Chapter 69: Treasure Hunt
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
“Chao, join us for a drink.” Zhou Chao was engrossed in the delectable feast of the evening event. It was already 9 o’clock, and he was only now beginning to eat, his stomach rumbling with hunger.
Zhou Chao looked up and saw Si Cong holding two cocktails. He took a scarlet Bloody Mary from him and took a small sip, finding it quite satisfying.
“Where did Qin Fen and the others go?” Zhou Chao looked around but didn’t spot their figures.
“Brother Yang took them to do some manual labor. Luckily, I swiftly evaded their fate just now; otherwise, 1 would have been in the same situation. Hahaha,” Si Cong chuckled with a sense of accomplishment.
“Oh, really?” Si Cong’s triumphant laughter was cut off as if someone had pressed the pause button. Following that, the laughter of Qin Fen and his friends echoed.
“Brother Yang, have you finished your tasks? Join us and take a seat. Allow me to fetch you some delectable treats,” Si Cong attempted to escape subtly, but as the saying goes, dreams are pleasant while reality can be harsh.
“No need, just stay here obediently,” Xiao Yang said and then shifted his gaze to Zhou Chao.
“Brother Yang,” Zhou Chao, seeing Xiao Yang’s gaze on him, quickly stood up and called out.
“What’s your phone number, kid?” Zhou Chao quickly gave out his phone number, and within two seconds, his phone rang.
“This is my number. If you have any trouble in Jingdu that you can’t handle, give me a call,” Xiao Yang said and then left, leaving behind a group of puzzled people looking at each other.
“What… is going on?” After a while, Qin Fen finally spoke up.
“I’m clueless too,” Si Cong confessed, equally puzzled. He couldn’t fathom why Brother Yang wanted Zhou Chao’s phone number and made those remarks. After all, the Xiao family in Jingdu held significant stature.
Qin Fen and Si Cong exchanged glances with Zhou Chao, who was equally uncertain about how to respond. The inquiries he had pushed aside earlier now came rushing back. Perhaps, there was a connection to his Fourth Brother, Xiao Feng, but he surely wouldn’t reveal that. He resolved to interrogate him in-depth during his next visit to Yucheng.
“Alright, don’t dwell on these things. It’s no use thinking too much. We’ll find out in the future. Let’s just have a drink.” Qin Fen thought for a while but couldn’t figure it out, so he decided to stop pondering. They would inevitably find out in the future.
The group enjoyed their drinks and chatted, occasionally being approached by some celebrities to toast and strike up conversations. Si Cong handled them all by himself.
“Chao, what about the bracelet you auctioned?” Si Cong looked at Zhou Chao, who was empty-handed, and suddenly asked.
“1 left it in the car.” Si Cong heard that and didn’t say anything more.
Feeling a bit restless from sitting too long, Zhou Chao stood up to stretch.
“Hey, your grip is quite impressive,” Zhou Chao sensed a firm grasp and instinctively turned to check. To his surprise, he had unintentionally laid hold of someone’s stomach.
Looking up, Zhou Chao chuckled, “Apologies, Mr. Qian. I was just stretching, didn’t realize 1 had a hold of you.” As it turned out, the person he had accidentally grabbed was none other than Yu Qian, the stand-up comedy king who was known for his fondness for smoking, drinking, and unique hairstyles.
“No worries, buddy. Be more careful next time; if it had been a beautiful woman, you would’ve hit the jackpot.” With that, Qian turned and walked away.
Zhou Chao observed as Yu Qian departed, then shifted his attention back to his seat. By now, the group had abandoned all formality and erupted in laughter.
“It’s a good thing it was a guy. If it had been a girl, you might have gone viral tomorrow,” Si Cong teased from the side.
“Alright, enough of that, talk about something else.”
“Hahaha.” Qin Fen and his friends laughed mockingly.
“When is this event going to end? I want to go home and sleep.” Zhou Chao finished his drink and asked the group.
“Anytime is fine. How about we head back?” Hearing the question again, Qin Fen was also ready to leave. After all, they all didn’t want to stay any longer at such an occasion.
“Then let’s go.” Seeing that both of them wanted to leave, Si Cong nodded in agreement.
The group left the hotel and saw that there were still many reporters outside who hadn’t left. They quickly departed from the hotel. By the roadside, they found a few reliable-looking designated drivers and all headed to Zhou Chao’s place.
Back in the courtyard, everyone went to their respective rooms to take showers. When Zhou Chao came out of his room, he saw Qin Fen already lying on the sofa.
Chao, do you want to go to Panjiayuan with me tomorrow?”
“Panjiayuan? You’re still interested in going treasure hunting?” Zhou Chao ran his hand through his damp hair and inquired, puzzled.
“I’ve always been curious. I want to go take a look. If I find something I like, I’ll buy it and give it a try.”
Zhou Chao thought for a moment. There’s no rush to go to Yucheng, delaying for a day wouldn’t matter. He nodded in agreement.
The night passed without any significant conversation.
Panjiayuan was situated to the southwest of Panjiayuan Bridge on the south section of the Third Ring Road in Jingdu. It covered an area of 48,500 square meters. The market was divided into six sections: the stall area, antique building area, classical furniture area, modern collectibles area, stone carving area, and dining service area.
Zhou Chao and Qin Fen were currently in the stall area, walking along and finding themselves intrigued by the various curiosities on the roadside stalls.
Bronze wares, jade artifacts, porcelain pieces from various dynasties, aged scrolls, old Buddhist statues, and coins from different eras—whether from the Shang and Zhou dynasties or more recent times, everything was available.
