Chapter 93
Walking into the familiar appraisal room filled with various tools again, the air was filled with a faint unique smell, similar to the mixture of decayed old paper and some kind of varnish. Wu Yu sat at the square table. He took out the double magnifying glass he had just found and carefully studied the old paper on the table that he had pieced together with great difficulty.
The tattered yellow paper had been there for a long time, and much of the information on it had become blurred. He grasped the tweezers and pieced the fragments together, faintly making out the words 'Minyue Sanliumo'.
Hearing the sound of knocking and the door opening, he raised his head, and the glasses on his nose slipped slightly. Wu Yu frowned and looked at the people who had just walked in in confusion.
"What's the matter?" He saw Manager Wang coming towards him first.
"What are you doing?" Manager Wang walked over and asked him in a low voice.
"Puzzle something," Wu Yu said, "The boss brought that thing over last time, and there was a piece of paper underneath. I'm thinking about whether I can puzzle something out of it."
But seeing the unusual expression on Manager Wang's face, Wu Yu asked again: "What's wrong?"
"There are guests." Manager Wang tapped his desk a few times, motioning him to look at the people behind him.
Wu Yu received the signal from him and hurriedly put away the things on the table.
"Boss Yang," Manager Wang said, leaning over and introducing them eagerly, "This is our top appraiser, Wu Yu, Mr. Wu. Mr. Wu used to work at the Provincial Museum and is very experienced. He can never tell the authenticity, age, or value of anything he's examined. You can rest assured."
"Hmm," Yang Ye replied, walking over to the square table covered with a dark green velvet cloth and sitting down. She crossed her legs, her off-white shawl sliding slightly as she sat down, highlighting her slender neck. Her calm demeanor evoked a calm aloofness.
She casually glanced at Manager Wang opposite her, then looked at Wu Yu, who was still in a daze and seemed a little dull, and her eyes fell on the thing he had just put together.
This old newspaper is from the third year of the Republic of China. Judging from the shape and color of the paper, it should have been stored in a completely dry environment. The edges are obviously brittle, but it was later damaged by mud or water or something else, which caused it to become blurred again.
"This..." Yang Ye was too lazy to talk to them and nodded slightly. Xiao Xiao immediately stepped forward and placed the sandalwood box on the square table. Yang Ye raised his eyes and casually glanced at the few people. His tone was flat, and even carried a hint of disdain for the item. "This was left by the old man at home. Teacher Wu, please help me take a look and give me an estimate."
When Wu Yu saw the wooden box that she casually threw to him, he was confused at first, thinking that this person was putting on airs. But when he saw Manager Wang's anxious expression, who kept winking and nodding, Wu Yu picked up the thing in confusion. The moment he opened the box, a faint scent of sandalwood wafted out of the box, and the jade pendant was sandwiched in a dark silk handkerchief.
Filled with curiosity, Wu Yu carefully lifted the covering towel. When he saw clearly what was in the box, his eyes changed from confusion to surprise, and then quickly settled into an even harder to suppress, the purest joy that seemed to come from his heart.
He adjusted the glasses that were about to fall off his nose, leaned in closer to look at it carefully again, his fingers trembling slightly. He wanted to touch it, but was hesitant.
Yang Ye saw the change in Wu Yu's eyes clearly. She tilted her head calmly, put her fingers on her chin, and coughed slightly when neither Manager Wang nor Wu Yu noticed.
Zhou Yiheng stood beside her and said to Manager Wang, who was waiting for something in front of her, "Manager Wang, if this thing is real, how much can you give for it?"
"Ah?!" Manager Wang was still looking at the jade pendant that Wu Yu had picked up, wanting to take a closer look. But when he heard Zhou Yiheng say this, he withdrew his gaze and rubbed his palm back and forth on the velvet cloth. He thought seriously for a while, "I can't give you an estimate for now."
"Why?" Zhou Yiheng asked.
"This is what happened, Miss Yang," Manager Wang explained to her. "We have a specific process for appraising items. Mr. Wu will first inspect the item with his naked eyes, and then we'll use the imported machines we have in the back to do further testing. Once the results come in, we'll give you an approximate price range. If you're satisfied, we'll have further discussions."
"Can't you see it with the naked eye?" Xiao Xiao asked.
"I'm sorry, there will be a certain deviation between what you see with your naked eyes and the actual price. Miss Yang, this item is so good, you also want it to have a good price."
"Of course," Yang Ye raised his eyebrows and said softly to Manager Wang, "As long as Manager Wang is professional enough, I believe we will have many opportunities for subsequent cooperation."
"We also hope to give Miss Yang a satisfactory result," Manager Wang replied with a smile.
Manager Wang glanced at Wu Yu again, but Wu Yu's mind was still on the jade pendant. In all his years in the business, he had rarely seen jade pendants as fine as the one Yang Ye brought today. He couldn't help but stare at it for a moment longer.
