Yu Feibai’s guess wasn't entirely off the mark. After all, only the names of the artisans and craftsmen would be simple two or three characters.

Inscriptions dedicated to ancestors, diplomatic covenants between feudal lords, or records of merit and reward would certainly require more space. Of course, regardless of what the text on the bianzhong actually meant, the crucial factor was its quality, or rather, whether anyone liked it enough to spend money buying it.

He Lao Liu, at least, was very concerned about this, pushing his salesmanship with vigor. But Wang Guan and the others showed little interest.

Even Tang Qinghua only asked a casual question; he didn't actually think the bianzhong was that exceptional, much less consider paying such an unwarranted price. "Let's look around some more," Wang Guan said lightly, effectively cutting off all of He Lao Liu's persuasive rhetoric.

Despite this, He Lao Liu didn't lose heart. He glanced back and, noticing that Fang Mingsheng seemed interested in a bronze plate, quickly shifted his target, continuing his zealous, eloquent sales pitch.

"That bronze plate..." Yu Feibai glanced over and asked quietly, "Is there a problem with it?" "These items are a mix of genuine and fake, and within the fakes, there might be truths. As for what is truly genuine and what is not, it's hard to say," Wang Guan shook his head slightly, then smiled again.

"And Fang Mingsheng is extremely astute; he's not someone who can be easily fooled." "Hmph, whether he gets fooled or not has nothing to do with me," Yu Feibai pouted. "I just find this so tedious.

How about we go outside for a stretch, take a walk around the courtyard?" "Hm?" Wang Guan's eyes flashed. "What are you plotting now?" "I'm not plotting anything," Just then, Yu Feibai smiled sweetly.

"It's stuffy in the hall; I just want to get some fresh air." As he spoke, Yu Feibai headed straight for the exit. The people nearby heard him, but only Wang Guan and Tang Qinghua, who understood his temperament, didn't harbor any suspicion.

As for He Lao Liu, he was too busy making his hard sell at the moment to pay any attention to where Yu Feibai went. "I'll go check on him, just in case he stirs up more trouble," Wang Guan said, a little worried.

After nodding to Tang Qinghua, he followed outside. After all, this was someone else's territory; even if they weren't afraid of trouble, they shouldn't actively invite it.

Wang Guan stepped out briskly but found no sign of Yu Feibai in the front courtyard. He immediately knew the younger man must have gone to the back.

"Why is he causing trouble for no reason," Wang Guan couldn't help but shake his head, then deliberately took a detour to the back garden. Sure enough, he saw Yu Feibai squatting in an open space, using a small twig to scratch at the dirt.

"Feibai." Seeing this, Wang Guan felt a headache coming on. He said helplessly, "Are you looking to get beaten up and find out what it feels like to be chased away with a barrage of sticks?" "I'm just verifying what you said," Yu Feibai replied with keen interest.

"I just scratched around casually and immediately realized you were right—the soil layer here is very loose. It feels like something is buried here." "It's good that you know," Wang Guan said irritably.

"You're not a mischievous child. Where does all this curiosity come from?

When you are a guest in someone's home, you should know how to behave. Exposing their secrets is akin to tearing off the façade; what benefit does that bring us?" "It's the petty pleasure of hurting others without benefiting oneself," Yu Feibai smiled broadly.

"As a promising, justice-driven young man, how can I tolerate the existence of such a den of iniquity? We should strike straight for the heart of it—destroy this counterfeiting operation.

Old Qian would surely be pleased, and it would prevent many others from being deceived. It’s killing two birds with one stone." "I think it's three birds," Wang Guan sighed.

"You also get to watch a good show." "Yes, yes, that's the key part," With his true motive exposed, Yu Feibai showed no embarrassment; instead, he nodded repeatedly. "Professor Wen said this place isn't peaceful.

I want to see just how un-peaceful it is." "I think you're simply too full and have nothing better to do, which is why you came up with this idea. I have to admire your capacity for boredom," Wang Guan was nearly speechless, offering a mock bow of 'admiration.' "It's nothing, it's nothing," Yu Feibai chirped.

"Seeing injustice and stepping in is only natural human behavior. I just can't stand people who fake things.

If I hadn't run into it before, fine. But now that I have, how can I just stand by and do nothing?" "If you want to intervene, I won't stop you," At this point, Wang Guan pondered.

"But can we deal with it in a couple of days? Don't forget, we still have business to attend to; we shouldn't create complications now." "Uh...

that seems right," Yu Feibai thought for a moment before finally nodding in agreement, though there was a hint of regret. "Alright then, I'll make a note of it and handle this in a couple of days.

Oh, I need to make a reminder so I don't forget." At first, Wang Guan assumed Yu Feibai's idea of a reminder involved saving a note on his phone or something similar. Instead, he looked around, seemingly searching for an object.

A moment later, Wang Guan saw clearly: Yu Feibai's eyes lit up, and he bent down to pick up a small pebble with slightly pointed edges. He then drew a large circle on the wall of the house and wrote a single, well-known character inside the circle.

