Chapter 135 Burying You in an Ancient Tomb

The sky was somewhat overcast, and the benches along the tree-lined path were covered in night dew.

"Ding-a-ling~"

The sound of bells pierced through the thin mist, the wheels rolled over the bluestone slabs, and the cup of soy milk in the basket swayed and bounced.

With a squeak, Xiao Yuzhu squeezed the handbrake, dismounted, propped up the bicycle, and carried breakfast into the office.

He was walking briskly, his voice booming: "Senior Sister Li, time to eat..."

But before she could finish speaking, she suddenly shuddered: three or four people in the office were all staring straight at him.

Wang Qizhi, Guan Xingmin, Hao Jun...

Li Zhen gave her a wink, and Xiao Yuzhu immediately understood. She quickly greeted them, took the breakfast, and slipped into the kitchen.

Li Zhen finished brewing the tea and then bowed slightly: "Professor Wang, we're right next door. Call us anytime if you need anything!"

"Okay!" Wang Qizhi smiled. "Thank you for your help!"

After Li Zhen left and closed the door, Wang Qizhi checked his watch: "Director Guan, what time is Lin Sicheng's flight?"

"Take off at 6:15, arrive at 8:30!"

"It's 9:10 now, Anning should have picked up the person by now!"

"Definitely, it's only about forty kilometers, we're almost there!" Hao Jun dialed the number, "But why is it still off?"

Guan Xingmin replied, "I guess it's not open yet!"

After he finished speaking, the three of them looked at each other: What's this kid up to?

I bought Dai Jin's painting on the morning of the 3rd, and went to Hangzhou that afternoon, where I stayed for five days.

I don't know what they went to do, and I don't know why they turned off their phones.

I did tell my family that I was looking for clues about those three paintings, but if it's just about finding clues, there's no need to turn off the phone.

Therefore, I always felt that Lin Sicheng was acting suspiciously.

Secretly suspicious, the group chatted for a while longer. About half an hour later, with a squeak, the Grand Cherokee pulled up in front of the studio.

Lin Sicheng and Gu Ming jumped out of the car, and Ye Anning came to help. The three of them took out bags from the trunk: one, two, three, four...

The items that could be contained in a bag must be of considerable value, and the group immediately became restless.

As they all went out the door, Lin Sicheng was taken aback: He could understand Wang Qizhi, but what was going on with Guan Xingmin and Hao Jun so early in the morning?

Seeing his blank expression, Guan Xingmin smiled and said, "President Yang, jade!"

Lin Sicheng paused for a moment, then slapped his forehead: More than a week ago, the two of them had agreed that once the stolen goods had been recovered to a certain extent, the Municipal Bureau would ask Lin Sicheng to have them appraised.

But these past few days his mind has been filled with the "Xu Weili Documents," so how could he possibly remember anything else?

To make matters worse, his phone was switched off. Guan Xingmin had no choice but to come to the school to wait for him.

As for Hao Jun, he was definitely just there to join in the fun.

"Director Guan, I'm so sorry, I was so busy I forgot!"

"It's alright, the person's been caught, they can't escape now."

Guan Xingmin replied, both shocked and curious: "Five pouches... Lin Sicheng, did you go to Hangzhou to buy these?"

You know what, it really does look a bit like it?

Lin Sicheng smiled and said, "I bought a bit too much!"

Upon hearing this, the three became even more curious and helped carry the box inside.

"Teacher, things have been a bit unusual these past few days, so I haven't turned on my phone..."

Wang Qizhi had no time to spare; he casually waved his hand and just stared at the box.

Since Lin Sicheng said "treasure hunting," it means that the items were all of good quality, and since they were packed in a bag, they were even better.

Guan Xingmin and Hao Jun were even more curious.

Lin Sicheng brought up the school because he wanted to discuss how to handle the situation with Wang Qizhi. Fortunately, Guan Xingmin and Hao Jun were also there, saving him the trouble of consulting them separately.

He opened it one bite at a time.

The first book they took out was "Essentials of Governance from Various Books," which the three of them glanced at.

This book is very obscure; at least Wang Qizhi and Hao Jun have no recollection of it.

Guan Xingmin knew a little, but it was very vague. After flipping through the contents, he vaguely remembered something.

While trying to recall, Ye Anning exclaimed, "Huh? The Tianming Shuzhai edition?"

Lin Sicheng secretly gave it a thumbs up.

