The Understated Dragon Lord

Chapter 280 Mason's Trap

Brittany’s mocking laugh rang out again in response to Mason’s weak attempt at justification. “Heh. So, Mason, just a moment ago, you yourself produced an invoice to demonstrate the authenticity and the supposed million-dollar value of this vase. Now you’re saying the truth of the invoice doesn’t matter. Do you hear yourself? Your statements basically imply you haven’t said a single true thing; I don’t even know what to say to that. Don’t you have any sense of shame?”

With a slap of his hand, Mason produced an appraisal certificate. “This vase has an appraisal certificate, certified by the American Antiquities Appraisal Center. It’s the most official certification body there is! Anything they verify as authentic is the real deal!”

Of course, Mason’s certificate was as fake as it gets, acquired for thirty bucks from a counterfeit specialist. Such dealings were his forte. The ability to land a contract for tiling a public restroom was due to his fake engineering qualification, which was costlier—at three thousand dollars—because it involved more intricacies. All text © NôvelD(r)a'ma.Org.

Brittany glanced at the certificate and burst into laughter, immediately mocking Mason for his low- quality fake. “Mason, faking documents might be your expertise, but this fake certificate isn’t very impressive. Look at the fuzzy edges on this seal.”

“Who says my certificate is fake? It’s genuine! See, it even has a QR code issued by the American Antiquities Appraisal Center. Don’t believe me? Just scan it.”

After scanning the QR code with her phone, Brittany was directed to the center's webpage. Following the verification code input, the result appeared. Shockingly, the certificate seemed legitimate. However, the image of the vase on the certificate was too blurry for a direct comparison, yet, at a glance, it didn’t seem far off from the actual item. Despite only spending thirty dollars, Mason’s counterfeit guy was quite the professional, even supporting online verification.

The certificate was actually a switched license—a deceptive practice where the QR code leads to the certificate for a different vase.

Emily, her pride swelling, waved the certificate triumphantly at Brittany. “See? The certificate can be verified on the official website. Now you can't keep questioning its authenticity, can you? So, can you finally admit that my husband's vase is worth a million?”

Brittany was lost for words and could only turn to Daniel for support. “Country boy, you said this vase was fake, didn’t you? Since you claimed it’s fake, go ahead and bring forth the evidence to prove it!”

“The vase is indeed fake; it’s artificially aged and done rather poorly at that. The method to prove it’s fake is quite simple, just remove the outer layer that's been aged and you'll see its true nature. However, the vase isn't mine; it's a gift from Mason to the old man. Therefore, I can't damage it!”

Mason sensed an opportunity and swiftly set a trap for Daniel. “Country boy, if you’re so sure it’s artificially aged, go ahead and show us. But if you fail to prove it's a counterfeit, you owe me a million!”