Chen Lan immediately activated the search function with her mind as soon as she stepped out of the room, beginning to search the untended scrap heaps outside. Just as Old Master Qian had said, there was nothing of value among the piles of junk in the yard, only genuine refuse. In the end, Chen Lan only found a stamp album in a stack of old newspapers and books.
Without even a careful look, Chen Lan tossed the stamp album into her system's warehouse. She intended to finish quickly and then headed towards the entrance of the warehouse where scrap was stored, as Old Master Qian had described.
Chen Lan reached out and pushed open the loosely closed warehouse door. From her satchel, she took out a mask and put it on, then tied a crimson silk scarf around her head. She also donned a pair of cotton gloves. Noticing the dim light inside the warehouse, she took out her infrared goggles from the system warehouse and put them on.
Fully equipped, Chen Lan stepped into the scrap warehouse. She cast her mind to the system's light screen and, as expected, several red dots appeared.
Following the system's prompts, Chen Lan began to rummage through the items. To her delight, she found quite a few treasures.
There were rusty bronze tripods and bronze Buddha statues, as well as a huanghuali wood dressing table, known as "an inch of wood, an inch of gold." Although the dressing table was severely damaged and barely recognizable, with the system as her cheat, she wouldn't let its brilliance be obscured.
Chen Lan looked at the shards of porcelain scattered across the floor, lamenting for a long time. Even in pieces, the porcelain still evoked a profound beauty and visual pleasure.
Unwilling to give up, Chen Lan carefully picked through the porcelain fragments, hoping for a miracle.
Indeed, her persistence paid off. To Chen Lan's immense surprise, amidst the pile of broken porcelain, she miraculously found a small, intact floral bowl.
The bowl was vividly colored, its blue glaze bright, and the gold embellishments complete. Chen Lan suspected it was a rare fine piece from a Qing Dynasty folk kiln.
Feeling incredibly lucky, Chen Lan gently picked up the bowl. She scanned it with the system's analysis function and discovered it was a Qianlong period blue-glazed, gold-painted dragon bowl. Turning the bowl over, she saw the inscription "Made in the Great Qing Dynasty Qianlong reign" at the bottom.
However, Chen Lan couldn't help but wonder: how could such valuable porcelain appear in this small scrap recycling station?
Finally, Chen Lan recalled that in Changchun, the capital of the puppet Manchukuo regime, there was once an imperial palace, the Puppet Manchukuo Imperial Palace. The last emperor of the Qing Dynasty had lived in this palace in Changchun for over a decade.
Legend had it that when the emperor fled the imperial palace in the capital, he brought many treasures with him to Changchun. However, when he escaped from Changchun, he couldn't take many of these treasures with him, and they were reportedly stolen by those who served him. This explained the presence of these items in civilian hands.
Looking at the exquisite shards of porcelain, Chen Lan couldn't help but sigh, "What a pity! After all the effort to steal these items, they still couldn't be preserved! Such is the impermanence of life, and the twists of fate. Perhaps it was destiny!"
After her musings, Chen Lan took a wooden box from her system warehouse, intending to collect and preserve the pile of ancient porcelain fragments. She knew that in modern times, many people specialized in collecting such fragments, especially rare and precious ones, which were incredibly hard to find.
The reason for this scarcity was the age-old saying in the ancient porcelain collecting world: "Ten old pieces, nine damaged." This highlighted the difficulty of preserving ancient porcelain intact to this day.
Many ancient porcelain pieces, due to their age or human damage like this, would become broken and fragmented. Therefore, those that survived were truly rare, making them exceptionally valuable.
After storing the box of porcelain fragments in her system warehouse, Chen Lan continued her work.
Chen Lan decisively stopped when she found a dusty, peeling statue of the God of Wealth, about a foot tall.
The system's light screen indicated that this God of Wealth statue had a hidden secret. Its surface had been deliberately coated with copper powder and paint to conceal its true nature. In reality, it was a statue carved from huanghuali wood. But the real reason was that this huanghuali wood statue contained something even more profound.
Chen Lan didn't have time for a detailed examination, so she stored the dusty God of Wealth statue in her system warehouse. She then put away her equipment, holding a zitan wood paperweight, and walked out of the warehouse, closing the door behind her.
As she walked, Chen Lan played with the paperweight in her hand. White plum blossoms on the paperweight exuded fragrance, interspersed with red and green fruits among the blooming branches.
A magpie perched on a curved plum branch, leisurely preening its feathers.
At the bottom, several large red flowers, symbolizing wealth and prosperity, were paired with small green leaves, creating an auspicious and celebratory scene.
Old Master Qian, who had just finished tidying up, saw the paperweight in Chen Lan's hand and smiled, saying, "Girl, I never expected you to find something so good!"
Hearing Old Master Qian's words, Chen Lan handed him the paperweight, saying, "Here, Old Master Qian. You are a scholar, so please accept this humble offering."
To her surprise, Old Master Qian repeatedly waved his hands in refusal. He smiled and said, "Girl, no one uses brushes to write anymore, so this paperweight is of no use. Besides, I, your Old Master Qian, am not one to pretend to be cultured."
Seeing that Old Master Qian truly didn't want it, Chen Lan didn't insist. She casually placed the paperweight into her ever-present military satchel.
She then looked at the luggage the elderly couple had packed. It was astonishing; the old couple had gathered seven or eight large and small bundles.
Chen Lan then said, "Old Master Qian, Old Mistress Qian, this is too much stuff and not easy to carry. All these old clothes and blankets are unnecessary. We have new ones made in the valley. You only need to bring some valuable items and books you usually read. Nothing else is needed."
After speaking, Chen Lan saw that the couple still looked reluctant to part with their belongings. She explained, "Old Master Qian, Old Mistress Qian, after we reach our destination by car, we still have to climb two more mountains. We won't be able to carry too much."
The elderly couple then stayed to reorganize their luggage, while Chen Lan went to a nearby state-run restaurant to purchase food for lunch and dinner.