True antique trading was not as fun as Jian Jing had imagined.
The first person on stage, Chou Niu, brought a blue and white porcelain plate that was said to be from the Yongzheng era. The ceramic plate was placed on a long table where anyone sitting could examine it. The whole process was monitored by three cameras to prevent any accidents that would be hard to explain later.
Porcelain was a major category of antiques, easy to authenticate and retained value, so many people wanted to take a look.
Shen Hou and Wu Ma started discussing the authentication of porcelain, and all kinds of professional terminology (jargon?) kept popping up that Jian Jing did not understand at all.
She barely endured through the authentication and finally reached the bidding stage.
Unlike the murderous atmosphere of auctions in novels, the bidding process was very dull: The two sides chatted, made offers and bargained. If it worked out, a deal was made. If not, they returned to their seats and others took over.
The next person, Yin Hu, brought a violin that was supposedly made by some master. It was extremely expensive, with the opening bid over a million.
There was only one buyer, a foreign blonde woman in an evening gown with a puppy badge, who made very decisive bids and looked determined to win.
Jian Jing did not participate.
Chen Long brought a jade carving with an abstract style, said to be from the Han Dynasty.
The quality of the jade was extremely good. Under the lamp light, it had a smooth, misty glow, obviously a fine piece. Many members had their appetite whetted and eagerly started appraising.
Jian Jing felt bored and simply went out to the deck to get some air.
The yacht had sailed into the vast ocean, with no islands visible ahead and no land behind, just endless waters under the starlight from billions of years ago.
Indistinct voices could be heard from the shadows.
"...Bronze head... Million..."
"Can't be measured by money..."
Just as she wanted to get closer to listen clearly, although her footsteps were silent, her shadow on the deck swayed conspicuously as moonlight broke through the clouds.
The people immediately stopped talking and hurried away.
Jian Jing regretted missing the opportunity and was still concerned about the whereabouts of the bronze head, so she hurried back to the hall.
The public trading session was also nearing its end.
Zi Shu announced, "Next we'll start anonymous trading."
Waiters filed in carrying trays and brought new refreshments for everyone, along with a special menu that had not just the usual drinks and desserts, but also photos and numbers of three items.
Jian Jing quickly glanced through them. There were only three pieces in total:
A Tang dynasty Buddhist sutra from Dunhuang.
A bronze statue from Beijing.
A golden scepter from the Americas.
She sucked in a breath.
Although none of the three collections had photos or explicit descriptions, everything implied people's guesses.
Zi Shu said, "Considering some guests are participating in anonymous trading for the first time, I'll reiterate the rules: The seller entrusts me to handle the trade and the buyer cannot know the seller's real identity. Similarly, to protect the buyer's privacy, the seller will not know who made the purchase either."
He looked around and announced concisely, "Everyone has one night to consider. The silent auction will take place at this time tomorrow."
Hai Zhu, the big spender Jian Jing had seen earlier, spoke first: "Wait, where are the items? How do we authenticate if they are real or fake without seeing the actual pieces?"
Zi Shu made a gesture indicating patience: "The few collections are all extremely valuable and fragile, so they have been placed in three secure rooms. Item 1 is in Room 1, Item 2 is in Room 2, and Item 3 is in Room 3. Everyone may go view them before 7pm tomorrow anytime you'd like. But because the pieces are so precious, only one person may enter at a time and there are security guards at the doors 24 hours a day. Please understand."
Hai Zhu asked again: "How will the auction work tomorrow?"
"After 7pm tomorrow, I'll be waiting for everyone in the auction room," Zi Shu explained the rules in detail. "Between 7 and 10 pm, anyone can find me there and make your bids. After 10pm, I will privately inform each person of the auction results. Any other questions?"
People began exchanging looks and whispering.
Jian Jing asked Wei Yang, "Are you going to go take a look?"
"You clearly don't have much experience with antique appraisal. People who know their stuff need at least a few hours," Wei Yang took out a cigarette and waved her hand. "We won't get a turn tonight. Let's talk again tomorrow."
