From Robinson Crusoe

For Chen Zhou, Andreyevich was a name that had left a deep impression on him.

During his adventures on the isolated island, he reviewed many secret documents about the former Soviet Union, including one red document belonging to Ivan Andreyevich Bolkonsky.

However, in the Soviet Union, Andreyevich was not a rare surname.

Having witnessed the Time and Space Administration's ability to reverse the weather and bring snow to tropical regions, Chen Zhou became increasingly suspicious that those secret documents might not belong to his world.

Moreover, the secrets of the 20th century are long gone, the Soviet Union has long since disintegrated, and the world's largest socialist country has long since changed hands. Digging into these things would not only be of no benefit, but would also easily attract unnecessary attention.

Therefore, Chen Zhou only glanced at it before entering the teahouse and heading straight for that table of guests.

……

Having given prior notice and entrusted by her niece, knowing she was to receive a guest from afar, Feng Tan immediately stood up upon seeing a tall young man approaching her, and warmly greeted him before Chen Zhou even reached the table.

"You must be Xiao Chen!"

Seeing Chen Zhou nod, he immediately pulled out a chair and poured a cup of tea.

"I'm so sorry, my friend just happened to be in Beijing, otherwise I would have come to your place. I'm really sorry to trouble you to come all this way."

As she spoke, Feng Tan introduced the two Europeans standing next to Chen Zhou.

The man with the hooked nose and thin lips was named Windsor and Harrison. He was not an ordinary nobleman, but a member of the British royal family.

Although Great Britain is no longer the "empire on which the sun never sets," even a fallen camel is bigger than a horse. As a member of the royal family with a history spanning hundreds of years, Harrison's wealth is truly astronomical, and Chen Zhou, this "nouveau riche," can never compare to him.

As for the other person's name, it stirred up a storm in Chen Zhou's heart—

He was also named Ivan Andreyevich Bolkonsky!

Even though Chen Zhou was unwilling to connect what happened during the challenge with the modern world, the name evoked his memories and countless daydreams.

According to the red-covered document, Ivan was born in the late 1930s. Even if he were to live to 2025, he would be an elderly man in his eighties or nineties.

Judging from Ivan's spirit, although he has a full head of white hair and a big beard, he doesn't look like someone who is about to die.

Despite harboring many secrets and questions, Chen Zhou dared not reveal his curiosity.

When translating those documents from the former Soviet Union, besides unexpectedly learning the secrets behind Unit 10003, and the secrets of General Mikhail and Colonel Alexei Savin, some puzzling things were also left in the safe—

For example, there are the treasure poems that Ivan left to his descendants, and the old photos tucked inside his blue work ID and the abandoned factories in those photos.

There are also questions about the truth behind terms and mysterious elements such as the Corroded Corpse Research Institute, Slavic Tundra Confession Room 13, the Aphasia Project, and the Hexagram.

These hidden stories involving the competition between the two superpowers during the Cold War are of great research value, but also extremely dangerous.

Having just enjoyed a few good days, Chen Zhou didn't want to rashly pry into knowledge that ordinary people shouldn't know.

Moreover, he was still unsure whether the Ivan in front of him was the owner of the red-covered document, a Soviet remnant born in the last century.

He had no idea whether the events mentioned in those documents were real or fabricated by the Time and Space Administration.

At the same time, Chen Zhou also felt uneasy because of Ivan's appearance.

Why is this person, who appears only briefly during a long challenge like a game NPC, not in Russia, but in faraway northern Beijing?

Even more coincidentally, it's unclear why he would meet me.

It's worth noting that even in the entire world, very few people truly understand the meaning behind the name Ivan.

Is this a coincidence, or some kind of arrangement?
……

Forcibly suppressing the myriad questions in his heart, Chen Zhou pretended to be meeting her for the first time, placing himself in the position of a junior and humbly asking Feng Yingxuan's uncle for advice.

People who dedicate their lives to studying a particular type of problem are very pure, especially when it comes to academic issues, where they exhibit the same rigor as scientists and engineers.

Dealing with them, even though you're in a junior position, doesn't feel as stressful as dealing with your superiors.

After chatting for a few minutes, Feng Tan quickly steered the conversation to the collection in Chen Zhou's possession.

Chen Zhou went along with it, taking out a handful of glittering gold coins from his pocket and lining them up on the tea table.

