Imposter Young Master
Chapter 368 - 371: Fake? _1

Chapter 368: Chapter 371: Fake? _1

The tattooed young man stammered: "You can’t be serious about getting it appraised? Haha, you’re hilarious. My expert may not be as good as this Qin Yang, but he’s top-notch in the province. He was very certain that this is a counterfeit painting. You’re still... your mind is too soft. Haha."

Yang Gang paid no attention to him and turned to walk towards the crowd.

Seeing this, the tattooed young man chuckled: "Guys, should we go join the fun?"

"Yeah, yeah." The others laughed.

Luo Saihu, seeing this, quickly said, "Yang Gang, wait, I’m coming too."

So, a group of people with various thoughts hurried to the Bamboo Pavilion, where the expert group led by Qin Yang was.

Because this was a free public appraisal, many people held various calligraphy and paintings waiting for the experts’ appraisal and evaluation.

Yang Gang arrived in time since it was in the antique market and got a decent position in line.

Standing in front of Yang Gang was a slightly overweight fellow holding a rectangular box.

Yang Gang looked around at the scene. There were five experts. In the center was a skinny-looking elder, who seemed ordinary, with the only striking feature being his deep, unfathomable eyes that resembled whirlpools.

"That old man must be Qin Yang that Luo Saihu mentioned. Hmm, he conceals his real ability well, indeed an expert," Yang Gang silently commented to himself.

Five experts usually appraise paintings and calligraphy, but when the other four experts can’t make up their mind, Qin Yang, the one in the center, takes action.

Yang Gang was second in line. The main appraising expert was about fifty years old, with a stern poker face.

About half an hour later, it was finally the turn of Little Fatty standing in front of Yang Gang.

Little Fatty, holding a box containing an ancient painting, nervously walked onto the stage.

The expert, while carefully scrutinizing the painting with a magnifying glass, casually asked, "Where did you get this painting?"

"Oh, this painting was bought from a collector. Many people who are knowledgeable about calligraphy and painting have seen it and they all say it’s a genuine piece. But their credibility can’t match that of the experts, so I brought it here for you to have a look."

The old expert nodded, "How much did you pay for it?"

Little Fatty hesitated a bit: "Eighty thousand."

Behind Yang Gang, Luo Saihu chuckled softly and whispered to Yang Gang, "This guy is lying, the purchase price was at most fifty thousand. However, this is quite normal. They just want the experts to evaluate it a bit higher. Many bystanders at these free appraisals are treasure hunters, and they will approach the seller for a deal after the appraisal, basing the negotiation on the experts’ valuation."

Yang Gang nodded.

Just then, the old expert put down his magnifying glass, stopped his appraisal, and looked up at Little Fatty, "Unfortunately, you got it wrong this time. This painting of yours looks very much like an antiquity, but in fact, it’s just a contemporary craft item, a counterfeit. However, the craftsmanship is quite delicate. I would estimate it to be worth eight hundred to a thousand yuan."

Little Fatty immediately stiffened.

"Sir, are you sure...actually, before I came here, I had other experts appraise it as well, and they all agreed that it was genuine, worth at least three hundred thousand."

The old expert shook his head, "No mistake, your painting is called ’Eight Steeds’. Many family’s ceramic tiles are painted with this artwork, which can be considered quite famous in China. The original work was created by the famous painter Aisin Gioro Puzuo. The sense of vitality in his authentic works is very strong, the eight steeds seem to leap off the paper. The eight horses in your version of ’Eight Steeds’ lacks this lively feeling."

Hearing the old expert say this, Little Fatty took another close look at the painting and realized that something was amiss. Although the eight horses on it also seemed vivid, they indeed lacked some kind of dynamic essence upon careful observation.

One thought of heaven, one thought of hell. High hopes turned into pure tragedy, Little Fatty, head low, walked away.

Next was Yang Gang’s turn.

Apart from the tattooed young man’s smirking expression aside, Yang Gang was also inexplicably nervous.

Because, if this painting is genuine, then, about that dream last night..

As for Yang Gang’s painting, the old expert did not take long to appraise it before putting down his magnifying glass: "Unfortunately, young man, you are mistaken too. Your ancient painting is somewhat nondescript. It appears to be in the style of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, but it’s quite strange. I, personally, would estimate it to be about a thousand yuan..."

"Haha, haha." The tattooed young man couldn’t help himself and burst out laughing in front of everyone.

Yang Gang looked mixed, with an unreadable expression.

Seeing this, the old expert laughed, "If you think my appraisal is inaccurate, you can try with the other experts."

Yang Gang, holding the ancient painting, pondered for a moment, then went to line up at another expert.

The tattooed young man seemed to find it amusing too, and followed Yang Gang over. Luo Saihu hesitated for a moment before following as well.

However, the evaluation result of the second expert was almost the same as that of the first.

The tattooed young man seemed to have found something more interesting than fighting and his face was almost blooming with laughter.

Yang Gang then went to the third expert, and the result was the same.

The tattooed young man laughed so much that his mouth almost cramped, even the onlookers who noticed Yang Gang’s actions were speechless.

Yang Gang paid no attention to the strange looks from the crowd and ran over to the fourth expert.

In his silent thoughts, the result from the fourth expert also came out.

Counterfeit, still a counterfeit! The evaluation price given was only three hundred yuan!

The young man with the tattoo was nearly laughing his head off, and even the many onlookers were smiling as they watched Yang Gang.

Yang Gang paid no heed to the strange looks of the people around him, his silence was accompanied with a flicker of peculiarity in his eyes.

"Could it be, was the dream last night merely a coincidence?"

Just as Yang Gang decided to give up, Qin Yang, who was sitting in the center, suddenly spoke, "Young man, hand me the painting, let me take a look."

Since there was nothing to lose, Yang Gang handed over the painting to Qin Yang.

Qin Yang spread out the scroll and began to observe it carefully with a magnifying glass. The other four experts also temporarily stopped their own appraisals and focused their attention here.

Qin Yang’s expression was very focused. After a while, he put down the magnifying glass. He didn’t look at Yang Gang but turned to ask the other four experts, "What do you think?"

"The drawing style of this ancient painting, the materials used, and the ink, something feels off. Although the painting style appears to be from the Ming and Qing Dynasties, it clearly is just a simple imitation, and a crude one at that. This is clearly a counterfeit painting." One of the old experts answered.

The other three nodded in agreement.

Qin Yang, however, slowly shook his head.