"…I wonder if it's a complete poem or just a fragment?"

Beside the Qinhuai River, Old Qin asked Ning Yi. Kang Xian also sighed, "Three Mountains half-hidden beyond the azure sky, Two Rivers divide White Egret Isle… even if it’s just a fragment, it already possesses the grand style of a master…"

Ning Yi looked at the verses, then laughed, "Ha, a fragment. I’m really not good at poetry…" He spread his hands.

"This young man is not being honest; otherwise, we could have gotten a few good poems today…"

That being said, these days, it's common for authors to stumble upon fragments. The two didn't dwell on it and began discussing the calligraphy. This was a highly professional field. A poem could be claimed as someone else's, but the calligraphy couldn't be said to have been written by someone else. Moreover, several styles of calligraphy on the board formed a coherent system. As masters of the art, they could immediately see the intricacies.

To calligraphy masters like them, each stroke of a Chinese character had its own spirit and structure. The characters written with charcoal sticks might not reach the level of a master, but they already revealed considerable skill. As Nie Yunzhu perceived, no one would specialize in practicing this kind of writing at home. Someone capable of writing such characters with charcoal sticks must have advanced calligraphy skills. The several styles they had never seen before held inexpressible value for them.

The slanted black script, resembling a square, might only be novel without much reference value, like a sophisticated children's game. However, the Song and Slender Gold styles used to write "Three Mountains half-hidden beyond the azure sky, Two Rivers divide White Egret Isle" were truly pleasing to the eye and full of secrets.

These two styles emerged during the Song Dynasty. The Wu Dynasty followed a similar trajectory to the Song, with many scholars and highly developed Confucianism. Various innovations appeared in the pursuit of novelty and change, and these two styles were undoubtedly innovative and in line with contemporary aesthetics.

To be one step ahead of the times is genius; to be two steps ahead is often madness. These two styles stood on the foundation of the times, and it seemed that quantitative change had achieved qualitative change, resulting in a perfect breakthrough. Ning Yi might not have thought too much when writing; at most, he just wanted to provide some amazement to explain the problem. However, given his way of thinking, even without active consideration, various complex trade-offs were already made subconsciously, filtering out the simplest result. He didn't need to hide his cultural talents. The "unreliable" slanted black script served perfectly to prove that he usually liked to fiddle with interesting things. This maintained the impact of the Song and Slender Gold styles while making the amazement and impact feel natural, preventing it from being too sharp.

When the two later discussed calligraphy, Ning Yi mostly remained silent, only occasionally mentioning key points he knew. These two were true masters with a much more solid foundation than his. It was best to speak less, listen more, and conceal his abilities. He had been improving his calligraphy skills out of boredom these days, and occasionally hearing a few sentences was beneficial.

Ordinary talents and scholars probably couldn't receive such guidance from the two. Of course, if they were teaching, they would likely give targeted explanations to their disciples. Too much information would be useless to ordinary students. However, Ning Yi's ability to summarize, distinguish, and organize was extraordinary. He admired the two for their erudition but didn't worship or blindly follow them. Listening was fine.

The discussion on calligraphy lasted about half an hour. The men occasionally wrote and drew on the whiteboard with charcoal sticks, their hands black. Then, they washed their hands by the river. Old Qin and Kang Lao didn't mention charcoal pen and brush techniques at this point. Given Ning Yi's level, he only needed to make some innovations in the small academy, without needing their guidance. Of course, if he wanted to promote it, there would inevitably be problems. Ning Yi clapped his hands, then shook off the water droplets and casually said, "Charcoal is indeed not ideal for writing. I plan to get some gypsum in a few days and see if I can make some chalk to use. Then, I'll paint the blackboard black, and the writing on it will be white. It'll be clearer than charcoal and easier to erase."

"Gypsum?" Kang Lao asked, puzzled. "What is chalk?"

"After calcining gypsum with fire and mixing it with water, it can be solidified into strips in molds and used for writing. It's less likely to smudge than charcoal, and your hands won't get so dirty."

Gypsum and lime already existed in the Wu Dynasty. Kang Lao thought for a moment, then nodded. "That's right, gypsum can indeed be used for writing after calcination… Haha, there's no need to find someone else for this. If you want some, I can order someone to make a batch for you. I wonder what specific size and shape you require, and are there any other precautions?"

Kang Xian's household was large and wealthy, as Ning Yi knew. Since he had offered, he naturally didn't decline. He then gestured to show the shape of chalk. The process of making chalk was simple. Even without intentional effort, hard lumps formed in some lime kilns could be used for writing. There wasn't much to say. "You can ask the craftsmen to try a few more times, or add some clay and other impurities, and find the most suitable formula for writing."

"I naturally know this. Ah Gui." Kang Lao always had four attendants nearby when he went out, two men and two women. He called one of the men over. "You've heard what Young Master Ning said. After we return, instruct them to do it." The man bowed and said, "Yes."