Manager Wang walked over and saw the undisguised obsession in Wu Yu's eyes. He felt a little uncomfortable watching Wu Yu's naked display. He stood beside Wu Yu, lowered his voice, and said through gritted teeth, "Teacher Wu, how about you take it to the back first and let us run the machine through it?"
The hint in his eyes was obvious, and Wu Yu understood it immediately.
Manager Wang turned to Yang Ye and said with a smile, "Miss Yang, why don't you wait outside for a while?"
"Can't I stay here?" Yang Ye asked, looking up.
"I'm sorry, Miss Yang," Manager Wang said with an embarrassed smile, "We have certain procedures and rules for doing appraisals. I can only trouble you to follow us to the lounge next door."
"Okay." Yang Ye stood up, her off-white shawl drawing a neat arc in front of her. She didn't even look at the wooden box again, and walked out of the appraisal room with Zhou Yiheng and Xiao Xiao.
"Oh, right," Yang Ye paused at the door. She half-turned, and sunlight streamed in from the window at the end of the corridor, casting a faint halo on her face. She glanced at Wu Yu, then at Manager Wang, who was about to speak to Wu Yu. Her tone was calm, yet with a hint of understandable impatience, "Half an hour, can we end this?"
"Of course." Manager Wang was startled by the look in Yang Ye's eyes. He couldn't tell if it was because her aura was too strong or because he was feeling insecure. Manager Wang felt a sudden chill on his back, and his shoulders trembled. He hurriedly trotted after her, "Please come this way. I'll take you to our VIP lounge."
While leading the three people to the other end of the corridor, he turned around to close the door and waved at Wu Yu, who was still in the appraisal room, holding the thing and thinking about something, and urged him to hurry up with his mouth.
The VIP lounge was elegantly furnished, with a complete set of antique furniture and a collection of replicas, or smaller authentic pieces, displayed on the wall-mounted display cases. A faint scent of sandalwood hung in the air. Manager Wang offered Yang Ye a seat to rest, and the receptionist arrived to serve tea.
After they sat down, a brief silence was broken by the sound of water being poured at the front desk. Manager Wang gathered his suit jacket around him and sat down across from them. He picked up his teacup and looked at Yang Ye, who sat demurely across from him. Although he had a warm smile on his face, his eyes were more testing than before.
"Boss Yang is really young and promising, with extraordinary temperament," Manager Wang said with a smile, his eyes casually sweeping over Yang Ye's clothes, which looked simple but were actually very exquisite in details and fabrics, as well as the jade bracelet on her wrist, which was obviously very expensive without a closer look.
"From your accent, Boss Yang, I can tell you're not from here. Are you here for tourism, or..."
Yang Ye picked up the teacup on the table and blew gently on the floating leaves on it. Her movements were graceful. She was stunned for a moment when she smelled the tea fragrance rising from the cup. She didn't drink it immediately, nor did she have any intention of answering Manager Wang. Then, she put down the unfinished cup and glanced at Manager Wang with cold eyes. "You can change your tea?"
The sound of the teacup colliding with the marble table below made her frown even more impatient, and her tone was full of undisguised pickiness, "The tea leaves are too fragrant, and the temperature used for brewing tea is not right. If it were a picky customer, he would have thrown the cup and left. But fortunately, I am not that picky."
Manager Wang was taken aback by her sudden criticism, and the smile on his face froze instantly. He rubbed his hands awkwardly, "Well, Boss Yang, this is..."
Zhou Yiheng, who was standing next to him, took over Yang Ye's words in a calm voice. He said to Manager Wang, "Please forgive me, Manager Wang. Our boss just came back from abroad, so he is more particular about the details of life, especially diet."
Manager Wang knew that this was a way out for himself, so he put on a smile again and made a surprised expression as if he had suddenly realized something, as if the embarrassment just now had never happened. "Boss Yang is an elite who returned from studying abroad. No wonder, no wonder he has such a strong temperament. I see, he has extraordinary knowledge."
Perhaps wanting to ease the tension, or perhaps to build a closer relationship with Yang Ye, Manager Wang tentatively asked, "What did Mr. Yang study abroad? Someone as visionary and capable as you must have studied finance or art design, a prestigious field like that."
Hearing this, Yang Ye glanced at him impatiently, his eyes sharp and condescending, "Does this have anything to do with you? I'm here to sell something, and you need to ask me so many questions, to check my household registration?"
"No, no, I didn't mean that. Boss Yang, please don't misunderstand me." Manager Wang was a little flustered by her straightforward words. He looked at Yang Ye and waved his hands anxiously to explain, "I, I just think that Boss Yang is knowledgeable and I want to learn more from you."
"What's so good about studying with me?" Yang Ye's tone turned cold, with obvious dissatisfaction, and his words were much heavier than before.
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