortunately, the original owner did not ask for confidentiality, so the staff happily told the story. Of course, even if the original owner asked him to keep it confidential, Yu Hua would still have a way to get the information out. Small auction houses are definitely not as good as big companies in some aspects, and he is an old customer here. Isn't this too much? You can still ask about confidential matters. It turns out that this bottle is an ancestral item of a French woman¡¯s family. It is said that her great-grandfather spent a little money to buy it in the Far East during the late Qing Dynasty and early Ming Dynasty. Because no one in the family realized the great value of this vase at first, they always used it as a flower arrangement and it looked quite beautiful. Once, the woman had a new boyfriend and invited him to her home. When her boyfriend saw the vase, he thought it was quite extraordinary and suggested that she take it to the auction house for appraisal. After seeing it, experts were surprised and said that the vase was made during the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty in China and was worth at least 700,000 euros. "It's a pity that there should be a pair of this pair of bottles. If the other one can be found, it will be worth at least 1.8 million euros. When the woman heard that there was such a good thing, of course she couldn't wait to entrust the auction house to help her auction it. After hearing the cause and effect, Yu Hua was very excited. Obviously, the bottle at the auction was exactly the same as the one in his home, and he really didn't expect that the bottle in his home would be so It¡¯s worth nearly HKD 5 million. If he had known this earlier, he should not have listened to his old father and sold it so that he would not have to work so hard over the years. certainly. If you sell it, you won't be able to encounter such good things. You can¡¯t become a multi-millionaire (according to the exchange rate at that time, 1.8 million euros is equivalent to more than 12 million hkd). That being the case. He definitely wanted to buy this bottle, but he was not a reckless person. Before making his decision, he took a photo and asked an expert he knew to identify it. The other person said that judging from the photo, it should be a genuine product. This immediately gave him reassurance, and he began to raise funds. After years of business, in addition to buying a house, Yu Hua still has two to three million in savings, but this is just a small amount. He definitely couldn't buy the bottle, so he borrowed another three million from his friends and collected nearly six million. He felt that this amount of money should be enough to buy the bottle. If it wasn't enough, he had to forget it. . The auction was uneventful except for the appearance of the bottle, which caused a stir. What made Yu Hua a little depressed was that there was a guy who kept contradicting him. Although he bought the bottle in the end, after including the handling fee, he almost spent all his money. After feeling depressed, Yu Hua started to get excited. He quickly returned to China and took the blue and white pastel vase at home to the world-famous auction company Xiangjiang Guardian. Because he knows very well that something as precious as this is precious. Only by going to large-scale auctions can you sell for a higher price. What he didn¡¯t expect was. Experts from the auction company gave him a blow. Both of his bottles were out of date, and they were probably imitations from the late Qing Dynasty and early Ming Dynasty. This result really surprised Yu Hua and felt it was too cruel. You must know that he took a debt of 3 million khd for taking this bottle! So after coming out of the auction company, he quickly asked several experts to help him with the appraisal. Some said it was real, and some said it was fake. Although this gave him some hope, others knew about his identity. There is something wrong with those two bottles, and it will be extremely difficult to sell them. There was no other way, Yu Hua could only sell some of his stock to repay the debt, and he was selling in a hurry, so the price was relatively low. It was during this period that he sold the two Tianhuang seals to Tang Hui. . After listening to Yu Hua¡¯s account, Chu Chen and Liu Sizhe felt a little sad. In the antique industry, many people think that domestic auction houses have high imitations, so they believe in items from foreign auction houses. But is this really the case? You must know that Western developed countries are all capitalist countries. In such a commercially developed society, is there not even a high imitation item in the auction? This is obviously impossible, and according to statistics from relevant people, the counterfeit rate of Dapai is around 10%, with the highest being around 15%. This is still a large auction. If it is a small auction, the counterfeit rate may be higher. Therefore, when you go to an antique auction, whether it is domestic or foreign, you should keep your eyes open. Otherwise, if you don¡¯t see that it is a fake, the loss will be much more serious than if you look at it at a stall. At this time, Yu Hua said angrily: "I have always heard from others that Tang Hui is a shady guy, but although the price he gave before was not high, it was not too outrageous, and he paid more readily, so all this time I sold most of my things to him. I didn¡¯t expect that this guy would be so evil. He will be beaten to death in the future.??Even if the thing cannot be sold, it will not be sold to him! " To be honest, Chu Chen also despises Tang Hui's behavior. As a long-term business partner, if you are not