Chapter 120: The moment she chose her faith, she had already won a great victory
Qin Tian also worked overtime yesterday, returning home at three in the morning when he could no longer hold on. He returned to the museum early in the morning to continue working. She knew the bureau leaders were visiting; they were there to see the Chunhua Pavilion Calligraphy Collection, not hers. She had her phone on silent mode to avoid distractions.
Tang Zhixu followed at the end of the leadership team and sent several messages to Qin Tian, but she didn't reply. He had no choice but to tell Wang Qiqing that he had other matters at his department and that since the Chunhua Pavilion was over, he would go back first. Wang Qiqing knew that he was not a person who wanted to pursue a career in politics, so he let him do what he wanted. Tang Zhixu turned around and dialed the extension at Qin Tian's desk.
The landline rang sharply, startling Qin Tian. She picked up the phone and heard Tang Zhixu lower his voice and say, "Check your phone."
Qin Tian grabbed his phone and saw the message from Tang Zhixu.
"Get ready. The bureau leader said he wants to visit the work area. We're going to the restoration room now."
Qin Tianxia subconsciously bit his finger. The leader visited the restoration room and felt something was wrong.
Restoration room! ! Western Zhou chime bells! She suddenly jumped up, opened the office door, and shouted: “Yang Yuxin!”
Yang Yuxin looked up from his book. He had also worked overtime yesterday. He had never worked overtime in his more than ten years of work, but recently he had been working overtime because of the inscription.
Qin Tian took a stack of information and placed it in front of him, pointing at an inscription on the paper with an earnest look.
"This word, this is all that's missing. The direction is already there, in the materials. Ten minutes. Tell me in ten minutes, okay? Please."
Yang Yuxin hesitantly reached out to take the document. Yes, that word. The most crucial word, the one that had never been translated, the one that appeared nine times throughout the text—it was the name of the Duke of Jin.
Song Suiyang yawned for the fifth time. When Tong Zhongyuan left, she hesitated to speak, wanting to ask him to bring back a cup of coffee. Tong Zhongyuan caught sight of her from the corner of his eye and left with a smile on his face.
Song Suiyang was stunned for a few seconds before she suddenly realized what was going on. Oh, how silly she was. Someone as smart as Teacher Tong didn't need to be reminded. She bet Tong Zhongyuan must have gone to buy coffee for everyone.
Song Suiyang waited for about ten minutes, figuring it was about time. He was thinking about going to the door to greet them, when he heard the noisy sounds of footsteps and laughter in the corridor. Song Suiyang pricked up his ears. What was going on? It sounded like a large group of people.
The people in the office were at a loss and had a bad feeling.
The door suddenly opened, and Director Ming's Secretary Su walked in first, holding the door open. Then, Ming Yuanxing, accompanied by four or five people in jackets, walked in with a smile on their faces, filling the floor with noise. Tong Zhongyuan walked in last, carrying a cup of coffee.
The colleagues in the restoration room all stood up subconsciously. Ming Yuanxing said with a smile, "Sorry to interrupt everyone's work, we'll just take a look."
Tong Zhongyuan placed the coffee on the repair table and winked at Song Suiyang. Song Suiyang was confused. What did this mean? Was he asking her to get the coffee?
Ming Yuanxing saw Song Suiyang standing there, so he could only smile and call her over.
"Xiao Song, come show the leaders the cultural relics that are being restored recently."
Song Suiyang finally understood and quickly stepped forward to introduce the artifacts on the restoration table one by one. The others were small items, and the most eye-catching one was the No. 8 Western Zhou Dynasty chime bell on the last restoration table.
The leaders followed her lead, listening and nodding as they gradually strolled to the Western Zhou chime bells. Song Suiyang's pace slowed down. Firstly, she didn't know how to restore bronze, making it difficult to explain. Secondly, there was that news last week claiming it was a fake. How could she explain it? She stood on tiptoe, trying to find Dai Lihua, but Dai Lihua avoided her gaze and retreated.
Ming Yuanxing was quietly chatting with Director Chen when he noticed Song Suiyang suddenly stop talking. He then noticed he was facing the Western Zhou chime bells. It was just a report; he had a clear conscience and nothing to hide. He hadn't expected this to put so much pressure on his employees.
"I'm repairing this. Let me explain." Tong Zhongyuan walked over.
Ming Yuanxing had just introduced Tong Zhongyuan to the two directors. Regardless of their sincerity, the two directors were very warm and friendly towards him, and they couldn't help but praise him.
"This is one of a group of bronze chime bells. The damage is very minor, but the inscription has peeled off. We are speeding up the restoration and the preliminary restoration has been completed. The significance of restoring the inscription is to provide stronger evidence of its precious value."
Director Chen and Director He both nodded and smiled, sighing, "When we go to the exhibition hall, we can only see bronze artifacts encased in glass. This close encounter is truly astonishing. So, you're all blessed. You get to interact with national treasures every day. Just imagine, artifacts that only emperors and generals could touch thousands of years ago are right here before you. You're truly blessed!"
