Only by working together with their fellow apprentices can they find the clues...
On the eve of resuming work, the Huaili police sent a batch of broken porcelain pieces to Dengyuan. As soon as Yu Ming and Cheng Sizhou received the news, they immediately rushed over to take over.
The broken porcelain pieces were picked up by the search and rescue team while looking for people. They were of various sizes and shapes.
They found a box about 60 to 70 centimeters in size, padded it with two or three layers of anti-collision bubble wrap, broke off a piece of foam board and put it in, then carefully wrapped the broken porcelain pieces with rice paper and stuck them into the foam board. Finally, they closed the lid and shook it gently. When they heard no sound, they lifted it into the car together and returned to the Lantern Expo.
"You two, come and help lay the tablecloth." Yu Ming directed the seconded interns.
"There's a new guy? Is it urgent?" The intern was still getting back to normal after the Spring Festival holiday.
"You don't need these. You should continue to repair the tri-color terracotta warriors according to the plan before the New Year." Yu Mingdao.
Cheng Sizhou also arrived. His eyelids were swollen and there was darkness under his eyes. Just as he was about to pick up a piece of broken porcelain to have a look, Yu Ming grabbed his wrist.
"Are you okay?" Yu Ming saw that he was not in good condition. "If not, I'll do it alone."
"Not bad," Cheng Sizhou said gloomily. He changed his hand and picked up a piece. "Persimmon-colored porcelain."
"Persimmon-colored porcelain, are you sure?" Yu Ming was not questioning his judgment, he just thought it was too coincidental.
Persimmon-colored porcelain, or persimmon-red glaze, also known as sauce glaze and purple gold glaze, is a high-temperature colored glaze with ferrous oxide as the colorant. It comes in varieties such as sauce red, sauce brown, sauce black, and sesame paste.
The color of this batch of broken porcelain pieces is quite different from the common purple gold glaze. Its glaze color is warm and elegant, and the touch is delicate and soft. Such good quality is very rare unearthed across the country.
However, there was one thing that Yu Ming knew but Cheng Sizhou did not know - among the large number of cultural relics donated by the girl who returned home last year, there were porcelains with very similar glaze colors.
As luck would have it, Cheng Sizhou injured his hand that day while using a knife and was punished by his master to observe the rules, so he missed the opportunity to do the repair and storage work.
Yu Ming recalled what happened that day and felt that his master was strict, but he wouldn't be so harsh over such a small matter. Could he have done that on purpose? Did he not want Cheng Sizhou to touch the porcelain?
Cheng Sizhou's expression instantly calmed down as he entered the working state. He picked up a small piece with tweezers and compared it under different lights. It seemed that he had seen the clue.
Yu Ming asked, "Is it Ding kiln?"
Cheng Sizhou shook his head: "No, it might not even be an official kiln."
If it is not an official kiln, then it is a folk kiln.
The two brothers looked at each other and simultaneously remembered that a medium-sized folk kiln site had been excavated in Mutao Town at the foot of Longji Mountain, and tens of thousands of broken porcelain pieces had been unearthed.
However, the kiln was abandoned during the Ming and Qing Dynasties, and the ruins were not developed into a tourist attraction. Over time, few people knew about it.
Therefore, there are two possibilities for these broken porcelain pieces: those that were not taken away when the site was excavated in the 1990s; and those that fell off the cliff with the truck a few days ago.
Yu Ming pointed to the fresh crack at the gap and said, "Don't doubt it, it was broken a few days ago."
Cheng Sizhou frowned. "There's porcelain on the truck? A lot of porcelain?"
In fact, he had always guessed that the family photo on New Year's Eve was taken out by his master. He probably missed his daughter again, and his sudden trip to Longji Mountain might be related to An Yi's death.
Since there were porcelains on the truck, does that mean that the master was actually going for the porcelains?
However, most of the porcelains fired in folk kilns are daily utensils such as cups, bowls and plates, and have little research value. He retired a year ago. What is the purpose of retrieving this batch of porcelains?