prepared to provide help in times of need, then there is no need to take advantage of the situation, right? It is understandable to make a little money, but you are not If the price is 40 to 50% less than the market price, then there is something wrong with Tang Hui¡¯s character. Of course, it has nothing to do with Chu Chen. He will definitely not deal with such a person again, but since Yu Hua has. With this kind of statement, he will definitely seize this opportunity. "Mr. Yu, you also know that I have opened an antique store. I wonder if you are willing to transfer the things to me in the future. Of course, I will definitely pay the price. You won't suffer any loss. " Of course, Yu Hua would not refuse to agree to this, but it would definitely be unrealistic for him to easily believe Chu Chen. " In this regard, Chu Chen did not say much. As the saying goes, a distance can tell a horse's power, and time can tell a person's heart. He believes that as long as Yu Hua can maintain business dealings with him for a long time, he will understand his behavior. "Mr. Yu, I don't know about your mountain" "Oh! Look at me, I almost forgot about business! "Yu Hua smiled apologetically at Chu Chen, and then took out the things. "Shanzi is actually a kind of object with rocks as the main shape in sculptures or gardens. The mountain in front of you is not big in size. It is only about ten centimeters in height. It is made of white jade, with bright red color around the surface. The front of Shanzi is carved with a figure, the top of the head is in a bun, and the facial features are carved with lines. He is wearing a Taoist robe and his right hand is carved. Holding a whisk in a contemplative pose, his left hand hangs down naturally, and his feet are wearing Taoist shoes. On the right side of the Taoist, there is a servant with a double bun, simple carved lines on his face, and a Taoist robe on his body. He stands with his hands together and is silent. A crane on the side turns its head and looks up, looking very curious. Behind it are dense pine branches, clouds floating among them, and lake stones covered with ingenuity. There are also clouds engraved on the bottom, and the whole vessel is carefully carved. There is a hole at the bottom for insertion and jointing. The carving of this Shanzi is delicate and neat. However, the lines of the carving are a bit weak. Judging from the craftsmanship and the details of the paste, it should be a Shanzi that was carefully carved in the Song Dynasty. What makes Chu Chen feel a little strange is that the color of the oil is so red. Generally speaking, although the oil is red, it may be dark or light, but the color is always a bit red. Besides, I haven't seen it before. Could it be that this piece of jade is blood jade? After looking at it carefully, Chu Chen didn't think it looked like it. As for the color of dog jade and sheep jade, it doesn't look as moist as that of block jade. After careful identification and using his powers, he guessed that it is more likely to be oil-raising. As for whether he came up with this bright red color, it is unknown. ¡°Mr. Yu, I don¡¯t know about this Shanzi. What's the price? "Chu Chen asked after putting the things back. "The price is 100,000 hkd! "Yu Hua said in a very firm tone. "The price is neither cheap nor expensive, and it is suitable to buy it. However, it is impossible to buy antiques without bargaining, so Chu Chen pondered for a while and asked: "It can't be any cheaper." ? " Yu Hua shook his head repeatedly and said: "No, generally when I do business, the fixed price is the fixed price. If you think it is expensive, forget it! " "Then let's pay this price! Chu Chen pretended to think for a while, then nodded and said, "Mr. Yu, do you want a check or a transfer?" " "Then take the check! "Yu Hua thought for a while and said. "A while ago, Chu Chen listened to Zhao Qirui's suggestion and went to do personal check business. This was his first time using it. After a while, he signed the check. , and handed it over. Yu Hua was very familiar with the check, and he verified the authenticity after a while, so he planned to leave. Of course, Chu Chen couldn't let him leave easily, otherwise where would he find the mechanism box? He quickly said: "Mr. Yu, please wait a moment. To be honest, my antique shop opened on New Year's Day. There are not many goods in the store now. I wonder if you have any antiques that can be sold?" " Yu Hua pondered for a while, and then said: "I do have more than a dozen things at home, but very few of them are of high quality. I'm afraid they won't be to your liking! " Chu Chen chuckled and said, "You have to see it first before deciding whether you like it or not. And I want to sell these things. They don't suit me, but they can suit the customer's liking! But if those things of yours are genuine and the price is moderate, I can buy them all. " When Yu Hua heard what Chu Chen said, how could he refuse to agree? He said directly: "Okay, let's set off now! ¡± So next, a group of people, led by Yu Hua, took a taxiCame to his home in Kowloon. Yu Hua's house is an 80-square-meter house, which is pretty good in Xiangjiang. However, you must know that he also has an old mother. In addition to his wife and two children, there are five people, and he still needs to pay for it. There is some space to store his antiques, so the eighty square meters is still a bit crowded. Of course, even so, it is not bad in Xiangjiang. Although it was the Christmas holiday, probably because they knew that the family's financial situation was not very good, the family did not go out to play. When Chu Chen and the others came in, except for the old man