Artifact Reading Inspector

Chapter 27: Artifact of the Treasure Ship (1)

Haejin tried to answer Gangseok’s question, but Jaepil pushed him away to approach the painting.

Then, he stared at the top part and soon moaned.

“Byeon (邊)… it is the letter byeon and the higher part is gone… it was unrecognizable before because it was covered by the tree…”

“Yes. This painting should have an empty space on top with a verse of Yoo Hanji’s poem, like the other paintings of the Quiet Mountains and the Sun series.

However, someone who used to own this cut out the empty part, probably because he or she didn’t know much about paintings or the painting was too long. So, there are no traces of it.

However, if you look closely at the top, the letters are not all gone. One-third of them has been cut off, the remaining part has faded and is hard to recognize, and that part is also overlayered with the top of that lonely tall tree.

You cannot tell whether it is a letter or part of the drawing if you don’t take a closer look, but when you are certain that it’s a letter, you can be sure what letter it is.”

Gangseok wiped the sweat on his forehead and took it from there.

“Actually, you might wonder how we can be sure with just one letter, 邊, but the scenery and the atmosphere of the painting is very alike with those of other Quiet Mountains and the Sun paintings.

Like a piece of a puzzle.

In that perspective, if the last letter is byeon, I think it is part of this verse; ‘drink bitter tea again and stroll on the stream bank’. This painting so naturally reminded me of that verse.

I couldn’t recall Lee Inmun while seeing this painting, but now that I compare it with the other Quiet Mountains and the Sun paintings, I grieve about not thinking of this before.

This is probably the sixth of the missing four paintings. Yes. This is one of Lee Inmun’s eight Quiet Mountains and the Sun paintings.”

After Gangseok finished talking, people started to applaud.

Clap clap!

“Congratulations. You bought a good painting at a low price.”

With Do Eunchae as a start, many people congratulated Eunhae who was more than happy about buying a good painting at such a low price. However, she was even happier about getting excellent remarks for the painting in the upcoming exhibition. She smiled like an angel and thanked everyone.

On the other hand, Yaerin couldn’t stand it. She snorted, turned around, and left the room.

“She is so narrow-minded… this is why you should be nice to others, right?” Eunhae pointed at Yaerin’s back and said. The chief auctioneer smiled and replied, “She might seem rude, but she is quite thoughtful.”

“Huh, really? I’ve known her for a decade, but never knew her for that.”

Eunhae didn’t argue and awkwardly agreed. Haejin added.

“You hold a grudge for longer than I thought.”

“Haha, really? I’m sorry. Anyway, it’s been a good auction. Oh, if you come to Saeyeon Gallery’s exhibition starting at the end of this month, you will see the Lee Inmun’s painting you saw today again, so please come.”

Eunhae seized the moment and promoted her next exhibition to the remaining people. Next, she paid the auction for the painting and left with it, but there was someone unexpected waiting.

“Huh? You’re still here?”

Yaerin was standing at the entrance with her arms crossed. She looked serious. She ignored Eunhae and looked at Haejin.

“You, what’s your name?”

“I don’t count a rude person as a person. I don’t have any reason to tell you my name.”

Yaerin was shocked at this. Her face turned slightly red, but she soon spoke again.

“I am sorry. I am Song Yaerin. What is your name?”

Eunhae was dumbfounded. Her jaw dropped. She had never seen Yaerin act like this.

“Park Haejin. Why were you waiting for me here?”

Haejin thought she might have another case for him, but her answer was beyond his expectation.

“You are the first person to humiliate me twice. I thought I needed to know who you are.”

“Ah… that wasn’t necessary…”

Actually, Haejin didn’t want to get to know Hyoyeon and Yaerin. They were both equally rude and made him tired. He even wondered if the family members of rich group-owners were educated by the same person these days.

“I must. I cannot sleep if I don’t. Hmm… are you going to keep sticking to her?”

That ‘her’ was obviously Eunhae.

“I was offered a case. She asked for my help, so I helped her.”

“Aha… I see.”

Yaerin’s eyes sparkled. She smiled mischievously and looked at Eunhae. Then, she looked at Haejin again and smiled.

“Then see you again, without this boring girl…”

She left while Eunhae exploded with anger.

“Funny! Huh… she is the real boring one, and she calls me boring?”

“Have you two been always like this?”

Eunhae thought about the past and wrinkled her nose.

“No, we used to be very close till high school… but the boy she liked suddenly told me he liked me. I swear, I didn’t know. Really.”

Her eyes glared and argued that she didn’t know… judging from that…

“Did you go out with him?”

