Chapter 69 Cultural Relics Must Not Be Lost
"It's nothing, I just wanted to thank them, but the person I want to thank the most is you."
An Shixia could hear the jealousy in his tone, and hurriedly explained.
Yan Lingyu snorted: "That's right. I was the one who handed Wu Yang the stick just now. Don't worry, I'll express my gratitude to them on your behalf."
If he didn't want An Shixia to see him hitting someone, he would have done it himself long ago.
An Shixia smiled and nodded: "Okay."
"By the way, why did you suddenly ask for a wood carving? What's the significance of it?"
Yan Lingyu looked at the wooden carving in An Shixia's hand. It wasn't very big, and he couldn't tell what its value was.
“I bought that wood carving, but I feel something is strange about it and I want it back.”
An Shixia placed the wood carving in Yan Lingyu's hands: "Feel it, is there any difference?"
Yan Lingyu felt a sudden weight in his hand, and a look of surprise crossed his face: "This wood doesn't seem to be ordinary wood; it's very heavy. However, judging from its surface, it shouldn't be a problem with the wood itself. Could it be... there's something inside?"
Yan Lingyu tossed the wooden carving in his hand and voiced his guess.
An Shixia didn't tell him definitively, "That's what I think too. Maybe there really is something inside. Let's find someone to open it and take a look."
“I know a stone-cutting master. I’ll take you there to have a look now.”
Without the slightest hesitation, the two got into the car and drove off.
The craftsman An Shixia knew was an expert in carving raw stones and had a wealth of experience. Asking him to carve this wood carving would be a bit of a waste of his talents.
However, considering that this wood carving contains a national treasure, one must be cautious.
When the stone cutter saw Yan Lingyu, he assumed that Yan had bought some rough stones again and asked with a smile, "Mr. Yan, have you bought any new items this time?"
Yan Lingyu took out the wooden carving and placed it in front of his master: "Can this wooden carving be opened?"
The master craftsman glanced at the wood carving but found nothing unusual. However, he dared not ignore what Yan Lingyu had brought.
He picked up the wood carving again and examined it closely, but still couldn't see anything unusual.
"How does Mr. Yan plan to open it?"
The experienced craftsman was somewhat uncertain.
Yan Lingyu turned to look at An Shixia: "How do you think it should be driven?"
An Shixia tried hard to recall the plot of the original book, but she had never experienced it herself, and the dream she had just had was only vague.
I vaguely remember that when Jiang Zhiyao threw the wooden carving, it cracked open, revealing a clump of mud inside.
In any case, cultural relics must not be lost, and national treasures must not appear in other countries.
"Take your time grinding it. This wood carving isn't very big, so it shouldn't take too long, right?"
An Shixia didn't quite understand, so she asked.
The machine grinds stones very quickly, let alone wood. The old master had no complaints and nodded: "Okay, I'll start grinding now."
The machine was turned on, and the master craftsman began grinding bit by bit. An Shixia felt her heart racing.
At first, the grinding was slow, and since it was all wood inside, there was nothing unusual.
When it was ground down to a quarter of the way, there was finally some change, and the master craftsman stopped.
He filled a basin with clean water and put the wood carving in it to wash it, but to his surprise, it got dirtier and dirtier.
"Why is there mud in here?"
The experienced worker simply placed it under the tap to clean it, wiped the top part with a towel, and the bottom hole was exposed, revealing only mud.
An Shixia was a little excited, but she held back: "Master, please grind all four sides until the mud is exposed, but don't wash them."
The experienced craftsman complied with the request.
The wood carving was uneven; even after sanding all four sides, some wood remained unsanded, but the clump of mud was completely exposed.
Once you wash away the mud, the remaining wood will fall off.
"Okay, thank you, Master."
The master craftsman wanted to sand the remaining wood a little more, but An Shixia stopped him from continuing.
"How did a lump of mud end up inside a perfectly good wooden carving?"
The experienced craftsman didn't quite understand, but he didn't delve into it. He simply grabbed a plastic bag, wrapped up the mud, and handed it to An Shixia.
Yan Lingyu thanked the master craftsman and took An Shixia back to the apartment.
An Shixia couldn't wait to fill a basin with clean water, put the clump of mud in, and prepare to wash it.
Yan Lingyu frowned and reached out to grab An Shixia's hand, which was about to put in: "It's dirty, I'll do it."
As he spoke, he pulled An Shixia aside to sit down and began to wash her slowly.
It took three basins of water to wash away most of the mud, revealing the original contents of the mud, but some mud still remained on top.
It took two more washes to get it completely clean.
"This looks a bit like an imperial seal."
An Shixia looked at the thing in Yan Lingyu's hand and said.
Yan Lingyu also looked at it. The thing was milky white all over, without a single impurity, and there were incomprehensible characters engraved on the bottom. He didn't know which era it was from.
Or perhaps it's not a word, but just a pattern.
Yan Lingyu also felt that this thing was not simple: "I also think it looks like an imperial seal, but I don't know if it's real. If it is real..."
Yan Lingyu couldn't help but admire An Shixia's good luck in discovering this.
If it's genuine, it must be incredibly valuable, but as a cultural relic, it should be handed over to the state for safekeeping.
"Should I have someone check it?"
Actually, the An family could find someone, but since Yan Lingyu spoke up, An Shixia immediately nodded: "Okay, I have a feeling that this thing is real. We'll hand it over to the cultural relics bureau later."
The loss of national cultural relics is very serious, and many have been lost to time. If this is true, the country will have one more cultural relic, and the country's cultural soft power will be enhanced.
These cultural relics carry the memory of civilization, pass on cultural genes, and promote social progress. Everyone has a responsibility to protect them.
"I will arrange for a professional to conduct an assessment. You wait for my message at home, and I will come over now."
Yan Lingyu was also very firm in his stance; he wanted to supervise the entire process.
*
School.
Jiang Zhiyao felt she had escaped a disaster. Humming a song, she went downstairs to find He Huaisheng. Seeing that he was still downstairs in the dormitory, she jogged over to him.
"Brother Sheng, why are you still waiting for me?"
He Huaisheng forced a smile: "You've been crying for so long today, you haven't had dinner yet, have you? I'll wait for you at the cafeteria."
Yao Yao is quite weak. If she doesn't eat dinner, she will definitely faint. He has to keep an eye on her.
Jiang Zhiyao shook his arm playfully, "Brother Sheng, I'm not a child anymore."
"In my eyes, you're just a child."
As they walked toward the cafeteria, the people who saw them on the way acted strangely, their eyes constantly glancing at them.
He Huaisheng didn't think anything was unusual. The girls used to look at him often, and as for the boys, they were definitely looking at Yao Yao.
Jiang Zhiyao proudly raised her head, also feeling that those people were looking at her.
But something was off during the meal. Wherever they stood, the students next to them immediately dispersed, seemingly unwilling to have much contact with them.
He Huaisheng looked puzzled, then noticed a girl next to him and gave her a standard smile, asking, "Why did you all change seats?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
