Chapter Four: One Piece at a Time from the Forbidden City

Chen Churan suddenly grew nervous.

There was no denying it—Cheng Ziqiu’s first live stream with a guest connection exceeded her expectations by a wide margin.

But live streaming was tricky. The effect of one broadcast was one thing; after all, their channel focused on appraisal of antiques.

Apart from that eccentric who had just successfully registered with Uncle Hat, most of the viewers connecting live were ordinary people.

One successful guest appearance didn’t prove much.

But did this young man, who casually claimed to be a tomb raider and relic hunter, really know how to appraise antiques?

Just thinking about Cheng Ziqiu’s brief self-introduction made Chen Churan’s heart flutter nervously.

Meanwhile, the big brother who had joined the live connection was already on camera.

“Hello, Teacher Cheng. I just watched your stream—it was really eye-opening. Actually, I want to ask you, what did you do before? But I guess you wouldn’t answer, so I won’t embarrass myself.”

“Like that big-faced cat earlier, I had arranged with Teacher Han to have him appraise something for me. When I saw he wasn’t here today, I was ready to give up.”

“But Teacher Cheng, you’re amazing. I wonder how your appraisal skills are—could you take a look for me?”

“Come on, let me see what this is about.”

Hearing that, Cheng Ziqiu smiled and agreed immediately.

It wasn’t that he was boasting; compared to professional tomb raiders, his appraisal skills were just adequate.

But just because you haven’t eaten pork doesn’t mean you’ve never seen a pig walk.

Whether he was good or not depended on who he was compared with.

At least all those so-called expert professors had to call him the grandmaster.

Without wasting words, the big brother turned on his camera, revealing a wooden bed frame. When he aimed the camera at the item he wanted appraised, the viewers in the chat gasped in surprise.

“Whoa, my 24K ultra-sensitive eyes have been blinded. What is this? Such a huge bronze artifact?”

“The streamer is impressive, but the big brother is even more so. This is the real deal.”

“Everyone, if this is genuine, you’d better use plates to eat peanuts, not bowls.”

Cheng Ziqiu hadn’t expected the first appraisal request to be such a big item.

Bronze artifacts were different from other antiques—each one was priceless.

In recent years, with the reform of the national collection system, not only large bronzes but even items from before the Yuan dynasty were prohibited from being traded.

Anyone involved would face severe punishment.

In his previous life, Cheng Ziqiu had only seen about a thousand or eight hundred bronze artifacts.

And this was only the second time he had seen such a huge tripod like the one the big brother brought. The first was during a dig in Xianyang, where he encountered a similar bronze furnace. Back then, fearing trouble, he didn’t touch it and let it go. Later, he heard a colleague sneaked off with it.

Now?

Now that guy would be about eight years old.

“Teacher Cheng, don’t rush. Look carefully.”

“There are rules in our live streaming industry: when you see a bronze artifact like this, you must scrutinize it carefully. These are national treasures. If genuine, we need to report it to the authorities.”

The director’s reminder came through the earphones. Cheng Ziqiu nodded and began to examine it closely.

“Hmm, lift it up a bit. Can’t carry it? That’s okay. Bring the camera closer.”

“Do you have water at home? Just clean water. Use a toothbrush to scrub it. I wiped it down. Big brother, haven’t you eaten tonight or are you embroidering? This is bronze, not paper. Even if you damage it, it won’t break. That’s how archaeologists usually clean them.”

“Let me see the base?”

“All right, that’s enough.”

Cheng Ziqiu directed the big brother, who was panting from the effort, to move the camera here and there. After detailed inspection, Cheng Ziqiu fell into deep thought.

Seeing Cheng Ziqiu suddenly fall silent, both the director and Chen Churan grew anxious.

Could it be that this thing was genuine?

This was no small matter.

Every bronze artifact was a national treasure and must be handled with care.

The big brother in the live room was anxious too. Seeing Cheng Ziqiu hesitate, he gritted his teeth and sent two carnival gifts.

“Teacher Cheng, I understand the rules. Here’s a gift for you.”

“But you have to look carefully. Many experts have examined this item. There’s one exactly like it in the Forbidden City. Don’t mess this up.”

The big brother sounded a bit anxious.

Seeing the familiar gift animation, Cheng Ziqiu finally smiled and said:

“Don’t worry, big brother. We do our duty faithfully and never lie.”

“This bronze ding (tripod) has a fine shape, with a tall and broad base. The patterns on top match the bronze craftsmanship of the Shang dynasty. Especially this shape, its value is incalculable—a national treasure.”

“But unfortunately, this is a typical piece artificially aged with strong acid.”

Cheng Ziqiu’s praise in the first half made the big brother, who was still off-camera, undoubtedly delighted. But hearing the latter half, the big brother was stunned.

“What did you say?”

“I said it’s new. That’s absolutely indisputable.”

Cheng Ziqiu stated firmly.

“You’re talking nonsense!”

The big brother in the live room immediately protested, displeased.