Oracle bone fragments

Oracle bone fragments

Introduction:

This is Na Duo's latest work. I've read Na Duo's other novels and quite like them.

Beginning in 1911, the experiments on mysterious inner powers, led by Sigmund Freud and assisted by Salvador Dalí, Stefan Zweig, and explorer Sven Hedin, continued and branched out in contemporary China. The magically powerful wizard skull became a new object of worship. Surrounded by the intense allure of a London oracle bone auction, con artists appeared, unexpectedly encountering the death of an actress. A startling truth emerged, accompanied by a series of traps. Incredible memory transmissions and a life-or-death duel hidden beneath the city's surface. The novel blends suspense, detective work, thriller, and fantasy, making reading a cautious adventure between reality and legend.

Chapter 01 Tortoise Shell Letter

"You have one last chance to take your things back. Otherwise, if I accidentally break them later, hehe, even fake things still have value, and it'll be too late to regret it then."

The host of the "Treasure Hunt" program wore a chilling smile as he waved a hammer around as if he were about to smash it down at any moment.

The fat man looked down at the treasure he had brought for appraisal on the table in front of him.

It was a grayish-yellow, unremarkable nail plate, completely incomparable in appearance to the porcelain vases and bowls next to it. Holding it in my hand, it felt light and weightless. The fat man's chubby fingers caressed the engravings on the nail plate, and as if making a decision, he put the nail plate back in its original place.

The audience below the stage were secretly amused by the fat man's behavior. Even in front of the TV cameras, one should at least act bold; why does being fat make one so timid?

The host strolled leisurely, the golden hammer in his hand already halfway in the air. He stopped in front of the fat man, smiled at him, but secretly glanced to his left.

On the left was a large blue-and-white porcelain vase depicting fish playing among lotus flowers, its slender neck rising above the tip of its owner's nose. The owner was a woman in her fifties, wearing glasses, her hands behind her back, her expression resolute.

"The exhibits here today are all very interesting, and they're a challenge for me too. For example, this tortoise shell—I might not even break it with a single blow of my hammer, which would ruin the brand!"

As the host spoke, he slowly raised the hammer. The stage lights were very bright, and the golden light reflected off the hammer made the fat man squint. Just then, he heard the hammer swish past him with a "whoosh".

"Bang"!

The hammer slammed heavily on the table, and more than half of the audience gaped in astonishment.

The host revealed his own smile, a mixture of slyness and smugness. He moved the hammer aside, revealing the tortoise shell beneath, now shattered into many pieces.

The control room was already filled with laughter.

"Quickly, quickly, point camera at the fat man, zoom in, close-up of his face!" the director shouted.

"Brother Lin is truly amazing, he's taken playing tricks on people to a whole new level. If I hadn't known beforehand, I would have thought he was going to smash the bottle next to him." The female intern with acne-covered face clutched her stomach, her expression exaggerated.

"He's using tactics like strategy and deception, even applying them to hosting a TV show. Lin Ge is amazing! Oh, look at Fatty's expression, he's really suffering, hahaha."

The fat man, whose face was zoomed in for a close-up, looked like he was both crying and laughing. He tried to put on a nonchalant smile, but forgot that he was biting his lower lip tightly, and the conflicting movements made the flesh on his cheeks twitch.

The host patted the fat man on the shoulder, sighed, and said, "What's fake can't become real, and what's real can't become fake. You had to be prepared. Listen to what our experts have to say. Even if you don't get any physical goods, take some knowledge with you; at least your trip won't have been in vain."

The fat man began to come to his senses, touching the broken pieces of oracle bone with his hands, repeatedly saying, "How could it be fake? It can't be fake, it can't be fake."

"Whether it's fake or not isn't up to you or me to decide; we have to listen to the experts."

The host gestured towards the experts' panel: "Today we have invited Mr. Zhong Dingwen, an expert in oracle bone script and bronze ware, to tell us why this oracle bone is fake and how to distinguish between genuine and fake oracle bones."

A man in his fifties sitting in the expert panel pushed up his glasses, cleared his throat, and said slowly, "Forgery of oracle bones used to be very rare, but in recent years, as the market for oracle bone artifacts has risen, forgery has become more common. In fact, true experts won't be fooled, because all the oracle bones unearthed throughout history, especially relatively complete inscribed tortoise shells like the ones here today, have a clear provenance; it's not like something that has never appeared before will suddenly emerge."

"No way!" the fat man abruptly interrupted Zhong Dingwen's explanation. "I had a friend look at it, and he said it's genuine."

"But your friend isn't an expert." This wasn't the first time the host had encountered this situation. He walked over to the fat man, intending to say something more to calm him down temporarily.

"No, he's an expert," the fat man insisted stubbornly, while turning his head to look at his family and friends in the audience.

The treasure hunter's friends and family sat in the first two rows of the audience. The fat man's friends and family consisted of only one person, a thin man who looked to be nearly thirty years old, with somewhat effeminate features and a gloomy, listless expression.

At this moment, he stood up from the second row, his gaze sweeping over the host's face and landing on Zhong Dingwen.

"I did have it appraised before, Professor Zhong, could you take another look?" He spoke casually, as if he and Zhong Dingwen, who was almost twice his age and sitting in the expert panel, were of equal status in the field of oracle bone appraisal.

The broadcast had already been stopped in the control room, and the director frowned.

"How can there be such a rule-breaker?" The intern with acne opened the door leading to the scene and was about to run down.

"Wait a minute," the director said behind her.

"you……"

On stage, the host only uttered one word before abruptly stopping. His usual smile took on a different form, appearing slightly unnatural. He withdrew his gaze from the man who had abruptly stood up and turned to look towards the panel of experts.

"Sun Jing?" Zhong Dingwen's voice came through the microphone clipped to his collar and was clearly heard by everyone present. He placed his hand on the table and slowly stood up.

Some of the other antique experts at the table recognized Sun Jing, while those who didn't understand when they saw the bronze inscription stand up. It seemed that Sun Jing was also a member of the oracle bone circle, and someone of considerable influence at that.

"You've seen this before?" Zhong Dingwen asked seriously, taking off his microphone and walking around from behind the experts' panel.

"Yes, I've seen it."

"This tortoise shell has only a large portion remaining, and it hasn't been mentioned in any previous records. You know this is very rare, and the script and engravings differ somewhat from other unearthed oracle bones. The chisel marks on the back are also different. How could you be so sure it's genuine... You must have misjudged it?"

As he finished speaking, Zhong Dingwen couldn't help but chuckle, but he quickly composed himself and decided to take another look at the fragment.

"Daxinzhuang."

Sun Jing only said three words, and Zhong Dingwen suddenly quickened his pace, rushed to the fragments, and looked down at them.

"The archaeological discovery at Daxinzhuang in Shandong, announced in 2003, was the first time Shang Dynasty oracle bones had been found outside of Anyang, the site of the Yin Ruins. The characters are slightly different from those in Anyang, but... Professor Zhong, you should have studied them as well, right?"

As Sun Jing spoke, he walked onto the stage, stood next to the fat man, and looked at Zhong Dingwen, who was frowning.

The host's face was already

……