Qu's father angrily swept everything on the table to the floor. Not satisfied, he kicked Qu Xin a few times and cursed, pointing at his nose: "How many times have I told you not to mess with Yuan Tingchuan? Why don't you listen? Lao Jia told me that he wanted to sell some of his things quietly to raise funds, and you said you would help him with it, and this is what you did?"
Qu Xin sat on the sofa with a smile on her face: "Isn't this good? If nothing goes wrong, it's good for you, me, and everyone else. But if something goes wrong, Yuan Tingchuan can be dragged into it. Even if he can get away with it in the end, he won't have an easy time."
Last time in Hexi Village, Yuan Tingchuan showed no regard for their old friendship and threw her out, making her so embarrassed. The new and old grudges combined made Qu Xin go crazy.
It just so happened that Lao Jia wanted to sell a Chenghua Doucai. Lao Jia was also in a dilemma. Although Qu's father did not say it explicitly, he knew that the thing was of illegal origin. But he was in urgent need of funds recently. He sold the ancient jasmine he collected in the past, but people said they were all fakes and not worth much at all. Only this Chenghua Doucai porcelain was left.
He was reluctant to part with it. He had been collecting antiques for several years and had collected this authentic piece. However, the company was at a critical juncture and he could no longer care about it. He gritted his teeth and stomped his feet and decided to sell it.
Qu Xin told him that he could sell it at a high price, and he readily agreed. Firstly, he could give an explanation to his old friend by having Qu Xin sell it, and secondly, when he was short of funds, the more he could sell, the better.
Father Qu's eyes flickered, and he slowed his voice and said, "Now that things have come to this, there's no point in saying anything. Since Yuan Tingchuan has put us on the fire, if he's ruthless, don't blame us for being disloyal. I'll leave this matter to you. Do you understand?"
Qu Xin nodded excitedly. Her father finally agreed. This time she must make Yuan Tingchuan look good.
In order to build momentum for his auction item, Yuan Tingchuan invited reporters from the provincial newspaper, and this time he also included exquisite pictures, which made everyone even more jealous.
An old comrade was holding a newspaper in silence. His expression was very serious and his brows were tightly furrowed. After a while, he made up his mind, rolled up the newspaper in his hand, and went straight to the director's office.
"Take a look at this Chenghua Doucai porcelain bowl."
The old curator picked up the newspaper, put on his reading glasses, glanced at the headlines, and said with a smile, "Why? Are you interested in this porcelain too? I heard it's going to be auctioned tomorrow? Oh, it's a wonderful thing, but we can't afford it. There's no point in looking at it with envy. Can you really afford it?"
His original intention was to tease Lao Qin, who was an expert in ancient porcelain research and was very obsessed with porcelain, but like himself, he could not afford these things.
"Please take a closer look. Is this porcelain exactly the same as our Chenghua Doucai Fish and Lotus Bowl?" Lao Qin's voice was serious.
When the old curator heard what he said, his heart skipped a beat. He picked up the newspaper and looked at the picture carefully. His heart sank and he had a bad feeling.
The two men looked at each other and hurried straight to the museum lobby.
What they didn't notice was that there was a statement in the gap in the middle of the newspaper: Because the original picture was damaged, the accompanying picture is for reference only.
When Master Zheng returned home in the evening, he met two people at the entrance of the alley in front of his house. They were the bodyguards of the Qu family who had visited him before.
"Tomorrow, just tell everyone that the person you received hurriedly handed you the bowl and left. Mr. Yuan told you to do so behind your back. Don't look into it, just accept it. You don't have to worry about anything else."
Master Zheng said hesitantly, "Although my brother's problem has been resolved, if I offend Mr. Yuan, I'm afraid I won't be able to make it in this business anymore. How will my family survive?"
So this is asking for money? The Qu family's bodyguards seemed to have anticipated his request. One of them pulled out two wads of RMB and threw them into Master Zheng's arms.
"I've given you the things, but what if things don't go well?"
"Please don't worry, I know what to say."
Master Zheng watched the two black-clad bodyguards leave, a glint in his eyes. What should he say? That depends on what happens tomorrow. Just 20,000 yuan, and you're going to buy the lives of his family? That's too cheap.
In the golden autumn season, chrysanthemums are in full bloom in Yuan's Yi Garden, with a light and elegant fragrance. The moss on the rockery is accompanied by stone patterns with an ancient charm. In the distance, there is a small bridge with flowing water and shady green trees. The scenery is very pleasant.
There are more than a dozen tables arranged in an orderly manner on the small lawn outside the "Pomo Pavilion", which is full of guests who are drinking tea and chatting, waiting for the auction to begin.
In front was a temporary platform, on which was placed a long table covered with gold velvet.
Several items have been placed on it, all covered with red silk, waiting for someone to reveal the mystery.
Some guests were anxious and kept looking around.
"Have you heard? Not only is the Chenghua Doucai small bowl being auctioned today, but there's also an authentic Zheng Banqiao painting."
"The story of Emperor Chenghua and Consort Wan is truly heartbreaking. My wife cried yesterday while holding the newspaper and asked me to bring this Chenghua Doucai bowl back to her today. She said it was a testimony of their love."
"That won't do. I came here on a mission from my mother, and she's waiting for me to bring this porcelain back to her."
"Well, the story sounds okay to me, but I'm quite interested in this porcelain."
With a light cough from the auctioneer on the podium, the auction officially began.
Although everyone came for the Chenghua Doucai porcelain, some just wanted to take a look at it. After all, everyone knew that such a national treasure must be worth a lot of money. Since they came here, they couldn't come in vain. It would be nice to buy a few good-looking things.
Yuan Tingchuan and Du Ruo stood on the second floor of Pomo Pavilion, looking at the auction on the lawn with a smile.
The atmosphere was lively, with bidding sounds coming one after another, and Mr. Yuan was making a lot of money.
"Will the fish you're hooking take the bait? What if they don't come?"
"If he doesn't come, then don't come. If he doesn't come, I'll continue to make money. If I can't catch anything this time, maybe I can catch a bigger one next time."
"You have a big appetite, be careful not to overeat."
"I have a big appetite, haven't you known that?" Yuan Tingchuan whispered in Du Ruo's ear, "Or do you want to try another way?"
Du Ruo pushed him and said, "Be quiet and wait to welcome your distinguished guest."
"Dear guests? They are just a few small fish at best. The real big fish won't take the bait. If you want to clean up the fish pond, you have a long way to go."
That's true. The water here is so deep that the big fish behind will not show up easily.
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