Chapter 297 Adult matters are not for children to ask.

Jing Zeyang rolled up his sleeves, took out his phone, and dialed a number, as if calling someone.

The stall owner sneered: Want to fight?

Without some serious skills, how dare he go to Liangshan? Without a few helpers, how dare he do this kind of business in this place?

The stall owner waved his hand, and five or six men with fierce eyes stepped out from the crowd of onlookers.

Just as he finished the call, Jing Zeyang chuckled and raised his phone to take a picture. The thugs didn't flinch or try to avoid him, but instead looked smug.

Lin Sicheng watched coldly as long-forgotten memories flooded his mind.

A few years later, what seemed like an unbelievable scene was commonplace around 2010: if you can't fool people, you'll cheat them; if you can't fool them, you'll stage an accident; if you can't stage an accident, you'll force them to buy or sell. Such things were commonplace in these places.

It should be said that this situation is common in antique markets across the country; otherwise, it wouldn't be called "extortion."

It was only then that the couple realized they had been set up. The man was somewhat alright, but the woman was terrified and turned deathly pale.

The two whispered a few words to each other, seemingly intending to pay money to avoid further trouble and settle things peacefully.

The little girl was very clever; she seemed to have already foreseen what consequences awaited her, and the tears she had just held back were welling up in her eyes again.

Lin Sicheng touched the little girl's fair face, then looked up and pointed to the book in the man's hand: "Can I take a look?"

"Ah, this? Oh, okay..." The man paused for a moment, then smiled gratefully. "Thank you!"

If Lin Sicheng hadn't reminded them, the two of them would have thought it was their own child who had damaged the stall owner's antique books.

Although the matter is not yet resolved, at least he has understood the ins and outs.

In a flash, he quickly handed over the scattered pieces of paper.

Lin Sicheng took it and looked at the stall owner: "Don't rush, let's see if it's worth five thousand first!"

The stall owner squinted: "You barely have any hair on your lip, what makes you think you can tell anything?"

"Whether it's worth it or not, it's five thousand! If you like meddling, then you can pay."

Lin Sicheng was too lazy to argue with him, and turned around again: "Brother Jing, don't be in a hurry, let me take a look first."

Jing Zeyang glared at the stall owner, secretly vowing: "You little bastard, you'll get what's coming to you later." Hearing this, he paused for a moment, then his eyes bulged.

What's so interesting about reading a lousy book that's only good for faking accidents?

Unless, this book is not simple...

Having just experienced it twice, Jing Zeyang knew all too well the weight of Lin Sicheng's so-called "take a look".

His eyelids twitched involuntarily, and most of his anger subsided. Jing Zeyang nodded vigorously.

Lin Sicheng picked up the book and looked at it carefully.

The paper is uniform and fine, with long and thin fibers. Although it is very brittle now and tears easily, it was extremely tough when it was first made.

This is authentic Pingyang hemp paper. During the Jin and Yuan dynasties, Pingyang Prefecture (now Xiangfen County, Shanxi Province, bordering Yuncheng) was one of the four major government-run woodblock printing centers in China. Its large-scale adoption of woodblock printing enabled the technology of Pingyang hemp paper to improve rapidly, making it a model of papermaking in the north.

Therefore, since the Jin Dynasty, this type of paper has been the primary material used in southern Shanxi, whether for official purposes or for civilian use.

Looking at the signs of aging: the mulberry bark fibers are clearly exposed, forming an interwoven network; the paper base has changed from off-white to light gray; and there are localized yellowish-brown water stains caused by moisture erosion.

The paper feels dry and rough to the touch, with brittle edges, but retains some resilience in the center. The ink has turned from jet black to grayish-black, with a slight silvery sheen at the edges. Occasionally, mold spots are visible, spreading in a fan shape, and there is a faint, stale, sour smell.

The paper is definitely correct, at least three hundred years old. The ink is red ink (produced in Xinjiang County, Yuncheng), which is even more recognizable than the paper.

The content is also fine.