"Brother, can you tell what they are? They don't look like ordinary objects to me."
"It's broken into pieces like this. I don't have a keen eye, so how can I tell it at a glance?" Yu Ming said solemnly, "Give me some time."
The broken porcelain pieces need to be pieced together, and the tri-color figurines cannot be delayed either.
Yu Ming assigned Cheng Sizhou to supervise interns, and then devoted himself to the restoration.
After the Spring Festival, the weather showed signs of warming up. Although the air was cold, the wind no longer hurt on my face.
Wen Zichuan officially signed with Xingyu Feiyu, and thus took on the five million yuan penalty. Overwhelmed by the pressure of debt, he had no time to think about what he and Cheng Sizhou should do, which didn't seem too bad.
However, today, Wei Jing personally told him that the filming of the drama was about to start and he would join the crew in two days.
"Brother Zhou." Wen Zichuan sat on the sofa, a short distance away from Cheng Sizhou.
"Yeah." Cheng Sizhou didn't even raise his head and continued to flip through the information in his hand.
He has been working overtime until very late recently, and continues to read materials when he gets home. In the past, with the leadership of his master and senior brothers, many research results could be picked up ready-made by him. But as time went by, he almost forgot the methods of analysis and verification.
Wen Zichuan knew that Mr. Jiang’s case was of utmost importance, and Brother Zhou was researching it day and night in order to provide clues to the police as soon as possible.
He is an adult and there is no need for him to feel aggrieved for temporary neglect, but after all, he just can't bear to let go.
"Brother Zhou, I'm going to film a movie." I asked Wei Xiaoming in advance. He will stay in the crew for four months this time, half a month for training, two months for shooting scenes all over the country, and the last month and a half in the film and television city, which is more than three hours' drive from the lights.
Cheng Sizhou hadn't shaved, his chin was bruised and black. He forced a smile, but his face was haggard. "I hope you become famous overnight and become a big star, and..."
He paused, as if trying to decide his words.
For some reason, Wen Zichuan became nervous. He didn't dare to have any unrealistic expectations. He just hoped to hear "I'll wait for you", "I'll miss you", or "Call me when you miss me".
He has to hold such a candy in his mouth to have the courage to face the hardships in the future.
"Also, take care of yourself." Cheng Sizhou sighed almost inaudibly.
"You too." Wen Zichuan leaned over and hugged him, his eyes red where he couldn't see.
When they parted, he handed him a USB drive and said, "I recorded what happened to my parents back then. Listen to it when you have time."
Cheng Sizhou agreed, but didn't dare to look at him directly, and immediately lowered his head to look at the information.
Wen Zichuan did not turn his eyes away, but looked at him again and again, as if he was afraid of forgetting him.
Maybe I put pressure on him again, because he didn't turn a page of the document spread out on his knees for a long time.
Wen Zichuan got up and went back to his room, leaving the living room to him. He hoped that Brother Zhou would put in so much effort and finally get a result that would comfort him.
In the week after getting the fragments, the one who was even crazier than Cheng Sizhou was Yu Ming.
He wished he could move his bedding to his workplace so that he could do his job well and speed up the restoration of the porcelain fragments.
The two brothers' desperate tinkering naturally attracted the attention of their colleagues and leaders at Dengbo.
That day, when Cheng Sizhou returned to the studio, he saw Yu Ming put all the broken porcelain pieces into the cabinet, closed the door and locked it, not allowing anyone to touch it.
"Brother, what do you mean?" He felt something was wrong.
"It's been repaired. There are no clues. Let's leave it at that." Yu Ming returned to his usual cold expression.
Seeing him slowly pouring water to make tea, Cheng Sizhou suddenly felt furious: "Are you just trying to give me a hard time? The higher-ups have already contacted you. They don't want you to spend time researching this, right?!"
"Cheng Sizhou, this is work!" Yu Ming suppressed his anger. How could he say such words when there were so many ears listening and eyes watching?
