The Mojin Talisman

After Big Gold Tooth and the others had eaten and drunk their fill, they turned to the three men and said, "Master Ming, Master Hu, Master Fatty!

"Rest assured. If I, Big Gold Tooth, have even the slightest ulterior motive in working with you, may I die a terrible death, struck by heaven's thunder!"

Big Gold Tooth was so worked up, making his vow with absolute conviction. He knew these three men were all capable in their own ways. Even Wang Fatty, the least impressive of them, had his own special skill.

At that moment, Big Gold Tooth seemed to think of something else. He turned to Hu Ming and said, "Master Ming, look at this. I got it from someone a while ago. Why don't we go take a look at my shop?"

Hu Ming and the other two agreed. After Big Gold Tooth settled the bill, he took them to his shop.

He then took an item wrapped in a handkerchief out of a box and set it in front of Hu Ming.

"Master Ming, take a look. If you like it, I'll give it to you. No questions asked."

"What's this?" Hu Ming looked at the item Big Gold Tooth had brought out and opened it without hesitation.

A dark golden object shaped like a tooth appeared before them.

"A Mojin Talisman?" Hu Bayi said in surprise. He hadn't expected Big Gold Tooth's gift to be a Mojin Talisman.

Hu Ming glanced at it and said calmly, "It's fake."

What? It was fake?

Everyone except Hu Ming found that hard to believe.

"Master Ming, how could that be? I've had a lot of people look at it," Big Gold Tooth said, still unwilling to accept it.

"Master Ming, they all said it was authentic, no doubt about it. And those people are close to me. They still have things they need my help with, so they wouldn't lie to me about this."

Seeing that Big Gold Tooth wasn't convinced, Hu Ming realized he would have to show him some real expertise to put his doubts to rest.

"Big Gold Tooth, do you know how a Mojin Talisman is made? The sharpest claw of a pangolin is soaked in beeswax for forty-nine days, then buried a hundred meters underground beneath the Dragon Tower for about eight hundred days, drawing spiritual energy from the earth's veins.

"A genuine Mojin Talisman is a little over an inch long, with a somewhat blackened, lustrous surface and an exceptionally hard texture. The two small characters for 'Mojin' are carved onto it in ancient seal script. It serves as a protective charm and is exceptionally effective at warding off evil.

"Look at yours. It seems to lack the spiritual quality one can perceive at a glance, and its color is somewhat different.

"Though it's also called a Mojin Talisman, it isn't the genuine article described in the legends."

Hu Ming went on, "You could call it a Pseudo Mojin Talisman."

"A Pseudo Mojin Talisman?"

Hu Bayi, Wang Fatty, and Big Gold Tooth had all heard of one for the first time.

"That's right. A Pseudo Mojin Talisman can only be used as an ordinary ornament. It has no effect whatsoever against evil when entering a tomb, nor does it have any calming effect. So it's not wrong to call it fake."

However, Hu Ming knew that Big Gold Tooth had paid a great deal for the item. Though it was fake, Big Gold Tooth hadn't really lost out, since it still had considerable value as a collectible.

After all, items like this usually came from the collections of emperors and high-ranking officials, so in many cases, they were genuine antiques.

Hu Ming continued, "Big Gold Tooth, although your Mojin Talisman has no practical use for tomb exploration, it still has collectible value. So you haven't really lost out."

Big Gold Tooth smiled wryly. "Master Ming, you don't have to comfort me. I can't believe I got fooled too."

At that moment, Big Gold Tooth wished he could bury his head in the ground.

Hu Ming smiled at him. "Heh, Big Gold Tooth, an item like this did come from the hands of an important person. Don't underestimate it."

"From the hands of an important person?" Hu Ming's words piqued Big Gold Tooth and the other two men's interest, and they urged him to continue.

Hu Ming looked at them. "Heh, if I'm not mistaken, this kind of Mojin Talisman was a token of authority, a keepsake that could command the Mojin Lieutenants."

They all exclaimed, "Really?"

Seeing how interested Old Hu and the others were, Hu Ming continued to explain the Mojin Talisman's general origins in detail.

No matter what Old Hu, Fatty, or Big Gold Tooth asked, Hu Ming answered smoothly, and his explanations sounded perfectly reasonable.

He also deftly opened the hidden mechanism inside the Mojin Talisman, letting everyone see it clearly.

Hu Bayi and the others were all impressed by Hu Ming's extensive knowledge.

Hu Bayi couldn't help exclaiming, "Mingzi, no wonder you're such a brilliant history student!"

Big Gold Tooth and the others all thought to themselves, That kid is absolutely as good as those big names in the trade. He's so young, yet he's a genius!

"Master Ming, if what you say is true, then this thing is both called a Mojin Talisman and not called a Mojin Talisman?" Big Gold Tooth seemed to understand, though he still felt a little awkward.

He'd thought the Mojin Talisman might be useful to Hu Ming, but he'd never expected it to be nothing more than an ornament.

Big Gold Tooth said, "Master Ming, what do you think of these Mojin Talismans? You..."

Seeing how awkward Big Gold Tooth seemed, Hu Ming smiled and said, "Big Gold Tooth, since you were planning to give this to me, I won't stand on ceremony. I'll take this Mojin Talisman.

"And once we make our fortune, we won't leave you out of your share."

Although Hu Ming was a transmigrator who had been reborn with a system, he still understood the principle that one shouldn't strike someone who came with a smile. He knew how to deal with people.

Besides, Big Gold Tooth was a rare talent in the antiques trade, and he had plenty of connections. They would certainly need his help in the future.

Hearing Hu Ming say that, Big Gold Tooth felt a little better.

Big Gold Tooth assured him, "Master Ming, what are you saying? As long as you don't mind, I'm willing to give you my wholehearted support and work with you."

Hu Ming smiled and paid it no mind. He glanced at the sky outside and said to Big Gold Tooth, "It's getting late. We'll head back now."

Big Gold Tooth saw that it really was dark outside. He hadn't realized they'd spent the whole day chatting together, so he didn't insist on keeping them there. He got up and saw them out.