Chapter 7

At two hundred yuan a bottle, Xi Feng is already considered a pretty good liquor.

Just after opening the shop, there were no customers in the store, and the old man was sitting by the counter smoking his pipe.

The bottle of liquor was on the table, but the old beggar didn't even glance at it, his eyes fixed on the hilt of the knife that was peeking out of the cloth bag.

"Mr. Counter! Take a look!" Li Yuanxing used the playful tone he often used with the old beggar in the evenings, but in this antique market, who wouldn't respectfully call the old beggar "Mr. Counter"? He was the expert who could appraise anything.

Mr. Counter tapped his pipe on the edge of the table a few times, then extended his left hand: "Bring it over!"

"Real Tang Dynasty sword!" Li Yuanxing was very respectful to Mr. Counter because he was a man of great ability. Decades ago, he had fought on the battlefield with Li Yuanxing's grandfather, and later moved to Beijing. In recent years, he had returned to his hometown and was attracted by Li Yuanxing's black market shop, so he treated it as his home.

"You have some discernment, a Tang Dynasty saber. Pity, pity!" Mr. Counter's eyes welled up with tears as he touched the blade: "It wasn't well preserved, the edge is damaged, damaged!"

Li Yuanxing was startled. If anything happened to this old man, his grandfather would probably rise from the grave to slap him.

"Mr. Counter, Mr. Counter. This is just a sample, there are two more good ones, truly good ones."

"Really!" Mr. Counter's eyes changed, a hint of killing intent appearing. Although it couldn't compare to Qin Qiong's ferocity, it still made Li Yuanxing shudder.

Li Yuanxing's mind raced, and he quickly had an idea: "There are two more, one of which the other party said has a history. It's said that during the Incident at Xuanwu Gate..." Here, Li Yuanxing hesitated, thinking about whether to get a high-quality sword from Li Er or Qin Qiong after returning to the Tang Dynasty, rather than a common soldier's sword.

"Speak!" Mr. Counter shouted, then pointed at the door. Wang Wu immediately ran over to close it.

"During the Incident at Xuanwu Gate, Qin Qiong carried a sword, which had Li Yuanji's blood on it. That sword was very well preserved!" As Li Yuanxing spoke, Mr. Counter's eyes became distant and lost. Li Yuanxing continued: "Mr. Counter, can that sword fetch a good price?"

Slap!

A loud slap landed on Li Yuanxing's face: "Wastrel, you scoundrel."

Mr. Counter picked up the Tang Dynasty sword and was about to slash at Li Yuanxing, but the other three were terrified. Before they could stop him, Mr. Counter put down the sword and picked up a bottle of liquor that cost three hundred yuan, intending to smash it on Li Yuanxing's head, muttering: "It's not good to damage a sword with a sword!"

After much effort, they managed to calm Mr. Counter down. Li Yuanxing put on a pitiful look: "Mr. Counter, you know. Xiao Qi's injury needs treatment, or he'll be crippled for life, and I won't be able to rest easy."

"Follow me! Money is nothing!" Mr. Counter was furious.

Wang Wu started the car again, and this time they headed straight for the provincial museum. Mr. Counter held the long sword in both hands, his face grave. The four young men didn't dare say a word the whole way.

"Find the director!" After getting out of the car, Mr. Counter finally spoke, his stern face softening slightly. Xiao Hou immediately ran to the guardhouse.

Wang Wu didn't know where the museum's administrative area was, so they chose a parking lot facing the visitors.

When the guard heard Xiao Hou asking for the director, he was about to shoo them away, but then he saw an old man carrying a long sword approaching. The old man's presence was that of a great person. The guard had seen thousands of people, and he had a good eye, so he immediately picked up a pen and paper: "Please state your reason so I can report it!"

"Tell Chang Hong to prepare for an appraisal and get some good tea. The old man's surname is Li!"

Mr. Counter spoke, and the guard didn't dare to be the slightest bit negligent, immediately making an internal call. Just as Director Chang was sitting in his office and picking up a newspaper, he heard the report from his secretary. He threw the newspaper on the ground and hurriedly walked out, saying to his secretary: "Immediately call Director Zhang to prepare the appraisal room, open the small reception room, and bring out my best tea. Hurry."

The secretary was stunned for a moment, but Director Chang was already walking out.

At the door, Director Chang turned and shouted: "Hurry, hurry, and make it good!"

The secretary then hurriedly got moving.

The guard, not having received a reply, didn't dare to urge, but he told Mr. Counter that someone had been sent to find the director.

A moment later, a fat man ran out, panting heavily, ignoring the surprised looks of everyone around him, and bowed deeply to Mr. Counter: "Chang Hong was slow to come, I've been negligent to my teacher!" His attitude was extremely respectful, and the people around him changed their surprised looks to approval.

Those who came to the museum early in the morning were often people of great cultural and educational background.

"Tang Dynasty saber!" Mr. Counter handed the sword over, and Chang Hong respectfully took it with both hands, looking at it for a moment: "It looks real, but we need to appraise its age to be more certain!"

"Let's go!" Mr. Counter remained cold.

At this moment, Li Yuanxing and the others were dumbfounded, completely stunned. Was this the same old beggar Mr. Counter who could joke around and always smiled? For the director of a provincial museum to personally welcome him and call him teacher, what did this old man do in Beijing? It seemed they couldn't call him "old beggar" anymore, but "Mr. Counter"!

"Please, the young gentlemen as well!" Director Chang said with a smile when he learned that Li Yuanxing had come with Mr. Counter.

The appraisal results drove the museum staff crazy. A Tang Dynasty sword preserved so well could definitely be classified as a cultural relic.

At this point, Mr. Counter said: "Sell it, for a good price. My grandson needs money to buy another one!"

"Another one?" When Chang Hong first heard about selling, he planned to persuade his teacher. How could such a thing be easily sold? But his teacher's patriotism and love for cultural relics were well-known in the national antique community, and when he heard about the other one, Chang Hong's heart was no longer calm.

Mr. Counter said calmly: "Xing is my grandson, I trust him. The other one, used by Qin Qiong during the Incident at Xuanwu Gate, belongs to you! The rest will be used to clear my grandson's name!"

The phrase "clear my grandson's name" earned Li Yuanxing's deep admiration for Mr. Counter's wisdom.

Selling the damaged Tang Dynasty sword was fine, but the one used by Qin Qiong during the Incident at Xuanwu Gate was a cultural relic. Donating it to the museum was the safest way, and with Director Chang's help in the future, everything looked promising.

At that moment, Li Yuanxing opened his backpack again.

Mr. Counter and Chang Hong were experts among experts, not just any appraisers, but true experts. They only needed one look to know it was an ancient artifact. Especially the lacquerware, which in the Tang Dynasty was not something that could be bought with money; it was a true noble's possession.

"This, it must belong to me!" Chang Hong fixed his eyes on the wooden bowl.