Reborn As Super Heiress

Chapter 1105: Chapter 1101: Pinnacle of Modern Craftsmanship and Artistry

The Old Granny couldn’t understand the implications of Yin Zeyan’s words, but Huo Sining could hear them distinctly. Especially when he mentioned the phrase ”the green stands out, the red is brilliant”, which was extremely familiar to her, Huo Sining couldn’t help but feel a stir in her heart and instinctively stepped forward to take a closer look at the Plum Vase in the old granny’s hand.

This look was truly worth it. After a careful glance, Huo Sining’s eyes immediately widened, and her posture straightened unconsciously.

She hadn’t expected to see such a piece of porcelain in such a situation, especially after seeing the inscription on the bottom, which made her understand the meaning of Yin Zeyan’s earlier remark.

What a pity.

If this Plum Vase were intact, it would truly be an extraordinary treasure, a real treasure.

Next to her, Su Qingqing apparently didn’t quite understand Yin Zeyan’s meaning. She couldn’t quite grasp the significance of the porcelain in the old granny’s hand, and seeing that both Huo Sining and Yin Zeyan showed the same expression, she couldn’t help but wonder:

”What’s so special about this vase? It just looks like an ordinary piece of porcelain to me. Look at the ’Made in Jingdezhen’ marking on the side, all in simplified Chinese script, it indicates that this is a modern craft product.”

Although Su Qingqing’s knowledge of antique appraisal wasn’t very extensive, and she might not have heard of some niche collectibles, her basic skills were solid. This porcelain clearly looked like a modern piece. She was puzzled as to why a modern craft piece breaking was such a pity.

However, her remark drew laughter from the crowd. Yin Zeyan couldn’t help but chuckle as he looked at Su Qingqing with a smirk, saying, ”Did you fail your ceramics appreciation class this semester?”

This remark hit Su Qingqing’s sore spot. In embarrassment and anger, her face turned beet red, and she glared at Yin Zeyan, fuming: ”Mind your own business!”

Huo Sining also couldn’t help but smile, seeing Su Qingqing still looking bewildered, and she cheerfully explained:

”You’re not wrong—this Plum Vase was indeed made in Jingdezhen, and it was indeed produced after the establishment of the People’s Republic of China. But just because it’s recent doesn’t mean it’s worthless. Quite the contrary, it’s precisely because this porcelain was made after the founding of the PRC that we say it’s a pity, because this Plum Vase is a genuine treasure!”

Huo Sining’s words left Su Qingqing somewhat bewildered: ”Post-foundation porcelain, how could it be a treasure?”

Su Qingqing’s eyes widened with a mix of doubt and curiosity. According to her common knowledge, modern porcelain after the foundation of the People’s Republic belongs to craft products, typically priced at a few hundred to a thousand yuan, and even the best-crafted pieces rarely exceed tens of thousands.

How could something worth tens of thousands be considered a true treasure?

Seeing that Su Qingqing genuinely didn’t understand, Huo Sining smiled and said, ”You’ve seen it—the inscription at the bottom of this Plum Vase says ’Made in Jingdezhen’. Such inscriptions, after the founding of the PRC, are typically found on wares produced by state-run porcelain factories.”

”The value of an item cannot be judged solely by time; its historical added value must also be considered. For instance, the ceramics unearthed from common tombs of the Tang and Song Dynasties don’t hold much research value, and even if they are sold on the market, they don’t fetch high prices. In contrast, works by many modern artists, like paintings by Qi Baishi, can sell for astronomical prices, even surpassing the value of some ancient paintings.”

Huo Sining’s words made Su Qingqing slightly indignant: ”Of course Qi Baishi’s paintings are valuable because they have high artistic value. But this Plum Vase is just a craft piece; how can it compare to paintings and calligraphy?”

Seeing Su Qingqing’s expression that seemed to say ’you’re talking nonsense’, Huo Sining couldn’t help but laugh: ”It’s no wonder Professor Xie failed you; you must have skipped a lot of classes this semester.”

Su Qingqing was momentarily at a loss for words.

”You say Qi Baishi’s paintings are masterworks; well, let me tell you, this Plum Vase is also a masterpiece by a renowned artist, and its artistic value is not inferior to Qi Baishi’s paintings, perhaps even surpassing them.”

Su Qingqing’s mouth opened as if to refute Huo Sining’s words, but she swallowed back her words.

Knowing that Su Qingqing didn’t agree with her in her heart, Huo Sining smiled gently, then turned sideways to take a small flashlight from her backpack. Pointing at the Plum Vase in the old granny’s hand, she asked Su Qingqing with a smile: ”How do you find the patterns on this Plum Vase? Beautiful?”

Su Qingqing looked down, pursed her lips, and said, ”They are beautiful, but the design is a bit monotonous. The plum blossoms are too sparse, and there’s too much blank space around them. It feels empty, not as pretty as blue and white porcelain!”

Huo Sining shook her head slightly and bluntly refuted Su Qingqing:

”That’s because you don’t understand the hidden artistry of this Plum Vase. Do you think these patterns are just painted on simply? Then you’re wrong! These flowers are not just casually painted; their production process is much more challenging than the blue and white techniques you prefer.”

With that, Huo Sining turned on the small flashlight she held and shone it into the opening of the Plum Vase.

As the light illuminated the inner wall of the vase, Zhou Yan, Su Qingqing, and the shop assistant all curiously gathered around.

The next moment, the eyes of the three of them collectively widened, stunned by what they saw.

Under the illumination of the strong flashlight, the vase wall appeared milk-white and smooth as jade.

On the jade-like surface of the vase wall, the faint plum blossoms shimmered with a crystal-clear glow, appearing as tangible flower buds, seemingly within reach, some in bud, some in bloom, looking so realistic, like a three-dimensional picture that offers different views from every angle.

Huo Sining didn’t speak but slowly shifted the beam of the flashlight. As the light moved, the plum blossoms on the vase wall followed the light, those three-dimensional blossoms beginning to unfold slowly like real flowers, with flowing brilliance, the blush like a fairy dancing on the snow—gracefully ethereal on the smooth, jade-like vase wall.

Seeing this scene, not only were Su Qingqing and her two companions, but even the Old Granny holding the Plum Vase, were dumbfounded.

Though she was the owner of the Plum Vase, even she wasn’t aware that the vase wall harbored such a magical secret.

After showing this sight to everyone, Huo Sining retracted the flashlight.

The Plum Vase returned to its previous appearance, with the large gap making the vase look severely damaged, but the scene just witnessed was etched in their minds, leaving an impact that wouldn’t be easily calmed.