Chapter 412 - 403: Persimmon Jam
Grandma Shen’s side of the family was busy, so for the next little while, Shen Yunlian and Yun Linhai would have to go help out.
Meanwhile, to raise the money to buy an island, Yun Jiao began to sort through and sell the treasures she had salvaged from the sea.
She had already turned in all the required items, especially the Jade Seal. The National Cultural Heritage Administration reacted as if they had received a priceless treasure, and in turn, made everything extremely convenient for the Yun family’s shipwreck salvage operation.
The main reason was that regulations weren’t as strict these days. Besides, these were ownerless items she had retrieved from the deep sea through her own skill, and she had even handed over the most precious artifacts with high research value. They would have to be idiots to stand in her way.
With her artifacts legitimized, selling them would be much easier.
Of course, Yun Jiao still contacted someone she knew.
Ancient.
That day, Ancient brought his son to the Yun family’s home.
When they entered Yun Jiao’s room and saw the treasures filling the display shelves that lined the walls, their breathing grew ragged.
"This is a Pink Bat Peach Pattern Bottle—and there’s a pair of them!"
"This is a Sky Blue Glaze Wash from a Ru Kiln."
"This is a Duan Inkstone..."
The father and son were like kids in a candy store, growing more and more excited with every piece they examined.
"Hsss... This... this bronze sword..."
"Son, get over here and look at this Bronze Tripod."
"Dad, hold on, I’m examining this official hat... I think this is a phoenix crown from the Ming Dynasty..."
Yun Jiao idly tossed a Luminous Pearl in her hand.
"Jiaojiao, is that a Luminous Pearl in your hand? It’s so big!"
"And... are those Dongzhu pearls from the Qing Dynasty?"
Yun Jiao replied, "I suppose they are."
Ancient and his son were green with envy as they looked at the collection.
’These are all authentic,’ Ancient thought. ’There are more pieces here than in my antique shop, even more than in my personal collection at home.’
"Does your Brother Ba have some of these as well?"
He seemed to recall Little Eight mentioning once that Yun Jiao, the little rascal, only liked the pretty-looking things.
As for the pieces she found ugly, most of them ended up with him.
But for antique collectors like Ancient and his son, it was different. They cared more about the historical value of these artifacts.
Some items, which might seem a bit ugly by most people’s standards, possessed incredible historical value.
The most famous example was Qianlong.
Qianlong’s aesthetic was particularly gaudy; the porcelain and vases he used were all covered in especially flamboyant patterns.
While many might find his taste tacky, the fact that these items were used by an Emperor gave them a different kind of value.
Of course, they also loathed Qianlong for being the Emperor who loved to stamp his seal on everything, plastering famous paintings with his seals of all sizes.
The man just couldn’t keep his hands to himself!
After looking around Yun Jiao’s room for a while, the two headed over to see what Yun Xiao Ba had.
Sure enough, the items Yun Xiao Ba kept had even greater research value.
Yun Jiao didn’t mind. As long as they could be sold for money, she was happy.
However, the two got so engrossed in their examination that they ended up staying at the Yun family’s home for the entire day.
If someone hadn’t called them for meals several times, they would have forgotten to eat altogether.
That evening, the father and son of the Gu family sat at the dinner table. They looked somewhat exhausted, but their eyes were exceptionally bright.
"Jiaojiao, are you sure you want to sell all those things?"
Yun Jiao replied, "I’m only selling some of them. I’ll stop once I’ve raised enough money."
She also brought out the piece of ambergris.
"Uncle Gu, are you interested in buying this?"
Gu Lan Ting took one look and said, "Absolutely!"
"The quality of this ambergris is truly excellent."
"Jiaojiao, Uncle Gu won’t cheat you. Some of your items can be sent to auction, where they’ll fetch a much higher price. If you’re willing, there’s an auction in the Capital in two months. I can pull some strings for you and get your things into the auction house."
Yun Jiao had no objection to this.
In the end, she generously allowed the father and son to each choose one artifact to take home.
Aside from a few pieces she was particularly fond of, they could choose freely from the rest.
Gu Lan Ting didn’t stand on ceremony. "In that case, Uncle Gu won’t be polite. Since I’m taking one of your treasures, you can leave the rest of your artifacts to me. I’ll make sure you get a great price for them."
With both sides in agreement, Yun Jiao kept only her absolute favorites and had the rest packed up for the Gus to take away.
’These artifacts might be worth more money in the future, but the price of the island could just as easily go up, too.’
’So it’s better to get what I want now.’
The people from the Forestry Bureau had already surveyed the island. Their preliminary estimate was that the island was over five thousand mu in size.
Furthermore, it was home to a wide variety of life. The island was huge, and securing the fifty-year usage rights would likely cost at least one hundred million.
This number truly shocked the Yun family.
Fortunately, Yun Jiao was very good at making money.