Reborn As Super Heiress

Chapter 826: Chapter 822: The New Mission

Huo Sining was taken aback by Zhou Shitao’s words.

”Teacher, what do you mean?”

Zhou Shitao gave Huo Sining a deep look: ”In recent years, I haven’t encountered a second fake made by Zhong Fang, so I thought this counterfeiter had either retired or died. That’s why, although I’ve been paying attention, I haven’t fully devoted myself to it.”

”But seeing this Yue Kiln Secret-Color Porcelain today, I realized I was wrong. This person is not gone; they’ve probably targeted museums instead.”

”Many items in museums are excavated artifacts and are more valuable than antiques on the market. If I’m not mistaken, this person creates such convincing forgeries to replace museum artifacts.”

”We discovered this Secret-Color Porcelain, but what about the ones we haven’t discovered? This Yue Kiln Secret-Color Porcelain Bowl was unearthed just over six months ago, and this person has already made a nearly indistinguishable forgery. This shows that their counterfeiting skill and speed have far surpassed that of the past. I suspect it’s not just the Taicheng Museum that’s been hit; probably other museums too...”

Hearing Zhou Shitao’s analysis, Huo Sining also felt a sinking feeling in her heart.

Indeed, Taicheng had just placed this Secret-Color Porcelain in the Tang Ceramics Hall as a centerpiece, and already someone had capitalized on it. This shows that the person not only has impressive counterfeiting skills, but also extensive connections. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have been able to infiltrate the Taicheng Museum so quickly.

If Zhou Shitao’s speculation is correct, then over the past few decades, the number of items replaced in museums might be enormous.

The more she thought about it, the more horrified Huo Sining felt. A shiver ran down her spine.

Zhou Shitao sighed. ”The domestic environment is poor, mainly because some people in positions of power are negligent in their duties. Some even deliberately abuse their power for personal gain, secretly dealing in artifacts.”

”So, many foreign collectors look down on Huaxia’s collectors and scoff at the country’s collecting environment. Some even openly declare that the Huaxia people cannot protect their own national treasures and that they’re better off donated to foreign museums for preservation.”

Zhou Shitao had heard such remarks more than once. The recent disappearance of the Yue Kiln Secret-Color Porcelain made him feel as if those remarks were slaps to his face, burning with pain.

”I will continue to investigate the issue of Zhong Fang, but your master is getting old and can’t travel far. Some matters might need you to handle.”

Huo Sining looked up: ”What do you need me to do?”

Zhou Shitao smiled: ”This matter shouldn’t be too difficult for you. I’ll allocate some funds for you. You can act as a researcher from the Forbidden City and visit museums across various provinces and cities. Check each museum to see if any valuable ancient artifacts have been replaced by Zhong Fang’s forgeries and report back.”

Huo Sining’s mouth formed an ’O’ in astonishment at Zhou Shitao’s words. His meaning was clear. The so-called research was actually a covert investigation to see if museums had any valuable artifacts replaced by Zhong Fang’s counterfeits.

Such a task was not something Huo Sining would reject, but she had various commitments and was still in school, making her time limited. Completing this task wouldn’t be easy.

”The task isn’t difficult, but it will take time. So, you don’t need to rush. When you have time, visit one place. Treat it like traveling; take the opportunity to expand your horizons and gain practical experience.”

Seeing Huo Sining’s hesitation and concern, Zhou Shitao didn’t push her to complete the task quickly. Instead, he comforted her, telling her to take her time.

Zhou Shitao understood well that for Zhong Fang to operate so freely for years, his skills must be impressive. Twenty years have passed; even if we investigate slowly, we will eventually find clues to catch him.

Huo Sining felt relieved by Zhou Shitao’s words and nodded in agreement.

After leaving the Zhou residence, Gu Xu took Huo Sining to eat, and since it was late, Huo Sining suggested they go for skewers.

Eating barbecue is better with more people. Huo Sining suddenly came to the Imperial Capital and hadn’t notified Huang Hanyun and the others. Now that things were settled, she hadn’t seen her cousins for a long time, so she quickly took out her phone to call them.

Sure enough, as soon as the phone connected, Huang Hanyun eagerly asked for the address and said she would bring someone along. On the other side, Huang Ranping and Huang Xiaoyi quickly took a taxi to join them.

Gu Xu also called Qin Tian and Song Hui. Ouyang Jun wasn’t in the Imperial Capital. Hearing that they were going for skewers, he was furious over the phone, complaining that Gu Xu didn’t notify him earlier about the gathering. After scolding him, he even asked if Huo Sining’s newly solved Pigeon Blood Red was for sale, only to be flatly rejected by her.

Huang Hanyun arrived first. Her car stopped near the food stall, and she quickly spotted Gu Xu and Huo Sining sitting in a corner. She waved and hurried over.

It was then that Huo Sining noticed someone following Huang Hanyun. She seemed familiar; back in Dashilar, when An Yueru tried to scam her out of the pair of enamel items, this woman was there and later got her out of the police station. If she remembered correctly, her name was Zhang Shuang.

”Miss Huo, long time no see.” Zhang Shuang greeted Huo Sining with a smile, raising an eyebrow.

Huo Sining smiled and nodded: ”Long time no see, Officer Zhang.”

Huang Hanyun frowned at their formalities: ”Enough with the formal titles. Just use first names. Calling each other ’Miss’ and ’Officer’ is so awkward. Call her Ningning like I do. Ningning, this is Zhang Shuang, my childhood friend. Just call her Brother Shuang like I do.”

Brother Shuang? Huo Sining instinctively glanced at Zhang Shuang. She was dressed in a casual, neutral outfit with a short haircut, looking very capable and energetic. The name ”Brother Shuang” seemed quite fitting.

Zhang Shuang was straightforward, so Huo Sining didn’t act coy. She followed Huang Hanyun’s lead and called her Brother Shuang. Just as they sat down, Song Hui and Qin Tian arrived on flashy motorcycles, looking very cool.