Courtyard House: I fish in the heavens, a professional bird abuser.

boom!

It was like a thunderclap exploding from the ground!

The crowd, which was surrounded in layers, was instantly stunned by this earth-shattering roar!

All the noise, discussion, and ridicule were completely wiped away at this moment, leaving only deathly silence.

Countless gazes, as if drawn by invisible threads, were all fixed on the half-sheet of Xuan paper in front of He Yuanchao.

Then he suddenly turned to the old man who was trembling with anger and whose face was flushed red.

Priceless treasure?!

That's it...

Black words written on white paper?

Was it written on a broken bench in a busy street corner?

Most people's minds are buzzing, and they can't react at all.

They only thought the words were nicer than the slogans on the street, but that was all.

Scribbles?

Not so much.

But priceless?

What a ridiculous joke!

Yan Jiecheng was as if struck by lightning, his mouth agape and his eyes wide open, almost popping out of their sockets!

The first thought that popped into his head was: Tuo'er!

This old man is definitely a shill that Brother Yuanchao hired at a high price!

They were putting on such a great show!

Heartbreaking? A waste of precious resources? A priceless treasure?

These words are so elaborate, they're even more exaggerated than those told by storytellers under the overpass!

How much money would it cost to hire such a veteran actor with superb acting skills?

But... isn't this actor overacting? Priceless treasure?

If you throw out this word, how are you going to continue the conversation?

Does Brother Yuanchao really dare to ask for an exorbitant price? Wouldn't people think he's crazy?

Yan Jiecheng was in a state of turmoil. He admired He Yuanchao's "generous" request, but also felt that the old man's acting was a bit unrealistic and too fake.

He Yuanchao himself was slightly taken aback.

He was confident in his running script calligraphy, which had been enhanced to the "Master Level" by the system.

However, the praise of "priceless treasure" and "directly following the legacy of the Sage of Calligraphy" still exceeded his expectations.

This old man... his eyesight is astoundingly sharp! And that heartfelt sorrow was absolutely genuine.

He put down his pen, looked at the old man, his eyes filled with inquiry and genuine doubt:

"Sir, you flatter me. This is just a casual scribble; I don't deserve such praise."

"Unacceptable?!"

The old man suddenly looked up, his cloudy yet sharp eyes fixed on He Yuanchao, as if trying to see through his very soul.

"Young man! Don't underestimate yourself, and don't try to fool this old man!"

A casual doodle? Which casual doodle could capture the essence of the running script of the "Sage of Calligraphy," Wang Xizhi?

Who could casually scribble down the entire text of "Preface to the Poems Composed at the Orchid Pavilion" with such precision and fluency?

Which casual doodle could contain such a powerful spirit of the Wei and Jin dynasties?!

The old man took an excited step forward, almost touching the tattered bench, his withered fingers pointing at the rice paper again, his voice trembling with an almost reverent quality:

"Look at this brushstroke! It rises like a startled swan and falls like a rock. Between concealment and revelation, it is strict in its rules yet perfectly natural!"

And look at the spirit of the writing! Flowing like clouds and water, graceful and elegant, the words conveying a transcendent, magnanimous sentiment that seems to survey the heavens and earth.

Those who do not possess profound knowledge and a deep understanding of the true meaning of the Orchid Pavilion Preface can hardly imitate even a fraction of its beauty!

He suddenly looked up, his piercing gaze once again fixed on He Yuanchao:

"Young man! Tell me! Who is your teacher? How many years have you devoted yourself to this art? Your calligraphy is something no unknown person could have taught you!"

It cannot be explained by your claim of "casual doodles"!

This is...this is truly the work of a master! A masterpiece!

The old man's words were powerful and resonant, each sentence like a hammer blow, striking the silent air and the hearts of every onlooker.

Everyone... Grandmaster... Aura?

These words are too far removed from ordinary people, as distant as clouds in the sky.

But the old man's trembling, excited tone, and his resolute, unwavering attitude...

Yet, as if by magic, it forcefully implanted a sense of awe and wonder into everyone's minds.

Could it be... that this young worker in the steel rolling mill is actually a hidden master calligrapher?

Yan Jiecheng listened in stunned silence, his mind racing with questions:

This guy's professionalism is just too high! His comments and terminology are so impressive!

Brother Yuanchao has really gone all out!

They've even come up with the term "master's aura"?

Is this old man some retired opera enthusiast? He's such a good actor!

Lou Xiao'e, hiding behind the crowd and clutching her cloth bag, was overwhelmed with emotion!

She understands!

She understood the weight of the old man's words better than anyone else present!

Has it attained profound understanding?

A noble and upright character?

Is this a collaborative effort?

A master's aura?

Every comment precisely captured the shock she had just experienced!

She had only thought the calligraphy was beautiful, unbelievably beautiful, so beautiful that it made her question the meaning of life.

But at this moment, the old man used the most professional and powerful language to visualize the vague turmoil in her heart!

It turns out that it wasn't her imagination!