The cover was added later and has no name, but Lin Sicheng can determine that this is the Xinyi Quan (Heart-Mind Boxing) created by Ji Jike, also known as Xinyi Liuhe Quan (Heart-Mind Six Harmonies Boxing).

It includes not only fist techniques, but also spear techniques, knife techniques, and staff techniques, and even bears the inscription "Puzhou Longfeng," making it undoubtedly an original manual of Xinyiquan (Heart-Mind Boxing).

Its value is definitely high, but Lin Sicheng really can't judge exactly how high.

This is because Xingyiquan has spread so widely and has so many schools, that it has not only spread throughout China but also overseas.

Ji Jike first passed on his skills to Ma Xueli of Henan, thus creating Henan Xingyi Quan. Ma Xueli then passed them on to Zhang Zhicheng, who took on so many disciples that he himself couldn't count them all. Today, whether in Henan, Anhui, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Zhuhai, Southeast Asia, Europe and America, a large majority of practitioners come from this lineage.

Ji Jike then passed on the art to Cao Jiwu of Anhui, who later became the top martial arts scholar during the Kangxi era and rose to the position of General of Shaanxi. He then spread Xingyi Quan to the north.

The Northern Xingyi school from the Qing Dynasty to the Republic of China, such as the Dai family of Qixian (Dai Longbang), the Li family of Hebei (Li Luoneng), the Guo family of Hebei (Guo Yunshen), and even national martial arts masters such as Liu Qilan, Zhang Zhankui, Sun Lutang, Li Cunyi, Li Shuwen, and Xue Dian, all belonged to the lineage of Cao Jiwu.

Putting aside the power of this punch and whether it's as powerful as the legends say, let's just talk about its influence.

Crucially, this is the original manual of the founding master. In Chinese tradition, this is the true secret manual personally written by the founding patriarch, and it is also a symbol of the sect, with extremely high representative and political significance.

To put it simply, if you give this score to someone, they'll be able to confidently declare: "I'm the authentic one!"

Don't believe me?

For example, in 2006, the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage lists was announced, and the application process for the second batch of national intangible cultural heritage lists was launched simultaneously.

At that time, more than 20 companies applied for Xingyiquan at the same time, including those from ten provinces such as Beijing, Tianjin, Guangdong, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Henan, Hebei, Shanxi, Shaanxi, and Shandong.

The provinces with the most applications were Henan, Hebei, Shanxi, and Tianjin, with three or four cities in each province applying simultaneously.

One claims to be the authentic one, while another retorts, "You're not authentic at all; my lineage is the most complete." The third says, "What's the point of arguing? Come on, let's have a match!"

Of course, they couldn't actually demonstrate, so they could only talk big, which gave the Ministry of Culture a major headache. Finally, in conjunction with the State General Administration of Sport, the two agencies conducted a joint investigation, which lasted two years, and ultimately decided to allow three companies to apply in this batch.

They are Shenzhou in Hebei, Zhoukou and Luohe in Henan, and Jinzhong in Shanxi.

Even among these three, none of them would concede to the other: Why is your project a new addition (main branch), while mine is an extension project (branch)?

Each of the three has its own strengths, traditions, and cultural characteristics, making it difficult to evaluate them all. After comprehensive consideration, the Ministry of Culture decided to combine all three into one project, as they are all new additions to the project.

But they can't all be called Xingyiquan or Xinyiquan, otherwise it would be a joke. Then let the three schools change their names: Hebei calls it Xingyiquan, Shanxi calls it Xinyiquan, and Henan calls it Xinyi Liuhequan.

Regardless of the school or the name of the style, all three schools originated from Ji Jike's Xin Yi Quan (Heart-Mind Boxing). The reason these three schools were able to stand out among more than twenty schools, and even required higher authorities to consider all three and submit applications together, lies in their complete historical heritage and influence.

One can only imagine what kind of scene this boxing manual would cause once it is published.

In a flash, Lin Sicheng flipped through it again. Surprisingly, the boxing manual was quite comprehensive.

