There were a lot of people in the manor. As soon as the car stopped, a middle-aged man walked over quickly, followed by six women, all wearing uniform clothes.
"Miss Juliet."
The housekeeper and several maids bent down and saluted at the same time. Li Mo deeply felt the class from them, which was very different from the human rights and freedoms preached in Europe.
"Wells, Mr. Li will stay here tonight. Prepare a bedroom for him."
"Yes, miss."
Wells was polite, and then bowed to Li Mo.
Li Mo walked on Juliet's right and asked, "How are these people trained?"
"Their ancestors have been serving the ancestors of our family, and it has been passed down from generation to generation. As long as they are loyal to our family, we will not treat them badly. My grandfather likes Han culture, so the minimum requirement for all managers is to be able to speak Some simple Chinese. Mr. Li, do you need to rest first? Or do you want to go directly to the wine cellar with me?"
“Go straight to the wine cellar.”
"Wells, lead the way."
The underground wine cellar of the manor was very large. Before Li Mo entered, he smelled the very intoxicating aroma of wine. He has also seen people who have collected wine for forty or fifty years, but when he smelled the aroma of the wine, his stomach growled.
"Good wine."
Li Mo praised, and then said some stairs to enter the cellar. The first thing that came into view was the huge wine cellar with an arched top, which was very long and spacious. Rows of liquor bottles were placed against the earthen walls on both sides, and what surprised him most was that he actually saw Maotai in very old-fashioned packaging.
I knelt down and picked up a bottle of Maotai. The label on the glass bottle had turned yellow and was about to rot. The small characters were blurred and only the three big words "Maotai" could be made out.
Using the light again, Li Mo discovered that although the mouth of the bottle was protected to hide the wine, at least 30% of the wine inside had escaped over the course of a hundred years. Moreover, the color of the wine has a dull yellow texture. I don’t know why.
There are a lot of Maotai liquors, at least several hundred bottles. The only thing that made him feel regretful was that there were broken wine bottles inside, and some bottle mouths were not protected, resulting in serious wine leakage.
Li Mo continued to walk forward and saw many names of wineries that he had never heard of before. In addition to bottled wines, there were also many old wines from Fengtan. Some of the labels on them could only reveal very little information.
I picked up a jar of old wine. It was quite heavy. If I shook it a few times, I could hear the sound of the wine inside.
Putting down Fengtan Old Liquor, Li Mo continued to walk forward, and rows of bottled liquor with a sense of age appeared. The labels of these liquors were relatively clear, with production dates on them. The earliest was at the beginning of the last century, and the latest was in the 1950s. In other words, the earliest old wine has a history of 110 years, and the latest one has a history of about 70 years.
Moreover, the quantity was densely packed. Li Mo felt that the quantity of several thousand bottles mentioned by Juliet was too conservative, and the quantity should be more than 10,000 if not 20,000.
"My grandfather said that wine culture has a long history in China. It originated in the Shang and Zhou dynasties and has a history of three thousand years. Three thousand years is really amazing."
Juliet picked up a bottle and made a crashing sound, which scared Li Mo and quickly reminded her to be careful.
This thing is the best wine that even money can't buy, brewed from pure grains. Because the production areas are different, the water quality is different, and the raw material formulas are different, the taste of different wines is different.
Continuing forward, the wine bottles have become more diverse, with glass bottles of different colors and porcelain bottles of different shapes. Juliet's ancestors have exhausted all their means and spent countless efforts to promote the liquor from China. It's a pity that the culture is different, and this liquor is also difficult for people to accept.
"Ms. Juliet, can you give me all this liquor?"
"Of course, my grandfather has rewarded me with this manor. It is my personal property and I have the right to deal with it as I wish. Besides, no matter how precious these liquors are, how expensive can they be? Compared to the losses caused by today's fake works of art. It’s almost negligible.”
Li Mo smiled, it was a bit like reciprocity.
Walk a few meters further and turn a corner to enter another cellar, where huge black jars are stored. Li Mo thought that if he moved all this back, it would be enough to open a winery. He could think about this idea carefully after returning.
After walking around for thirty or forty minutes before leaving the wine cellar, Li Mo still felt a little dizzy. It was strange that he didn't feel dizzy after inhaling so much alcohol. Fortunately, the discomfort disappeared after being exposed to the sun and drinking some water.
