Gene Unlocking: I Evolve Every Day

Chapter 68: Chapter 63: Antiques

The Yangpu Flower and Bird Antiques Market is the largest street vendor antique market in Shanghai.

It generally opens on Wednesdays and weekends.

Especially on Saturday mornings, the market is very crowded and lively.

The market houses a variety of antiques, paintings, cups, bowls, jade items, watches, cameras, sound equipment, books, vintage jewelry, and secondhand clothing, among other things.

The range of goods here is vast.

Consumers need to distinguish between real and fake by themselves.

Prices have a considerable negotiation space.

Lu Li and Qin Liang arrived in a chauffeur-driven Rolls-Royce Phantom.

They entered the antique market.

It might have already been afternoon.

There weren’t many customers in the market.

Only a few scattered vendors were holding on, waiting for business.

Qin Liang made small talk and asked, ”Mr. Lu, what kind of antiques do you like to collect?”

Lu Li walked towards the porcelain stall, ”I don’t have a specific preference; as long as I can make money, that’s fine.”

Qin Liang was a bit taken aback, thinking that those who deal in antiques usually show a strong artistic sense, while Mr. Lu seems to speak only of money, which is somewhat vulgar.

He felt that Lu Li’s vulgarity was one aspect.

On the other hand, Qin Liang didn’t truly believe Lu Li could make much money from antiques.

Or rather, he didn’t really believe Lu Li was particularly adept at making money.

It wasn’t that Qin Liang looked down on him, but Lu Li was dressed plainly, in athletic wear from head to toe, which might total a mere few hundred bucks; how could someone wealthy dress so poorly?

Of course, with Qin Liang’s emotional intelligence, he wouldn’t say such things out loud; he still hoped to win over Lu Li as an endorser for McBao King.

Lu Li squatted down at the porcelain stall.

Qin Liang squatted down as well and said cheerfully, ”My old man likes to play with antiques too. I’ve been influenced by him and, while I dare not say I’m an expert, I understand a bit. If you’re unsure about something later, you can ask me to take a look.”

Lu Li glanced over with a smile and said, ”Sure, thank you, Mr. Qin.”

As they exchanged a few words, the middle-aged stall owner warmly greeted them, saying, ”Gentlemen, I have lots of good stuff here, collected from the countryside. If you find something you like, I can offer you a discount.”

Lu Li looked down at the porcelain and absentmindedly responded with an ”Hmm.”

Qin Liang wasn’t joking when he said his father liked collecting antiques.

He truly was influenced by his father and understood a little about antiques.

Yes, just a little; in reality, not much.

After watching for a short while.

Lu Li suddenly pointed at an enameled porcelain vase and asked, ”May I pick this up and take a closer look?”

The owner nodded, ”Sure, take your time.”

Lu Li picked up the porcelain vase depicting the Cloth Sack Monk and observed it closely.

Qin Liang, with nothing better to do, was also continuously eyeing the porcelain on the stall.

Suddenly, Qin Liang noticed a famille rose teapot among the pile of porcelain, and his eyes widened suddenly.

Startled, he couldn’t believe his eyes as he stared at the teapot, thinking, ”Could this be from the ceramic painting master Li Mingliang?”

People not into antiques rarely know Li Mingliang.

Li Mingliang was a domestic ceramic art master and a ceramic painter from the Republic of China period.

His painting style was graceful and elegant, charming and stylish.

Li Mingliang was especially skilled at famille rose porcelain paintings.

His subjects often included flowers and insects, creating pieces that were meaningful and transcendent.

At that time in Jingdezhen, painting styles often depicted figures, landscapes, or birds and flowers.

And Li’s style was indeed unique, offering a refreshing sight.

Li Mingliang’s exceptional skills earned him a reputation as one of the ”Eight Friends of Zhushan.”

His porcelain painting works were not cheap.

Qin Liang knew this ceramic painting master.

