"Uncle, take a look at these two pieces of calligraphy. Which one do you think is better written?"
Fan Shuyuan put on her down jacket again and ran towards a middle-aged man. She quickly asked Zhu Rong and Huang Yaodong to show her work and Wan Yunting's work to the middle-aged man, which caught him off guard. Wan Yunting smiled and said, "Brother, just go with your feeling. Tell us which of these two pieces of calligraphy you think is better written."
"This one."
The middle-aged man scratched his head and pointed to the piece of Cursive script calligraphy that Huang Yaodong was holding, which belonged to Wan Yunting. He said, "Although I don't understand what these characters are written, I feel this one is written better!"
This critique stunned Fan Shuyuan. As she reacted, she glared and pointed to her own calligraphy held by Zhu Rong: "Uncle, take another good look. Isn't this piece better than his?"
The middle-aged man shook his head and still firmly pointed to Wan Yunting's calligraphy, saying, "I still think this one is written better. It has more momentum than this one, and yours is a bit too delicate and also illegible."
Fan Shuyuan was almost spitting blood when she heard him say her calligraphy was delicate and illegible. Her peach blossom eyes widened, and she huffed, "I don't believe no one recognizes my good writing."
So, Fan Shuyuan called out to an older woman in front of her. This woman looked at the two pieces of calligraphy and also pointed to the one written by Wan Yunting, saying it was good. Although they couldn't understand the Cursive script, based on their feelings, they thought Wan Yunting's piece was written better.
Fan Shuyuan, not believing it, pulled over an elderly man. This old man seemed to know a bit about calligraphy but also didn't recognize the young people like Wan Yunting. He looked at the calligraphy written by Wan Yunting, narrowed his old eyes, and said on the spot, "Sword energy transformed into ink, characters like swordplay. Good calligraphy!"
The old man immediately asked, "Who wrote this piece of calligraphy?"
Seeing that the old man could discern the sword intent contained in his calligraphy, Wan Yunting knew he must be a martial artist, which he could also tell from his robust physique. Wan Yunting quickly stepped forward and said respectfully and politely with a smile, "Elder, I wrote this piece."
The old man's eyes widened, and he looked Wan Yunting up and down, saying in surprise, "At such a young age, to be able to write calligraphy with such full sword intent, young man, you are truly remarkable."
Wan Yunting cupped his hands in a salute, "You flatter me, Elder."
"No..."
Fan Shuyuan, who had recovered, blocked Wan Yunting and pointed to her own calligraphy held by Zhu Rong, saying to the old man, "Elder, don't you think I wrote better?"
The old gentleman looked at her calligraphy and said with a smile, "Girl, your writing is not bad at all. In fact, it is very good. I have been practicing calligraphy for decades, and honestly, I haven't written as well as you. However, in terms of the realm and mastery of calligraphy, your calligraphy is indeed inferior to this young man's."
At this, Fan Shuyuan's small face fell, and she was completely disappointed.
The old man's grandson called him, and he went over. Wan Yunting, Shangguan Wenshan, and the others quickly bowed to the old man and watched him trot towards his grandson before turning back to look at the dejected and unhappy Fan Shuyuan. Wan Yunting smiled and said, "This is the third person. Do you want to continue?"
"What are you so proud of?"
Fan Shuyuan turned her head, her peach blossom eyes glaring fiercely at him, and she pouted and huffed, "Didn't you say five people? This is the third one. I'm not a sore loser."
"Alright, then I'll be leaving."
Seeing that she admitted defeat, Wan Yunting signaled to Huang Yaodong to roll up his calligraphy and prepare to take it away.
After all, his current calligraphy was worth more than a thousand pieces of gold per character, and it could not easily fall into the hands of others.
"Wait, give me your piece!"
Just as Huang Yaodong handed the rolled-up calligraphy to Wan Yunting, Fan Shuyuan pouted and reached out to ask for it, which made Wan Yunting's expression falter. He turned back and looked at her, saying, "I won against you, why would I give you my calligraphy? Shouldn't you be giving it to me?"
Fan Shuyuan's peach blossom eyes widened, and she said angrily, "Are you giving it to me or not?"
Wan Yunting held the scroll in his hand and smiled, "My calligraphy is very valuable. If you want it, you have to pay for it."
These words made Shangguan Wenshan, Gu Sinou, Zhu Rong, Huang Yaodong, and Zhao Yushi beside them freeze. The other young scholars and ladies around also looked at Wan Yunting strangely. Didn't he know that Fan Shuyuan was Fan Liren's granddaughter?
"Hmph, if you don't give it, you don't give it. I don't care about it anyway."
Seeing that he still wanted her to pay for it, Fan Shuyuan glared fiercely at Wan Yunting, turned around, squeezed through the crowd, and walked away.
"Shuyuan..."
Gu Sinou saw this, nodded at Wan Yunting, turned, and chased after Fan Shuyuan.