He carefully gathered the items, then looked up at the stall owner: "Let's not go for five thousand, two thousand is fine!"

two thousand?

This piece of junk is worth more than two hundred.

But now that the feud has reached this point, backing down would mean losing face, and how would we survive in this area afterward?

Five thousand, not a single seed can be missing...

Just as the stall owner was about to speak, someone shouted, "Dongzi, that's enough!"

The stall owner paused for a moment, then craned his neck to look: among the onlookers, a middle-aged man in his forties gestured, indicating that he should stop while he was ahead.

He hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

Since it's a gang, there must be a leader. Liu Dong is blind, but the leader isn't: these young men aren't like that couple from out of town who don't know anyone and can be manipulated however they want.

One of them was the one speaking with a thick Beijing accent, currently standing with his arms crossed and a cold smile. This guy was definitely a local from Beijing; he was dressed quite well, and what was even stranger was that he wasn't intimidated at all by being surrounded by so many people?

Who knows, they might have some connections. There are many officials in the capital; you might be able to find some connections through various channels.

Secondly, there's the burly man standing at the very back, who looks like an iron tower: judging by his physique, he's either a driver or a bodyguard.

What kind of person can afford to bring bodyguards?

And there was the youngest, yet most composed, young man among them, holding a book: so calm, composed and unperturbed from beginning to end.

Whether Liu Dongzi was cursing or threatening him, he didn't even flinch.

More importantly, no matter what he said, the other three obeyed without question: if he told the one with glasses to pick up the books, the one with glasses would pick up the books. If he told the one speaking with a Beijing accent to be quiet, the one speaking with a Beijing accent would shut up.

The burly man, in particular, kept his eyes fixed on the young man, as if afraid he might make a mistake. Crucially, there was a subtle, yet undeniable, air of fierceness emanating from him.

The more he thought about it, the more something seemed off. The middle-aged man stepped out of the crowd, about to say something polite, when he suddenly froze.

The moment he lifted his foot, he felt a chill on his face, as if a knife was about to stab him.

He subconsciously looked up and saw the towering man with taut muscles and hawk-like eyes staring intently at him.

Could this be an ordinary driver or bodyguard?

Fuck him?

They're still saying those polite words, why aren't they running away? Are they just standing here waiting to die?

Panicked, he turned and disappeared into the crowd, retreating little by little while his accomplices weren't looking.

If you want to run, you'd better be able to run away.

Jing Zeyang let out a "heh" and took out his phone.

Lin Sicheng glanced at it, then took out his wallet: "Two thousand, count it!"

The stall owner had no idea that the boss had already run away. He happily took the bright red bills and counted and checked them one by one.

Lin Sicheng turned back, patted the little girl's head, and then looked at the couple: "Let's go, don't hit the child when you get back, it has nothing to do with her."

The couple nodded repeatedly, and the man opened his bag: "Thank you, I'll return the money to you!"

"No need!" Lin Sicheng waved his hand: "I happen to practice martial arts, so this thing is somewhat useful. I'll go back and study it."

The man was somewhat skeptical, but he left his phone number with Lin Sicheng. He meant that if he changed his mind, he could call him and he would transfer the money.

Startled and with a child in tow, the couple didn't dare linger. After saying a few words of thanks, they hurriedly left the market with their child in their arms.

The stall owner finished counting the money, put it in his bag, and said, "I've given you the goods, we're even!"

"Yes, we're even!" Lin Sicheng smiled. "Goodbye!"

Jing Zeyang stared at the stall owner with interest. The stall owner sneered and raised his chin, as if to say, "What can you do to me?"

Too lazy to waste words with him, Jing Zeyang snorted: "You're courting death."

The group then left, while the onlookers pointed and whispered among themselves.

Are we just going to let it go like that?

Think back to the beginning: that Beijing native was furious and almost started a fight with the stall owner on the spot, but in the end, he didn't even say a harsh word.