Xingkong and Thorny Head rushed to the manor with six people, and their eyes shone when they saw so much old wine hidden in the huge wine cellar.
"Everyone will help Mr. Li pack and transport them back to China. Be careful with your hands and feet."
After Juliet gave the order, the housekeeper Wells immediately arranged for the servants in the manor to start taking action.
"Prick Tou, how's it going over there?"
Li Mo didn't say it clearly, but Ci Tou knew what he was asking.
"Everything is going well so far. More than 6,000 pieces have been transferred. In the past few days, the natural disaster in Gallen City has attracted the attention of the national media. People here are also panicked. People gather and march every day, and the local police are there to serve them. , just gives us the chance to seize it.”
"Be careful and be careful. If something goes wrong, get out immediately."
"I understand, but the big antiques inside may have to be given up."
"That's the only way. If you can't move away, give up decisively. Don't let the small things make the big mistakes. Make it clear to those people."
Thorny nodded. This time it really opened his eyes. It turns out that there is such a naughty operation. After all the antiques in the museum are shipped back to China and then displayed, even if the Fa Kingdom knows the news, only the mute will not be able to tell about the pain of eating Huang Lian.
In the evening, Li Mo was somewhat surprised by the meal prepared by Wells. He didn't know where he hired a Chinese chef, and he was also a very authentic Sichuan chef. He made more than ten spicy and delicious dishes.
"Juliet, this housekeeper of yours is so thoughtful and very good at what she does."
"Of course, his father used to be my grandpa's butler. He retired last year due to health reasons and thought about his old age. Wells will become my butler in the future, and I trust him very much."
Juliet is the queen of the underground world of Farland, and as her butler, Wells's status is truly extraordinary.
"I am willing to dedicate everything to the lady."
Wells had a humble look on his face. He did not sit down, but stood aside to wait.
Li Mo tasted a few bites of the food. It was spicy and fragrant, and it was really well done. He was about to pick up another piece of fish offal to try, but suddenly Kuaizi paused and brought the large pastel plate with spicy fish offal in front of him and looked at it carefully.
"Wells, please find a clean plate."
"Yes, Mr. Li."
Wells took a large plate with gold rim from the sideboard. Li Mo poured the fish offal directly into it, then took out a few paper towels and wiped it inside and out, and then looked at the bottom.
"Mr. Li, is this antique porcelain?" Juliet asked curiously. If it was just an ordinary plate, he wouldn't need to look at it so carefully.
"Well, the pastel Pisces and Lotus plate made in the Daoguang period of the Qing Dynasty has no damage. It is a very good antique. Wells, was this plate brought here by the cook?"
"No, I sent someone to buy it from a nearby town. Since we are going to make authentic Chinese dishes, the tableware used to serve the dishes must also use plates from China."
Look at how well this housekeeper does his job. He considers every detail.
"Wells, this is for you." Li Mo handed the Qing Daoguang pastel plate to Wells and said with a smile, "The market price of this antique porcelain from China can be worth sixty or seventy thousand euros. Keep it for yourself." You can collect it or sell it.”
Wells was stunned for a moment, then he bowed down humbly: "Mr. Li, I can never accept such a valuable thing."
Li Mo glanced at Juliet, who smiled and said, "Wells, this is a reward from Mr. Li. He is very satisfied with your attentive service."
"Thank you Mr. Li."
Wells then took the plate with both hands, then placed it gently on the sideboard next to him, then picked up a bottle of red wine and poured him some. As for Thorn Tou and Xing Kong, they tasted the old wine intoxicatedly. When the wine was poured into the cup, it flowed out like nectar, and the whole room was filled with the intoxicating aroma of wine.
"Juliet, after all the liquor here is sorted and shipped away, let's go shopping in the antique markets in Europe. Many years ago, I bought some antiques from China at the antique market in Eagle Country, and some from Europe and the United States. Works of art, now that I’m here I want to go shopping again.”
"Of course, I'm very happy."
After three days of careful counting and packing, there were a total of 16,832 bottles of various old wines. Li Mo unceremoniously chartered flights to transport them back in batches. These were all good things that were hard to buy with money.
