Shen Bao led Ye Fan through the villas in front, all the way to a two-story building at the back.
If the villas in front were old, this two-story building was dilapidated, with much of the exterior wall plaster having fallen off.
"Let's go, the City Lord is waiting inside," Shen Bao said in a low voice before leading the way in.
Looking around, Ye Fan saw no one else here; they had likely all been transferred.
Quickly following Shen Bao's footsteps, they arrived at the reception hall.
In the guest seats sat a young man, who was none other than Qi Yuanhao.
Ye Fan frowned, wondering why he was here.
Qi Yuanhao nodded at Ye Fan with a smile, remaining silent.
Ye Fan returned the smile, then turned his gaze to the main seat.
Occupying the main seat was a middle-aged man. The moment Ye Fan saw his face, he froze.
"Lin Yang?"
This man looked exactly like Lin Yang. If there was any difference, it was that this man appeared slightly older.
His temples were streaked with white hair, and his cheeks bore wrinkles.
Seeing Ye Fan's surprised expression, the middle-aged man smiled and set down his teacup.
"You must be young friend Ye, correct?"
Frowning, Ye Fan's eyes fixed intensely on the middle-aged man before him. "Don't you recognize me?"
It was Lin Yang who had caused trouble and targeted him at the hotel earlier.
Shen Bao quickly interjected, "This is the City Lord, Lin Yue. The Lin Yang you mentioned is the City Lord's twin brother."
"What?"
Ye Fan reflected that, whether in his past life or this one, few things had ever managed to shock him into losing his composure.
However, what he had just heard completely disoriented him.
Lin Yue waved his hand, signaling Ye Fan and Shen Bao to sit.
Then, he sighed and said, "As Shen Bao just mentioned, I am Lin Yue, Lin Yang's full brother. For years, my health has not been good, and Lin Yang took this opportunity to secretly seize my power, becoming the administrator of the City Lord's mansion. Our resemblance is so strong that no one noticed. If Shen Bao were not my trusted confidant whom I trained myself, he too might have been fooled by Lin Yang."
He briefly recounted the events, leaving Ye Fan stunned.
It was truly like something out of a fable. As shrewd as Ye Fan was, he could never have imagined such a thing happening.
After several dozen breaths, Ye Fan finally processed the information and looked up at Lin Yue.
"May I ask why City Lord Lin summoned me?"
If Lin Yue had only wanted to tell him a story, he wouldn't have been so bored.
"Let Young Master Qi explain. After all, this matter is of great importance, and Young Master Qi is a party involved."
Qi Yuanhao nodded, then took two boxes from the side and placed them before Ye Fan.
"I witnessed young brother Ye's skills at the auction earlier, so today I wish to invite young brother Ye to help me appraise these two items. We can discuss everything else after the appraisal, how does that sound?"
He looked at Ye Fan, his gaze still somewhat cold, but his tone was exceptionally sincere.
Ye Fan was unsure of their true intentions, but since Qi Yuanhao had put it this way, Ye Fan found it difficult to refuse.
He slowly opened the two boxes, revealing identical pottery pieces inside.
Pottery originated from before the Shang and Zhou dynasties, with its craftsmanship reaching its zenith. Because its firing techniques were lost, the remaining pottery pieces are extremely rare.
This made pottery exceptionally precious and coveted by the world.
The two pottery pieces before him were even rarer masterpieces, featuring colored drawings on the unfired clay.
The unfired clay was not hard but slightly soft, with dragon motifs painted on it.
Such exquisite pottery could be considered a rare treasure.
"The dragon motif signifies royal ownership. The raw clay is outlined, and the texture is delicate. This should be a Northern Frontier pottery unique to the Quanrong region during the Western Zhou period. It has been passed down for thousands of years, and has never circulated in the market. It is the finest of the fine, with immeasurable value."
As he spoke, he looked up at Qi Yuanhao. "I didn't expect the Qi family of Haicheng to possess two identical pottery pieces. Your heritage is indeed profound."
Having one such treasure was rare enough, but the Qi family had two. Even Ye Fan couldn't help but be astonished.
Qi Yuanhao shook his head with a sigh, "Young brother Ye, please examine them carefully before drawing a conclusion."
To Ye Fan's surprise, Qi Yuanhao showed no excitement; instead, his eyes were filled with bitterness.
This made Ye Fan frown. Could there be some trick to this?
With that thought, he picked up the other pottery piece, his eyes fixed intently on it. The next moment, dozens of lines, running horizontally and vertically, appeared in his eyes.
"This is a replica made by piecing together pottery fragments. This pottery is a priceless treasure, how could it be like this?"
He looked at Qi Yuanhao with immense surprise.
If this were an ordinary item that had appeared in the market, Ye Fan could understand it being counterfeited.
But how could the Qi family present such a treasure for outsiders to examine?
Qi Yuanhao sighed helplessly, "Young brother Ye has indeed seen through it. That's right, the other pottery piece is indeed a replica. Moreover, I don't even know who the forger is. You must understand, this pottery piece is our Qi family's heirloom. We have never shown it to anyone, yet it has been copied. Furthermore, to my knowledge, this pottery piece has been replicated more than a dozen times, with the same forging techniques as the fakes circulating in Jiangcheng."
Hearing Qi Yuanhao's words, Ye Fan's brow furrowed. So, Qi Yuanhao had come here for this matter.
No wonder he was so anxious.
However, the person who forged these replicas was quite skilled to have even copied the Qi family's heirloom.
After placing the two pottery pieces back, Ye Fan slowly stood up.
"I know some things about the person behind this, but they are only fragmented clues. If you want to unearth them, I'm afraid..."
Ye Fan's expression was troubled. This was a complete and complex chain of interests. It would not be simple to investigate everything clearly.
Lin Yue nodded. "I know this matter is complex, but it is imperative to resolve it. The development of our Jiangcheng is closely related to the antique market, so the antique market must not be in chaos."
It was evident that Lin Yue had deep affection for Jiangcheng, but his poor health made him appear helpless.
If not for this, Lin Yang would not have been able to seize power.
"City Lord Lin, forgive my bluntness, but even if you want to investigate, you currently..."
Ye Fan hesitated, his words trailing off. While these words were indeed hurtful if spoken plainly, they were the truth.
If an investigation were launched under the name of the City Lord's mansion, Lin Yang would undoubtedly obstruct it. With Lin Yue's power already usurped, he had no authority. How could this matter be handled?
Lin Yue gritted his teeth and scoffed, "He can seize power, can't I? The reason I've endured these years is because I've been planning in secret. Now, the time is ripe. It's time to eradicate this malignant tumor."
The so-called flesh and blood brothers, blood relatives, were no longer important.
If Lin Yang had considered their kinship, why would he have seized Lin Yue's power?