Chapter One: The Twenty-Yuan Silver Coin

“In 1930, a British engineer recorded a Guizhou automobile trial strike. It disappeared afterward. The missing tooth on his rubbing matches yours.” “So it is real?” “The coin is. The label might not be. Without a lawful chain of provenance, a legitimate auction house will not touch it. Someone outside would pay you five hundred thousand in cash, and then both you and the coin might disappear.” Shen Yan checked the countdown. [19:08:12] “I don’t want cash. I want a lawful transaction.” “Then prove who took possession of it in 1979.” “Where are the factory records?” “Some went to the municipal archives after restructuring. The remainder will be sold tonight at Haiyue Auction House in a bankruptcy-assets sale.”