A Warm Marriage After Rebirth

Chapter 84: Chapter 84: Face-off with Joel Xavier

Seraphina Sterling pulled on a pair of silk gloves and walked over to the three porcelain items first. She examined them one by one, her focus intense. After all, she had bought Philip Hale’s antique shop for one of these three pieces. If her memory served her right, among them should be a piece of Blue and White Porcelain!

The minutes ticked by. Seraphina Sterling spent a full twenty minutes on those three porcelain items alone. Joel Xavier, who had been somewhat expectant, thought Seraphina might demonstrate some extraordinary skill. ’Now it seems she’s nothing special after all!’

However, that thought had barely lasted a minute in Joel Xavier’s mind before it vanished completely.

Because after looking at the three porcelain pieces, she merely glanced over the other seven, hefted their weight, and didn’t examine them closely at all. The appraisal was over!

”Aside from these three porcelain pieces, which are genuine, the other seven are fakes!” Seraphina Sterling concluded swiftly.

Joel Xavier’s brow furrowed slightly. ’She couldn’t have just assumed the first three are real because she spent the most time on them, and that the rest are fake because she only glanced at them for a moment, could she?’

”Feeling quite sure of yourself, Young Boss?” Joel Xavier asked probingly, a single eyebrow raised.

”Store Manager Xavier can appraise them himself. If our results differ, we can discuss it then!” Seraphina Sterling was very confident in her eye.

The smile vanished from Joel Xavier’s face. He walked to the table with a serious expression and began his own meticulous observation.

A quick look was all it took for him to be taken aback—there really were a lot of fakes among the ten items! ’An antique shop that keeps taking in this many fakes probably wouldn’t stay in business for long!’

Joel Xavier was born into a distinguished family of collectors and had studied antiques with his elders since childhood. However, his family fell on hard times when he was young, and he became a commoner, leaving the life of a wealthy, influential family far behind.

It was this excellent early exposure that instilled in him a profound interest in antique appraisal and collection. Years of diligent study had forged his sharp and discerning eye, and he rarely made mistakes in his assessments.

His family background and personal experience taught him just how difficult appraising antiques could be. The slightest misstep could easily lead to an error. An error, in turn, could mean losing a small sum of money at best, or complete financial ruin at worst.

Another half hour passed. Joel Xavier put down his magnifying glass and looked at Seraphina Sterling, who was only about five-foot-three. ’She’s actually that good,’ he thought. ’She judged those seven pieces so accurately with just a single glance!’

Joel Xavier was reeling from the shock, but he hid it well. ’Even if she’s fast,’ he rationalized, ’it’s useless if she isn’t accurate.’

”Young Boss, you’re very good! Far better than most people your age, I’ll admit that! But it’s still incredibly difficult to carve out a niche in the fiercely competitive antiques market. This world isn’t as simple as you think! And the world of business isn’t as easy as you imagine!”

Joel Xavier took off his silk gloves. His attitude was completely serious, a clear departure from his earlier teasing.

”Joel Xavier, don’t judge anyone with that narrow-minded way of thinking! Especially not someone you’ve just met! Otherwise, you’ll be the one to lose out!” Seraphina Sterling smiled faintly, a Nadia-like smile that seemed to hold the clarity of one who had weathered countless storms.

It gave Joel Xavier the strange impression that Seraphina Sterling, despite her youth, was somehow older than him—a man in his early thirties—and had experienced far more of life.

”Store Manager Xavier, your answer?” Seraphina Sterling’s expression returned to normal as she brought the conversation back on topic.

Joel Xavier also resumed his professional demeanor. ”My appraisal is roughly the same as the Boss’s.”

”Roughly the same? So there are subtle differences?” Seraphina Sterling arched a delicate eyebrow. She enjoyed this kind of high-level exchange.

”That’s right! The three porcelain pieces are undoubtedly genuine. However, I personally believe this Gold Carved Gourd is also real, which would mean the rest are fakes!” Joel Xavier was confident in his assessment.

Seraphina Sterling put her silk gloves back on, picked up the small Gold Carved Gourd, and examined it carefully once more. ”Explain your reasoning.”

”It’s simple. The workmanship on this Gold Carved Gourd is exquisite, and the patterns are beautiful. It’s an absolute masterpiece of Early Dynasty goldwork!” Joel Xavier exclaimed admiringly. Seeing Seraphina Sterling’s questioning look, he immediately adopted a more serious tone.

”The openwork on Early Dynasty gold jewelry is typically single-sided. However, the connecting section in the middle of this gourd uses double-sided openwork. I assume, Boss, that you noticed this and concluded the Gold Carved Gourd is a fake because of it, correct?”

Joel Xavier continued his analysis, carefully watching Seraphina Sterling’s expression. ”However, you may have overlooked one point, Boss. Openwork techniques were already highly developed during the Ming and Qing Dynasties. They included not only single-sided and double-sided but even multi-sided openwork. It’s just that single-sided was most common for gold jewelry. Double-sided openwork is extremely rare, but that doesn’t mean it’s nonexistent.”

”Is there more?” Seraphina Sterling asked softly, her expression unchanged.

”Furthermore, look at the patina. Gold from the Early Dynasty is ancient; this Gold Carved Gourd lacks the brilliant luster of modern gold! Based on these two points, this has to be a Gold Carved Gourd from the Early Dynasty!”

After speaking, Joel Xavier looked to Seraphina Sterling, awaiting her opinion.

”Your points are very logical, and you clearly have a firm grasp of openwork techniques. However, this Gold Carved Gourd is a fake.” Seraphina Sterling stood by her initial assessment.

”If the Boss has some other brilliant insight, by all means, let’s hear it so we can discuss it!” Joel Xavier was starting to get annoyed. ’I can’t stand arrogant people who stubbornly stick to their own opinions!’