Old man Fan let out a cold laugh, "Master Huang, Young Master Huang, what kind of person am I? What caliber? Do I need to bother with a junior?"
"Then what does Old Mr. Fan mean?" Huang Bai looked at him suspiciously. The Treasure Appraisal Convention was a rather niche gathering, and its attendees were generally well-behaved. Even after Li Yang had embarrassed Old Man Fan and his son, no one had spread the word outside.
Therefore, Huang Bai, who was not qualified to attend the Treasure Appraisal Convention, knew nothing of the feud between Old Man Fan and Li Yang.
However, Old Man Fan's attitude struck him as strange.
Old Man Fan chuckled and said, "My meaning is quite clear. Since you two have invited so many of us to appraise items, you now want a mere youngster to examine them. What does this mean? Have those present considered this?"
"This..." Huang Bai and Master Huang's expressions immediately changed. This was indeed a problem, yet at most times, it wasn't.
The reason was simple: generally, appraisers were there to serve clients. As long as the payment was sufficient and the hospitality acceptable, who cared how many appraisers the client invited?
Thus, appraisers who came to help generally didn't mind how many people the boss hired, as long as their promised remuneration was delivered.
However, there was indeed a rule within the circle. People in Jiangcheng's antique circle called it "one appraiser, no second invitation." This meant that if you invited one appraiser, you shouldn't invite another.
Old Man Fan said coldly, "If you two don't understand the rules and insist on inviting that kid to take a look, then we'll leave now."
"Old Mr. Fan, please don't be so hasty. It was my fault earlier for not asking everyone present if they were willing to stay." Huang Bai's expression shifted, and he quickly tried to persuade them, "How about this, I'll personally increase everyone's remuneration by twenty percent. I hope you can meet my friend."
"Indeed, I am also quite curious about the talents of this young appraisal master who has suddenly become famous at such a young age." Master Huang and Huang Bai were close relatives. Upon hearing his nephew speak, he couldn't possibly undermine him and immediately supported him, saying, "I will also increase everyone's remuneration by twenty percent!"
"Master Huang is generous, Young Master Huang is generous!" Hearing them say this, the appraisers who had wanted to meet Li Yang were overjoyed. They hadn't expected such good fortune.
After writing down their acceptance, they all smiled at Old Man Fan and persuaded him, "Old Fan, rules are dead, but people are alive. Moreover, so many of us are here to appraise. The rule of 'one appraiser, no second invitation' was already broken when we were all invited. Why do you insist on adhering to it just because Boss Li is coming?"
"Heh, Old Fan, do you have some sort of grudge with Boss Li?"
"Could it be that Old Fan lost to Boss Li in private, and that's why he's so eager to leave upon hearing Li Boss is coming?"
"Preposterous! Utter nonsense! I would be inferior to that kid and afraid of his arrival, causing me to leave? This is utterly absurd!" Old Man Fan became furious and immediately started cursing, spittle flying everywhere.
Seeing how quickly he was provoked, the others, though silent, knew clearly in their hearts that Old Man Fan must have lost face to Li Yang, otherwise, he wouldn't be so agitated. They looked at him with a hint of amusement.
Noticing everyone's gaze, the result was that Li Yang hadn't even arrived yet, and Old Man Fan was already so angry he was about to faint.
As Li Yang arrived, Huang Bai quickly came to greet him, smiling and saying in a low voice, "You're finally here. Let's go in quickly. I guarantee you'll be happy after seeing it."
"What will make me happy after seeing it?" Li Yang asked, somewhat confused.
Huang Bai smiled without answering, "You'll know when you go in."
Saying this, he took Li Yang's hand and hurried inside.
As soon as he entered, Li Yang saw Old Man Fan with a livid face. He couldn't help but pause, then a smile curved his lips. He understood what Huang Bai had meant earlier and said, "Oh my, isn't this Old Mr. Fan? I didn't expect you to be here too."
"Hmph, what's so funny about you, kid?" Old Man Fan said with a dark expression. He clearly knew his face looked terrible at the moment, yet he deliberately let Li Yang see it, making him look even worse.
Li Yang smiled and said, "They say a smile can make you ten years younger, and regular smiles bring good luck. I'm young and lucky, which is naturally because I like to smile."
"On the other hand, Old Mr. Fan, your face is ashen, and your brow is dark. I'm afraid there are some bad omens."
"You're cursing me, kid!" Old Man Fan retorted angrily.
Li Yang waved his hand and said, "You misunderstand. I'm just reminding you. By the way, I wonder how Mr. Fan is doing?"
"Qingshan is doing very well, you don't need to worry about him," Old Man Fan said in a deep voice. Recalling the events at the Treasure Appraisal Convention, his expression grew even more unpleasant.
To this day, he still couldn't figure out how Li Yang, with his eyes covered, managed to know the origins of the antiques without touching them.
Because of this, his son, originally named Fan Qingshan and later renamed Fan Qingshan, had been unable to sleep for several days, his eyes wide open, constantly thinking about this matter, almost to the point of obsession!
For this reason alone, Old Man Fan had every reason to resent Li Yang.
"You talk too much, kid. With this much time, why don't you take a look at this thing!"
"Hello, Boss Li. I am Huang Bai's second uncle, Huang Yiping," Master Huang walked over, greeting him with a smile.
Li Yang smiled and said, "Hello, Uncle Huang."
"Boss Li, I know your appraisal skills are superb. I wonder if you could help me take a look at this item." Huang Yiping smiled and got straight to the point, handing him a small jade bead.
The bead was very small, less than the size of his little fingernail, but its content was incredibly rich. Not only were the patterns intricate, but there were also inscriptions.
The so-called "jinwen" (gold inscriptions) did not refer to the script of the Jin Dynasty, which co-existed with the Song and Liao dynasties in ruling China. Instead, it was an early term for oracle bone script.
Because these characters were often cast on bronze artifacts, they were called "jinwen." It wasn't until the transition period from the Qing Dynasty to the Republic of China, when Western knowledge entered China, that traditional archaeology was greatly impacted.
From then on, Chinese archaeology was no longer just a study based on textual references but a study of unearthed ancient objects. Thus, many Shang and Zhou dynasty turtle shells and bones appeared. Because these items bore "jinwen," and the characters on them were more numerous and richer than those on bronze artifacts, a prominent scholar specializing in this field named such characters "oracle bone script."
However, this was the first time he had seen oracle bone script on a jade bead.
There was no precedent in the entire industry!