Eunhae was angry now, she yelled, “I said I didn’t know! He was the most handsome boy in our school! Anyway, I had a huge fight with Yaerin and broke up with him. After that, we drifted apart. No, we became each other’s sworn enemy.”

“So, there really was a story for the two families to be enemies.”

“Haha, no. They are quite close. When we are with the adults of our families, she is nice to me as if we are still best friends. Funny, right?”

“It is funny.”

“Families like mine have complicated issues. Oh, but I want to ask you something. I looked at the catalog, but I couldn’t figure it out. The letter was so small in the catalog that it was a dot. How could you recognize the remaining half of the letter that was overlaid with the tree and was at the end of the painting from such a distance?”

The greatest appraisers must be able to know the artist of a painting even without any marks. Haejin recalled Lee Inmun in seconds when he saw the catalog.

However, although he was sure that it was Lee Inmun’s there was no proof to convince the others.

When the auction started, he used the water he was drinking to use the magic for the magnifying glass and was able to find the part of the letter at the top of the painting.

If he hadn’t been sure that it was painting of the Quiet Mountains and the Sun series, he would not have been able to find it. There had to be a verse written on the top part, so he could find it.

“I have good eyesight. To others, it would look like a dot, but I can tell if it’s an ink drop made by mistake or a smudged letter. As Lee Inmun’s style was a little unique even in his time, I became sure instantly.”

Eunhae found it hard to believe, but she couldn’t say more. Haejin had seen it and was sure. She nodded.

“I see. Anyway, coming here with you today was worth it. I got a good painting at a low price and made Yaerin buy the jade buddha at some billion. Honestly, I really wanted it, but after hearing what you said, I realized I was wrong.”

“Yoon Duseo’s painting and Lee Inmun’s painting would be great together.”

“Right. I am going to change the main title of this exhibition. Coming Home, how is that? Paintings of our ancestors, that have been abroad, came back after the ordeals.

Especially the story of finding Yoon Duseo’s painting at a French flea market by chance is so great.

Oh! Have you filmed or taken photos of the restoration process?”

“Of course.”

“Then, could you give me a few photos? The story would become more abundant if there is a description of the restoration process.”

She liked the paintings for the upcoming exhibition, so she kept talking with excitement.

“I wouldn’t mind, but I think my uncle would raise the price. Or no discount.”

“Huh… please talk to your uncle.”

Eunhae was feeling good and tried using her charm, but Haejin was not going to interfere as the price was Byeongguk’s problem.

“Okay. Anyway, thank you for today.”

Haejin thought saying no would make the conversation linger. However, he said goodbye and went home. He wanted to sleep after using magic. When he woke up, it was midnight.

“Ugh… I am awake.”

As usual, waking up after a post-magic sleep filled his body with energy. He couldn’t go back to sleep, so he turned on his computer and looked at his phone to order some fried chicken. There were 15 missed calls.

He didn’t recognize the number. He thought about letting it go, but he got curious and called that number. After a few dial tones, a man answered.

“Hello?”

“Yes, I got a lot of calls from you. 15 in total…”

“Oh, are you Mr. Park Haejin?”

“Yes… but who is this?”

“Hello. I am Yang Jeongjin, section chief of Yuseong corporation group’s secretary office. I know I should have sent you messages when I couldn’t contact you, but I kept calling because of a reason. I am very sorry for your inconvenience.”

Haejin couldn’t tell because he couldn’t see the man, but at least his voice sounded he was genuinely sorry.

“Oh… but why did you call me 15 times?”

“Actually, our chairman wants your help urgently. I heard you are a professional antique appraiser. Is that right?”

“Yes, it is.”

He must have kept calling because he thought Haejin would ignore the messages. Was he worried about Yaerin being rude to him?

“I again apologize for calling you so many times.”

“Who said I wouldn’t take your call if you sent messages?”

“Ah… hahaha.”

An awkward laugh. He must have heard of Yaerin’s story.

“Do you know my fee? It is a little high…”

“I know. 1% of the appraised price, even if the object is fake.”

If he knew that, then Yaerin wasn’t the only one who had told about Haejin to him.

“What is the object?”

“A porcelain of the Yuan period…”

He said Yuan period. It meant it was a Chinese porcelain. If it were a Goryeo porcelain, he wouldn’t have said Yuan. Haejin suddenly remembered something after hearing that a porcelain of the Yuan period was going to be appraised in Korea.

“Is it… from the coastal waters of Sinan?”

It was called a treasure ship… he recalled the twenty thousand artifacts that were recovered from the bottom of the ocean.

“Yes. It is one of the porcelains that sunk near Sinan. Will you appraise it?”