Chapter 97: Zi Gang Yu

  After Shen Hao finished introducing himself, the face of Nanyang Huizhang changed on the spot, and many other local Huizhang were watching Nanyang Huizhang with schadenfreude.

  It's not surprising that ancient jade appeared during the Jade Competition, and high-end ancient jade also appeared in previous sessions. As long as it is jade, whether new or old, it can participate in the competition. However, when evaluating ancient jade, the most important factors are still the quality of the jade, craftsmanship, and cultural significance, while the antique value of ancient jade comes last.

  "This young man is quite humble. If this sheep fat jade horse is really a work of Master Zi Gong, it's worth at least 8 million. Nanyang is in danger."

  Zheng Kaida whispered a sentence to Li Yang and Sima Lin, Li Yang now very much wanted to use his special ability to observe the sheep fat jade horse, but unfortunately the distance was too far, exceeding the ten-meter observation range.

  Sim Lin nodded and said, "Not bad, the most crucial thing is the craftsmanship. If this ancient jade is really a work of Master Zi Guang, then today's champion will probably fall into the hands of people from Zhengzhou."

  Wu Xiaoli looked at Sima Lin's lips moving slightly, wanting to reveal Shen Hao's identity but ultimately gave up.

  "Zhengzhou's Old Deng is a very strict person, he dares to let such a young man go on stage, I estimate he has confidence in him."

  Zhang Wei slightly shook his head, anyway he had completely lost confidence in the championship. Letting the championship fall into Zhengzhou's hands was better than it falling into Nanyang's hands. Nanyang had already won five consecutive Jade Stone Evaluation championships, which had long filled the directors of various local branches with resentment, and Zhang Wei was no exception.

  On the podium, several experts have already begun to identify this ancient jade. Shen Hao has raised his head and is looking at the area below the podium with a proud expression on his face, his eyes staring straight at Li Yang and the others.

  The longest time to identify this ancient jade is mainly to determine whether this ancient jade is a masterpiece of Lu Zigan or not. If it is indeed a work by Master Lu Zigan, even if the people of Nanyang still have some tricks up their sleeves, they won't be able to bring out anything that can surpass this sheep fat white jade horse.

  The main reason why everyone thinks so is still on Lu Zigang's body.

  Lu Zigan was a person from the Jiajing and Wanli periods of the Ming Dynasty. From a young age, he studied jade carving skills in Suzhou. After becoming famous, his works were sought after by emperors, princes, and ordinary merchants and scholars. At that time, Lu Zigan's reputation in the jade world was even greater than Tang Bohu's reputation in the painting and calligraphy world.

  The management of handicrafts in the Ming Dynasty was very strict, with a rigorous hierarchical division. Even at the end of the Ming Dynasty when the "master-apprentice system" had been abolished, there were still remnants of this tradition. Under these circumstances, Lu Zigang, an artisan who specialized in humble jade carvings, could be treated as an honored guest by scholars and gentlemen, a testament to his exceptional skill and craftsmanship in jade carving.

  It is said that Lu Ziguang liked to sign his name on his own works. The Wanli Emperor once ordered Lu Ziguang to carve a jade pot for him, but forbade him from signing it. However, Lu Ziguang cleverly signed his name inside the spout of the pot, showcasing his boldness.

  However, it was this boldness that ultimately led to his demise. Lu Ziga once carved his name on the dragon's head, which enraged the emperor and led to his beheading. As a result, Lu Ziga's proud carving skills and his unparalleled "Kunwu knife" were lost forever.

  Nowadays, in many big sculptors' homes in Suzhou, there are still statues of Lu Zigang. Lu Zigang is revered as the ancestral master by many sculptors in both Su and Yang regions. The current four famous families are very well-known, but they are still far inferior to their ancestral master.

  Because Lu Zigan's craftsmanship is too absolute, it is difficult for later generations to imitate, and the existing quantity is very small, so many people have already determined that if this jade is really a Zigan jade, then this champion must belong to Zhengzhou.

  Several experts looked at it for over ten minutes, and finally nodded slightly. The faces of the various directors below began to show a smile, except for Director Nanyang, whose face was the ugliest.

  "Not bad, this is a very good Subo Yu, the carving is very consistent with Master Subo's style, and the name of Master Subo is left in the bright place. We all agree that this is a genuine product."

  An expert stepped forward and sighed to the crowd, saying that Henan Province Jade Association has been holding such gatherings for over a decade, but this is the first time that Subo jade has appeared.

  Experts have already said that, the work of Master Takashi Nagai has appeared, and the jade is also high-quality sheep fat jade. This jade comparison basically doesn't need to continue unless someone thinks they have a better piece than the master's carving.

  "Thank you for the expert's praise, but in order to be fair, I would like to invite another antique jade expert to verify it again. Please ask the masters if they can agree with my small request."

  Shen Hao's face flashed with satisfaction, and he bowed deeply again, his eyes still looking at Li Yang as he bent down.

  Li Yang and Wu Xiaoli both felt something was off. The audience were all members of the Jade Association, what ancient jade expert could there be? It's highly likely that Shen Hao was referring to Li Yang.

  Several experts looked at each other, and finally the expert who spoke earlier asked Shen Hao: "Young man, which expert are you referring to?"

