Impossible!
In this world, besides sensing spiritual artifacts with internal energy, there was never any other known method to identify a spiritual artifact without seeing it!
Hutu grumbled in disbelief, "You're cheating!"
As soon as he spoke, the chattering crowd immediately fell silent. Like magpies spotting a juicy piece of gossip, they all turned to Hutu.
"You must be cheating!"
This statement gave Liu Rui a glimmer of hope, and he couldn't help but press, "Hutu, do you know what's going on?"
Hutu shook his head, "Although I don't know what method he's using, the method for identifying spiritual artifacts was taught to us personally by the会长 in a public lecture."
"In this world, besides sensing with internal energy, there is no other way!"
As he spoke, Hutu suddenly had an idea.
"Young Master Liu, perhaps he's wearing some kind of invisible contact lenses that allow him to see through things. That's why he had to touch each plate up close!"
This reasoning actually sounded quite plausible, and the guests present became hesitant.
"Although it sounds a bit far-fetched, it's not impossible. With high-tech devices that can see through mahjong tiles appearing in recent years, seeing through red cloth shouldn't be that difficult, right?"
"Are you stupid? Those high-tech devices that can see through red cloth first require the mahjong tiles to be high-tech as well. If there were really something that could see through things, it would have been sold like hotcakes in the underground market long ago. How come I've never heard of it?"
"Then tell me what's going on!"
The guest who spoke was rendered speechless.
Indeed, if even the会长 of the Upper Capital Antiques Association said so, if he wasn't cheating, what other method could he possibly use to make a direct judgment?
Could this fellow really be a hidden martial arts master?
Hutu seemed to realize this as well and quickly added, "If he's not cheating, then he's lying to us by saying he's self-taught, but he's actually a martial artist!"
Although being self-taught and being a martial artist have no direct connection, Hutu couldn't afford to care about that at this moment.
When people face failure, they instinctively seek various excuses to prove that their failure was due to irresistible factors.
It wasn't a matter of personal will!
Li Chonglou shook his head, "I am not a martial artist."
"However, I am not cheating either."
Not a martial artist, and not cheating? Doesn't that mean even what their会长 said is wrong?
That was the会长 of the Upper Capital Association! In their profession, it was equivalent to the top leader in the industry!
The authority of that title alone spoke volumes!
Seeing everyone casting doubtful and questioning glances, Li Chonglou suddenly looked at Hutu.
"You're saying your会长 taught you that there are only, and exclusively, these two possibilities in the world?"
Hutu gritted his teeth and said in a low voice, "Nonsense, as a member of the association, would I lie about our会长's words?"
He wouldn't dare, even if he had the guts!
If this got back to the association, it would be a minor issue whether he could still establish himself in the Upper Capital. With the会长's reputation, his fanatical followers alone could melt him down!
But Li Chonglou's next sentence made his heart skip a beat.
"Then I think you must have been zoning out during class and only listened to half of it."
Hutu shouted again, "What do you mean by that! Are you calling me a liar?"
Li Chonglou smiled slightly, "In this world, besides the two possibilities you just mentioned, there is a third method of identification."
"No, there should be many more. Although for most people, they're practically unusable."
Without giving Hutu a chance to speak, Li Chonglou continued, "Due to their unique nature, spiritual artifacts require special containers for storage to ensure their spiritual energy doesn't dissipate."
"These containers generally have uniform specifications and are uniformly sold by the Upper Capital General Bureau."
"Therefore, to determine if something is a spiritual artifact without seeing it, one only needs to gauge its weight."
As soon as he finished speaking, a guest immediately asked,
"Then how do you know what's inside? Has the weight changed?"
Li Chonglou chuckled, "The categories are written on this red cloth, aren't they? Otherwise, do you think they would have shuffled them and then presented them in order according to the association's requirements?"
Silence.
The guests instantly fell into silence.
Who would have thought the truth was so simple?
Li Chonglou was not someone who would be bullied. This Hutu was clearly trying to put him on the spot. In the best-case scenario, it might just be an insult.
In the worst-case scenario, the three of them might not make it out alive tonight!
Therefore, Li Chonglou directly retorted.
"Do you still dare to claim that your会长 taught you this? Or do you all believe that as the会长 of the Upper Capital Antiques Association, he wouldn't know these things?"
At first glance, this sounded like Li Chonglou questioning the会长 of the Upper Capital Antiques Association, but at this moment, all the blame would only fall on Hutu.
It was he who adamantly claimed that the会长 taught them this. The more Li Chonglou questioned it now, the more he pushed Hutu into a corner.
However, he still held a sliver of hope.
"Who knows if what you're saying is true or if you're just making it up?"
It seemed plausible.
The crowd exchanged glances, unsure who to believe.
Just then, Uncle Fu, who was standing nearby, suddenly said, "What this brother is saying is true. In our line of work, there are indeed such standards. However, for ordinary people, even if they knew, they still wouldn't be able to distinguish it."
The crowd was stunned for a moment, and then they understood Uncle Fu's meaning.
Yes, knowing the standard was not enough. To use this method to identify a spiritual artifact, one not only needed to understand the containers but also have extensive knowledge of various antiques!
Otherwise, just looking at a category, how many people could guess its approximate weight?
Upon hearing Uncle Fu's confirmation, Hutu staggered back a few steps, realizing the gravity of the situation.
At this point, the problem reverted to Li Chonglou's earlier question.
If he denied it, it would mean his own skills were insufficient, just as Li Chonglou said about him zoning out in class. This would not only result in him losing face tonight but also likely mean he wouldn't be able to continue at the Upper Capital Antiques Association.
After all, his reputation wasn't earned casually, and he didn't have the qualifications for it.
But if he admitted it, his career would likely be over.
Between reputation, status, and survival, Hutu could only choose the latter.
His face suddenly turned pale, and like a drenched chicken, he lowered his head.
"I must have misremembered. The会长 would not be unaware of such matters."
With this statement, Li Chonglou had won an undeniable victory!
Seeing that the crowd was about to erupt again, Liu Rui couldn't help but change the subject.
"Alright, this matter ends here. Our evening party continues!"