Chapter 61: This brat is an expert

The seller was about sixty-one or sixty-two, with hair turning half-white. Seeing Lin Sicheng escorting his old mother through the door, a look of utter disbelief washed over his face.
His mother had stubbornly guarded the entrance for three full days, sending away seven or eight groups of prospective buyers by chasing them off with her walking stick.
Let alone letting outsiders in, not even he, her own son, had been allowed to step outside.
So how on earth had this particular group managed to get in?
Just as he was inwardly marveling, the old lady pointed her walking stick at him and commanded, "Conduct the business properly!"
The seller hunched his waist and hurriedly squeezed out a smile. "Alright, alright..."
It was a spacious brick-tile house with six rooms inside and out. The courtyard was covered with a glass roof, the floor was laid with ceramic tiles, and the aluminum alloy doors and windows gleamed with a silvery sheen.
The interior was remarkably grand, furnished entirely in rosewood. Although not antiques, the pieces were worth at least over a hundred thousand yuan.
The old lady sat down as before on a small wooden stool in the corner and instructed her son to bring out the item.
After a brief moment, the seller came back holding a box. Opening the lid and unwrapping a layer of soft cloth, Lin Sicheng and Wang Qizhi felt their eyes light up simultaneously.
At first glance, it looked somewhat nondescript—part saucer, part bowl, and part basin, blending traits rather ambiguously. But make no mistake, this was a genuine imperial ware from the Great Ming dynasty, bearing a specific name: a *he* bowl, also known as a paired bowl.
Its purpose was singular: serving soup.
The crucial detail lay in the five-clawed dragon pattern at the bottom of the basin: the dragon's head was tilted to the side, its eyes protruded outward, and its face was unusually wide yet remarkably short, giving it a rather abstract appearance.
The lines of the dragon’s body were smooth, radiating a faint sense of laziness devoid of majesty, but exuding considerable gentleness.
The scales were neatly carved and orderly arranged, yet the carving technique revealed a certain carefree detachment, especially the five claws, which possessed a rather casual flair.
Yet these very features precisely matched the characteristics of the five-clawed dragon pattern from the Hongzhi era.
The master and disciple stared at it for a long while. Wang Qizhi silently took out a flashlight and a magnifying glass, and Lin Sicheng quietly accepted them into his hands.
Curator Du and the seller were utterly baffled, finding it somewhat incomprehensible: why was this young man inspecting the item first?
The old lady’s eyes, however, brightened slightly.
Lin Sicheng remained entirely focused.
First, he inspected the glaze: it was a delicate yellow of the utmost purity. When illuminated by the flashlight, it resembled a newly bloomed sunflower—warm, refined, elegant, and seemingly dripping with moisture.
Next, he used the magnifying glass: the glazed surface was covered with fine, dense fish-roe crackles, natural and uniform.
Then, he examined the craftsmanship: it was a typical white porcelain piece glazed in yellow, fired twice at a low temperature. The glaze was mirror-like, and the tactile sensation was akin to jade.
The clay body was a classic glutinous rice paste body—delicate and white. The foot ring was smooth and short, forming a distinctive "nest tray" shape.
Finally, he checked the reign mark, written in regular script underglaze blue: "Made in the Hongzhi Era of the Great Ming Dynasty," where the three water-drop radicals of the character "Zhi" sat lower than the character "Tai"... Everything checked out; it was undoubtedly genuine.
There was only one flaw: a tiny speck at the bottom of the basin where the color transitioned from green to blue, likely caused by a stray droplet of cobalt pigment during the glazing process.
Based on this, Lin Sicheng deduced that this dish must have been an imperial bestowal—a piece of imperial ware gifted by the emperor to a high official.
Crucially, it had never been buried underground, otherwise that trace of cobalt glaze would have developed crystalline corrosion spots.
Therefore, there was no need to question the provenance of the item. And thanks solely to that minor flaw, otherwise, judging purely by the dragon pattern at the bottom, let alone 520,000 yuan, even two million would have been questionable.
After inspecting it for about ten minutes, Lin Sicheng nodded and put down the flashlight and magnifying glass.

