Moreover, the British Museum has several Chinese artifacts that are considered unique and irreplaceable, which Zhuang Rui covets. Even if he cannot obtain them, he would be willing to have them transported to China for exhibition if given the opportunity.
Although he was excited, Zhuang Rui still pretended to be uninterested and said, "William, as you just saw, my pirate collection is full of top-quality items. I'm not interested in ordinary exchanges..."
Although William was of noble status, he was still just a young man in his twenties. After spending a few days together, Zhuang Rui had already become like brothers with him, and their conversations became much more casual.
"Zhuang, you're wrong. The British Museum is the best museum in the world. It's full of masterpieces, even more valuable than these pirate treasures..."
Upon hearing Zhuang Rui's words, young William was very dissatisfied. Everyone is proud of their country, and William certainly did not want to be looked down upon by Zhuang Rui.
"But... William, can you make the decision about the collection I want to exchange with the British Museum?"
Zhuang Rui's words brought a smile to Bill Gates' face. He had been listening intently and could tell at a glance that Zhuang Rui was actually very interested in the British Museum and that his words were just a provocation.
Compared to Bill Gates's seasoned experience, William was still a step behind. Upon hearing Zhuang Rui's words, he immediately replied, "Of course, our royal family has a voice in the British Museum. I think... with my abilities, I can facilitate an exchange of collections between the two sides..."
William wasn't exaggerating. Although the British royal family no longer directly governs the country, their prestigious status in Britain remains irreplaceable. Many British people consider it an honor to receive royal recognition. For example, before Hong Kong was returned to China, many Hong Kong tycoons held British knighthoods.
It's almost impossible for William to change British national policy, but promoting economic and cultural exchanges among the people is precisely what the British royal family has always been committed to. Since William has spoken up, the British Museum will certainly take it seriously.
"Is that so? Alright then, William, I'll discuss it with my colleagues and then give you a list of people to exchange ideas with. If the British Museum in your country agrees, then we can start negotiations. What do you think?"
Zhuang Rui's words were actually setting a trap for William. If they went directly to negotiate with the British Museum, they would definitely not get the items they wanted to exchange. But if they handed them over to William, it would be a different story.
Regardless, William had made a boast to Zhuang Rui, and he would lose face if he failed. Moreover, this exchange was not a transaction; the items would ultimately belong to their original owner. Therefore, William would definitely make this exchange happen.
"Okay, Zhuang, write down the list for me, and I can contact the museum this afternoon..."
William was even more anxious than Zhuang Rui. As the second in line to the British throne, only after Charles, he would be the future King of England if nothing unexpected happened. Before ascending the throne, William felt it was necessary to do something beneficial for the British people.
As a child, William was a rebellious boy. When other children refused to blow out their birthday candles at parties, he would shout: "When I am king, I will order my knights to cut off your heads!" But as he grew older, William became more and more composed and more like a public figure.
Facilitating cultural and academic exchanges between Britain and China may seem like a small matter, but it is enough to highlight William's presence and demonstrate that the heir to the British throne is also contributing to the British people.
William wasn't stupid. He knew that Zhuang Rui might have his eye on an item in the British Museum, but that didn't matter. As mentioned earlier, it was just an exchange, not a transaction. He only needed to get what he needed from it.
Upon hearing William's words, Zhuang Rui no longer concealed his joy. He turned to Bill Gates and said, "That's wonderful, Bill. I'm so sorry, please have my assistant accompany you to continue your tour of the museum. I need to go and discuss some related matters with my colleagues..."
"It's alright, Zhuang, you go ahead and do your work..."
Bill shrugged. A workaholic himself, he felt nothing but admiration for Zhuang Rui's attitude towards work. ...
"Boss, why did you drag me here in such a hurry?"
Huangfu Yun, who was in contact with several foreign media outlets based in Beijing, walked into his office with a displeased look. He looked around and asked with some curiosity, "Where are those two? Did they leave?"
Given Bill Gates and Prince William's status, Zhuang Rui was the only person most suitable to accompany them in the museum, so Huangfu Yun assumed they had left.