  Shen Hao slightly raised his head, and the corner of his mouth quietly rose as he said: "It's Mr. Li Yang, who won the Jade Carving Championship yesterday. Mr. Li is an expert who can see through 'Treasured Grandfather's' fake ancient jade at a glance."

  As expected, Shen Hao directed his spearhead at Li Yang. Due to yesterday's performance, most people on the scene recognized and knew Li Yang. As soon as Shen Hao finished speaking, many eyes focused on him.

  "Is it him?"

  Several experts were stunned, and Li Yang had given everyone a very deep impression yesterday. When Shen Hao mentioned it, everyone thought of that young man, but his age was too young to be believed as an antique jade expert.

  However, Shen Hao said that this Li Yang is someone who can see through the fake 'Knockout Grandfather' at a glance. Although several experts were suspicious, they didn't say anything, and it's not that they didn't dare to say that they could spot the fake made by 'Knockout Grandfather' at a glance. This level of counterfeiting is one of the most troublesome methods in the ancient jade world.

  Simaleen and Zheng Kaida, who had some understanding of Li Yang, couldn't help but nod their heads. Li Yang was indeed the person praised by He Lao as having the most talent. If Li Yang really became a ancient jade expert, they wouldn't feel surprised at all.

  Zhang Wei and Gu Lao stared blankly at Li Yang. Li Yang had only recently come into contact with antiques, so how did he suddenly become an expert on ancient jade?

  "Alright then, let's invite this expert Li to come and take a look as well."

  After a few experts discussed for a while, they made a decision. However, their good impression of Shen Hao was gone. They had already verified the authenticity of the thing, and at this time, he still called a young man to come up, which was simply slapping them in the face. Under the watchful eyes of everyone, they couldn't refuse either, as refusing would make them appear guilty.

  Under the gaze of everyone, Li Yang reluctantly walked towards the podium. This Shen Hao was absolutely intentionally targeting himself. Li Yang had thought about refusing to go on stage, but if he really refused, he didn't know how many more tricks this sinister person had in store for him. He might as well go up and take a look first. Anyway, several experts had already said it was real, so even if he couldn't tell what was true or false, following along and saying it was real wouldn't be a big deal.

  "Mr. Li, we meet again! What's your opinion on this piece of work by Master Subo?"

  When Li Yang walked up, Shen Hao's smile at the corner of his mouth grew thicker. Last time he heard Li Yang mention the Nanyang gathering, he immediately started preparing. This time, he spent a lot of money to buy this piece of Zi Gong Yu just to deal with Li Yang. Wherever he fell, he would have to climb back up from there. As for the so-called Jade Matching activity of the Jade Association, he didn't take it to heart at all.

  "It's a good thing"

  Li Yang carefully examined the Subo jade, and indeed it conformed to the characteristics of Master Subo's works, with the typical artistic features of 'emptiness, floating, and delicacy' of Master Subo.

  Li Yang turned around in a circle and naturally activated his special ability. His own eyesight couldn't distinguish between the genuine and fake, he had long been accustomed to using his special ability to identify antiques.

  The next moment, Li Yang quietly stayed there. This piece of jade was very good, but unfortunately, the surface only had a layer of light yellow halo. This halo proved that this piece of jade was formed absolutely no more than sixty years ago. In other words, the piece of jade Shen Hao took out was also a fake.

  But this jade is indeed good sheep fat jade, much better than that pair of night light cups last time.

  Under the intuitive stereogram, Li Yang immediately discovered some other subtle small problems. Although the carving work was exquisite, it still had a little distance from the real Su Gangyu. The lines on the body of the jade horse had not yet reached the realm of virtual and real correspondence, sparse and dense benefits.

  In subtle places, it also has some differences with the real Subo Yu, but these differences are difficult to distinguish with the naked eye, unless a high-power magnifying glass is used for identification. Even an ordinary magnifying glass can't see these differences. If Li Yang didn't observe it stereoscopically, he wouldn't have found this difference either.

  The most crucial point is that the person who made this fake Subo Yu seems to have the same problem as Master Subo, leaving his own name behind, with four small characters carved in the horse's mouth - Zhou Yan's imitation.

  Li Yang's face was a bit strange, he lowered his head and carefully looked at the horse's mouth, only to see the traces of words inside with his eyes at a specific angle.

  Shen Hao was looking at Li Yang with a smug expression, not caring about the jade auction or even the expensive Cong Jade he had bought. As long as Li Yang acknowledged its authenticity, Shen Hao would use it to strike back at him and avenge the humiliation of that day.

  "Mr. Li, how's it looking?"

  Shen Hao's eyebrows jumped slightly, and he looked up at Li Yang with his head raised, his eyes still glancing at Wu Xiaoli below the stage. This piece of jade, he even planned to use it as a betrothal gift to propose to Wu Xiaoli, to prove his sincerity towards her.

  "Mr. Shen, to be honest, don't get angry, this thing of yours, the counterfeit level is really too high, I almost got fooled too, if not for a bit of luck, today's champion would have been yours."

  Li Yang smiled and shook his head, speaking slowly. As soon as he finished, the entire venue erupted into a commotion. The chairman's podium had microphones, so Li Yang's words were clearly transmitted to every corner of the conference room.

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  The 4th update of VIP is out, no more sleep, continue to work hard