Reborn As Super Heiress

Chapter 504: Chapter 500 The Origin of the Tianhuang Stone Carving

This was a Tianhuang stone carving, its yellow stone body boasting a rich hue, orderly texture, and a warm, supple quality. Delicate and tender to the touch, it emitted a brilliant golden glow under the light, striking and resplendent.

Such an appearance was definitely that of top-tier Tianhuang, a gem among gems!

Looking further at the craftsmanship of the stone carving, the golden hue of the stone, and the beast reclining with bent knees in deep slumber, the carving was masterfully executed, both firm and gentle, with curves that were supple and flowing. It harmoniously matched the natural color of the Shoushan Tianhuang stone material, as if the carving and color were naturally one and the same, a feat one could easily call godlike.

Joy flashed in Huo Sining’s eyes. The Tianhuang stone carving, once cleaned, was even more beautiful than what she had seen through her Heavenly Eye.

The whole stone was like a chunk of mutton-fat jade, its surface sheathed in a layer of tender yellow skin, creating a stark color contrast with the body.

The Tianhuang stone felt smooth and supple in hand, providing a warming effect in winter and a cooling one in summer.

The book wrote that it was very easy to discern the authenticity of Tianhuang: when lightly pressed with a fingernail, top-quality Tianhuang stone would leave a white mark.

Huo Sining did as instructed and pressed gently with her nail, seeing a faint white color appear.

Indeed, it was Tianhuang stone! A touch of surprise colored Yan Feng’s face as he looked at Huo Sining with a complex expression.

Although he didn’t quite approve of the Ice Spirit Bead acknowledging this woman as its owner, this woman’s fortune was undeniably extraordinary. Without the Spirit Pearl Heart Method, she could still gain the recognition of the Ice Spirit Bead, unintentionally open her Heavenly Eye, and now, stumble upon such a priceless treasure.

Su Qingqing, who had limited knowledge about jade, couldn’t help but squat down and look curiously, examining the weird appearance of the stone: ”What is this stone?”

”This is Golden Tianhuang.”

Having recently perused some material on jade, Huo Sining was extremely familiar with Tianhuang stone.

”Tianhuang stone is from Fuzhou Shoushan. This type of Golden Tianhuang is the best variety among Shoushan stones. Due to its rarity and the fact that its yield has almost ceased, it is all the more precious, making it the highest-valued variety among seal stones.”

”Is this thing very precious? How much is it worth?” Su Qingqing was a layperson, unfamiliar with such items. In her view, however precious, things like antiques all had a price, and by naming the value she could gauge their worth.

”Tianhuang is known as the emperor of stones. Especially this superb Golden Tianhuang, regardless of the craftsmanship itself, the raw material price is over ten thousand yuan per gram,” Huo Sining said with a smile, her eyes gleaming as she looked at the stone carving.

”This expensive?! More valuable than jadeite!” Su Qingqing was astonished. This unassuming object contained something so valuable!

She eyed the piece of Tianhuang stone, estimating its size; although no larger than a fist, it weighed several hundred grams. Not to mention other factors, just based on the value of the Tianhuang stone itself, it was worth several million yuan—more expensive than glass-type jadeite!

Huo Sining smiled casually. Expensive? With its top-quality Tianhuang stone, exquisite craftsmanship, and long history, such a treasure could become truly priceless!

Calming her excitement, Huo Sining changed the water several times, continuing to clean the paint from the stone surface, and after multiple cleanings with solvent, finally all the paint on the stone surface was eradicated.

She took a clean silk cloth to wipe the stone dry; then, very carefully, Huo Sining placed the stone carving on the table, adjusting the angle of the desk lamp so that all three could clearly see the item.

Upon realizing the value of this Tianhuang Stone, Su Qingqing started to be concerned about who the owner was and why they had hidden the stone so meticulously, ”What is carved on this stone? It looks like a sheep or maybe a lion.”

”Eh, there seems to be some writing on the back!” The moment Huo Sining picked up the stone carving, Su Qingqing, with her sharp eyes, spotted something amiss on the bottom and swiftly flipped the stone over.

Indeed, she saw several characters carved at the bottom of the stone, which made her pause in confusion, ”It seems to be carved with... something ’Old Study...’.”

The person who carved it used cursive script, and it was in traditional characters, Su Qingqing vaguely recognized the first two characters, but she could not decipher the rest.

”Let me have a look!” Yan Feng, who worked in stone carving and had been quite composed, suddenly changed his expression upon hearing Su Qingqing’s words and hastily snatched the stone from her hands.

The bottom of the stone carving was smooth, and indeed there were three characters inscribed in small seal cursive script; he recognized them at a glance.

Seeing the inscription on the bottom of the stone, his face grew excited, his hands trembling as he held the stone, ”Laoxuean! This is a Shoushan Tianhuang Stone carving of an exotic beast used as a paperweight!”

”Laoxuean?” Su Qingqing felt this term somewhat familiar, and seeing Yan Feng’s distraught state, she couldn’t help but look at Huo Sining with a puzzled expression and asked, ”What does Laoxuean mean?”

Huo Sining smiled and asked, ”Do you know who Lu Wuguang is?”

Su Qingqing rolled her eyes at Huo Sining in annoyance, ”Are you testing me? Just say Lu You, why bother with the name Lu Wuguang? Why are you showing off with such pretentiousness? And I wasn’t even bothered until you mentioned him—now I’m just irritated!”

Huo Sining wore a look of puzzlement, ”Why?”

Su Qingqing spoke indignantly, ”Back in elementary and middle school, whenever we had to recite or write down his poems, they told us what a great patriotic poet he was, and I really thought he was a hero! Only later did I find out that he was a heartbreaker and a classic ’Phoenix man’! And writing what, ’The Phoenix Hairpin,’ it’s simply disgusting! Tang Wan marrying that kind of man was such a waste!”

Having said that, Su Qingqing was still bristling with righteous indignation, but then suddenly thought of something and asked Huo Sining, ”What does Laoxuean have to do with Lu You?”

Huo Sining replied helplessly, ”It’s a good thing Professor Xie didn’t hear you say that, otherwise you might have had to retake your course from last semester!”

Su Qingqing stuck out her tongue and made a face at Huo Sining.

Huo Sining shook his head and continued, ”During the Song Dynasty, there was a poet named Zhang Zi who once wrote a poem, one of its lines goes like this, ’San Shan Fang Weng gifted me a treasure, a paperweight that suits the Golden Rhinoceros perfectly.’

”What are you even talking about? Weren’t we just discussing Lu You? How did you switch to Zhang Zi all of a sudden? Are they related?” Su Qingqing was utterly confused.

”Lu Wuguang, also known as Fang Weng, was appointed to a position in Shu during his middle years, where he lived near three big mountains: Shiyanshan, Xinggongshan, and Hanjiashan.”

”You should still remember this line of poetry, ’Mountains multiply and waters grow fonder when no path is found; dark willows and bright flowers reveal another hamlet around.’ This line describes the scenery of the three mountains, and because Lu Wuguang lived in the mountains, he once called himself the ’Hermit of the Three Mountains.’”

”He also wrote a book called ’Old Study Hut Notes,’ and Laoxuean was the place where he lived.”

”What a bunch of nonsense!” Su Qingqing, unsatisfied with Huo Sining showcasing his knowledge, was about to complain when she suddenly froze, looking at the paperweight in Yan Feng’s hands with widened eyes.