I was a rookie reporter in the 00s

Zhang Wanqing and Fu Siyuan stood at the entrance of a bustling antique market, sunlight filtering through the gaps between the tall buildings, dappling their shoulders. Fu Siyuan's gaze was sharp, like a falcon searching for prey. As a journalist, he had a keen intuition for the city's dark corners. Today, their target was the illicit artifacts hidden among the piles of antiques.

Zhang Wanqing and Fu Siyuan moved swiftly between the stalls, their ears filled with the cries of vendors and the haggling of customers. Their gaze finally settled on a modest stall displaying a few seemingly ordinary pieces of porcelain. But Fu Siyuan's intuition told him that the age and style of these pieces were very different from the fakes commonly found on the market.

He squatted down, pretending to be interested in a blue and white porcelain vase, and chatted with the stall owner in professional terms. The stall owner was a middle-aged man, and his eyes revealed a hint of vigilance, but he was soon impressed by Fu Siyuan's professional knowledge and began to relax his guard.

"Look at the glaze and the painting on this porcelain vase. It is definitely a masterpiece from the Ming Dynasty." Fu Siyuan said softly, while observing the surroundings with the corner of his eye to see if there were any suspicious people.

The stall owner chuckled and whispered, "Sir, you have a good eye. This was just dug out of the ground. It's rare to see it on the market."

Fu Siyuan remained calm; this was exactly the clue they were looking for. He continued chatting with the stall owner, while Zhang Wanqing, standing nearby, secretly filmed their conversation with her phone.

Meanwhile, Li Wei sat in a closed bar, mapping out a complex web of relationships on his computer screen. His thoughts were interrupted by the ringing of his phone. It was a message from Zhang Wanqing. He clicked on the video, his brow furrowed. The style of these porcelains bore a striking resemblance to items stolen in a previous antiquities theft he had investigated.

He immediately replied to Zhang Wanqing, asking her to get as much information as possible. At this moment, he also quickly left the bar and headed to the antique market to meet Zhang Wanqing.

As night fell, Zhang Wanqing, Fu Siyuan, and Li Wei met in a small restaurant. In front of them were photos and videos of the porcelain bottles Zhang Wanqing had brought back from the market, and all three of them had serious expressions on their faces.

"This porcelain vase is very likely the stolen goods from a recent cultural relic theft case," Fu Siyuan said, pointing to the photo.

Li Wei nodded, a gleam in his eyes: "If this is true, then this antique market is one of the places where they sell stolen goods."

Zhang Wanqing took a deep breath: "We need more evidence to expose this group."

The three people's eyes met in the dim light.

He is tracing the origins of the porcelains, trying to find the mastermind behind them.

Their investigation led them to an antique shop called "Guyuntang." While it appeared to be a legitimate antique trading venue, Fu Siyuan's intuition told him there was something fishy going on. He noticed the shop's unusually high transaction volume and the significant price fluctuations in the antiques involved, which was highly unusual in the antique market.

He decided to investigate in person. Fu Siyuan put on a plain jacket and a hat, trying to be less conspicuous. He walked into Guyuntang, where the decor was simple and the air was filled with a faint scent of sandalwood. He scanned the antiques in the shop, trying to find any trace of the porcelain.

The shop was dimly lit, with only a few spotlights shining on the display cases, making the antiques inside sparkle. Fu Siyuan pretended to be interested in a Ming Dynasty vase and struck up a conversation with the owner, a middle-aged man dressed in a Tang suit with a warm smile on his face.

"This vase is the treasure of our store," the owner introduced enthusiastically.

Fu Siyuan nodded, his eyes lingering on the vase for a moment, then turned to the shop owner: "I heard you have some special goods here, I wonder if you can let me open my eyes?"

The shop owner's smile faltered slightly, but soon returned to normal: "Every antique here is special. I wonder what kind you are referring to?"

Fu Siyuan smiled slightly, knowing he had caught the shopkeeper's attention. He pulled a photo from his pocket and handed it to the shopkeeper: "For example, this one."

