Chapter 391

When spending New Year's Eve with Xiao Hong, the festive atmosphere in Beijing wasn't actually very strong; the common people still identified more with the Lunar New Year.

Starting from this day, many families across the country began hanging up the 1982 wall calendars featuring the Four Flowers of the Beijing Er Yingchang, and there were also a large number of calendars featuring only Gong Xue, wearing beautiful clothes from Oriental Xintiandi—stylish and elegant, clearly much more pleasing to the eye.

Because Zhu Lin hadn't officially started her job at the Beijing People's Art Theatre yet and had no work unit to help manage these things, even her home and the old Western-style house where she stayed were decorated with Gong Xue's calendars, leaving her to only gaze at the objects and pine for the person every day.

Then she received a letter from Xiao Xue; it was great news, she would be able to return to the Magic City before the New Year.

The second day of '82 was the Laba Festival. In the Overseas Chinese Apartments, Wei Ming and Xiao Hong were learning from their mother how to pickle Laba garlic. The television was turned on, and Xiao Hong said with regret, "I heard 'Fearless' was going to be broadcast, why isn't it on yet?"

After watching a few episodes of the TV series in Hong Kong, she felt that domestic dramas were lacking something.

"It's probably being saved for after the Spring Festival; many families will buy televisions right before the holiday," Wei Ming said as 'Animal World' began to play on the screen. "Hey, this isn't bad either, it's quite educational."

The first episode was about Africa. In his past life, Wei Ming had only visited Egypt, the only African country he'd been to, and he really wanted to visit the African continent to see it for himself, provided his safety could be guaranteed, and experience the different local customs and cultures.

Fortunately, this episode didn't have any narration about "spring having arrived," so the siblings finished watching it smoothly. Then Wei Ming wrote for a while in the study. Before going to bed, he realized the rice paper at home was running low, so the next afternoon after work, he made a trip to Rongbaozhai.

It had been a long time since he'd come here to stock up. With plenty of foreign exchange in his hands, it was the perfect time to see if there were any paintings he liked.

As it turned out, while riding his motorcycle, he saw Li Hanxiang strolling down the street.

"What are you doing, Li Dao?"

"Oh, Little Wei. Just looking around, checking out some Ming and Qing dynasty furniture."

Wei Ming knew he must be here to collect antiques. This guy was a fanatical collector who had poured all his director's fees into this hobby; two years ago, he had almost been delayed in getting heart surgery because he didn't have the money.

Old Li's reason was: "Although the Forbidden City and the Summer Resort have both agreed to let the crew in to film, there are still some scenes that need to be shot on a soundstage, and we need to use some furniture from that era."

That was the truth. The Forbidden City allowed Li Hanxiang to film on location, but some areas were not open to the public, such as the Hall of Supreme Harmony and some palaces housing heavyweight cultural relics.

The access the Forbidden City granted Li Hanxiang was still inferior to what they gave Bertolucci for 'The Last Emperor.' Distance makes the heart grow fonder, and Li Hanxiang, being a Hong Kong director, wasn't "distant" enough.

Before the Spring Festival, Old Li would be staying in Beijing, searching for furniture—shooting and collecting at the same time—while negotiating specific filming matters with the Beijing Er Yingchang.

Wei Ming asked him how he planned to film the most important scene: the burning of the Old Summer Palace.

Li Hanxiang: "I've discussed it with the set designers at the Beijing Er Yingchang. According to my requirements, if we make a miniature model, they estimated the price at about 200,000 to 300,000 RMB."

Wei Ming sighed: "That's not cheap." After all, a regular movie in the mainland cost about that much to make; for instance, 'Family Happiness' was made for 300,000.

Li Hanxiang felt this price was okay. The miniature model mentioned here would encompass all the main landscapes of the Old Summer Palace, which was a true test of craftsmanship.

Li Hanxiang said: "Then I asked how much it would cost to build the actual set. It doesn't need to be big, just the most important landscapes. He said it would probably cost 600,000."

Wei Ming: "And you chose to build the actual set, only to burn it all down once you're done."

