71: Chapter 71: Suitable Repair Methods, Achieving Confidence

Just as Jiang Peiyuan was about to say something, he heard Hu Tian mutter to himself, "However, having said that, although this chip does not affect its value, if it could be repaired, it would make this vase even more complete."

Jiang Peiyuan suddenly looked up, his eyes wide, "What did you say?"

Hu Tian was startled by his suddenly raised voice, "I said... if it could be repaired..."

"You can repair it?"

Jiang Peiyuan's voice was filled with disbelief, even becoming somewhat shrill, "You mean you can repair this Ru Kiln porcelain vase? This is a 'priceless treasure'!"

This shout attracted the other collectors and experts nearby who were appraising antiques, making the scene even livelier than a "wet market."

Fang Jiye walked over first and asked curiously, "Old Jiang, what's wrong? Why so excited? Did you 'strike gold'?"

Su Huairen also crowded over, "Yes, what is it that made you react like this?"

Jiang Peiyuan pointed at the famille rose vase on the table, then pointed at Hu Tian, his voice still trembling, "He said... he said he could repair the chip on this Ru Kiln porcelain vase."

As soon as these words were spoken, the people around were stunned, their expressions looking as if they had seen a "ghost."

The next moment, Fang Jiye and Su Huairen spoke almost simultaneously, "Ru Kiln?"

Their voices were filled with disbelief, as if they were saying "You must be joking." They turned their heads in unison to look at the famille rose vase, their eyes brighter than "searchlights."

Fang Jiye walked quickly to the table, leaned over to examine the porcelain vase carefully, his eyes behind his glasses wide open.

Su Huairen also leaned in, picked up a magnifying glass, and began to observe the vase body in detail. The veins on his forehead were throbbing; his level of tension was higher than that of a "bomb disposal expert."

The two remained silent for a long while before Fang Jiye slowly raised his head, his tone full of shock, "This... the texture of this glaze, the crackle patterns... Old Jiang, you just said this is a Ru Kiln? That is the 'king of porcelain'!"

Jiang Peiyuan nodded, "It was identified by Hu Tian, and his reasoning is very sound; it is 'irrefutable evidence'."

Su Huairen put down the magnifying glass, took a deep breath, and looked at Hu Tian with a somewhat complex expression in his eyes.

In the morning, the three of them had been arguing around this vase for a long time, and no one could come up with a definitive answer; it was a case of "everyone claiming to be right."

He said it was a Republic-era imitation, Fang Jiye said it was a Qing dynasty imperial kiln, and Jiang Peiyuan felt it might be from the ming dynasty—it was a case of "too many cooks spoil the broth."

Yet now, this young man had directly pointed out that this was an early Ru Kiln famille rose vase.

A Ru Kiln! That was the head of the five great kilns of the Song dynasty, a national treasure-level artifact with fewer than a hundred surviving pieces! It was a "rare gem."

Fang Jiye reached out toward the porcelain vase with a trembling hand, but did not dare to actually touch it, "If it really is a Ru Kiln... this value..."

He could not continue; the feeling was more intense than "riding a roller coaster."

Su Huairen stared at the chip for a long time, then, as if suddenly remembering something, looked up sharply at Hu Tian, "You said just now... you can repair this chip?"

Hearing this, Fang Jiye also reacted. He stared at Hu Tian with wide eyes, "Little Hu, you... what you said just now is true? You can repair the chip on a Ru Kiln porcelain piece?"

One must know that antique restoration is an extremely profound craft, and ceramic restoration in particular is the pinnacle of the field.

And for a piece of porcelain at the level of a Ru Kiln, even national-level artifact restoration experts would have to be extremely cautious and would not dare to act lightly; it is like "walking on thin ice."

Hu Tian, on what basis does he dare to say such things? Is he really a "newborn calf not afraid of a tiger"?

Su Huairen pondered for a moment, then his eyes suddenly lit up. He said, "How about this? I happen to have a broken ming dynasty porcelain cup here. These were fragments I acquired from a fellow collector. I originally wanted to find someone to repair them, but I never had a suitable opportunity. Why not let Little Hu have a try?"

He turned around and took a wooden box from a bag by the cabinet. After opening it, a few pieces of blue and white porcelain lay quietly inside.

"These are fragments of a blue and white porcelain cup from the Jiajing period of the ming dynasty. Although not as precious as a Ru Kiln, they are still artifacts with a certain value. Little Hu, why don't you try repairing this first, and let us see what your craftsmanship is like? We'll see what you're made of."

Su Huairen's proposal was well-intentioned. On one hand, this could avoid the risk of letting Hu Tian directly repair the Ru Kiln; on the other hand, it could truly test whether Hu Tian possessed the ability to restore artifacts, after all, "true gold fears no fire."

After hearing this, Fang Jiye nodded repeatedly, "Yes, yes, yes, this is a good idea! Little Hu, if you can repair this ming dynasty porcelain cup, we will believe that you have the ability to repair that Ru Kiln porcelain vase."

Jiang Peiyuan also agreed, "Old Su's method is sound; it can both verify Little Hu's strength and avoid taking too great a risk. Little Hu, what do you think?"

Hu Tian looked at the porcelain pieces in the wooden box and observed them carefully. There were seven or eight pieces in total, big and small. The largest piece was about the size of half a palm, and the smallest was only the size of a fingernail; it looked even more complicated than a "tangram puzzle."