He Yuanchao's calligraphy has truly reached such an astonishing level!

It's truly fitting that such a learned-looking old gentleman would lose his composure and cry out, "What a waste!"

An indescribable excitement and a strange sense of pride quietly grew in Lou Xiao'e's heart, as if she had glimpsed part of some earth-shattering secret.

After venting his excitement and sorrow, the old man took a few deep breaths and forced himself to calm his turbulent emotions.

He looked at He Yuanchao's young and calm face with a complex expression, a mixture of admiration, regret, and even a hint of almost devout longing.

"well……"

He let out a long, heavy sigh, a sigh that seemed to carry a thousand years of regret: "A pearl covered in dust, a divine object obscured."

Having lived most of my life, I pride myself on having seen many works by famous artists and possessing a few paintings and calligraphies that I find pleasing to the eye.

Compared to this calligraphy... it's like a firefly compared to the bright moon!

He raised his slightly trembling hand and gently stroked the pocket of his faded Zhongshan suit, which had patches of the same color on the elbows, with a solemn sense of ritual.

Then, under the tense gaze of everyone, he slowly and solemnly took it from his inner pocket...

He pulled out another one, also faded from washing and with frayed edges...

Dark blue coarse cloth handkerchief bag.

The handkerchief bag was bulging and looked quite heavy.

The old man's withered fingers trembled with an almost pious devotion as he slowly, layer by layer, peeled back the tightly wrapped cloth.

When the last layer of cloth was lifted—

hiss--!

The deathly silence was instantly shattered by a series of gasps!

The sunlight shone on the coarse cloth, reflecting a dazzling red and green!

money!

It's all money!

A thick stack of brand-new or slightly worn banknotes!

The largest denomination is the eye-catching ten-dollar "Great Unity" note, stacked neatly like a thick brick, with at least twenty or thirty notes in total!

Below were banknotes of five, two, and one yuan denominations, also stacked meticulously.

At the very bottom, there was even a small roll of shiny coins carefully tied with rubber bands!

All the coins were clean and tidy, with neat edges, clearly indicating that they had been stored there with great care and respect by their owner for a long time.

The old man carefully picked up the thick stack of money with both hands, as if holding a rare treasure, and tremblingly handed it to He Yuanchao.

At that moment, his back hunched slightly, with an almost pleading expression:

"Young man... no, young friend!"

His voice was hoarse and deep, filled with complex emotions that were difficult to describe:

"I know that such a masterpiece is priceless! A single word worth a thousand pieces of gold would not be an exaggeration!"

This "Preface to the Poems Composed at the Orchid Pavilion" is a magnificent work of over three hundred characters. Every stroke and line embodies the legacy of the Sage of Calligraphy and your own unique spirit, making it a true treasure of our time!

As for its true value... even if you sold everything you own, you couldn't buy a single piece of it!

The old man's words struck like a heavy hammer, hitting everyone's heart with each blow.

A single word worth a thousand pieces of gold? More than three hundred words?

How much money would that cost? An astronomical figure!

Everyone felt their heads buzzing, and their gazes toward the stack of money changed, as if it weren't money, but a ticket to another world.

"However..."

The old man abruptly changed the subject, his face revealing a deep and undisguised embarrassment and bitterness. "I... am ashamed! I am really strapped for cash right now."

Teaching and nurturing students, living a life of poverty, all I have is this... this meager savings accumulated over many years of scrimping and saving..."

He held the money in his hand, then extended it forward by half a cent, his voice trembling with a hint of choked emotion:

"Here... the total is three hundred and eighty-seven yuan and sixty-four cents."

The old man's numbers were accurate to the minute!

"This is all I can offer right now! I've given it all, leaving not a single penny behind!"

He raised his head, his eyes, weathered by time yet burning with a tenacious flame, fixed intently on He Yuanchao.

"Young friend! I am being presumptuous and shamelessly request that you part with this calligraphy of yours!"

"Though I am penniless and unable to repay with gold or silver of equal value, my heart... my heart is sincere, as heaven and earth can bear witness! I only wish to bring back this masterpiece so that I may admire it day and night, and study it diligently, to fulfill my lifelong wish! I earnestly hope... I earnestly hope that my young friend will grant my request!"

After he finished speaking, the old man kept holding the money in both hands, bowed slightly, and said nothing more.

That heavy sincerity and expectation, that almost humble thirst of an impoverished scholar facing priceless artistic treasures, permeated the air like a tangible presence, weighing heavily on everyone's heart.

Three hundred and eighty-seven yuan and sixty-four cents!

This number was like a red-hot iron, making everyone around feel their scalp tingle!

In those days, an ordinary level-two worker earned only thirty-odd yuan a month! Four hundred yuan would take a year to save, even without eating or drinking! It was enough to buy three fat, healthy pigs! Enough to build two decent brick houses! It was a huge sum of money that most families wouldn't even dare to dream of!

And this old man was willing to give up everything just to buy half a piece of writing on a broken bench?!

Silence! Deathly silence!

