Chapter 188: Pathetic Clowns!

After the murmurs and discussions subsided, the attendant stepped forward and asked, "Sir, if you are a professional, could you please point out the flaws in this collectible?"

Clearly, the attendant did not dare to rashly declare the black elephant jade carving made of agate to be a counterfeit.

However, since Lin Fan was so certain, the attendant also wanted to know why he dared to be so presumptuous.

All eyes in the room fell upon Lin Fan. Lin Fan merely crossed his arms, staring at the black elephant jade carving with a pensive expression.

The expressions of the onlookers varied.

Fang Jinyuan curved the corner of his mouth into a gloating smirk. Jiang Yunxi wore a look of impatience and disgust, though it was unclear whether she despised Lin Fan or loathed Fang Jinyuan.

Lin Mu stood tightly and timidly to one side. Many present were prominent figures whose imposing aura made her too intimidated to raise her head and look them in the eye.

Most people surveyed Lin Fan with the looks one might reserve for a fool.

They wanted to see what kind of high-minded theory he could possibly produce.

After a moment of silence, Lin Fan slowly began to elaborate: "Perhaps you all are unaware, but natural agate and artificially synthesized agate are difficult to tell apart with the naked eye, especially dark blackish-red agate stones."

"Natural agate stones have waterlines that are naturally chaotic. Some of you might not know what that means, so you can look down at the floor beneath your feet. The gray quartz tiles used here have irregular patterns, and each streak has a jagged feel, looking somewhat chaotic and like flashes of lightning."

"On the other hand, artificially synthesized agate stones have clearer waterlines and distinct layers. Of course, machines can be used to create purely natural chaotic waterlines, especially during carving, where multiple grinds with a grinding wheel can achieve the same soft luster as natural agate. To verify its authenticity, one must rely on testing tools; it is difficult to determine with the naked eye. Nowadays, forgery methods are becoming increasingly advanced, and even experts make mistakes at times..."

He rattled on with a great deal of professional terminology, causing the surrounding crowd to nod repeatedly in appreciation.

After all, some people present had conducted research into jade ware.

Not to mention the attendant; as soon as Lin Fan finished speaking, the attendant pulled out a magnifying glass and leaned in close to examine the black elephant jade carving in detail.

"I must admit, the person who crafted this black elephant jade carving used extremely sophisticated methods. The stone they found is almost indistinguishable from real agate, and even a master-level expert could easily be deceived."

"Of course, I am not questioning Professor Wu's competence. After all, every person has their own area of expertise. Perhaps when Professor Wu acquired this jade carving, it was auctioned together with several other pieces. He may have had very little exposure to jade ware and was deceived or had it swapped by a peer, or perhaps someone else helped him acquire it while he himself remained completely unaware..."

Lin Fan mentioned Professor Wu once again.

Yet everyone felt as though he was making sarcastic, passive-aggressive remarks about Professor Wu lacking discernment.

Hearing these words, Fang Jinyuan seized the opportunity to strike while the iron was hot and fan the flames: "Everyone, you heard him! This fellow has been spouting nonsense the whole time, and it's obvious he has no respect for Professor Wu whatsoever! What qualifications does an unworldly, wet-behind-the-ears kid like you have to question Professor Wu?"

The rest of the crowd nodded in agreement.

"This brat is simply too arrogant and ignorant, actually coming here to run amok! If Professor Wu were present, he'd surely skin him alive!"

"Could it be that he was scammed in his own collection pursuits, which is why he's here acting like a lunatic? Otherwise, why keep bringing up Professor Wu?"

"Perhaps he really knows what he's talking about? Everyone who comes here is smart, and it's unlikely they'd go looking for trouble. That attendant seems to have noticed a problem..."

At that moment, after examining it for a while, the attendant spoke with a serious expression: "Everyone, this gentleman does indeed have some skill. I have noticed some clues, but I cannot confirm them. We need to invite Professor Wu himself and more professional personnel to appraise it..."

Every type of collectible was paired with professional personnel.

For instance, the jade ware collection area was managed by this professional who had deep knowledge of jade ware.

If it were the traditional Chinese painting area, it would be handled by professionals specializing in ancient paintings and versed in the art of traditional Chinese painting.

Hearing this, the crowd let out a gasp of surprise.

Fang Jinyuan grabbed the attendant's arm, his expression somewhat unnatural: "Brother, are you certain there is something wrong with this collectible? Isn't he just spouting nonsense? Take another close look... Didn't they say everything here was personally appraised by Professor Wu? How could there possibly be fakes?"

The attendant glared at him and said calmly, "What he said makes some sense. Either Professor Wu never personally tested it, or someone on the inside tampered with it... I can only say that ninety-nine percent of the collectibles here are indeed genuine, but this gentleman may have just happened to discover the one percent that is counterfeit."

"Impossible! Could this fellow's eyes be microscopes capable of seeing through the inside of the agate?!"

At that moment, Fang Jinyuan began to panic slightly.

The attendant would certainly not joke about such a matter, yet he found it hard to believe that Lin Fan was an insider of expert level.

According to their wager, if Lin Fan found a counterfeit, he would be required to purchase it at auction.

Wouldn't that make him look like a total clown?

"I am a professional, and the material of this black elephant jade carving is indeed not purely natural. As to how it became artificially synthesized, we will need to invite Professor Wu to appraise it before the truth can be known."

The attendant did not dare to jump to conclusions either.

What if speaking carelessly brought trouble upon himself?

His words clearly shifted the blame to unknown causes. The implication was either that an insider had swapped it or that Professor Wu had been manipulated during the transaction.

However, Fang Jinyuan could not accept this explanation.

Before he could speak, the attendant strode away, heading upstairs to the third-floor trading center to report the situation.

"Well, know-it-all, are you prepared to shell out the money to buy this black elephant jade carving at auction?"

At that moment, Lin Fan looked at Fang Jinyuan with a playful and mocking expression, speaking in a sarcastic tone.

To everyone's surprise, Fang Jinyuan simply chose to play dumb.

"Ridiculous! Since it's a counterfeit, why would I still buy it at auction? Spend seventy million to buy it and use it as a decoration? I wouldn't even want it if they gave it to me for free!"

"So you're going back on your word and welshing on the debt? Weren't you the one who said earlier that if I could point out a counterfeit, you would buy it? And now you're refusing to honor it? Your face changes faster than flipping through a book..."

Lin Fan sneered with contempt.

Seeing that the two had been placing a wager, the onlookers cast looks of utter scorn at Fang Jinyuan.

"It's one thing for this fellow to look down on others, but he even dared to question the attendant here? Is his brain filled with water?"

"In my opinion, he truly possesses the visage of a petty person. Making such a loud fuss earlier just to show off and stir up trouble for no reason, only to slap himself in the face in the end. A classic clown!"

Treated like a lunatic by the crowd, Fang Jinyuan turned green with rage.

He had originally thought he could get Lin Fan thrown out by the security guards, but instead, he had become the laughingstock.

Never had he imagined that Lin Fan was hiding his capabilities so deeply and was actually an appraisal expert.

Still, unwilling to admit defeat, he stubbornly kept up a bold front.

"Don't celebrate too early. When Professor Wu arrives, what if he appraises this black elephant as genuine and you turn out to be wrong? We'll see how you talk your way out of it then."

He figured Lin Fan was mostly just putting on an act.