chapter 45 This flowerpot is actually more valuable than the house

Stanley Du pointed at the flower bed and said with a smile, "See those flower pots over there?" "What do you mean?" The tattooed man asked angrily, "Those pots are worth barely anything, maybe 30 yuan each at most. I'm asking for 300,000 yuan, not 30 yuan!" "You've got it wrong. It's not the flowers that are valuable, but the pots themselves. They are Qing Dynasty official Ru kiln imitations." "Ru kiln imitations? I don't understand that stuff," the tattooed man confessed, looking confused. "Put simply, those flower pots are antiques from the Qing Dynasty, each worth tens of thousands." Hearing this, everyone looked at Stanley Du skeptically, as if he were a con artist. "Are you trying to fool me?" The tattooed man said coldly, "A broken pot worth tens of thousands?" "In your eyes, those pots might be worth ten yuan each. But to an antique expert, each of those pots is worth at least tens of thousands." Stanley Du explained with a casual smile, "If you don't believe me, have your boss bring someone who knows about antiques. We can have an on-the-spot appraisal." The tattooed man was taken aback by Stanley Du's confidence and calm demeanor. He felt that Stanley Du was very steady. Such a steady person shouldn't be a swindler. So, he called his boss, Victor Zhao, again. Victor Zhao was initially skeptical when he heard about the supposed antiques in Lope Yang's new house. But soon, Victor Zhao arrived with an expert, rushing over in a hurry. "I warn you, I've brought the old manager of Sky Resources Pawnshop, a big shot in the antique circle. If those pots turn out to be worthless, don't blame me for being harsh." Victor Zhao threatened Stanley Du upon arrival. The expert Victor Zhao brought was a hunched-over man in his fifties. He examined Stanley Du and suddenly exclaimed, "You… You're the Divine Eye, Master Stanley Du!" "You know me?" Stanley Du asked. When did I get the nickname Divine Eye? "Master Du, I visited the free auction organized by Vintage Grace Antiques. That day, your appraisal duel with Master Bruce Zheng was absolutely brilliant!" praised the hunched-back old man sincerely. "Don't call me Master Du; just call me Stanley." Stanley Du bowed slightly to the old man. "Sir, may I know your name?" "I'm Zeno Chua. I used to be a manager at Sky Resources Pawnshop, but I resigned three years ago." "Then I'll call you Mr. Chua. Could you take a look at those flower pots?" Victor Zhao and the tattooed man were stunned. Lope Yang and Avalon Ma were also in disbelief. The onlookers were all dumbfounded. The former manager of Sky Resources Pawnshop was addressing Stanley Du as Master Du? It seemed Stanley Du was indeed quite skilled! The plot was taking another exciting twist. "Cousin, your son-in-law can really appraise antiques?" Sherod Yang whispered to Roy Yang. "Hehe, I'm not quite sure how much he really knows." Roy Yang didn't want to go around his hometown broadcasting the fact that Stanley Du had made eighty million from selling a painting. Meanwhile, Zeno Chua and Stanley Du approached the flower bed. "Kenny, pull out the flowers and dump out all the soil from the pots," instructed Zeno Chua. The tattooed man hurried to follow the instructions. "Victor Zhao, turn the pots upside down," Zeno Chua continued, directing Victor Zhao. Victor Zhao obeyed obediently. Zeno Chua took out a small flashlight from his pocket, turning it on and shining it at the bottom of the pots. On the bottom of the pots, there was a mark that read, "Made in the nineteenth year of the Kangxi reign of the Qing Dynasty." "Hmm, the shape, decoration, and markings are all consistent with early Qing Dynasty official Ru kiln imitations. This means these are indeed porcelain pieces made by the official kiln during the Kangxi era, imitating the Song Dynasty Ru kiln." "Uncle Chua, I don't understand all that." Victor Zhao said eagerly, "Just tell me straight, how much is one of these pots worth?" "At least one hundred thousand yuan each. If you find a generous buyer, they could go for one hundred and fifty thousand each." "Count how many pots there are," Victor Zhao instructed his men. "Fifteen." "Pull out the plants, dump the soil, and have Uncle Chua check each pot." His men quickly complied. Soon, the results were out. Of the fifteen pots, only eight were antiques, all Qing Dynasty official Ru kiln imitations. "One worth at least one hundred thousand, so eight would be at least eight hundred thousand. Wow, who would have thought these eight old pots would be worth more than this house," Victor Zhao mused greedily. "What are you thinking?" Lope Yang hastily asserted his ownership, "I bought this house, so these pots are mine too! You can only take three!" "Lucky for you that you got the property deed for this house in advance." Victor Zhao said enviously, "But without Master Stanley Du's discerning eye, you wouldn't have known these were valuable antiques. You would've missed out on this fortune." Lope Yang quickly knelt before Stanley Du, "Cousin-in-law, if not for your help today, I would've been in court instead of celebrating my wedding. My bridal house could have been auctioned off. I'll remember your kindness forever." Stanley Du quickly helped Lope Yang back to his feet. Avalon Ma also expressed her gratitude, "Cousin-in-law, Victor Zhao was right. If you hadn't told us about these antique pots, we might have sold them as junk. You've not only helped us find this unexpected fortune but also solved the dispute over our bridal house. We're not ungrateful people. Take as many of these pots as you like." "Haha, if my son-in-law took them all, wouldn't you young couple feel bad?" Roy Yang joked. "To say we wouldn't feel bad is a lie, but in doing things, we have to be conscientious." "Lope, Avalon, would you let me take one of these antique pots?" At this moment, a bruised and battered Nohe Bao approached and pleaded. Everyone sighed with empathy. Yesterday, Nohe Bao arrived in an Audi A8, flaunting his wealth with a 6666 yuan gift. Everyone fawned over him. He was so proud and arrogant back then. Now, with his son-in-law fired from Heaven & Earth Corporation, his family's lifestyle had plummeted from riches to rags. Nohe Bao shamelessly begged Lope Yang and Avalon Ma for an antique pot worth one hundred thousand yuan. "Take this pot, sell it, and save the money for your old age." Lope Yang was initially reluctant to give a pot away, but Stanley Du picked out one of the antique pots and handed it to Nohe Bao. "Thank you, Stanley Du. You're a good man. I'm sorry for how I treated you." "Roy Yang, you're luckier than me. You've got a good son-in-law like Stanley Du. You're set for a comfortable future." With tears streaming down his face, Nohe Bao expressed his gratitude to Stanley Du and his envy of Roy Yang. The onlookers sighed again. Yesterday, Nohe Bao mocked Roy Yang and insulted Stanley Du. Today, fallen on hard times, Nohe Bao accepted a generous gift from Stanley Du – an antique pot worth at least one hundred thousand yuan. Taking the pot, Nohe Bao didn't forget to flatter Stanley Du and Roy Yang. It was clear that Nohe Bao and Nicole Bian were no match for Stanley Du and Roy Yang.