Chapter 3 Immunity Certificate
Without bothering the owner, Lin Sicheng went inside the stall and picked up a few iron tiles.
These are cylindrical tiles made of cast iron, originating in the Tang Dynasty, flourishing in the Song Dynasty, and becoming widespread in the Ming and Qing Dynasties.
However, it was rarely used in official palaces or by ordinary people. It was most commonly used in Taoist temples and Buddhist temples, and there are similar sites in almost every province.
Many of them are famous tourist attractions, such as the Da Ci'en Temple and Xiangji Temple in Xijing, which both have iron-tiled halls.
Furthermore, they are relatively easy to preserve, so a great many of them still exist.
The saying goes that things are valued for their rarity. If something doesn't come from a famous ancient temple, its price will naturally be low, even if it's a fine piece.
Just like these few tiles: they are decorated with lotus scroll patterns around the edges, and the surface of the tiles is inscribed with scriptures such as the Diamond Sutra and the Heart Sutra. The characters are neat and uniform in depth, and although there are traces of rust, the erosion is minimal.
Lin Sicheng first picked out the piece with the best appearance: "Boss, how much?"
"two thousand!"
Lin Sicheng raised an eyebrow: "Demolished from the Big Wild Goose Pagoda?"
"Bullshit."
"Then you dare to ask for two thousand?"
The stall owner choked for a moment: "Don't you even look at how many words are printed on it? I'll charge you two hundred, that's the lowest I can go!"
Lin Sicheng nodded, first placing the piece at his feet, then picking up another piece from the side.
This piece is much larger and has a rather unique shape. The other iron tiles are like bamboo tubes, long and thin. But this one is the opposite, short and thick.
However, the condition is very poor, with extremely thick rust, and most of the characters are blurred and illegible, with less than one-tenth still legible.
He looked at it again and again, his eyes slowly narrowing: On the very first day of his rebirth, he encountered such an object.
I'm incredibly lucky.
Making sure he wasn't mistaken, he raised it and asked, "What about this one?"
The stall owner glanced at it: "Fifty!"
"Two yuan and two hundred and forty, will you sell?"
The stall owner did the math: "You're haggling over ten yuan?"
"Buy the kid a bowl of gourd head soup!"
Recalling the time when that big, dark-skinned guy compared prices with gourd heads, Shan Wangshu couldn't help but laugh out loud again.
Gu Ming didn't care; he often acted like Lin Sicheng's father.
The stall owner wrapped up the iron tiles, and Lin Sicheng took them and paid for them.
Just as he turned around, Wang Qizhi blocked the road, his eyes constantly glancing into Gu Ming's pocket.
Lin Sicheng immediately understood: "Hello, what's up?"
Wang Qizhi smiled and said, "Could I take a look at that book you just bought?"
If you find a bargain, you're going to exchange it for money. What's wrong with that?
"certainly!"
After replying, Lin Sicheng casually glanced at him and said: "Huh, he's an expert?"
He casually reached into his pocket and handed the book over.
Wang Qizhi took it and flipped through the pages one by one.
The paper is correct, the font is correct, the layout is correct, and the publication number is also correct.
It's not a supplement, nor a photocopy, and it's in excellent condition.
Having confirmed it, he closed the magazine: "How much?"
Gu Ming was still in surprise: Someone actually bought this lousy book? Lin Sicheng held up one finger: "Ten thousand!"
Thinking he was asking for an exorbitant price, Wang Qizhi shook his head: "That's too high, five thousand at most!"
"If it's just a book, it's indeed only worth five thousand!"
Lin Sicheng took the magazine, flipped to the last page, and pointed to it.
Wang Qizhi leaned closer: on the back of the cover was a round stamp the size of a fingernail.
The pattern was somewhat abstract, crooked and twisted, resembling a bunch of insects tangled together. But this was exactly what Wang Qizhi specialized in; how could he not recognize it?
This is an insect seal script, therefore, this is a book collector's seal.
Upon closer inspection: This is a scholar, this is an incorruptible official... Scholar and incorruptible official?
He suddenly looked up: No wonder he dared to ask for ten thousand?
With this badge, it's definitely worth it.
