“Oh my, oh my! This blue and white porcelain bowl is from the Song dynasty's official kiln!” Shen Youlin squatted at the side of the street stall, holding the bowl in his hands, his tone exaggerated but his voice suppressed extremely low.
Yu Shu squatted next to him and held a skeptical attitude towards his words. She didn't understand antiques, but she understood Shen Youlin. Those few sentences just now, even the punctuation was fake. Also, when she saw this bowl, she didn't feel any resonance as a koi fish.
The stall owner was a middle-aged man in his fifties, with thin clothes and shivering in the wind and snow. His skin was dark yellow, dark yellow. Hearing Shen Youlin's words, his muddy yellow eyes immediately lit up, "This... I bought this for 600 yuan in the countryside. Sir, if you like the look of it, just take it away for whatever you want to give."
Even Yu Shu, a layman, could see it now. This stall owner was more of a layman than her. He was so sincere that he didn't even try to pass it off as a family heirloom or make up a story about how he got it. He just directly told them the purchase price.
"Oh my, what a treasure, I've never seen such a big official kiln blue and white bowl before." Shen Youlin looked at the bowl and murmured in a low voice, "Let's do this, I'll give you this number."
Shen Youlin gestured six with his hands and shook it at him.
"Six... Six thousand?"
"Tsk, this is from the Song dynasty, an official kiln!"
The stall owner widened his eyes in surprise, "Sixty thousand."
Shen Youlin made another disgusted "tsk" sound, picked up the bowl and stood up, "Add another zero, you have to sell even if you don't want to."
After saying that, he pulled Yu Shu up and walked away, letting the bodyguards following behind pay the money, acting as if he was forcibly buying it.
After walking some distance, Shen Youlin casually threw the bowl to the bodyguard closest to him, "Take this back for Dou'e to drink water from."
"Yes, sir."
Yu Shu couldn't help but cover her face, "...Did you see that the owner is sick?"
"Hey! My wife is so smart! How did you notice?"
"His skin and eyes were both abnormally yellow, and when he opened his mouth, I saw his gums were bleeding."
It was a very typical appearance of someone with severe liver disease.
Shen Youlin gave her a loud kiss on the cheek, "My wife is so clever, nothing can get past you."
"Sixty thousand is nothing to us, gone after one meal. Giving it to him might even save his life." Shen Youlin chuckled, "Who told him to run into me today, I happen to be in a very good mood."
Yu Shu also laughed, "Dou'e's value has gone up too."
Shen Youlin also laughed, "That bowl is an imitation from the Republic of China period. The imitation is pretty good, put it at home for 180 years and it can count as an antique too."
As the temperature grew cooler, there was nothing good left to browse in the antique market. Not even any treasures left for them to pick up. After wandering for a while, they got in the car and left.
On the way back, Shen Youlin chatted idly with Yu Shu, saying, "In the antique circle, wherever any good stuff appears, collectors can smell it from afar and rush over. What's left to make it to the market, what ordinary people can access, are the leftover rubbish after rounds of picking."
Yu Shu listened attentively, nodding from time to time, "When we get back, show me your family's collection. Give me a lesson, Teacher Shen."
"No problem, the stuff I have are all treasures, but they can't compare to my grandfather's collection. The rarest treasures among the rare, like the pair of vases I showed you last time, they're at my grandfather's now..."
The car passed by a street full of general goods stores. The shops along the street were all selling New Year goods. Red lanterns and Spring Festival couplets hung on both sides of the street. Most of the shoppers came in groups of whole families, noisy and lively, very bustling.
Shen Youlin instantly forgot what he was saying, gazing out the window with eyes full of enthusiasm and yearning.
Yu Shu smiled and poked his cheek, "You want to go sell Spring Festival couplets right?"
This should also be one of Shen Youlin's unique hobbies. They met again last year at the New Year goods street in Rong City.
Shen Youlin scratched his head, a little embarrassed, "Running a stall is fun."
Plus he doesn't need to worry about not earning money, of course it's fun.
"Then let's find a place tomorrow, I'll accompany you."
Shen Youlin shook his head, "Forget it, it's cold out, I'd feel bad if you catch a cold. Also, a posh madam boss like you, wherever you sit, women won't dare come shop in case they feel inferior, men..." Men he'd have to chase away with a broom.
"Such a sweet talker." Yu Shu pinched and pulled at the corners of his mouth, "Won't you feel regret?"
"Hehe, I have a great idea!"
Yu Shu raised her eyebrows. Her mind automatically translated: Hehe, I have a terrible idea.
