At that moment, hearing Old Yan inquire, Gao Dequan pointed to Hao Baolai beside him and chuckled, "He bought quite a few things, but wasn't satisfied with any of them and remains undecided."

"What's there to deliberate over?" Old Yan said lightly, "When giving a gift, it's not about how precious it is, but mainly about conveying a blessing and one's good intentions."

"Elder Yan speaks the truth." Hao Baolai forced a wry smile, "I had already made up my mind, but unfortunately, the item wasn't right, so I have to continue to hesitate. I estimate I won't have a result until before the banquet tomorrow."

"Hearing that, it sounds like you went to look at something?" Old Yan asked curiously, "Why wasn't it right?"

"I originally fancied a tortoiseshell Tianmu tea bowl," Hao Baolai stated the facts, "But they felt the bowl was too light, which made it seem inauthentic, so we turned back."

The surrounding shopkeepers exchanged glances; their expressions showed nothing unusual, clearly knowing the background of the item.

"A tortoiseshell Tianmu bowl!"

At this point, Old Yan became quite interested, pressing for details, then shook his head, "Ah De, you were a bit hasty. While Jian ware bowls are indeed rustic and heavy in the hand, tea bowls from the Jizhou kiln are also somewhat delicate and cannot be treated the same as Jian ware. Therefore, weight is not the basis for judging authenticity..."

Hearing this, Hao Baolai's eyes lit up, though he wasn't entirely ready to give up. Just then, Wang Guan interjected, "Then, if there is no evidence of 'obstacle knife' or 'skipping knife' marks, would that count as evidence?"

"Hmm?" Old Yan paused, turning to look at Wang Guan, "What do you mean?"

"I observed it carefully just now. The wall of that tortoiseshell Tianmu bowl is exquisitely fine, just like this tea bowl of mine. Touching it by hand, there is absolutely no vertical ridging. This is extremely abnormal."

Wang Guan spoke at length, "You must know that the clay body of Jizhou ware contains a large amount of sand, so when turning the body, traces of 'obstacle knife' and 'skipping knife' often appear. Although covered by thick glaze, they aren't very obvious. However, when observed from the right angle, or felt directly by hand, these signs are clearly discoverable. But the tortoiseshell Tianmu bowl from before showed none of these phenomena; that is its biggest flaw."

"Ah De, is what he said correct?" Old Yan quickly inquired.

"That's right."

Gao Dequan added, "Moreover, the glaze is very uniform, and the ice-cracks are too regular, as if deliberately made..."

"Indeed, it's not genuine." Old Yan nodded slightly, because whether it was Jian ware or Jizhou black-glazed porcelain, due to the characteristics of the glazing process when sent to the kiln for firing, the glaze tends to flow at high temperatures, making a completely even surface impossible.

"However, I am also curious."

At the same time, Old Yan glanced at Wang Guan and pointed to the object in his hands, smiling, "Since you know that Jian ware and Jizhou Tianmu bowls cannot have such finely made walls, why did you still buy this piece?"

"This is neither Jian ware nor Jizhou Tianmu," Wang Guan smiled, holding the rim of the tea bowl with both hands, appearing very fond of it.

"Oh, is it Zibo ware black glaze?" Old Yan asked, charitably avoiding guessing it was a fake.

"No, it's just a very ordinary item." Wang Guan shook his head, and the others also nodded quietly, feeling that this grayish-black tea bowl with white streaks, even if not a forgery, was fired in some obscure small kiln.

"Is that so?"

Old Yan smiled, suddenly reaching out and touching the rim edge of the tea bowl. In that instant, his grizzled mustache twitched slightly, but he smoothly stroked his beard, concealing it well.

"This bowl is quite nice; my family once kept one to feed the cat."

At this, Old Yan sighed softly, "Unfortunately, the cat didn't live as long as I did; it passed away after ten years. Ever since then, I haven't dared to keep any small animals, just afraid of the sadness."

The bystanders naturally started persuading him, or simply suggested keeping a tortoise. This wasn't teasing; tortoises were symbols of longevity in ancient times, regarded as auspicious by emperors, generals, and common folk alike. That remains largely true even now; setting aside other connotations, keeping a tortoise is indeed conducive to cultivating temperament and extending life.

"I don't keep cats anymore, but my family does," Old Yan chuckled, "A while ago, my grand-daughter-in-law brought back a little white cat; it's quite clever and cute."

While speaking, Old Yan looked thoughtful, "Speaking of which, a black bowl and a white cat make a charming contrast. Young man, could you..."

"I can. I'll buy another one for you separately later."

Wang Guan decisively cut off the rest of what Old Yan was about to say. Before anyone else could react, Old Yan puffed out his cheeks and glared, "Young people nowadays really understand less and less about respecting their elders. The moral fabric of society is declining, and people's hearts are not what they used to be..."

"You're not much better, Elder," Wang Guan smiled slightly, "You don't care for the young ones much either. So, I learned from you."

"Nonsense."

Old Yan smiled, his tone carrying an underlying meaning, "How much confidence do you have?"

"Initially, I had seventy percent, but seeing your interest, Elder, I gained another ten percent," Wang Guan said with a smile, his fingers lightly stroking the delicate, thin inner wall of the tea bowl, growing more certain of his judgment.

