Chapter 39

Xiao Lu was also feeling a mix of emotions at this moment. Yuan Yezǐ was one of the few girls in the team and the most beautiful one at that. Her lively personality made her very popular with everyone. Of course, for Xiao Lu, this affection might run even deeper. Although he knew it was just a fantasy, sometimes he couldn't help but want to protect her!

When Captain Liang asked him to take notes, he was extremely unwilling, because the young man in front of him was too capricious, even making Yezi cry. However, he ultimately succumbed to the captain's authority and reluctantly began taking notes, though he didn't expect this task to be so long!

For nearly two hours without a break, his pen hardly stopped moving. Listening to the other person's descriptions, he quickly wrote down every word, as what the other person said was extremely concise! Even though he disliked this guy, he had to admit that even if he was a fraud, he was still much better than the average collector!

As the process was halfway through, an old expert entered the venue, and Xiao Lu's previously calm mind started to race again. Maybe there were other possibilities! Maybe the true identity of the person in front of him would be exposed, and maybe everything wouldn't need to continue!

The sound of Yang Bo's voice repeatedly reached his ears, and Xiao Lu finally reacted, his pen moving continuously as he took notes, but his eyes glanced toward where the old expert was standing. He looked at Yang Bo again and noticed that he was staring at a bronze artifact in his hand for a long time, probably feeling extremely nervous right now!

Old Master Feng was stunned for a moment before he finally reacted, looking at everyone and nodding with a smile, "This young man is quite impressive!"

Putting down the small white jade bottle, Old Master Feng didn't say much, but that one sentence was like a sword piercing through, making people's hearts skip a beat. "Quite impressive"—could it be that Yang Bo was really that good?

Yuan Yezǐ thought about this, her mind becoming chaotic. She quickly shook her head to dispel these thoughts, reaffirming her stance: this must be a coincidence! This must be a coincidence! How could such a young guy have such a high level?

When Captain Liang heard Old Master Feng's response, he felt a sense of relief but didn't know how to react. If Yang Bo was really that good, that would be great, as it would mean that after Yang Bo's appraisal, everyone would only need to tally the results. But if there were any mistakes, wouldn't they have to re-appraise everything? How would he report to the leadership? How would he explain to the media?

"Imitation Qing Dynasty Qianlong winter-hardy trio Guangcai porcelain, the judgment on this piece is also correct." Old Master Feng put down the second piece of porcelain and explained, "This Guangcai porcelain looks like the fire has been extinguished, but it uses an uncommon method of aging. One could easily be fooled. This piece was probably made in Jingdezhen in recent years."

As the second piece of porcelain was put down, the venue fell silent.

Yuan Yezǐ felt a sense of confusion in her mind, the previous conversation echoing in her head.

"Imitation Qing Dynasty Qianlong winter-hardy trio Guangcai porcelain!"

"Is it a fake?"

"Yes, it's a fake, probably made in Jingdezhen in recent years."

"How do you know? I don't see any fire marks; it looks quite old!"

...

Xiao Lu, hearing the conversation, was also stunned. He realized that this dialogue sounded familiar, as if he had heard it somewhere before, but he didn't have time to think about it further because Yang Bo's speed increased again. He had correctly identified two items in a row, which seemed to give him more confidence, and his actions became even faster.

Luo Yaohua stood to the side, smiling but not speaking, seemingly very pleased.

"Imitation Qing Qianlong white jade inlaid with a hundred treasures and a poem inscribed on a screen! Indeed, that's correct!"

...

Hearing the same answers from Old Master Feng one after another, everyone began to pay attention. It seemed that Yang Bo was not much worse than Old Master Feng, and his appraisal speed was even faster!

"Shang Dynasty mid-period bronze gu, with two sets of taotie patterns on the belly and cloud and thunder patterns on the base, this is a second-grade cultural relic!" Yang Bo said a bit more than usual.

Xiao Lu, however, was slow to react, "How do you write 'gu'?"

Yang Bo was patient, "It's the character for 'angle' on the left and 'melon' on the right."

Old Master Feng also noticed Yang Bo's description and was immediately surprised, putting down the artifact and walking over.

"Yang, can this be classified as a second-grade cultural relic?" Old Master Feng pointed to the bronze gu in Yang Bo's hand.

Yang Bo nodded and handed it over, not saying much, but his appraisal stopped. So far, he had only identified two second-grade cultural relics.

Old Master Feng took the bronze gu and, seeing that everyone was confused, explained, "Domestic law divides cultural relics into several grades, with the third grade being the highest, followed by the second. Classifying an artifact as a second-grade cultural relic means that its market value is at least several hundred thousand to several million, making it a rare cultural relic!"

Old Master Feng's explanation, while not entirely accurate, was easy to understand and widely accepted in the industry. This immediately surprised everyone, who then remembered that Yang Bo had previously identified a second-grade cultural relic. But why didn't he classify the other artifacts? Was his level not high enough?

Old Master Feng took the bronze gu and pulled out a magnifying glass from his pocket, carefully examining it. The bronze artifact was extremely old, with a thick layer of green patina on its surface, which was part of the charm of cultural relics. If a shiny modern machine-made craft were placed in front of everyone, no one would give it a second glance.

Old Master Feng examined the cloud patterns, green patina, and cross-cast holes in great detail and very slowly, much slower than Yang Bo. Everyone then realized that Yang Bo was not just a little bit faster; if he could maintain such a high accuracy rate at this speed, wouldn't he be extraordinary?

"It is indeed a second-grade cultural relic, a Shang Dynasty mid-period bronze gu!" Old Master Feng put down the magnifying glass, his face beaming with joy.

However, the audience was still deep in thought, their applause sparse, as surprise and doubt continued to conflict in their minds, making them slow to react.

But eventually, someone reacted first, and the applause gradually gathered, becoming a loud and continuous sound!

Everyone looked at Yang Bo, their eyes filled with surprise and curiosity. The previous doubts began to dissipate with Old Master Feng's confirmation, leaving only admiration for a twenty-year-old young man!

Yang Bo, surrounded by everyone, saw the various complex expressions on their faces. He smiled lightly to himself, realizing how wonderful a sense of recognition could be!