"Brother, you were the one who told me that this matter was suspicious, and you were the one who asked me to follow the police's progress. Now you suddenly say that the repairs are done and there are no more clues. How can I trust you?"
"Believe it or not."
Cheng Sizhou was so angry that his internal organs ached. Based on Senior Brother Yu's craftsmanship and his understanding of their master, he was afraid that no one else in the country could solve the mystery of the broken porcelain pieces except him.
But why didn't he continue? What was more important than the Master's business?
"I understand," Cheng Sizhou approached Yu Ming, his eyes locked. "The director and the headmaster have always wanted you to take over from Master and become the team leader and deputy director, right?"
"Cheng Sizhou!! What did you say?!" Yu Ming's face turned pale and he had reached his limit of endurance.
"Brother, I never thought of arguing with you," Cheng Sizhou clenched his fists and spoke word by word. "As long as you continue to fix it and give me a reasonable result, I can resign immediately."
Yu Ming's eyes were filled with shock and disbelief. He gritted out a few words through his teeth: "Get out!"
"Just get out." Cheng Sizhou walked out with red eyes and sat down on the steps without moving.
He went out and sat down, actually blocking the door. He had to get a result today, even if he had to kowtow and beg, he asked Yu Ming to get the job done.
Colleagues from the next group heard the noise, stuck their heads out to take a look, and whispered that in the past, Master Jiang had been too fair, causing his fellow apprentices to be dissatisfied with each other, which was why there was always such a commotion.
Cheng Sizhou was too lazy to pay attention to them. He looked up at the sky. It was just past five o'clock and it was already dark.
The lights in the Science and Technology Protection Center went out one by one, and only the windows of the ceramics group shone with a cold light.
Under the light, Yu Ming finished his last stroke, and the thin piece of paper in his hand now felt heavier than a thousand pounds.
This box of broken porcelain pieces contains about two hundred pieces, and they come from different types of porcelain. It is impossible for anyone to restore them in such a short time.
Only Yu Ming himself knew that he wrote almost entirely based on his imagination.
It is difficult for a person with a rigorous nature to hand over a conclusion that has not been proven. Moreover, Cheng Sizhou is on the verge of losing control of his emotions. No matter whether the result is good or bad, it will drag him into a more dangerous situation.
Yu Ming folded the drawing, put it in his pocket, and opened the drawer on the right side of the cabinet. A brown paper envelope with "Resignation Letter" written on it lay quietly, as if mocking the rare tacit understanding between the brothers.
"Hello." Yu Ming came out and looked down at him condescendingly.
"Any results?" Cheng Sizhou jumped up.
"No," Yu Ming said with a sullen face, walking forward on his own. "If you're not in a hurry to go home, have a drink with me."
drink wine?
Cheng Sizhou suspected that he had heard wrongly. Senior Brother Yu was extremely old-fashioned and self-disciplined. Not to mention alcohol, he had never even seen him drink milk tea or beverages.
Yu Ming walked very fast, and Cheng Sizhou had to jog a few steps to catch up with him.
When they passed the Social Education Department, it was pitch black inside, with only the dim yellow street lights stretching out the two people's figures.
Yu Ming suddenly stopped and asked, "Are you planning to settle down in Dengyuan?"
The senior brother is an insider, and "you" refers to him and Wen Zichuan.
"What does it mean to settle down?" Cheng Sizhou asked with a bitter face.
"Let's buy a house, be filial to our parents, and live together." Yu Ming was talking to him, but his eyes fell on the dark window panes of the Social Education Department.
"Who can afford a house like Dengyuan?" Cheng Sizhou told a bad joke, and he couldn't keep a smile on his face. "Why do you bring this up suddenly? Are you and Yangyang...?"
"No." Yu Ming denied it very quickly. "We're going to drink anyway. Wouldn't it be better if it's your wedding?"
"Wedding banquet? You're so bold." Cheng Sizhou suppressed the bitterness in his eyes, put his arm around Yu Ming's shoulders, and walked forward with a swagger, "Come on, Old Yu, I'll treat you."
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