There were also uniquely shaped stones, carefully wrapped stamp collections, compact art books, and an array of miscellaneous items, all falling into the realm of collectibles.
For a while, the two of them were dazzled by what they were seeing. They had no choice but to find a teahouse for a brief rest.
Gazing out at the lively street, the stalls on either side were beckoning with diverse regional accents, forming a distinctive atmosphere.
Zhou Chao suddenly thought of checking in here. What if he could gain a skill that would let him spot authenticity with a single glance? That would be a huge gain. So he said to the system, “Check in.”
“Check-in successful. Thank you, host, for acquiring the skill ‘Treasure Hunting’.”
“System, where’s my skill? Even if it’s related to antiques, I’d take it. You gave me ‘Treasure Hunting,’ but I don’t even know how to hunt for treasures.” Zhou Chao mentally grumbled at the system, but the system didn’t respond to his complaints, and Zhou Chao decided not to dwell on it.
“Let’s go, let’s continue exploring. I refuse to believe that we won’t find something we like today.” After finishing his tea, Qin Fen stood up.
As the two stepped out of the teahouse, Zhou Chao was bumped by a middle-aged man carrying a backpack. The man’s scroll also fell to the ground. Zhou Chao quickly crouched down to pick up the scroll and noticed that it had a slightly heavier weight, though he didn’t think much of it.
Sorry, sorry. I was lost in thought and didn’t notice you two. Please forgive me,” the middle-aged man apologized to Zhou Chao.
It’s alright, just pay more attention when walking.” Zhou Chao waved his hand gently.
“I see that you two are also here to explore Panjiayuan. I wonder if you have any thoughts about this painting in my hand.” The middle-aged man seemed to have a sudden idea and quickly walked a few steps closer to Zhou Chao, speaking softly.
“Oh, if it looks good, we might consider it.” After exchanging a glance with Qin Fen, Zhou Chao turned to the middle-aged man next to him.
“How about we go inside the teahouse to chat?”
“Sure, let’s go.” The middle-aged man reserved a private room, and Zhou Chao and Qin Fen followed him inside.
“Please take a look.” The middle-aged man unfolded the painting, revealing an impressive depiction of a fierce tiger descending from a mountain.
Seeing that Zhou Chao and Qin Fen were both studying the painting on the table, the middle-aged man spoke, “To be honest, this has been passed down in my family. It’s said to be painted by Tang Yin himself. We’ve cherished it for generations. If we weren’t in urgent need of money, we wouldn’t have decided to sell it.”
While the authenticity of the middle-aged man’s words was uncertain, the painting did exude a certain charm. Zhou Chao and Qin Fen asked, “How much is this painting?”
“500,000.”
“500,000? If this painting is genuine, it must be invaluable. Selling it at this price, you might end up making a loss,” Zhou Chao quipped upon hearing the price.
“How about I lower the price a bit more? 1 really need the money urgently. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be in such a hurry to sell.” The middle-aged man appeared somewhat anxious and quickly offered a reduced price.
Zhou Chao remained silent for a moment and then said, “Alright, how about 50,000 yuan? If you’re willing to sell at this price, we’ll proceed with the transaction. If not, we’ll leave.”
“It’s a deal!” The middle-aged man eagerly agreed.
Before long, the two sides finalized an agreement, and Zhou Chao promptly transferred 50,000 yuan to the middle-aged man. As soon as the funds were confirmed in his account, the middle-aged man departed from the tea house.
The middle-aged man walked out of the teahouse and glanced back, then smirked, “Hmph, kid, you’ve practically fallen for my trick. I got it for 500 bucks from the countryside. Who would’ve imagined I’d end up selling it for 50,000? Today’s a pretty good day for me.”
Meanwhile, Zhou Chao and Qin Fen remained seated in the teahouse. Qin Fen observed Zhou Chao’s purchase of a painting for 50,000 yuan, the authenticity of which was uncertain. He couldn’t help but notice that Zhou Chao was still calmly sipping his tea. Although both of them were financially well-off, this incident was bound to become public knowledge, and it was quite an awkward situation.
Unbeknownst to Qin Fen, Zhou Chao was actually excited at this moment. Just as he transferred the money to the middle-aged man, the system prompted him that the ‘Treasure Hunting’ task was complete. Although he didn’t understand what the painting was all about, there must be something special about it. It seemed that it was time to have someone in the antique field appraise it.
Zhou Chao carefully stored the painting, holding it in his hand and tilting it gently. He sensed a subtle weight to the painting, yet he didn’t dwell on it. He also became aware that Qin Fen had been observing him.
“Why are you giving me such a gaze? You’re not harboring any inappropriate ideas about me, are you?” Zhou Chao’s remark caught Qin Fen off guard, resulting in a spray of tea across the table, even splashing onto the recently acquired scroll. Zhou Chao brushed it off without much concern.
“Get lost!” A stern shout came from Qin Fen’s mouth.
“Hahaha, shall we continue exploring or head back?”
“Let’s forget it and head back. After wandering around for so long, we still can’t tell if these things are genuine or not.”
Zhou Chao wiped off the tea that Qin Fen had sprayed and then carried the painting out of the teahouse.
Upon returning home, Zhou Chao carefully positioned the painting in his bedroom, intending to seek advice from an antique expert when the opportunity arose. Unbeknownst to him, on the area where the tea had touched, faint traces of writing emerged, only to slowly vanish from the painting’s surface..