Restoring cultural relics: Starting with the crying Tang Dynasty figurines

He quickly calmed down again, realizing that what was hidden inside was the jade ring.

Su Yuan gently pressed his hand on the bridge of the zither, and the warmth of the jade ring seeped into it, flowing along the wood grain of the zither!

The chilling aura that had been lurking in the cracks of the instrument was gradually forced out and floated in the air.

Suddenly, it moved away from Su Yuan and landed in the corner of the repair room, but did not leave.

After repairing the crack in Chunyang Zhenren's body, Su Yuan learned about similar experiences to some extent.

The root of the strange noise is this obsession. If you are unwilling to let it go, the strings will never have peace, and no matter how many times you repair them, it will be useless!

He took out the newly prepared silk strings from the toolbox, adjusted the ratio, and skillfully threaded, secured, and tuned the strings.

With steady and precise technique, after reconnecting the two broken strings, the instrument was taut and tuned, resulting in stable vibrations and a clearer sound.

The moment the strings were tuned, the last trace of coldness in the guqin completely vanished.

The warmth of the jade ring subsided, returning to normal.

Su Yuan plucked the strings again, thinking to himself that it truly lived up to its name, "Nine Heavens Jade Pendant." The tone was deep and ancient, retaining all the charm of a Tang Dynasty zither, without any other unwanted noise.

It looks simple, but in reality, the jade ring suppresses the obsession within the antique and stabilizes the aura of the zither itself!

After packing up his tools, Su Yuan looked at the figure in the corner of the repair room.

It wasn't one of those non-human shadows, but a woman dressed in ancient musician's attire, standing quietly without approaching or causing trouble, just gazing at the guqin on the table from afar.

She bowed slightly and explained the reason.

It turned out that half a month ago, the dampness of the warehouse and the old grudges of the objects stirred up the lingering obsession of the Tang Dynasty musician in the zither.

She was originally someone who died to protect the zither and was trapped inside the zither for a thousand years. Coincidentally, the temperature and humidity changed drastically at night during those few days, and her obsession, with the help of the cold air, broke two strings!

Now, the gentle energy of this jade ring has dispelled the coldness, and I am finally free.

The musician glanced at the jade ring on Su Yuan's hand, bowed again, and then her figure slowly faded and disappeared.

The head of the restoration department, who was pacing back and forth outside the door, pushed it open and rubbed his hands together. Seeing Su Yuan come out, he hurriedly asked:

"alright?"

"Um."

"Will there be any more strange noises tonight?"

"No more."

The director thanked him repeatedly and then led Su Yuan to register and settle the accounts.

After signing and registering according to the procedure, Su Yuan left immediately and returned home without lingering.

The train carriage was quiet on the way back, and he and the driver also talked.

The matter of the guqin was resolved smoothly, and it also made him realize some things: whenever there is any unusual activity involving an antique, there are always some entanglements behind it!

He never imagined that he would be restoring not only objects, but also the past that was trapped by time and had nowhere to go.

When I got back to the office around 2 p.m. and got out of the car, I saw Zhang Weiyi sitting on a bench in the lobby on the first floor, waiting for me.

Seeing Su Yuan enter through the automatic door, he stood up and said:

"Han Zhengming has reviewed the old warehouse register!"

Su Yuan was startled and stared at Zhang Weiyi without saying a word.

Zhang Weiyi didn't say anything more, gestured and went upstairs, with Su Yuan following behind him.

The two entered the director's office together, and Su Yuan quickly put down his toolbox and asked:

"Director, what... did he look at?"

"The warehouse entry and exit records, and the one you supplemented the registration, Lin Xi had just filed them out half a day ago, and he had already pulled them over to look at them."

Zhang Weiyi lit a cigarette and, seeing that Su Yuan didn't speak after listening, asked him again:

"Did you run into him? Did he ask you anything?"

"Not yet," Su Yuan said. "I went to the museum but didn't see it."

Zhang Weiyi nodded and flicked the ash from his cigarette.

"That's good. He asked me what was in the wooden box in the Su family's house."

"What did you say?"

"I said I didn't know either. It was something from the Su family's ancestors, and it wasn't opened in front of me."

Zhang Weiyi looked at him: "Han Zhengming didn't press the matter, but I felt something was off about the look in his eyes!"

Su Yuan touched the jade ring on his index finger without saying a word.

"Do your repair tasks these next two days if you have any. If not, don't hide from them. Just don't actively seek them out. Let's see how it goes."

"understood."

After Su Yuan finished speaking, he picked up his toolbox and was about to leave when Zhang Weiyi gave him another instruction:

"Don't take that ring off unless necessary."

Su Yuan glanced at the jade ring on his hand, hummed in agreement, and left.

There was no one in the corridor and no voices asking questions as Su Yuan passed by Lin Xi's office.

Lin Xi was organizing documents inside when she saw him pass by and asked:

"You're back? Is the guqin easy to repair?"

"Hmm." Su Yuan placed the toolbox on the table. "It's not too troublesome."

Lin Xi glanced at him with a hint of worry, but didn't ask any further questions. She neatly stacked the pile of forms in her hand and said:

"By the way, Director Han came by this afternoon to ask if you were back yet."

Su Yuan frowned: "Looking for me?"

"Yeah, they said they just wanted to chat casually and get to know you."

Lin Xi stuffed the form into the file folder and continued:

"I told him you went out to the museum to fix things, and he didn't say anything more. He stood at the door for a while and then left."

Su Yuan hummed in response but didn't reply.

Before leaving with the file folder, Lin Xi gave a reminder:

"I don't feel comfortable looking at that person..."

"What's wrong?"

"I can't quite put my finger on it." Lin Xi thought for a moment, "It's just that you're being too polite, so polite that it makes me feel uneasy. I'm leaving now, remember to close the door later."

Su Yuan stood there stunned without saying a word, and two minutes later he closed the door and returned to his office.

Su Yuan sat down in the chair and took the bronze mirror out of his pocket and placed it on the table.

Staring absently at the small spot on the mirror, I touched the jade ring and remembered something!

He took out his phone and sent a message to his mother:

"Mom, has Dad ever mentioned someone with the surname Han before?"

After waiting five or six minutes without a reply, he sent another message: "A guy named Han Zhengming, an inspector from above, is checking the old warehouse today."

My phone vibrated after about ten minutes.

"Yuan'er, try to avoid having anything to do with him."

Su Yuan stared at the screen for a while, then placed his phone face down on the table.

The sky outside the window darkened, and the sound of footsteps began to echo in the hallway, very softly.

Su Yuan knew those weren't human!

He finished tidying up and left the office. When he walked to the lobby on the first floor, he ran into someone.

He was facing away from the outside light, and his front had a vague, indistinct quality.

He was in his early fifties, of medium build, wearing a dark gray jacket and glasses, and looked very refined. Upon seeing Su Yuan, he smiled first and asked:

"You must be Su Yuan?"

Su Yuan's heart skipped a beat and he stopped abruptly.

"I am Han Zhengming." The man extended his hand. "I've heard of you for a long time, but I've never had a chance to meet you."

Su Yuan looked at his outstretched hand, hesitated for a moment, and then shook it.

Su Yuan released Han Zhengming's cold hand and said, "Director Han..."

"No need to call me Director, just call me Old Han." Han Zhengming smiled, his eyes narrowing behind his glasses. "Did you go to the museum to repair the guqin this morning?"

"Um."

"Thank you for your hard work." Han Zhengming took two steps into the hall and turned to look at him.

"That zither is from the Tang Dynasty, isn't it?"