And then there's the taller, more handsome one. He knew Liu Dongzi was trying to scam him, yet he still spent two thousand yuan on a worthless book. Was he out of his mind, or did he have too much money to handle?

They're all in this line of work; their eyesight might be poor, but their minds can't be dull. Gradually, someone realized: surely these young people couldn't possibly think that tattered book was a dud?

Stop joking: Liu San'er has tried to scam people with that stuff countless times, and once he even cheated a well-known collector in Beijing. If it were worthless, would it still be around today?

A group of people were talking and pointing, but Lin Sicheng remained calm and walked straight through the crowd.

There's an old saying: "Every profession is like a mountain to climb." Another saying goes: "Everyone has their own area of ​​expertise."

For example, those who study ancient books mostly focus on historical materials, classical Chinese texts, poetry, and prose. Those with a broader scope might study calligraphy, paintings, rubbings, and inscriptions. Who would be so bored as to study martial arts?

Even if you recognize that it is hemp paper from Pingyang, Shanxi, and can determine that it was an item from early morning, your heart will sink when you see the contents: a handwritten copy, or a boxing manual?

Aside from being a bit old, it has basically no other value.

There are very few people in the whole country who study martial arts, understand ancient books, and have a high level of appreciation skills.

The two are indeed too far apart to be related.

Unless you're like Lin Sicheng, who is extremely talented, rich, and has plenty of free time, spending eight years in the Forbidden City and learning a little bit of everything.

The reason why Jing Zeyang didn't explode on the spot, and why Lin Sicheng deliberately sent the couple away, is this: bad guys can be dealt with anytime, there's no need to rush for a minute or two.

Because what happened today doesn't even qualify as a minor incident. Even if it's confirmed they were faking an accident, at most they'll receive a police warning, which won't help. Furthermore, the police might even have someone knowledgeable look at the book. If they figure something out, the stall owner and his accomplices will be laughing all the way to the bank.

A tattered book that costs more than two hundred yuan can suddenly sell for hundreds of thousands. What's a few days of detention?

Jing Zeyang isn't that stupid, and Lin Sicheng is even less so. So, the matter still needs to be done, but there's no need to involve this book.

The stall owner, the thugs, and the middle-aged man who finally reminded the stall owner were clearly a gang; they had definitely done this kind of thing many times before.

If you don't investigate, everything will be fine; but once you do, you'll find your ass is full of shit. So there's even less need to get involved with this book...

In a flash, Jing Zeyang pointed outside: "Cousin Lin, look!"

Lin Sicheng looked up: There was a Volkswagen Santana parked outside the market, and a man in his thirties was leaning against the car door smoking.

Through the glass, you can see three more people sitting in the back of the car.

Lin Sicheng was taken aback: the middle-aged man who had been hiding in the crowd, telling the stall owner to stop while he was ahead, was now sitting in the middle? A closer look revealed: he was wearing a silver bracelet on his wrist…

Wow, that's incredibly fast...

Just as they were stunned, a gasp came from behind them, and the group instinctively turned around.

Not far away, at that stall, a group of burly men suddenly rushed up, including the stall owner and the few thugs who had been glaring menacingly at them earlier. They were all pinned to the ground.

"Cousin Lin, how about that? Pretty fast, huh?"

Lin Sicheng nodded: "That's pretty fast!"

Jing Zeyang smiled smugly, "Come on, let me introduce you to a friend!"

With that, the two left the market.

Upon seeing Jing Zeyang, the man stubbed out his cigarette, looking disgusted: "San'er, you're getting more and more successful, aren't you? When I got your brother-in-law's call, I thought you'd uncovered an international antiquities smuggling ring, but it turns out it's just a few thugs trying to scam people?"

Jing Zeyang argued vehemently, "Even flies and mosquitoes are meat, Brother Yan, just tell me, did these people commit a crime?"

Yan Wenjing scoffed, too lazy to argue with him.

A local policeman could have handled it, but Jing San'er went and made a huge fuss, bringing in a whole bunch of criminal police officers.

