Nick returned the unsent clock to the antiques dealer. The man was clearly unhappy, but after some haggling, he agreed that Nick could choose other items from his shop without paying anything extra.
The sheer number of real and fake antiques dazzled Nick's eyes, so he had no choice but to send someone to fetch the Juren.
About half an hour later, he arrived. The antiques dealer watched him with wary suspicion, while the Juren maintained a courteous, solemn manner as he made a circuit of the dimly lit shop before finally picking up a stone.
The antiques dealer looked astonished, gave the Juren a thumbs-up, and praised him incessantly.
This was not the first time the dealer had done this. It seemed he said the same thing to every customer who picked out an item from his shop. For instance, he had once gone on and on to Nick about a twelfth-century bronze gong. Nick truly could not understand why a gong should cost so much.
The Juren explained to Nick that he had selected a Song dynasty Duan Inkstone, the sort used by emperors, princes, and highly favored ministers.
This type of inkstone had a special quality: it did not freeze even in bitter cold. Unlike warming inkstones, it did not need to be heated with scented charcoal. It had been precious since the early Tang dynasty. By the Song dynasty, the development of Duan Inkstones had reached its peak. Huizong once used a Duan Inkstone to write "Zhaoqing Prefecture" in Slender Gold Script and bestowed it upon a local governor, after which Duan Prefecture was renamed "Zhaoqing."
Not all jade was called jadeite, nor could every inkstone made from stones produced in Duan Prefecture be called a Duan Inkstone. Put simply, only the "stone flesh" portion could