Chen Wanli rubbed his forehead in frustration, indifferent as to whether a Qing prince had used the cage or not.
Right now, he just wanted to know its exact value.
"I'll call Wei and ask where he is," Chen said as he dialed Wei Cheng's number.
Wei Cheng had just reached his office when he received the call. Seeing it was Chen Wanli, he felt a slight thrill, assuming Chen had found another valuable antique for his auction house. Instead, Chen asked him to help appraise another item for Mr. Lin.
He was stunned. "He found another one?"
What was happening? Wei had just returned from Fuzi Temple half an hour ago, and Lin Xiao had already found another treasure?
Were there really that many hidden gems at Fuzi Temple?
Wei Cheng quickly said, "Give me about ten minutes," then hung up.
Ten minutes later, Wei Cheng arrived at the hotel's parking lot but didn't immediately head upstairs. Instead, he took out his phone to research Qing Dynasty birdcage auction records.
There were only two records, and initially, he didn't pay much attention. After all, genuinely valuable items didn't show up frequently, especially at Fuzi Temple's less prestigious antique market. Besides, birdcages were not typically considered significant artifacts.
But when he saw the two auction results, he froze in shock.
"How could a birdcage be so valuable?"
Despite his shock, he committed these results to memory.
A few minutes later, Wei Cheng entered the private room. Chen Wanli warmly welcomed him, "Sorry to trouble you again, Mr. Wei."
"Not at all, I was nearby anyway." Wei smiled, quickly spotting the birdcage on the table.
Exquisite! Elegant! Luxurious!
He mentally compared the cage with the auction records he'd seen.
Chen Wanli and the others quietly waited as Wei Cheng examined the birdcage. After about five minutes, Wei Cheng spoke up, "Truly a remarkable piece!"
"How valuable is it exactly?" Xu Rushan asked, eager to learn.
Wei Cheng nodded, "It's exceptionally rare and valuable. This birdcage is known as a Qianlong Cloisonné Enamel Parrot Cage. Because each was custom-made, every cage is unique. During Emperor Qianlong's reign, this was considered extremely luxurious, unaffordable to ordinary people."
"Though considered mere luxury objects, they're highly valued as antiques. Consider cricket jars from the Ming Dynasty—similar in function yet incredibly valuable. One cricket jar from the Ming Xuande era is even the treasure of the Changchun Museum."
"Therefore, despite being luxury items, their antique value is unquestionable."
Chen Wanli asked, "So, what's your estimate?"
Wei Cheng explained, "A few years ago, an enamel birdcage from the Qing Dynasty sold at a Beijing auction for 710,000 yuan. Another cage, very similar in style and condition to this one, was auctioned by Jia De in Paris in 2007 for 2.04 million euros—about 20.5 million yuan!"
"Twenty million?!"
"A birdcage worth twenty million?!"
"This is a sky-high birdcage!"
"Lin Xiao even finds treasures when buying birds!"
"I can't believe an ordinary bird shop had something like this!"
Initially skeptical, everyone was now stunned speechless after Wei Cheng's explanation.
However, Wei Cheng added thoughtfully, "But there's something missing from this cage…"