Harrison and Ivan, who were standing to the side, did not speak much Chinese and did not know much about Chen Zhou's background. However, they were both wealthy people and they both recognized Feng Tan's appraisal ability.

If Feng Tan authenticates the antiques brought by Chen Zhou as genuine, neither of them would mind paying for the items on the spot to enrich their collections.

After all, hundreds of thousands or millions are nothing to them; if they don't spend recklessly, their money will only grow bigger and bigger.

To them, money is really just a string of meaningless numbers.

……

Even after spending most of his life studying ancient European coins, Feng Tan still maintains a serious and cautious attitude when faced with objects that need to be authenticated.

He first scanned the currency on the table and, after confirming that it wasn't obviously fake, picked it up one by one to examine it.

The more he looked, the deeper Feng Tan's brows furrowed, eventually forming a knot.

Judging from the details such as the material, the color and weight of the gold, and the craftsmanship, these gold coins can all be described as "completely authentic," with no doubt about their genuineness.

But antiques, the word "antique" implies that they must have been tested by time and accumulated over the years.

From this perspective, however, these gold coins are quite lacking.

The 17th century to the 21st century is a full four hundred years apart. Even gold, which is stable in nature, will undergo corresponding changes over this long period of time.

These changes could not be found on the gold coins that Chen Zhou took out.

However, it would be unreasonable to say that these are high-quality counterfeit coins made by modern counterfeiters, because some of these coins still bear traces of oxidation and environmental pollution caused by a century of time.

Although pure gold itself hardly oxidizes, over time, its surface can absorb metallic impurities and oxidize, forming red spots.

If it attracts dust and grease, the surface of the gold coin will become dull and lose its luster.

Slight oxidation will form a thin oxide film on the surface of gold, which is dark yellow or brown. In severe cases, it may even turn black. If stored in a humid area for too long, black or white spots will form.

This is what makes Feng Tan undecided—

The gold coins that Chen Zhou brought were all in such good condition that there was not a trace of improper storage or environmental damage.

If it's porcelain, in the parlance of the antique trade, it has a "thief's luster." Because it looks too much like a genuine article, it's actually not genuine.

……

"Sigh~"

Taking a breath, Feng Tan rearranged the gold coins and shook his head.

"To be honest, I've studied currency for nearly thirty years, and what you've brought is truly the first thing I can't understand."

I can only say that at first glance, the identification result leans towards the truth.

If you could tell me in detail how these gold coins were preserved, how they were passed down, and where they came from, I should be able to make a better judgment.

Of course, it's fine if you don't want to say. Seeing European currency so well-preserved and with such a high degree of craftsmanship, even if it's a high-quality replica, has broadened my horizons.

Before Chen Zhou could respond, Harrison, who was sitting to the side, spoke up in broken Chinese.

Although he spoke a mix of Chinese and English, it did not prevent Chen Zhou from understanding what he meant.

It turns out that this great collector frequented auctions and had a considerable collection of coins. He was also observing Feng Tan's appraisal.

After comparing the currency with his own collection, Harrison concluded that Chen Zhou's coins were indeed genuine and was willing to pay for them.

As a member of the British royal family, Harrison manages so many businesses that even he can't remember them all. For someone like him, figuring out how to spend the interest every day is a difficult problem.

Therefore, he was very generous in his spending.

Based on auction prices, a single James I Noble coin issued in 1605, second edition, can fetch up to £8.4.

The first edition of the Soflin gold coin issued by James I in 1605 can also fetch a high price of £6.

Although Harrison was wealthy and powerful, he couldn't possibly offer Chen Zhou a price based on the auction's final price.

Depending on the year of issue, condition, and rarity of the currency, he gave a minimum offer of £2 and a maximum offer of £7 for Chen Zhou's gold coins.

Chen Zhou brought a total of 14 gold coins, which, according to Harrison's offer, would amount to a sum of nearly one million pounds after the transaction.

However, dealing with Harrison, a member of the British royal family, was quite troublesome, and Chen Zhou didn't need the money at the moment. He only participated in the appraisal to answer the questions in his mind.

Whether the currency and artifacts brought back from the 17th century qualify as antiques, and the results of authentication, determine their authenticity.

Despite Harrison's desire to buy it, Chen Zhou refused.

