"Master, what do you think of my porcelain? Is it ancient porcelain? When I bought it, the boss said it was antique porcelain. According to him, the porcelain is a new imitation and is a modern handicraft."
He Qing asked Mr. Zheng seriously.
Mr. Zheng nodded, expressed his approval, and replied solemnly: "Xiao He, since you collected the things, they must be good. Although there is no possibility that this narcissus basin is an authentic product of the Ru kiln in the Song Dynasty.
It’s big, but I’m sure it’s antique porcelain, and it’s a certain age, but the exact age needs to be verified.”
Mr. Deng, who was standing aside, also agreed: "Old Zheng and I have the same idea. The thing is ancient porcelain, so it should be an old imitation, because you can tell by looking at the patina that the patina is thick and natural, and it is very open."
"Oh, really?" He Qing said happily, "That's good. I got it at the price of a new imitation, so I should make a profit."
"How much did you spend when you collected it?" Mr. Zheng asked casually.
He Qing answered truthfully: "Twenty thousand."
"Only twenty thousand?!" Mr. Zheng said in surprise, "Then you have made a lot of money. Such a beautiful piece of antique porcelain is worth a lot of money, at least worth hundreds of thousands. If it is an antique porcelain from an official kiln,
That’s more valuable.”
Lin Haitao asked in surprise: "Grandpa, is it possible that this piece of porcelain from Brother Qing came from an official kiln? Official kilns generally rarely make antique porcelain, right?"
Mr. Zheng shook his head gently and said: "There are only a few that specialize in production, but there are indeed some. For example, the batch of Ru kiln porcelain specially made by Emperor Qianlong I mentioned just now was fired in the palace. You
Can you say it’s not from an official kiln?”
"For imperial use, of course it is!" Lin Haitao replied.
When he heard Mr. Zheng mentioning the batch of Ru kiln porcelain fired by Emperor Qianlong again, He Qing's expression changed slightly and he looked thoughtful.
Then I heard him ask: "Master, are the batch of Ru kiln antique porcelain secretly fired by Emperor Qianlong really valuable? What type of Ru kiln porcelain is produced? Is it a plate, a saucer, or other types of porcelain?"
porcelain?"
Mr. Zheng pointed to the narcissus basin on the table and said, "That's it!"
"Are they all like this?!" Lin Haitao said in surprise, "Why is it such a coincidence?!"
Mr. Zheng said calmly: "It's such a coincidence. If I hadn't seen that Xiao He received a daffodil basin with azure glaze, I might not have thought of going there for a while. As far as I know, that batch
The antique porcelain used in the palace is all of the same type. As for why Emperor Qianlong liked to make narcissus basins. There is a saying that Emperor Qianlong liked to raise cats. He used the narcissus basin in the palace to feed the cats and treat them as cats.
But a cat he raised was too naughty and broke the basin. Later, Qianlong issued an edict and ordered craftsmen to bake a batch of Ru kiln azure-glazed narcissus basins in the porcelain kiln in the palace. This way.
Not only does he have enough cat food bowls, but he can also play with them. It’s a good thing to kill two birds with one stone, isn’t it?”
"That's it!" After hearing this, He Qing nodded as if he suddenly understood.
Seeing that he listened so seriously, Mr. Zheng chuckled and said: "This is just a legend. There are so many stories about antique shops. Sometimes it sounds funny, just laugh it off, but don't take it seriously. But although Emperor Qianlong is not sure
Is it true that Ru kiln porcelain is used as a cat food bowl, but a batch of imitation Ru kiln porcelain was indeed fired in the Qing Dynasty court, either during the Yongzheng or Qianlong reigns. These two periods are the closest."
"The story may not all be false." He Qing said solemnly, "Maybe Emperor Qianlong really used Ru kiln porcelain as a cat food bowl. After all, he is the emperor, so what? Using Ru kiln to make a cat food bowl is not
It’s a luxurious thing. At that time, the value of Ru kiln had not yet been fully reflected, at least it was not as valued as it is now.”
From the image "recorded" on the porcelain, He Qing saw that the item came from the imperial kiln factory of the Qing Dynasty palace and was used to feed cats. However, at first he was not sure that the item was related to Qianlong. Now he sees
I can't go wrong here. The Ru kiln narcissus basin I just bought is the cat food basin of Emperor Qianlong. It has a great background.
According to what Mr. Zheng said at the beginning, the items are almost comparable to the Ru porcelain from the official kilns of the Song Dynasty. The value of the porcelain is immeasurable, because the Ru kiln porcelain is extremely rare and rare. It is difficult to see it at auctions, even if it happens occasionally.
If there is one piece, it will only be sky-high price.
Hearing He Qing's explanation, Mr. Deng nodded with relief and said: "Actually, this story is not completely unfounded. It has a certain background. There is a widely circulated joke that everyone must have heard of.
, it is about an old lady who is very scheming. In order to sell cats, she puts up a expensive cat food bowl. No one dares to say that they want to buy this bowl. They all say that they want to buy the old lady’s cat and take this bowl. The old lady
Said: 'I can't buy this pot, I have to rely on this pot to sell cats.' This joke did not come out of thin air, it is well documented in history.
"When we looked through the history books, we found out who called this precious basin the cat food basin? It turned out to be Emperor Qianlong! During the Qianlong period, the Ru kiln narcissus basin kept in the palace was called the 'cat food basin' by Qianlong, and he specially
I wrote a poem inscribed by the emperor. The poem written by the emperor goes like this: "The official kiln does not distinguish between the Song Dynasty and the Tang Dynasty. The fire has no trace of Baoguang. It is just a false reference to the food utensils, but the scales recognize the kindness of the pigs."
