After listening to my explanation, Lao Mao, who was standing next to Mr. Leng, focused his gaze on the pictures on the display stand: "Isn't the dragon on this also made of five fingers?"

"That's the problem. Look closely at the dragon's claws. Don't they look like a human hand?"

I gestured with my chin towards the display stand: "In a normal imperial dragon painting, the thumb is at the back, symmetrical to the two middle fingers of the claw. But the dragon claw on this jar looks awkward. There are only two possibilities: either the painter wasn't skilled enough at painting imperial dragons, or he deliberately avoided the proper way to paint them to avoid being caught by the authorities and sentenced to beheading. I personally deduce it's the second reason; otherwise, the forger wouldn't have hired a half-baked painter. Of course, most people wouldn't notice such details."

Old Mao raised his eyebrows: "Although you said that, I really didn't find anything wrong with the dragon's claws."

Although Mr. Leng heard my explanation, he was still worried: "Xiao Duan, are you sure your judgment is really correct?"

"I can!"

I gave Mr. Leng a firm answer: "The most widely circulated antiques on the market, besides coins, are porcelain, and the first genuine piece I ever handled was also porcelain! Although people in the antique business should be low-key, I am very confident when it comes to porcelain."

Upon hearing this, Mr. Leng said nothing more and began to quietly close his eyes to rest.

About ten minutes later, a waiter pushed a cart back to our stall. Accompanying him was a middle-aged man in a suit who bowed slightly and said in a low voice, "Mr. Leng, the things you sent were returned. That kid is just blind..."

"It's alright."

Mr. Leng opened his eyes and said calmly, "Old Mao, pull back the screen."

As the folding screen was opened, staff members placed the doucai dragon-patterned covered jar on Lin Jianghao's table.

Lin Jianghao stood up, gently stroking the dragon-patterned jar with his hand, and looked at us with a playful gaze: "Sixth Young Master, I'm really sorry, it seems I've stolen someone else's beauty again today."

"It's alright, it's not anything valuable to begin with. Since Young Master Lin has taken a liking to it, I'll give it to you."

Mr. Leng slowly stood up, opened the brocade box in front of Lin Jianghao, took out the enamel flower-shaped jar inside, and casually placed it on the table: "I am just a free spirit, not as kind-hearted as you, Young Master Lin. I really can't bear to use the treasure I painstakingly acquired to exchange for something that is not worth looking at... By the way, the dragon pattern on your jar is nice, and the meaning is quite good."

Lin Jianghao was a smart man. As soon as he saw that Mr. Leng took out an enamel brush washer from the brocade box, his eyes changed immediately. Then he turned to Asheng and said something to him.

Upon hearing this, Ah Sheng quickly walked to the large jar, stroked it for a long time, then turned on the magnifying glass of his watch and examined the jar for a long time. After that, his face turned pale and sweat beaded on his forehead.

"hehe."

Seeing the change in their expressions, Mr. Leng didn't say anything, but he revealed a particularly relieved expression.

After thoroughly examining the jar, Ah Sheng gently wiped the sweat from his hairline with his fingers, lowered his head slightly, and said something to Lin Jianghao.

The next second, Lin Jianghao suddenly turned his head and cast a glance at me.

Just a glimpse, yet it made my heart pound.

I am just an ordinary person, not some chosen one blessed with good fortune, nor a reclusive military god who can make 100,000 soldiers build a doghouse for his daughter with just one phone call.

For someone like Lin Jianghao, once he holds a grudge against me, crushing me would be easier than crushing an ant.

Especially considering what I've done recently, if Lin Jianghao catches me red-handed, he could probably kill me a thousand times over with a snap of his fingers.

Although Mr. Leng is somewhat lacking in expertise in antiques, he is absolutely a master when it comes to interpersonal relationships.