Harrison did not show any displeasure at the result. As a member of the royal family, he received aristocratic education from a young age and has always been impeccable in terms of etiquette and manners, not to mention that Britain is a famous country of gentlemen.

……

Seeing that simply taking out gold coins had caused such a stir among the group, Chen Zhou, who had originally intended to take out the gold jewelry from the Inca Empire for appraisal, ultimately gave up the idea.

Europeans looted a great deal of treasure from the Inca Empire, most of which are now housed in the Louvre Museum, the British Museum, and the Vatican Museums in Europe.

If he pulls out something that happens to be exactly the same as one in the British Museum, then things could get complicated.

In particular, none of the collections he possesses have been passed down through generations. Even if they are said to be imitations, it is impossible to find the tools and craftsmen used to forge them. If this matter becomes a big deal, it will do him nothing but harm.

Thanks to Manager Sun's connections, Chen Zhou was already quite content that he had managed to sell so much gold and silver without being investigated by the bank or invited to the police station by Uncle Hat. He didn't want to cause any trouble by being high-profile or showing off.

Moreover, he had long passed the age of being spirited and fond of showing off.

After all, based on the actual time he's been through, he's already an old man.

……

As a guest, Chen Zhou could not leave immediately after having his gold coins appraised, as everyone present was older, of higher social standing, and even wealther than him.

As a junior, and with Feng Tan having appraised his collection for free and introduced him to two big names in the collecting world, Chen Zhou should stay at the teahouse, even if he couldn't join the conversation, to broaden his horizons by listening to their stories about the world of antiques and collectibles.

A professional tea master slowly brewed tea for the four people at the table, while Feng Tan, Harrison, and Ivan chatted casually.

Chen Zhou occasionally chimed in with a comment, which wasn't exactly inappropriate, and he managed to get along well with these elders.

After noon, the light inside the teahouse gradually dimmed, and the customers facing the street left one by one.

Feeling that he was already quite familiar with the three elders, Chen Zhou finally couldn't help but ask a question that he was very curious about.

"Mr. Ivan, if I may ask, how old are you?"

Chen Zhou asked this question in Chinese, but Ivan's Chinese listening and speaking skills were only rudimentary. It was only after Feng Tan explained it to him that he understood what Chen Zhou was asking.

Seeing Chen Zhou staring at his white beard, Ivan laughed heartily twice and told Chen Zhou that he was only 65 years old this year.

After obtaining the age, Chen Zhou immediately calculated it in his mind. If calculated according to the traditional Chinese age system, Ivan should have been born in 1959 or 1960. This age could not possibly be Ivan himself, but it was possible that he was Ivan's son or grandson.

As far as Chen Zhou knew, Soviets also had the custom of using their father's or grandfather's names, but it was rarely used.

If Ivan had successfully cleared his name and escaped execution, and his descendants had obtained the treasure he buried and risen to become oligarchs, it wouldn't be surprising if his name had been passed down.

However, after carefully observing Ivan's face and trying to recall the blurry images in the documents, Chen Zhou felt that Ivan was deceiving him.

……

They say curiosity killed the cat. Even though he knew that knowing too much was bad, Chen Zhou still secretly focused his mind and relaxed his control over his hearing in order to pursue the truth behind the mystery.

His incredibly powerful senses, like a powerful vacuum cleaner, captured every subtle change around the tea table, bringing him even more information.

Ivan was sitting across from him at the tea table. With his attention focused, Chen Zhou could even hear the sounds of Ivan's stomach rumbling, and his heartbeat and breathing were exceptionally clear.

Chen Zhou had intended to determine whether Ivan was lying by observing changes in his breathing and heart rate, but after listening intently to his heartbeat for a while, he discovered that Ivan's heart rate was very abnormal.

As people age, their resting heart rate decreases from 60-100 beats per minute to 50-70 beats per minute.

Ivan's heart rate was even lower, only about 30 to 50 beats per minute.

If he were an ordinary person, with a heart rate this low, he would be unable to live a normal life. He would either have coronary heart disease or myocarditis, and would have been hospitalized long ago due to dizziness and weakness, unable to move around freely for many years.

But Ivan looked perfectly fine, showing no signs of being affected by his heart rate, which was clearly illogical. (End of Chapter)