Li Hanxiang looked at Wei Ming: "Aren't you surprised? The people at the Beijing Er Yingchang were terrified when they heard I wanted 600,000 to build the set and then burn it all down."

Wei Ming laughed: "I only feel happy. I'm grateful for the contribution Li Dao is making to the mainland economy."

"I'm glad you support me too. I think the final result will definitely be very shocking." Li Hanxiang was incredibly expectant and asked Wei Ming why he had come.

"To buy some things at Rongbaozhai."

Li Hanxiang had just come from there, so the two parted ways.

Upon arriving at Rongbaozhai, the first thing he saw was a foreigner looking at 'Along the River During the Qingming Festival.' Wei Ming hurried over to join the fun.

"This is a good piece; shouldn't you sell it to him for a million dollars?" Wei Ming joked to the manager.

Manager Yu: "Wei Laoshi, you're joking. It's not the original. If it were the original, we wouldn't sell it even for ten million."

In the end, the foreign guest actually bought it, and Rongbaozhai charged him 200 dollars.

What kind of concept was this? The authentic works by contemporary masters Wei Ming bought here that cost over 200 dollars were only a few representative pieces; the rest could be bought for a few dozen dollars.

But who could blame him, it was 'Along the River During the Qingming Festival.'

'Along the River During the Qingming Festival' was indeed of extraordinary significance in the history of Chinese painting. Never mind the original by Zhang Zeduan of the Song Dynasty, even the version copied by Qiu Ying was a national treasure-level item, kept in the Liaoning Provincial Museum. In the future, a copy of 'Along the River During the Qingming Festival' that couldn't even be definitively attributed to Qiu Ying could sell for 700 or 800 million.

And a copy of Qiu Ying's copy of 'Along the River During the Qingming Festival' made by someone in the Qing Dynasty could also sell for around 100 million. The five characters "Along the River During the Qingming Festival" were just that valuable.

Of course, it also had to do with the fact that photocopying technology wasn't as convenient back then. This replica was a woodblock watermark reproduction that Rongbaozhai had been developing for several years. It was made by gathering the expertise of many technical backbones in the company, carving a total of 2,150 woodblocks, and striving for perfection in every link from sketching and carving to printing and mounting. Moreover, the quantity was limited and it was exquisitely crafted; there was a reason it was expensive.

Wei Ming knew he would never own the real 'Along the River During the Qingming Festival' in this life, so he simply bought a replica, even if this thing didn't have the same appreciation potential as those real paintings.

Because this replica could only be considered a renewable and reproducible craft, Manager Yu didn't ask Wei Ming for foreign exchange; 400 RMB was fine.

"Alright, let's settle the bill together later," Wei Ming began to look around. "This donkey is not bad. I have an affinity with donkeys. This is... a painting by Huang Zhou."

Manager Yu said: "Mr. Huang Zhou's donkeys are a unique specialty. After all, he is from Baoding."

To be precise, Huang Zhou was from Lixian, Baoding.

"No wonder it's painted so authentically; it has life."

Huang Zhou's painting style had bold lines and vivid images. At this time, the price was relatively average, and the market value was different from predecessors like Wu Zuoren and the others.

Wei Ming took a look and saw Huang Zhou also had horses, so he bought a 'Horse Taming Picture' and a 'Four-Panel Screen of Donkeys,' spending only a little over a hundred in total.

However, he didn't come here to spend this pocket change. He still had over a million RMB and over 300,000 USD, plus tens of millions of JPY in his domestic account; when would he ever be able to spend it all?

Manager Yu also saw Wei Laoshi's impulse to spend money, so he led him to the VIP lounge on the second floor.

Rongbaozhai had plenty of good things, but they wouldn't bring them all out at once; they would only decide to sell one every now and then.

"You will definitely like this item. I've specifically saved it for you."

"Oh?"

Manager Yu opened a wooden box and took out an exquisitely bound booklet, about 30cm by 40cm, inscribed with "Chairman Mao's Poetic Booklet," a work by Fu Baoshi.

