Parasitismus-Eve

Kapitel 2

Sun Jing laughed: "Beautiful lady, are you trying to pick me up?"

After saying this, Sun Jing was somewhat surprised to see that the woman in front of him did not turn away in disgust, but instead revealed her white teeth and gave him a perfect smile.

"I suppose you're richer than me, aren't you? You just made a fortune."

"What?" Sun Jing's first reaction was to pretend he didn't understand.

"I was sitting in the audience earlier, a few rows behind you. The performance was really good. Where did you find that fat guy?"

Sun Jing's eyelids drooped, revealing only a slit, as if the afternoon sun was too strong. He crossed his arms, and the ancient jade ring with the taotie pattern on his right ring finger slowly rotated, which looked a bit magical. In reality, it was because his thumb, hidden in his palm, was unconsciously flicking it.

"Let me guess how you did it. Judging from Zhong Dingwen's expression, he himself thinks what was smashed was the real thing, that he misjudged it before... or that what he saw wasn't actually the same item? A classic trick. When did you switch the item? Was it that fat guy who did it?"

What exactly was she planning to do? Sun Jing quickly calculated in his mind. Moreover, he felt that the woman in front of him looked increasingly familiar, but her sunglasses were so large that he couldn't recognize her at first glance.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Sun Jing continued to deny, he wasn't some novice who couldn't be easily intimidated.

"Oracle bones in China aren't fetching truly high prices right now, and without connections, it's very difficult to take them abroad. That relatively complete tortoise shell, while seemingly valuable, is actually hard to liquidate. Taking compensation now, and repairing the broken pieces, will make it easier to sell. It's a win-win situation no matter how you look at it."

Sun Jing shrugged, looking indifferent and saying whatever he wanted.

"If I go back to the TV station now and remind them to watch the recording of the scene in slow motion again, what do you think will happen? They won't transfer the money to your account that quickly, will they?" The woman in sunglasses began to exert pressure.

"Whatever you want."

"It looks like the cleanup was done very well."

"You think I'm a newbie like you?" Sun Jing laughed, finally recognizing the person in front of him, "Xu Dapao."

The woman ripped off her sunglasses and glared at him angrily: "What did you call me?"

"Xu Dapao, hehe, alright, Xu Xu."

"Can you please not pronounce it with the first tone? Xu Xu, the Xu in Xu Rong, the Little Li Guang, the Xu in the gentle breeze!" Xu Xu's eyes widened even more.

In most scams, a clever and beautiful woman always plays a key role. Xu Xu should have been a highly sought-after talent by all con artists, and any expert would have to admit that Xu Xu has talent. It would be a great waste for someone with such talent not to choose between acting or being a con artist.

He gradually joined one group after another, and in the process, Xu Dapao's reputation grew louder and louder.

Three years ago, Sun Jing and Xu Xu had a brief but memorable collaboration in Chifeng. They buried a stone tablet inscribed with Jurchen script from the Jin Dynasty in the courtyard of a dilapidated house. Xu Xu was posing as a student researching Jurchen history, and Sun Jing as her professor. Of course, there were other professional con artists, each with their own roles, targeting a pot-bellied urban management official. They tried to convince the pot-bellied official that it was a tombstone, beneath which lay the grave of a Jin Dynasty nobleman, containing numerous funerary objects.

They were almost there. The pot-bellied man was planning to buy the courtyard at a high price and give each of them a hush money payment. If it weren't for Xu Xu, who had already captivated the middle-aged man, suddenly saying that according to ancient texts (Note 1), this place was like this and that…

Even Xu Xu couldn't understand why she always made mistakes at crucial moments.

"I've stopped setting off fireworks," Xu Xu emphasized.

"But if you're referring to the Little Li Guang from the Liangshan heroes, his name is Hua Rong. There was a general named Xu Rong at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, but I don't know his nickname."

Xu Xu narrowed his wide eyes: "Hua Rong?"

"Um."

"Why are you spouting this nonsense? Was that fat guy your current partner?"

"Oh, I've basically given up on that. You know I'm an academic, after all."

Xu Xu, fiddling with her sunglasses, laughed so hard she almost fell over, as if she'd forgotten her earlier embarrassment: "So what happened today? Aren't you going to admit it?"

"Those guys on the expert panel have made a fortune off this show. They make fakes look real on TV, then quote a high price and resell them. They know all sorts of tricks like that; the whole production team knows it. With so much profit to be made, how could they not take advantage of it? I'm telling you, you weren't recording this, were you?"

"No need for that. Phones these days all have recording functions. You sound like you're acting on behalf of heaven. I heard this program initially wanted you to be an expert on bronze ware and oracle bone inscriptions, but then they felt you didn't have titles like professor or researcher, and were too young, so they switched to this bronze inscription program?"

Sun Jing's smile vanished: "Looks like our meeting today wasn't a coincidence."

"I'd like to invite you to afternoon tea."

