777米奇影

With the resplendent rays of the sun shining on it, the container looked especially exquisite and beautiful.

The blue bronze incense burner was not particularly big, with dimensions at about 12 centimeters tall and 12 centimeters wide.

However, there was an inscription on the top of the furnace, and there was a beast ear on each side.

The cloisonné enamel decoration in the middle part of the censer was divided into two parts. The upper part was a circle of white five-petal flowers which were connected front and back, interspersed with branches and leaves in the middle. The lower part was decorated with intertwined blue branches and leaves on a black background, with six different colored six-petal flowers connected in a circle. There is an inscription on the bottom of the censer that reads “Made in the 30th year of the Qianlong reign.”

Now, as for why it was called a Jingtai Blue censer…

Jingtai referred to the year of the Ming dynasty emperor.

It was just that the particular type of crafting technique used to create the censer flourished during the Jingtai period.

The Jingtai part merely meant that it was a creation from the Jingtai era of the Ming dynasty.

Of course, the Blue part of its name referred to the cloisonné technique that was used in the censer’s creation.

The cloisonné technique employs soft flat copper wires to create patterns on a copper-based mold, which are then welded into the mold before being filled with patterns via enamel before glazing the whole piece in a kiln at high temperatures, allowing the enamel to melt and fuse to the metal surface. Since the enamel used during the Jingtai period was mostly blue in color, and due to its popularity in that particular era, all pieces made during that time were dubbed as “Jingtai Blue” items.

“The quality of this censer is pretty good! It’s a pity that it lost its lid; otherwise, I believe this censer would have been worth hundreds of millions!”

Wang Yousheng said with great regret.

There was nothing that could be done, as such was the cruelty of the world of antiques.

At times, incomplete antiques might fail to even reach 10% of their original price.

Luo Feng should be glad that the censer had still retained most of its value.

“F*ck! It’ll be worth hundreds of millions with a lid?”

“Dammit!”

“Host, look extra carefully within the chest, perhaps its lid is hidden somewhere in there!”

“I’m downright stupefied, just because it lost its lid, its value plummeted that much?”

“What’s there to say? Have you seen the drama series ‘The Ghouls’ based on the novel series ‘Ghost Blows Out the Light: Mu Ye Gui Shi’? Remember the scene where a villager was selling Ming Dynasty embroidered shoes? The price for a single shoe was already several thousand yuan, but finding a matching pair could easily cost tens of thousands!”

“That’s right. Intact antiques and damaged ones have completely different price ranges!”

“Moreover, in the case of cloisonné copper furnaces, the lid is itself the most skillfully crafted part!”

“Yes, to create hollows and engravings in that area requires very skilled craftsmanship!”

Luo Feng thoroughly scrutinized the chest’s contents in search of the lid. Alas, it was to no vail.

Had its lid been present, the system would likely already have informed him.

“Master Wang, how much is this incense burner worth without its lid then?”

An Peng asked carefully.

Has Old Luo made a fortune again this time?

“The price that was offered earlier is more or less correct. It should be worth around 20 million!”

“What a pity! What a pity!”

“What if we just make a lid of our own? Who’s to say that its price won’t shoot up by another million yuan or so!”

“But this doesn’t make much sense! It’ll definitely feel weird using a fake lid with a real antique!”

Wang Yousheng shook his head in pity.

“Mr. Luo, how about this, then? Hand over the incense burner to me, and I’ll put it up for auction in my store. I’m sure I’ll be able to get you a satisfactory price!”

Ji Shunjin was very agitated.

He had to get the auction rights to the cloisonné censer.

That, or purchase the item from Luo Feng.

The more expensive an item was, the more it could be sold at an auction.

“Mr. Luo, if you put this item up for auction in our Rare Treasure Pavilion, I promise that we won’t charge you a single cent for the processing fee. We’ll even give you a free artifact so long as its value is below a million yuan!

Dammit.

Not only is Qin Rubing offering her services for free, she’s even paying him to secure the auction rights for the censer!

But now that I think about it, this item is a legitimate cloisonné enamel artifact…

Even though it is considered incomplete, it would undoubtedly still attract plenty of wealthy customers.

If such an item were to be marketed in a grand auction, any other relics that appear in the auction would also receive a major boost in bidding offers…

An item such as the censer would usually be the main attractions of an auction, and relics such as silver coins were usually just minor sideshows.

After all, who would be able to resist the allure of the vividly crafted artwork?

“Oh, you’ll let me take an antique worth less than a million yuan?”

Luo Feng mentally chuckled at those words.

I wonder, Miss Qin, are you worth less than a million? Cause if so, I’d gladly take you away.

Hahaha.

Anyway, back to the main topic, despite the takeaway gift of a million yuan, Luo Feng was still not tempted.

“In that case! Mr. Luo, we, Natural Home, wish to purchase this censer for 22 million!”

“After all, the highest price this censer will sell in an auction would likely be 23 million yuan!”

...

“This is already considered to be a razor-thin profit margin, don’t you think?”

“Plus, we’re willing to pay you fully in cash!”

Ji Shunjin noticed that Luo Feng was unmoved by Qin Rubing’s offer, and thus, he decided to strike at the opportunity.

He would offer Luo Feng 22 million in cash.

There was no reason for Luo Feng to decline his offer.

“Damn you!”

Qin Rubing was unable to make a counter-offer.

She had just spent 10 million to buy a silver coin.

If she were to offer another 20 million now…

She would likely be lambasted by her family.

It was not that she was lacking money, but it would be highly cumbersome, as there were many restrictions imposed on her by her family.

...

“22 million?”

Luo Feng did not accept the offer.

He silently took it in and made a mental calculation of his earnings from the chest thus far.

All in all, I seem to have made 65 million from this, right?

I’ve already exceeded the system’s estimate of 60 million.

I’ve caught a decent haul this time around.

“Mister! How about this, then, in the future, you’ll be able to auction items in Rare Treasure Pavilion for free for the rest of your life!”

“And if an item manages to exceed 20 million yuan in the auction, we’ll allow you to pick out an antique worth less than a million yuan of your choosing!”

Sure, I might not have cash readily available on me, and my family might have imposed several restrictions on me, all I have to do is make an offer that isn’t related to money!