Chapter 29

In the end, only the item in Boss Murong's hand remained—a Guan Gong statue made of ceramic, but with a layer of gold plating on it.

At this moment, the thin layer of gold on the Guan Gong statue was already mottled and peeling off in many places, looking as if it had been soaked in water for a long time.

Boss Murong smiled and said, "Before I appraise this item, I want to tell you all a story about this Guan Gong statue."

"I love stories!" Xu Gang hurriedly said.

"Ouch!" As soon as Xu Gang finished speaking, he was pinched hard by Mou Ying, causing him to cry out in pain.

Both of them awkwardly smiled and then sat quietly, listening intently.

Boss Murong adjusted his glasses and said, "About ten years ago, I was in my early thirties. At that time, I participated in a program in Dongying..."

"Boss Murong was already a rising star in the appraisal world in his early thirties, and that program was also about appraisals," Boss Xiao added.

"Old Xiao, don't interrupt me," Boss Murong continued, "At that time, I was far from being a rising star. I was just a novice in appraisals. I participated in that program as a plant, which is a dark history, so let's not mention it. What I want to talk about is something else."

His eyes gradually became deep, as if recalling a distant past, and his voice slowly emerged, "In Dongying, one day, a person came to me with a Guan Gong statue, the very one on the table! This person looked very nervous, spoke a lot of flattering words to me, and then said he hoped I would buy this item."

"Scammer! Definitely a scammer!" Jia Zhengjing suddenly said.

Boss Murong nodded and said, "At that time, I also thought this person was definitely a scammer. However, what he said next completely moved me. He said his mother had cancer and needed a large sum of money for treatment, so he was reluctantly selling this Guan Gong statue to me."

"The more I hear, the more it sounds like a scam," Jia Zhengjing said again.

"At that time, he was crying uncontrollably. I didn't believe it was an act, so my heart softened, and I took all the money from my bank account to buy the Guan Gong statue," Boss Murong sighed. "To be honest, I really regretted it after buying it because it was quite expensive. I spent 600,000 yuan, all my savings, which I had planned to use to buy a house with my girlfriend..."

"Oh, Uncle Murong, you were really foolish. I heard that your girlfriend dumped you once when you were 30. Was it because of this?" Jia Zhengjing said, pounding his chest.

"That's right. After my girlfriend found out about this, she dumped me," Boss Murong smiled, but it wasn't a bitter smile. He continued, "Later, I thought about it carefully. Even if the item was fake, as long as the person really needed the money to save a life, I would accept being scammed. It would be a form of psychological comfort."

"Did the person who sold it to you ever come back to you?" Zhang Tianyuan couldn't help but ask.

"She never came back to me. I went to find her, but she didn't mention the Guan Gong statue," Boss Murong shook his head.

"Damn, she must have been a scammer who refused to admit it. What a despicable person!" Jia Zhengjing angrily scolded.

"Cough, let's not worry about that person for now. I'm telling this story to tell you, young friend Tianyuan, that I don't know if this Guan Gong statue is real or fake. I'm not good at appraising ceramics; my specialty is in calligraphy and paintings. This is the first time I've shown this Guan Gong statue to everyone. Old Dong, Old Li, and Boss Xiao have never seen it before. However, Old Li is an expert in ceramic appraisals, and Old Dong and Boss Xiao should also be knowledgeable. Don't give your answer yet. I want to hear young friend Tianyuan's answer first," Boss Murong coughed and said.

Zhang Tianyuan's brows furrowed slightly. This was clearly a way to put pressure on him, to test whether he could remain calm under pressure and still speak the truth.

He couldn't help but take it seriously, placing the Guan Gong statue in front of him and examining it carefully.

X-ray vision!

Microscopic examination!

Even communication with the earth's qi!

He used all his methods, so it took a bit longer. Appraising this item took more time than the previous three items combined.

"Bro, you have to be careful. If you make a wrong judgment, it will cost you a lot," Xu Gang said nervously.

Before Zhang Tianyuan could speak, Jia Zhengjing started boasting again. He casually patted the Guan Gong statue and said, "This thing is so crudely made and even has gold plating. It's utterly vulgar, something only a nouveau riche would do. In my opinion, Uncle Murong was scammed. This thing is only worth a few hundred yuan. What a huge loss! Uncle Murong, if you want to find that person and settle the score, I can help. I'll track down that scammer, no matter where they are!"

"Oh? Young Master Jia also wants to participate in the appraisal? You should think carefully. If you make a mistake, you'll have to pay the price," Zhang Tianyuan said deliberately.

Jia Zhengjing, provoked by his words, sneered and said, "Appraise it, then. If this thing is real, I'll donate 10% of its value to charity."

"Good, Young Master Jia is indeed generous!" Zhang Tianyuan clapped his hands and smiled. "I think this thing is real. Judging by its craftsmanship and style, it should be from the Ming Dynasty, probably the mid-Ming period. I may be wrong, but I'll take the risk."

"Can you give an estimated value?" Boss Murong asked with a smile.

"It's worth more than 600,000 yuan. This thing is at least 800,000 to 900,000 yuan, or even more," Zhang Tianyuan said confidently.

He was so sure because, first, he had confirmed it was genuine through the six-character mantra, and second, he had seen a description of this item in a book before. Combining these two pieces of information, he could draw a conclusion that was absolutely correct.

"Then, please let Old Dong, Old Li, and Boss Xiao help with the appraisal. There's no need to rush the answer. We can wait until everything is over to avoid spoiling everyone's interest," Boss Murong smiled.

Hearing this, Jia Zhengjing thought he had guessed correctly and was overjoyed, looking at Zhang Tianyuan with a smug expression, as if to say, "Let's see how you'll handle this, poor guy!"

After Old Dong, Old Li, and Boss Xiao appraised the item separately and communicated with each other, they finally reached a consensus. However, they all deliberately kept their expressions neutral, making it impossible to tell whether the Guan Gong statue was real or fake from their faces. They would reveal the answer at the end.

"Alright, we've appraised the four items we brought. Now it's young friend Tianyuan's turn with the 'Shangyang Terrace' scroll. Let's all appraise it together and see if it's better or worse than the comic book you showed us yesterday." To be honest, Old Dong was still thinking about the comic book from yesterday, which was worth several million yuan. He thought that Qi Gong's copy of the 'Shangyang Terrace' scroll couldn't possibly be more valuable than that, at most a few hundred thousand yuan.

The reason he wanted Zhang Tianyuan's item to be the last was to see if Zhang Tianyuan's incredible luck would continue.

For example, with the comic book yesterday, Zhang Tianyuan didn't even know how valuable it was, initially thinking it was only worth 70,000 to 80,000 yuan. So, would the 'Shangyang Terrace' scroll also bring a surprise?

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