Chapter 108 Ambergris
Su Jing took the big white thing over and over and looked at it. It looked like an unremarkable "stone" mixed with white and gray. The surface was densely covered with "bee eyes". It was the size of four bricks, but very small. Light, about two or three pounds, like a pumice stone. The surface was wet, and there was a stench.
Su Jing stared at it for a long time. The more he looked, the brighter his eyes became. His expression was full of disbelief. This white thing looked like the legendary ambergris. As the name suggests, ambergris should be fragrant, but after drying, it has a fishy smell when wet.
Ambergris is undoubtedly a treasure. It can not only be used as a precious traditional Chinese medicine, but also can be used as a fixative. It is a precious raw material sought after by perfume manufacturers, and its price is more expensive than gold. Because of its high price, it still floats on the sea, and is also known as "floating gold at sea".
In ancient times, people believed that ambergris was the saliva that the "dragons" in the sea shed when they were sleeping. With the progress of the times, the mysteries of nature have been revealed one by one. Everyone thinks that ambergris is the saliva of "dragon" is unscientific, so various conjectures have arisen: some say it is a submarine volcanic eruption Some say that it is formed by bird droppings on the island floating into the water and weathering for a long time; some say it is beeswax, which is formed after a long period of floating in seawater; some say it is a special fungus.
But it was later discovered that the original ambergris was the excrement of sperm whales, which are the largest species of toothed whales. The males are up to 23 meters long and the females are 17 meters long. They feed on squid, octopus, etc., but Squid and octopus have tough horny jaws and tongue teeth in their mouths, which are not easy to digest. When sperm whales swallow large mollusks, the jaws and tongue teeth accumulate in the gastrointestinal tract, stimulating the intestines, and the intestines secrete a special kind of mollusk. A waxy substance that wraps the remains of the food, slowly forming ambergris
The ambergris discharged into the sea is initially light black, which is of no value at all. Under the action of sea water, after more than ten years, it gradually turns brown, gray, light gray, and finally white. The white ambergris is of the best quality. It needs to be soaked in seawater for more than a hundred years to float out all the impurities before it can become the top grade of ambergris.
"Xiaohu, you didn't really get me a piece of the best white ambergris, right?" Su Jing couldn't believe it. He held the white thing carefully with both hands, for fear of breaking it.
"This was found near the big head monster." The killer whale called out.
"Big-headed monster... Could it be referring to a sperm whale?" Su Jing was stunned. The sperm whale's head accounts for one-fourth to one-third of its body. It can indeed be regarded as a big-headed monster. The sperm whale is huge and very fierce, and it can be regarded as the overlord of the sea. , However, compared to killer whales, it is a bit weaker. If there is anything that can invade the area where sperm whales are active, it is not killer whales.
"Ask Shen Hong, although this old fox can be tricky sometimes, he has excellent professional knowledge. He should know more about ambergris." Su Jing called Shen Hong immediately, but the other side didn't answer.
Su Jing thought that Shen Hong might have something to do temporarily, so he took a few photos of the white block, and also took a few photos of the "Bamboo Stone Picture", edited a paragraph, and sent it to Shen Hong, let him take a look first, It's not too late to send it back to Wanbao Auction House.
Unexpectedly, not long after the photo was posted, Shen Hong called back, his tone full of excitement: "You said that you took the photo, your own bamboo stone picture and ambergris?"
"Yes." Su Jing said.
"Are you at home, I'll go over to your side later." Shen Hong excitedly said, and at the same time he was very envious, jealous, why all the treasures came to Su Jing's, this is too unfair. What he could never have imagined was that the bamboo and stone map was bought from him yesterday, and it only cost one thousand yuan.
"I will go to Wanbao auction house in a day or two at most. You don't have to come here. Tell me first, whether this painting is genuine, and whether this white thing is ambergris, and if so, is it worth it? How much?" Su Jing asked.
"Just looking at the photo, how can I tell? But it seems that the bamboo and stone picture is probably the original work of Zheng Banqiao, and the value should be more than one million. The white object is also likely to be ambergris, such a superb color ambergris, It is estimated that the price is more than 1,000 yuan per gram, and your piece is about two kilograms dried, which is at least one million. Of course, if you meet a collector you like, then it is not calculated by grams." Shen Hong replied.
Su Jing's eyes lit up when he heard it, the bamboo and stone pictures were worth millions, and the ambergris was really expensive. Moreover, given Shen Hong's character, the price he mentioned is definitely relatively conservative, that is to say, it may be possible to add a lot more than one million. Of course, the premise is that the bamboo and stone pictures are genuine, and the ambergris is also true. If it is If it is false, it is estimated that it is almost worthless and falls from heaven to hell in an instant.
"I haven't seen the real thing, and I haven't been tested, so I can't make an accurate judgment. When will you come... I have something to do right now, or I'll go to your house to help you strengthen it later." Shen Hong seemed impatient. Nai, obviously he was moved again when he saw the treasure.
"This... okay." For Su Jing, going to Wanbao auction house for appraisal is not much different from being firm at home, and home appraisal may be more reassuring, at least in his own territory.
"I'll go right after I'm done with this matter at hand, you must not do anything to ambergris." Shen Hong hung up the phone after he finished speaking.
"What's so exciting?" asked an old man next to Shen Hong.
"Look." Shen Hong handed over the picture of his mobile phone.
"Bamboo and stone map! Ambergris!" The old man's eyes suddenly lit up. In fact, the bamboo and stone map was not bad. He had seen a few authentic works, so he wouldn't be so surprised. "Let's finish the identification of these things, and then hurry up. Some people pretend to understand because they don't understand.
"Well, hurry up." Shen Hong nodded.
After Su Jing hung up the phone, he didn't stay at home to wait for Shen Hong, and asked the killer whale, "Xiao Hu, you said just now that you found this thing near the site of the big-headed monster. Can you still see the big-headed monster when you go out to sea?"
"You can see that they are still over there." The killer whale cried.
"Let's go, take me to have a look." Su Jing put the white object in the storage room at home, then put on a swimsuit, put on diving goggles, and also put on the camera that can be used for underwater shooting bought a few days ago. Go to sea on killer whales.
First, I want to see the legendary sperm whale with my own eyes, and secondly, if the killer whale really brought back ambergris, it is worth going to the neighborhood to see if there is any. It's not too late for this matter. After waiting for a long time, even if there is ambergris, I don't know where it has gone.
After a few dozen meters out of the sea, Su Jing suddenly realized the safety problem. What if he was attacked by a sperm whale? After all, the little tiger is still small and cannot be the opponent of the adult sperm whale. But on second thought, sperm whales rarely prey on the sea surface, and they like to eat mollusks such as squid and octopus, and sperm whales swim as fast as killer whales.
Su Jing took courage and was taken by the killer whale to swim quickly to the open sea.
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