Chapter 60: Cloisonné (Part 2)

  Now, the cloisonné enamel bowl presented before everyone is painted with flowers and birds. From this point of view, this cloisonné enamel bowl should be at least a work from the Yongzheng or Qianlong period.

  As expected, Chu Chen saw the six characters "Qing Dynasty Qianlong Year" in three lines of seal script at the bottom of the bowl. The script is very neat, and from this point on, it can be seen that this is a pioneering work of the current dynasty's style.

  This bowl, with glaze like congealed fat and warm as jade. The exterior is painted with elegant peonies, chrysanthemums, strange rocks, blue birds and flying butterflies. One bird perches on a rock, another hides among the leaves of flowers. Two butterflies flutter about. On the other side is inscribed a seven-character poem. This bowl's decoration is elegant, its shape unique and magnificent, it should be a rare work of Qianlong cloisonné enamel porcelain.

  Afterwards, Chu Chen used a magnifying glass to observe the details again and should be able to confirm that this is a Qing dynasty Qianlong period carefully crafted enamel poetry sentence flower bird pattern bowl. Finally, he used his ability and let out a gentle sigh, with a smile on his face, he put the bowl down.

  Zhou Wenping saw this and said with joy: "Xiao Chuan, do you think this bowl is genuine?"

  Chu Chen nodded, and he and Zhou Shu suddenly became excited. Although Zhou Shu's parents were also very happy, they didn't know the value of this bowl, so they were happily confused.

  After calming down his excited mood, Zhou Wenping and Zhou Shu discussed in a low voice, then said to Chu Chen: "Xiao Chen, you've helped the Zhou family with so many things, we don't have anything good to repay you with. This bowl, let's give it to you, you mustn't refuse."

  Chu Chen's face changed upon hearing this: "Zhou Ge, you're not unaware of the value of this bowl. If I accept it, what kind of person would I become? Do you still consider me a friend if you do this?"

  Zhou Wenping saw that Chu Chen was really angry, and his face was also a bit awkward. Everyone felt a little surprised at Zhou Wenping's decision, and Zhou Shu's parents were even more puzzled. So Zhou Shu explained the reason behind it. Only then did everyone realize, and they all praised Chu Chen for her selfless spirit towards friends.

  At this time, Chu Yulan's eyes contained an inexplicable expression, but this point, everyone didn't notice.

  "Xiao Chu, you're really something! Don't be angry, this is also a token of Wenping's feelings. No matter how expensive this bowl is, can it be more valuable than your relationship?"

  Chu Chen also felt a bit embarrassed now, but letting him accept such an expensive gift was definitely out of the question, so he said:

  "This bowl, as a gift, is really too valuable. If I accept it, I will definitely feel uneasy. So, I'll make a concession and buy it for 300,000 yuan. Brother Zhou, you also know the market price, if you're still not willing to sell at this price, then I won't take it."

  Everyone knows that cloisonné is very valuable, but on the scene, except for Chu Chen and Zhou Wenping who understand the market conditions, others have no idea. This ordinary large bowl can actually be sold for 300,000 yuan. Listening to Chu Chen's tone, if it were to be valued higher in the market, everyone would be extremely surprised. Zhou Shu's parents were even more astonished, their mouths agape.

  Actually 300,000. For this bowl, the difference from the market price is not much. Zhou Wenping and his wife looked at each other after seeing his resolute tone and expression, and had no choice but to agree.

  At this time, Chu Yulan said to Chu Chen: "Brother Chu, I have only seen such cloisonné in museums before. Since it's so valuable, can you tell us about the appraisal requirements?"

  "This is definitely no problem."

  Chu Chen smiled and picked up the bowl again, pointing as he said: "Generally speaking, the main characteristics of enamel are several aspects. First, the porcelain body must be looked at, the enamel body is thin, the repair body is regular, and it is complete and flawless. Moreover, enamel is often small in size, generally speaking, those that exceed one foot in size are rare, this point should be noted when purchasing."

  "Let's talk about the shape, this point is often overlooked by beginners. Generally, enamel colors are used for everyday small ceramic items such as bowls, bottles, snuff bottles, and animal decorations. If you see an enamel-colored vase, it's best not to look at it."

  "Let's talk about the base tone and color. The base tone is a pure white axis, not biased towards blue or yellow, with a smooth and clean surface without any flaws. The colors are extremely bright and soft, rarely in solid colors but rather in pastel-like combined colors, and there are many varieties of colors. However, for this aspect of color, it's best if you go to the museum and take a look at more exhibits, get familiar with them, then you'll be able to tell the difference between real and fake ones."

  "The main thing about enamel is the color, genuine products have a smooth surface with a glassy reflective feel, sometimes it can even reflect shell-like light. The glaze is slightly raised above the base glaze by about one millimeter, giving a clear three-dimensional effect, which can be clearly felt when touched with eyes closed. If examined under a 10x magnifying glass, tiny cracks can be seen on each small flower or leaf."

