Chapter 87

Mr. Cai pointed at Yang Bo, "There, that's the one!"

The middle-aged, plump man smiled, "My Qing Dynasty Jiaqing garlic bulb vase is not that simple. How could a young man like you spot it?"

Yang Bo smiled lightly, "Age has nothing to do with whether one can spot it or not!"

Seeing the two men exchange barbed words, Mr. Cai hurriedly interrupted, "Old Cao is also looking. Let's wait and see what Old Cao says."

Cao Yuande straightened up, turned around, and after a moment's thought, said, "I haven't found any issues either."

He then turned his gaze to Yang Bo, "Young Yang has a keen eye for appraisal. Since Mr. Liu has already admitted there's a problem, why don't you just say it?"

Yang Bo glanced at Mr. Liu, who showed no reaction, and then explained, "This garlic bulb vase is indeed an official kiln product, but it's not a matter of authenticity; it's just that there's an issue with the age!"

After Yang Bo said this, everyone turned to look at Mr. Liu, who looked surprised. They all realized that Yang Bo was right.

"This garlic bulb vase was actually made at the end of the Guangxu era. At that time, the Qing court was in turmoil, and the people were suffering. Yet, the Qing court still invested a huge amount of money to replicate Kangxi and Qianlong porcelain, which made the quality of some of the high-quality porcelain of that time reach the level of the Kangxi and Qianlong eras."

"If I'm not mistaken, this garlic bulb vase with the Qing Jiaqing mark should also be one of the Guangxu era replicas. It's just that the craftsmanship is so high that it's hard to distinguish!"

Yang Bo picked up the garlic bulb vase and explained.

Everyone turned to look at Mr. Liu again, seeing his surprised expression fade. They thought Yang Bo's guess was wrong, but to their surprise, Mr. Liu laughed, "That's really impressive!"

"After I bought it, I didn't notice anything. Recently, when I went to test another piece of porcelain, I brought this one along. I didn't expect it to be made during the Guangxu era, so I brought it here for everyone to appreciate!"

"I thought I would have to reveal the secret at the end, but I didn't expect the young man to have such keen eyes!"

Mr. Cai couldn't help but laugh, "Well, you really had a trick up your sleeve, trying to fool us old guys!"

Mr. Liu hurriedly said, "I dare not! I dare not!"

Everyone burst into laughter. After the laughter subsided, Mr. Liu turned to Yang Bo, "How did you figure it out, young man?"

Yang Bo pointed to a detail on the porcelain vase, "From the collar of the clothing in the painting. This bright, pure blue pigment is different from the light blue used in the Kangxi and Qianlong eras!"

Everyone listened to Yang Bo and looked in the direction he pointed. The figures in the painting were small, and the collar was just a few strokes. Such a detailed observation left everyone speechless.

Cao Yuande, after seeing the detail, looked at Yang Bo in surprise, "Truly a keen eye. Don't worry too much about it; with more time, everyone could have noticed it."

Although Cao Yuede's words seemed to belittle Yang Bo, they actually helped shift the focus. Everyone thought about it and realized it was true, but Yang Bo hadn't spent much time on it either!

However, because of Cao Yuede's words, everyone praised Yang Bo a bit, and then dispersed.

Cao Yuede looked at Yang Bo, "In this short time, I've seen you grow. You are indeed extraordinary!"

Yang Bo waved his hand, "Thanks to your help!"

Because of this, Mr. Liu suddenly found Yang Bo much more likable. People always respect those with talent.

After a few more words, Yang Bo and Luo Yaohua continued on. They encountered replicas of Shang-Zhou bronze ware, Western Han jade pendants, Tang Dynasty white porcelain, and even the twelve zodiac animal heads!

Luo Yaohua stopped in front of a strange antique and couldn't help but ask, "What is this?"

Yang Bo looked over and saw a small bamboo tube about ten centimeters in diameter and four to five centimeters high. In the middle of the tube was a small partition, dividing it into two halves. Due to its age, the bamboo tube was somewhat rotten, with black mold spots.

Yang Bo was also curious and guessed, "It feels like a鸳鸯hot pot, but this one is made of bamboo."

"It can't be a bamboo rice container, can it? The rice is in one half, and the vegetables in the other. It would be quite nice to eat, with the fragrance of the bamboo." Luo Yaohua laughed.

"This..." Yang Bo was surprised by the two of them's wild imagination.

However, Yang Bo soon saw a piece of paper next to it, which read, "If you can't guess, the answer is on the back. Please put it back after reading!"

Luo Yaohua also saw this and chuckled, "This owner is really interesting. Could he be trying to fool us?"

Despite his words, he quickly grabbed the paper and flipped it over.

After reading it, Luo Yaohua's face turned red, and his expression was strange.

Yang Bo took the paper and read, "Excavated from the Ming Tombs, a soap box. One side for soap, the other for essential oils. After washing your face with soap, you can use the essential oils to moisturize your skin."

Yang Bo felt numb. A soap box, essential oils, this...

Luo Yaohua couldn't hold back and burst into laughter, "So the people in the Ming Dynasty used soap to wash their faces. I always thought ancient people had oily faces and couldn't clean them properly!"

Yang Bo shook his head, "That's because of your limited knowledge. Washing your face with rice water can remove oil. In 'Shi Shuo Xin Yu,' it is recorded that when Wang Dun first married a princess, he mistook the cleansing beans for food, which became a laughing matter. This shows that ancient people were quite clean."

As he spoke, Yang Bo couldn't help but laugh. These small objects, which people usually don't notice, made it feel incredible to see that the ancients used them too.

The two laughed and continued on. This exchange meeting was quite interesting, and Yang Bo had thought it would be boring.

Luo Yaohua soon stopped in front of a pair of shoes. The shoes had a leather upper and iron nails on the sole, protruding outward, and there were laces on the upper.

Luo Yaohua held the explanatory note and said to Yang Bo, "Let's not look at it yet. Guess which dynasty these sneakers are from. I think they are from the Qing Dynasty!"

After saying this, Luo Yaohua looked at Yang Bo with a smug expression, confident that he was right!

Yang Bo paused, looking at the fashionable style of the shoes, and guessed, "It's from the Yuan Dynasty, because Genghis Khan reached Europe. Could these shoes have been brought from the West?"

Luo Yaohua laughed and lifted the explanatory note, seeing only two large characters on the back: "Southern Song"!

Luo Yaohua was stunned, and Yang Bo was also taken aback. Although they had guessed that the shoes were quite old, they never expected the Southern Song Dynasty.

"Southern Song, could it be because of the cuju (ancient football) game that these shoes were invented?" Luo Yaohua asked.

Yang Bo was a bit dazed, "But, yes!"