Spotting a possible piece of Li Mingliang’s work here.

He immediately felt extremely excited, picking up the teapot to examine it closely.

On the famille rose teapot,

The lotus under the leaves appeared exquisite and charming.

A dragonfly poised to fly looked lively and vivid.

Qin Liang checked the signature and found it almost identical to the master Li Mingliang’s signature in his memory.

Though the teapot was a small porcelain item and perhaps not very valuable, if it was a hidden treasure, it was certainly exhilarating.

Qin Liang had previously tried his hand at antiques, losing millions, and even though he eventually quit, his father always gaped at him about it.

Now, seeing a chance to ”prove” his appraisal ability had arrived, how could he possibly hold back?

He eagerly asked Lu Li, ”What do you think of this teapot?”

Upon hearing, Lu Li glanced over and cautioned, ”The teapot is very clean, like it’s fresh out of the kiln. Mr. Qin, you’d better scald it before using it to brew tea.”

It certainly wouldn’t do to blatantly point out the fake at someone’s antique stall, as this would seem rude and inappropriate.

Qin Liang understood what Lu Li meant; he was implying the teapot was a fake.

However, he remained convinced the teapot was indeed the work of Master Li Mingliang, refusing to heed advice.

”Hehe, scald it; of course, you’d scald it before brewing tea.” Qin Liang echoed, turning to the owner and asking, ”How much for this teapot?”

Lu Li saw that the other party wasn’t listening to his advice and couldn’t be bothered to continue the conversation, so he simply kept observing the porcelain vase.

Though he didn’t understand antiques, he possessed X-ray vision, which allowed him to discern the age of each layer of an object.

No matter how well a forgery is aged, there will always be subtle differences in the layers’ age; how could it escape Lu Li’s X-ray vision?

The shop owner noticed Qin Liang was interested and immediately brightened up. ”This Famille Rose teapot cost me a lot to acquire. Since it’s your first time buying from me, I won’t make a profit off you; I’ll let you have it at cost price.”

He held up two fingers, ”Twenty thousand, and it’s yours!”

”You’re selling me two of these teapots?” Qin Liang deliberately used jargon, making it seem like he knew a lot about antiques. ”That’s a bit pricey.”

The owner was quite professional, ”This Famille Rose teapot is a porcelain painting by Master Li Mingliang from the Republic of China era. At auction, it might fetch several tens of thousands. It’s just that I’m not quite sure about its authenticity, so I’m selling it cheaper here.”

Everyone else would boast that their antiques are genuine.

The owner’s cleverness was in this.

He figured Qin Liang knew a little bit about antiques.

If he spoke too confidently, Qin Liang would likely get suspicious.

After all, works by Master Li Mingliang wouldn’t be priced at just twenty thousand, no matter how cheap.

Thus, the owner was vague, making Qin Liang believe he was unsure about its authenticity, so he was willing to sell it cheaply, making Qin Liang feel like he was getting a bargain.

Sure enough, upon hearing the owner’s words, Qin Liang became even more convinced that the Famille Rose teapot in his hand was genuine.

He immediately started bargaining, ”If you’re not sure about its authenticity, how can you sell it to me at such a high price? Lower it a bit, and I’ll pay right away.”

The owner complained, ”I really can’t go any cheaper. It cost me eighteen thousand when I got it.”

”Come on, can’t you lower it a bit? How about fifteen thousand?”

”Nineteen thousand, no less.”

”Sixteen thousand...”

Lu Li listened to them haggling from start to finish without intervening.

Finally, they agreed on a price.

The owner sighed, ”Alright then, let’s be friends. Seventeen thousand it is.”

”You just said the cost price was eighteen thousand.” Qin Liang chuckled while taking out his phone to pay, ”I bet you’re still making a profit at seventeen thousand.”

”No, no, I didn’t earn anything from you,” the owner continued his act, ”I’m really losing money to make a friend.”

