Chapter 413

Here it comes—this question finally arrived.

As a junior, Wei Ming felt a bit embarrassed to answer; the key issue was that Grandpa and Second Grandma's postures and expressions were too ambiguous, and he couldn't help them cover it up.

"Uncle, Auntie said to visit her whenever you get to America—she'll tell you about the photo." Wei Ming cleverly passed the matter off to his aunt.

But Wei Anping felt this was already an answer—it must really be his elder brother.

Why go to America at all? If I ever get to Hong Kong, I'll sort this out myself.

"Brother, what did Uncle Anping want with you?" Wei Hong asked after they left.

"Nothing, just work stuff." Wei Ming dropped Xiao Hong off at Peking University.

"Aren't you going home?"

"Home? You've got school tomorrow—this way you can sleep in." Wei Ming dropped her at school and left, heading back to Nanluoguxiang to find Xue Jie.

Xue Jie had already finished eating and was sitting cross-legged on the sofa, watching TV.

Wei Ming sat with her for a while, but his mind was elsewhere; after she lay down again, he went to the study and wrote a letter to Old Ghost, explaining about the photo—so he wouldn't be caught off guard if Uncle Anping confronted him face-to-face someday, especially since it was his own grandfather.

The next day, Xue Jie went to Beijing Film Studio; Wei Ming went to the post office he often visited—and coincidentally received a letter from Zhou Huimin, who told him about the Golden Horse Award nominations and asked if he'd go.

Ah Long had also sent a telegram about the same thing, along with an official invitation.

Wei Ming didn't feel like going, so he casually replied to Ah Min, telling her to let him know the results.

He'd brought a painting with him this time, and later went to Rongbaozhai; Manager Yu, seeing a major customer, grinned like a blooming chrysanthemum.

"Manager Yu, don't get too excited—I'm not buying a painting today."

"Even if Wei Laoshi doesn't buy, he's still our most honored guest at Rongbaozhai—even just coming for tea is our privilege."

Manager Yu didn't act like a typical state-run shop manager—he was smooth and adaptable, perhaps because his clientele were either artists or foreign friends, so he couldn't afford to be rigid.

Wei Ming didn't beat around the bush.

"I have a painting here I'd like Rongbaozhai to authenticate."

"Oh? Whose masterpiece is it?"

Wei Ming: "Qiu Ying of the Ming dynasty."

"Wow!" Paintings on paper, unlike gold, silver, porcelain, or lacquerware, have a low survival rate over time; masterpieces are even rarer—Tang and Song pieces are already scarce, so Ming dynasty works are highly valuable.

Qiu Ying was one of the "Four Masters of the Ming," alongside Tang Bohu and Wen Zhengming; his works are naturally extremely valuable and mostly held by major museums.

"May I see it?" Manager Yu asked eagerly.

"Horizontal scroll," Wei Ming said, unrolling the scroll; Manager Yu called two assistants, each holding one end, slowly unrolling it.

"The Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival!" Manager Yu gasped the moment he saw the first inch of the painting.

Wei Ming: "Correct—it's Qiu Ying's copy of The Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival, not the one in the Liaoning Museum. I'm unsure, so I came specifically to have Rongbaozhai take a look."

After the entire painting was unrolled, Manager Yu asked: "Wei Laoshi, how much did you pay for this painting?"

"It cost nothing—it was a gift," Wei Ming said. "Also, I've already had the carbon-14 test done at Peking University's lab—the paper is confirmed Ming dynasty. Here's the report."

Manager Yu said: "Ming dynasty paper doesn't prove this is Qiu Ying's original—Rongbaozhai has Ming dynasty paper in its collection too."

Wei Ming nodded: "I understand that, which is why I need Rongbaozhai's masters to authenticate it."

Manager Yu had risen from the bottom ranks—he wasn't just an administrator; he first examined the painting himself carefully.

"Hmm, yes, the style is clearly Ming-era Suzhou figure and landscape—since Qiu Ying was said to have copied many versions of The Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival, Qing dynasty forgers made fake Qiu Ying copies. But anyone with eyes can see how difficult it is to paint this scene; Qiu Ying spent three years to complete one satisfactory copy, so there couldn't be many genuine versions left. Currently, only the Liaoning Museum's version is confirmed authentic, with a clear provenance—even Emperor Qianlong stamped it."

This painting had fewer seals, giving the impression it had been privately kept since acquisition, rarely displayed or circulated.

Manager Yu suggested: "Why not schedule a time? I'll invite several elderly experts in Ming calligraphy and painting for a joint consultation."

Wei Ming nodded: "Good idea. You have my home number, but sometimes I'm not there—here's another number. If you can't reach me there, call this one."

Then Wei Ming bought some brushes, ink, paper, and inkstone, planning to equip the study in his Nanluoguxiang Sihe Academy.

In the afternoon, Wei Ming returned to the library for work and took out a new notebook to begin writing the script for The Spring of the Sheep Herding Class, then wrote his English novel at night.

After work, Wei Ming first went to Beichi Zi to take Yin Xing and the Police Chief to his new home.

Yin Xing wasn't hard—she liked going out for walks anyway—but the Police Chief was too alert; no matter how hard Wei Ming tried, he couldn't get him to stay quietly in the box, so he gave up and decided to come daily.

Back at the Nanluoguxiang Sihe Academy, Xue Jie had returned and had started using the kitchen, making Shanghai-style sweet-and-sour pork ribs for Xiao Wei.

Though small in quantity, the flavor was good—the sweetness suited Wei Ming, just like Xue Jie's lips and tongue.

"You bought brushes, ink, paper, and inkstone—let's go write some characters. You can see how good I've become."

"Sure." In the study, Wei Ming took out The Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival again.

"Any results from the authentication?"

"The paper is confirmed Ming dynasty, but the painting itself still isn't confirmed as Qiu Ying's. Experts will consult in a few days." Wei Ming wasn't too concerned—he probably wouldn't ever need to sell paintings for money anyway; what mattered most was that he liked it.

After getting into bed, Xue Jie told Wei Ming more about Journey to the West.

"Today Director Yang Jie brought Big Brother and Second Brother to Beijing Film Studio's workshop to meet Master Wang Xizhong for costume design—they're coming again tomorrow."

Wei Ming smiled: "Perfect—I'll drive you to work tomorrow."

Xue Jie blushed: "No need—you don't have to drive me. I'll ride my bike."

"Fine, you ride your bike—I'll ride you~"

After a night of unrestrained fun, the next day, since Xue Jie hadn't let Wei Ming drive her, he arrived at Beijing Film Studio just as Gong Yu was still on the way.