"The so-called 'official kiln cannot distinguish' should actually be 'Ru kiln cannot distinguish'. Emperor Qianlong couldn't tell the difference between Ru kiln and official kiln. Ru kiln is a little blue, and official kiln is a little gray, but in a place that is not
From the perspective of a professional layman, these differences are not big, so Qianlong said: 'I can't tell whether this official kiln is from the Song Dynasty or the Tang Dynasty.'
"'There is no fire at all' refers to an old kiln porcelain, which means that the fire is gone. When we appraise it, we often say 'this porcelain is full of fire', which means that it is new and just came out of the oven, so it has a lot of fire. 'Bao Guang'
It means that the luster on porcelain is very pleasant. We always say the word "patter", which comes from this place.
"And what is a 'food utensil'? It is a puppy's rice bowl. Historical records record that the puppy among the ornamental dogs is called '秧'. There is a poem by Yuan Zhen, a poet of the Tang Dynasty: 'Parrots scream when they are hungry, but they are still angry when sleeping.
.' When a parrot is hungry, it will chirp and bark randomly; when you touch your puppy when it is asleep, it will get angry. Anyone who has ever raised a pet dog has this experience. If you keep poking it while it is asleep, it will become angry.
He barked and became unhappy. Qianlong said that the only way to raise a puppy is to step on the scale, and only after it steps on the scale can you know the kindness of the owner.
"Qianlong had such an emotional description. But he made a mistake. He thought the puppy of the ornamental dog was a cat. Therefore, in May 1745, the tenth year of Qianlong's reign, he issued a decree: The cat's food bowl should be equipped with a red sandalwood
The wooden base is lower and deeper. There is a drawer inside the base. This Qianlong thought it was a cat food bowl, but it was actually a Ru kiln narcissus basin. Qianlong passed the order and made a seat out of red sandalwood, which he thought was the cat's food bowl.
The food bowl is placed on the top. The lower part is made higher and a drawer is inserted. After this seat was completed, it has been collected in the Qing Palace and is now in the National Palace Museum in Taipei.
"Later, Qianlong issued an order to imitate the 'Ru kiln cat food bowl' for him. He would talk about official kiln and Ru kiln at one moment, but he couldn't tell the difference. The allusion to the cat food basin started from Qianlong's order.
It’s spreading. If you really have a Ruyao cat food bowl, not to mention selling cats, haha, even cows will be sold!”
"..."
He spoke a lot in one breath, and He Qing and the others listened attentively with their ears raised.
After listening, Mr. Zheng shook his head, sighed, and said with a wry smile: "I'm ashamed. It turns out that there is some interesting history here. I ignored this part of history."
Mr. Deng comforted him with a smile: "You have to live and learn. How can a person know everything? If you know everything, there is no point in it. If you don't know, you should learn. If you still have to learn, then
It's interesting, isn't it? Emperor Qianlong did regard the Ru kiln narcissus basin as a 'cat food basin', but it was not like the story circulated in antique shops, where Qianlong kept a cat and the cat broke the genuine Ru kiln porcelain.
, if that is the case, how did the one collected in the Forbidden City come from? But I estimate that the two or three Ru kiln narcissus basins collected in the Forbidden City may be the 'cat food basin' made by Emperor Qianlong."
"Well, you are right, I have learned a lesson." Mr. Zheng nodded humbly.
At this moment, He Qing, who had been standing quietly and listening, became more and more excited the more he listened, because from what Mr. Deng said, he was sure that the Ru kiln narcissus basin he had collected by accident was from the palace.
One piece came out, and that piece was the "Ru Kiln Cat Food Bowl" that Emperor Qianlong ordered the craftsmen to make.
"Master, Mr. Deng, if you say that this is not a genuine Ru kiln porcelain, is it possible that it is one of the cat food bowls made by Emperor Qianlong?" Later, He Qing couldn't help but ask.
Although he knew that the porcelain he had received was imperial porcelain from the Qianlong period, he was the only one who knew the ins and outs of the thing, and no one else knew about it, so he had to get others' confirmation.
Mr. Deng nodded and said: "It's possible. It's possible. At least the thing is an antique, and it's most likely an antique porcelain from an official kiln. Such a beautiful piece of imitation Ru kiln porcelain is of great collection value. So
If you sell it for the price you paid 20,000 yuan now, it will undoubtedly fetch a sky-high price!"
Mr. Zheng also nodded and said: "The stuff is really good, I like it very much! As I said at the beginning, the batch of imperial Ru kiln porcelain that was imitated by the Qing Dynasty now seems to be almost the same as the authentic Ru kiln porcelain, and it is also a unique treasure.
! No matter what, Xiaohe, congratulations, you picked up another big leak!"
"Haha, I've been lucky recently and came across a few nice things." He Qing said with a smile.
At this point, he was completely relieved. Anyway, he was not in a hurry to sell things now. For a piece of porcelain with such an extraordinary origin, of course he had to keep it well and enjoy it for himself first, so there was no need to start immediately.
Mr. Zheng asked him to verify the specific age and provenance of the things.
After reading it, He Qing put away the "cat food bowl", and then Mr. Zheng said: "Xiao He, we have been here in the capital for a long time this time. If you can do what you are doing,
It's almost done, then we are ready to return to Jiangzhou."
He Qing said: "Master, I may not be able to go back these two days. I still have a very important thing to do."
"Oh, what is it?" Mr. Zheng asked curiously.
He Qing immediately told Mr. Zheng everything about how he helped Fang Dechao find his son Acheng. After hearing this, Mr. Zheng and Mr. Deng looked at each other, their expressions changed drastically, and they were extremely shocked.
(Thank you to my old friends Can Jian Wuhun and Yi Long for your valuable monthly votes, and to my old friends ngstone for your evaluation and support!) (To be continued...)