who was sleeping in his room, everyone else was sitting in the living room watching TV. . After Chu Chen and the others came in, Yu Hua introduced them to his family and said they were here to buy antiques. This made the whole family feel a little excited. They quickly invited Chu Chen and the others to take a seat, and then made tea for them, while Yu Hua went to All the things he mentioned were taken out. The things Yu Hua took out were mostly stationery items, totaling eleven items. In addition, there were two ancient paintings and a jade plaque. This made Chu Chen feel a little disappointed, because he didn't see the machine box he wanted among these things. After the disappointment. Chu Chen felt that it was normal, after all, it was such a strange box. If Yu Hua really succeeds, he will have to study it more or less. But if he can't open the box and wants to brute force it, it's over. You should know that the mechanism box cannot be opened by force, because this will trigger the mechanism inside and destroy the collection inside. Thinking of this, Chu Chen felt very anxious, but what made him feel helpless was that he couldn't ask about relevant matters immediately, otherwise he would inevitably arouse Yu Hua's suspicion. In the end, he could only suppress his anxiety, pick up the things on the table and read them. Just like Yu Hua said, the quality of his things is indeed average. Except for the two stationery items and the jade plaque, other things including the two paintings are just ordinary goods, and the total price is not much. More than 60,000 RMB. The remaining two stationery items are a printing box from the Daoguang period of the Qing Dynasty. There is also a hair crystal inkstone carved during the Qianlong period. The printing box is also called the printing pad and printing pool, which is used to place the ink pad. Most of them are made of porcelain or jade, some are round or square, and they are divided into two parts: cover and body. Yu Hua¡¯s printing box is a blue and white printing box fired during the Daoguang period. It is divided into two parts: the cover and the body, with the mother and child mouths connected and shaped like petals. The cover is raised and the feet are shallow. The proportions are coordinated and very beautiful. The inner wall of this box is covered with white glaze. The outer wall of the cover is painted with eight treasure patterns, with lotus patterns in between. The composition is novel and unique, complex but not chaotic, and the layers are clear. The carcass is delicate and white, the blue and white hair is brightly colored, and the bottom foot is inscribed with the six-character double-line seal script "Daoguang Year System of the Qing Dynasty" in blue and white. Chu Chen carefully observed the printing box and found that it was indeed a genuine one. Emperor Daoguang was known for his frugality. He restricted the firing of porcelain and controlled costs. Sometimes he could not make ends meet and could not pay the normal expenses of the imperial kiln factory. Therefore, the output was very low, and high-quality products were rare to see. The printing box in front of you is a fine example, which can be said to be quite rare. As for another carved crystal inkstone from the Qianlong period, it is relatively rare. Inkstone is also called water drop or book drop. It is a stationery item used to store inkstone water for grinding ink. This inkstone is uniquely carved into the shape of an earthworm (pronounced: b¨¡xi¨¤) using hair crystal. Hair crystals are actually natural crystals containing different types of needle-like mineral inclusions. These different arrangements and combinations of hair needle-like minerals are distributed inside the crystal. The overall look is like hair strands are contained in the crystal, so Gu's name is Fa Jing. The earthworm is one of the nine sons of the dragon. It is also known as a water-absorbing beast and loves water. It is said that it can adjust the amount of water in the river, so that the river water can "carry boats with less water and not flood the crops". It protects a place of peace, so it was highly revered by the ancients. . Folks and royal families placed these supernatural objects on both sides of the bridge top to pray for protection. This earthworm inkstone has a flat and wide body, protruding eyes, thick eyebrows, a large nose and mouth, exposed fangs, and two curled horns stretched back and close to the body. The four legs are curled up and lying on the ground. The long tail is thick and the end is divided into two places. It is curled and attached to the two hind legs, creating a dynamic climbing posture. The inkstone is also adapted to the habit of earthworms that are good at swallowing and spitting water. The opening on its back is used to hold water. The injection hole at the mouth is connected to the abdomen, so that the water can be discharged evenly. This inkstone is made of golden brown hair crystals. The golden wires in the body are gorgeous and charming. The earthworm shape is vivid and realistic, and the carving is exquisite and expressive. It has the style of palace jade works in the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty. In our traditional culture, crystals have the function of expelling evil spirits and protecting the house from evil spirits. If placed in auspicious positions in Feng Shui, crystals also have special functions of strengthening people's confidence and promoting wealth and good fortune. The earthworm is also an auspicious animal that protects one party. Combining the two, Chu Chen felt that it was most appropriate to buy it and give it to his father. There is also another