At this point, Hao Baolai couldn't help but ask, "Elder Yan, what secret game are you two playing?"

In fact, it wasn't just him; everyone else was somewhat confused. Of course, some vaguely guessed the significance—for instance, Gao Dequan’s eyes brightened, and he quickly asked, "Wang Guan, did you find another treasure?"

"Nine times out of ten," Wang Guan smiled, then turned to ask, "Uncle, do you have camellia oil here?"

"Camellia oil?"

The owner of the tea set shop, who was pouring tea, was momentarily stunned, then broke into a smile, "I actually do."

"Then please pour me a bowl. Oh, and I'll need a piece of gauze and a soft cloth..." Wang Guan listed what he needed, finally entering the shop with the tea set owner to search for the required items.

"This is a find?"

At this moment, Hao Baolai's eyes were filled with suspicion. He picked up the tea bowl and studied it repeatedly, finding nothing special. On the contrary, he remained certain that this was not a Jian ware bowl.

"This was never Jian ware; Jian ware bowls have much thicker walls," Gao Dequan said casually. "The wall lacks traces of turning marks, so it's not Jizhou kiln either..."

"Stop guessing," Old Yan said with a laugh. "The young man told you right at the beginning that this object is neither Jian ware nor Jizhou Tianmu. Why do you insist on focusing on it?"

"If it's not those two precious types, then it must be an ordinary tea bowl," Hao Baolai suspected. "Elder Yan, such items should be common; why are you so interested?"

"Common?" Upon hearing this, Old Yan leaned on his dragon-headed cane, his voice tinged with excitement, "If this piece is genuine, and in such pristine condition, there might be very few like it left in the entire world!"

"Elder Yan, isn't that an exaggeration?" Hao Baolai was flabbergasted, and the other shopkeepers were equally stunned.

"Exaggeration? Perhaps..." Old Yan’s expression returned to normal, and he smiled faintly, "We'll know the final result when we see how the young man handles it."

At this time, Gao Dequan picked up the tea bowl to examine it. He had already looked at the wall and now observed the base. The circular foot at the bottom was also unglazed, perhaps having rested in the mud for too long, revealing a grayish-yellow hue of earth stain.

Gao Dequan idly felt the foot rim, and his finger accidentally scraped the mouth of the bowl. Instantly, his expression changed, a look of shock and confusion on his face, "Elder Yan, could this be..."

Gao Dequan did not finish what 'it' was, because Wang Guan emerged holding the diluted camellia oil he had prepared.

A large bowl of camellia oil was placed on the stone table. The clear liquid possessed a soft sheen, and a faint fragrance wafted out. Everyone smelled the fresh aroma and felt a sense of relief.

"It smells quite nice," Wang Guan joked, "Uncle De, want a sip?"

"Stop joking," Gao Dequan waved his hand. "Hurry up and do what you need to do, don't keep everyone waiting impatiently."

"I'm not in a hurry; why is everyone else?"

Despite saying that, Wang Guan followed the advice. He carefully dipped the tea bowl slightly into the camellia oil, wetting both the inner and outer walls, then began to gently rub it with the soft gauze. Initially, Wang Guan’s movements were extremely gentle, continuously dipping the gauze into the oil and applying it to the bowl’s walls, keeping the surface constantly moist with oil.

This process continued for quite some time, until only a thin layer of oil remained. Only then did Wang Guan set down the gauze and pick up the soft, thick cloth, vigorously rubbing the body of the bowl.

The sight made one truly worry that he might rub the thin wall of the tea bowl to pieces.

In the end, everyone's worry proved unnecessary. Under Wang Guan’s rubbing, the grayish-white color on the bowl’s wall gradually disappeared, replaced by an extremely pure and bright lacquer-black sheen. This blackness was very understated, exuding an aura of solemnity, classicism, and elegance, making one feel that this object must be extraordinary, possessing immeasurable value.

"Could it be Longshan black pottery?" one shopkeeper, startled, couldn't help but speculate.

"Not black pottery; black pottery walls couldn't be this thin."

"You just haven't seen much. In Longshan, a tall-stemmed, hollowed-out eggshell pottery cup was unearthed—unglazed yet lustrously black, with a thin yet hard body. The thickest part of the wall was only one millimeter, the thinnest like an eggshell, only 0.2 millimeters. Its crafting technique was unparalleled globally and it was designated a national treasure."

"But you said black pottery is unglazed, and this tea bowl has glaze; clearly, it's porcelain."

"That seems right..."

Amidst their hushed whispers, Wang Guan finished carefully rubbing every inch of the tea bowl with the soft cloth, and the bowl gradually regained its former brilliance.

A moment later, Wang Guan washed the residual camellia oil stains off the bowl with water, dried the water spots, and finally placed it on the table for everyone to admire. The exterior of the bowl was pure black, the glaze deep black and glossy, reflective enough to serve as a mirror. Furthermore, on the inner wall of the bowl, there were small, oil-droplet-like markings.

Before the grayish-white stains were removed with the camellia oil, the markings on the inner wall were faint, almost imperceptible, very unremarkable. But now, the oil-droplet-like markings presented a dazzling, variegated effect, as beautiful as a peacock's tail feathers.

"Such a beautiful Yao Bian..."

At this, one shopkeeper became excited, "If it's not Jian ware, what else could it be?"