Restoring cultural relics: Starting with the crying Tang Dynasty figurines

At the same time in the provincial capital, a black Audi was parked in the alley behind the Provincial Cultural Relics Bureau, with the engine off and the lights off.

Sun Guoliang sat in the driver's seat, his hands on the steering wheel, his eyes fixed on the empty alleyway ahead through the windshield.

At this moment, there was a thin layer of sweat on his forehead!

There was a person sitting in the back seat. To say that he was "sitting" was an understatement; it was more like a human-shaped shadow piled up on the seat.

The thing was dressed in black, its face obscured, or rather, it had no face at all; its outline flickered in and out of focus in the darkness.

"He got his credentials from the Ninth Division..."

Sun Guoliang's voice was very respectful, as if he were reporting to a superior, or as if he were talking to someone he dared not offend.

The shadow did not respond.

"The number is 007."

Sun Guoliang continued, "Zhang Weiyi personally handled the files. He will also come to the provincial capital for training at the end of the month, and the people from the Ninth Division will contact him then."

The thing in the back seat moved slightly.

It's not the kind of movement where hands and feet move, but rather the entire outline spreading out and closing like ripples on water.

"According to my investigation, the Su family's bronze plaque is also in his hands," Sun Guoliang added.

This time, the shadow reacted.

A very faint sound came from the back seat. It wasn't language; it sounded like stones grinding against each other, but Sun Guoliang understood its meaning.

"No rush."

Sun Guoliang nodded, his body trembling slightly.

The shadow shifted again, as if adjusting to a more comfortable position, and its outline began to become clearer!

It didn't conjure up facial features; rather, a shape slowly emerged from a chaotic mass of blackness.

The shape resembles a person, but the proportions are off; the shoulders are broad, the neck is long, and the number of fingers is incorrect.

Sun Guoliang turned his face away and looked out the window, not daring to look at it in the rearview mirror.

"Wait." The nonverbal voice rang out again.

Then the shadow began to dissipate, turning into a wisp of black silk that disappeared into Sun Guoliang's sleeve. Sun Guoliang let out a long breath and leaned back in his chair.

He wiped the sweat from his forehead, started the car, and turned on the headlights. Just then, his phone lit up; a message appeared on the screen:

"I will receive either a bronze medal or a jade ring by the end of the month."

The sender is Han Zhengming!

Sun Guoliang stared at the message for a few seconds, thinking to himself, "It's not that easy. You don't allow open robbery, saying you're afraid the Ninth Bureau will get involved, but you don't even need to use your power to exert pressure..."

Sun Guoliang sighed, didn't reply to the message, started the car, and quickly disappeared around the corner in the distance.

At this time, the light was still on in the last office on the east side of the third floor of the Provincial Cultural Relics Bureau office building.

Gu Yuanhang sat at his desk with a document in front of him. The cover of the document was marked with the word "Confidential" and had a red stamp in the upper right corner.

As he finished reading the last page and closed the document, the phone on the table rang.

Gu Yuanhang glanced at the caller ID and answered the call.

"Director Gu, the monitoring data for the mezzanine over tonight is out." The voice on the other end of the phone was young: "The fluctuation value has increased by another three percent compared to yesterday."

"Keep an eye on it," Gu Yuanhang said. "Notify me when it rises to ten percent."

"clear."

After hanging up the phone, Gu Yuanhang put the documents in the drawer, picked up the teacup on the table, took a sip, and looked at the night view outside the window.

Thinking of Su Yuan at the town's repair center, that family had guarded the mezzanine for generations, and now it was the youngest's turn...

Su Yuan stared at the bronze mirror in the dormitory for a long time.

The light shone for a while, then slowly dimmed, returning to its usual faint state.

The excitement surrounding the jade ring and the spirit-locking bead gradually subsided, as if nothing had ever happened. Su Yuan, still thrilled, turned over and placed the bronze mirror face down next to his pillow.

"Awu, goodnight," he called softly, but there was no response.

But Su Yuan knew she had heard him; the light in the mirror trembled slightly…

Su Yuan soon drifted off to sleep, and when he opened his eyes again, it was already dawn.

There are three messages on my phone.

Chen Xiaohe sent: "I brought you breakfast." Zhao Cheng sent: "There's another short meeting in Director Zhang's office at nine o'clock this morning."

Another message from Lin Xi: "Su Yuan, have you submitted your training materials for the end of the month?"

Su Yuan returned to Lin Xi first: "Not yet, it's due today."

He replied to Zhao Cheng with another "Okay," and finally sent Chen Xiaohe a message saying "Coming soon."

After quickly washing up, Chen Xiaohe grabbed his toolbox and went downstairs. He was already waiting for him at the entrance of his workplace, carrying two plastic bags.

"Eat up, we have a meeting at nine." Chen Xiaohe handed him the bag. One bag contained two meat buns, and the other contained a cup of soy milk.

Su Yuan took the bun, took a bite, and asked, "Brother Chen, what kind of meeting is it now?"

"I don't know. Director Zhang called me early this morning and told me. It was just a few of us." Chen Xiaohe was also eating a steamed bun.

"Sun Guoliang is still nowhere to be seen, and his car hasn't returned either."

Chen Xiaohe said something again, but Su Yuan, who was eating a steamed bun, didn't say anything.

At 8:50, the two arrived at Zhang Weiyi's office. The door was open, and Zhao Cheng and Qian Weidong were already sitting inside. Lin Xi was sitting in a chair against the wall with several files in her hands.

When Zhang Weiyi saw them come in, he pointed to the empty chairs and said, "Sit down."

After everyone was seated, Zhang Weiyi began to speak: "Let me start with two things."

He pushed a folder to the middle of the table, and the open page contained a photo of a Buddha statue with obvious signs of human scratching on its face.

"The first task was a restoration assignment transferred from the Provincial Cultural Relics Bureau."

Zhang Weiyi counted on his fingers and said:

"This is a Tang Dynasty stone Buddha statue. Its face has been scratched and needs facial restoration. The provincial authorities don't have enough manpower, so they asked if we could take on the task."

Su Yuan stared at the photo for a few seconds.

The Buddha statue's face was severely damaged; the eyes, nose, and mouth were scraped by sharp objects, and the original outline was almost unrecognizable!

It seems like something is being deliberately concealed, but judging from the remaining clothing patterns and the shape of the ushnisha, it is indeed a Tang Dynasty craft.

"I suggest you take on this task, Xiao Su."

Zhang Weiyi looked at Su Yuan and said, "You've done statue restoration before, and I remember you handled the wooden Guanyin case very well."

Su Yuan nodded: "Okay."

"Okay, I'll let you know the details of the coordination later." Zhang Weiyi closed the folder and put it aside, then said, "The second thing is about the training at the end of the month."

The people in the room sat up a little straighter.

"The training was organized by the Ninth Division, held in the provincial capital, and lasted for three days. Xiao Su participated as a member of the expert group."

"Zhao Cheng participated as a liaison officer."

Zhang Weiyi paused for a moment: "You two need to be careful about one thing, Han Zhengming's people will also be there!"

Su Yuan frowned slightly.

"You met Jiang Weiguo from the Provincial Cultural Relics Bureau last time."

Zhang Weiyi continued, "He was also one of the participants in the training. On the surface, he got along well with everyone, but in reality, he reported to Han Zhengming regularly."

"You need to be careful when dealing with him."

The jade ring felt warm on Su Yuan's hand at that moment!