Old Sun said excitedly: "Young man, can this old man try something?"
"Of course! But I have doubts..." Lin Beifan said suspiciously: "Look at this minister's cup, it's almost a whole piece, as if made of a single bronze casting! Old Sun, how do you plan to take out the supposed king's cup inside?"
"Don't worry, I know how!"
Lin Beifan thought: How does he know everything? Is he some kind of system helper?
Old Sun smiled slightly: "Actually, the ancients just blended copper powder into a special glue-like substance, and then molded it! After a certain oxidation treatment, it turned into bronze! If we put it into an acidic solution, then the copper powder on the surface will slowly dissolve off!"
Old Sun asked someone to buy a few bottles of rice vinegar.
Then they prepared another bucket of water and poured the rice vinegar into it.
"Now it's ready! Just put the minister's cup into the vinegar water, and the copper film on the surface will slowly dissolve, revealing its true form!" Old Sun was very excited.
"Let's do it right here on the first floor!"
Old Sun carefully placed one of the minister's cups into the bucket.
Then, everyone held their breath and watched carefully.
Within a minute, the bucket of water began to turn blue.
This was the reaction between the copper oxide and the acid, with the copper ions dissolving in the water, giving it a blue tint.
Gradually, everyone saw a bright golden color being revealed from within the minister's cup.
"Gold! It's the color of gold!"
"There really is something inside!"
"It is very likely the legendary king's cup!"
Everyone got excited.
Only Fatty Wang and Angkor were dumbfounded.
Could this really be the true king's cup?
Then what about the set of king's cups in their possession?
"Impossible! Impossible!" Fatty Wang murmured and shook his head.
"It's still not certain if it's a king's cup or something else! Let's wait and see what happens!" Old Sun stared at it tightly, holding his breath, his face sweating, looking more nervous than anyone.
So, 5 minutes passed.
The copper film on the surface of the minister's cup had finally dissolved completely.
Its original form was finally revealed!
It was a wine glass made of pure gold!
It was so beautiful, so exquisite!
Eight words could describe it:
Amazingly crafted, stunningly exquisite!
Compared to it, the minister's cups paled, incomparable!
At this point, there was not much more to say!
"It really is a king's cup!!!" Everyone was ecstatic.
"How could this be? Impossible... Absolutely impossible..." Fatty Wang fell down in fright with a thump.
Angkor's face turned deathly pale with shock, his whole body going limp and shaky.
Although they hated to admit it,
The king's cup in front of them was really much more beautiful than their collection!
More elegant, more noble!
Compared side-by-side, they felt their collection was an inferior imitation!
Old Sun carefully raised the golden wine cup from the water, examining it reverently in front of him, completely fascinated: "Beautiful! It's really beautiful! Such an ingenious design, such an exquisite shape, I would stake my life on it - this is definitely a king's cup!"
"A king's cup!!!" Everyone gathered around to admire it, their eyes lit with wonder, as if beholding a priceless treasure.
Lin Beifan took a closer look and nodded: "This item looks like it should be worth a tremendous amount of money!"
Old Sun said firmly: "It's more than just valuable! A wine cup of such unparalleled craftsmanship holds immense historical and artistic value. It is worth at least 200 million!"
"No, three hundred million!!!"
*Thump*
Fatty Wang, who had just stood back up, collapsed again.
Angkor's eyelids turned ghostly white, as if he had seen vengeful spirits from the ancient tombs.
They had actually obtained a king's cup worth 300 million...
Only to foolishly sell it cheap to Lin Beifan!
They felt like dying from anguish!
"Will 300 million be too much? I think such an item is worth 200 million at most!" Lin Beifan gave his opinion.
Old Sun was indignant: "I said 300 million, it's 300 million - do you doubt my expertise?"
Lin Beifan shook his head: "I don't doubt your expertise, I just don't think it should be valued that high!"
"I am actually underestimating it! Because this has never been sold before, it is unique in the world, and I am not adept at appraising items of such rarity! But if I were to put it up for auction, I wouldn't be surprised if it sold for 400 or even 500 million!"
"Four or five hundred million! Oh, I'm going to faint!" Fatty Wang went completely limp again.
Angkor clutched his chest tightly, feeling the pain in his heart resurfacing.
"Old Sun, since this one minister's cup contained a king's cup, could the others also contain king's cups?" Lin Beifan asked.
"It's very possible! I'm now 90% sure - let's test it out! I have a hunch we will witness a miracle today!" Mr. Sun was thrilled with excitement.
Then, another minister's cup was placed into the acid water.
After a few minutes, the copper film dissolved, revealing a beautiful golden surface.
Everyone exclaimed excitedly.
"This is also a king's cup!"
"The second king's cup!"
Fatty Wang collapsed again with a thump, while Angkor's face turned a sickly blue hue.
The third minister's cup was placed in the acid water.
After a while...
"This is also a king's cup!"
"The third king's cup!"
Fatty Wang fell heavily to the ground once more, and Angkor's face had turned an unsettling green shade.
The fourth minister's cup was submerged in the acid water.
"This is also a king's cup!"
"All 4 of them!"
"Could the last one be as well?"
Fatty Wang could no longer stand up.
Angkor's face cycled through shades of green and purple, like a poisoned zongzi from an ancient tomb.
The 5th minister's cup was placed in the acid water.
It too unfurled a beautiful, alluring golden surface.
Everyone had now basically confirmed that this fifth one...
Was also a king's cup!
"5...they are all king's cups!!!"
"My God! The legendary king's cups that disappeared for hundreds of years have all resurfaced!" Old Sun was elated: "This old man...today this old man has witnessed a miracle! A miracle in the world of collectors and history!"
Lin Beifan asked: "Old Sun, since the complete set of king's cups has emerged, as an expert in this field, please give us your appraisal!"
Old Sun raised three fingers without hesitation: "3 billion!"
This number struck like a thunderbolt, hitting Fatty Wang and Angkor.
They nearly died from the anguish!