Chapter 10 Family Heritage
"Master Hao!"
Following the sound, a man in his fifties came downstairs.
"Master Liu, please take a look at this!"
"A feather duster? That's rare! Hmm, Liu-style cursive script, not bad?"
Staring intently at the line of words, his finger traced the characters indistinctly for about two minutes. Then, Master Liu's eyes lit up: "Pu Xinyu!"
Lin Sicheng looked at him with admiration: "Master Liu has a good eye?"
"I've just been doing this for a long time, so I've gained some superficial experience!"
Master Liu smiled and said, "Writing cursive script well is easy, but to carve it well requires a master of painting. Furthermore, to maintain the strength, fluidity, and graceful beauty of the original style means one must be a master of painting, calligraphy, and carving..."
Looking at the feather duster and bamboo pole, they're at least sixty or seventy years old. Counting them up, there were only a handful of masters in that era with this level of skill…
"That's perfect. The inscription reads 'Presented to Mr. Qiuming.' Forgive my ignorance, but I only know that at that time, only Mr. Shen Yinmo called himself Qiuming. And the only other famous artist who was on good terms with him and was skilled in painting, calligraphy, and engraving was Pu Xinyu..."
"sharp!"
Lin Sicheng gave a thumbs up, Master Liu smiled modestly, but Master Hao curled his lip.
At first, he listened quite attentively, but when he saw Lin Sicheng's shocked and admiring expression, he realized something was wrong: What's the difference between him and what you just said?
Then what kind of worship do you have?
On second thought, he's so knowledgeable, yet he uses it for authentication; could it be that he has too much money to burn?
Therefore, the authentication is fake; the real purpose is to sell things.
The result was quite good: spending a thousand yuan and adding a light but not heavy compliment made Lao Liu so happy that he would reveal everything. Wasn't that the same as endorsing him?
Sure enough, after saying a few words of thanks, Lin Sicheng looked at Hao Jun with a smile and asked, "Manager Hao, will you accept it or not?"
Nonsense, why would I take the computer if I wasn't going to take it?
"So young, yet so cunning?"
Feinting to the east while attacking in the west, using someone else to lay eggs... You're even using military tactics just to sell some antiques?
Lin Sicheng took it as a compliment.
With a sigh, Hao Jun turned on his computer and pulled up several sets of photos.
There are calligraphy copybooks in the Liu style, as well as bamboo and wood carvings, all of which are works by Pu Xinyu that have been auctioned in recent years.
The two craftsmen picked up the dusters and carefully compared them.
The handwriting is correct, the engraving is correct, and even the aging of the feathers and bamboo pole is correct.
Even so, the two of them still watched for more than ten minutes. Once they were sure it was correct, Hao Jun pushed the computer aside: "Here, see for yourself!"
Lin Sicheng glanced at them: a 2.4-square-foot calligraphy copybook in Liu style, auctioned by Artron, sold for 52,000 yuan. Another 3-square-foot piece, auctioned by Beijing Chengxuan, sold for 43,000 yuan.
Another item, a small double-piece brush holder carved with withered tree patterns on bamboo, was auctioned by Xiling Seal Society and sold for 36,000 yuan.
"Too low!" Lin Sicheng said slowly and deliberately. "This is Mr. Shen's keepsake!"
Hao Jun glared at Master Liu: Serves you right for being so quick-tongued, now look what happened!
Master Liu belatedly realized that the young man was too cunning; a few words of flattery had revealed his true nature.
He gave an awkward laugh: "I'm not entirely sure, I'd only say maybe!"
Lin Sicheng thought about it: from beginning to end, Master Liu had indeed never said anything like "certain" or "absolutely".
"That makes sense!" He nodded. "Well, it must be the first collectible feather duster to appear on the market in China, right?"
Hao Jun was taken aback: "You really dare to brag like that?"
These things are indeed rare, but the Palace Museum definitely has some, and there are probably some people in Beijing who collect them, but they haven't made it onto the market.
On the other hand, this is indeed the first feather duster of the scholar's item to appear in Xijing City to date.
When it comes to cultural relics and collectibles, no matter what category they belong to, the worst thing is to be associated with the number one.
