202: Chapter 202 Kangxi Blue and White Porcelain Bowl with Eight Immortals Celebrating Longevity Design

The attitude of Ye Fei's family was truly beyond reproach.

Very sincere.

Very genuine.

Especially Ye Fei; his expression and words were from the bottom of his heart, his gratitude overflowing.

Han Jingyang even suspected that if Ye Fei were a woman, he might have washed himself clean and hopped into bed immediately to offer himself as payment.

But well, there was still that same issue: he didn't quite know how to speak or handle things properly.

He was sincere but not exactly likeable.

Who doesn't like someone who speaks pleasantly and acts considerately?

Han Jingyang was no exception.

However, he didn't say anything, instead patiently exchanging pleasantries with Ye Fei for a while.

Ye Fei finally seemed to realize he was rambling and stopped. He pulled over a handbag and placed it on the coffee table: "Mr. Han, this is a small token of my appreciation. Please accept it, otherwise my parents and I won't be able to rest easy."

Han Jingyang glanced at it; it was the same stuff from this morning.

After thinking for a moment, he pointed to the blue and white bowl: "Leave this one, and take the rest back."

"This..."

Ye Fei was still a bit hesitant.

Liu Jing, standing to the side, spoke up: "Brother Fei, our boss really isn't short of your money. If he tells you to take it back, take it back. If you really feel bad about it, just promote Jiguang Zhai and our boss's name more in the future."

Only then did Ye Fei nod.

Once the family of three left, Han Jingyang breathed a sigh of relief: "I never thought I'd see the day where receiving gifts would give me a headache."

Shi Xiaoya chuckled: "That's because you're kind-hearted, Boss. Anyone else would have stripped them of their family fortune before stopping, given such a good opportunity."

Han Jingyang nodded: "Anyway, let's not talk about that. Let me look at this plate; it's quite decent."

Liu Jing's eyes lit up: "Can it be consecrated?"

"Yeah, it has potential. I'll perform a Consecration and see," Han Jingyang said as he picked up the plate and walked into the inner room.

Han Jingyang carefully observed the large bowl.

It was a standard large 'ocean bowl'.

One bowl could hold over half a kilogram of noodles.

It had a ring foot.

A flared rim.

The diameter was likely around twenty-five centimeters.

The exterior was painted with the 'Eight Immortals Offering Birthday Wishes' scene.

The brushwork was very delicate, the lines were quite smooth, and the figures were extremely vivid. The expressions, movements, and demeanors of the Eight Immortals were all different, yet they all overflowed with a thick sense of joy, making one immediately feel the atmosphere of 'Longevity and Happiness Filling the House'.

On the bottom of the foot, it bore a six-character blue and white regular script mark: 'Made in the Wanli Era of the Great Ming'.

But it wasn't a Ming Dynasty piece.

It was a Qing Dynasty imitation.

However, the quality of the imitation was very high.

Han Jingyang studied the color of the blue and white cobalt, the texture of the exposed clay at the ring foot, as well as the calligraphic structure and font style of the mark to determine the bowl's era.

The Kangxi period.

And it was an early Kangxi piece.

Because the blue and white pigment still retained characteristics of the late Ming period.

The clay texture was the same—slightly coarse, not as fine and firm as the middle and late Kangxi periods.

The ring foot wasn't perfectly regular either, and the 'firestone red' oxidation was coarser and denser.

These were all characteristics of early Qing ceramics.

Nevertheless, the overall quality of this bowl was quite excellent; it was undoubtedly from an official kiln.

Moreover, it wasn't for eating; it was considered a ritual vessel.

Han Jingyang judged that it had been specially fired for the birthday of the head of a wealthy household, used only on that single day to hold offerings and the like.

Such an item had a significant market value.

He wouldn't dare say more, but three hundred thousand was a safe bet.

Early Kangxi, perfect condition, apocryphal mark, Eight Immortals birthday theme—these were all bonus points.

This thing could be bought and placed at home as a decoration; the art style was good and the theme was festive. Regardless of value, it was pleasing to the eye.