The shop owner took the photo and his expression changed slightly, but he quickly regained his composure. "Sir, you may have misunderstood. We don't sell things of unknown origin here."

"Boss, I didn't say that the porcelain in my photo was of unknown origin. How did you know that?" Fu Siyuan questioned the boss.

"I...I, I was just talking nonsense." The boss was speechless for a moment.

Fu Siyuan didn't say anything. He just looked at the shop owner quietly until his eyes began to flicker. He knew that he had touched his bottom line.

Meanwhile, Zhang Wanqing was conducting her own investigation. She returned to the antique market, trying to find the stall owner and learn more. The market was busier than it had been during the day, with people coming and going and the sounds of various vendors clamoring.

She found the stall, but the owner was gone. Zhang Wanqing frowned slightly, feeling something was amiss. She began asking around for the owner's whereabouts, but no one knew. Her intuition told her that the owner's disappearance was related to their inquiry yesterday.

She decided to wait, hoping the stall owner might just be away for a while. Time passed, the night deepened, but the stall owner never showed up. Zhang Wanqing felt a surge of anxiety, and she decided not to wait any longer, instead searching the market for clues.

She scanned the stalls, trying to find something similar to the porcelain she had seen. Suddenly, she spotted a blue-and-white porcelain plate on a small stall that was very similar in style to the vase she had seen yesterday. She squatted down, pretending to be interested in the plate, and struck up a conversation with the stall owner.

The stall owner was an old woman with a sly look in her eyes: "Little girl, you have good taste. This is a real old item."

Zhang Wanqing nodded and asked softly, "Grandma, do you know where this porcelain plate came from?"

The old woman chuckled and whispered, "This was dug out from an ancient tomb. It's rare to see it on the market."

Zhang Wanqing's heart skipped a beat; she knew she had found a clue. She continued to talk to the old woman, trying to learn more. However, at that moment, she felt someone was watching her. She looked up and saw several burly men approaching her, their eyes revealing malicious intent.

Li Wei continued to sit in the corner of the bar, looking over the case files from previous cases. His brow furrowed. This data, obtained from an old colleague, covered numerous cases of cultural relic thefts. He noticed a common thread in all these cases: the stolen artifacts ultimately ended up in the hands of the same antique dealer.

He decided to visit the antique dealer, hoping to find some clues. He put on a windbreaker and sunglasses, trying to make himself less conspicuous. He arrived at the antique dealer's residence, a villa in the suburbs, surrounded by a quiet and secluded environment.

He rang the doorbell, and the door slowly opened. An old man who looked like a housekeeper appeared at the door. "Excuse me, who are you looking for?"

Li Wei smiled slightly and handed the butler a business card: "I'm here to see the antique dealer. I have some business matters to discuss with him."

The housekeeper nodded and let Li Wei in. He followed the housekeeper into the villa, which was luxuriously decorated with a dazzling array of antiques. He scanned the antiques, trying to find the stolen artifacts.

The antique dealer sat on the sofa in the living room, fiddling with a piece of jade. A sly look crossed his eyes. "Mr. Li, I heard you're a former police officer. What could you do for me?"

Li Wei smiled slightly. He took out a photo of porcelain from his pocket and handed it to the antique dealer: "I heard that you are very interested in these antiques. I wonder if you have seen these?"

The antique dealer took the photo and his expression changed slightly, but he quickly regained his composure. "Mr. Li, you may have misunderstood. I don't sell things of unknown origin like this."

Under the cover of night, Zhang Wanqing, Fu Siyuan, and Li Wei each faced their own crises. Surrounded by several burly men, Zhang Wanqing knew she was in danger. Fu Siyuan's confrontation with the owner of the "Guyun Hall" shop became increasingly tense, and he sensed murderous intent in his opponent's eyes. Li Wei, in the antique dealer's villa, also sensed murderous intent all around him.

They all knew that the battle had just begun and they were already surrounded by the enemy. They had to remain calm and find a breakthrough to free themselves.