The old granny seemed a bit hesitant, but thinking of her severely ill son, she gritted her teeth, and tremblingly took out the wooden box from her bosom and handed it to Huo Sining.
Following the rules of the antiques industry, Huo Sining did not take the box directly but indicated for the old granny to open it.
It seemed the old granny had hit many walls at various antique shops, and had lost her temper by now. So when Huo Sining asked her to open the box, she complied.
What was inside the box was indeed unexpected for Huo Sining.
The box contained a plate, which was not just any ordinary item, but a Blue and White Porcelain with Red Glaze.
Blue and White Porcelain with Red Glaze refers to an item where both cobalt blue and copper red materials are used to create colorful illustrations on the same piece. After being fired, both the underglaze blue and glazed red colors are vividly displayed on the same item.
Since the copper red material is extremely sensitive to kiln temperatures, and the firing atmosphere required by the cobalt blue and the copper red is different, it is not easy to successfully decorate them both vividly on the same item in one firing. This requires very high levels of craftsmanship and technical skill.
Because of this, Blue and White Porcelain with Red Glaze has always been considered one of the most precious varieties of ancient Chinese ceramics.
The porcelain plate in the old granny’s hand was one of the most common types of Blue and White Porcelain with Red Glaze, known as a Blue-and-white Porcelain Carp Plate with Underglaze Red. The blue glazing depicted seaweed, while the red glaze illustrated carp patterns. The colors were bright and quite magnificent.
However, combining what the granny said and the "Made in the Yongzheng era of the Great Qing" inscription at the bottom of the plate, Huo Sining felt deceived.
Obviously, Shen Wansan was a merchant from the late Yuan to early Ming Dynasty. If this plate was truly from the Shen Family’s mansion as the old granny claimed, how could it bear an inscription from the Yongzheng period? Wasn’t it clear deception?
With just one look, Huo Sining decided that the plate was unreliable. However, considering the possibility of missing out on anything significant, she decided to use her Heavenly Eye to check one more time.
After directing the granny to place the box on the ground, Huo Sining picked up the plate from the ground, and a look of disappointment came over her face.
As she expected, there was no trace of Purple Spiritual Qi on the plate, proving it was a modern piece and not an artifact from Shen Wansan.
At this point, Huo Sining lost interest immediately and was about to return the box to the old granny. But as she picked it up, she heard something rolling inside the bottom of the box. She was taken aback and instinctively asked, "Does this box have a hidden compartment?"
The old granny raised her head and looked at Huo Sining in surprise. "Yes, how did you know?"
As she spoke, she opened the upper layer of the box that held the porcelain, revealing another hidden layer underneath.
Indeed, there was still another item hidden inside this compartment.
It was a red cylindrical object, about twenty centimeters in length, width, and height. The rolling sound from earlier must have been this item moving.
Huo Sining found it curious and couldn’t help but pick it up for a closer look.
To her surprise, as soon as she picked it up, she saw dense Purple Spiritual Qi emerging from the cylinder.
Suppressing her excitement, she pulled her hand back and began chatting with the old granny. "Granny, why didn’t you take out this item earlier? Are you not planning to sell it?"
The old granny laughed awkwardly. "No, it’s not that. This item is so ugly that it doesn’t look valuable at all. I was planning to sell the porcelain plate and throw in the cylinder as a freebie. I didn’t intend to sell it for money."
Hearing that the granny called the item ugly, Huo Sining couldn’t help but twitch her mouth.
In the antiques trade, the value of an item isn’t determined purely by its appearance. If that were the case, then wouldn’t bronze artifacts and ceramic jars be worthless?
Huo Sining had a certain judgment about the cylinder. When she picked it up earlier, she identified that it was an authentic carved red lacquerware piece.
Lacquerware, as the name implies, refers to items made by applying lacquer on the surface of various materials.
Lacquer has special properties like moisture resistance, high temperature resistance, and corrosion resistance. It can also be prepared in different colors and has a long history of use.
There are many types of lacquerware, including wooden, metal, and fabric-based items.
Carved red lacquerware is created by applying dozens or even hundreds of layers of red lacquer on the base material and then carving it.
The cylinder had some decorations carved in bas-relief, which appeared to be festive motifs like bats and longevity peaches, making it not entirely unattractive.
However, despite her knowledge, Huo Sining couldn’t quite understand the purpose of the cylinder.
Curious, she asked, "Granny, is this item together with the plate?"
The old granny nodded. "When my father-in-law passed away, he handed this box to us. Both the plate and the cylinder were inside it."
Huo Sining nodded and couldn’t help but look at the cylinder again. She still couldn’t figure out its special purpose at the moment.
But since the cylinder had Purple Spiritual Qi, it was at least an antique item. Huo Sining became quite interested in it and smiled as she asked, "Granny, I’m not sure about the plate, but I do cylinder. Are you willing to sell it?"
The old granny gave Huo Sining a peculiar look, probably puzzled why she didn’t want the beautiful and delicate plate but was interested in the unattractive red cylinder.
However, after a brief moment of bewilderment, she quickly nodded. "Sure, young lady. How much can you offer?"
Eager to raise money for her grandson’s medical expenses, the old granny saw the cylinder as nearly worthless. Now that someone wanted to buy it, she was naturally overjoyed and agreed at once.
Huo Sining realized that the old granny was an outsider to the antique trade. If she were knowledgeable, she would have quoted her price, and buyers would haggle. A knowledgeable seller wouldn’t give a specific figure but rather use hand gestures, with the buyer guessing. Low guesses would be rejected, and high guesses would be at the buyer’s disadvantage.
The old granny’s naivety amused Huo Sining. She didn’t haggle but extended five fingers and said, "This cylinder is quite large and seems solid. However, the craftsmanship of carved red lacquerware also matters, and your item isn’t particularly exquisite. So I can only offer fifty thousand. How does that sound?"
"What? How much did you say?"
Initially, the old granny thought Huo Sining’s five fingers meant she was offering five hundred yuan, making her somewhat disappointed. Yet she thought that selling it was better than giving it away. When Huo Sining mentioned fifty thousand, her eyes widened, thinking she had misheard.