I was approached by a cat-eared girl.

Before he could finish speaking, the receiver went dead, clearly indicating that Chen Jianwen had already hung up.

Chen Shuo put down his phone, looked at the wooden box on the coffee table, then at the sphere, and his heart began to race for no reason. Judging from the old man's reaction, these two things seemed to be really good things.

He stood up and pushed open the bedroom door. "My dad said he'll be right there."

"what?"

Bai Xiaoqi was startled. The cat ears on her head disappeared instantly, and her snow-white hair turned black. "What are you doing here, Uncle?"

"It's our dad."

"we..."

She opened her mouth, but nothing came out. She glanced at him, somewhat embarrassed and annoyed, then turned her head back to continue making the bed.

Chen Shuo chuckled for a moment and then stopped teasing her, explaining, "They might be here to help us appraise some things."

What are you identifying?

"It's that wooden box and the sphere."

As the two were talking, before Bai Xiaoqi had even finished putting on the sheets and blankets, there was a knock on the living room door.

Chen Shuo opened the door, and Chen Jianwen stood there, his forehead covered in sweat, his shirt soaked through. He had ridden his bicycle over there, a distance of nearly four kilometers, in less than ten minutes.

They sped along, the bike chain almost flying off, just in case the kid caused something to happen to the stuff.

After entering the room, Chen Jianwen wiped the sweat from his forehead and asked, "Where are the things?"

On the coffee table.

Upon hearing this, Chen Jianwen turned to look at the coffee table. After seeing what was on it, he was no longer in a hurry. He went to the bathroom to wash his face and then carefully washed his hands before wiping his glasses and coming out.

"Hello, Uncle." Bai Xiaoqi greeted him politely.

"Hello."

The old man nodded slightly, put his glasses back on, and sat down on the sofa. When he saw the stone bottle cap and wooden beads in the wooden box, his brows furrowed instantly. Pointing at the junk inside, he turned to Chen Shuo and asked, "Who did this?"

Chen Shuo didn't say anything, but raised his chin and gestured towards the kitchen. Chen Jianwen looked in that direction and saw Bai Xiaoqi boiling water in the kitchen.

Chen Jianwen's lips moved for a while, wanting to say something but unable to. He pushed up his glasses, carefully picked up the wooden box, and began to examine it closely.

I thought it was sandalwood when I saw the photos before, and now that I see it, it is definitely sandalwood. Moreover, judging from the color and texture, it is black with a purple hue, so it must be at least four hundred years old.

After confirming it, his expression was a mixture of helplessness and heartache. Wasn't this just wasting something?

"This is sandalwood!" After holding back for a while, he finally said this, trying to make the two of them realize the value of the item.

"Sandalwood...is it very expensive?" Chen Shuo was stunned. Bai Xiaoqi, who was in the kitchen, also looked over. Yes, is it very expensive?

"What do you say?"

Chen Jianwen glared at him, thinking, "This kid's education has gone to waste. He's never even heard of sandalwood or rosewood."

"Sandalwood is commonly known as small-leaf sandalwood."

"Oh, I see." Chen Shuo was a little disappointed. Small-leaf sandalwood didn't seem to be expensive. A classmate of his had bought such a bracelet online before. It was quite long and only cost fifty-eight yuan, including shipping.

As for the wooden box, it is over 20 centimeters long and about 10 centimeters wide. It uses much more wood than the bracelet and is estimated to be worth several hundred yuan.

"Dad, how much do you think this box is worth? Is it worth a thousand?"

"one thousand?!"

Chen Jianwen exclaimed in surprise, looking at him with the same gaze one would give a village idiot, "Are you alright?"

"Not even worth a thousand? Dad, take another look. There's a piece of jade on this."

"You should go to the hospital and get it checked out."

Chapter 183 Are You an Idiot?

When Chen Shuo applied for his major, he chose Chinese Language and Literature in the Chinese Department. Chen Jianwen advised against it, saying he should have studied history instead. Unfortunately, the brat didn't take his advice.

Looking back now, I realize I shouldn't have studied Chinese language and literature. If I had studied history, I wouldn't be in this mess. A centuries-old sandalwood box, and they ask for a thousand just by touching their lips.

In the antique trade, this kind of item deserves to be ripped off.

"This is a Ming Dynasty dressing box, which is a box used by women in ancient times to store jewelry. Do you see the floral, bird and cloud patterns on it? The carving technique has a distinct late Ming style."

And this jade, it's top-quality mutton fat nephrite, which in today's terms would be called Hetian jade pebble.

The carving on it depicts peonies. Although plum blossoms were generally loved by people in the Ming Dynasty, women especially favored peonies.

Chen Jianwen pushed up his glasses, picked up the box and continued his introduction, "Especially this wood. Sandalwood was valued by the imperial court during the Ming and Qing dynasties. It was definitely not something that ordinary people could use. It required a certain status and rank. A woman who could have her dowry made of sandalwood must have come from a wealthy and powerful family."

After listening to the old man's long-winded explanation, Chen Shuo nodded repeatedly, and then asked the question he was most concerned about, "How much is this box worth?"

“Sandalwood was favored by the imperial family during the Ming Dynasty. Although the carving technique on this dressing case was not done by the court craftsmen, it is still well preserved.”

After a moment's thought, Chen Jianwen gave a very conservative offer: "At least one million or more."

"One million?!"

Now it was Chen Shuo's turn to exclaim in surprise, and his heart began to pound uncontrollably. He was rich! He was rich!

He reached out and took the wooden box, hugging it to his chest. He emptied out all the junk inside. What a waste! A box worth millions filled with this rubbish! It's an absolute waste! This deserves to be struck by lightning.

Once this box is sold, I'll buy a house, a car, a nice car, and a villa. Oh, but without a luxury car and a villa, one million isn't enough.

