When Chu Chen saw the painting before him, he was quite shocked, but he remained calm on the surface, so no one noticed anything unusual from his expression.
Seeing Chu Chen's solemn look, Old Chang felt rather pleased with himself. When Chu Chen raised his head, he asked with a smile:
"Boss Chu, does this painting meet your standards?"
Since he had come today to serve as an appraiser, Chu Chen answered directly, "Old Chang, I'll be honest with you. My master also has a Pine Crane Painting, and aside from a few minor differences, every other part is exactly the same."
"What?! Boss Chu, you can't be mistaken, can you?"
Old Chang's face immediately filled with an incredulous expression. The others also found it unbelievable.
Chu Chen shook his head. "Sorry, but that's the truth. Moreover, the inscriptions and seal impressions on the two paintings are in the exact same positions."
At this, everyone exchanged glances. After a while, Xiang Facai asked with a frown, "Could this painting be a reproduction? It doesn't look like one!"
"You could call it a reproduction, but it's far more complicated than that." As he spoke, Chu Chen glanced at Old Chang.
With Old Chang's experience, how could he fail to understand what Chu Chen meant? He frowned and said, "Boss Chu, are you saying this painting was made by 'revealing the second layer'?"
"'Revealing the second layer'? What does that mean?" Xiang Facai asked in confusion.
"'Revealing the second layer' is actually a method of forgery..." Chu Chen explained the meaning of "revealing the second layer" to everyone.
"No way. A single painting can actually be separated into two paintings? How advanced would the craftsmanship have to be to accomplish that?" After hearing Chu Chen's explanation, Wu Ke and the others wore