They arrived at the largest antique market in the country. It was a place full of fish and dragons jumbled together. There were all kinds of sellers, and the peddlers were all boasting more outrageously than one another.
As long as you showed some interest, they could even claim that the items they were selling dated back to the era when Nuwa created humanity.
When shopping for items in an antique market, first, it relied on your eyesight, and second, you should never believe a single word from the antique dealers.
It had to be said that the tomb - robbers who came to sell antiques were well - aware of the situation in the antique city. They sold their items in such a crowded place, so even if they were discovered, it would be difficult to find them.
Xu Qingqing, Chen Jiashu, and a team of trainee police officers were assigned to Area A of the antique city for investigation. They first went to the small store where the antique was found.
"This is the store where the boss reported the tomb - robbers selling antiques!" Trainee policewoman Xiao He led Xu Qingqing and Chen Jiashu to the discovery site.
The decoration of the small store could not be said to be typical of an antique shop. It was more like a general store. There were all kinds of things in the store, and there were even clothes racks outside the store selling shoddily - made Hanfu.
Xu Qingqing carefully examined the inside of the store. Although the store was small and the items were arranged in a mess, there was a separate table dedicated to the Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva.
The room was filled with a strong smell of incense.
This person believed in Buddhism.
When the boss saw the police coming, he warmly welcomed them in. The boss was a middle - aged fat man in his forties. His chubby face was a bit greasy, and his hairline was quite high. There was an obsequious smile on his face.
The boss rubbed his hands and directly asked the trainee policewoman, "Officer, I was the one who discovered this. Is there any bonus or something?"
As he spoke, the fat man reached out to grab Xiao He's hand and rubbed it back and forth. Coupled with his greasy smile, it was obvious that he had impure intentions.
Xiao He was a newbie and felt extremely uncomfortable being touched. Xu Qingqing stepped forward to block Xiao He behind her and slapped away the boss's fat hand.
Xu Qingqing's face was as calm as water, her eyes were dark and cold, and her tone was cold as she warned the middle - aged man.
"Behave yourself! If you keep getting handsy, you'll be spending a couple of days in the police station first!"
"Thank you." Xiao He gave Xu Qingqing a grateful smile. Xu Qingqing smiled and shook her head at her, then turned to glare at the boss.
Xu Qingqing often dealt with these sly and opportunistic antique dealers and knew their characters like the back of her hand!
When the boss saw that Xu Qingqing was even prettier, his eyes lit up, and the lewd smile on his face deepened. Chen Jiashu resumed his usual cold demeanor and blocked the two ladies behind him, preventing the boss's lecherous gaze.
"Tell us what happened that day again."
Seeing a man appear, the boss honestly told the whole story.
"When they took out that antique, I thought the shape was quite unique, and the asking price was very low, only 2,000 yuan, so I bought it."
"But after I took it home and studied it, I found that the item was at least a thousand years old. I was afraid it was too evil to keep!"
"I wanted to get a refund, but the bald guy who sold it wouldn't give me the money back. I asked him the specific age, but he hesitated and wouldn't say. I was afraid they were tomb - robbers, so I reported it to the police."
After the boss finished speaking, he even said "Amitabha" while looking at the Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva on the table.
Xu Qingqing looked at his hypocritical appearance and thought to herself that if he really believed in Buddhism so much, he wouldn't be trying to take advantage of the young girl.
He was just a hypocrite!
"Did that tomb - robber come to sell antiques today?" Xiao He took out her notebook to take notes.
"No."
"Was there anyone else who bought antiques with you?"
The boss nodded, and the fat on his cheeks jiggled. "There's also Lao Yu from the store in the north of the street. He bought one with me that day!"
"I said I was going to report it to the police, but he disagreed. He said it was a rare item. So if there's a bonus, you mustn't give it to him. He knew about it but didn't report it!"
The boss rambled on like a money - grubber. His words always revolved around money.
"Okay, stop talking so much. Take us there right away." Xu Qingqing couldn't stand the boss's smug look and urged him to lead the way. She was full of anticipation for the antique she was about to see.
The group walked through the bustling downtown area and came to the alley where Lao Yu's store was located. There were quite a few people gathered in front of Lao Yu's store.
Lao Yu, the protagonist they were looking for, was in the middle of the crowd. He was holding a bronze statue and vividly describing it to the onlookers. "Don't miss it if you pass by! Come and take a look, everyone!"
"This is a treasure that's been around for over a thousand years! Have you ever seen this kind of shape before?"
As he spoke, Lao Yu held the statue in his hand and showed it around to the crowd. Everyone was looking at the bronze statue curiously.
Some people didn't believe it.
"Lao Yu, did you buy a fake? Why have we never seen a cultural relic of any dynasty with this kind of shape!"
"Exactly. You must have had it made by some random person. I've only heard of the Sphinx, but never a bird - bodied sphinx!"
"Lao Yu, if you want to deceive people, you should at least make up a more believable lie!"
Hearing the doubts from the onlookers, Lao Yu curled his lips, took back the statue, and put it back on the table. He pointed at the people in front of him with his finger, looking like he was giving a lecture.
"You just don't understand. I, Lao Yu, can guarantee to you that this is definitely a genuine item!"
"It's just that the tomb where this was buried hasn't been discovered by humans yet. I'm telling you, if it's ever dug out one day, this treasure of mine will be worth a fortune!"
"You're really lucky today to be able to take a close look at it. In the future, you'll only be able to see it on TV!"
After saying that, Lao Yu put the bronze statue into a wooden box carved from mahogany.
It seemed that Lao Yu knew something about antiques. Although he couldn't tell the origin of this item, he could tell that it was valuable!
Xu Qingqing thought to herself.
The trainee police officers glanced at each other and immediately stepped forward to disperse the crowd. Xiao He walked up to Lao Yu and showed her police ID.
"You're suspected of illegal trading. This bronze statue was dug out of a tomb by tomb - robbers. We need to take it back for investigation."
Lao Yu was startled by the sudden appearance of the police. When he heard that it was sold by tomb - robbers, his body began to tremble.
Merchants were very cautious about tomb - robbers when doing business. If the items were clean, it was easy to deal with, but if they were not, there was a risk of being targeted.
Lao Yu glared resentfully at the boss who was shrinking behind the crowd.
Damn it!
He told him not to inform the police, but he did it anyway. Now even his own item was going to be taken away!
Lao Yu had no choice but to reluctantly open the wooden box. He licked his lips and asked Xiao He, "I bought this for 2,000 yuan. Do you think you could give me the 2,000 yuan back?"
Xiao He noted down the situation. "This matter is not within our jurisdiction, but it will be fairly handled."
Chen Jiashu and Xu Qingqing couldn't wait to put on their gloves and start checking the authenticity of the bronze statue to prevent it from being replaced.
After seeing the real item, Xu Qingqing was even more excited than when she saw the photo.
Although it was covered with a layer of dirt, it was really beautiful and exquisitely made.