Chapter 236: The Sucker
Upon hearing Qin Tuo’s words, Shangguan Xiong was so furious he gritted his teeth, his face contorted with uncontrollable rage.
"You brat, you’d better explain yourself today! How dare you slander my top-grade Polygonum multiflorum and call it a fake? I won’t let you get away with this."
But Zhou Qihua quickly interjected with a placating smile:
"Mr. Shangguan, please don’t mind him. He’s a friend of mine and doesn’t know anything about this business."
Shangguan Xiong sneered and said,
"Heh, he doesn’t know the business, yet he dares to make such careless comments? Isn’t he afraid of biting his own tongue?"
Chen Man Ni also stepped forward to explain,
"Excuse me, sir. I apologize on his behalf!"
As she spoke, she repeatedly shot glances at Qin Tuo.
Chen Man Ni was afraid Qin Tuo would ruin things for Zhou Qihua, which would end up being awkward for everyone.
However, Qin Tuo remained completely unfazed, saying casually,
"Did I say something wrong? This is just an ordinary Polygonum multiflorum. The forgery technique is quite sophisticated, though, so it’s normal for most people not to see through it."
At first, Qin Tuo had also thought it was a genuine hundred-year-old Polygonum multiflorum.
However, he possessed the Celestial King Order, which allowed him to see the Spiritual Qi contained within such Spiritual Objects.
He saw with a single glance that this Polygonum multiflorum had not a shred of Spiritual Qi, making it an utterly mundane item.
Moreover, with his skill in reading people, Qin Tuo could tell at a glance that Shangguan Xiong was actually feeling a little insecure.
After all, he knew his own goods inside and out. He was just putting on a brave face to deliberately swindle Zhou Qihua.
The more furious he acted, the more it proved he had no confidence in his position.
"Mr. Qin, I’m begging you, please don’t say any more..."
Zhou Qihua forced a wry smile. He felt that if Qin Tuo continued to cause a scene, it would make him miss out on this top-grade, hundred-year-old Polygonum multiflorum.
Shangguan Xiong pointed a finger at Qin Tuo’s nose and said furiously,
"Alright, kid, why don’t you tell us today on what grounds you claim this isn’t real?"
Qin Tuo shook his head, smiled, and walked right up to pick up the Polygonum multiflorum.
His movements were bold and casual, showing no sign of treating the Polygonum multiflorum as a treasure.
Seeing Qin Tuo’s actions, the corner of Zhou Qihua’s mouth twitched violently.
"Be careful, Mr. Qin! Don’t break it!"
Meanwhile, Shangguan Xiong’s expression grew increasingly grim.
At the same time, an imperceptible flicker of panic flashed deep in his eyes.
Qin Tuo waved it around casually a couple of times before speaking.
"You can take a magnifying glass and look closely. The patterns on the bottom part of this Polygonum multiflorum are clearly unnatural; they were added later. A naturally formed, hundred-year-old Polygonum multiflorum would have smooth, flowing lines, nothing like this."
Hearing Qin Tuo’s words, Shangguan Xiong’s heart skipped a beat, and his face turned pale.
Zhou Qihua’s eyes widened in suspicion.
He quickly grabbed a professional appraiser’s magnifying glass and took a close look.
One look, and he was speechless for a long moment!
Seeing this, Chen Man Ni and Lin Yuyan were also stunned.
Especially after seeing Shangguan Xiong’s current expression, they had a vague feeling that what Qin Tuo said was likely the truth.
"So, Mr. Zhou, what do you think? I wasn’t wrong, was I?"
Qin Tuo said with a confident smile.
Zhou Qihua, now displeased, said,
"Mr. Shangguan, this is out of line. Since it’s a fake, why did you try to pass it off as real to deceive me?"
Clearly, Zhou Qihua was now quite angry.
If Qin Tuo hadn’t spoken up in time, he would have been a huge sucker.
And for twenty million, no less!
Just thinking about it sent a wave of fear through Zhou Qihua.
Shangguan Xiong gritted his teeth and continued to argue,
"Hmph, it just got scraped a little during transport, which damaged the patterns. It didn’t affect the medicinal properties inside. You dare to call it a fake based on that alone? How ridiculous!"
Hearing Shangguan Xiong’s explanation, Zhou Qihua faltered for a moment, and his heart began to waver.
Seeing Shangguan Xiong still daring to put up a desperate struggle, a cold smile flashed in Qin Tuo’s eyes.
He then said loudly,
"Since you won’t admit it, Mr. Zhou, could you please have someone bring a basin of warm water?"
At this, Shangguan Xiong’s face grew uglier as if he realized what was about to happen.
Soon, a basin of warm water was brought over.
Qin Tuo directly submerged the Polygonum multiflorum in the warm water. In less than three minutes, several people gasped in shock!
They watched as the basin of clear, warm water gradually turned purplish-black...
The Polygonum multiflorum also began to change color, losing its original translucent appearance. It became a muddy yellow, its surface now pitted and disgusting to look at.
"Wow, it really is a fake! They just coated it with something. That’s despicable!"
Chen Man Ni couldn’t help but mutter.
Only then did Zhou Qihua realize how close he had come to being duped!
This top-grade, hundred-year-old Polygonum multiflorum had apparently been soaked in a chemical solution. Now, after being steeped in warm water, the solution dissolved, which was why the water changed color.
Shangguan Xiong’s eyes darted about nervously. He stood there, speechless for a long time.
"You rotten Shangguan Xiong! How dare you try to trick me with this... this ’tech product’! Aren’t you afraid I’ll have you thrown in jail!"
Zhou Qihua roared.
Shangguan Xiong, in a panic, hurriedly tried to explain.
"It’s not like that, Boss Zhou! I was tricked too! Someone else sold it to me; I had no idea!"
However, his excuses sounded incredibly feeble.
Zhou Qihua slammed the fake Polygonum multiflorum onto the ground.
"Take your junk and get the hell out!"
And so, Shangguan Xiong could only scramble away in disgrace.
Before leaving, however, he shot a vicious glare at Qin Tuo.
Zhou Qihua took a deep breath and said with a wry smile,
"Mr. Qin, thank goodness you arrived when you did. Otherwise, Jishi Hall would have become a laughingstock!"
Lin Yuyan, her face full of amazement, praised him,
"Qin Tuo, you’ve got an amazing nose! I can’t believe you could even tell the difference with this!"
Qin Tuo just shook his head and smiled.
A trick like this might work on an ordinary person, but to him, it was riddled with holes.
Besides, Qin Tuo needed something from Zhou Qihua, which is why he was willing to help.
Otherwise, he couldn’t be bothered to meddle in such affairs.
After that whole fiasco, Zhou Qihua was drenched in a cold sweat.
He then took the initiative to say,
"Mr. Qin, to be honest with you, Jishi Hall has been in a bit of a tight spot recently. The medicinal herbs you need are extremely rare, and I’m afraid I won’t be able to fulfill your request."
He lowered his head in shame as he spoke.