The owner of this seal held a leadership position in the province, retired in the 1990s, and later served as an advisor to a certain commission. This was the founding unit of *Huohuang Chunqiu* (火黄春秋). Therefore, it's difficult to say whether this particular copy is the first issue of that particular publication.
But when he was in office in this province, it was already the 1960s or 70s, how could this kid know that?
More importantly, without studying archaeology and ancient writing, how would one recognize insect script?
Wang Qizhi looked up and sized him up again: This kid must be studying archaeology; judging from his appearance, he probably hasn't graduated yet.
But that's far from enough. No matter how good your archaeology is, you can't possibly know that this book is an internal reference.
He looked at him suspiciously: "What does your family do?"
Lin Sicheng smiled and said, "Just an ordinary family!"
impossible.
Can't an ordinary family cultivate such knowledge and insight?
He couldn't keep pressing for details if the other person wasn't willing to talk. Wang Qizhi handed the book back: "There's a bank up ahead, I'll transfer the money to you!"
Gu Ming's eyes almost popped out: This person is really buying?
Intuition told him it was a joke, until the bank transfer was completed and Lin Sicheng received a text message on his phone.
Gu Ming was stunned: This was 10,000 yuan. His internship salary was 400 yuan a month. He would have to work for two years without eating or drinking.
Lin Sicheng spent thirty?
What about this box of broken tiles and those two pieces of scrap iron in his hand?
Gu Ming hurriedly grabbed the two pieces of iron tile.
Lin Sicheng was caught off guard: "What are you doing?"
"I'll get it for you."
"Need not……"
Before the words were even finished, "Clang!"
Perhaps he was too excited and didn't catch it properly, or perhaps the boss didn't wrap it up securely enough; the two pieces of iron sheet slipped out of the newspaper and fell to the ground.
This is made of cast iron, how can it withstand such a drop?
Lin Sicheng's eyelids twitched, he glanced at it, and then breathed a sigh of relief: thankfully, it only shook off some rust.
Gu Ming was about to pick it up when Lin Sicheng patted him on the shoulder and said, "Don't move, I'll do it!"
He's always been like this since he was little, clumsy and careless. I hope he doesn't fall again.
Thinking it over, he picked up the tile. Just as he straightened up, a head appeared in front of him.
Wang Qizhi stared wide-eyed, looking at Tiewa, then at Lin Sicheng, then back at Tiewa, then back at Lin Sicheng.
Lin Sicheng was bewildered by the stare. He looked down and exclaimed inwardly, "Damn it!"
Did Gu Ming's throw expose his secret?
But it doesn't matter, since he doesn't even know who he is.
Lin Sicheng quickly covered his face with a newspaper: "Goodbye!"
"See you again?" Wang Qizhi grabbed his sleeve. "Let me see!"
Lin Sicheng chuckled: "Just two temple tiles, nothing special!"
"Do you think I can't read?" Wang Qizhi exclaimed impatiently. "I'll buy it!"
That will cost a lot of money...
The words were on the tip of his tongue, but Lin Sicheng swallowed them back: "Don't be surprised, they really can afford it."
He thought for a moment and said, "They're not selling well right now. They need to be washed and inspected. Leave me your phone number!"
"Okay, okay..." Wang Qizhi couldn't wait, "Let me take a look first!"
Lin Sicheng had no choice but to hand it over.
This man was a true expert and a genuine collector, not just an antique dealer. Therefore, he understood the other man's feelings at that moment: excitement at seeing a treasure and a deep appreciation for it.
So, if the price is right, this person will really buy it.
Sure enough, as soon as Lin Sicheng handed it over, he glared at him and said, "You'd better watch out!"
Then, as if cradling his lifeblood, he placed it on the sofa and slowly peeled back the pages of the newspaper.
Okay, no need to look at this one, it's definitely a temple tile.
But this rusty part... if it weren't for the iron certificate of immunity from death, he would have chewed it up and eaten it on the spot.
Let's look at the last line first: "Imperial edict of the first year of Yongchang..." What is an imperial edict?
Imperial edict.
Who is Yongchang?
Several emperors in history have used this reign title, but the most famous one is Li Zicheng.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
