Although my impression of Song Laosan has always been that he is not easy to control and is not very reliable, the Song family has been operating for many years and still has a certain reputation in various circles in China.
After dinner, Song Laosan took me to a teahouse owned by one of his friends for a short rest. Just as the agreed time arrived, a large A-type RV, over ten meters long, pulled up outside and picked us up.
This was the first time I'd ever ridden in a motorhome in my life. The ride was completely smooth, and I slept very comfortably.
I was woken up by a knock on the door. I heard Song Laosan say that we had arrived in Luoyang, so I quickly got up to wash up.
The convoy that came to pick us up was small in number, but of a very high caliber. Our car was a Rolls-Royce Cullinan, led by two Audi A8s, and followed by two Mercedes-Benz S-Class escorts.
The person who received us was a young man in a suit and tie, who looked to be about twenty-four or twenty-five years old. The Patek Philippe on his wrist and the Hetian jade pendant on his chest both demonstrated his great wealth.
Song Laosan stood in the middle and introduced us: "Xiao Duan, let me introduce you. This is Qing Huai, the fifth young master of the Qing family in Henan. The Qing family is somewhat involved in the business, working as laborers. Mr. Qing, this is Duan Shenxing, the head of the Duan family in Fengtian. The one next to him is Zhao Qinghou, the assistant to the head of the Duan family."
When I heard the word "delayed work," I unconsciously frowned.
This term does not refer to any one person, but rather to a circle that specializes in the clandestine transportation and smuggling of antiques. The smugglers are mostly people from the underworld, who usually possess extraordinary abilities and use them to make huge profits.
"I had long heard that the Duan family among the four families was knowledgeable and insightful, but I never expected the head of the Duan family to be so young."
Qinghuai extended his palm to me: "Patriarch Duan, it's a pleasure to meet you. I hope we can have more contact in the future."
I shook hands with Qinghuai: "Mr. Qing, you're too kind. You can just call me by my name."
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, the two got into their cars and drove away. Sitting inside the Rolls-Royce, Song Laosan patted the seat and teased, "Mr. Qing, it seems your Qing family has been doing quite well in recent years!"
"Third Master, the Qing family and the Song family are old friends. Don't be so formal with me. Just call me Xiao Huai."
Qing Huai loosened his tie: "To be honest, our Qing family is actually all bark and no bite these days. Ever since my eldest and second eldest brothers got into trouble for reselling cultural relics, the family business has expanded outwards. Henan is a major grain-producing province, and the Qing family made their fortune in the grain industry. Then they started investing in real estate, and they were quite successful for a while."
Two years ago, my dad partnered with a friend to invest billions of yuan in a tourism project in southern China. However, his partner was imprisoned and his assets were tied up. Now, all the family's other businesses have been affected, and the cash flow is at risk of breaking down at any moment. They are currently scrambling to find money. My dad is currently in the south dealing with this business crisis. He heard that the Song family went to Henan and asked me to make sure you are well taken care of, as they have some business issues they want to discuss with you when they return.”
After hearing this explanation, I roughly understood the relationship between the two parties.
The Qing family was probably one of the earliest families to have dealings with the Song family. They accumulated their first fortune through the antique business and then rapidly expanded, building their own business empire.
I used to think that Qinghuai was kind to people because of his family upbringing.
But now it seems that he also needs Song Laosan's help, wanting to recoup some money through the antique business to alleviate the pressure on his other businesses.
After listening to Qing Huai's explanation, Song Laosan smiled appropriately: "You can rest assured about that. Our two families have been on good terms for generations. If the Qing family needs anything, I will certainly do my best to help. However, I have come to Luoyang this time also to ask the Qing family for help, and it may be even more urgent than for you."
Qinghuai smiled and offered a round of cigarettes: "Third Master, you can rest assured about this. My father has already given instructions to fully cooperate with you."
Song Laosan's eyes lit up: "Judging from your confident look, could it be that you've found out about Su Jialiang?"
"Outsiders can't get any information about Su Gouzi, but for our Qing family, there's no need to investigate at all."
Qinghuai shook his head slightly and looked at us, saying, "Since the three of you are all insiders, you must have heard of the name Yanyunjian, right?"
Upon hearing the name, I nodded. Seeing that the monkey looked confused, I began to explain it to him.
