After divorcing my celebrity wife, I became the world's richest person

"This painting is an excellent imitation, almost identical to the original, and the aging techniques used are also very sophisticated. If it weren't for a professional to appraise it, it would be hard to tell it's a fake."

Chen Yu's assessment was quite fair, as he had almost subconsciously believed it to be an authentic piece when he first saw the painting.

Mengluos laughed heartily.

"Mr. Chen, you have quite the eye. I've had this painting for ten years and only last year did I discover that it was a forgery."

Chen Yu was taken aback, Mengluos's mindset was truly extraordinary.

If others found out that a collection they'd cherished for ten years was fake, they would probably be devastated, yet he seemed so nonchalant about it.

"Mr. Mengluos, I don't mean to offend, but don't you think you should dispose of this painting first?"

Mengluos waved his hand dismissively.

"Mr. Chen, what you don't know is that this 'Dusk Haystack' was crafted by a famous thief! This guy once sneaked into a museum to steal both 'Morning Haystack' and 'Dusk Haystack'. Therefore, he created two imitations, but alas, his plan was eventually exposed and these two forgeries ended up lost to the world."

Chen Yu's interest was piqued; such paintings with legendary stories were also very valuable. Even as forgeries, they could still fetch a considerable sum.

Mengluos currently only had one, but if he could collect both the morning and dusk versions, their value might increase several times over.

Afterwards, Mengluos brought out several more paintings from his collection for Chen Yu to appreciate, but these too were almost all fake.

It seemed that in this room, apart from a modern painting hung on the wall, the rest were all imitations.

Mengluos didn't seem to care, and continued to show Chen Yu his collection, one by one.

As the two were studying the artworks, a knock suddenly sounded at the door.

"Mengluos, the painting you sold me last time is fake! Come out here; you must compensate me tenfold."

Mengluos jumped with fright and quickly opened the door. There stood a rather sleazy-looking man holding a sunflower painting.

Chen Yu also stopped in his tracks when he stepped out.

This guy either had a purpose or was out of his mind.

Van Gogh's sunflowers were still in museums; the painting in front of him was obviously fake.

Mengluos was also seething with anger.

"Cardos, I reminded you when we made the deal that this painting was a reproduction from the start. Now you come to me claiming it's fake; what is this all about?"

Cardos snorted coldly and marched into the center of the hall, slamming the painting onto the table.

"Everyone, come see; this man has no integrity, he sold me a fake painting!"

The crowd present immediately gathered around.

All of Van Gogh's sunflowers were in museums; any that appeared outside could almost certainly be declared fake.

Many of those present had been dealing in antique paintings for years and could see through Cardos's plot at a glance.

However, they still came over, eager to watch the excitement unfold.

Mengluos was livid and hurried forward to seize the painting.

"Don't go too far, we did have a contract when we made the deal."

Cardos laughed loudly, "Then why don't you produce the contract?"

Mengluos was suddenly at a loss; when the two of them conducted the transaction, they had destroyed the contract and payment records to show good faith.

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Moreover, this painting was fake to begin with, so if it were to sell for such a price, it would certainly alarm the relevant departments once the news spread.

However, now Cardos had brought out this painting in front of a large audience, clearly intending to embarrass him.

Although Chen Yu could destroy the contract and bill of sale, denying that he sold the painting, from that day on, his reputation in the industry would be completely lost.

"According to the rules, selling fakes requires compensating ten times the price, I'm not sure what price was agreed upon at the time of your transaction."

Chen Yu's voice immediately drew everyone's attention.

Even Cardos was taken aback for a moment.

"What do you mean? Are you saying you're going to pay ten times the price on behalf of Mengluos?"

Chen Yu nodded, stepped forward, and took the Sunflowers in his hands.

"That's right, and I'm also going to buy this painting."

All those present widened their eyes, knowing well that it was a fake yet still wanting to buy it—surely that was madness.

But Cardos was excited. He had come here with the intention of scamming money and now that someone was willing to play the fool, he was happy to oblige.

"Good, this painting originally sold for two hundred thousand, so if you want to take it, you need to pay two million, plus my cost totaling two million two hundred thousand."

Without saying much, Chen Yu took out a cashier's check for five million.

"Then make the change!"

Cardos was initially stunned, then he took out his phone and transferred two million eight hundred thousand.

After the transaction was completed, everyone was abuzz with discussion, thinking Chen Yu had taken a huge loss. Even Mengluos felt embarrassed, as if it weren't for him, Chen Yu probably wouldn't have taken this big of a hit.

But little did they know, Chen Yu stood up on a table with the painting in hand.
Enjoy exclusive adventures from empire

"In my hometown, there is a technique where a fake painting is plastered onto a real one. Would you all like to see?"

The interest of everyone present was immediately piqued, and they surrounded him, looking at Chen Yu with eager anticipation.

Many had heard of this technique, but had never witnessed it in person.

Moreover, by the looks of it, Chen Yu didn't seem like someone with a screw loose, unlikely to spend such a large sum on a fake painting without reason.

With a smile on his face, Chen Yu took out a small knife, pried the frame apart, and then pulled out a silk thread.

This thread was the key that connected the entire artwork.

Under the expectant gaze of the crowd, Chen Yu split the painting in two. The top one was indeed a fake Sunflowers, but the one underneath was a neatly crafted ship engineering blueprint.

The crowd, who had been filled with anticipation moments before, now looked disappointed.

A torn engineering blueprint was hardly something exciting.

Just as they were about to leave, Chen Yu suddenly shouted.

"An engineering blueprint from when Archimedes built ships, now up for public auction right here, starting at one hundred million."

The room fell silent for a moment, then everyone surged forward.

Those who were close took out magnifying glasses and scrutinized the blueprint carefully, discovering a signature in ancient Greek at the bottom.

After some research, they confirmed it was indeed Archimedes's signature.

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