Even though Lin Jianghao only glanced at me, Mr. Leng noticed the subtle change in the atmosphere. He immediately had Lao Mao bring over a chair and place it next to him, using his body to block my view from Lin Jianghao. At the same time, he said to me, "Relax. Whether you are here or leaving this tea party, you will not be threatened in any way. Lin Jianghao knows that you are one of my people, and he knows what the consequences will be if he touches one of my people."

“Mr. Leng, I don’t think that’s entirely true. Admittedly, Lin Jianghao might want to outdo you in the antique business because he’s on par with you in real life. I have no doubt about your status. If you say Lin Jianghao wouldn’t dare to touch Uncle Mao, I’ll believe you! But if you say he wouldn’t dare to touch me, I think you’re just trying to comfort me.”

I smiled and said, "There are countless people in this room who are here to curry favor with the powerful. As long as I make Lin Jianghao suffer, he won't even have to lift a finger. Countless people who want to win his favor will rush up and tear me apart as a pledge of allegiance to him."

Just then, the host on stage spoke up: "Distinguished guests, our blind guessing session has now concluded. We will now proceed to the auction! Since many of our guests are new and unfamiliar with our rules, I will briefly explain them. This tea ceremony auction will not be conducted through cash transactions. Instead, it will utilize a pawn-based system, exchanging antiques for other items, aiming to promote cultural exchange among our guests. Furthermore, I reiterate that this tea ceremony will not authenticate any submitted works. Please keep your eyes open!"

As soon as the words were spoken, the host announced the information about the first item to be auctioned.

This is an agate dzi bead from the early Ming Dynasty. It is 4.5 centimeters long, has slight cracks on the surface, and only one eye.

Dzi beads, also known as "Se" in Tibetan, are a vivid and meaningful translation that means solemn, abundant, noble, and elegant.

The earliest natural dzi beads were made from conch fossils. Later, due to the scarcity of fossils, the ancient Tibetans began to use a sedimentary rock containing jade and agate to make dzi beads. This sedimentary rock has a very strong magnetic field and naturally formed regular patterns, mainly eyeballs, supplemented by triangles, quadrilaterals, etc., which are said to ward off evil spirits.

The earliest dzi beads were the Zhangzhung dzi beads, which are sacred objects of the Yungdrung Bon religion and are the foremost of the seven treasures of Tibet.

Nowadays, with the rise of Tibetan Buddhism, people have begun to process dzi beads in large quantities. The patterns are drawn and etched using special techniques, and then they are consecrated, blessed, and offered as offerings. However, their value is far less than that of natural dzi beads.

The dzi beads currently available on the market come in varieties ranging from one to twelve eyes, fourteen eyes, fifteen eyes, eighteen eyes, and twenty-four eyes.

The circular patterns on the eye-patterned dzi bead are called "eyes." Each type of dzi bead with a certain number of eyes has its own meaning and is related to Buddhist principles. Among them, nine-eyed dzi beads are considered the best, and those with more than nine eyes are less valuable.

Currently, there are only two genuine nine-eyed dzi beads in the world. One is on the statue of Shakyamuni Buddha in the Jokhang Temple, and the other is worn by kung fu superstar Jet Li. Many years ago, it was estimated that the dzi bead he wore was worth over 100 million yuan.

In addition, this kind of one-eyed dzi bead is very rare. It is said that wearing it can make people clear-headed, happy, promote intellectual growth, ward off villains, and attract benefactors.

This agate dzi bead is completely transparent, and the naturally formed patterns on it are irregular. Because of this, the dzi bead is extremely expensive. Even though it has several cracks, its value is at least two million.

As I was admiring the pattern on the dzi bead, Mr. Leng suddenly stood up and said loudly, "Ladies and gentlemen, please allow me to make a grand entrance at today's auction! This friend of mine is attending a tea party for the first time, and he seems to have taken a liking to this dzi bead. I intend to bid for it and give it to him as a gift, wishing him a bright future and smooth sailing. I hope you will all do me this favor!"