Furniture (Part One)

Overall, softwood furniture could not compare with hardwood furniture. However, there were still valuable pieces among softwood furniture. A single beautifully shaped official's hat chair could sell for over ten thousand, even tens of thousands or more, and most such pieces were generally made by official workshops.

Softwood furniture made by official workshops featured exquisite styles and meticulous craftsmanship. No expense was spared, giving it a distinctive character unlike ordinary furniture. Pieces with both excellent age and exquisite workmanship were also extremely rare. Of course, such treasures were uncommon, and superlative pieces crafted as beautifully as hardwood furniture were even rarer.

"All right, I'll take a look first!"

Chu Chen was quite interested in softwood furniture. Besides, Ma Laocai had quite a lot of it. He might come across one or two good pieces, and buying them would not be a bad idea.

After agreeing, Chu Chen began examining the pile of softwood furniture before him.

However, after looking over the softwood chairs, he felt rather disappointed. There were very few good chairs here. Only two from the late Qing Dynasty were barely passable. The rest had either fallen apart or were poorly made, and none of them could catch his eye.

Just as Chu Chen was preparing to give up, he unexpectedly spotted a small raised-end table.

An an was a type of rectangular furniture with supporting legs underneath. A raised-end an referred to an an whose two ends were fitted with upturned "flying corners," hence the name "raised-end an."

People often confused tables and ans nowadays, but the difference between them was actually quite clear. Simply put, a table's four legs were positioned at its four corners and formed right angles. An an's four legs, however, were not at the corners but were set inward from both ends