"Actually, the price of the dressing case can be estimated, but this..."

Seeing the old man pick up that dull gray ball, Chen Shuo suddenly felt as if he had a villa and luxury car again.

Chen Jianwen held his breath and carefully examined the sphere. He closed his eyes and gently touched the hollowed-out patterns on it, as if trying to feel the profound and weighty essence it conveyed.

After sensing for a while, he finally opened his eyes and opened the sphere. When he saw that the incense burner inside contained a broken boulder, he exclaimed, "Who did this?!"

"Uh... I did it."

The old man raised his hand, about to smack him on the head, when the door clicked open and Bai Xiaoqi came out of the bedroom, carrying the bed sheets and duvet cover she had changed, ready to take them to the washing machine.

Seeing this, Chen Jianwen could only reluctantly put his hand down and instead picked up his water glass.

Although it was freshly boiled water, the temperature was still acceptable after a while. After drinking it all in one gulp, he cleared his throat, picked up the round ball in his hand, frowned, and asked, "You put a marble in this thing?"

"I just want to use this pinball to check out this 'celestial'... no, I mean check out this gyroscope. Dad, just tell me what this is, what it's used for, and how much it's worth?"

"This is a sachet. What do you think it's used for?"

"A sachet?" Chen Shuo stared at the sphere for a few moments. In his mind, sachets were small red cloth bags. Was this iron ball also a sachet?

"Yes, the Tang Dynasty sachet, whether in terms of materials or patterns, is obviously genuine. It is definitely from the Tang Dynasty. In the words of the antique trade, it is a authentic item, and a genuine item used by the Tang Dynasty court."

According to modern naming methods, it should be called a gilded silver openwork sachet with floral and bird designs. The provincial museum has a similar piece, a national first-class cultural relic. I even took you to see it when you were a child, don't you remember?

"oh....."

Chen Shuo suddenly realized why it felt familiar; he had seen it before when he was a child. Then he became excited again.

"How much is this thing worth?"

"You're asking how much it's worth? How much do you think a national-level cultural relic is worth? The value of this thing is simply incalculable."

At this point, Chen Jianwen's expression turned unusually serious. "You absolutely mustn't even consider selling it. Tang Dynasty artifacts are not allowed to be bought or sold, let alone something of this level. Selling it would be a criminal offense. It's better to hand it over..."

Upon hearing the words "hand over" come out of the old man's mouth, Chen Shuo raised his hand and snatched the ball away. "Hand it over? Hand it over my ass!"

“This was passed down from Qiqi’s ancestors. It’s a private collection and doesn’t need to be handed over.”

Bai Xiaoqi, standing next to the washing machine, glanced into the living room. "Was that round ball an heirloom from my family? How come I didn't know?"

"I didn't tell you to hand it over, I was just telling you not to sell it."

"Don't worry, I won't sell it, I'll just keep it at home as a collection."

Chen Shuo stroked the sphere in his hand, his excitement gradually fading. It seemed pointless to do anything with this thing since he couldn't sell it.

Chen Jianwen glanced at the sachet in his hand, stood up, paced around the room a couple of times, then sat back down, picked up the kettle, poured himself a glass of water, and said in a casual tone:

"Antiques and collectibles are said to possess a spirit, especially the older they are. They must be handled with care and cherished. You..."

"Dad, do you want this sachet?"

"I...."

Chen Shuo's words interrupted Chen Jianwen's spellcasting. He opened his mouth, but was at a loss for words.

Of course he wanted it, but he was too embarrassed to agree. He stared longingly at the sachet. As a hardcore collector of antiques, he had absolutely no resistance to such a wonderful item.

His study appears to be filled with antiques, but they are mostly from the Qing Dynasty and have little value or historical significance.

If you could place this Tang Dynasty sachet on it, let alone reach out and touch it, just looking at it every day would be a kind of happiness. That would be such a wonderful thing.

Unfortunately, this thing is an heirloom from my future daughter-in-law's family. Although I don't really believe in that saying, it's still hers. If it were this kid's, I would have to get it no matter what.

Giving him such a good thing would be a waste.

After hesitating for a while, Chen Jianwen decided to swallow his pride and lean over to lower his voice, saying, "Well, I don't want it. You and Xiao Qi can discuss whether I can borrow this sachet to appreciate for a while. I'll return it to you after some time."

"Take it if you want, why borrow it?" Chen Shuo was quite generous and handed over the sphere in his hand. Anyway, he couldn't sell it, and it would be annoying to keep it at home looking at it every day.

Chen Jianwen glanced at the sachet in his hand, but didn't take it. He continued in a low voice, "I'm just borrowing it. I don't want it. Besides, you should discuss it first so that there won't be any conflicts later."

"Okay, I'll go talk to her about it."

Chen Shuo stood up. Actually, he felt there was no need to say anything. That silly little Miao was probably thinking the same thing as him. No, she was probably even more upset than him.

Is it reasonable to sell something that's clearly valuable, or you'll end up in jail?

Bai Xiaoqi was hanging clothes on the balcony when the father and son were talking in the living room. She kept her ears open no matter where she went. When she saw Chen Shuo coming over, she immediately said, "Give it to Uncle."

"Shall we sell that wooden box? If not, you can keep it as a souvenir, and you can use it to store things in the future."

Are you an idiot?

Bai Xiaoqi looked a little worried. Could this guy have gone mad?

When she first overheard that the box was worth millions, she was shocked and incredulous, then excited and thrilled, then happy and hopeful, but now she is worried.

Since that broken wooden box can be sold for money, even a million, shouldn't we hurry up and find a fool to take advantage of it?

He actually wanted to keep it as a souvenir and even used it to store things.

Is this guy crazy?