Chapter 151 A Mere Superficial Understanding

Zhong Huayan looked at the dazzling array of plates displayed in front of the video screen. With just a brief glance, she easily and casually made her judgments.

"Auntie, all of these plates are from the Kangxi period of the Qing dynasty. The green and red patterned one is called a green-ground underglaze-blue and enamelled dragon-cloud bowl, and the period marked on it should be the Kangxi reign of the Qing dynasty. These are all fine pieces.

The fluorescent green plate next to it is known as a green-ground purple-enamelled dragon plate. The other sets are all valued at around four hundred thousand each: the *doucai* dragon and phoenix plate, and the underglaze-blue dragon plate with iron-red waves. The most expensive one here is the yellow-and-black piece—a large ink-ground *sancai* floral and dragon plate with a regular script mark. Its value exceeds one million."

Dragonfly, who was sitting beside her, was slightly startled because her assessment was remarkably fast.

Unless one grew up handling such items from childhood, it would be impossible to be so effortlessly proficient. He himself would have needed an extra step to determine the era and value. Yet, she was entirely accurate, down to the exact monetary valuations.

"That's right, what Li Yanyan said is completely correct. If all these pieces were sent to an auction house, they would likely fetch around three million in hand. But if they are consigned to my auction house for auction right after today's livestream, with a thirty percent discount, the payout in hand would be three million two hundred thousand."

By now, the entire screen was densely covered by a dazzling flurry of virtual gifts and effects.

The comment section was scrambling even harder to request video connections.

The second connecting guest was a young man enjoying tea at a teahouse. He aimed his livestream camera at the teapot and teacups he was using.

The teapot and teacups featured white bodies with ink-blue handles, delicately painted with lotus-petal motifs that appeared full and elegant. As the tea poured, flowing past the lotus-like mist, the true quality revealed itself amidst the swirling vapors of the tea table.

"Could you pick up the bottom of this teapot and let me take a look?"

Upon seeing this, Zhong Huayan determined the provenance and value of the tea set.

"The maker's mark at the bottom is Jiang Rong. Looking at the shape and the carved seal, everything matches. This tea set is valued at around four hundred thousand."

"Thank you. I bought this piece from a friend, and I paid over a million for it. As long as it's not fake, the friendship of our childhood sweethearts can carry on."

Zhong Huayan gave a faint smile. At most, this trinket was worth four hundred thousand, absolute top dollar.

Turning her head, Zhong Huayan said to the intensely focused Dragonfly, "A bronze sword once appeared in this very livestream room. It was one used by nobles and generals, complete with inscriptions. The person who had it thought it was just some toy and played with it for a year before turning on a livestream and finding out its true value."

"Awesome, seriously? Is that true?"

"There was also silver sunken at the bottom of the river—Zhang Xianzhong's cargo. In the end, it was all handed over to the state."

Dragonfly was utterly shocked. He also hosted livestreams, but he always prepared items specifically meant for auction. Excavated pieces like these were truly rare in his own stream. Knowing that he was affiliated with the Cultural Relics Bureau as well as an auction house, people simply did not dare to bring such items onto his livestream.

The comments below scrolled past rapidly in response:
[Oh, they appear all the time, and quite frequently! Our stream has Uncle Police lurking every single day!]
[Plainclothes officers are here every day. See that Top 1 contributor? That's Uncle Police right there.]
[I watched the livestream with that sword the other day, too. The person handed it over voluntarily in the end; otherwise, if they had been a step later, the police would have come knocking.]

Noticing a rather interesting comment among the rest, Dragonfly asked her with some intrigue.

"Your fans are saying that not only can you appraise antiques, but you can also sing Kunqu opera and dance classical Chinese dance?"

"I know a smattering of the basics."

"Really? They say you are professional when it comes to Kunqu opera and classical dance."

"I studied them in the past, but I consider my skill level to be quite ordinary."

Dragonfly felt that the young woman before him was being far too modest. He had also watched that viral video that had taken the entire internet by storm, and it was certainly not just some ordinary level of skill.

He began to understand why the world-renowned Boss Fu had fallen so deeply in love with this young college student.

The strong are inevitably drawn to the strong.

With a gentle tap on the screen, Zhong Huayan welcomed the third antique enthusiast.

"Everyone, please hold off on sending gifts for a moment; I can barely see the screen anymore."

At last, the screen quieted down for a moment, and the live viewer count was rising vertically, having already broken the fifty-thousand mark—no, surpassing five hundred thousand!

In a dimly lit space, an elderly man aimed his screen at a circular mirror resting on a table.

The mirror came in two styles: a silver one with carvings, and a silver one with patterns. Several pieces clearly showed traces of greenish patina.

As soon as these items appeared, both the comment section and Brother Dragonfly grew somewhat excited. Isn't this precisely the characteristic patina color of items dug straight out of the earth?

"Let me show you all something first. I've already donated quite a few cultural relics in the past."

The old man produced a booklet directly—a record issued by the state, which clearly documented that he had contributed several items over the course of a few years. However, the estimated value of those items was far lower than the mirror currently shown in the video.

Many people used this specific tactic as a precaution against the police. Without exception, it was out of fear of being caught by authorities. By pulling out the booklet, they could use the excuse of an impending donation to avoid going to the mountains to serve prison time, sparing themselves a bullet.

"Young lady, I've been watching your livestream for a long time. The first two callers were Brother Dragonfly's fans. I am your fan. These items are definitely heavyweight pieces, but I can't determine their authenticity yet, and I want an accurate verdict. When it comes to this, I only trust you."

Zhong Huayan attentively examined each of the mirrors.

"Grandpa, trust me, you won't go wrong. Every single one of these mirrors is worth over a million. Looking at them all together, they are genuine. I previously went out of my way to acquire a few from abroad and donated them to the state. These items don't even belong to the same era. The Spring and Autumn period tiger-patterned mirror and the Warring States period pierced-carvings dragon-patterned composite mirror—these two mirrors on the far left must be handed over.

That sea-beast common mirror is from the Tang dynasty, valued at over two million. The patterned one is a Tang dynasty gold-and-silver inlaid mother-of-pearl mirror decorated with *baoxiang* flowers, valued at four million. And the one with six dragons is a Tang dynasty coiled-dragon-and-auspicious-beast mirror box, valued at two million. I suggest you either hand them all over, or surrender the first two and bring the latter two to Brother Dragonfly's auction house. I'll buy them myself and then donate them to the state."

The comment section erupted. Viewers rushed to follow the streamer, praising her high-minded righteousness.

"Grandpa, where did you even get so many mirrors from different dynasties? Even if they were handed down by your ancestors, that wouldn't be normal..."

The old man panicked slightly, but chuckled heartily as he picked up the most valuable mirror. "These Tang dynasty ones were all passed down from my ancestors; my family has a genealogy record. The others were gifts from friends. I'm a patriotic person, and I intended to donate them all anyway. Otherwise, how would I dare to take them out and show them to hundreds of thousands of people? I'm not a fool."

The corners of Zhong Huayan's lips curved upward slightly. "Grandpa, you certainly aren't a fool."

She and Dragonfly livestreamed for about three hours. This thoroughly satisfying broadcast featured virtually no counterfeit items; every single piece was genuine, through and through.

Most of the items had already been consigned to Brother Dragonfly's auction house in Shanghai, ready to go under the hammer in roughly a week. Because of this, she gained a million followers in one stroke, earning nearly several hundred thousand yuan from a single broadcast. She firmly secured her spot among the top three traffic-generating livestream rooms on the platform.