After several days, Sheng Yan finally received a call from Shen Xiaofei.
The moment she saw the caller ID, she knew there had to be news about the bowl she had entrusted to her.
“Hello, Xiaofei.”
“Yanyan, I’ve already asked a lot of people to authenticate the bowl you gave me. It doesn’t come from any dynasty currently recorded in historical texts. Instead, it originated from a dynasty called the Great Sheng Dynasty.”
“The Great Sheng Dynasty?” Sheng Yan deliberately pretended it was her first time hearing the name, sounding slightly surprised. “I’ve never heard of it.”
“Most people haven’t. That dynasty existed for only a relatively short period, and it dates back four or five thousand years. Very little has survived, so archaeologists haven’t been able to learn much about it.”
“Then how were you able to determine that the bowl came from that dynasty?”
“I researched it together with several professors in my department. One of them mentioned that some artifacts had recently been excavated in the more remote mountainous areas around Ningcheng. Based on the inscriptions found on those artifacts, they’ve concluded they came from the Great Sheng Dynasty. A museum dedicated to that dynasty is already under construction, and all of the newly unearthed relics will eventually be displayed there. The bowl you gave me is in exceptionally well preserved condition, so I think selling it to the Great Sheng Dynasty Museum would be the most suitable option.”
“I don’t know much about this field. If I sell the bowl to a museum, will I actually get paid?”
“Of course! Museums obtain their collections through several channels. Some artifacts are unearthed through archaeological excavations, some are donated by private collectors, and others are purchased directly from private owners. Yours would fall under the purchase category.”
“What does the purchasing process look like?”
“First, the museum submits an acquisition request to the owner of the artifact. Then they’ll organize a panel of experts to conduct a thorough appraisal and assess its value. Once it passes authentication, it goes through the approval process. As soon as the approval is granted, you’ll receive the payment.”
“I understand! Then how much do you think this bowl is worth?”
“The value of an artifact has to be assessed by multiple experts, so it’s not something I can decide alone. But this bowl is in outstanding condition, it’s extremely old, and it has tremendous historical and collectible significance. Based on my rough estimate, there’s no way it would be worth less than seven figures.”
Hearing those words made Sheng Yan’s heart skip a beat.
Seven figures meant at least one million.
She had never imagined that a single bowl could be worth so much.
“All right. If it really sells for that much, then Yaoyao and I will be able to live very comfortably.”
In truth, their lives were already quite comfortable now, but having more money certainly wouldn’t hurt. No one ever complained about having too much.
“Exactly! Just wait for my news. If there’s any update, I’ll contact you immediately.”
“Xiaofei, thank you for all your hard work.”
“Why are you being so polite with me? Go ahead and get back to what you were doing. I’ll hang up now.”
…
Jiang Hongyan carried the thick stack of printed pages to the bookstore. The shopkeeper was stunned the moment he saw them.
“You finished copying all of these so quickly?”
“Yes. Please have a look, Shopkeeper.”
The bookstore owner casually flipped through several pages and was immensely satisfied with the handwriting.
“You’re incredible! It’s both fast and beautifully written.”
Of course it looked good. It had been printed.
Jiang Hongyan smiled.
“My family is poor. I have elderly parents above me and children below me, with several mouths depending on me to make a living. I can’t afford to be lazy, so I’ve been copying day and night without slacking off. Naturally, I finished a little faster.”
“Excellent, excellent! I’ll settle your payment right away. Now you’ll be able to buy some things for your family.”
“Thank you, Shopkeeper.”
“The total is two hundred and sixty five wen. Please check if it’s correct.”
Jiang Hongyan counted the coins and confirmed the amount.
“Yes, it’s correct.”
“Would you like to take more paper back with you this time? The more you copy, the more you’ll earn.”
“Certainly, that was my intention as well. It’s difficult to find work outside these days, and even after working hard all day, there’s no guarantee of earning much. Fortunately, I can read and write, so this kind of work suits me best.”
“Exactly! Literate people never have trouble finding work. It’s much easier than manual labor. I’ll get more paper for you right away.”
The shopkeeper happily brought him an even larger stack of paper.
“Copy as much as you can. As soon as you’ve finished, bring it back, and I’ll pay you immediately.”
“Understood.”
After Jiang Hongyan left with the paper, the shopkeeper watched his departing figure with great admiration.
When the young man had first come asking for copying work, his handwriting hadn’t been particularly beautiful.
It had simply been neat and legible, and since the bookstore was desperately short of copyists, the shopkeeper had hired him anyway.
He had never expected the finished manuscripts to look so impressive.
More importantly, he worked astonishingly fast, far faster than anyone else.
Some people couldn’t even finish copying a single book after several days of work, but Jiang Hongyan was different. He returned everything not long after taking it home, which was excellent for the bookstore.