This meant the item was flawless, and the price was even more so.
Wang Qizhi also agreed that there were no issues; 520,000 yuan was undoubtedly a tremendous bargain.
He simply felt a lingering reluctance: having traveled such a distance and encountered such a fine artifact, buying only a single piece left him somewhat unsatisfied.
After a moment of thought, he looked at the seller and said, "Boss Zhao, 520,000 yuan, right? We can head to the bank later... Do you have anything else?"
Boss Zhao, however, remained silent and did not even nod.
Glancing sideways at the old lady, he rolled up his sleeve and silently extended his hand.
Everyone present was instantly stunned.
Du Hai was completely bewildered, having no idea what the seller meant. Wang Qizhi knew a little more and recognized this as a unique trading method exclusive to the antique trade of the old society: bargaining inside the sleeve.
To be honest, though, he only knew the name; as for what specific gestures represented what numerical codes, he was completely clueless.
Wait, what era was this?
Surely the seller didn't still suspect him of being a police officer? The problem was, there was nothing illegal about this item whatsoever!
Standing frozen and awkward, just as he began to worry that today's deal might fall through, Lin Sicheng sighed.
Believe it or not, if they failed to handle this move today, they wouldn't be able to take the bowl away at all.
Otherwise, the old lady wouldn't have bothered guarding the doorway, chasing away wave after wave of visitors.
Nor would she have dropped one piece of trade jargon after another: if you couldn't understand the language, forget about buying the bowl—you wouldn't even have made it through the door.
This was a case of selling exclusively to insiders...
Seeing Lin Sicheng similarly roll up his sleeve and extend his hand, Wang Qizhi gave a start: What? You even know how to do this?
Following that, the two men grasped hands, their sleeves pressing tightly together to completely conceal their fingers.
One could only see their sleeves constantly twitching; with every twitch, the seller's brow furrowed deeper.
In contrast, Lin Sicheng remained calm and composed, entirely at ease.
As for what gestures the two were exchanging inside their sleeves, heaven only knew.
Neither of them spoke a word, simply pressing and feeling hands in this manner. Lin Sicheng remained tranquil, while the seller grew increasingly impatient.
Finally, his eyes bulged, and he abruptly stood up, shouting, "You thief..."
Before the character "mother" could leave his lips, with a heavy *thump*, the old lady’s walking stick struck the floor.
The seller hastily squeezed out a smile, called out "Mother," and flashed another hand gesture.
The old lady smiled broadly and said, "Sell!"
The seller froze for a moment, gritted his teeth, glared at Lin Sicheng, and spat out, "Sell!"
"Very well!"
Lin Sicheng smiled and withdrew his hand.
Wang Qizhi asked with a suspicious look, "How much did you settle on?"

"Four hundred and twenty thousand yuan!"
How much?!
Wang Qizhi was astounded beyond words: this bowl was already an absolute steal, and the discount was massive.
Given that, the seller doing business without raising the price would have been normal; how on earth had Lin Sicheng managed to shave off another hundred thousand?
No wonder the seller had almost cursed him out!
Lin Sicheng remained nonchalant: Since we are playing by the rules of the trade, we play strictly by the rules.
If I didn't drive a hard bargain, how would you know I'm a true connoisseur?
With that thought, Lin Sicheng curled his fingers and tapped the tea table a few times with his knuckles.
The seller paused, feeling a mix of suspicion and astonishment. Lin Sicheng tapped twice more before the seller snapped out of his daze and turned to glance at his elderly mother.
Seeing the old lady nod, he finally confirmed what Lin Sicheng's gestures meant: *Do you have anything else? Porcelain, bronze, paper, jade—bring them all out if you have them...*
No wonder his mother had let this group in; this young lad turned out to be a connoisseur among connoisseurs!
"How old are you?"
"Twenty!"
"And your honorable surname?"
"I share the humble surname Lin."
The seller pondered for a long time and muttered, "I've never heard of you!"
Lin Sicheng remained silent: The old man occasionally went into archaeological digs, but it was official state-sponsored work, so of course you wouldn't have heard of him.
After lingering in surprise for a moment, the seller looked at Lin Sicheng and asked, "What are you looking for?"
"As long as it's genuine and of solid quality, I want everything!"
That was a bold claim.
The seller let out a dry laugh and retorted, "Can you even get through all of it?"
Lin Sicheng smiled. "Just bring them out first!"
"Fine!"
The seller nodded and stood up.
Just as he was about to step out the door, he was called back by the old lady. "Tell your wife to pour some tea!"
"Alright, I'll have her pour it!"
Based solely on those two knuckle-taps on the coffee table, they deserved the finest tea today...