Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism, in the heart of T-City.
On the invitation of the Director of Culture and Tourism, Professor Zhang Ma…
On a sturdy rectangle table in a corner of the office, there was a display of various antiques.
There was a mix of various items, from porcelain, jade, and a bronze ritual vessel.
On a standalone display stand was the most eye-catching item of this patron's latest collection…
The Ming vase.
It was indeed a masterpiece. It was perfect in all aspects except one.
Tang Lin circled it slowly, looking closely and intently like a predator circling its prey, searching for the perfect spot to take the first bite from.
Her red bottoms clicked against the marble floor of the authentication room, heightening the tension in the heart of the collector standing nearby.
The wealthy man who had requested her services through Professor Zhang, Mr. Yang, shifted constantly under the harsh fluorescent lights.
Probably praying earnestly that the antique he had just recently splurged on would check out.
On his forehead was a fine sheen of sweat thanks to how jittery he was.
Tang Lin could feel the tension pouring from his body, like heat from a pavement in the summer.
However, she kept her gaze steady and impassive, allowing nothing to betray her thoughts at the moment.
Professor Zhang stood to the side of the table to observe Tang Lin's work, doing his best to minimize his breathing and presence.
Careful not to get in the way of the Eagle Eye's work.
On one of the bureau's patron's request, he had needed to pull a few connections and favours to invite her over on such short notice.
Thus he did not want to do anything that might bring her offense.
He was a little tense at the moment, knowing that the outcome of the authentication would impact the bureau and their upcoming exhibition, one way or another.
However, he managed to stay calm, not letting the faint tremors running down his spine show on his face.
At the other end of the table was Yang Xu, the second son of the Yang Corporation's chairman. He was a patron of the culture and tourism bureau.
Being a second generation descendant of one of the families that could be considered Noble in T city, he had more money than the brain cells he had could make sense of.
Thankfully, what he lacked in financial intelligence he made up for by his love for antiques and by extension, wholeheartedly supporting the bureau.
Apparently, there were several reasons he loved to collect these ancient pieces…
Firstly, it was a good way to invest his money as there was a guarantee that the value would appreciate as long as he succeeded in getting the original ones.
Another reason he had once given in private was that it gave him a scholarly air that made him appear to be less vulgar.
Last one reason but by no means the least is the brownie points from the media attention he usually got every time he snags a new piece.
"You've outdone yourself this time, Mr. Yang," Tang Lin finally spoke after an excruciating almost ten minutes of silence save for the sound of her heels on the floor.
Ten minutes of her poring over the vase, not letting go of the littlest detail.
Her voice was cool and level. Monotonous.
"The craftsmanship is exquisite."
Yang Xu's face brightened, and he immediately heaved a sigh of relief.
He even burst into a happy laughter that held remnants of his earlier trepidation, rubbing both his hands together in glee.
"That's great. That's great. Then you'll authenticate…"
"I'll authenticate it exactly as what it is, Mr. Yang." she spoke up, not letting him finish. "A high-end forgery."
The room went silent.
Mr. Yang, whose joy and relief had come many miles too soon was left lost for words, unsure of how to react for a few seconds.
The Director of the Bureau, Professor Zhang cleared his throat uncomfortably, in a bid to find an opportunity to smooth things over.
"Ms. Tang, maybe…"
"The cobalt oxide that was used in the blue underglaze right here," she pointed to a barely noticeable area on the neck of the vase, "carries trace mineral compositions that have never been associated with Ming Dynasty works."
"As for the firing temperature… it looks to have been too controlled; it should have been fired using modern kiln, not a wood fire. The technical achievement is quite impressive, I must say. It would be easy to miss under untrained, inexperienced eyes. I reckon it was made within the last decade."
Mr. Yang's face immediately turned a worrisome shade of purple with rage. "This is simply outrageous! I paid nearly 11 million yuan for this vase!"
Tang Lin glanced at him, unperturbed by the sudden outburst and began to gather her tools.
