Chapter 6: Zhao Xueyi

  Wu Shu smiled and said, "You, don't be modest. In our line of work, either you know how to do it or you don't. However, what you said about not learning enough is still correct. It's not just you, even I am the same. China has a history of over 5,000 years, and there are too many things to learn. Even if you study until old age, you still can't finish learning."

  "You've done so well today, I have a reward for you. Next Tuesday, I'll take you to our old house in Yunzhong City, Shanxi Province. Remember to observe more and speak less when we get there."

  As soon as he heard this good news, Chu Chen was so delighted that he cheered repeatedly.

  In recent years, although Chu Chen and Wu Shu or others have dug up the old house together, they were all small-scale. Now that Wu Shu says so, it must be a hundred-year-old mansion with many fine pieces inside. Although the transaction volume of this kind of scene is definitely very large, he won't have anything to do with it, but being able to witness it is also an invaluable experience in his collecting career.

  Wu Shu looked at him with that excited look and smiled: "Look at you, kid, so happy. In the past, I didn't take you to dig up big mansions, also because your knowledge wasn't enough, don't get jealous when you see things, it's easy to get envious in daily life. Since you're no longer a theorist now, I'll definitely bring you along from now on."

  Chu Chen thought it was reasonable. As a newcomer to the antique business and only half-baked, if he didn't occasionally see some big deals, he would definitely be envious. So when he encountered some high-quality fakes, he would get excited and jump in, which wasn't uncommon. From this point of view, Wu Shu's painstaking efforts for Chu Chen could also be seen.

  Wu Shu continued to ask him, "By the way, Xiao Chuan, is there enough money for you to use? Do you want me to lend you some?"

  Chu Chen naturally wouldn't say the truth, so he replied: "I still have some money on me, enough to get by, Uncle Wu, you can rest assured, if I really can't make ends meet later, I'll come bother you again."

  Wu Shu nodded after a moment of mental calculation, he also had some understanding of Chu Chen's financial situation, and estimated that it should be about right, so he nodded and said: "Alright, if you don't have money, just tell me, otherwise I won't go easy on you."

  "Old Wu, has there been any news about the matter I entrusted to you last time?" Just as Uncle Wu's voice fell, a flustered shout came from outside the door.

  Right after that, a man in his forties, wearing a light gray short-sleeved shirt, with a big belly and sweating profusely, rushed into the store and said loudly: "Old Wu, quick, give me some water first, I'm dying of thirst."

  Wu Shu handed him a bottle of mineral water and said, "Old Zhao, can you please keep your voice down? Every time you come to my store, you shout so loudly that I'm afraid my porcelain bowls and vases will shatter from the shock."

  Lao Zhao, whose real name is Zhao Xueyi, has a small shop in Panjiayuan, but he is also a very famous antique dealer in Panjiayuan with good reputation. Many officials and wealthy people like to find their favorite antiques through him.

  Wu Shu and Zhao Xueyi have been good friends for many years. When it comes to ceramic needs, he usually asks Wu Shu first before looking for others.

  Zhao Xueyi "gulp gulp" drank a whole bottle of mineral water and let out a sigh.

  "Comfortable, ah, Old Zhao, I've also learned to cultivate my body and mind now. Normally, I wouldn't be so loud, but that customer was in a hurry."

  Wu Shu laughed and said, "Haha, believing that Old Zhao will cultivate his character is like believing a sow can climb trees. But I do find it strange - who else could drive you to this state?"

  Zhao Xueyi listened and said speechlessly: "You don't believe it, that's fine. Who else could have driven me to this state? That old Li family's spoiled brat, right?"

  "Wu Shu was shocked and said: "You're talking about Li Beibei? Didn't her dad send her to the army? How did she come back? Besides, she knows me, why would she need you to buy?"

  Zhao Xueyi smiled and said, "She said she couldn't stand being in the army, so she begged Li Lao to arrange for her to transfer out of the military. Now she's a small police officer at the Municipal Public Security Bureau. In a few days, isn't it Li Lao's birthday? She came to me to ask for help getting three fruit-patterned bowls. As for why she didn't come find you, it's because she couldn't bear to lose face."

  Wu Shu thought for a moment and knew why, smiling and shaking his head.

  Chu Chen listened to the strange question on one side: "Uncle Wu, who is that Li Peipei? I've never seen her before, why did she come to your store with no shame?"

  Zhao Xueyi listened to Chu Chen's words and said with a pause: "Oh, little Chen is you!"

  Chu Chen, with a head full of black threads, said: "Uncle Zhao, you've only just noticed me?"

  Zhao Xueyi laughed and said, "Mistake, mistake! I was in a hurry just now and was busy talking to you, Uncle Wu. I really didn't pay attention. If you want to know about Li Beibei's affairs, go ask Xiao Ke, she will definitely answer you well."

  Chu Chen looked at his restrained and amused expression, which also piqued his curiosity. Was there some kind of grudge between Wu Ke and Li BeiBei? He would definitely ask next time he had the chance.

  "Xiao Chen, I heard you've lost that Tang Sancai camel figurine to Lao's. When are you going to return it to Uncle Zhao?"

  "Ah, it's here!" Wu Shu pointed at the pile of pottery shards with some annoyance.

  Although Chu Chen encountered top-notch high imitation this time, it can be said that there is a reason for the situation. However, Wu Shu was still annoyed that Chu Chen didn't consult with him beforehand.