The man stubbed out his cigarette, and Jing Zeyang introduced him, "Cousin Lin, this is my cousin-in-law's childhood friend, he works in the city's criminal investigation team!"

"Brother Yan, this is Lin Sicheng!"

"Nice to meet you!"

Yan Wenjing extended his hand and shook it, looking at Jing Zeyang with a hint of suspicion on his face, "Your cousin surnamed Lin, a relative of your brother-in-law?"

"No, Cousin Lin is Uncle Wang's student. He calls Sister Anning and Cousin Ye, but my sister and the others call him Cousin Lin..."

"Oh, so you're Professor Wang's top student..."

Yan Wenjing suddenly realized, but then he froze.

As if suddenly remembering something, Yan Wenjing craned his neck forward: "Wait, what's your surname?"

Didn't I just introduce it?

Lin Sicheng was bewildered: "His surname is Lin, Lin Sicheng!"

Lin Sicheng, Lin Sicheng?

Yan Wenjing's eyes were fixed on Lin Sicheng's face: "Shuangmu Lin, Tangsun Zoujia, the Sicheng who seduce me?"

Lin Sicheng nodded.

"A student from Western University, studying archeology?"

Lin Sicheng nodded again.

It matches up; it's Lin Sicheng.

Yan Wenjing's pupils suddenly contracted, and two beams of light shot out from the depths of his eyes.

This was the fourth time he had heard the name.

The first time was last year, before National Day, when the Ministry instructed the Municipal Public Security Bureau, Customs, and the Cultural Relics Bureau's inspection team to conduct a joint operation to thoroughly inspect the city's cultural relics market. It was then that he learned that nuclear materials used to make atomic bombs could actually be used to imitate ancient porcelain?

That was the first time he saw Lin Sicheng's name in the case file. He thought to himself, "This college student is amazing; his eyesight is better than an X-ray." If he weren't in Beijing, he would have immediately submitted a report to his superiors requesting special admission.

The second case was also related to cultural relics: a major case of counterfeiting Hetian jade was cracked in Xijing, and many fake jades flowed into the capital. When colleagues from the Xijing Municipal Bureau came to the capital to investigate, Yan Wenjing was responsible for providing assistance.

Out of curiosity, we chatted about it then and there. Whenever Lin Sicheng's name was mentioned, my colleagues at Xi'an University gave him a thumbs up. And every time he was mentioned, he was always addressed as "Teacher Lin," never by his name—that shows how much respect he had for him.

It was only after asking that I learned that Lin Sicheng had helped his colleagues in Xijing on more than just these two occasions: two were cultural relic cases that had been decided long ago, and the other was a fraud case that was about to be decided, all of which he overturned.

To put it bluntly: they've saved the jobs of several of their colleagues...

The third time was around New Year's Day: Xi'an police cracked the "Zhang Anshi major tomb robbery case".

This case has alarmed not only the municipal bureau, but also the ministries.

In order to sever Yu Dahai's influence, the Ministry of Public Security supervised the case, and the public security bureaus of Shaanxi, Beijing, Guangdong, and Inner Mongolia jointly investigated the case for more than four months.

It was then that Yan Wenjing realized that the "Lin Sicheng" she frequently saw in the ministry's files was Wang Qizhi's student.

The key question is, who's the bravest?

Alone, venturing into the heart of the enemy's lair, snatching chestnuts from the fire... Lin Sicheng's process of helping the Xi'an Public Security Bureau crack the Zhang Anshi tomb robbery case could easily be written into a legend.

Those were thugs who carried loaded guns and explosive packs strapped to their waists, ready to explode at the slightest pull of the fuse, and dared to fight the police to the death in broad daylight, even when surrounded.

Honestly, if his superiors asked for his opinion on going undercover, Yan Wenjing would definitely hesitate.

It wasn't just him who admired him; which of his colleagues and superiors who knew about the case didn't admire him?