On the coffee table, a small red laptop is placed in a position where both people can see it clearly.

"In the international antiques market, the market for oracle bones has been booming in recent years, and several auction houses are optimistic about their prices for a considerable period of time to come. Next March, Bogle Auction House in London will hold a special auction of oracle bones, and consignment for the items has already begun."

Sun Jing slowly turned the small bone china cup containing espresso, seemingly wanting only to be an observer.

"The international oracle bone market is now dominated by fragmented pieces; high-value, complete oracle bones are almost nonexistent. In recent decades, few oracle bones have left China; large quantities overseas are in the hands of museums or major collectors. However, to make this auction a success, at least a few highlight pieces are needed. The auction house offers generous terms to sellers who can provide 'good items,' such as waiving auction fees and guaranteeing that they won't go unsold."

As Xu Xu spoke, she kept glancing at Sun Jing's expression, and the result left her very disappointed.

"We have clients, we have good prices, all we need to do is get the goods. You're an expert, can you get good stuff domestically? I'll figure out how to ship it out. It would have been better if we hadn't destroyed that piece today; do you know how many times the money from auctioning it off would have been compared to that little bit of compensation?"

"The situation in China is similar to that abroad. The best items are all in museums, and collectors also have a small number of good pieces, but they are unlikely to be taken out," Sun Jing said.

"Where did your things come from?"

Sun Jing smiled, shook his head, and remained silent.

"Can't you tell me?" Xu Xu pursed her lips, staring intently at Sun Jing, her eyes as innocent as those of a naive ten-year-old girl.

Sun Jing shrugged.

She slowly licked her lips with the tip of her tongue, and her relaxed lips immediately became full and bright red. She leaned her upper body towards Sun Jing, her eyes slightly upturned, revealing a charm that even a twenty-year-old girl wouldn't possess.

Sun Jing couldn't help but laugh.

He slowly leaned back in his chair with a "thud," grinding his teeth in anger.

"Alright, alright, I've done my research too, and the situation is just as you described." Xu Xu put Sun Jing's oracle bones aside and continued as planned.

"However, most of the precious oracle bone artifacts are still hidden in China. Whether their owners are willing to sell them or not is not important. We are not antique dealers, are we?"

As she spoke, she fiddled with her computer for a bit, and some pictures appeared on the screen.

"These are oracle bones I've collected, substantial enough to serve as the grand finale of the Berger auction. This is the scapula of King Bu Lie Niu, unearthed from Pit No. 2 in Xiaotun Village, now in the Liaoning Provincial Museum; this tortoise plastron is... is..."

"It was unearthed in Huayuanzhuang, Anyang in 1991 and is now in the Anyang Yinxu Museum," Sun Jing said casually.

"Okay, you're the expert." Xu Xu snapped her fingers. "Actually, I've already chosen a target. What do you think of this one?" Xu Xu switched off the slideshow mode, found an image, and zoomed in to full screen.

This is not the most common tortoise shell or ox scapula found in oracle bones, nor is it a rib or leg bone. Its shape resembles a broken, round lampshade at the bottom. Among the bones of living organisms, only the skull has this kind of curved shape. To be precise, this is a part of a human skull, the top of the head that has been cut off, but the cut surface is not smooth. A round hole was drilled at the center of the top of the head, and around the hole is a ring of oracle bone characters.

"The wizard's skull from the Shanghai Museum." Sun Jing stared at the picture for several seconds.

This is a very special piece, even more so than the turquoise-inlaid tiger bone hunted by King Zhou and housed in the Royal Ontario Museum in Canada. Many people speculate that the central hole on the top of the skull was originally inlaid with a gemstone such as turquoise.

"That's right, I chose it for two reasons. First, we're familiar with Shanghai, so we have many options; second, I know someone with so much money they didn't know what to do with it, who planned to offer two million to borrow this item from the Shanghai Museum for three months of research, but was refused. So, as long as we're fast enough, we can make an extra profit before sending it to auction."

"Please remove the word '们'," Sun Jing said.

"Hey, I know you're the best oracle bone expert in Lao Qianli..."

"You always inappropriately add extra words; please remove the words 'swindler'."

"Alright, top-notch oracle expert, I know your methods. If the two of us team up, no one else will be needed. Think about it, this is a business worth at least several million euros."

"Think about it? To be honest, I really don't know what you're thinking," Sun Jing said bluntly.

Xu Xu, unable to withstand Sun Jing's repeated barbs, frowned and asked, "What's wrong?"

"I suspect that auction house sent people to China to collect oracle bones. That's the smuggling route you mentioned, right? Maybe they'd rather pay a higher price to buy them outright. You only came up with this idea after you heard about it, didn't you? I think even if you hadn't contacted me, I would have found out about it soon enough."

Xu Xu's expression darkened further: "You think I can do it myself without you, right?"

"On the contrary, I think it's a joke to plan an operation just because a certain auction lacks items. There are so many auctions every month, and every auction hopes to have more rare items. There are countless people with big sums of money who want to buy their dream treasures. Do you really think they are all 'potential customers'?"