  Chu Chen now recalls that he indeed owes some concern to Uncle Wu, so his face is also somewhat awkward.

  Zhao Xueyi immediately walked behind the counter and saw those ceramic pieces, also exclaiming in surprise: "Ah, how did they get broken?!"

  Chu Chen then recounted the whole story from start to finish again.

  Zhao Xueyi listened to him finish, took out a magnifying glass, picked up the key piece of pottery and examined it carefully, sighing as he looked: "The craftsmanship of this fire mud is really too amazing. If not for these two characters, I would have missed it too. Xiao Chuan, you didn't lose face by missing it, after all, it's just a Republic-era imitation."

  Chu Chen asked strangely: "Uncle Zhao, haven't you seen this Tang Sancai of Xiang Lao?"

  Zhao Xueyi put down the Tang Sancai ceramic piece in his hand and said, "You're not unaware of Old Man Xiang's temperament. He normally doesn't even bother with people like us who pull rickshaws, saying we all smell like copper. It's a pity this camel... if it weren't for that, I could have at least made back some of the capital."

  Chu Chen replied: "Zhao Shu, actually this camel even if it didn't have a hump, I wouldn't give it away either, after all this thing is too precious."

  Wu Shu and Zhao Xueyi were taken aback for a moment, then immediately reacted, both nodding their heads in relief.

  Then Zhao Xueyi patted Chu Chen's shoulder and said, "Alright, I'll take care of you from now on because of your good character, little Chen."

  "Ha, Old Zhao, there's something I need to trouble you with right now."

  Then Wu Shu pointed to the three-fruit-patterned bowl and said, "Xiao Chuan, tell your Uncle Zhao again about the result of your appraisal of this three-fruit-patterned bowl."

  Zhao Xueyi saw this and also became very interested, saying: "Good, I'll come listen to Xiao Chuan's level too."

  Chu Chen smiled awkwardly, but didn't feel nervous. After clearing his throat, he clearly and concisely repeated the conclusions he had just drawn.

  Zhao Xueyi applauded and said, "Not bad, just based on this, the day after tomorrow's house demolition, Zhao Shu promised you can go together, Old Wu, were you talking about this?"

  "Lao Zhao, you're quite quick-witted, aren't you? This three-fruit bowl, do you think it's suitable?"

  Zhao Xueyi picked up the Qianlong-style red glaze bowl and said with a smile: "This bowl, although it's only a late Qing dynasty imitation of Kangxi porcelain, is not much worse than the real thing. It can be said that its quality is top-notch, definitely suitable. Come on, let's go to my shop right away and get rid of that little girl quickly, or she'll drive me crazy!"

  "Haha, Old Zhao, you've got your comeuppance today!" Wu Shu smiled as he carefully placed the bowl in a gift box and instructed Chu Xuan to watch the store while he took the gift box and left with Zhao Xueyi.

  The store immediately became quiet without Zhao Xueyi's loud voice.

  Chu Chen recalled the feeling of using his ability earlier, which indeed verified the conclusion he had drawn earlier. The time it took to absorb that breath represented the age of the antique, and the strength of the breath indeed represented the value of the antique, just like this three-fruit-patterned bowl, although its breath was shorter than the five-color figure bowl before, but its intensity was much stronger.

  Moreover, Chu Chen also discovered a phenomenon, and his neural response speed was now much faster than before. If it were in the past, he would definitely not be able to distinguish that subtle difference within half a second.

  Today, there is only one last chance for the special ability, but there are no particularly valuable porcelain in the store. Chu Chen used this opportunity on a Qing dynasty civilian kiln fired blue and white plate, which also verified his previous judgment.

  At this time he was secretly delighted, with such a strange ability, what's to fear about not encountering good fortune?

  Chu Chen felt a bit idle next, he saw the computer on one side was still on, and the screen still displayed the page of that news just now, so he became somewhat interested.

  The computer was something Chu Chen had never touched before, and although Uncle Wu let him learn, he hadn't been interested in it either, so he didn't pay attention to it. Fortunately, there was a basic tutorial on computer operation next to the computer, which could be used for learning while operating, so he picked up the book and started reading.

  However, Chu Chen was more and more surprised as he read on. He could now read a book with one glance at ten lines, and the key point was that everything he had read was clearly remembered in his mind.

  It wasn't long before Chu Chen finished reading this book of over a hundred pages. When he thought back and checked against the book, he found that he had indeed remembered all the content he had read, including every punctuation mark, and could recite it fluently from memory.

  Closing the book, Chu Chen was extremely shocked in his heart. Could this be the legendary photographic memory? It's a bit too magical! This must also be one of the benefits brought by the special ability.

  Chu Chen is now overjoyed, with this ability to memorize everything he sees, it's like a tiger adding wings. Although having this ability has indeed helped him a lot in identifying antiques, after all, apart from those three chances every day, he still has to rely on his own abilities at other times.

  Now that I have the ability to remember everything at a glance, studying antiques has become much easier, and it's not just limited to porcelain, but also other areas like jade, calligraphy and painting. With this skill, the chances of discovering rare treasures will definitely increase greatly, how can Chu Chen not feel excited?

  "We common people should be happy today, our fellow common people should be happy today..."

  Chu Chen hummed a tune as he followed the instructions in the book and started operating the old computer. (Please collect and recommend!)