Zhuang Rui shook his head and said, "No, I had Yang Jian with them. I called you here to discuss something..."
Upon hearing Zhuang Rui's words, Huangfu Yun's eyes widened suddenly. After a long while, he said, half-jokingly and half-seriously, "Hey, Zhuang Rui, I have to say, I really admire you now. There are probably very few people on this earth who can shake off those two without giving up..."
Before Huangfu Yun could finish speaking, Zhuang Rui waved his hand and said, "Stop with the nonsense. Here's the thing: William will be facilitating an exchange of artifacts between the Pirate Museum and the British Museum. I called you here to discuss what terms we should offer..."
"The British Museum? Holy crap, you've really fooled William..."
Zhuang Rui's words almost made Huangfu Yun jump up. Since taking over the Dingguang Museum, Huangfu Yun had visited foreign museums many times to study and exchange collections with many famous museums. However, the British Museum was a tough nut to crack.
As the saying goes, big shops bully their customers, and the British Museum is a perfect example of this.
They possess the world's richest and most complete collection, virtually flawless in every field. Not to mention the small Dingguang Museum, even the Palace Museum once tried to exchange some collections with them, but was met with their arrogant and domineering rejection.
"If this exchange activity can be successfully completed, the influence of Dingguang Museum within the domestic museum system will certainly be no less than that of the Palace Museum..."
Huangfu Yun was a little excited. They could do what the Palace Museum couldn't, which was a blatant slap in the face. However, with Zhuang Rui around, those bureaucrats couldn't do anything to the Dingguang Museum.
"Alright, stop with the nonsense, let's see what items are worth exchanging..."
Zhuang Rui interrupted Huangfu Yun, thought for a moment, and continued, "The Shang Dynasty bronze zun must be on the list. Also, the Song Dynasty porcelain wine pot and the Tang Dynasty copy of Gu Kaizhi's 'Admonitions of the Instructress to the Court Ladies'—these three items must be exchanged..."
"Boss, you...you're too ruthless! Do you think they'll agree to this?"
Upon hearing Zhuang Rui's words, Huangfu Yun was somewhat dumbfounded. These three items were considered the crown jewels of the British Museum's Chinese gallery, each one priceless.
As Zhuang Rui said, of the Tang Dynasty copy of "Admonitions of the Instructress to the Court Ladies", only two copies remain in the world today. One of them is a Song Dynasty copy, which is in the collection of the Palace Museum in Beijing. However, the brushwork and colors are not satisfactory and cannot be considered a top-quality work.
The other is this copy in the British Museum. It was originally in the Qing Palace collection and was a favorite of Emperor Qianlong. It was kept in the Yuanmingyuan Garden. In 1860, when the Anglo-French allied forces invaded Beijing, British Captain Kee Yong stole it from the Yuanmingyuan Garden and took it abroad.
This exquisite copy, housed in the British Museum, is not open to the public at all. Instead, it is stored in the Stein Room within the museum, and only special experts have the opportunity to see it.
Xie Chengshui, director of the Art Research Office of the Dunhuang Studies Center at Nanjing Normal University, had the chance to see this copy in the secret room in 2002.
At that time, Director Xie discovered that the only record in the register was of two Japanese people who came to the site in the 1920s to make copies, which shows how much importance the museum attaches to this collection.
Chapter 1239 Gift
It is no exaggeration to say that the "Admonitions of the Instructress to the Court Ladies" is the earliest surviving Chinese silk painting and one of the earliest works by a professional Chinese painter that can still be seen.
Just like the Dingguang Sword's status among ancient cold weapons, the "Admonitions of the Instructress to the Court Ladies" is also a milestone in the history of Chinese art.
Therefore, Zhuang Rui set his first target on the copy of "Admonitions of the Instructress to the Court Ladies," while the other two items he mentioned were masterpieces of ancient Chinese art.
Zhuang Rui noticed this when he visited the British Museum a few years ago. The Shang Dynasty bronze zun was made of two conjoined sheep, with a round zun tube in the middle. The design was very beautiful and exquisite. There are no similar bronzes in China.
