Chapter 4

"Hey there, young man, what are you looking for? All the jade pieces here are top-quality Hetian jade, exquisitely crafted, from various dynasties. Look at this patina, it’s a rare three-color patina," the stall owner greeted Chen Yi enthusiastically as he stopped in front of his stall, holding up a piece of jade to introduce it.

"I’m just browsing, you go ahead with your business," Chen Yi smiled at the stall owner and then began to observe the dozens of jade pieces on the stall.

Seeing a particularly beautiful piece of jade, he couldn’t help but squat down and pick it up. It was a Maitreya Buddha pendant, which looked very exquisite. Chen Yi then placed a鉴定符 (appraisal talisman) on it.

He was already quite certain that others couldn’t see the appraisal talisman; otherwise, the two fraudsters would have noticed it when he used it on their paintings.

"Maitreya Buddha Jade Pendant (Fake), Age: 30 days; Material: Artificial glass formed by high-pressure casting."

"Material Defects: Compared to real jade, artificial glass has obvious bubbles and is slightly lighter, with very poor thermal stability. When in contact with the skin, real jade remains cool, while artificial glass feels warm..."

"Jade Value: Artificial glass, chemically cast, machine-made, has no value whatsoever, and long-term wear can be harmful to health."

Chen Yi’s eyes widened. This beautiful jade was actually made of artificial glass, and the appraisal information was different from what he had seen before.

"Hehe, young man, you really know your stuff. This is top-quality Hetian jade, hand-carved by a master. Wearing it for a long time will make your skin as white as jade. Just 180 yuan, and you can take it home," the stall owner said with a pleased look, seeing Chen Yi carefully examining the pendant.

Hearing the stall owner’s words, Chen Yi snapped back to reality from the appraisal information in his mind. He glanced sideways at the stall owner and said, "Hehe, Uncle, do you think I’m a fool? 180 yuan? I’d even think twice about 1.8 yuan. These bubbles, do you think I didn’t see them? For 180 yuan, I could buy an aluminum-framed glass window."

"Cough, young man, you’re an expert. Come, take a look at this piece of jade," the stall owner chuckled, not expecting this seemingly naive young man to be able to identify glass-made jade. He then took out a piece of white jade from a box under the stall.

Chen Yi looked at the jade in the stall owner’s hand, put it aside, and then picked up another piece, weighing it and touching it against his arm.

From the appraisal information, he learned about the defects of fake jade. In the upcoming treasure hunt, he would apply this knowledge. He only had six appraisal talismans left, so he wanted to save as many as possible.

Sure enough, it felt warm and had bubbles. Chen Yi felt a surge of joy. It seemed that the complex task of appraising antiques could be so easy. Identifying fakes with his own skills felt like Sun Wukong learning the 72 transformations, giving him a great sense of achievement.

He picked up another piece of jade, a Guanyin pendant. It had no bubbles and didn’t feel warm when touched. Looking at the smiling stall owner, Chen Yi placed another appraisal talisman on it.

"Guanyin Jade Pendant (Fake), Age: 23 days; Material: Thermosetting phenolic resin, low-quality jade powder formed by high-temperature and high-pressure."

"Material Defects: Jade is brittle, resin is tough. A light tap on the jade produces a sharp sound, while the resin produces a dull sound. It has poor transparency and no natural texture..."

"Jade Value: Resin-made jade has no value and is even more harmful to health than artificial glass due to the chemicals it emits."

After seeing the appraisal results, Chen Yi was almost ready to flip the stall. He had wasted two appraisal talismans, and both were fake jade, made of different materials.

"Hey, young man, I can guarantee that this one isn’t made of artificial glass," the stall owner interjected, having seen all kinds of people in the antique market.

This young man, with some knowledge, was the type who knew a little but not enough. It was evident from how he took a long time to find the defects in the jade.

"Does it sound like jade? It’s a piece of artificial resin. You’re trying to fool people with this," Chen Yi said angrily, tapping the jade a couple of times.

Looking at the stall owner with a sharp nose and cheekbones, and then at the five appraisal talismans left in his mind, Chen Yi felt like crying. His initial thought that treasure hunting would be easy had completely vanished.