The Palace Museum does have some in its collection, but only the "Ruan Yuan Yangzhou Edition" and the "Suzhou Lin Family Postscript Edition," which Ye Anning should have seen.

But as I said before, this book is too obscure.

In the Forbidden City, where ancient books are as numerous as hairs on a cow, this book is but a drop in the ocean. Yet Ye Anning was able to determine from the colophon and publisher's notes that it was a Tianming Shuzhai edition, which demonstrates his remarkable memory.

"A woodblock print?" Guan Xingmin suddenly realized, "I don't think there are any in China?"

Of course not, even Japan doesn't have many complete sets.

"Then wouldn't that make it a rare and valuable copy?" Wang Qizhi smiled. "Treasure it well!"

"Okay!" Lin Sicheng nodded and put it aside.

Then, he took out the jade disc.

At first glance, it looks brand new. The structure is fine and the texture is oily, with no stains or rust spots on the entire surface.

However, the group were all experts and could at least tell that this was definitely not new jade: the bottom of the engraved lines was wavy and the lines had side slopes and cracks.

The hole is very straight, but there are still traces of the drilling platform (traces of the tube drill joint)... These are all authentic ancient tool marks.

Upon closer inspection: the process involves deep digging with a slanted grinding wheel, followed by grinding with a round grinding wheel, and then gradually revealing the shape through a "layered removal" method.

The engravings are of varying lengths and densities, the folds of the figures' clothing are angular and strong, and the lines of the still life are clustered yet orderly.

Wang Qizhi examined it closely: "It looks a bit like... Yangzhou craftsmanship from the Kangxi and Qianlong periods?"

"It's the Yangzhou style: the corridors are deep and the light and shadow are varied, but the main body still adheres to the Chinese scattered composition... This is influenced by the painting style of Giuseppe Castiglione, and incorporates some techniques of focal perspective..."

Guan Xingmin affirmed, "A sculptor must be a painter, and his painting skills must be excellent!"

After a slight pause, he squinted his eyes again: "Intaglio shallow relief simulating ink wash painting techniques: alternating between triangular and flat-edged knives to reproduce hemp fiber texture, cloud texture, and axe-cut texture."

Furthermore, through techniques of varying depths of excavation, five colors—"burnt, thick, heavy, light, and clear"—similar to those in traditional Chinese ink wash painting, are presented. Then, using the unique technique of "deeply sculpting the ground," layers of the base are removed to create a three-dimensional space resembling multi-layered openwork carving…

"This is more like the bamboo carving technique of Yangzhou craftsmen, which incorporates painting into carving. But to be used in jade carving, and with such profound skill and ingenious application of knife techniques, it's impossible for someone to be an unknown person... But why is there no signature?"

As he spoke, Guan Xingmin flipped the jade tablet over again: "Assistant Ye, in your opinion, whose style does it resemble?"

At first glance, it seemed quite strange. Guan Xingmin asked Ye Anning for advice.

But after seeing Dong Qichang's half-piece of calligraphy, Guan Xingmin knew that Ye Anning's skill in appreciating calligraphy and painting was no less than his own.

Besides, he didn't spend ten years in the Forbidden City...

"The bamboo surface is like Xuan paper, and the knife marks resemble the ink's luster... It's somewhat reminiscent of the 'Bamboo and Rock Painting Brush Holder' in the Palace Museum, which embodies the idea of ​​'a vast distance within a small space, the intention precedes the knife'..."

Ye Anning's eyes lit up: "Zhou Hao?"

Lin Sicheng gave a thumbs up and nodded.

They are all talented people, and they have all come together.

If we brought them to Li Jinqian's shop, these guys would probably buy up most of them in less than half a day...

Guan Xingmin was startled: "Zhou Hao?"

This is the only bamboo carver in the Qing Dynasty to have a biography written about him. He was also a famous painter in the Qing Dynasty and studied under Wang Hui, one of the Four Masters of the Qing Dynasty.

Few of the calligraphy and paintings survive, and even fewer bamboo carvings; only five are known to exist.

The "Bamboo and Rock Painting Brush Pot" is in the collection of the Palace Museum. The "Pine, Valley, Clouds and Spring Painting Brush Pot" is in the collection of the Shanghai Museum.

"A Bamboo Root Carving of a Landscape of Fishing and Reclusion" is in the collection of the National Palace Museum, Taipei. "An Incense Holder with a Scene of the Orchid Pavilion Gathering" is in the collection of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, USA.