After Shen Youlin's "mischief", not only did he test Old Hat Zhao and temporarily cleared him of suspicion, he also provided the police with a new line of inquiry starting from the source of the bomb.
That night, the Capital police worked together with the Jin City police to successfully raid the bomb workshop, capturing the workshop owner. The two city police departments interrogated overnight, investigating buyers of explosives in the past six months, and cracked several other cases by following the vines to find the melon.
Additionally, the other two lines of investigation were still continuing. Shen Yuxiao met with an old friend that day, Jiang Xun, who he had known for many years since high school when they became friends. After university graduation Jiang Xun became his assistant, and aside from work the two were like brothers.
About a year and a half ago, due to family reasons, plus Jiang Xun liking Zhao Wenqian less and less, he chose to resign and start his own business, which has been developing quite well currently.
After three rounds of drinking, they chatted about recent developments after the reminiscing. Jiang Xun asked about the bombing case, which had already spread in their circle.
Shen Yuxiao smiled wryly and shook his head, "No clues at all for now."
"What about Zhang Yi, have you investigated her?"
"What?" Shen Yuxiao's eyes widened in shock, "Isn't she..."
Shouldn't she be in prison? Shen Yuxiao thought of a certain possibility, and a look of panic appeared on his normally composed face.
Jiang Xun's brow furrowed tightly. His next words confirmed Shen Yuxiao's guess, "Before I resigned, I kept following updates about her. She behaved very well in prison and got a reduced sentence. Calculating it, if it was quick, she should be out already."
Before resigning, Jiang Xun had handed over all important work to his new assistant, including Zhang Yi's matters. But Zhang Yi's matters involved too much, Jiang Xun didn't explain the reason to the new assistant, only repeatedly reminding him that if there was any movement with Zhang Yi, report it to Shen Yuxiao immediately. And after her release from prison, also closely monitor her.
Shen Yuxiao immediately called his current assistant. Hearing the suppressed anger in his voice, the assistant stammered through the whole story.
It turned out Zhang Yi was released over a year ago already, when Shen Yuxiao happened to be hospitalized for a stomach hemorrhage. When the assistant came to report the news, he was blocked by Zhao Wenqian.
"What kind of nonsense news is this, also coming to disturb Yuxiao's recuperation. Just a former servant of the Shen family who got caught stealing. Alright, I know already, you can go first. I'll let him know." Zhao Wenqian stopped the assistant, "Hurry and go."
If he didn't mention Jiang Xun it would've been fine. But as soon as Jiang Xun was brought up, Zhao Wenqian got even more angry, and chased the assistant away in a fit.
Of course she didn't tell Shen Yuxiao about it. And Shen Yuxiao didn't arrange for anyone to monitor Zhang Yi either.
"You don't need to come in tomorrow." Shen Yuxiao hung up the call, furious beyond measure, and smashed a wine glass with his hand.
Jiang Xun's eyes were full of mockery, "The good wife you married home, so 'simple and kind'."
It wasn't simple, just stupid. She didn't have any malicious intents, but did bad things not because she was malicious, but because she was stupid.
"Stop talking." Shen Yuxiao rubbed his brows in pain.
If it really was because of Zhao Wenqian, and indirectly harmed Youlin, he would deserve to be chopped into ten thousand pieces even if he killed himself to atone.
"Alright, I won't say anymore. The wine glasses are smashed, and you're too upset to drink anymore, you can't even sit still."
After parting ways with his friend, Shen Yuxiao did not go home, but went to Shen Chaowen and Yu Fanxing's residence instead.
Yu Fanxing was not at home. At the end of every year, she would go on a "shopping for the new year" spree to Hong Kong for some retail therapy.
Seeing him come by so late, Shen Chaowen was quite surprised. After listening to what had happened, his face also turned grave. He immediately dispatched people to investigate Zhang Yi's whereabouts overnight.
That woman was dangerous to the extreme. They absolutely could not give her any chance to make a comeback.
Exhausted to no end, Shen Yuxiao had hung up Zhao Wenqian's calls three times within a short ten minutes.
"Dad, can I stay here tonight?"
Looking at his hunched shoulders and weary expression, Shen Chaowen did not have the heart to reprimand him further. This son had always been his pride and joy, never causing him any worry from childhood to adulthood, yet was tripped up by an unrefined woman.
"Mm."
Shen Yuxiao stayed in the guest room.
This villa was Shen Chaowen and Yu Fanxing's long-term residence. Funnily enough, even the live-in housekeeper had her own room, yet the spacious villa did not have any rooms belonging to the Shen brothers.
