The World's Richest Man: Start with the Daily Intelligence System

42: Chapter 42 Yu Hongtao’s ResentmentZhang Wei walked into the living room. On the television, a couple was experiencing a life-and-death parting, but the words coming out were a string of somewhat comical gibberish: ”I didn’t expect An Xiaoxi, you actually watch Thai dramas?”

An Xiaoxi was laughing heartily while watching the tragic plot: ”I find that the Thai language inherently sounds funny. The more seriously the characters act, the funnier it gets.”

Zhang Wei watched for a while and agreed.

Just then, the doorbell rang.

”Help me brew a pot of tea. Use the Biluochun I bought last time. I estimate the person arriving has a very strong liver fire; they’ll need something to clear their liver and brighten their eyes.”

An Xiaoxi, slightly curious, hopped over to the kitchen.

When Zhang Wei opened the door, Yu Hongtao was standing there, his eyes bloodshot, glaring furiously at him, as if Zhang Wei were the neighbor’s notorious Old Wang.

It really is excessive liver fire. Such an old man still has so much temper, Zhang Wei thought. He didn’t pay him much mind and smiled at Dr. Zhao behind him, ”I’ll trouble you, Dr. Zhao, for making a trip so late.”

The person behind Yu Hongtao was precisely Dr. Zhao, the expert who had previously authenticated the infantry cannon.

”You brat!” Yu Hongtao looked displeased. ”Why weren’t you this polite when we were chatting on WeChat earlier?”

Zhang Wei laughed heartily: ”That’s different. Dr. Zhao’s appraisal skill is evident to all. I have always held capable people in high regard. Besides, you previously suspected that the cannon I donated was fake.”

”Ahem, ahem, it’s because your procedures were too absurd,” Yu Hongtao said, slightly embarrassed. After all, if he knew how to appraise things, what would his subordinates do for a living?

At this moment, Dr. Zhao could no longer hold back. ”Little Zhang, where is that imperial seal? Can you let me have a look?”

When he received Yu Hongtao’s call late at night, his first reaction was that the Museum Director had too much pressure and had finally gone mad. Forget about the imperial seal being real; even if it were a later imitation, no one in the country had ever been rumored to collect it.

However, after seeing the video sent over, along with Fan Haiyang’s appraisal result, he couldn’t sit still. He rushed over to Zhang Wei’s house in a frenzy.

Zhang Wei ushered the two inside. An Xiaoxi poured the tea and sweetly greeted them both.

Once everyone was seated, Zhang Wei finally took out the wooden box and placed it on the table, making a gesture inviting them to look.

Dr. Zhao put on gloves and carefully picked up the wooden box. His eyes immediately lit up. First, the box itself was extraordinary; it was engraved with inscriptions and made of fine materials—even the box alone was not ordinary. Then, he opened it, revealing an imperial seal inside.

”Good stuff! Good stuff!” Dr. Zhao held the imperial seal with both hands, murmuring incessantly. He took out a magnifying glass and the instruments he brought to begin a detailed examination.

At this time, Yu Hongtao leaned toward Zhang Wei. No longer looking half-asleep, he asked in a low voice, ”You called us here late at night, not just for an appraisal, right? Are you intending to sell it?”

He had already calmed down from the shock of the imperial seal. Based on Zhang Wei’s description, he had previously asked Fan Haiyang to appraise it. If there weren’t issues, Zhang Wei wouldn’t have contacted him so late.

”You guessed correctly,” Zhang Wei briefly explained the Capital Museum’s attempt to acquire it for free. Of course, he omitted the part about the system, only saying he heard about it through connections in the field.

Yu Hongtao sighed after hearing this: ”The people over there are indeed acting too excessively. It’s mainly because the big brother is used to being overbearing and never lacks good things. Relying on their grand reputation, they always think others will defer to them.”

There had been more than one incident before where cultural relics were damaged. For the Shenghai Museum, which lacked deep cultural foundations, that was something they dared not even imagine.

”We overthought things,” Zhang Wei said helplessly. He hadn’t originally planned to sell it to the Capital Museum; he just wanted an expert to confirm the origin and dynasty of this imperial seal to facilitate his own sale. He didn’t expect these people to write their own drama and try to get it for free.