As for the Song Dynasty porcelain wine pot, its base is surrounded by a lotus flower, and a lion sits on the lid. Both its shape and firing technique are exquisite, making it a rare gem among masterpieces. Therefore, Zhuang Rui included it in the exchange list.
After mentioning the three items, Zhuang Rui thought for a moment and then said, "Well, Brother Huangfu, let's include that Yuan Dynasty blue and white porcelain plate with a mandarin fish design. The British keep these things hidden in secret rooms all day long; it's time for the Chinese people to see these items that were looted more than a hundred years ago..."
Although the British Museum occupies a much larger area than the Dingguang Museum, its collection is equally profound. Many extremely precious items have not been displayed at all, but have been sealed away for decades or even centuries.
Now that there is this opportunity for exchange exhibitions, Zhuang Rui naturally wants to bring those masterpieces that represent the pinnacle of Chinese art back to the Chinese people. Although the Chinese are much wealthier now, how many of them can go to the UK to see these national treasures?
Huangfu Yun's expression also turned serious, and he said earnestly, "Zhuang Rui, your idea and starting point are good, but... will the British Museum agree to our request?"
It's worth noting that the British Museum previously wouldn't even give way to the Palace Museum, and it was extremely difficult for domestic scholars to enter the British Museum's secret rooms to study unique artworks that didn't even exist in China.
Huangfu Yun felt that his boss was being somewhat presumptuous regarding the conditions Zhuang Rui had offered, and he wasn't very optimistic about the exchange.
"It's fine if you disagree, it's not like we came up with the idea. Brother Huangfu, let's bargain down the line. But the items I mentioned above must be in the exchange items, otherwise, let's not do it..."
Zhuang Rui didn't care. It would be great if this exchange could be facilitated, but if it failed, he wouldn't suffer any loss. Moreover, if William made every effort to make this happen, the British Museum would probably give the future king some face.
Furthermore, the pirate treasures in those pirate museums are merely novel to Chinese people, at most increasing their understanding of medieval foreign pirate history.
However, these pirate treasures are of great significance to the British, because they were the ones who wiped out the Krauss pirates. They represent Britain's powerful military strength and deterrent force at that time. In the eyes of relevant people, their importance may not be less than that of the Chinese cultural relics that Zhuang Rui offered.
"Okay, we'll do it your way..."
Huangfu Yun thought it made sense, so he immediately wrote a list in both Chinese and English and handed it to Zhuang Rui. Following the principle of exchanging one item for another, he listed a total of eighteen Chinese artifacts from the British Museum.
In fact, Zhuang Rui didn't have high hopes for this matter, but after he handed the list to William at noon, the subsequent progress was unusually smooth.
It's unclear whether Prince William's status as the future king played a role, but the British Museum has tentatively agreed to this cultural exchange activity. As for the details of the exchange of items, these will need to be discussed by representatives from both museums.
Of course, Zhuang Rui and William wouldn't concern themselves with these matters. Poor Deputy Curator Huangfu, while busy with the first exhibition of the "Imperial Seal of the State" tomorrow, had already started booking flights to England in a few days, while Zhuang Rui was taking Prince William and Bill to Panjiayuan Market. ...
Zhuang Rui and the others were dressed casually, and Bill had changed his glasses to prescription sunglasses. Panjiayuan is a place where foreigners gather, so they blended into the crowd and were not recognized.
However, the bodyguards following behind them had a much harder time. While protecting the target, they also had to prevent any unexpected incidents, and they were all secretly cursing Zhuang Rui for bringing Bill and William here.
Bill Gates has visited Panjiayuan several times, but this is Prince William's first time, and he is captivated by the dazzling array of Chinese "artworks".
The royal scion, who had received an aristocratic education since childhood, was overwhelmed by the sights.
"Zhuang, this is amazing! I think... I've fallen in love with Chinese culture..."
William held an ancient ruyi (a type of scepter) used for scratching an itch in his right hand and a cloisonné vase in his left, his face full of excitement, squeezing into the crowd wherever there were the most people.
