Half an hour quickly passed.
In the live-streaming room, the number of online viewers surged dramatically, now reaching a terrifying 500,000!
Meanwhile, in Baibaoge, the friend whom Xu Rushan had contacted by phone also arrived.
The man was nearly fifty years old, dressed in a sports outfit, and walked in briskly.
Upon entering, he immediately said, "Old Xu, where's the Yuan Datou? Let me have a look!"
Xu Rushan smiled and said, "They're right here, come over."
The man sat down, and Xu Rushan briefly introduced, "Chen Wanli, Lin Xiao."
The two shook hands and greeted each other. Chen Wanli said, "Are these three Yuan Datou the young friend's?"
Lin Xiao nodded, and Chen Wanli asked, "May I take a look?"
Lin Xiao made a gesture inviting him to proceed, and Chen Wanli picked them up one by one to inspect.
He was a collector, and anyone who could afford to collect had a solid financial foundation.
Chen Wanli had been in the collecting business for many years, and the money he had spent was astronomical.
Having spent so much, his eye for appraisal was naturally well-honed.
While he wouldn't claim to have an eye as sharp as Qian He's, he certainly had some ability to discern.
A few minutes later, he finished looking and turned to Qian He, "Director Qian, have you confirmed these three Yuan Datou?"
Qian He nodded, "They are all genuine."
Chen Wanli said, "I have great respect for your judgment, Director Qian. With your confirmation, I can rest assured."
He then turned to Lin Xiao, "Young friend, I'll take these three. Old Xu, can you help me appraise them?"
"Cough, cough, these are quite rare, and I haven't really handled them much," Xu Rushan replied.
The implication was clear: I have no idea what price to quote!
Xu Rushan felt a little awkward. I called you here to handle the negotiations, but if I could appraise them, why would I need you?
Just then, footsteps were heard from outside, growing nearer.
The group turned around to see a man in his thirties, dressed in a suit, walking into the shop.
As soon as he entered, he smiled and said, "My name is Wei Cheng, General Manager of the Nanjing branch of Sotheby's Auction House. I heard someone here has found three rare Yuan Datou coins, so I came to have a look. Apologies for the intrusion; I hope you'll forgive me."
Qian He recognized him and said in surprise, "Mr. Wei?"
Wei Cheng smiled and walked over. "Director Qian, long time no see."
Chen Wanli, standing aside, asked, "You work for an auction house?"
"Yes, Sotheby's Auction House," Wei Cheng replied.
"Do you do appraisals?" Chen Wanli asked.
Wei Cheng smiled without showing his teeth. "Appraisal? That's my specialty."
Well, I'm quite the expert, after all. It's my old line of work!
Chen Wanli said, "Then could you appraise these three Yuan Datou coins for me? And what's your commission? I'll transfer the payment to you later."
Wei Cheng waved his hand dismissively, "Don't worry about the commission. Let's just consider this making a new friend. If any of you have items you want to sell in the future, feel free to contact me, and I'll have my company auction them."
"Alright, if I get bored of any of my collections, I'll have you auction them," Chen Wanli said grandly.
Wei Cheng's heart secretly rejoiced. This man was certainly a collector, and being able to make a connection with someone like him would make this trip worthwhile.
"Then, I'll have a look at the items," Wei Cheng said.
He sat down and began inspecting the Yuan Datou coins one by one.
"Wow, the auction house is here..."
"Is this guy really from an auction house?"
"I've never seen an auction house come to us like this."
"I looked it up, and he really is the head of the Nanjing branch of Sotheby's."
"Seems like the Yuan Datou caught their attention. There's competition among auction houses these days."
"Come on, give us the appraisal already! I've been watching for nearly two hours!"
Wei Cheng moved quickly, as Qian He had already confirmed their authenticity, which saved a lot of time.
What he needed to do now was simply to appraise them.
On his way here, he had prepared himself for this.
Now holding one of the Yuan Datou coins, he spoke confidently, "This one, the 'O-version triangular circle,' was auctioned four years ago at a Hong Kong auction. The final price was 1.3 million."
"But this type of Yuan Datou is quite rare in the collecting market, and its price has risen significantly in recent years. The current market price is around 1.6 million. If it were to be auctioned, 1.7 million would be no problem."
In just a few sentences, he demonstrated his expertise.
Lin Xiao and the others nodded, indeed impressed by his professionalism.
Wei Cheng continued, "This one, the Gansu edition, is a little more expensive. It was auctioned two years ago in Beijing, where it sold for 1.7 million. Now, its market price is probably 1.9 million, and if it were to go to auction, it would definitely sell for at least 2 million."
He paused before looking at the last one, the signed edition, and hesitated for a long moment before saying, "On the way here, I had my staff check the auction records for signed edition Yuan Datou coins. There's only one record, which was from seven years ago at the Christie's auction in Shanghai. A similar signed edition Yuan Datou was initially listed at 800,000, but it eventually sold for..."
He paused again, before continuing, "It sold for 1.5 million."
"But that coin's condition was much worse than this one."
"Furthermore, it's been nine years. If this coin were to be auctioned now, the price would not go for less than 3 million."