Tong Zhongyuan responded with a humble smile and slowly led him back to the porcelain restoration area. Ming Yuanxing looked at Tong Zhongyuan with a warm gaze.
"I'd like to ask," a reporter accompanying the director on his tour said. "Is this the Western Zhou chime bell that Director Ming bought at Sotheby's in Hong Kong?"
Everyone stopped, their eyes fixed on Tong Zhongyuan. Tong Zhongyuan looked composed and was about to speak when Ming Yuanxing said, "That's right. I bought it at Sotheby's. It's a Western Zhou Dynasty chime bell."
"I read reports that museums in Taiwan and Japan both determined the chime bells were fake and therefore refrained from purchasing them. May I ask what evidence led you to conclude that they were from the Western Zhou Dynasty?"
Reporter Fang stared at Ming Yuanxing and continued asking questions. She knew her reason for coming here wasn't the Western Zhou chime bells. She simply needed to write a positive news release about the leadership's inspection of the Shanghai Museum and their visit to the Chunhua Pavilion. However, as a journalist, having seen the Western Zhou chime bells here, she couldn't ignore this recent controversy. The Shanghai Museum had yet to respond to the question.
Ming Yuanxing smiled and said, "Your question is quite profound. To answer it, I have to start with bronze archaeology. So, we might all have to stay here today. I know there's some controversy surrounding the Western Zhou chime bells. As the child just mentioned, recovering the inscriptions can provide strong evidence for our archaeological work. We're working diligently to answer everyone's questions as soon as possible."
"That means you did take pictures of this set of chimes without any concrete evidence?" Reporter Fang asked sharply.
The huge restoration room was as quiet as a tomb. Director Chen and Director He looked at each other in surprise.
With a whoosh, the door to the restoration room was opened. A female voice rang out.
"Of course there is a basis for this."
Qin Tian closed the door and walked over to the Western Zhou chime bells. The damaged inscriptions had been patched, and the peeling surface had been repaired. Her fingers picked up a thin layer of dust from the uneven surface of the chime bells, turned around, and held out her fingers to show Reporter Fang.
"Our expertise is based on our experience, on having touched thousands of bronze artifacts, smelled their scents, felt their dirt, and seen their patterns. Just like your sensitivity to news and understanding of words, our conviction to never fail in our specialized field, and our ability to discern the subtle difference between the authentic and the fake, is our foundation."
Ming Yuanxing felt a mixture of emotions, moved and moved. The little boy and the little Qin had each tried to protect him. He had grown old, and they had grown up. Cultural relics are a continuation of history, a reflection of the past, survivors and witnesses of millennia. However, their next millennium will belong to the young people who love them.
Ming Yuanxing came to Qin Tian's side and said, "Let me introduce you. This is Qin Tian, the leader of our Shanghai Museum's appraisal team. Although he's young, he's quite experienced in appraisal."
The leaders all smiled and nodded, saying the idiom "young and promising" for the Nth time.
Qin Tian felt the phone in her pocket vibrate. She knew she shouldn't take it out now, but she was waiting for a message, a single word. What if this vibration was...
She made up her mind and took out her phone in front of all the leaders and reporters. On the screen was a WeChat message with only one word: Jesus.
This single word pierced her soul like a bolt of lightning, like a high-speed train rumbling into a station. This single word connected 3,000 years of time, giving the owner of this inscription a name. The final word was "Jesus." His name was Jesus! A surge of warmth surged into her eyes, nearly bringing her to tears. It was for moments like these that she repeatedly journeyed through deserts, rivers, and oceans. Each time moved her to tears, allowing her to resonate and dance with the souls of millennia past, allowing her to hear the echoes of history, bringing her infinitely closer to eternity.
She clutched her phone tightly, slowly raised her head, and met Tong Zhongyuan's deep eyes. She stared at him, using all her willpower to stop herself from sobbing.
"Sorry, Director Ming, I came to the restoration department to revise the names of the Western Zhou chime bells."
After she said this, she lowered her head, calmed down her emotions, and took two or three seconds to sort herself out.
"Now it should be called the Jinhou Su Bell. Its owner is the owner of the Jinhou Tomb in Shanxi. The inscription on the bell has 355 characters, and it describes a battle, a battle that was a great victory."
Her gaze remained fixed on that man. He had once said, "I'll buy it. I'm willing to be embroiled in controversy. If one day it's proven that the Western Zhou Dynasty had iron tools, my name will be etched in history." Between controversy and conviction, they chose conviction. Perhaps her name would never be etched in history, but she didn't care, not at all. Because...
That shock just now was a tremor for the archaeological community. The Western Zhou chime bells Ming Yuanxing bought in Hong Kong were genuine. They were burial objects from the tomb of Marquis of Jin in 812 BC. They are the most complete and precious bronze chime bells ever unearthed!
It advanced people's understanding of the Iron Age of Chinese civilization by a full 500 years.
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