Although Lu Weishen on stage remained outwardly calm, his heart was deeply shaken. He had spent considerable effort confirming the details of this damaged artifact in the past, placing it first as a way to show Li Chonglou who was boss. He never expected it wouldn't even last a minute this time.
Could it be that Li Chonglou guessed correctly? Or did he just happen to have prior knowledge in this area?
Lu Weishen's thoughts raced as he watched Li Chonglou's figure.
It was then his turn. Li Chonglou nodded to the staff member, who also walked to the red cloth on the far right and carefully unveiled it.
It was a landscape painting, depicting misty willows and a scene of a deep mountain village. However, there were no inscriptions or poems on it.
The crowd's attention was once again drawn together. Unfortunately, the painting was not large, and coupled with the distance, people couldn't see it very clearly.
At this point, Lu Weishen spoke again, "If President Li doesn't mind, may I let everyone have a try after I've written down my answer?"
Li Chonglou nodded slightly. If you want to play, I'll play with you.
So, Li Chonglou returned to his seat.
Lu Weishen walked steadily to the painting and began to scrutinize it carefully.
Time quickly passed, reaching the one-minute mark. Whether intentionally or by chance, Lu Weishen also finished his observation after one minute.
Immediately, the crowd below erupted in praise. However, Lu Weishen did not announce his answer first. Instead, he had the staff carry the painting down to the audience. He himself returned to his seat and signaled for his disciple to prepare ink and brush.
All attention was now focused on the painting, and no one was paying attention to Lu Weishen, except Li Chonglou, who saw through the charade.
Although Lu Weishen also finished his observation in one minute, several minutes passed between the end of his observation and when he picked up the brush to write.
Therefore, the answer of how many minutes it truly took was known only to him.
Li Chonglou did not expose him, waiting for events to unfold.
The staff spent ten minutes circulating among the audience. To prevent any cheating, everyone who wished to participate wrote down their conclusions, and the staff then handed the first ten submissions to the judges.
Lu Weishen's answer was also handed to the judges simultaneously.
The judges were straightforward and began by reading the audience's answers.
"Wei Ming, authentic work by Tang Bohu. Incomplete. Incorrect."
"Fu Qiu, authentic work by Tang Bohu, Year 23 of Chenghua. Incorrect."
"Zhong Yuming, authentic work by Gu Kaizhi… Incorrect."
None of the ten audience submissions were entirely correct. With each submission the judge read, a sigh echoed from the crowd. When the judge began to read Lu Weishen's answer, everyone pricked up their ears.
"Lu Weishen, authentic work by Tang Bohu, Year 27 of Chenghua… All correct."
The moment "All correct" was uttered, the crowd gasped in amazement.
"As expected of Master Lu. He identified everything in just one minute."
The praise for Lu Weishen reached a new peak.
Although Li Chonglou had also given his answer in one minute, the crowd had not had a chance to participate then. They harbored a vague illusion that they could have done the same if they had just reacted in time, and thus, they were even more impressed with Lu Weishen now.
Lin Zhendong, among the crowd, sneered, "A bunch of fools being led by the nose."
On stage, after the audience's emotions had settled, the host announced the start of the second round of competition.
There was no need for drawing lots this time; it was one person's turn at a time. So, it was Li Chonglou's turn again.
This time, Lu Weishen presented a complete set of ancient bronze bells. Li Chonglou, without Lu Weishen's subtle maneuvering, quickly gave his answer.
"Correct."
The chief judge looked deeply at Li Chonglou, confirming Li Chonglou's answer once more.
"Damn, so fast again. Why didn't they let us try?"
"Yeah, it was too quick. We didn't get a sense of participation."
Complaints arose from the audience, but Li Chonglou ignored them and quietly returned to his seat.
Then it was Lu Weishen's turn again. The second item Li Chonglou had arranged was a jade pendant. The moment Lu Weishen saw the jade pendant, his brow furrowed, but he quickly concealed it.
He then employed the same tactic again, first having the staff carry it down for the audience to examine, before he returned to his seat to write silently.
Without a doubt, the ten participants once again failed, and Lu Weishen's answers remained entirely correct.
"A master is truly a master. I am truly convinced."
Exclamations of admiration and awe continued, and Lu Weishen sat on stage as if basking in spring sunshine, a smile on his face.
Then came the third round, the fourth round.
Li Chonglou consistently provided the correct answers at an extremely fast pace, and the audience's initial complaints and dissatisfaction gradually shifted.
This was due to the contrast.
If only Li Chonglou had been performing today, the crowd's impression wouldn't have been as strong, but that was not the case.
Lu Weishen, as the former president and a towering figure, the more impressive he performed now, the more it indirectly highlighted Li Chonglou's stature.
Because the current score was 4:4.
Finally, someone noticed the subtlety in Lu Weishen's actions.
"Did you guys notice? Master Lu's speed always seems to be half a beat behind President Li."
"It really seems like it. I just saw Master Lu holding the brush and thinking for quite a while before writing."
"Hmph, do you really think our President Li is just a pushover? I couldn't say much earlier with so many people around. Just watch, our President Li is definitely not inferior to Master Lu. This duel will at most be a draw."
Only now did the crowd truly acknowledge Li Chonglou's strength.
From initially believing he would surely lose to murmurs of a draw, it was all because Li Chonglou's performance had indeed been astonishing.
In such a setting, Lu Weishen presented nothing but difficult items, yet Li Chonglou consistently provided the correct answers in the shortest possible time. Although the process completely disregarded the audience's sense of participation, his repeated accuracy had won them over.
At this moment, Jiang Yuxin, hearing the shift in the surrounding attitudes, finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Although she had always believed in her husband, people were, after all, emotional beings. If the attitude had remained so one-sided as before, she would have been affected.
Lin Zhendong, however, had not worried about Li Chonglou from the beginning. He chuckled softly, "The real show is still to come."
"Master, do you know something?" Lin Ying looked curiously at Lin Zhendong, but Lin Zhendong said no more, merely telling her to continue watching.
For the fifth match, Lu Weishen presented a set of jade ornaments. Li Chonglou also frowned slightly for the first time.
This was clearly one of Lu Weishen's trump cards. Li Chonglou stood before the jade ornaments, remaining silent.
The crowd below was very curious, but knowing Li Chonglou's style, they did not dare to hope for their own participation, stretching their necks to watch.