"Travelers Among Mountains and Streams" Bamboo Screen, collection of the British Museum.

Guan Xingmin thought for a moment: "But Zhou Hao's jade carving, this seems to be the first one?"

Lin Sicheng shook his head: "It's not that exaggerated!"

Zhou Hao had descendants, and more than one branch, and many of his works still exist, including jade carvings that are relatively easy to preserve.

However, they rarely appear on the market, and even when they are traded, it is done privately.

Of course, the price wasn't low; Lin Sicheng estimated that this jade disc would cost at least 1.4 to 1.5 million.

Lin Sicheng put it aside again and took out the lacquer box.

As soon as the item was taken out, Hao Jun's eyelids twitched: "A vermilion lacquered box with gold inlay in the shape of lotus petals... You went to Changzhou?"

Lin Sicheng was stumped by the question: "Brother, even if I went to Changzhou, I couldn't possibly steal the museum's prized possession."

Believe it or not, there's only one piece of this type currently in the public collection in Changzhou. So although it's not large, it's of extremely high status: a national first-class cultural relic.

However, many folk tales circulate in the Jiangnan region, especially the tomb of Zhao Boyun from the Southern Song Dynasty in Huangyan: he had three wives and six concubines, and more than thirty lacquer boxes containing cosmetics were unearthed.

By the time it was officially excavated in 2016, only one remained, having already been stolen. So, unsurprisingly, it is a national first-class cultural relic.

With its unique gold-inlaid technique, this thing naturally became a national treasure!

Although there are quite a few, the black market price is not low, around two to three million each. This particular one was so new that Li Jinqian hadn't been able to sell it, which is why the price dropped to 850,000.

But for Lin Sicheng, this price was already extremely high: he couldn't sell it, and it might even be confiscated, so he could only use it for research.

Lin Sicheng still put it aside.

Wang Qizhi stared at the lacquer box, his expression growing increasingly suspicious. He was about to ask something, but seeing Lin Sicheng take out several more small jars, he swallowed the words that were on the tip of his tongue.

The Cizhou black and white porcelain of the Song Dynasty, though not comparable to the Five Great Kilns, was still quite valuable.

The only problem is that the glaze on this jar seems to have been ruined during firing; the surface of the jar is speckled and bumpy.

The fetus seemed to have changed shape, with ridges running inside.

None of them knew much about porcelain and could figure out what this thing was used for.

Wang Qizhi glanced at it: "Lin Sicheng, what's this?"

"Its scientific name is Xinglin glaze, but it is actually a cupping jar used to treat the emperors of the Southern Song Dynasty."

The group of people were all stunned: What the heck, the emperor?

Just as he was still in shock, Lin Sicheng took out the rhinoceros horn cup again.

The group was preoccupied with the "Emperor's Cupping Therapy" and didn't pay any attention to it; Wang Qizhi only glanced at it unintentionally.

He turned his head away, about to grab the jars again. Then he felt something was amiss and turned back:

I feel like I've seen this cup somewhere before.

Look closer, is it rhinoceros horn?

Anyone with a little common sense knows that rhinoceros horn can't be red; if it is red, it must have been dyed.

So, with such obvious features, it's impossible that I didn't remember them?

As he was trying to recall, he saw Ye Anning staring blankly at Lin Sicheng with her mouth agape and eyes wide open. A thought flashed through Wang Qizhi's mind.

My goodness... The Crimson Cloud Cup in the Forbidden City, the one that was dug out from the tomb of Emperor Wanli, doesn't it look just like this?

With a start, Wang Qizhi stood up abruptly, his eyes fixed on the horn cup.

But the more I looked at it, the more it resembled it... and my heart started beating faster and faster.

Instinctively, Wang Qizhi scanned the ancient books, jade discs, porcelain jars, lacquer boxes, and the three unopened chests.

He finally understood why Lin Sicheng's phone had been switched off for five whole days.

If Lin Sicheng hadn't bought these from antique dealers and tomb raiders, Wang Qizhi would have dared to eat them.

The key point is, there are also three large boxes...

Subconsciously, Wang Qizhi's eyelids twitched, and his face gradually paled: Lin Sicheng, Lin Sicheng, you have an extraordinary amount of guts.

Ninety-nine out of a hundred tomb raiders have blood on their hands; they're more ruthless than drug dealers. Aren't you afraid of being murdered for your money and buried in an ancient tomb?