Chapter 2767: Then are you convinced?

While the Boeing 777 carrying the three great elders was still traveling through the sky over the ocean, the excited Xiao Changkun, holding the portrait Ye Chen had given him, drove the Rolls-Royce Cullinan that Fei Kexin had given him to the building of the Calligraphy and Painting Association.

At this moment, Xiao Changkun's face was radiant with confidence, as if he were a ragtag army that had just won a key battle, waiting to hold his head high in front of those regular troops.

At the Calligraphy and Painting Association, Xiao Changkun was indeed not well-received.

Most of the people hanging out here were literati and scholars. Although some had no real talent or learning and were purely here to pretend to be cultured, they at least knew what "pretending" meant.

Having no professional level yourself but coming here to be a foil and give professional people more space to show off—that is called "pretending to be cultured";

Having no professional level yourself but coming here to be a second-in-command, not only occupying a position without doing any work but also forcing yourself to show off all day long—that is no longer pretending to be cultured, but redefining culture.

The former is the indispensable soil for the survival of literati and scholars, while the latter is the nemesis of literati and scholars.

Xiao Changkun was that nemesis who redefined culture.

He actually knew nothing about antiques, calligraphy, or painting. He saw others playing, so he followed suit, but he played superficially and had almost no real skills.

People like him were already somewhat unqualified to even enter the Calligraphy and Painting Association as foils, yet he had climbed step by step to the position of executive vice president. This naturally made many people jealous and resentful, so everyone had a lot of opinions about him.

President Pei also knew that Xiao Changkun was a big fake, but he didn't dare to offend Xiao Changkun. After all, Xiao Changkun had great face in front of Master Hong Wu. President Pei knew he couldn't afford to provoke him and also intended to win Xiao Changkun over, which was why he had overcome all opposition to support him as executive vice president.

However, others were not like President Pei, who coveted Xiao Changkun's connections, so President Pei could tolerate Xiao Changkun, but that didn't mean others could.

When Xiao Changkun parked the car and arrived at the entrance of the Calligraphy and Painting Association holding the painting, he heard someone inside saying, "Hey, I say, our 'Executive Xiao' hasn't managed to get any decent exhibits yet, right?"

Another person mocked, "Him? He doesn't understand calligraphy or painting at all. Where would he be able to find good things to participate in the exhibition?"

"Exactly!" Another echoed, "Last time I found a painting by Cai Ze, a painter from the Qing Dynasty in our Jin Ling, and gave it to him for appraisal. Do you know what he said? He said the mountains didn't look like mountains and the water didn't look like water, and at a glance, it wasn't a work by any famous master. I couldn't even be bothered to pay attention to him."

The first person smiled and said, "This Executive Vice President Xiao of ours is a typical piece of trash. How many jokes has he made in our place? If it weren't for President Pei shielding him, I would have scolded him to his face long ago. If he can't come up with anything decent for this exhibition, I'll report him by name and demand a change of executive vice president!"

"Exactly!" Others echoed, wishing they could pressure President Pei together right now.

Xiao Changkun's face turned livid as he listened at the door. He walked in, holding the painting tube, and said unhappily, "You bunch of people, like old women, whose tongues are you chewing on?"

Seeing him arrive, everyone didn't take him seriously. One of them curled his lips and mocked, "Oh, Executive Vice President Xiao, our calligraphy and painting exhibition is starting soon. You, the executive vice president, haven't produced a single decent exhibit; that's not appropriate, right?"

"Exactly!" Someone fanned the flames, "Executive Vice President Xiao, even if you can't borrow any good works, you should at least take one or two fine pieces from your own collection for the exhibition! As our executive vice president, don't you have a few decent collections?"

A large group of people were incited and began to mock Xiao Changkun one after another.

Xiao Changkun said coldly, "You bunch of people really have eyes but fail to recognize Mount Tai. How could I, Xiao Changkun, not have fine pieces? It's just that some paintings have such a great background that it's not convenient to take them out!"

At this moment, Xiao Changkun had already substituted himself into the role of the client Ye Chen spoke of.

When the others heard him bragging, everyone curled their lips in disdain, not taking a word he said seriously.

Xiao Changkun didn't say much. He placed the painting tube directly on the large desk used for display and appraisal at the Calligraphy and Painting Association and said, "Come, today I'll let you open your eyes and see a Tang Dynasty work I picked up as a bargain!"

"Pfft..." The faces of the crowd were filled with disdain. Calligraphy and painting were not easy to preserve, and although there were many types of paper used for Chinese painting, almost none were as tough as Western canvas. It was very easy to be damaged over time, and preserving them was even harder. Works truly passed down from the Tang Dynasty were almost all masterpieces, passed down through dozens of generations with careful care. Naturally, no one believed that Xiao Changkun had picked up a Tang Dynasty work as a bargain.

Seeing that everyone ignored him, Xiao Changkun couldn't help but say angrily, "What, you don't believe me? Fine, since you don't believe me, I'll let you see for yourselves!"

After saying this, he opened the painting tube and pulled out Meng Changsheng's portrait.

Seeing him really take out a painting, everyone immediately crowded around.