Although they are all fakes, modern manufacturing techniques make these "knock-off" antiques more visually appealing. If Zhuang Rui hadn't helped him negotiate the price, Prince William would probably have become the foreign guest who was ripped off the most since Panjiayuan was established.
"William, I still have gifts to give you..."
Zhuang Rui couldn't stand William anymore. When William was buying things, Zhuang Rui bargained for the price, which made the people selling things in Panjiayuan look at him with the eyes of a traitor. This was too uncomfortable. So he dragged William into "Xuanrui Zhai".
"Hey, Brother Zhuang, what brings you here today..."
Monkey, the third manager of Xuanruizhai, rushed to greet Zhuang Rui upon seeing him. Compared to a few years ago, Monkey was much more composed and spoke with a strong Beijing accent.
"I brought two foreign friends to visit. Where are Da Xiong and Lao Zhao?"
Zhuang Rui glanced around and saw that there weren't many people in the shop at the moment, so he didn't invite William and Bill inside, but instead asked them to sit down at the tea table.
The monkey deftly started boiling water on the tea table, secretly glancing at William and Bill's two bodyguards, and whispered, "Brother Da Xiong and the others are going out. Brother Zhuang, what do your two foreign friends do? Why are they with bodyguards?"
"You don't recognize them?"
Zhuang Rui looked at the monkey in surprise. Bill and William had already taken off their sunglasses, and he didn't expect that the monkey wouldn't recognize them.
The monkey, looking confused, said, "I don't recognize them, Brother Zhuang. Are they foreign celebrities? But the older one isn't very handsome..."
Although he's been living in Beijing for several years, Monkey neither reads newspapers nor watches TV. After having a daughter last year, he became a stay-at-home dad as soon as he got off work.
His girlfriend, a divorced young woman he hooked up with at the gym, had similar tastes, so even though he'd heard that Bill Gates was the world's richest man, Monkey didn't actually know who he was.
"Well, you haven't improved at all. You should read more world finance magazines; you have no knowledge whatsoever..."
Zhuang Rui was both amused and exasperated by what the monkey said. Someone like Bill Gates might get a biography made in the future, but no film company in the world could afford to hire him to make a movie.
"Why would I look at those things? I don't know how to trade stocks..."
The monkey muttered something under its breath, a typical petty-bourgeois mentality.
Zhuang Rui waved his hand to stop the monkey from pouring tea, and said, "Alright, I'll pour the tea. Go and carve a personal seal for my two friends. Hmm, use the best chicken-blood stone in the shop, and make sure the craftsmanship is good, otherwise I can't afford to lose face..."
Despite his shifty appearance and past idleness, Monkey is actually quite skillful. Over the years, he has mastered eight-tenths of Master Ge's seal carving skills. After Master Ge suffered a stroke and returned home to recuperate last year, he officially took over the seal carving craft of "Xuanrui Zhai".
Over the course of a year, Monkey had become quite famous, and many people in the capital had begun to collect his seals. Zhuang Rui wanted to give Bill and William the gifts he needed to receive, and he would have to rely on Monkey.
After writing William and Bill's names on a piece of paper and handing it to the monkey, Zhuang Rui busied himself at the tea table.
"Bill, William, try some Chinese tea. This is excellent Pu'er tea, with a history of over thirty years..."
Zhuang Rui has been visiting Old Master Gu's place frequently over the past few years, and has developed a skill in pouring tea. His smooth and flowing movements have earned him a thumbs-up from Bill and William.
"Bang... Crash!"
Just as Zhuang Rui and William were enjoying their tea, several loud noises suddenly came from where Monkey had been sitting, startling the bodyguard at the door who rushed forward to block Bill and William's path.
"Huh? Where's the monkey? The monkey!"
Zhuang Rui noticed that the monkey that had been sitting in front of the seal carving table was now gone, so he quickly called out to it.
"Brother Zhuang... I... I'm fine..."
The monkey's voice came from behind the table. After a long while, it stood up, clutching its head, pulled Zhuang Rui aside, and whispered, pointing at the note, "Brother Zhuang, this name... he's that... the world's richest man?"