"In the eyes of a smart person, this world is full of opportunities." Xu Xu, who considers himself a smart person, said this without much confidence.

"It seems you truly love this line of work. Let me tell you a basic rule. Yes, we can make a lot of money after a job, but we don't decide which job to do because of the money. Money is everywhere in this world; in many cases, it's tightly guarded by its owners, while in other cases, it's our opportunity."

"Hmm." Xu Xu pursed his lips.

"When someone exposes their weaknesses, they become easy prey. We decide whether to act and how to act based on their weaknesses. Therefore, when planning an operation, you should base it on the person—the person who has become easy prey—not on money. Otherwise, you'll be like a headless fly, constantly hitting walls."

Sun Jing smiled and added, "Just like now."

"But everyone has weaknesses. Can't we set a target first and then find the key person's weaknesses to exploit?" Xu Xu said indignantly.

"You're describing a level of mastery. You're very talented; with another thirty or forty years of practice, you'll probably reach that level. I have high hopes for you."

"Looks like I'm wasting my time!" Xu Xu said.

She quickly shut down the laptop and stuffed it into her bag. Sun Jing watched her leave without moving.

He slowly stood up, pushed the chair away, pulled it back, and sat down again.

"Several million euros," she said. "I think we should think about it carefully."

"Don't think about money, it will blind you to everything." Sun Jing raised a finger and shook it.

"I am very familiar with the Shanghai Museum, and I believe you are even more familiar with it than I am."

"You're so stubborn," Sun Jing sighed and shook his head. "Then look at the terrible target you've chosen. An impossible task, you understand? No matter what plan you've devised, retrieving the wizard's skull from the Shanghai Museum will only result in a low-priced, clandestine sale to a tight-lipped buyer. This is a national treasure of China, taking it to an international public auction? You might as well find a madman who loves being wanted by the police to collaborate with."

"I haven't come up with a solution yet, but I believe there must be one that can bypass these problems. Don't you like this kind of dangerous but exciting challenge? I think you do."

"Beautiful women are always very confident. If you like thrills, you can choose to jump off a cliff. That way you'll have a few dozen seconds to enjoy the feeling." Sun Jing finished the last bit of coffee in her small cup and put it back on the table.

"Hey, you're satisfied with this little bit of money you swindled from the TV station? Money is something you can't keep; it might all be gone in a while." Xu Xu made a gesture of emptiness with both hands.

"It's nice to meet you, but I don't like being threatened, so I won't pay." Sun Jing stood up.

"I'll come to you again. Maybe I'll come up with a solution soon," Xu Xu called out to his retreating figure.

Xu Xu's shouts made Sun Jing unconsciously shake his head.

"Working with a cannon... I might as well jump off a cliff. I haven't exercised in a while, my parachute is practically moldy," he muttered.

When Sun Jing opened his mailbox, he noticed something that didn't belong to him. He was somewhat distracted, so it wasn't until he realized the evening paper hadn't arrived and was about to close the mailbox that he noticed a cake box on top of it.

Sun Jing's mailbox was much larger than others; it was specially ordered to hold the pile of magazines he subscribed to, mostly archaeology-related professional journals. They were quite thick and always crammed together. A cake box sat on top of the mailbox like a hat, half of it hanging in the air, very conspicuous, yet he hadn't noticed it immediately. Now, with him opening and closing the mailbox, the box had tilted and was about to fall.

Sun Jing steadied the box with her hand and then took it off. It felt lighter than she expected; perhaps someone had eaten most of the cake and then carelessly left it lying around.

He opened the box and saw a turtle with its head and feet tightly tucked into its shell.

A live mountain tortoise, about the size of a palm, with its claws not fully retracted, a small part of them still sticking out.

This is a messenger; there are very fresh markings on the tortoise shell. Sun Jing turned the cake box so that the words on the tortoise shell were facing him.

A string of strange, crooked characters, but very familiar to Sun Jing—oracle bone script.

Sun Jing recognized the last four characters at a glance: "召乃观演". When he finally recognized the first character after a while, he couldn't help but chuckle.

The person who carved these characters was clearly not an expert in oracle bone script; he made a clumsy mistake with the first character. The character should have looked like this: .

Although many characters in oracle bone script have interchangeable left-right or top-bottom structures, this character has never been seen written with its top-bottom structure reversed on any previously unearthed bone tablets. From a rigorous academic perspective, one cannot create a character that has never been seen before, so this character is obviously written incorrectly.

The character is “余”, as in “余召乃观演”. In oracle bone script, “余” means “I”, “召” means “to introduce”, “乃” means “you”, “观” means “to observe”, and “演” means “a long, flowing stream of water”.

An amateur insisted on carving characters in oracle bone script, specifically on a live tortoise, and then placed it in a cake box on top of his mailbox. This was solely to pique his curiosity.