Jian Jing had wanted to take a look out of curiosity, but she felt Wei Yang made sense and decided to go back to her cabin first to rest.
Before falling asleep, Ying Jie Si sent an amused emoji and asked: [How's it going?]
Jian Jing: [Annoying]
Him: [???]
Her: [Sleeping]
The guest rooms were all ocean view cabins, but even with a window looking out at the sea, the space inside was still not very big, somewhat stuffy. Also, winds had picked up at night, and in the second half, the yacht rocked with the waves, making people uncomfortable.
Jian Jing didn't even know if she fell asleep or got dizzy and passed out.
After waking up the next day, she felt rather haggard.
But looking in the mirror...she was still a radiant young girl.
Alright then.
She got up and went to eat breakfast, running into many panda-eyed guests at the restaurant. Whereas yesterday afternoon everyone had been curious with some casual excitement mixed in, today it was restless yet thrilled solemnity.
The elderly man known as Shen Hou was also there, slowly drinking Iron Buddha tea. Next to him sat a very old woman with white hair who was drinking English-style tea and snacks, a baby chick badge pinned to her chest.
Jian Jing went over with her tray and asked, "Have you seen everything already?"
Shen Hou hmm-ed and had a complex expression: "It doesn't look fake."
"Even you, who specializes in Qing dynasty pieces, says so. I'd say there's an 80-90% chance they're real. Besides, the dating done by the equipment also showed no issues," the old woman amiably nodded at Jian Jing. "Have a seat, you're also interested in this."
Jian Jing asked, "I'm very curious, will anyone buy them?"
"We were just discussing this," the old woman slowly said. "If the price isn't too high, we'll pool some money together and buy it. Although I've been an immigrant for decades, I still have this much sense of propriety."
But Shen Hou was very stubborn: "No, they were our things to begin with. After spending this money, how could we buy back the remaining pieces?"
The old woman retorted, "Then what do you plan to do? Make an exorbitant bid to get them withdrawn from the auction?"
Shen Hou said, "I want to go talk to Zi Shu and find out who the seller is."
"Anonymity means they don't want people to know who they are," the old woman was unconvinced. "Zi Shu won't tell you. These are the rules. How else could future trades continue?"
Shen Hou: "We can still try and I'll also ask around about everyone else's background. Do you know anything?"
The old woman said, "Xu Gou is French, quite a famous musician, here for the violin. That was the foreign blonde lady yesterday in the evening gown."
Jian Jing thought, yes, that wealthy madam from last night.
The old woman went on, "Although Chou Niu, Yin Hu, Chen Long, and Si She speak fluent Chinese, they may not all be Chinese. They could be Japanese, Korean, or overseas Chinese from Southeast Asia."
Shen Hou said, "Either Japanese and Korean or Southeast Asian Chinese diaspora."
"I'm not so clear on that. Asians don't have such obvious differences in appearance," said the old woman. "There is one young man though with very distinctly mixed features."
Shen Hou nodded firmly and said decisively, "No matter what, I must stop this trade."
The old woman comforted, "There will always be a way. Alright, I should go rest. Staying up half the night has made my old bones all creaky."
Jian Jing appropriately excused herself so she could truly start breakfast.
There was muesli, bacon, fried eggs, sandwiches, fried rice, donuts, and some fruit.
The taste was neither amazing nor awful, befitting the daily standards of a 5-star breakfast.
After that was of course lining up to see the three anonymous collections.
No one was at Item 3, the golden scepter, so she was able to admire it peacefully.
The scepter was not entirely made of gold. The lower part was possibly gold-plated, with only the handle and top being gold, inlaid with ancient opals in intricate and exquisite designs, full of an ancient and mystical air.
Jian Jing couldn't help but hold her breath. Perhaps in terms of craftsmanship and materials, Item 3 was the most precious. Across the long flow of time, gold never faded and still radiated a hazy golden glow, extremely captivating.
But no matter how nice the scepter was, Jian Jing was only looking.
