Jin Muchen looked at Randy with a cold smile.
"Two hundred thousand dollars? Don't joke, Randy. Your vase is not worth that price."
Jin Muchen certainly didn't want to spend two hundred thousand dollars on this vase. It's not that the vase wasn't good enough, but if he were to agree to Randy's price, he would face two problems.
One is the profit he could obtain from this vase. Last year, at the Jiade Autumn Auction in China, an ice-blue plum vase from the Yongzheng official kiln was auctioned for two million four hundred thousand dollars. That ice-blue plum vase was superior to this maiden vase in both craftsmanship and design.
If these two items were graded, the ice-blue plum vase would undoubtedly score a perfect one hundred, while this maiden vase would score about eighty.
Don't underestimate this twenty-point difference; it could significantly affect the final price of this item at auction.
While the ice-blue plum vase could fetch two million four hundred thousand dollars, Jin Muchen estimated that this maiden vase could only fetch about one million eight hundred thousand dollars, at best.
After deducting the cost of transporting the vase back to China, along with taxes and the auction house's commission, the profit he would make would be pitifully low. He might even end up losing money, so he absolutely could not accept this price.
The other reason is that there are more valuable items on this table than just this vase. If he were to accept Randy's offer for this vase, what about the other items?
Would he have to purchase each item according to Randy's valuation every time? That would take away all the fun of exploring the old mansion.
So Jin Muchen knew that he absolutely could not let Randy lead him by the nose this time!
As Randy began to assert himself, he looked nothing like the wastrel they met at the bar. Instead, he became dominant, completely shedding the pathetic demeanor he had yesterday.
Jin Muchen cursed inwardly, then glanced at Helen, who was holding the coffee and watching their negotiation with keen interest, clearly not intending to interject.
"Well, Randy, let's not discuss the price for now. Let me see the other items first. What do you say?"
Jin Muchen's mind was racing, and he already had a rough idea. Seeing that Jin Muchen didn't insist on bargaining, Randy didn't say much more. After all, everyone's time was tight, and his old man could return at any moment.
Jin Muchen continued to examine the items on the table, picking up a shallow crimson-colored double-peach pen wash. This pen wash was larger than usual, with a traditional Mi-style landscape painting on one side and seal script on the other. Although he couldn't understand what was written, Jin Muchen knew it was definitely the work of a master, as he could see the faint aura emanating from the pen wash when he held it.
This was undoubtedly a valuable item, even more so than the maiden vase.
He already had a plan in mind, but he didn't say much.
Next, he picked up a large-sized Han-style zun with double beast ears in peacock green glaze. This zun was even larger than the maiden vase in size, with a rich glaze and exquisite craftsmanship. The iridescent green light shimmering on the body of the vase, combined with the lifelike double beasts on both sides, indicated that this was definitely a valuable treasure.
Furthermore, the age of this bowl should be from the Qianlong period, not necessarily from the official kiln, but definitely a fine product from the folk kiln. Such an item could easily fetch several hundred thousand when taken back for auction, without a doubt.
As he examined the other items on the table, most of them were jade carvings and pendants, beautifully crafted and undoubtedly of high quality. However, some were made from ordinary materials, while others were made from excellent sheep-fat white jade. They all fell into the category of antiques, and after some calculation, Jin Muchen already had a rough estimate of their value.
Just as Jin Muchen had his mind set, a white bowl at the edge of the table suddenly caught his eye.
Previously, when he saw the treasures on the table, it was like a dazzling display of colors—red, green, yellow, and various shades of light emanated from those treasures. Some were bright, some dim. According to his experience, the brighter the antique, the higher its value, and conversely, the lower the price of those with weaker brightness.
However, as his eyes swept across the white bowl, he felt his gaze unable to move away. The faint, soft white light emanating from the bowl was captivating, even through a thick layer of dust.
He picked up the bowl, gently wiped off the dust, and blew away the dust inside the rim of the bowl. Just by doing so, the radiance of the bowl immediately intensified, almost dazzling, even in broad daylight.
Others might not see such light, but for Jin Muchen, it was glaring. At the same time, he, who had remained calm, could no longer keep his composure.
He took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing his emotions, then began to carefully examine the bowl.
This bowl was completely different from the first Yongzheng famille rose open-mouthed bowl he had handled. That bowl was adorned with a yellow base color and multicolored patterns, making it exceptionally vibrant and eye-catching. It was clearly not an ordinary item.
However, this bowl appeared extremely plain at first glance, just an ordinary white porcelain bowl covered in dust. It seemed that the owner didn't know its value and had simply stored it away until today, when Randy wanted to make some quick cash and brought it out from storage.
The reason Jin Muchen couldn't take his eyes off this bowl was entirely because of the faint, soft white light emanating from it. Even though there was a thick layer of dust, it couldn't block the glow emitted by the bowl.
He picked up the bowl, gently wiped it, and blew away the dust inside the rim, revealing even more brilliance.
Though on the other side of the room, Randy was busy flattering Helen, Jin Muchen felt as if he could hear his own heartbeat.
Calm down, calm down, calm down. He repeated this to himself three times while lighting a cigarette and taking a deep drag, gradually calming his nerves.
He held the bowl in his hands and took out a magnifying glass from his pocket, carefully examining it.
This time, he focused on the rim of the bowl. With just one glance, his heartbeat accelerated again. Damn it, if one weren't careful, they could easily overlook such a treasure.
At this moment, his mind was screaming in astonishment.
Under the magnifying glass, although the rim of the bowl appeared to be the same white porcelain color, upon closer inspection, it became evident that this white porcelain color was not quite in harmony with the rest of the bowl's white porcelain. It seemed somewhat unnatural.
He reached out and lightly scraped the rim of the bowl with his fingernail, immediately removing a small piece of white powder to reveal a dazzling golden edge underneath!
Yes, that's it! It must be the treasure!
Jin Muchen's heart settled. If his judgment was correct, this bowl should be an exquisite white porcelain piece from the Song Dynasty Ding kiln, and the golden rim wrapping around the bowl's mouth was extraordinary.
Song Dynasty Ding kiln white porcelain was often decorated with gold, silver, or copper rims, known as "golden-edged Ding ware" or "inlaid-rim ware."
Furthermore, such inlaid-rim ceramics were strictly allocated to users according to their status, with only the royal family daring to use them.
It was truly unexpected to find a golden-edged ceramic piece here!
Previously, Randy had shown a strong demeanor, which had somewhat influenced his bargaining strategy and might have made the later acquisition process less smooth. However, upon seeing this bowl, Jin Muchen felt that the turning point of today's acquisition had arrived!