"Then I fear you've been cheated."
She had grown accustomed to this scene, where a collector who thought they had collected some treasure was told that they had found a fake instead.
As she picked up her specialized magnifier, notebook, tweezers and gloves, she didn't forget to say "I suggest you contact the authorities and seek redress right away."
"You must think you know everything, don't you? The famous 'Eagle Eye,'" he spat fiercely, using her nickname in the antiquity-appraisal world in a tone that sounded more like a mockery.
"My family has been collecting treasures since before your grandparents were born!"
Tang Lin, exhausted from prolonged hours of engaging her eyes and brain just looked at him, her expression unchanging. "Yet you still sought me out to appraise your antiques."
Yang Xu was immediately stomped, Tang Lin's words choking back whatever retort he had prepared.
Every other antique of his that she had examined had checked out, except for this one.
He had been quite proud of himself, feeling pleased as punch as she pronounced the first four as the real deal.
Suddenly, she was a fake because she had pointed out an obvious forgery.
Perhaps he would have loved her to close her eyes to the glaring fact that the vase wasn't real and pronounce it authentic.
Having earned her place as one of the country's most brilliant appraiser with almost 100% accuracy via diligence and hard work, she had no desire to defend herself against his tirade that was coming from a place of frustration.
Mr. Yang was just another pitiful person who had been cheated out of his money, hard earned or not, and she would not concern herself with having him acknowledge her qualifications.
If he did not think she was qualified, there was no way he would let her anywhere near his treasures.
He would probably come around later.
Sighing, she pursed her lips and forced herself to speak again.
"Mr. Yang, you seem to be barking up the wrong tree at this moment. If it is a fake, then it is. Losing your temper at me will do nothing to change that."
When she noticed that he had finally calmed down a bit, she added as a measure of professionalism, "If you want, I can give you the contact information of a few other top appraisers in the country. I'm sure that Mr. Yang would have no problem flying them into T city. Perhaps their confirmation will set your mind at ease concerning my verdict."
Her response left him at a loss for words.
Nodding cooly to Professor Zhang who looked like he was about to cry, Tang Lin turned on her heel and headed towards the exit.
Outside the authentication room, she took a quick glance at her wristwatch, 2:15 PM.
Just in time for her medication.
She stepped to a quiet area in a corner and took out a small pill case from her clutch bag, swallowed the white tablet inside with half a mouthful of water, and made a notation in her phone.
Precisely on schedule.
"Ms. Tang?" Professor Zhang followed her out, a look of worry marring his rather handsome features.
"A moment of your time, please."
She discreetly returned the pill case into her purse and turned to face him.
A faint ripple of irritation wrapped it's chilly hands around her heart at the possibility of her schedule being interrupted.
Thankfully, she had years of experience in this circles under her belt and effortlessly slipped on her pokerface mask.
Her composure was intact.
"Professor Zhang, I've already provided my full assessment for each of the pieces. The appraisal document will be sent to your office by this evening. I do not imagine that there's anything I'm missing."
Towards the end her voice was tinged with a bit of impatience.
The director nodded, his expression pained.
"Of course, of course and we deeply value your thoroughness."
He seemed unsure of how to say the next set of words he had in mind.
However , upon taking another glance at her, he took a deep breath and forced himself to keep speaking.
"Mr. Yang is a significant donor to our Chinese heritage acquisition fund and this vase was supposed to be displayed during our antique exhibition scheduled for next month. Perhaps you could… find some, uh, alternative, slightly different wording?"
He paused and scratched his head briefly before continuing.
"'Attributed to the Ming Dynasty' perhaps, or 'shows features that are consistent with…'"
"No."
The refusal was sharp and final, leaving no room for further argument.
"The piece is not something from that period, not even rem
otely close. That makes it a forgery. Claiming otherwise no matter how you try to polish it is a boldface lie that I do not have the desire or inclination to tell".