She did not know its history and had no interest in its origins. Similarly, she did not care who it would eventually end up with either.
There was someone in Room 1, so she waited a while before encountering the other person face-to-face.
It was Yin Hu.
He was a tall, thin man who had nothing to do with the burly old tiger. Wearing a black suit, he nodded politely to Jian Jing and left without saying a word.
The Buddhist scriptures were in the safe room.
The security guard at the door required her to go through a security check to make sure she was not carrying anything destructive before allowing her to enter.
The room was not big with surveillance cameras installed in all four corners.
She walked over and examined the Buddhist scriptures carefully.
Under the direct strong light, she could clearly see the traces of paper repairs. The pages were so brittle that they seemed they would crumble at a touch. There was a note on the glass display case stating that this collection item was already very fragile and had to be kept in a constant temperature and humidity closed environment, with no permission for direct handling.
Jian Jing could not discern its authenticity or quality, and soon lost interest.
She wanted to take a look at Collection Item #2.
But the security guard said someone was already inside.
She waited for nearly half an hour, but the person inside still did not come out.
She had no choice but to look elsewhere.
That afternoon, she ran into Shen Hou and Chou Niu chatting in the tea room, voices lowered so she could not make out what they were saying. She also ran into Wu Ma networking with foreign ladies and Wei Yang for business.
At 4 o'clock, Safe Room #2 was finally vacant.
She finally saw the bronze spout head sculpture.
To be honest, as an architectural component, its craftsmanship and form could not be called extraordinarily beautiful or stunning. It was just an ordinary waterspout, exceptionally made from very good material and stamped with a rustic, historic charm.
But no one could casually view it as just an ordinary bronze statue.
Jian Jing asked the system, "Can this be authenticated for real or fake?"
System: [Please draw a card, host]
She spent 5 points symbolically to draw once.
The system cooperatively gave her an item card.
[Name: Item Card - Authentication (1/1)]
[Content Description: Can authenticate the era, composition and craft of an item, limited to use within this instance dungeon, automatically destroyed when map is exited.]
[Note: Consumable, 100% real]
Jian Jing used this item card. Then, she went silent.
There were cameras in all four corners, the glass was blast-proof, and there were anti-theft mechanisms. Not to mention her empty hands and lack of preparation, even Kidd would have to spend some effort.
Vexing.
She left with a dark expression on her face.
Just before 7 o’clock, people gradually gathered in the hall. Here it is necessary to describe the environment in detail, as it is vital to subsequent events.
First, the hall was located on the fourth floor, decorated today in the style of a cold buffet dinner.
The long table was filled with seafood: emperor crab, oysters, yellow croaker, bluefin tuna, Australian lobster...the variety of dishes was extremely abundant. There were also seafood rice, abalone porridge, sushi and other staples; tiramisu, macaron, donuts and other desserts.
The wine selection was a must, with red wine, champagne, whiskey; Maotai, sake, fully considering the different tastes of the guests.
The hall had two entrances and exits, one leading to the corridor, the other leading to a long, narrow passageway. Following this path led to a separate waiting room.
The waiting room had three exits leading to Safe Rooms #1, #2, and #3. There, everyone could confirm the authenticity of the collections again and consider whether to bid.
After entering the safe room and exiting from another passage, they would arrive at the auction room.
Zi Shu received everyone's bids there.
Bidding ended at 10 pm.
At the same time, the collection items in the safe rooms would be stored in a large security vault to avoid any issues occurring with the collections.
At 10:30, he would announce the results.
Zi Shu announced to everyone, "This time, the arrangements provide maximum privacy protection for buyers. No one knows which item you have purchased or your bid amount. Everyone can rest completely assured."
Such meticulous, cautious arrangements should have received praise from the guests.
However, most people remained expressionless. Not numb indifference, but more like they were desperately suppressing psychological activity, for fear of revealing something to others.
Jian Jing thought, very good, it seemed tonight’s transactions were destined to not go smoothly.