However, everyone crowded around not to see the style of a Tang Dynasty painting, but to see how Xiao Changkun would make a fool of himself this time.

After all, it wasn't the first or second time Xiao Changkun had made a fool of himself.

However, as Xiao Changkun unfolded the scroll bit by bit, everyone who was prepared to watch the joke immediately widened their eyes.

No one expected this painting to be painted so vividly.

However, most people, because they had opinions about Xiao Changkun, began to question it one after another.

"This doesn't look like a Tang Dynasty style, right? It's probably fabricated by a modern realist painter. Those painters who study Western sketching are best at this kind of realist style."

"I don't think it looks like a Tang Dynasty style either. The Tang Dynasty style shouldn't be this skillful yet!"

"Exactly! If there were such a powerful painter in the Tang Dynasty, he would have been famous long ago!"

While everyone was questioning, the old man who had been mocking Xiao Changkun earlier exclaimed, "My god, this... this painter's skill is simply supernatural! To be honest, this is the first time I've seen it! Not to mention anything else, this painting foundation is too strong! Every stroke is perfect, and the details are rich to an outrageous degree. Painters who have painted for a lifetime might not have such brushwork!"

This person was not lying.

It was indeed very difficult for an ordinary person to practice to this level of brushwork.

After all, the Jiang family ancestor lived to be one hundred and thirteen years old—something almost unheard of among ancient people. And the Jiang family ancestor himself didn't understand cultivation, so he spent most of his time practicing painting. Just in terms of this foundation, it was something that the vast majority of painters couldn't catch up to even if they whipped their horses.

Moreover, the Jiang family ancestor had spent the latter half of his life waiting for Meng Changsheng to return. For decades, day after day, he painted portrait after portrait of Meng Changsheng, making him even more skillful than anyone else. And this one was his most satisfying work—thousands upon thousands of brushstrokes without a single flaw or omission. It was absolutely perfect!

Another person leaned in and observed the details of the portrait with a magnifying glass, saying excitedly, "This painting... this painting is truly a Tang Dynasty silk painting... This texture, at a glance, is an old object; it's definitely not something that can be forged! And Master Ma is right! The strength of this painting skill is the best I have ever seen in my life..."

Master Ma was one of the strongest titans of the Jin Ling Calligraphy and Painting Association and was also a member with relatively high prestige in the association today. He had always had a high voice for being the executive vice president of the Calligraphy and Painting Association, so he was also the biggest competitor in Xiao Changkun's eyes.

Since even the old titan said this painting was indeed from the Tang Dynasty, the crowd became excited and agitated.

Everyone surrounded the painting for a long time, and the more they looked, the more shocked they became; the more they looked, the more excited they became, because in their eyes, the painting skill had already surpassed all painters in Tang Dynasty history, and the artistic conception it presented was truly breathtaking.

The titan asked Xiao Changkun excitedly, "Where did you get this painting?!"

Xiao Changkun pointed his chin at him and said disdainfully, "I just said it: I picked this painting up as a bargain!"

"What a joke!" The titan said disdainfully, "How could a painting that has been passed down from the Tang Dynasty be picked up as a bargain by a fool like you?"

Xiao Changkun curled his lips, "I know you look down on me and always feel that I don't have your real talent or learning. But you have to know, in this life, sometimes it's not just about real talent or learning; it's also about opportunity!"

As he spoke, Xiao Changkun added, "This painting was originally hidden in a very inconspicuous painting. It was I, Xiao Changkun, who had the discerning eyes to see that there was another painting pasted on the bottom layer, so I bought this painting. When I went back and tore it open, it turned out that a stunning Tang Dynasty masterpiece was hidden inside;"

"I'm not bragging! The person in this painting is vivid and lifelike. Have you ever seen any Tang Dynasty painting that could have such charm?"

The titan exclaimed, "Xiao Changkun, did you really pick this painting up as a bargain?!"

Seeing that he still didn't believe him, Xiao Changkun went up and rolled up the painting. While rolling it, he said, "If you don't believe me, don't look at it. I let you see my painting, only to be questioned by you. I really can't be bothered to waste this effort on you."

Seeing this, the titan immediately said politely, "Xiao Changkun, oh no, Executive Vice President Xiao, this painting of yours is indeed impressive. Can you let me appreciate it again?"

Xiao Changkun asked him in return, "You said my painting is impressive—how impressive is it?"

The titan said without hesitation, "The skill is exquisite; it's the best I've ever seen in my life!"

Xiao Changkun asked again, "Then are you convinced?"

"Convinced, naturally convinced!" The titan nodded without hesitation, "This kind of painting overturns my understanding of Tang Dynasty works. I am indeed convinced!"

Xiao Changkun nodded with satisfaction and handed the painting to him, saying, "Since you are convinced, then I'll let you look at it properly—look at it to your heart's content."

After saying this, he looked at the others and said, "See that? This is the way two people with real talent and learning communicate! Like you bunch of people who only know how to chatter after others, chew on tongues behind people's backs, and follow whatever others say—you are actually the ones who don't know a fart! A dog at the entrance of the village barks twice, and damn it, all the dogs in the village follow suit. But if you really ask the dogs behind why they are barking, not a single dog really knows!" ===== CHAPTER 2768 =====