Some friends might wonder: Besides Old Monster Ding, wasn't there also that man who met up with him that day? Couldn't they have followed him?
That was indeed the case. The man had gotten away that day. It was unclear whether he had been skilled at counter-tracking and discovered the people following him, or whether he had simply been overly vigilant and shaken them off. Judging by Old Monster Ding's strange reaction now, the former possibility seemed more likely.
Because of this, Old Liu had not only given the case officers a thorough tongue-lashing but had replaced every one of them.
After hearing Chu Chen's explanation, Zhang Lu was completely dumbfounded. His face was filled with disbelief, but in the face of ironclad facts, he had nothing to say. In the end, he could only accept the exceptionally cruel reality.
After a while, Zhang Lu asked, still unwilling to give up, "Teacher Chu, do you mean this thing is completely worthless now?"
Chu Chen replied, "It's not entirely worthless. Judging from its craftsmanship, it's still quite exquisite. The problem is that the maker used an accelerated oxidation method. Although there's no visible harm for now, it's hard to say what will happen over time. That will certainly affect its value."
"Then how much could it be worth at most?" Zhang Lu asked again.
Chu Chen thought for a moment before saying, "It's really hard to say. I think if it met someone who liked it, it might sell for a thousand or so."
"It's over, it's over! This time it's really over!" Zhang Lu's face turned ashen. He began blaming himself incessantly. "Why wasn't I more careful when I bought it? What am I supposed to do now?"
Seeing Zhang Lu's utterly dejected appearance, Chu Chen could only comfort him