Period drama: Old Cao's carefree life

Chapter 142 Ru Qiulan

Master Fan glanced at him sideways, "You think it's expensive? This is nothing. You haven't seen the real good stuff yet. Those things cost tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of silver dollars. That's what you call precious."

"If you think it's too expensive, that's fine too. I'll find you some cheaper ones, but those are not as good as the blue and white porcelain from the imperial kilns of Jingdezhen during the Yongle period of the Ming Dynasty."

"Who do you think you are? It's only nine thousand silver dollars, I'll buy it!"

Based on his understanding of Master Fan, he knew he would never betray him.

Putting aside personal relationships, just considering his status, would Master Fan dare to cheat him?
If you ruin yourself, aren't you afraid of getting revenge?
His relationship with the Japanese was something that could be easily found out with a little inquiry.

Since Master Fan wouldn't cheat me, I should buy this even more. After all, the more expensive it is, the better it is!
Good things shouldn't be buried, and they certainly shouldn't end up overseas!
With those spendthrift brats in Prince Rui's mansion, who knows where all those treasures will end up once Old Prince Rui dies?

It's possible that more than half of it will flow overseas!

These are all treasures of China! How can we let them end up abroad?!

Before he traveled through time, he watched an animated film called "Escape from the British Museum".

The film tells the story of Chinese artifacts that were lost in the British Museum more than a hundred years ago. They awaken on the eve of the Spring Festival, escape the British Museum because they miss their motherland, and eventually return home to celebrate the New Year.

Although it was just an animation, and those antiques were just a bunch of inanimate objects, Cao Weida was moved to tears while watching it. He could deeply feel the emotion of cultural inheritance in the film.

If he didn't have the ability, that would be one thing, but now that he does, he naturally won't stand idly by.

When Cao Weida talks about "Escape from the British Museum", one character immediately comes to mind – Lord Lu.

"Lord Lu" is a respectful title used by others. His real name is Ludwig, a German antique dealer who has been working in Liulichang, China for many years.

Ludwig was a China expert, speaking fluent Chinese. He was well-versed in the tricks of the antique industry and could always see through the little schemes of the antique dealers in Liulichang.

Ludwig was obsessed with acquiring China's precious cultural relics. In the story, in order to obtain the "All Beings Worshiping Buddha" statue from the Longmen Grottoes, he did not hesitate to use a huge sum of money to tempt Soba, Wang Cai and others, trying to get them to help him get the statue.

This guy is ruthless and has done a lot of bad things. He's also incredibly cunning; he's smarter than a monkey even without being bothered.

There are quite a few foreign antique dealers like this in China. During the war, countless valuable items were taken abroad by these unscrupulous people.

“I remember in the original drama, Ludwig ran back to China before the liberation.” Cao Weida stroked his chin. That bastard had acquired quite a lot of treasures. If he had escaped, it would have been a great loss to China.

While he was calculating in his mind, Master Fan, who was standing next to him, said with a smile, "It's good that you said that. Let me tell you, you definitely won't lose money if you buy it. It will look very prestigious no matter where you put it!"

"If you're free today, let's go after we eat, okay?"

"Alright, since you've spoken, even if I have something to do, I have to postpone it. I'll listen to you, Fifth Master."

These words gave Master Fan a lot of face, making him so happy that his face wrinkled even more.

After the meal, Cao Weida paid the bill, and Master Fan did not stop him.

They hailed a rickshaw and chatted and laughed as they made their way to the Prince's residence.

The two got out of the carriage in front of the Rui Beizi Mansion, and Cao Weida looked up and sized them up.

The noble Prince Rui's mansion was naturally quite grand, with two stone lions standing at the entrance. However, it was a pity that the stone bead in the mouth of the right stone lion had disappeared at some point.

During the Qing Dynasty, the central gate of a prince's mansion was a symbol of status and etiquette. It was usually closed all year round unless there was an imperial edict or a grand wedding. People would enter and exit through the side gate or corner gate to show their rank and status.

But now it is 1944, 32 years since the fall of the Qing Dynasty. Beiping has experienced turmoil such as warlord conflicts and Japanese occupation, and the situation of the former nobles is no longer the same.

Most Prince Baylor mansions have become dilapidated due to idleness, either by selling off properties or renting out courtyards, resulting in a loss of the mansion's integrity. Whether or not the central gate is closed is no longer a primary consideration.

Although the Rui Prince's mansion has not yet fallen into complete ruin due to the influence of the old Prince Rui, its status is now vastly different from what it once was.

Therefore, the main gate of Prince Rui's residence was wide open at this time, and there were two more gatekeepers inside.

"Although my Fan family wasn't as grand as Prince Rui's mansion before, we were still of noble status. Now, we can't compare," said Master Fan, glancing at the mansion's gate. He then swaggered forward and continued:
"Go and inform Prince Rui that Fan Wu has brought distinguished guests to visit Old Master Rui!"

The gatekeeper clearly recognized Fan Wu, as he had only just left. He politely said "Please wait a moment" and hurriedly ran into the courtyard to inform him.

