68 A Battle for the Ink-slab

"Em, not really," Gu Ning said.

"Then why did you buy this ink-slab without second thought?" Master Fu criticized. He expected better from Gu Ning.

"Because of my instinct. May I invite the two masters to have a cup of tea? Master Yan, could you please help me identify this object?" Gu Ning said.

Master Yan was an expert of antiques. He had a special feeling for antiques, and never said no to identifying an object.

He only thought it wasn't necessary to have tea.

But seeing Gu Ning being so confident, like this ink-slab was a real one, Master Yan was more curious now.

If the ink-slab had been real, it was inconvenient to identify it here. Thus Master Yan answered, "Fine."

They went towards a nearby tea house.

They had a private room since they were all important figures.

Before they sat down, Master Yan opened his mouth eagerly. "Girl, let me have a look now."

The ink-slab was held in Gu Ning's hand. Once Master Yan opened his mouth, Gu Ning handed it to him directly.

Master Yan took the ink-slab, and was absorbed in identifying it.

Both Master Fu and Gu Ning stayed quiet, tasting the tea.

Master Yan kept on observing, touching and cleaning it for a while. At the end, Master Yan's eyes lit up with delight and excitement. "It's real. It is real! This is an ink-slab from the Qianlong period. It belonged to the famous poet, book painter and Laizhou prefect, Zhang Wentao. It must be old-pit species too!"

"What?" Hearing that, Master Fu was also surprised as well as excited.

Such a precious antique was found by a young teenage girl, which surprised Master Yan more. He asked, "Girl, did you really find this out by your instinct?"

To be honest, Master Yan didn't believe it was that simple. Gu Ning had been so confident, as if she already knew it was a real one.

Gu Ning also understood her excuse wasn't persuasive, but she didn't know anything about antiques. Thus she had to stick to her excuse. "Yes."

Master Yan and Master Fu still couldn't believe it, but since the girl said so, they didn't want to ask for more.

Master Yan looked at the ink-slab in his hands. He was growingly thrilled. "Girl, do you want to sell it? If you want to, I can pay you the market price," Master Yan said.

Not only was Master Yan an expert of antiques, he was also an expert of calligraphy. He loved those tools for calligraphy.

"Well, Master Yan, I knew Girl Gu before you. If she wants to sell it, I must be the first buyer. You, you can't grab it from me!" Master Fu immediately stood up wanting to snatch the ink-slab.

Although Master Fu wasn't as professional as Master Yan, he was an aficionado.

He didn't like calligraphy, but he loved to collect ancient objects.

Gu Ning felt embarrassed. She didn't want to see those two respectable seniors to have a battle over a ink-slab.

Gu Ning understood Master Fu wanted to have priority because they met first.

Master Yan, on the other side, protected the ink-slab tightly in his arms at once. He looked at Master Fu in an aggressive way. "Master Fu, you don't like calligraphy at all. Why do you need it?"

"I don't like calligraphy, but I love ancient objects!" Master Fu said.

Master Yan was truly afraid Gu Ning would sell the ink-slab to Master Fu because the two had met each other before him. He had to use his ace in the hole. "If you don't compete with me, I'll give you a bottle of peach-blossom wine of 10 years," Master Yan said to Master Fu.

Hearing that, Master Fu's eyes were bright. He stopped competing for the ink-slab, but bargained, "Two bottles."

Master Yan frowned. He was reluctant to do that.

But for the ink-slab, he compromised at the end. "Fine, two bottles." Master Yan clenched his teeth.

After that, Master Fu was pleased. He went back to his seat.

And Master Yan then realized Gu Ning hadn't agreed to sell the ink-slab yet.

"Well, girl, could you please sell it to grandpa Yan?" Master Yan looked at Gu Ning with sincerity. It seemed the ink-slab was a part of his body. If Gu Ning took it back, it would be like cutting meat from his flesh.

Master Yan right now was completely different from that serious old man before.

Actually, the reason why Gu Ning invited Master Yan to identify the ink-slab was that she intended to sell it to him.

She wasn't sure Master Yan would want it, but since he was an expert of antiques, he probably wasn't willing to miss a real antique.

"Of course," Gu Ning replied.

Master Yan was more than happy now. "Very well, girl! I'm not going to lie to you either. This ink-slab is from the Qianlong period. It belonged to the famous poet, book painter and Laizhou prefect, Zhang Wentao. It is worth around five million yuan. I'll pay you five million yuan. It's an acceptable price for both of us."

"No problem," Gu Ning agreed without hesitation. She didn't care about the price as long as it was acceptable.

"Girl, if you're lucky again next time, you must sell it to me first!" Although he stopped competing with Master Yan, Master Fu was still a little displeased.

Gu Ning smiled slightly. "Grandpa Fu, you've abandoned the ink-slab for two bottles of peach-blossom wine. I assume you must be a wine lover. I have a wine cup with me here. Do you want to have a look?"

Saying this, Gu Ning then took out the wine cup from her backpack.

Both Master Yan and Master Fu were struck dumb for a second. They all thought to themselves: is she being lucky again?

If she had been lucky again, she must be a lucky girl indeed! Or, she must have her own ability.

Master Fu sat close to Gu Ning. Once she pulled the cup out, Master Fu grabbed it and stared at it.

But he wasn't an expert after all. He then immediately gave it to Master Yan. "Master Yan, take a look now."

With doubts in heart, Master Yan took the wine cup from Master Fu at once.

The wine cup was round, straight, covered with a deep abdomen, a beast ring and three feet. It was the shape of the wine cups from the Tang Dynasty.

Then Master Yan focused on its material and marks.

Master Fu sat aside looking at Master Yan with anxiety. He opened his mouth several times, wanting to ask for the result, but didn't want to bother him as well.

Master Yan was increasingly excited. "It's real! It's from the Tang Dynasty. It's a royal wine cup from the Wu administration."

"What? Really?" Master Fu jumped up from his seat out of excitement.

Seeing that, Gu Ning felt worried for Master Fu. She didn't want to see him fall.

"Yes! It must be a real one. There are several royal wine cups in the museum too. I'm familiar with them," Master Yan replied.

"Ha-ha, Ha-ha! I like it!" Master Fu laughed out loud in happiness. He was afraid Master Yan would compete with him, so he grabbed the wine cup back. Both Gu Ning and Master Yan were speechless.