Riding the wind of rebirth

Chairman Zhao's calligraphy is also quite impressive, and he can be regarded as a famous contemporary calligrapher. His calligraphy sources are Yan Zhenqing and Li Yong in the Tang Dynasty, and later the Two Wangs. His calligraphy is simple and harmonious, with a loose and ethereal structure. His small and medium-sized running scripts were later influenced by Su Dongpo's Song Dynasty calligraphy, which has a bit of naivety, but his large characters are both elegant and majestic, and are very impressive.

He also particularly liked to write inscriptions for major temples, and he would almost always respond to requests. As a result, all the slightly famous temples in China have plaques inscribed by him, and almost all of the four characters "Daxiong Hall" were written by him.

"Last time when I went to ask President Zhao for a calligraphy, I thought he also liked calligraphy and articles, so I copied your inscription." Mingtai said, "We at Lingshan Temple really don't have any other literary gifts to give..."

"Oh, old monk, how could you do this..." Zhou Zhi held his forehead with his hand: "Isn't this like Lu Ban showing off his axe in front of him? Chairman Zhao will laugh at you to death!"

“No, no!” Mingtai waved his hands quickly: “President Zhao said that your calligraphy is very good. You must have learned it from Huang…Huang…”

"Huang Tingjian!" Zhou Zhi smiled bitterly: "The Su Dongpo that President Zhao emulated, in history, Su and Huang competed with each other in calligraphy. Su Dongpo said that Huang Tingjian's calligraphy was like a dead snake hanging on a tree, while Huang Tingjian said that Su Dongpo's calligraphy was like a toad crushed by a stone!"

"Ah? There is such a thing?" Mingtai laughed in shock. "But President Zhao only praised your handwriting for its literary style, which should have been cultivated since childhood. He also said that from the structure of the text, it can be seen that this ancient text was written by you. Only when you write it will you have a clear mind and a coherent style."

"When he heard that you were only 20 years old, he was actually shocked! He said that your classical Chinese writing was very sophisticated and authentic. He hadn't seen authentic classical Chinese writing by a contemporary writer for a long time."

"Originally, President Zhao only agreed to write us the inscription 'Lingshan Temple'. After reading your calligraphy on the rubbing, he also wrote us an additional inscription 'Ancestor Hall' and asked us to put it together with the inscription you wrote."

No one had expected such a story to happen, and they all said that they were honored to have such friends around them, which made Zhou Zhi even more embarrassed.

"The old monk is now going around begging for alms, hoping to restore Lingshan Temple to its original size and repair the ancient buildings in the temple." Mingtai said, "When the time comes, we will definitely need couplets to decorate it. The pen I used last time was too bad, and the paper was not even a whole sheet. I didn't have the nerve to ask for it, so I have to be thick-skinned again."

"My calligraphy is just average." Zhou Zhi said with a smile, "It's fine as long as Master Mingtai doesn't mind."

"How could it be! The old monk is blind, but how could President Zhao be blind?" Mingtai smiled happily when Zhou Zhi agreed: "Shall we go to the abbot's room?"

"Let's go to the dining hall. The long table there is more convenient to use." Zhou Zhi said.

Of course, the others came to watch the fun and were not afraid of trouble, so they all rushed into the dining hall.

Liaoran had already run to the abbot's room to get the four treasures of the study. Zhou Zhi took a look and found that they were all in good condition.

Yidege ink, Shanlianhu brush, and Jiachuan bamboo paper are already quite useful.

"I don't quite understand it either. President Zhao said that if you don't understand, we have a poet's maid in Shuzhong. We can buy pens and ink according to these two brands, plus our local medium-to-high-quality paper, and we will be able to get by."

Zhou Zhi smiled and said, "The one who knows how to guide the layman is the real expert."

He poured ink into the inkstone, dipped the large brush in it, thought for a moment, and slowly wrote two lines of large characters on the paper.

The Cangbai tree transformed into a dragon, indicating that it was the seeker of the Tao back then.

Lingshan Mountain hides the ink shadows and still waits for the people who wrote the scriptures in the past

"Good!" Everyone couldn't help but applaud. Judging from the content of the couplet, it was completely improvised by Zhou Zhi based on his travel experience today and the view of the sky above the square at night. The words were not profound, but they were cleverly connected together by imagination. As a couplet praising Master Yang, it was very appropriate and the antithesis was also very stable.

Before, everyone knew that Zhou Zhi was very knowledgeable and could talk about everything, but no one thought he was that amazing. He felt like a walking dictionary, relying entirely on his abnormal memory to get by.

Most people only witnessed Zhou Zhi's creative ability for the first time tonight. He wrote effortlessly without changing almost a word, and he used local materials and found that they fit the theme. One cannot help but admire him.

Zhou Zhi was quite satisfied with his calligraphy this time. He changed to a medium-sized Hu brush and wrote the signature. Then he asked Le Ran to get a pencil and drew a square under the signature: "I didn't bring the seal this time, but it doesn't matter. I will stamp it and send it to you. When the time comes, Le Ran, you can cut off the seal and stick it here."

"Is it possible?" Everyone was stunned. Li Laosan was particularly curious: "I've seen calligraphers and painters continue to stamp their works after they have finished their creations, right?"

Zhou Zhi smiled and said, "You didn't bring it with you, right? Then we can only settle for the next best thing."

"In fact, before the Song Dynasty, because red seals were not yet mature, calligraphy and painting circles often used this method to affix seals. After the Ming Dynasty, the calligraphy and painting trend became popular, and many collection seals were also affixed to the original paintings in this way."

"By the Qing Dynasty, some ancient paintings were already damaged. When people restored them, they often cut off the damaged parts and kept only the perfect parts." Zhou Zhi said: "But this treatment changed the structure of the painting. The positions of the original inscriptions and seals had to be changed to make them harmonious again. At this time, they had to be cut out and pasted to the appropriate positions."

"So, pasting is actually a common technique in Chinese calligraphy and painting. Third brother, you don't practice calligraphy and painting, so you don't know it."

"Scholars have so many quirks!" Li Laosan said, "It's really a torture to remember so much knowledge and so many rules and regulations."

"Third brother, you are wrong again." Zhou Zhi laughed and said, "Literati are also ordinary people, just like you who drink tea and wine. They are just particularly particular about the things they like. Su Dongpo and Wang Anshi both had lice on their bodies, which was recorded in the notes of the ancients. When they are not particular, they are no different from coachmen and horsemen!"

After writing the couplets, everyone finally had enough fun and decided to take a break.

The next morning everyone slept in, and after getting up and eating, it was time to say goodbye and go down the mountain.

Both sides expressed their thanks and politeness before bidding farewell to each other reluctantly. Mingtai sent everyone to the mountain gate and asked Leran to continue sending everyone to the parking lot at the foot of the mountain.

As a result, just as he got down to the foot of the mountain, Li Laosan's mobile phone rang. After the call ended, Li Laosan clasped his hands and bowed repeatedly towards the mountain gate: "Thank you, Master. Thank you, Master. We will come to worship and pay incense after we return. Master, you are so quick. I am flattered..."

"Hey! Third brother, what are you doing crazy again?" Zhou Zhi was shocked: "Who is calling?"

Li Laosan was shocked. "My second brother called and asked us to go to the capital immediately. The relevant ministries have agreed to discuss the satellite launch with us!"

"Damn!" Zhou Zhi couldn't help but be dumbfounded: "What a coincidence?"

Just as he said this, his phone rang. (End of this chapter)