Before long, a steward arrived and respectfully led the two into Prince Rui's residence.

Before long, a frail old man, supported by two servants, came to the guest room.

"May Your Highness be blessed!" Master Fan bowed respectfully.

Cao Weida, on the other hand, kept it much simpler. He cupped his hands and said, "Master Rui, I apologize for coming uninvited and disturbing you."

"It's you, Fan Wu, lad. I wish you good fortune too." Old Master Rui nodded to Fan Wu with a smile, then turned his gaze to Cao Weida. "This must be Patrolman Cao Weida. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"You're too kind, Mr. Rui."

As they were talking, several people entered from outside the door. Behind them, a woman carrying tea caught Cao Weida's eye.

The newcomer was beautiful, with bright and expressive eyes that seemed to convey a wealth of emotions.

She wore an exquisitely styled headdress, adorned with elegant hair accessories, and dressed in a silk cheongsam.

Petite in stature and graceful in figure, she exudes an elegant temperament cultivated by a noble family, and her every move is dignified and generous.

This person must be Ru Qiulan, right?

Her looks are naturally beyond question; she bears a striking resemblance to Feng Lazi, but she is no less beautiful than her, making her a beauty of the same caliber.

While beautiful women are a scarce resource, there are still quite a few of them if the population is large. However, not everyone has a certain kind of temperament; it must be cultivated from childhood.

Clearly, Ru Qiulan, who comes from a prominent family, has been influenced by her family since childhood, and her unique temperament is very eye-catching.

Fortunately, Cao Weida wasn't a lecherous man who couldn't resist beautiful women. After admiring them for a few moments, he accepted the tea, thanked them, smiled politely, and looked away.

His performance naturally caught the eye of Old Master Rui, who nodded in satisfaction. He wanted to find a future partner for his second wife, not a lecherous woman.

Of course, he also had other considerations when he wanted to find someone for his second wife to rely on.

"Chief Inspector Cao"

“Your Highness, Master Cao is now a patrol officer. I just found out from chatting with him,” Master Fan reminded him from the side.

"Oh, what a promotion! Congratulations!" Old Prince Rui's eyes lit up. The higher Cao Weida's position, the more satisfied he was.

"Hey, what's with all this 'patrolman' stuff? It's just a job where I have to obey orders. You can call me Cao'er or Cao Weida, it's all fine."

"Hahaha, alright then, I'll play the old man and call you Cao'er." Old Prince Rui laughed heartily and introduced:
"Cao'er, let me introduce you. This is my eldest son and his wife."

Upon seeing his eldest daughter-in-law, Cao Weida almost blurted out "Jia Zhangshi".
However, he immediately stopped himself; it would have been embarrassing if he had actually shouted it out.

It's really not his fault; after all, his eldest daughter-in-law looks somewhat like Jia Zhangshi.

It's fortunate that this is a crossover movie world, where the characters' appearances are somewhat different from the actors'; otherwise, who knows how many blunders would have occurred.

Cao Weida nodded politely and greeted them. These two were no pushovers. As soon as Old Prince Rui died, they kicked Ru Qiulan out of the house without even letting her take a needle with her.

Cao Wei had no intention of having any dealings with such a person.

Huh?
Wait, could old man Rui be up to something?
He glanced at Old Prince Rui inwardly, but couldn't discern anything.

The eldest son and daughter-in-law quickly returned the greeting. They had heard what Fan Wu had said. To become a patrol officer at such a young age, it would be strange if he didn't have connections.

Their family used to be nobles, so they naturally knew that powerful people were not to be offended. They may seem glamorous now, but if they offended the powerful, they might end up in a miserable state.

Exactly, the eldest daughter-in-law's plump figure, while adhering to Manchu etiquette, that handkerchief-flicking gesture is rather an eyesore.
"The one who poured you tea is my second daughter-in-law, who has been widowed for many years. She came to our house when she was eleven, and it's been ten years now. Poor girl."

Cao Wei thought to himself, "It really is Ru Qiulan." "Greetings, Second Madam Rui."

Ru Qiulan gave a slight curtsy. Compared to the unsightly way her eldest daughter-in-law, who looked like a fat pig, bowed, Ru Qiulan's gesture was much more pleasing to the eye.

He couldn't help but look at her again, this esteemed person whom he had never even been qualified to look at before.

Ru Qiulan blushed slightly under his gaze and couldn't help but shift her body slightly. Little did she know that her action allowed Cao Weida to get a full view of her curvaceous figure.

Prince Rui's eyes flickered, and he waved his hand, "Alright, everyone has exchanged greetings, you may all leave."

"Yes~~"

Seeing Ru Qiulan leave, Cao Weida felt a little reluctant. He had married two concubines, but none of them had the aristocratic air about them.

Men, what man doesn't like this?

The pursuit of progressive and independent women in this era is good, but ultimately it lacks something in terms of temperament.

After they all left, Master Fan, who was preoccupied with making money, started to warm up the atmosphere: "Prince Rui, I brought Master Cao here today to admire your treasures. If it's convenient for you now, could you show them to us so we can broaden our horizons?"

(End of this chapter)