Chapter 17

"Old Dong, what exactly is this thing? It’s so valuable? Isn’t it just a little picture book? Even if it’s worth a few thousand, ten thousand is really hard to imagine," Mou Ying looked at the picture book in surprise and asked.

"Little picture book? It depends on who drew it and whose hand it came from. You guys are underestimating this book too much," Old Li, who was thin, became agitated before Old Dong could speak.

Zhang Tianyuan had always found it strange. From the tone of these two old men, it seemed they had a story with this picture book, and it didn’t seem to be a simple one.

He thought for a moment and said, "Whether or not you sell it is another matter, but your words have truly piqued my interest. I really can’t sleep well without knowing the details."

Old Dong laughed and said, "You want to know? I don’t mind telling you. It’s not a big deal, just a bit embarrassing to recall."

"Embarrassing?"

"Yes! It was when we were young. At that time, collecting picture books wasn’t a thing. The picture books on the streets were very cheap. We were so eager to find treasures that we didn’t take them seriously at all." Old Dong sighed, "We were young and reckless, not knowing what we were doing!"

Old Li continued, "Actually, I was the first to discover this picture book. An old lady from the countryside wrapped it carefully in oiled paper and came to ask if we wanted to buy it. My skills back then were nothing compared to now, and I didn’t examine it closely. Thinking the old lady needed money, I gave her a few dollars and sent her away."

"Later, the old lady found Old Dong, and I became even more convinced she was a fraud. In my agitation, I even dropped the oiled paper package on the ground. A Japanese man happened to see it. He was very refined, wearing glasses like a scholar, and spoke fluent Chinese. He said he had been dealing in antiques in China during the Republic era and was interested in the picture book. He bought it for a hundred dollars."

At this point, Old Li sighed and couldn’t continue.

Old Dong took over, "You know, a hundred dollars back then was very valuable, equivalent to about ten thousand now. The Japanese man’s generosity immediately caught our attention. Only then did we realize we had missed out on something good. Unfortunately, it was too late. The Japanese man refused to sell it and took the picture book back to Japan, and we never heard from him again."

After hearing this, Zhang Tianyuan was also amazed. The thing he had casually found had such a story behind it.

He thought it must have been stolen in Japan, and the thief, not knowing its value, sold it casually. It then made its way back to China, which was probably a matter of fate.

"Come on, it’s just a picture book. It can’t be older than the founding of the People’s Republic, right? How valuable can it be? How precious can it be?" Xu Gang was particularly unwilling to believe that he might have burned many treasures in the past, so he said this with great agitation.

At this moment, Boss Xiao shook his head and said, "Young man, go back and read more books. The history of picture books in our country is as long as that of ceramics and jade!"

Boss Murong also chimed in, "That’s right. Our country’s picture books can be traced back to the Han Dynasty’s stone carvings and the Dunhuang murals of the Northern Wei Dynasty. They depict stories or biographies through a series of continuous images. The scroll paintings of the Wei and Jin Dynasties already had the characteristics of picture books, such as Gu Kaizhi’s ‘The Assignation of the Luo River Goddess’ and ‘The Admonitions of the Instructress to Court Ladies,’ where characters appear continuously on the scrolls, forming a narrative, with simple text explanations alongside, very similar to later picture books."

"So impressive!" Xu Gang swallowed hard, hardly believing it.

Old Dong smiled and said, "The picture book in my hands isn’t as old as the Wei and Jin Dynasties. It’s from the Qing Dynasty, very similar to modern picture books, but all the drawings are in the style of traditional Chinese painting, with our country’s unique characteristics!"

"Qing Dynasty! Qing Dynasty!" Xu Gang repeated several times, his mouth fumbling, "I thought it was at most from the Republic era."

"Exactly! It’s a picture book from the Qing Dynasty, or a picture book!" Old Dong said firmly, "Otherwise, why would I offer such a high price?"

"But that’s not right. Even if it’s from the Qing Dynasty, a single picture book for ten thousand is still too much, isn’t it?" Liu Mengxun gently brushed her hair and thought for a moment.

"Miss Liu is indeed very smart. It seems I have to tell you the truth today," Old Dong laughed.

"Actually, Old Dong, we want to know too," Boss Xiao said.

Old Dong nodded, "If I don’t tell you today, you’ll find out eventually. It would make me seem pretentious. The reason this thing is valuable isn’t just because it’s from the Qing Dynasty, but also because the text content is written by a very famous Qing Dynasty person."

"Isn’t it Pu Songling’s genuine work?" Xu Gang asked.

Old Dong shook his head, "No, it’s by Wang Shizhen, a close friend of Pu Songling!"

"It’s him!" Zhang Tianyuan immediately recalled some information about Wang Shizhen. His recent studies hadn’t been in vain. After his body was transformed by the earth qi, his memory had become exceptionally good. Though he couldn’t remember everything at first glance, he could remember it clearly after reading it three or four times.

"Wang Shizhen (1634-1711), originally named Wang Shizhen, with the courtesy name Zizhen and the style name Yuanting, also known as Wang Yuyang, was posthumously honored with the title Wenjian. Emperor Kangxi praised him as ‘excellent in both poetry and prose’ and ‘broadly learned and skilled in poetry and prose.’ In the seventeenth year of Emperor Kangxi’s reign, Wang Shizhen was summoned by the emperor, ‘composed poetry to the emperor’s satisfaction, and was promoted to the position of Lecturer in the Hanlin Academy, then to Reader, and entered the Southern Study,’ becoming the first Han official to serve as a scholar in the Qing Dynasty. Emperor Kangxi also ordered Wang Shizhen to present his poetry, which was a rare honor at the time."

Zhang Tianyuan recited Wang Shizhen’s information as if he were reading from a book, giving Xu Gang, the young man, some understanding of this person.

The others didn’t need to hear him ramble, as their knowledge of Wang Shizhen was likely much deeper than Zhang Tianyuan’s.

"Many people know the story of Pu Songling and Wang Shizhen. After ‘Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio’ was completed, Pu Songling, due to his poverty, couldn’t afford to publish it. His fellow townsman and good friend Wang Shizhen highly praised Pu Songling, considering him a genius, and wrote a poem for ‘Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio’: ‘Let us speak and listen as we will, under the bean trellis and melon frame, the rain falls like silk. Perhaps he is tired of human speech, and loves to hear the ghosts sing in the autumn graves.’ This might have been the key to the book’s eventual publication! However, few people know that Wang Shizhen not only commented on ‘Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio’ but also loved the book so much that he collaborated with an unknown artist to create this picture book," Old Dong added.

"Such a secret! This is truly unbelievable," Zhang Tianyuan said in surprise.

"There are many mysterious things in the world, and in the world of antiques, there are even more. Many things are still unclear even now. High technology? What can high technology do? Unless you can recreate every detail of history, many secrets will remain hidden, only to be found through small clues," Old Li said with a cold snort.

"Alright, alright, young people lack experience, so don’t be so harsh. But, young Zhang, can you transfer this thing to me? I promised ten thousand, and I won’t go back on my word."

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