"Haha, we've been discussing writing all this time, and the tea has gotten cold…"

Earlier, the three men had been holding charcoal sticks, so it wasn't convenient to drink the tea. Now, it was a little late, and they didn't feel much like playing chess. The men sat at the tea stall for a while, and Kang Xian's maid brewed new tea. The white board was still placed nearby, and the topic naturally revolved around writing. Soon, Old Qin began commenting on the styles of some contemporary calligraphy masters. He was skilled in calligraphy himself, commenting fluently and casually teasing Kang Xian's writing. Kang Xian laughed and scolded, "In clerical script and wild cursive, I may not be as good as you, but in regular script, you are far inferior to me."

Old Qin laughed, "This is specialization. If Your Excellency trains people in the Way of the Gentleman all day long, and your regular script is poor, you'll lose credibility. But Your Excellency is probably the first person in history to have practiced regular script to such a level solely for the sake of training people…"

After joking around for a while, Old Qin thought for a moment and changed the subject. "However, seeing Liheng's writing reminds me of someone, who is also from my Qin family. He is quite talented. When he was in Dongjing earlier, he submitted his work to me. He had extraordinary talent and demeanor, and he wrote beautiful calligraphy. His style and composition are similar to Liheng's phrase 'Three Mountains half-hidden beyond the azure sky', capturing the essence of Yan Zhenqing and Liu Gongquan… However, his writing hadn't yet broken free from convention back then. I wonder how it is now."

Ning Yi's eyes twitched slightly. On the other side, Kang Xian laughed. "Is Qin Gong speaking of Qin Hui, Qin Huizhi, who is now the Censor-in-Chief?"

Old Qin nodded. "That's him. A few years ago, when the Liao invaded, they captured his family. However, he was brave and resourceful. Even in the land of tigers and wolves, he was able to feign compliance with the Liao. The year before last, when the Liao attacked Shanyang, he seized the opportunity to return south with his family. Oh… is he already the Censor-in-Chief?"

"The news came in the court gazette last month. Because of his return to the south, he is now highly regarded, especially since he didn't forget his wife in times of crisis. It is said that in the Liao country, the Liao wanted to detain his wife, and the two painstakingly put on a good show before they could return south together. They were discovered by the Liao during their escape, and several loyal servants died to protect them, showing his ability to command… Alas, with the unfavorable war on the front lines, his deeds are even more precious. However, the court is not entirely praising him. There are many suspicions about his return to the south, believing it to be suspicious, perhaps with other secrets…"

Old Qin thought for a moment and shook his head. "It's hard to say, but random speculation without any basis is not the act of a gentleman. From what I saw that day, he was upright, righteous, and concerned about the country and its people, which was by no means feigned. We'll see how he acts in the future. Haha… Speaking of which, Huizhi's hometown is also in Jiangning. If he comes in the future, Liheng can meet him. Maybe they'll have something in common…"

Ning Yi blinked, then touched his nose with a complicated expression. After a moment, he finally laughed and nodded perfunctorily.

Old Qin and Kang Lao couldn't see anything wrong. Kang Xian picked up his teacup, took a sip, and looked at Ning Yi. "However, with Liheng's talent, do you really have no desire for fame?"

In terms of time, Ning Yi's interactions with the two hadn't been long. As Kang Xian said, it was just a casual friendship of playing chess and chatting. However, these scholars mostly had thoughts of concern for the country and its people: to establish a heart for Heaven and Earth, to establish a life for the people, to continue the unique learning for past sages, and to establish peace for all ages; or to learn literary and martial arts to sell to the emperor. These were unquestionable and did not need discussion. Now, Old Qin seemed to casually play chess every day, and Kang Xian was a wealthy idler, but there were inevitably complex reasons behind it.

From these days of contact, to the Mid-Autumn Festival's *Shui Diao Ge Tou* and now the writing and chalk, all these things meant that Ning Yi's talent was beyond doubt. The next question became clear. Like Old Qin's occasional sighs that it was a pity he was a live-in son-in-law, it was more of a sigh than a question. But the question at this time had a different meaning.

In this afternoon's conversation, Ning Yi's intention to deny the name of talent was obvious, and it didn't seem to be a joke or a casual excuse. No one in the world truly had no desire for fame. There must be some hidden reason. And these two were not simple people. Since Kang Xian asked this question with such an attitude, he had truly moved with a heart of cherishing talent. This was already… an attitude of intending to help.

The autumn wind rustled through the branches of the willows on the riverbank. Old Qin raised his teacup and slowly blew on the tea leaves in the cup, looking up, clearly curious about Ning Yi's answer. Sensing the meaning in the words, Ning Yi shook his head faintly.

"I know that saying this might not be believed, but… there are indeed some things I don't want to do. Talent, fame, and success, I don't want to touch them. This… is true."

"Hmm?"

*******************

The network is really bad. Since my house connected to it, the latency is super high, and I can't play online games. Opening web pages also has various problems. I have to verify my QQ several times. Today is a holiday, a holiday! The landline phone and the network are all down, and it hasn't come yet, so I have to come to an internet cafe to post… Users can't afford it, crying. I don't know how much money the community management staff received from the company…

As usual, asking for votes ^_^

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