”I don’t believe you.” Qin Liang put away his phone, ”The money’s transferred, please check.”

The owner looked at his phone and beamed with joy, ”Alright, it’s received, thank you, boss.”

Lu Li seized the opportunity, ”How much for this vase?”

The owner glanced at it and began to bluff, ”This vase is an enamel piece from the Qianlong period of the Qing dynasty. It cost me over ten thousand to acquire. I just gave your friend a discount, so I can’t not give you one. Fine, just pay the cost price; just don’t make me lose money.”

Lu Li smirked, ”I don’t know anything about antiques. I’m buying it just to decorate my house. If you’re willing to sell, I’ll offer you one hundred. If not, you can keep it as a chamber pot.”

The owner’s head shook like a rattle, refusing everything.

Lu Li was too lazy to argue, stood up, and was about to leave with Qin Liang.

Seeing he was really going, the owner quickly called out, ”Hey, come back, come back, take it for a hundred.”

Some of these porcelains were workshop products, while others were indeed collected from the countryside.

The good stuff was already picked out and sent to auctions, while relatively inferior items were displayed here. If someone asked for a price, it wouldn’t be low.

As for the rest, most were forgeries, just a bit more upscale than low-end three-piece sets from construction sites, hoping to trick some fool.

There were also some whose authenticity couldn’t be determined, and the prices for such porcelain were very flexible.

The owner had looked at this porcelain for a long time and didn’t think it was genuine. Besides, it only cost him thirty when he acquired it.

Now, hearing someone willing to pay a hundred, with the mindset that even a mosquito is meat, he was, of course, willing to sell.

Lu Li had been using his Mind Reading Technique earlier, so he naturally knew the owner’s thoughts and was sure the owner would sell it for a hundred, that’s why he offered that price.

He turned around, paid a hundred, picked up the vase, and left directly.

Qin Liang followed with the teapot, enthusiastically, ”Mr. Lu, don’t blame me for being nosy, but the vase you bought doesn’t look like an antique at all; it seems too new.”

Lu Li turned and smiled, ”Buying a vase for a hundred isn’t a loss. I’m not after antiques; didn’t I say I just wanted to spruce up my place?”

Seeing him say that, Qin Liang decided not to persuade him further and simply followed, continuing to scour the market.

Later, Lu Li selected a few more items from different stalls.

Besides the initial enamel vase with a pattern of the cloth bag monk, he also picked a double-eared vase with a Famille Rose landscape scene from another stall, a few copper coins from a currency booth, and bought a copy of the ”National Wuhan Normal University Class of Yichou Yearbook” from a second-hand book stall.

The total spent wasn’t much, only about eight hundred altogether.

In contrast, Qin Liang, though he only selected three or four items, spent thirty to forty thousand.

Finally, after scanning the market, Lu Li found no more old items and decided not to continue browsing.

He and Qin Liang took their things outside, ready to say goodbye.

Unexpectedly, Qin Liang spontaneously invited, ”Mr. Lu, it’s getting late. How about coming to my place for dinner? My dad’s an expert in antiques; he can take a look at what we bought.”

He hadn’t had a chance to convince Lu Li yet; how could he let him go?

Originally intending to find someone to appraise the antiques, Lu Li paused when hearing Qin Liang’s father was knowledgeable, and after some thought, didn’t refuse, ”Alright, thank you, then. I’ll be glad to join for a dinner.”

Qin Liang laughed heartily, ”No need to be formal, it’s just dinner.”

The two chatted as they boarded the Rolls Royce Phantom.

As the driver started the car, Lu Li was pondering.

The antiques he judged today using his X-ray vision were undoubtedly old.

He just didn’t know their concrete value.

After all, he wasn’t an expert in antiques.

Now there’s someone knowledgeable who could take a look; naturally, he’d be happy.

Lu Li secretly hoped, ”Hopefully, after Mr. Qin examines them, I’ll be in for some surprises with these antiques.”