"Demolish!" Seeing this, Wang Guan was instantly overcome with amusement and rendered completely speechless. "Done." After writing the character, Yu Feibai stepped back a few paces to admire his handiwork, looking quite satisfied with himself.

He then tossed the small pebble backward and clapped his hands. Clang...

Suddenly, the pebble seemed to strike something, emitting a crisp sound. Both men naturally turned to look.

They saw a row of large jars in the corner of the backyard. The pebble Yu Feibai threw had hit one of the jars, and there was a distinct crack visible on its surface.

Seeing this, Yu Feibai looked startled. "Was that jar already cracked, or did I break it?" "That..." Wang Guan shook his head, equally confused.

"I really didn't notice." "Let's go look." Although Yu Feibai had his flaws, he would never evade responsibility for something he genuinely broke. Even if he intended to tear the place down later, he would first compensate He Lao Liu for the jar he damaged.

"It wasn't me who broke it..." Walking over and examining it closely, Yu Feibai chuckled. "It looks like it cracked a while ago; the edges are covered in mud and grime.

Huh, there seems to be something inside the jar." Driven by curiosity, Yu Feibai lifted the lid off the jar and, looking down, his expression instantly changed. "What is it?" Wang Guan walked over, and as he got closer, he smelled a rather pungent odor.

He didn't realize what it was at first, but when he looked down at the contents of the jar, he exclaimed in shock, "Saltpeter?" It wasn't surprising that Wang Guan reacted so strongly; the issue was the sheer quantity of saltpeter in the jar. This was one of the raw materials for making gunpowder.

Besides specialized factories, what ordinary person would possess such a substance? In an instant, Wang Guan frowned.

He immediately slammed the jar lid shut and quickly pulled Yu Feibai away. Without pausing for a second, they returned directly to the entrance of the front hall.

Near the doorway, however, the two men lingered without entering. "Feibai, it seems you were right," Wang Guan said after a few steps, nodding.

"Some things really can't be ignored. We need to act when necessary." "So, should we act quickly, or wait a couple of days?" Yu Feibai hesitated.

"Though, perhaps the matter isn't as serious as we imagine. Those...

things might have other uses." "What other uses? Making fireworks and firecrackers, or perhaps tanning leather?" Wang Guan spread his hands.

"This is a private residence, not some workshop. What would they need that for?" "That's true," Yu Feibai considered it and agreed.

"In matters like this, it's better to act on the slight suspicion than to let a real threat pass." "What do you mean by letting things pass?" Just then, Tang Qinghua walked out from the hall. "Wang Guan, you're back just in time.

Boss Fang is asking you to step in and help with something." Wang Guan paused, puzzled. "Help with what?" "What else?

He probably took a liking to something and needs you to appraise it," Yu Feibai guessed, hitting the nail right on the head. "Exactly," Tang Qinghua nodded, then explained.

"Just after you left, He Lao Liu brought out something else. Boss Fang is interested in an item but isn't completely confident, so he asked me to bring you in to take a look." "What item is it?" Wang Guan asked curiously, walking back into the hall.

"A yubi jade disc," Tang Qinghua said with a smile. "It looks quite good; it might be something valuable." "A yubi?" Yu Feibai murmured nonchalantly, "In my opinion, apart from the Heshibi, there are no good jade discs in this world." "That's too absolute, you're asking for a beating," Wang Guan shook his head and chuckled softly.

"Do you know how many national treasures are among the jade discs in the Palace Museum? Are you saying they aren't good?" Hearing this, Yu Feibai immediately fell silent and quickly entered the hall.

He saw what Fang Mingsheng was focused on examining: a flat, circular object with a perforation in the center—precisely a yubi, a traditional ritual object in ancient China, and one of the Six Rui emblems. In ancient China, jade was used as a symbol of trust.

Based on the concept that all things possess a spirit, beautiful jade was considered the essence of mountains and rivers, a treasure bestowed by heaven, possessing the spiritual capacity to communicate between heaven, earth, and deities. Therefore, during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, the Rites of Zhou designated jade objects such as the bi, cong, gui, zhang, hu, and huang as the Six Qi, used in imperial audiences, also known as the Six Rui.

The text clearly recorded: "The King holds the Zhen Gui; the Dukes hold the Huan Gui; the Lords hold the Xin Gui; the Barons hold the Gong Gui; the Sons hold the Gu Bi; the Men hold the Pu Bi." The six Rui varied in size and form to indicate differences in rank and status. Setting aside other jade artifacts, the yubi alone has specific conventions regarding its shape.

The object is flat and round with a hole in the center, called the hao. The edge of the artifact is called the rou.

The Erya—Shiqi also provides a precise description: "When rou is double the hao, it is called a bi; when hao is double the rou, it is called a yuan; when rou and hao are equal, it is called a huan." This means clearly that only when the central hole is small relative to the body can it be called a bi. The jade piece in Fang Mingsheng's hand had a dark yellow hue, with surface striations that revealed a sense of refinement.

After all, like bronze ritual vessels, jade artifacts before the Qin Dynasty were exclusively used by the nobility, so their designs were certainly aesthetically pleasing. This yubi was no exception; it was clear at a glance that it was an object meticulously carved and polished...

(To be continued) RS