"There are eight paintings in total, titled: 'Poetic Sentiment of Shaoshan,' 'The Land of Hibiscus is Full of Morning Glow,' 'Tiger Crouching, Dragon Coiling, Today is Better than the Past,' 'The Autumn Wind is Sighing Again Today, the Human World has Changed,' 'The Vast Sky is Frosty for Ten Thousand Miles,' 'Poetic Sentiment of Climbing Mount Lushan,' 'The Goddess Should be Well, and Should be Surprised by the Changes in the World,' and 'The Wind Spreads the Red Flag Like a Painting.'"

Wei Ming picked it up to look. As a fan of the Chairman's poetry, he was very familiar with the corresponding poems: "'Seven-Character Quatrain: To Shaoshan,' 'Seven-Character Quatrain: Replying to a Friend'..."

When he turned to the painting 'Tiger Crouching, Dragon Coiling, Today is Better than the Past,' which represented 'Seven-Character Quatrain: The People's Liberation Army Occupies Nanjing,' Wei Ming and Manager Yu looked at each other and smiled.

Manager Yu said: "It would be even more wonderful if this painting were titled 'The Righteous Path in the Human World is Vicissitudes.'"

After looking through everything, Wei Ming was very satisfied. Finally, he asked for the price: 1,600 in foreign exchange certificates, equivalent to 200 per painting.

Wei Ming laughed: "That's not cheaper than the original Bai Shi flower and insect booklet."

That set of pictures was bought for 1,800 in foreign exchange certificates, but that was 18 paintings, and that was only a year and a half ago.

Manager Yu laughed: "This size is slightly larger, and the collection market has indeed been a bit hot recently."

Wei Ming didn't quibble over that. When he bought that set of Bai Shi paintings for the first time, he did feel a bit of a pinch, and it took him a while to scrape together enough money. However, a year and a half later, 1,600 in foreign exchange certificates was already insignificant to him; in Hong Kong, he had even eaten a meal that cost 1,000 HKD.

Afterwards, he bought some paper and ink consumables as usual. He had prepared the money before coming, so he didn't need to go to the bank to bother with anything; he just paid and took the goods.

After returning home, for several days, Wei Ming did nothing but write and admire these new treasures. The magnifying glass could finally come in handy. Looking at the little people in 'Along the River During the Qingming Festival' was also a pleasure, and he could learn about some details of the Song Dynasty's market life. This thing was also of great benefit to the study of Northern Song history.

It was a pity that Sister Xue wasn't by his side, otherwise he could have held her while admiring the paintings.

It just so happened that he received a letter from Sister Xue during this period and learned her address in Suzhou, so Wei Ming wrote her a letter to express his good mood, and also took photos of these paintings and his new home in Nanluoguxiang to show her.

During this period, Wei Ming also received an invitation from Radio Television Hong Kong through the Hong Kong Office, asking him to attend the awards ceremony for the '4th Top Ten Chinese Gold Songs.'

Because Wei Ming had to attend the '77 graduation ceremony, his schedule conflicted. Moreover, if he attended the Top Ten Chinese Gold Songs, should he also attend the Top Ten Jade Solid Gold Songs? If he attended both, Xiao Hong would probably have to spend the New Year in Beijing alone.

Furthermore, once he got to Hong Kong, he would get lost in the beauty and delay his creative progress again; writing English novels was very mentally exhausting.

Based on these reasons, he politely declined, but he also arranged for someone to accept the award on his behalf. If Zhou Huimin attended, she would accept it for him; if she didn't, he would ask Tan Yonglin to help.

After replying to the Hong Kong Office, Wei Ming started moving and buying furniture again. These things were mainly handled by Biaozi, and he and Xiao Mei also gathered at Wei Ming's new home.

Mei Culture sighed: "With two doors locked, this is my own independent kingdom!"

Having lived in a crowded courtyard house since childhood, Biaozi was very disdainful of the living quality in Beijing's courtyard houses. But now, seeing the comfortable living environment of Wei Ming's two-courtyard house, he also had the idea of buying such a large mansion.