The disaster relief operation in Gallen City continues, as does the movement of protesting human rights organizations. When Li Mo and the others crossed the border with China and stepped onto Italian soil, someone from the FA country finally held a press conference to announce their resignation, and more than one person resigned.
Juliet was very familiar with Rome. The first stop she took Li Mo to was the antique market in the old city of Rome. There are treasure hunting activities here every Saturday and Sunday, attracting visitors from all over the world. The reason why I came here as the first stop is that, in Juliet's words, this is the birthplace of the Italian Renaissance. Maybe if you are lucky, you can find some antiques here.
The art she refers to is truly valuable art, not the kind of old objects that can only be bought for one or two hundred euros just because they have history. After Li Mo left Faguo, his mood suddenly brightened and he felt relaxed.
Behind him were two groups of people, one to protect Juliet and the other to protect Li Mo. Everyone looked ordinary, but in fact they had hidden weapons somewhere on their bodies. Once the two of them are in danger, they will immediately cause a bloody storm.
Li Mo walked slowly along the old street, looking at the old objects placed on the street. Each one was full of Roman style, but also had a sense of life. Old photo albums from my grandparents’ generation, silver knives and forks with retro patterns, dishes, European lamps strung with crystals and old furniture that have gone through many changes.
There is also a mobile food truck in this market, which sells Panini bread, a special Roman delicacy, filled with ham, smoked sausage and other dishes. Many tourists hold one in their hands and shop while walking, which is full of life.
"Have you ever bought any art here before?"
"I have found some old objects, but they are not considered works of art. They are not used for collection, but mainly for decoration. Mr. Li, I am looking forward to your exquisite performance."
Juliet was wearing light-colored clothes, white sneakers, and a light-colored fashionable duckbill hat on her head today. With a good figure and a delicate face, she is very popular among men here, and her rate of turning heads is quite high. Several men who thought they were very attractive even took the initiative to talk to her and wanted to get her communication information, but they were all rejected.
Li Mo laughed all the way and thought this was quite interesting. Such a scene is extremely rare to see in China.
"Juliet, there is a shop over there that seems to sell Chinese antiques. Let's go in and take a look."
"good."
Li Mo walked into the store first. He also changed into looser clothes today, wearing a fashionable duck-billed hat, sunglasses on his face, and carrying a travel bag. There were no tourists inside, probably because there hadn’t been many tourists in the morning yet. When I saw someone entering the store, a middle-aged fat man took the initiative to greet him.
Li Mo looked at Juliet for help, and the latter was busy translating for him.
"Let me consider."
This shop mainly sells items from China, especially porcelain, and there are many of them on the antique shelves against the wall. Li Mo looked at it and felt speechless. The older the antique porcelain, the better.
The older and newer the antique porcelain is, the better it is and the more worthy of collection. It doesn't matter if these porcelains are fake. The key is that the signs of distress are too obvious. They are probably used to fool foreigners.
"Mr. Li, the porcelain here looks old and has turned yellow on the surface."
"Do you know why it turns yellow? That's because after the porcelain is fired, in order to make it look old, they are soaked in diluted sulfuric acid water and then taken out to dry naturally, which will form such old marks. To put it bluntly, it's all It’s an old and defective product made in modern times. It was given to me for free, and I don’t even want it.”
Li Mo looked at the porcelain on the shelf and found it uninteresting. He turned around and looked at the paintings hanging on the wall. He didn't know where they came from. It was simply someone from Taihu. He probably used the paintings directly after they were made. It looks like smoke from a fire.
"Juliet, there's nothing good here. Let's go."
Seemingly seeing Li Mo's disappointed look, the fat boss quickly babbled a lot.
"Mr. Li, the boss said that he still has some really good things. If you are interested, he will show them to you."
"Since there is, I'll take another look."
The fat boss quickly took out a rectangular box from the back room, opened it and took out a painting. He put on white gloves and slowly unfolded the painting.
When Li Mo saw the content of the painting above, he couldn't help but move forward and looked at the three cats on the painting with bright eyes.
"Isn't this the "Cat and Bamboo Picture" stored in the Forbidden City on Wandao? Why does it appear here?"
