Shuqing Song brought out 10 antiques. There were paintings, jade, vases and luminous pearls…
"There is a mix of authentic and fake pieces in these 10 antiques. You will all pick one antique to authenticate. We will draw to decide the sequence this time instead of going by the rank." Shuqing Song smiled faintly and introduced the rules of the third round of the competition.
Since there were 10 antiques, everyone gets one. Qingfeng was not in a rush to pick an antique. He was looking at the antiques carefully. There were 5 authentic pieces and 5 fake pieces among the 10 antiques.
Qingfeng did not step forward to pick but the other 9 participants could not restrain themselves. They stepped forward to select the antiques and started to authenticate the antiques.
One had to admit that the antiques that Shuqing Song brought out were all of high quality. The fake pieces were very close to the authentic originals. Many of the participants authenticated the pieces wrongly at this point of the competition.
Other than Qingfeng who had not picked an antique, the remaining participants had already selected an antique to authenticate. Even Xiuling Xu and Xiaomei Wang had failed. Only Sitao Song remained.
Of course, Sitao Song could win because he had received intel about the antiques from his grandfather, Shuqing Song. He already knew which of the 10 pieces were authentic before the competition started.
Without Shuqing Song’s help, it would be impossible for Sitao Song to win. There were unspoken rules in all trades of society, the Antique Competition was no exception.
"Qingfeng, quickly select an antique to authenticate," Shuqing Song said when he saw Qingfeng standing by the side. A flicker of displeasure appeared in his eyes.
He asked Qingfeng to select an antique but in reality, Qingfeng had no choice. The other nine pieces had already been selected by the other participants. Only the luminous pearl was left.
The luminous pearl was the size of an egg. It was round and light blue in color. It emitted a light glow and its surface was smooth as jade. There was not a single flaw on the pearl.
Qingfeng took the luminous pearl and felt a warm sensation. Luminous pearl was a rare jewel. In ancient times, it was known as the ‘moonlit pearl’ and ‘beauty pearl’. Only aristocrats could own a luminous pearl.
The famous luminous pearls in history were owned by Danji Su, Guifei Yang, and the Empress Dowager Cixi. Pearls were one of the favorite types of jewelry of women and a sign of nobility.
Qingfeng carefully inspected the luminous pearl in his hand. He furrowed his brows and said, "The luminous pearl is fake."
What? The luminous pearl is fake? His words stunned everyone. Everyone looked at Qingfeng with confusion in their eyes.
"How could the luminous pearl be fake?"
"Yeah, the color of the pearl is so bright. It looks so pure. It looks authentic to me."
"I think it is authentic too."
The surrounding audience discussed amidst themselves. They all thought the luminous pearl was authentic. After all, the pearl was stunning.
Shuqing Song’s face changed slightly when he heard Qingfeng’s words. He naturally knew the authenticity of the things he brought out.
Qingfeng explained to the crowd when he saw their confused expressions.
He said, "The luminous pearl is a light-emitting object. It originated from the lava of a volcano and was formed by the movement of the earth plates and mineral deposition. There are light particles within the pearl. It is a type of jewel. Since it is circular and emits light, it was named the luminous pearl."
"Qingfeng, we know all the things you are saying. But why do you say that the luminous pearl is fake?" The judge in glasses asked loudly.
The judge was already 60 years old. He was dim-sighted and was therefore called the judge with glasses.
Qingfeng looked at the judge with glasses and said, "I talked about the formation of the luminous pearl just now. Now, I will talk about this fake pearl. This pearl is a rock with a coating of fluorescence powder. Heat was applied to the rock to absorb the fluorescence powder. That is why the pearl is emitting light."
"Oh, so it is a fake luminous pearl made of rock and fluorescent powder," the judge with glasses said in realization.
A luminous pearl was rare and expensive. Thus, some manufacturers have produced fake luminous pearls to make a hefty profit.
Even though Qingfeng had explained everything clearly, Shuqing Song was still not satisfied. He said, "Qingfeng, what you said is just a theory. You need to prove that this luminous pearl is fake."
Qingfeng smiled faintly when he saw Shuqing Song deliberately making things difficult for him. He said, "Since you want proof, I will prove it to you."
Qingfeng smiled faintly and found a bottle of alcohol and a porcelain bowl. He poured the alcohol into the bowl and placed the luminous pearl into the bowl.
The alcohol and fluorescent pearl reacted chemically. The fluorescent powder slowly diffused from the luminous pearl and dissolved into the alcohol. The luminous pearl had become an ordinary rock.
"It is indeed not a luminous pearl." The judges and surrounding audience were all stunned when they saw the ordinary rock in the bowl. No one expected the luminous pearl to be fake.
Shuqing Song’s expression darkened when he saw the ordinary rock. But under the watch of the everyone, he could only announce the result, "Qingfeng passes the third round."
There were only two people who passed the third round, Qingfeng and Sitao Song. However, Qingfeng was the winner of the first and second round. Therefore, he directly obtained the first-place position of the Antique Competition. This was the collective decision of the judges. Even though Shuqing Song was dissatisfied, there was nothing he could do.
Cough Cough!
Yunchang Xu coughed and cleared his throat. He loudly announced, "The Antique Competition of Eastern Sea City has concluded successfully. The Antique King this year is Qingfeng Li."
The surrounding audience were excited when they heard Yunchang Xu’s words. They stood up and started a round of applause.
There was only a single Antique King in Eastern Sea City. Only the winner of the Antique Champion could earn the title of Antique King. Qingfeng had won the title without a doubt.
Qingfeng was the dark horse of the competition this year. Before the competition, no one had thought that he would win the competition.
The reward for the winner was very lucrative. Not only did he win the title of "Eastern Sea City Antique King", he also won an antique worth 1,000,000 Yuan.
Yunchang Xu presented a silver trophy to Qingfeng.
The trophy was 30cm tall. It was silver and crystal clear. The plate wrote "Antique King". It was a huge honor to earn the title.
Yunchang Xu handed over the trophy to Qingfeng and took out a white luminous pearl from the box. He said with a smile, "Qingfeng, this is the real luminous pearl. It is an antique from the noble family of the Qing Dynasty. It is your reward."
The luminous pearl was milky white and circular. It emitted a soft white glow. Qingfeng could tell from a single glance that it was an authentic luminous pearl.
Translator's Thoughts
Noodletown Translation Noodletown Translation
Here are 2 regulars plus 15 bonus chaps~
Let's see if we can unlock another Turtle tier of having 10 additional bonuses every month. If you like our novel and wish to support us, you can check out our patreon page to see what chapter deals you will enjoy the most~
Happy new year guys~ Kinda late.
Boner chap count: 0
Turtle on Puberty tier bonus: 5 chaps
Total for next friday: 5 chaps
Next at 1600 power stones
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