Everyone was stunned speechless by the enormous sum of money and the old man's demeanor. They could only stare blankly at the thick stack of money and then at the half-finished sheet of Xuan paper on the bench, their minds completely blank.

Yan Jiecheng was completely dumbfounded. His mouth gaped open wide enough to fit a duck egg, his eyes fixed on the wad of cash, and his breathing became heavy! Four hundred yuan! Nearly four hundred yuan! His father, Yan Bugui, a teacher, only earned a little over forty yuan a month. Even if he scrimped and saved, he might not be able to save that much in a year! Brother Yuanchao… Brother Yuanchao’s request was worthwhile! Absolutely worthwhile! This old man is ruthless! He’s gone all out! This act was… brilliant! Shouldn’t we share some of this money with this old man? Otherwise, would he have agreed to put on such a grand show?

His eyes were filled with fervor and admiration as he looked at He Yuanchao: Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant! Brother Yuanchao is playing the long game! What a move! What a bold move!

Lou Xiao'e, who was hiding behind the crowd, felt her palms were icy cold and her fingertips dug deeply into her cloth bag.

In her cloth bag, carefully wrapped in a handkerchief, was the ten yuan of her pocket money, which she had intended to use to buy this calligraphy that had captivated her.

But at this moment... looking at the thick wad of bills in the old man's hand, nearly four hundred yuan, and then looking at the pitiful ten yuan in my own cloth bag...

The stark contrast drained the color from her face instantly, and an indescribable sense of embarrassment and shame washed over her like a cold tide.

She subconsciously hid the cloth bag behind her back, as if that little bit of money was something shameful.

So... so this calligraphy is actually so valuable in the eyes of true connoisseurs? So valuable that it would cost them their entire fortune to buy it? My meager savings aren't even a fraction of theirs! How laughable that I was just thinking of buying it...

An unprecedented sense of frustration and a deeper understanding of He Yuanchao overwhelmed her.

Her father was right... He really was a hidden dragon! He was gold! But the brilliance of this gold far exceeded her imagination!

Just as the silence was being dominated by the awe-inspiring display of wealth, and everyone was speechless with astonishment at the old man's extravagance—

"Ha! Hahahaha!"

A sudden, piercing laugh, filled with disdain and mockery, shattered the heavy atmosphere like a broken gong!

"Keep acting! Keep acting! You're putting on a damn good charade!"

From the crowd, a burly man with broad shoulders, a thick waist, and a fierce face emerged. He was wearing brand-new blue work clothes.

He had a buzz cut and a ring of sweat around his neck; he looked like someone who did manual labor.

At this moment, he stood with his hands on his hips, glancing sideways at He Yuanchao and the old man, his face showing undisguised contempt and smug satisfaction at seeing through their trickery.

"I knew it! A rough-looking blacksmith from a steel mill, what are you trying to prove with all this talk! Writing calligraphy? Priceless treasures? Bah!"

The burly man spat out a mouthful of saliva, almost splashing it onto the Xuan paper, which drew an angry glare from the old man.

Completely oblivious, he pointed at He Yuanchao, spitting as he shouted, "Wake up, everyone! Don't be fooled by these two swindlers! This old bastard is clearly a hired hand hired by this pretty boy!"

His voice was loud and clear, deliberately making sure everyone could hear him:

"Priceless treasure? Worth a thousand pieces of gold per word? What utter nonsense! I've seen the bulletin board in the factory, and the handwriting there looks like a dog's scribbles! What? Just because you've moved to a different place and put on some clean clothes, you suddenly become a calligraphy master? You're kidding me!"

He pointed sharply at the half-written calligraphy on the bench, scoffing, "Open your eyes and look! What is this? It's crooked and messy, like some kind of ghost drawing! I can't recognize a single character! This thing is worth four hundred yuan? Four hundred yuan! Enough to buy three big fat pigs! Enough for me to get married and still have some left over!"

The burly man's words were like a bucket of cold water poured into a pot of boiling oil!

It instantly ignited the minds of passersby who were already stunned by the huge sum of money, couldn't understand calligraphy, and harbored doubts in their hearts!

"Yeah! These characters... they look like gibberish to me, I don't recognize a single one!"

"Exactly! It's just scribbles! It's nowhere near as good as Old Liu's handwriting from our factory's propaganda department! Old Liu's handwriting is so neat!"

"Four hundred yuan? You're kidding me! This old man looks respectable, but he's just a conman!"

"I knew it! Who would be stupid enough to spend four hundred dollars on a few scraps of paper! Turns out it was a group scamming people!"

"Call the police! Call the police right now! Arrest these two scammers!"

"Yes! Catch the scammers! We can't let them get away!"

Questions, insults, and clamor instantly rose to prominence!

The scene, which had just been intimidated by the old man's imposing presence and the huge sum of money, instantly spiraled out of control!

The crowd was outraged, and their anger was directed at He Yuanchao and the old man!

Many people looked at He Yuanchao with contempt and anger, as if they were looking at a heinous charlatan.