Judging from the texture of the fractures and the thickness of the porcelain pieces, it should have been a typical ming dynasty small blue and white cup.

"Sure." Hu Tian nodded without any hesitation, his tone crisp.

With the help of the Treasure Hunting Radar, he could not only see the original assembly positions of these fragments but also clearly know the material and density of each piece, as well as the most suitable repair method, making him feel confident and prepared.

Seeing Hu Tian agree so readily, Su Huairen felt a bit uneasy, his heart more chaotic than "fifteen buckets drawing water, seven up and eight down."

Could this kid really be just putting on a brave front? "Armchair strategy"?

"Alright then, I will go prepare the repair tools and materials right away." As Su Huairen said this, he turned and walked toward the inner room, his pace as urgent as if he were "fighting a fire."

Fang Jiye reminded him from the side, "Little Hu, artifact restoration emphasizes 'restoring the old as old.' One must not only make up for the damage but also not destroy the original style. The degree of this is the hardest to grasp; it is a case of 'a tiny deviation leads to a huge error'."

Hu Tian nodded seriously, "Elder Fang is right; I will pay attention."

A few minutes later, Su Huairen returned carrying a toolbox, the contents of which were richer than a "treasure chest." Inside were various repair tools: fine brushes, palettes, adhesives, polishing tools, and various mineral pigments.

"The tools are all here. Take whatever you need." Su Huairen placed the toolbox on the table and stepped back two paces, preparing to watch how Hu Tian would perform, his expression tense.

Fang Jiye and Jiang Peiyuan also crowded around, their eyes fixed tightly on every move Hu Tian made.

Hu Tian took a deep breath and reached out to pick up the first piece of porcelain. The moment his fingers touched the porcelain piece, the Treasure Hunting Radar interface in his mind automatically popped up, and a series of detailed information poured down like a waterfall:

[Item Name: ming dynasty Jiajing Blue and White Lotus Scroll Small Cup] [Era: 23rd Year of Jiajing, ming dynasty (1544 AD)] [Origin: Imperial Kiln Factory, Jingdezhen, Jiangxi] [Original Use: Palace Tea-drinking Utensil] [Provenance: Fired during the Jiajing period → Used in the imperial court → Scattered to the public in the Qing dynasty → Circulated to a collector in Suzhou during the Republic of China period → Broken after falling from an antique shelf due to an earthquake in 1978 → Acquired by Su Huairen from a second-hand market in 1995] [Cause of Breakage: The 1978 Tangshan earthquake affected Suzhou; the cup fell from an antique shelf 1.5 meters high onto a terrazzo floor, and the uneven stress caused the vase body to shatter into eight pieces]

[Completeness: 82%, missing parts are mainly concentrated on the rim of the cup and the bottom foot ring]

[Optimal Repair Plan:] Step 1: Cleaning. Use distilled water controlled at 25°C, combined with a soft brush to clean the fracture sections of the fragments, removing dust and oil stains. Do not use any chemical cleaning agents to avoid damaging the glaze on the surface of the porcelain pieces. Step 2: Assembly. Starting from the largest bottom fragment, assemble them in a clockwise direction. Use epoxy AB adhesive as the binding agent, with a mixing ratio of 3 parts A agent to 2 parts B agent. After each bonding, it needs to be left for 20 minutes to allow the colloid to initially cure. Step 3: Filling. For the missing rim and foot ring parts, use kaolin, quartz powder, and feldspar powder mixed in a 6:2:2 ratio to prepare the filling material, adding an appropriate amount of epoxy resin to increase strength, and use dental tools for fine shaping. Step 4: Coloring. Use natural mineral pigments to simulate the blue and white coloring; a small amount of manganese oxide needs to be added to the cobalt blue pigment to adjust the tone, making it present the deep blue-purple color unique to Jiajing blue and white, rather than the vibrant blue of the Yongxuan period. Step 5: Glazing. Apply a thin layer of antique-style glaze, and fire at a low temperature with the temperature controlled at 800°C for no more than 15 minutes to avoid color difference between the glaze and the original vessel. Step 6: Antiquing. Use the tea soaking method, combined with fine sandpaper to lightly polish the repaired area, so that the gloss of the newly repaired part is consistent with the original vessel, achieving the effect of "restoring the old as old."

[Notes: The blue and white material of this porcelain cup uses Huiqing material, and the coloring is relatively dark; do not use vibrant blue materials like Sumali blue when repairing. The lotus scroll pattern on the cup body has delicate and smooth brushstrokes; when repainting, pay attention to the continuity of the brushwork, which must be "done in one breath."]

This information flashed through Hu Tian's mind in just a second or two, but he already had a clear understanding of the ins and outs of this porcelain cup and the repair method, achieving a state of "knowing it like the back of his hand."

He gently put down the porcelain piece in his hand, looked up at the three elders, and said calmly, "This cup should be a work from the Imperial Kiln Factory in Jingdezhen during the Jiajing period. It uses Huiqing material, so the blue and white color is somewhat dark and has a purple tone. Judging from the broken fractures, it should have been damaged by falling from a high place, occurring about forty years ago."

Su Huairen's eyes widened instantly; his expression was even more exaggerated than "seeing a ghost."