  "As for the painting and decoration, since the enamel color painting is particularly particular about the workmanship, most of them are Gongbi paintings, so they are different in each dynasty. Taking the Qianlong period as an example, it can also be divided into two periods, front and back. Like this bowl, it is a work from the early Qianlong period."

  The style characteristics of the Qianlong period are very close to those of the Yongzheng period, and are a perfect combination of poetry, calligraphy, painting, enamel, and porcelain. In the later period, enamel colors became more complicated, with little use of poetic phrases, widespread application of colored grounds, "adding flowers to brocade", green glaze, and gilding on mouths and bases.

  "Finally, regarding the marks, during the Kangxi period, there was a time when writing marks was prohibited, until later it was opened up. Before Qianlong, most were four-character marks, and during the Qianlong period, added were blue-and-white six-character seal script marks "Qing Dynasty Qianlong Year Made", as well as horizontal six-character seal script marks. Individual objects had gold or black script written in seal script or regular script marks."

  Finally, Chu Chen said: "What was mentioned above is just a simple introduction. In fact, the identification of enamel has many requirements, such as materials and imports and domestic distinctions, etc. These experiences require years of learning and observation accumulation."

  "But I advise you, it's best to just look at the Qianlong porcelain and not buy it. You think 300,000 yuan for this bowl is already expensive, but truly valuable pieces are worth tens of millions, and genuine Qing dynasty porcelain is extremely rare, hardly ever seen on the market. If you were to accidentally buy a fake, can you imagine how great a loss that would be?"

  Everyone looked thoughtful after listening to him, and Li Guodong sighed:

  "There are too many twists and turns on this antique, I'd better focus on studying my jade instead."

  He then said to Chu Chen:

  "Xiao Chen, you're really a freak, so knowledgeable about antiques, and surprisingly, you're also great at jade stone gambling. I don't know how your brain is wired."

  Everyone remembered Chu Chen's performance and was also very envious of his extensive knowledge.

  Zhou Wenping smiled and said, "Don't look at how fierce Xiao Chun is now. When I first met him, whenever there was no business, he would take out books on antiques to study. You say he's not diligent?"

  It's true what he said, back then Chu Chen was very diligent in learning about antiques. Not only did he read books until midnight every day, but also sought to learn from others whenever possible the skills of antique appraisal. After several years, his foundation had become very solid.

  So even without special abilities, Chu Chen's knowledge will ensure that his future days won't be too bad.

  Everyone only knew now that Chu Chen had such a side, and they all sighed in admiration. The glory on stage was often the result of hard work behind the scenes.

  Everyone chatted and laughed for a while, then bid farewell to Auntie Zhou's parents. This wasn't because Auntie Zhou's parents didn't want them to stay, but rather that their home couldn't accommodate so many people all at once.

  Because Aunt Zhou and the two kids were going to stay at their maternal grandparents' home for two days, they didn't take any transportation on the way back. They chatted along the way, took in the local customs and scenery, and it was quite a pleasant trip.

  "Brother Zhou, let's settle the bill for this bowl later when we get back. I'll help you buy a house and then we can figure it out, what do you think?"

  Zhou Wenping said with some embarrassment after hearing the words: "This is definitely no problem, but there's one more thing that I'd like to trouble you with. My parents-in-law won't be following me to Beijing, so I was thinking of helping them fix up their house. At that time, I might need to borrow some money from you."

  Chu Chen listened to him finish and happily said: "What's troublesome about this, besides, Brother Zhou doing it this way is the kind of responsibility a man should have, I will definitely strongly support."

  Chu Yulan and the others, upon hearing this, also expressed their agreement. The elderly had paid so much for their children, and as children, they should do their best to repay them. This is a matter of course, otherwise what is the meaning of life? Is it just for oneself? One must also think that people will eventually grow old one day.

  Zhou Wenping saw Chu Chen nod in agreement, and his mood immediately lightened up a lot. He said: "Xiao Chen, I'm really sorry this time. I asked you to come over to dig out the house, but I didn't expect there would only be these things."

  Chu Chen mysteriously smiled and said: "How do you know I didn't gain anything?"

  Everyone was stunned when they heard this, wasn't it?

  Li Guodong said curiously: "Xiao Chuan, that Tang Sancai must be a fake, could it be that the jade cicada has some mysterious mechanism?"

  Chu Chen smiled and said, "Brother Li, you are indeed clever. This jade cicada is a treasure. Once we return to Brother Zhou's house and deal with it, you will understand what's going on."

  Everyone's curiosity was piqued, and they couldn't help but wonder what the treasure in Chu Chen's mouth was. Even their footsteps quickened as they walked.

  When they arrived at Zhou Wenping's home, Chu Chen asked him to bring out a basin of clear water and a toothbrush. Then he took out the jade cicada and smiled at everyone, saying: "Take a good look, don't be surprised later!"

  After finishing, Chu Chen gently put the jade cicada into the water. In a moment, all the people present, including Chu Chen himself who had just said not to be surprised, were staring with wide eyes. The two girls even opened their mouths so wide that they could fit in two eggs, because the scene was really too shocking.