At this moment, Dr. Zhao put down his instrument, muttering to himself: ”The color is green like blue, moist and lustrous. Its inscription reads, ’Received Mandate from Heaven, Enduring Longevity and Prosperity.’ Its back has five coiled dragons, and there is a small hole between the knobs, used for threading. It has the head of a jade seal, white as cream, also moist, and the back also has five coiled dragons; its surface has no writing, matching the size of the seal. The seal script work is definitely not from recent times.”

He then said excitedly, ”I didn’t expect this to be the legendary imperial seal of china. It matches the description exactly.”

Everyone present became curious. Yu Hongtao urged, ”Old Zhao, stop holding out on us. Quickly tell us if this imperial seal of china is real!”

Dr. Zhao smiled and said, ”This imperial seal of china is real, and it is not real.”

Everyone was confused. Dr. Zhao then explained to them: ”The imperial seal of china was not originally called that; it was first called the Qin Seal, made by Qin Shi Huang from Lantian jade. Some theories suggest it was modified from the Heshibi, but that is not very credible. Because the Heshibi was a flat, circular disk, even with modern craftsmanship, it would be difficult to change it into the square shape of an imperial seal.”

Later, when the Qin Dynasty fell, the imperial seal of china fell into Liu Bang’s hands. Afterward, emperors of successive Han dynasties had to receive the imperial seal of china upon ascension to be recognized as legitimate successors to the throne. It was then that the Qin Seal was officially renamed the Han imperial seal of china.

It wasn’t until the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty that Sun Jian obtained it, then it passed through Yuan Shu and Cao Cao, eventually falling into the hands of the Sima clan of the Western Jin Dynasty. During the period of the Sixteen Kingdoms when the north was in chaos, the country was shattered, and it was brought to the Eastern Jin. The small states in the north, all claiming to have received the Mandate of Heaven, claimed to possess the imperial seal of china. However, they were all fake. The real seal had a complete lineage record. Later, it was obtained by Yang Jian of the Sui Dynasty, and then passed to the Tang Dynasty. After the Tang Dynasty fell, and the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period brought chaos, the last record of the imperial seal of china was when the last emperor of the Later Tang, Li Congke, immolated himself in a fire. From then on, the imperial seal of china disappeared without a trace.

Dr. Zhao pointed to the imperial seal on the table and continued, ”The reason I say this one isn’t real is because, according to instrument detection, the carving marks on the jade are from the Song Dynasty technique. Naturally, artisans of the Qin Dynasty could not have used it. However, the reason I say it is real is because this imperial seal was indeed enshrined as the imperial seal of china during the Song Dynasty.”

In the Northern Song, after Emperor Shenzong died, Wang Anshi and others’ reforms failed, and they were ostracized by the old party officials like Sima Guang. Then Emperor Zhezong ascended the throne, and the court was turbulent, with officials uneasy. A man named Duan Yi in Xianyang County dug up an imperial seal of china from the ground and presented it to the Emperor—this very one before us.”

”The ancient text I just read was the famous writing by Cai Jing when the Emperor gathered ministers to examine the authenticity of the imperial seal of china. In the end, all the ministers unanimously affirmed that this imperial seal was real. Emperor Zhezong was overjoyed and, to show respect for the imperial seal, even changed the era name to {Yuanfu} the following year.”

Dr. Zhao took a sip of tea and smiled: ”With our modern detection technology, of course, we know it was forged in the Song Dynasty. But in the Song Dynasty, people believed it was genuinely real. And later, it was passed down to the Southern Song. The main territory of the Southern Song was the Yangtze River Delta region, so it is reasonable for the imperial seal of china to reappear in Shenghai City.”

Although An Xiaoxi didn’t quite understand, she asked the most crucial question: ”Then Grandpa Zhao, how much can this imperial seal sell for?”

Dr. Zhao was silent for a long time, then shook his head: ”I don’t know.”

Everyone looked at him in surprise. Dr. Zhao gave a wry smile: ”Because there have never been any transaction records for the imperial seal of china. However, this is definitely a vital national treasure. Placed in any Museum, it would undoubtedly be the treasure that anchors the collection. It is priceless.”