Volume 1 Chapter 70 Master

  Zhao Mengzhi finished speaking and took out his mobile phone to dial a number. With Qu Wen's keen sense of hearing, he could clearly hear a loud voice coming from the other end of the line.

  "Director Zhao, what made you think of calling me? Is there a problem with the things we bought today?"

  "No, I liked everything I shot today. I'm calling you out of the blue because a friend wants to ask you something. Of course, if it's convenient for you." Zhao Mengzhi was the boss of a company about to go public, with extremely high status and wealth, yet he was very polite to the person on the phone, which suggested that the other person's identity was not simple either.

  The phone suddenly fell silent, and it wasn't until after a while that the voice came out again: "Since you're a friend of President Zhao's, we'll meet up. However, let me make one thing clear: only you and your friend can come, and I'll notify you of the location later."

  About half an hour later, a short message came from the phone, and the other party made an appointment to meet at a nightclub in the city that night.

  As the other party had previously agreed to allow only two people to go, Qu Wen had to give up the idea of letting Duandai accompany him. At 8 o'clock in the evening, he and Zhao Meng arrived at the nightclub designated by the other party on time.

  As he walked into the private room, he saw two people sitting inside. One was Lei Zhenhai, whom Qu Wen had met before, and the other was a middle-aged man with a slightly stout build.

  When he saw Qu Wen, Lei Zhenhai whispered a few words in another person's ear, then that person stood up with a smile and shook hands with Zhao Mengzhi, revealing an extremely friendly expression: "Is this the friend Zhao mentioned?"

  Zhao Mengzhi smiled and followed: "He's Qu Wen, a brother I just recognized today. This is Yu Tianrong, Boss Yu."

  Yu Tianrong was talking to Zhao Mengzhi, but he kept sizing up Qu Wen secretly. A pretty handsome young man, yet there was an aura about him that was hard to describe as good or evil, with a wild and unruly air lurking beneath his easygoing exterior, exuding a demonic charm. If Yu Tianrong hadn't spent decades on the road, meeting countless people, he would have found it difficult to detect this.

  "You're Qu Wen. I heard you stole the show at the meeting today." Yu Tianrong turned around and stretched out his hand to shake hands with Qu Wen lightly.

  "Nowhere, but today I didn't buy anything and felt a bit embarrassed. If there's another chance next time, I'll definitely go to support the scene."

  Qu Wen smiled and replied, when looking at Yu Tianrong, he could feel a strong aura of a powerful figure. It is remembered that Du Chuan once said that Lei Zhenhai was not a simple figure in the underworld, but it seems that he has to listen to Yu Tianrong, so Yu Tianrong's position in the underworld can be imagined.

  "I heard that the Qu brothers have something to ask me, I don't know what it is, can I help with anything?"

  Yu Tianrong and Zhao Mengzhi had only met twice, and apart from their dealings in antiques, they didn't have any other interactions. However, Yu Tianrong was a person who liked to analyze others' personalities. In his opinion, Zhao Mengzhi appeared to be easy-going on the surface but was actually very proud inside, not easily getting close to people. Yet, he called Qu Wen "brother" and even took the initiative to contact him after only meeting once.

  It seems that this young man named Qu Wen must have some unknown energy background. Also heard some things about Qu Wen from Lei Zhenhai, so don't worry that he is a person in the police station, and speak more politely and directly.

  Qu Wen didn't come here specifically to chat, but after hearing Yu Tianrong's words, he spoke straightforwardly: "I suspect that the 18th item sold at today's auction, the Xuande Huang You Zhikou Pan, is a high-precision fake."

  "Oh! So what Brother Qu meant was......"

  Yu Tianrong narrowed his eyes slightly, with a hint of displeasure on his face. In the antique business, there was no such thing as buying something and then trying to return it. Moreover, that Dehua yellow glaze straight-mouthed plate had ultimately been sold to a pair of Hong Kong customers, so logically speaking, Qu Wen shouldn't have anything to do with it. So what was his purpose in coming here today?

