"What's wrong, Tang? Is there a problem?"
Qin Yanan looked at Tang Feng in surprise, not understanding what he meant.
"It's nothing, I just think that to avoid any disputes that could ruin our friendship in the future, it's best to take a look beforehand so that everyone can be at ease," Tang Feng gave a lame excuse.
In fact, he had just scanned the item with the scanning system, and the result was: "Qing Guangxu Blue and White Official Kiln Bowl, identified as: counterfeit."
But the ceramic bowl had not been unpacked yet, so he couldn't just say that the item was fake right now. He had to fend it off with another excuse.
A look of displeasure flashed across the man's face, but he still smiled and nodded, "Mrs. Qin, this young brother has a point. Let's open it up and take a look."
"We at Jifeng Hall have nothing to hide; this will be a good opportunity for the young brother to exercise his judgment."
Qin Yanan could hear the slight mockery in his words, felt somewhat embarrassed, and didn't understand why Tang Feng was suddenly acting odd.
The man did not wait for her consent before starting to unwrap the outer packaging of the box.
To prevent damaging the item inside, it was secured with white foam.
After removing the foam, there was a blue and white porcelain bowl with a white base, which looked very exquisite.
"Mrs. Qin, please have a look."
The man held the porcelain bowl carefully and handed it to Qin Yanan.
Qin Yanan had no choice but to take the bowl and directly turned it over to look at the bottom.
She saw the words "Made in the Qing Guangxu Year" in neat and square regular script.
"Hmm, no problem. The signature, craftsmanship, and glaze are all correct; it is indeed authentic. Jifeng Hall lives up to its reputation as one of the top antique brands in Zhonghai."
It was clear that she knew her porcelain, speaking with authority and knowledge.
Mr. Xu's face finally eased up a bit, "Since Mrs. Qin has already confirmed there's no problem, I'll go back and report. I wish Mrs. Qin a prosperous business."
Having said this, he was about to turn and leave.
But at that moment, Tang Feng spoke up again, "Sis, this porcelain bowl seems to have a problem."
The man's footsteps, as he was descending, halted abruptly, and he whipped around to look at him, "What problem?"
Seeing that he was genuinely getting a bit angry, Qin Yanan hastened to apologize for Tang Feng, "Mr. Xu, I'm sorry, my little brother just likes to joke around."
After speaking, she quickly pushed Tang, "If you don't know what you're talking about, don't blabber nonsense and make Mr. Xu laugh at you."
However, Tang Feng stubbornly pointed to the porcelain bowl, "I'm not talking nonsense; this bowl really does have a problem."
The accuracy of the scanning system had been verified, so he was convinced of its conclusion.
Now, Mr. Xu was finally angered, his volume increasing several decibels, "Then tell me, what's wrong with this bowl? If you can explain, and you're correct, we at Jifeng Hall are willing to compensate treble the amount."
"This…"
Tang Feng immediately felt a bit stuck, perhaps because the system was only LV1, so it had only provided the verdict, without any specific reason.
Asking him to state the problem on the spot was not something he could do right away.
Seeing his expression, Qin Yanan thought he had just been speaking without thinking and hurriedly tried to smooth things over, "Mr. Xu, I'll apologize for him. Please don't take offense at a child's words…"
But Mr. Xu was having none of it, "Mrs. Qin, it's not that I don't respect you, but this matter has implicated the reputation of Jifeng Hall, and I must have a satisfactory explanation."
"Please, Mr. Tang, be explicit, what exactly is the issue with this porcelain bowl?"
Tang Feng paused, then continued, "I can't explain exactly what the problem is right away; I need some time to appraise it…"
"How much time do you need?" Mr. Xu pressed him.
"Three hours," Tang Feng gave a specific timeframe.
"Okay then, I'll wait here for three hours. I hope you can give me a satisfactory explanation after three hours," Mr. Xu readily agreed to his request.
Qin Yanan wanted to say more in Tang Feng's defense, but seeing Mr. Xu so resolute, she knew that they'd have to give a proper explanation today or the matter wouldn't be easily settled.
She hurriedly pulled Tang Feng to one side, "Tang, this is no time for jokes."
"I've already checked; there's absolutely nothing wrong with this piece of porcelain. Stop being so stubborn," she said.
Tang Feng looked at her seriously, "Sis, do you trust me?"
Qin Yanan was momentarily at a loss for words, "You… are you that certain that there's a problem with this piece?"
Tang Feng nodded, "I am certain."
Hearing his confident reply, Qin Yanan became somewhat doubtful, "Since when have you studied antiques? How come I didn't know?"
What else could Tang Feng say? He could only cough awkwardly, "Just recently... I developed an interest in antiques and read a few works on the subject."
Qin Yanan was exasperated.
This guy really was audacious. Just by reading a few books on antiques, he dared to question the authenticity of Jifeng Hall's merchandise?
Mad, he was truly mad.
She had wanted to say something else.
But Tang Feng was already rubbing his stomach and smiling at her, "Sis, I'm a bit hungry. Can you get me something to eat first?"
Qin Yanan was left speechless and went upstairs.
A moment later, she came back down at a trot, glaring at him, "You've worked me up so much, I'm all befuddled."
As she spoke, she went to his room to fetch some vinegar, then headed back upstairs.
Tang Feng took the porcelain bowl back to his room.
Mr. Xu followed closely behind him, watching him like he was a prisoner, as if worried Tang might run away.
Tang Feng didn't bother with him and sat back down on the sofa, silently bringing up the system page.
At that moment, there was only a countdown timer on it.
"System upgrading, progress 13.9%, estimated time remaining two hours and thirty-five minutes…"