At the time, he thought: It's a pity that I'm not very familiar with Wang Qizhi, otherwise I would definitely like to meet this student.

Unexpectedly, we actually ran into each other one day?

Yan Wenjing grabbed Lin Sicheng's hand and shook it vigorously: "Cousin Lin... oh no... Teacher Lin, it's a pleasure to meet you!"

Lin Sicheng was momentarily confused: Where did this title of "teacher" come from?

Seeing his blank expression, Yan Wenjing explained in a low voice: "I am mainly responsible for cultural relic protection and investigation at the Municipal Bureau. When my colleagues from Xijing come to handle cultural relic cases, I am the one who receives them and assists them!"

Oh, oh, oh... Lin Sicheng understood immediately.

"Captain Yan, you're too kind. I should thank you for what happened today!"

“Yes, yes, we’re all friends, there’s really no need to be so polite…” Yan Wenjing paused for a moment, “Then, Teacher Lin, I won’t stand on ceremony!”

ah?

Lin Sicheng was still a little confused, while Yan Wenjing smiled broadly, his eyes shining. "Teacher Lin, if it's suitable, could you come to the team to give us some guidance? It would be best if you could help us with our checks. It definitely won't take too long, half a day will be enough... Of course, if Teacher Lin is busy, then forget it..."

Lin Sicheng was stunned for a moment, then laughed and cried at the same time: I was just being polite, but you really didn't hold back. You're really good at taking advantage of people's misfortunes.

It's not a big problem, just half a day, a small thing. And strictly speaking, today's situation started because of me, and this person did help.

Although he thought this way, Lin Sicheng still kept a watchful eye, because Deputy Director Chen Peng had left a very deep impression on him:

Breaking promises is commonplace for him; he'll deny everything he said as soon as he turns his back. He even justifies it by saying, "As long as it solves the case, I'll treat my words as nothing..."

Lin Sicheng thought for a moment: "Captain Yan, is there a lot of stuff?"

"Not many, just a few pieces. I mainly wanted to ask you to give your colleagues a talk about the basics of antique appraisal. Don't laugh at me: like that fake Hetian jade case cracked in Xi'an, real jade and fake jade were placed side by side, and even though we knew one was real and the other was fake, we couldn't tell the difference with our eyes..."

It's indeed not easy to distinguish them.

Lin Sicheng nodded: "Captain Yan, I'll leave you my phone number. I'll be in Beijing until the National Day holiday... But there's one thing: I need to trouble your unit to inform the Academy of Literature. I'll ask Director Ma for help, and it should be fine..."

"The Institute for Advanced Study in Literature?" Yan Wenjing was taken aback. "Professor Lin has come to work in Beijing?"

"No, it's just a temporary secondment. I'm still pursuing my graduate studies at Xida University."

"Okay, thank you, Teacher Lin!"

Business-to-business communication is more convenient and can avoid many potential problems...

Yan Wenjing was overjoyed and quickly saved the phone number.

He offered to drive Lin Sicheng, but Lin Sicheng said the Academy of Literature had sent a car.

The two said goodbye and parted ways.

Yan Wenjing watched Squad Leader He's retreating figure, trying hard to recall: "Old Deng, wasn't that big guy the head of the Institute of Literature and Art's internal security team?"

The colleague in the back seat leaned out and said, "That's Captain He. I was going to remind you, but he pretended not to know me, so I didn't say anything!"

Yan Wenjing nodded thoughtfully: "Wang Qizhi's student is quite remarkable."

After thinking for a moment, he sent Jing Zeyang another text message: Take good care of him. When I have some free time, I'll treat you to Moutai.

Looking at the text message, Jing Zeyang was completely bewildered: Who are you serving, Lin Sicheng?

Judging from this, it seems that Yan Wenjing owes him a huge favor?

He glanced at Lin Sicheng in the front seat and typed quickly with two fingers: Brother Yan, what did Cousin Lin do? Even you call him teacher?

Shortly after sending it, the phone screen lit up: Adult matters, kids shouldn't ask...