"Cough, young man, I can guarantee that the jade I just showed you isn’t fake," the stall owner said with a laugh, now having a better understanding of Chen Yi’s discernment.

Chen Yi ignored the stall owner’s words and wanted to try a different type of antique. However, he had already used two appraisal talismans on jade. If he changed the type, those two would be wasted. He looked at the jade the stall owner had shown him earlier and began to analyze it based on the information from the two appraisal talismans.

This was also a pendant, shaped like Guan Yu. It looked better than the two he had appraised earlier.

It had no defects of artificial glass or resin. It felt cool when touched and was translucent. A light tap produced a crisp sound, not the dull sound from before. It seemed to meet the conditions of real jade.

Looking at the five appraisal talismans left in his mind, Chen Yi hesitated for a moment, glared at the stall owner, and then, with a deep breath, placed an appraisal talisman on the jade pendant in his hand.

"Appraising... Appraisal failed, the object’s age exceeds the time range of the初级 appraisal talisman."

"Damn, how could it fail..." Chen Yi jumped up, shouting, then suddenly noticed the strange looks from the stall owner and the people around him, so he squatted down and pretended to examine the jade carefully.

"The初级 appraisal talisman can only appraise objects within the last 500 years."

"Why did it consume an appraisal talisman if it failed?" Chen Yi asked angrily in his mind. He only had five left, and now he had four.

"Appraising an object requires the energy of the appraisal talisman. As long as the talisman is used to appraise an object, it will disappear, regardless of whether the energy is depleted."

"If the object is older than 500 years, the初级 appraisal talisman’s energy is insufficient to complete the appraisal, and it will be depleted, causing the talisman to disappear."

Chen Yi’s face twitched. He had failed and received no information, yet he had wasted an appraisal talisman.

"Young man, how about this piece of jade? It’s an old piece, guaranteed to be genuine," the stall owner said, seeing Chen Yi examining it for a long time.

Chen Yi snorted and was about to put the jade down but suddenly remembered the stall owner’s earlier words. His eyes lit up. The appraisal talisman’s range was only 500 years, and if it failed, the object must be older than 500 years. Could this jade really be an old piece?

If so, the failure of the appraisal was a sign that it was an old piece. Chen Yi tried to suppress his excitement, as this was his first time treasure hunting.

"It looks like real jade. Boss, how much?" Chen Yi asked, feigning indifference. Although he hadn’t learned much from Uncle Liu, he had picked up some skills in staying calm and negotiating.

"Hey, young man, seeing that you really love jade, I’ll give you a good price. 2000 yuan," the stall owner said with a grin, holding up two fingers.

Chen Yi’s eyes widened. 2000 yuan, that was his monthly salary. He snorted, "Boss, 2000 yuan? I doubt your entire stall is worth 2000 yuan. I’ll take a look."

"Cough, young man, don’t go. Give me a price. We’re doing business here. If the price is right, I’ll sell it to you," the stall owner said, trying to use the same tactic on Chen Yi.

"100 yuan, will you sell it?" Chen Yi said without hesitation, having seen Uncle Liu bargain with others, who were even more ruthless. The treasure hunt task had a tenfold condition, so the lower the price, the better.

Hearing Chen Yi’s words, the stall owner almost fainted. "Young man, as they say, cut the price in half when you meet. You’re even more ruthless, cutting it by twenty times. Since you really want it, I’ll give you a fair price. 1000 yuan."

"200 yuan."

"800 yuan."

"400 yuan, take it or leave it." Chen Yi didn’t want to haggle anymore. For a piece of jade from at least the Ming Dynasty, 400 yuan was a reasonable price.

"Alright, seeing that you really want it, I’ll take a big loss and sell it to you," the stall owner sighed, then wrapped the jade in a box and handed it to Chen Yi.

Chen Yi took out four 100-yuan bills from his 5000 yuan and handed them to the stall owner, then took the box, confirming that the item inside was the jade he had examined, and finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He wasn’t sure if this failed appraisal would complete the treasure hunt task, but even with some confidence, he felt uneasy.

PS: New book uploaded, please recommend and support. Thanks a lot.