When people think of Henan, their first impressions are of a province with a large number of college entrance examination candidates and a major agricultural province.
In fact, this place also has a profound historical and cultural heritage. Henan is located in the Central Plains and is one of the birthplaces of ancient Chinese civilization. More than 20 dynasties, including the Xia, Shang, Zhou, Sui and Tang, successively established their capitals or moved their capitals to Henan.
The Yin Ruins, a major archaeological site that caused a sensation in the archaeological world, is located in Anyang City, Henan Province. Most of the oracle bone inscriptions in China were also unearthed here.
Another place in Henan that is also famous in the world of antique collecting is the small village of Yanyunjian.
This village, located in Yichuan County, is only 30 kilometers away from the Longmen Grottoes and is known as "China's No. 1 Village for Counterfeiting Bronze Ware".
Located on the east bank of the Yi River, Yanyunjian is situated with mountains and water. As early as the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties, the imperial court had already noticed that this place had excellent feng shui and it became a place for the emperor to lead his officials to worship their ancestors.
For this reason, a large number of bronze ritual vessels used in sacrifices were brought here.
After thousands of years, these bronze artifacts were buried in the loess soil, becoming witnesses to history.
In modern society, these buried bronze artifacts have been unearthed, and that history from thousands of years ago has reappeared before the world.
The large number of bronze artifacts unearthed here has attracted a large number of experts and archaeology enthusiasts, making Yanyunjian a highly sought-after area.
Unfortunately, while many people have made a fortune from antiques here, the local villagers have not benefited from it and continue to live a life of farming from dawn till dusk.
All of this change originated from a villager named Fang Xingqing.
This man went to the city to work in his early years and suffered a lot. By chance, he entered the antique business and mastered the art of forgery. At that time, many so-called top experts could not tell the difference between the fakes he made and were completely fooled.
In those days, a bronze mirror they could make on a whim could be worth a year's worth of income from their regular work.
In 1991, Chengdu Airport Customs intercepted a large number of bronze artifacts. After expert appraisal, these bronze artifacts were all identified as cultural relics from the Shang and Zhou dynasties.
Such a huge number was enough to cause a major case that would shock the whole country, and it also inspired the police officers' enthusiasm for solving the case.
However, after Fang Xingqing was brought to justice, the police discovered that the bronze artifacts they had seized were all replicas, while the genuine articles were treasured in major museums.
Because the law at the time did not clearly define the counterfeiting of cultural relics, Fang Xingqing was ultimately acquitted.
After this incident, Fang Xingqing realized the risks involved and stopped imitating Shang and Zhou bronzes, instead switching to making handicrafts.
He did not keep his skills to himself, but instead led the local villagers to produce together with villagers from neighboring villages and achieve common prosperity.
Once all the villagers had mastered the craftsmanship, they began, under Fang Xingqing's leadership, to openly produce replicas of bronze artifacts and sell them abroad, making Yanyunjian a well-known "counterfeit capital village."
Of course, Fang Xingqing's success was also largely due to the fact that China was in a state of disrepair at the time, with outdated identification methods and uneven levels of expertise among experts.
After listening to my introduction, Qinghuai clapped his hands and said, "Mr. Duan is right! Even today, Yanyunjian is still engaged in the production of antique bronze artifacts, and has formed a huge industrial chain. The local villagers' skills are also being innovated with the development of the times, and their skills are becoming more and more exquisite. However, they almost never make one-to-one replicas, and they will not deliberately create pit rust, corrosion and other traces that are easily judged as cultural relic forgeries."
Song Laosan stubbed out his cigarette: "What is the connection between Su Jialiang and Yanyunjian?"
"According to rumors, this Su Gouzi became an apprentice of Master Fang Xingqing of Yanyunjian at the age of ten. His forgery skills surpassed his master's, and he left Yanyunjian at the age of twenty, gathering a group of followers to specialize in making imitations! Nowadays, one-third of the high-quality bronze fakes at home and abroad are made by him. Some people have estimated that Su Gouzi's forgery business has an annual output value of at least 500 million yuan!"
At this point, Qing Huai lowered his voice and leaned forward: "Third Master, if possible, our Qing family wants to replace Su Gouzi and take over this piece of the pie."
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