Shangguan Wenshan and the others also smiled and bowed slightly to Wan Yunting before turning and leaving.
The other young scholars and ladies looked at each other. Although they didn't have a good impression of Wan Yunting, after witnessing his calligraphy firsthand, they were all impressed by it.
So, their expressions were a bit awkward, not knowing what else to say. Some, who were relatively polite, cupped their hands in a salute to Wan Yunting before leaving, while others chose to turn their heads and leave awkwardly...
"Brother Wan, you haven't eaten lunch yet, have you? How about we find a place to eat?"
Huang Yaodong didn't care about these things. It was rare to reunite with Wan Yunting in the capital, so they naturally had to have a good drink.
But Wan Yunting shook his head and refused, smiling, "Brother Huang, I need to visit Elder Fan now. How about tonight? I'll find a place, and we'll have a good drink."
Lin Yushu asked in confusion, "Brother Wan, didn't you just come from Elder Fan's place?"
"No."
Wan Yunting shook his head.
Huang Yaodong and Zhao Yushi didn't think too much about it. Seeing that he was going to visit Elder Fan, they naturally didn't insist on eating together at noon. They nodded and smiled, "Alright, if you're free tonight, give us a call, and we'll definitely be there."
"Okay, then I'll be leaving."
Wan Yunting, holding the scroll in one hand, cupped his hands to Huang Yaodong, Lin Yushu, and Hou Xuesong, then turned and headed straight out of Beihai Lake, planning to take a taxi to Fan Liren's house to visit the elder...
After their separation in Shaoxing, he had promised to visit him if he had the chance to come to the capital. This time, during the National Traditional Chinese Medicine Conference, Wan Yunting, as a junior, naturally had to visit Elder Fan.
Back in the閣樓 above, Fan Shuyuan sat on a chair with a huff, her little mouth pouting high, which made Gu Sinou and Shangguan Wenshan find it amusing. But she was unhappy and huffed, "Do you guys also think my calligraphy is inferior to that guy's?"
Shangguan Wenshan and Gu Sinou looked at each other and smiled, "Shuyuan, the artistic conception in Brother Wan Yunting's calligraphy is indeed extraordinary, feeling almost divine. So..."
"Alright, you don't need to say more. I know. Hmph." Fan Shuyuan raised her hand to stop Shangguan Wenshan, not wanting to hear any more.
Gu Sinou went over, took her hand, and comforted her with a smile, "Shuyuan, look at it positively. As the saying goes, there's always someone better. There are so many calligraphers in the world, perhaps there are even people who write better than him. So don't dwell on it. At least among us, your calligraphy is the best. As long as we practice diligently in the future, we will surpass him one day."
"Really?"
Fan Shuyuan turned to look at Gu Sinou. She smiled gently and nodded.
Fan Shuyuan understood that these were comforting words, but she felt a little better inside.
As for Wan Yunting's calligraphy, she actually admitted in her heart that she had lost, but to save face, Fan Shuyuan pretended to be unconvinced.
In fact, the reason Fan Shuyuan disliked Wan Yunting was that her grandfather, Fan Liren, had praised him so highly in front of the media at the Lanting Award!
It's important to know that Fan Shuyuan, from a scholarly family, had a grandfather, Fan Liren, who was a renowned master in the entire Chinese literary world. She had loved calligraphy and painting since she was a child, but her usually strict grandfather rarely praised her works.
Therefore, when Fan Shuyuan saw her grandfather generously praising Wan Yunting's calligraphy on television, she was filled with jealousy.
Hence, at the entrance of the Gu mansion, upon learning it was Wan Yunting, Fan Shuyuan arrogantly wanted to provoke him.
"Forget it, I'm going back."
Fan Shuyuan got up, ready to go back to find her grandfather.
"Shuyuan, aren't you participating in the exchange meeting?" Zhu Rong quickly called out.
"No, I'm not in the mood right now. You guys host it."
Fan Shuyuan waved her hand and had already gone downstairs, leaving Shangguan Wenshan and Gu Sinou looking at each other, only able to shake their heads and smile helplessly...
At this moment, Wan Yunting was sitting in a taxi, heading towards Beijing's Third Ring Road. He arrived at the entrance of a hutong. Since the alleyways were narrow and cars couldn't enter, Wan Yunting had to get off and walk. Relying on the address Fan Liren had given him, he wandered around the hutong for a while and finally saw a large gate with the house number 690.
This hutong was preserved from ancient architecture. It is known that the most valuable things in Beijing are Siheyuan (courtyard houses), and this residence with a plaque reading "Fan Residence" on its gate was a standard Siheyuan in Beijing. On both sides of the main entrance, there were two stone drums, a large red wooden door, and a high threshold, all left from the past.
Wan Yunting approached the main gate and knocked with the copper ring. After a moment, an old voice came from inside, asking, "Who is it?"
Hearing Fan Liren's voice, Wan Yunting raised his voice and shouted, "Elder Fan, it's me, Wan Yunting..."