Chapter 200 Not Authentic

I saw Hu Xiner wrote an auction sign and stood in front of the stall.

She dusted off her hands and said, "You choose a painting from the stall, and I'll choose one from this lady's paintings. We'll sell them separately and see who gets the highest price!"

The woman had a painting basket next to her. She was surprised and moved when she heard Hu Xiner speak up for her.

But he didn't know what he was thinking about, and hurriedly walked to Hu Xin'er's side: "Miss, be careful, although this man is pedantic, he has several excellent paintings on his stall..."

Hu Xiner patted her shoulder: "Don't worry, I'm here."

At this time, the stall owner had already started selecting paintings. When the onlookers saw the painting he had chosen, there was an uproar. Some even wanted to make an offer immediately: "Stall owner Zhou, your painting 'Dou Lian Tu' is a rare masterpiece. Normally, you don't even allow people to see it. Are you really going to sell it today?"

The stall owner snorted softly, unable to conceal his pride. "How could I be so greedy for fame and gain? This little girl overestimates her own abilities and speaks ill of me. I will teach her a lesson!"

Hu Xin'er rolled her eyes. "Although this painting of Beating the Silk is just a fake, it's still indistinguishable from the real thing."

"What? This is a fake?" Many people were shocked and immediately looked at the painting with a strange look in their eyes.

Indeed, "Dou Lian Tu" is a painting by the famous Tang Dynasty painter Zhang Xuan. How could it be found on a small roadside calligraphy and painting stall? Hu Xin'er happened to have seen the original in modern times, so she could tell the real thing from the fake at a glance.

The stall owner Zhou sneered, "Do you know who copied this painting?"

An acquaintance of the stall owner immediately said, "I've wanted this painting for a long time! It's a copy of 'Dou Lian Tu' by the Song Dynasty master. Now the Song master's painting hangs in the Duke's Mansion. Since last year, it's even more valuable than Zhang Xuan's painting!"

Hu Xiner was slightly stunned. She really didn't expect that there would be such things on this stall.

Indeed, even if they are fakes, there are differences among them.

For example, even if Tang Dynasty objects are fakes, they are still antiques. Exquisite fakes by famous artists of the previous dynasty have extremely high collection value, and only crude fakes from contemporary times cannot be sold at a high price.

Many painters, out of a desire to improve their skills or to make a living, would copy the paintings of masters from previous dynasties.

As a famous painting from the Tang Dynasty, "The Beating of the Linen" was also copied by great artists of the previous Song Dynasty. The painting in the stall owner's hands is worth a lot of money!

"How can this be compared?" someone muttered.

Although everyone felt sympathy for the two weak women, they were more envious of the "Dou Lian Tu" in the stall owner's hand!

The woman's eyes were filled with anxiety. "Why don't we just stop competing? I can still find someone else to sell my paintings to, but your ten taels of gold..."

Hu Xin'er chose a painting of flowers, birds, and the full moon, quietly asked the woman something, then wrote two lines of poetry on the painting and said confidently, "Okay, the auction can begin."

Someone advised: "Little girl, don't be so stubborn! Even if your family is rich, you can't be so wasteful!"

Hu Xin'er ignored him and joined the stall owner in loudly soliciting business.

"Take a look, take a look, this is a copy of the "Dou Lian Tu" by a great Song Dynasty master~"

"Hello, would you like to buy a painting?"

…

A wealthy man was shopping with his beloved wife. He was wearing a black round-necked robe, a golden belt, and an eye-catching jade ring on his hand. He looked like a nouveau riche.

His wife, standing next to him, had fine lines at the corners of her eyes. Although she was no longer as beautiful as she was in her youth, she was still dignified and graceful, with both frowns and smiles being acceptable.

When such a pair came over, everyone tactfully made way for them.

The wealthy man glanced at the two people's stall and asked: "Who has a painting by Master Song?"

The stall owner almost bowed and said, "This is it!"

The wealthy man was about to buy it when his wife stopped him: "Isn't this the Tang Dynasty painting 'Beating the Silken Cloth'? How did it become a Song Dynasty painting?"

“Please allow me to explain it to you!” The stall owner cleared his throat and began to talk about the story of how this painting brought two generations together, as well as the life stories of the two authors.

This is his profession, and he spoke in a boastful and eloquent manner, as if one would be at a disadvantage if one did not buy this painting.

After he finished speaking, Hu Xin'er smiled and interrupted, "Madam, our two stalls are competing. Are you interested in hearing the story behind my painting?"

The wealthy man squinted his eyes and looked at it for a long time: "Whose painting is this?"

The owner of the painting was embarrassed: "This... is just a casual work of mine."

Hu Xin'er shook her head and smiled, "My friend is too modest. Please forgive me."

The lady asked curiously, "What's the story behind your painting? Why do you dare to compete with Master Song's paintings?"

Hu Xin'er smiled but said nothing: "I saw that your belly was slightly bulging, so I knew you were pregnant."

The stall owner thought he was sure to win, but before the rich man could pay, Hu Xin'er snatched the money away.

So he deliberately made trouble: "Why are you saying these useless things? This is selling paintings, not fortune telling!"

Everyone burst into laughter. They all felt that this young woman was unlucky, otherwise why would she run into the most difficult stall owner Zhou?

However, flies don't bite seamless eggs. If this young woman hadn't set up the gambling game herself, how could she have ended up in this situation?

Amidst the sighing and mocking gazes of the crowd, Hu Xin'er also laughed: "Then it would be great if you could buy this painting!"

The lady looked carefully at her painting of flowers, birds and the full moon, with a look of delight on her face.

"Madam, children need nurturing to grow up! They also need calligraphy and paintings by famous people!" Stall owner Zhou wanted to scold himself for being too anxious. He actually ignored the most important money-making beast between husband and wife - children!

But it’s still not too late to make amends now... right?

The lady shook her head: "My baby is still six months away from being born!"

Everyone almost suspected that this lady was Hu Xiner's shill.

Seeing that the atmosphere was almost set, Hu Xin'er showed the painting to everyone. She wrote a poem on the side: "Flowers are in full bloom, the moon is full, and the family is reunited."

The rich man was indifferent to these things and said to his wife, "Madam, I think what they both said makes sense. Why not buy them all?"

"No!" Stall owner Zhou quickly jumped out to object, "Then we have to choose a new painting and compete again!"

His original plan was to pretend to sell the paintings at a high price and then keep them in his hands.

After all, this is the most valuable thing on his stall.

How could they possibly agree to let the rich man buy both of them?

Hu Xin'er ignored him and continued with a smile, "You and your wife are clearly very much in love. When your child is born, you will definitely be a happy family of three. This painting of flowers, birds, and the full moon is absolutely perfect for the occasion!"

These words made the rich man very happy, and he immediately paid for the painting of flowers, birds and the full moon.

Originally, he wanted to buy the paintings from stall owner Zhou as well, but Hu Xin'er hinted to him that a fake is a fake after all, and stall owner Zhou was unwilling to sell them, so the rich man gave up.

After selling the painting, Hu Xin'er said with a half-smile: "Stall Master Zhou, this painting of beating the silk thread doesn't look like it was created by a master of the Song Dynasty!"