Furthermore, these were said by Lao Liu himself. No matter how thick-skinned Hao Jun is, he couldn't possibly say something like "it has nothing to do with Mr. Shen."
When two phases are combined, a fair price must be given.
He thought for a moment and said, "Eighty thousand, that's the highest I can go!"
Lin Sicheng's eyes lit up: "Deal!"
Hao Jun choked for a moment: "Too high?"
It's not that the item is only worth that much, but rather that this kid's expectations were never that high.
But once the words are spoken, can one take them back?
He rolled his eyes, asked for the bank card number, and handed it to the cashier: "Eighty thousand, after tax!"
Quite particular.
Before long, the money arrived via text message. Hao Jun handed over the card and personally escorted him to the door.
He seemed to have a good impression of Lin Sicheng, because as they parted, he handed over a business card: "If you find anything next time, just bring it over!"
"certainly!"
Lin Sicheng took it and looked at it again:
General Manager of Xijing Rongbaozhai.
Secretary-General of the SX Provincial Folk Traditional Arts Research Association.
Researcher at the Peking University Resources and Cultural Relics Appraisal Institute's Xi'an Training Base.
Lin Sicheng was taken aback: Not only was he a shopkeeper, but he was also a figurehead who was both politically and commercially involved?
The key point is the last line: Although this college is a business training institution similar to an MBA, it was jointly established by Peking University's School of Cultural Heritage and the Palace Museum and the National Museum of China.
The so-called researchers are the same as the professors who teach, and they must come from one of these institutions.
Lin Sicheng thought for a moment, then tentatively greeted him, "Senior Brother Hao?"
Who is your senior brother?
Hao Jun was both angry and amused: "Is this how fellow disciples play tricks?"
Haha, so you really are a graduate of Peking University?
If we were to rank the archaeology and cultural heritage conservation schools in China, Peking University's School of Natural Sciences would be number one, and Northwestern University would definitely be number two. The two universities have been collaborating and exchanging ideas since the late 1980s, so this "senior brother" title isn't just a polite way of showing affection.
Although this senior brother is a bit old.
"Then you don't know, do you?" Lin Sicheng pressed his advantage, pulling out the naked female Buddha statue. "Senior brother, you are knowledgeable and have a wide circle of friends. Could you please have someone take a look at it?"
"You're really not going to be polite?"
Hao Jun chuckled, took the Buddha statue, and narrowed his eyes: "Sakya sect's Shannayaka?"
"No...how did you know?"
Seeing Lin Sicheng's shocked and bewildered expression, Hao Jun felt extremely pleased: "Isn't it written on this ribbon?"
It is written correctly, but that is the Paspa script from the Mongol Yuan Dynasty, which is now a dead script.
With a quick thought, Lin Sicheng instantly guessed the gist of it: This senior brother Hao must have majored in Buddhist artifacts in college, which would be considered miscellaneous items in the antique category.
When it comes to the study of ancient scripts, no institution can compare to Peking University.
What a coincidence, wasn't it? A lucky accident?
He sighed and said, "Then I'll have to trouble you, senior brother!"
"It's a quick thing, but it still needs to go through the machine, which may take two or three days. I'll give you a receipt first!"
Hao Jun glanced at it again. "I reckon it's at least from tomorrow morning, maybe even from the Yuan Dynasty. It's a pity it's too small and damaged. So don't get your hopes up too high: if you sell it, you'll get at most three dusters!"
That's quite a lot.
Lin Sicheng estimated that even if he asked his grandfather to help, there would probably only be two and a half.
"Thank you, senior brother!"
"No need!" Hao Jun waved his hand. "As usual, I have to ask: Where did you get this stuff?"
Without daring to say he found it, Lin Sicheng blurted out, "I found it with my grandfather, Lin Changqing!"
Hao Jun paused for a moment, then breathed a sigh of relief.
I told you, Xida University is indeed impressive, but it's impossible for it to be so impressive that a student who is still studying there suddenly appears with a better eye for antiques than he has been immersed in them for over twenty years.
Now I feel better: it turns out it's because of a family tradition of learning?
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