The Real Heiress Has an Appraisal System

As Gu Shengsheng spoke, Mrs. Lu Sr. nodded quickly.

"Yes, that’s right. My husband spent 150 million on it back in the day. It was his proposal gift to me."

"I don’t care if my other things are real or fake, but for this one, I don’t want to be kept in the dark."

"At a glance, it looks fine," Gu Shengsheng said first. "Qi Baishi was fond of carving seals, and he would stamp them on his works as a form of authentication. But later on, the forgers became so prolific and skilled that you could say fakes were everywhere. As a result, even his private seal isn’t that easy to verify anymore."

"This piece has no obvious flaws. Even Qi Baishi himself might not be able to spot anything wrong if he were here."

Gu Shengsheng lifted the painting slightly. Then, she leaned in close to a very fine crease in the center and rubbed it with her fingers.

’I think I’ve got it.’

Just then, a notification from the System’s attribute panel appeared.

Item: Qi Baishi Painting and Calligraphy

Era: Modern

Description: Exquisite workmanship, with coarse, thick Xuan paper. The paper and pigments are authentic. Qi Baishi’s private seal is authentic, and the artwork is authentic. Recommended for collection.

Market Price: 75 million

Buyback Price: 75 million

...

The moment Gu Shengsheng saw the price, she knew exactly what was going on.

’Mr. Lu Sr. paid 150 million for it, but now it’s only worth half of that. A market price that’s been cut in half... does that mean the painting itself is only half-real?’

What was once just a guess was now a certainty. The painting was real, but not entirely real.

When she shared her conclusion with Mrs. Lu Sr., the older woman was stunned. "What do you mean? What does ’not entirely real’ mean? Is it half-real, half-fake? But it looks completely authentic to me."

Just as Gu Shengsheng was about to explain, the doorbell rang.

As it happened, Director Gao Liu had arrived with several experts.

He was slightly surprised to see Mrs. Lu Sr. and Gu Shengsheng standing together.

Mrs. Lu Sr. smiled and introduced her. "This is my granddaughter-in-law."

"I asked her for help, and she’s the one who called you."

Gao Liu replied respectfully, "Not at all, not at all. I was indeed the one who handled this matter back then. I still remember the auction for the *Flowers and Insects Album*."

"When Miss Gu mentioned it, I immediately called the original appraisers. I was only able to get ahold of two of them."

The two experts, once middle-aged, were now old men.

They addressed Mrs. Lu Sr. "Mrs. Lu Sr., this is a serious matter. After all, it was a joint auction with the Beijing Museum. A problem would be unacceptable."

"We can guarantee that the item sold at the auction was authentic. If yours is a fake, well, it’s been out of our possession for so many years. We can’t be responsible for it now, can we?"

The implication was clear: what happened back then was in the past. Now is now. In short, they were refusing to take any responsibility.

Mrs. Lu Sr. had always been a sharp and decisive woman. Seeing their attitude, she saw no reason to be pleasant.

She said bluntly, "To think you call yourselves experts. You’re full of it!"

"You haven’t even looked at the painting, yet you’re already trying to shirk responsibility. This just proves to me that you’re the ones with the problem. Otherwise, how could two identical paintings exist? You didn’t even bother to ask for the details. What was the meaning of that little speech just now?"

These two men held some standing in the Antique Appraisal World, after all.

Being scolded like this in front of younger people like Gu Shengsheng and Lu Linlin was a complete loss of face.

But Mrs. Lu Sr. was no ordinary person. They didn’t dare talk back and could only swallow their anger.

Mrs. Lu Sr. was relentless. She thrust the painting at them. "Are you implying that I had a high-quality forgery made just to come here and fool you?"

One of the experts said, "It’s possible. Forgery techniques are so advanced these days that it’s difficult to tell real from fake. We would need to examine it closely. Besides, places like Beng Town, Drum Tower Town, and Putian Town—they’re all hotbeds for counterfeiting."

The old matriarch had a fiery temper. She snatched the cup of hot water Shengsheng had just handed her and flung it right in the expert’s face!

"What did those towns ever do to you? You blame others for the existence of fakes? So what if some of the things made there are comfortable and practical, and people buy them? That just means they’re skilled! I’ve lived a long life, and this is the first time I’ve ever seen such incompetent fools."

"And you have the gall to stand there and make snide remarks at me!"

"I don’t think you’re qualified to appraise this. Get out! Get out of my house! I paid over 100 million for this back in the day. When the truth comes out, you’ll pay me back every last cent you owe me!"

Seeing Mrs. Lu Sr. this furious for the first time, Gao Liu was reminded of who held the purse strings.

He quickly ushered the two experts out.

He apologized to Mrs. Lu Sr., "I am so sorry, Mrs. Lu Sr. They work for the museum. I will be sure to manage them more strictly in the future."

"Enough. Just talking about it is draining," she said, thoroughly vexed.

Gao Liu said, "Then how about I assist Miss Gu with the appraisal? I trust her judgment, but for the sake of impartiality, I can provide a final verification. I believe you can trust my abilities."

"Fine." Grandma Lu sat on the sofa, her expression coolly indifferent, instantly assuming an air of authority.

Gu Shengsheng found Grandma Lu quite endearing. ’She has a clear sense of right and wrong, and she isn’t afraid to show her anger when it’s deserved.’

She said, "Linnin, please get Grandma Lu some red date tea to help her calm down. We can’t let those two get to her."

Gao Liu looked at Gu Shengsheng. "You have a theory, don’t you? You know what happened here?"

"Yes. I was just about to explain when you came in."

"What I mean is, there’s a reason two of these exist. As you said, the other one was also authenticated in Rui City as a genuine *Flowers and Insects Album* by Qi Baishi. Given the long time between the two events, it’s unlikely that everyone was mistaken."

"This suggests that the key detail is incredibly difficult to spot. What I’m saying is that each painting is simultaneously real and fake."

"I just examined Grandma Lu’s *Flowers and Insects Album*. At a glance, it looks perfect. Even the artist’s seal and the private seals of past owners look completely normal, and I couldn’t find a single flaw in the workmanship."

"However, I found a minute difference along the central crease. Right in the middle, the Xuan paper is slightly thinner—a difference of about 0.1mm compared to the rest."

Gao Liu was astonished to hear this. "You can feel a difference that subtle?"

Gu Shengsheng didn’t answer. Before she transmigrated, she had worked in artifact restoration. She had spent three years just weighing objects, sensing thicknesses like this countless times. It was a simple case of practice makes perfect, not some special trick.

"That’s why I said it’s half-real and half-fake. Two different things have been combined into one, making it incredibly difficult for anyone to tell the difference. Director Gao Liu, have you ever heard of an advanced technique called ’Jiaxuan’?"

Gao Liu was stunned. "’Jiaxuan’... I’ve only ever heard of it; I’ve never actually seen it. I heard that it can fool even the most elite art appraisers."

"That’s right. If Grandma Lu hadn’t stumbled upon the coincidence of two identical, authenticated masterpieces existing, neither of us would have ever been able to tell the difference."

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