pieceThe jade plaque is also a palace work of the Qianlong period. It is carefully carved from the finest Hetian jade. The jade is warm and white, and the two ends of the jade plaque are engraved with wishful cloud heads. The front is embossed with longevity peaches and bergamot's hands, and the back is engraved with "Blessings and Longevity", which means good luck. It is a rare piece of art. "Mr. Chu, what do you think of these things?" Yu Hua asked. Chu Chen smiled and said: "Mr. Yu, it seems that you have very good eyesight. These things are all genuine. I can buy them all. But except for these three things, the others are relatively ordinary, so in terms of price, " Yu Hua was very happy when he heard that Chu Chen really planned to buy all these things of his. He smiled and said with a rare smile: "Since you are so cheerful, Mr. Chu, I will also give you a preferential price. A total of 800,000, what do you think? "The price given by Yu Hua is indeed good. Even in the mainland, it is already very cheap, let alone in Xiangjiang, which is one or two percent higher than in the mainland. Therefore, Chu Chen readily agreed. But just when Chu Chen took out the check and prepared to pay. But Yu Hua's son walked out of the room holding a small box. When he saw the box, Chu Chen was really excited, because if he saw it correctly, that box was the mechanism box he had been looking for for a long time. "Ah Sheng, why did you take out this box?" Yu Hua frowned and asked in Cantonese. ¡°Dad, I¡¯ve been trying to get this box for a long time but I still can¡¯t open it, so why not sell it to this gentleman and supplement the family income!¡± Yu Hua¡¯s son said a little shyly. "But what if there is some treasure inside!" Yu Hua said with a frown. "What kind of treasure is there! I have shaken this box several times. If there is really a treasure inside, why is there no sound at all? I think it is probably an empty box!" Yu Hua's wife whispered softly beside her. Yu Hua heard what she said, and after thinking about it, he felt that it did make sense. If there was something in the box, it would make some noise. Thinking about it, he hesitated a little, whether the box would be sold or not. good? Take advantage of this period. Yu Hua's son placed the box in front of Chu Chen, and then smiled shyly at him. Chu Chen smiled and nodded at him, then suppressed the excitement in his heart and picked up the box and observed it carefully. The shape of this box is rectangular. The length is about thirty-six centimeters and the height is twenty centimeters. The entire body is made of small-leaf red sandalwood. Chu Chen estimated that it was because this box used this very precious raw material. Only then can you survive the disaster if it cannot be opened. The machine box is basically composed of wooden strips of different widths. Therefore, apart from the special material, there is really nothing special about this box in appearance. After Chu Chen looked at it carefully. He shook the box hard again, but he didn't hear any sound at all, which made him frown a little. Could it be that the inside of this box was really an empty box as Yu Hua's wife said? Of course, it was very simple for Chu Chen to know whether the box was empty or not. He only had to use the Lingbao Eye once, but the result of using the Lingbao Eye made him almost scream because the box Not only is there something inside, but its value is astonishing. As for why there is no sound, it is also because there are several silk bags filled with cotton and other things in the box, filling the space inside the box, so there will definitely be no sound no matter how hard it is shaken. As for what was inside the box, Chu Chen only knew that it was a calligraphy and painting work. As for what it was, he did not delve into it because he was afraid that he would not be able to control the excitement in his heart and Yu Hua and the others would discover something strange about him. , then there will be variables. "Mr. Yu, do you want to transfer this box?" Chu Chen calmed himself down and asked. "Are you interested?" Yu Hua did not answer, but asked instead. "Yes!" Chu Chen nodded. Yu Hua pondered for a while, and then asked: "Mr. Chu, please forgive me for asking, do you know what kind of box this is?" "Yes!" Chu Chen knew that if he told lies now, it would cause variables. , so he admitted it without thinking too much, and said: "This box is called a mechanism box, and it can only be opened after certain steps!" "Oh, then you know how to open this box?" Yu Hua said again asked. Chu Chen smiled slightly and said: "I know, I know, but unless you know the formula set by the original owner, it will be difficult to open it." "The formula? Do you need the formula to open this thing?" Yu Hua asked doubtfully. Chu Chen replied: "I really need a formula. You know, yourThe first mechanism box is a three-phase mechanism box, which requires one hundred and forty-four steps to open, and there are various combination methods. If there is no formula, it will be difficult to open it! " "In that case, why do you still want to buy this box? "Yu Hua asked dubiously. Chu Chen smiled slightly and said, "Because of interest! There are not many three-phase switch boxes like this, so I want to buy it back and study it! " "Is that true? "Yu Hua stared at Chu Chen, trying to see something strange on his face. "Why should I lie to you? Chu Chen spread his hands and said, "You don't think there is anything else in here, do you?" Just like what the lady said, if there is something inside, the shaking will be felt to some extent. Obviously, there is 80% chance that there is nothing in this box. "(To be continued)