  Noticing Yu Tianrong's expression, Qu Wen hastily waved his hand: "Mr. Yu, please don't mind, my purpose for coming here is not to plead for someone else, but to figure out the origin of that pair of yellow glaze straight-mouthed plates. To be honest, I once came across a piece of imitation Ming blue and white porcelain made with the same technique as this pair. If possible, I'd like to meet the master who can create such excellent imitations."

  "Oh, you mean to say that a master counterfeiter has emerged among the people!" Yu Tianrong was surprised for a while, and soon his face showed a greedy color: "This is also the first time I've heard of it, but please ask Brother Qu if there's any evidence to prove that the yellow glaze straight-mouthed plate is a high-quality fake."

  "This... " Qu Wen hesitated and repeated what he had told Zhao Mengzhi in the afternoon, still not revealing who had bought the high imitation Qinghua porcelain.

  Yu Tianrong didn't blame him for this, as it was a rule in the industry. His excitement was evident in his words: "If what Qu brothers said is true, I'm more and more eager to meet this master who can create such realistic counterfeits. Although there are no leads currently, I will definitely investigate with all my might, and once I have any news, I will definitely inform the Qu brothers."

  Qu Wen wants to find the mysterious master's purpose is to clarify the strange aura on the porcelain, and it's not difficult for Yu Tianrong to know that his purpose must be related to money. Think about it, if someone can mass-produce such precise high-quality counterfeit products, then there's no need to worry about money rolling in.

  Qu Wen began to regret telling Yu Tianrong about the matter. The four of them chatted for a while, and then Qu Wen and Zhao Mengzhi took their leave and left first.

  As soon as Qu Wen took a step forward, Yu Tianrong immediately instructed Lei Zhentian: "You quickly send someone to investigate Qu Wen's background. I don't just want to know how big he is or where his family lives. If there's nothing special, then don't go near him. I feel that this young man is not simple at all."

  "Yes." Lei Zhenhai replied simply and turned away, immediately passing on Yu Tianrong's instructions.

  On the way back, Qu Wen sat in Zhao Mengzhi's private car. Since the journey was relatively long, the two of them chatted casually in the back row, just as they were discussing the purpose of Qu Wen's trip to the southwest this time.

  "Brother, I really didn't expect that you, Ah Wen, would be the closed-door disciple of Gu Quanzhong, the master of antique appraisal in Nantai. No wonder your eyesight is so profound, and you can recognize that fake Huang glaze straight-mouth vase at a glance. You saved me a lot of money."

  Blown by Zhao Meng's words, Qu Wen felt a bit dizzy and scratched his head with a silly smile: "I'm familiar with Brother Zhao, so I just wanted to remind him that after things are settled here, the next stop hasn't been decided yet."

  Zhao Mengzhi heard and thought for a moment: "Since you three are traveling at will, do you want to go to Chengdu next? That's the ancient capital of five dynasties, with many good things left behind since ancient times. Moreover, my brother's home is there, if you're willing, I'll cover all your expenses for food and lodging, and by the way, help me take a look at the collectibles at home, and give me some advice."

  Zhao Mengzhi said a lot, but the last sentence is the key point. Anyone who collects antiques, unless they are already at the master level themselves, will have a sense of unease and doubt, fearing that what they buy is a fake and they'll end up losing money. So when they have the chance, they'll look for some experts to help them take a look.

  He and Qu Wen only knew each other for a day, but Zhao Mengzhi had already highly recognized Qu Wen's ability to appreciate antiques. Moreover, after learning that Qu Wen was Gu Quan's closed-door disciple, he took the lead in treating Qu Wen as a new generation of masters in the antique industry.

  Brothers and sisters, if you have spare tickets, help me out with one. I also want Sanjiang tickets. If you haven't collected them yet, just click on them by the way. Collecting is very important to me too.