Speaking of which, this was a true luxury item.

Looking at it this way, Ye Fei's family's sincerity was even greater.

For this family to dare to bring out this blue and white bowl under these circumstances, they must have known its value beforehand.

But now, it's mine.

I don't have the habit of giving back things that have reached my hands.

Once it's in my hands, it's mine.

Appraisal.

Han Jingyang performed an appraisal directly.

"Name: Qing Kangxi Blue and White Eight Immortals Birthday Bowl."

"Grade: Rank 6."

"Attribute: Longevity +5."

"Skill: Prolonging Life."

As expected, it was a good item.

Longevity.

Prolonging Life.

The most valuable attributes and skills for monetization.

These days, rich people aren't afraid of anything except death.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call this large bowl a priceless treasure. Selling it to Liu Jing's family might only fetch a few hundred thousand, but to Shen Yuhai it could be millions. What about Li Jianjun? What about those super-tycoons in the country?

Different people have different fates, and the same fate has different prices.

That's exactly what it meant.

Han Jingyang was very satisfied.

In this operation, he hadn't really had to do much, yet the harvest was substantial.

One hidden-gem fairy maid.

One priceless treasure.

Not many in quantity, but extremely high in quality.

Setting aside this blue and white bowl, the value of Wang Wei, the Corpse-Free Immortal, was exceptionally high. She was far more than just a maid; her cultivation methods and the information she possessed were extremely precious.

The information he had Wang Wei reveal to Shen Yuhai and the others was just a tiny, insignificant fraction of the vast amount of intelligence she held, and even then, it was only half-true.

Regardless, the goal of having Wang Wei show herself was to help Shen Yuhai close the case and clear Ye Fei of suspicion. There was no need to reveal too much; as long as the objective was met, it was fine.

He just never expected Ye Fei to give him such a big surprise.

This thank-you gift was exceptionally heavy.

He would find an opportunity to compensate them later.

He sought nothing else, only peace of mind.

Han Jingyang put a label on the blue and white bowl and placed it in Safe No. 1.

Everything that went into Safe No. 1 was a good item—the very, very good kind.

When Shi Xiaoya and Liu Jing saw Han Jingyang come out empty-handed, both showed looks of pleasant surprise.

Shi Xiaoya asked impatiently, "Boss, was the Consecration effect very good?"

Both of them knew the situation in the shop. Ordinary dharma instruments were just thrown onto the counter with a clear price tag for people to buy and take away, especially those that could be worn and used immediately.

Only special dharma instruments would be kept in the safe.

Han Jingyang nodded: "The item is quite good."

At this point, he said to Liu Jing, "Tell Ye Fei later that the bowl is very good, and consider that I owe him a favor."

Liu Jing nodded quickly: "I'll make it clear to him."

This wasn't just a matter of a single favor.

It was a gesture of goodwill, meaning they could continue to be friends in the future.

Well, Han Jingyang was just that realistic. One moment he felt Ye Fei's family didn't know how to handle things and didn't want to deal with them anymore, and the next he was sending over a favor.

But then again, Han Jingyang didn't feel there was anything wrong with that.

In this life, as long as you don't break the law or act immorally, everything else should just follow your heart.

5:30 PM.

Han Jingyang stretched: "Shall we get off work? Let's go have a big meal."

Liu Jing looked at the time: "Boss, isn't it a bit early? Other people's business is just starting."

At five-something in the summer, the streets were indeed just starting to get lively, and it would be busiest after dark. Even antique shop owners would appropriately extend their business hours.

Shi Xiaoya, however, said: "Our Jiguang Zhai is different from other antique shops. There's no need to waste time guarding the storefront every day. It's better to go out and look around when we have time; maybe we'll find some unexpected surprises."

Han Jingyang nodded and was about to say 'that makes sense' when he saw Wang Zhiwei and Xu Jingyun running toward them in a hurry.

Is this... has something happened?

Xu Xin?

Xu Xin said before that he wanted to help Liu Qing through his difficulties.

By the looks of it, he's managed to get himself dragged in too.