“Xiao Wan?”
In the east corner of the courtyard, there was a sunroom built of glass. At the base of the glass exterior wall, a plum blossom was planted, its branches laden with snow, buds ready to bloom. Many other plants were also grown nearby, along with a gourd trellis. As it was winter, apart from the plum blossom, all other plants had withered and died, only to be replanted in the spring…
Inside the glass sunroom, the space wasn't very large. A tea table was set with an old tea set and a few decorative items. However, the tea set had been pushed aside, and two large bowls of authentic Beijing Zhajiangmian were placed there instead.
Sitting opposite Fan Liren was an elder of the same age. He wore a thick, dark blue cotton coat, clearly a genuine Beijing native. Hearing the voice from outside, he said to Fan Liren, "Old Fan, could that be the young man we were just talking about?"
"Aiya, that's Xiao Wan's voice. Wait a moment, Old He."
Fan Liren recognized Wan Yunting's voice and excitedly stood up. He gestured to Ouyang Shenhe, then turned and quickly walked out of the sunroom towards the main gate. When he opened the gate and saw that it was indeed Wan Yunting knocking, Fan Liren's old eyes lit up with joy, and he laughed, "Xiao Wan, it's really you, haha…"
"Elder Fan."
Wan Yunting slightly bowed and politely clasped his hands in greeting. Fan Liren waved his hand, pulled him inside, and said, "Quick, come in. How did you get to Beijing so quickly? Hmm, why are you alone? Where is that girl Luo Tang? Didn't she come?"
Wan Yunting, who had entered, helped close the door and turned to smile at him, "I came alone. Luo Tang has something to attend to and can't get away. And I'm here in Beijing to participate in the National Traditional Chinese Medicine Conference in a couple of days. I've come to visit you today."
"So that's how it is."
Fan Liren led him into the courtyard and said with a smile, "It's alright. Bring Luo Tang over when you have time. Come, you haven't had lunch yet, have you? I just made some Zhajiangmian, have a taste."
Wan Yunting was pleased to hear this and nodded with a smile, "Alright, I've never tasted authentic old Beijing Zhajiangmian before."
"Haha, then it's good you're here."
Fan Liren, beaming, led Wan Yunting into the glass sunroom. Ouyang Shenhe, who was sitting inside, turned and his old face showed a slight flicker of surprise upon seeing Wan Yunting.
Wan Yunting, seeing him, looked taken aback and stared at Ouyang Shenhe with a bewildered expression, feeling an indescribable strangeness!
"Xiao Wan, let me introduce you."
Fan Liren, not noticing their brief, unusual exchange of glances, pointed to Ouyang Shenhe and said with a smile, "This is my old friend Ouyang Shenhe. You can call him Elder Shenhe."
"Old He, this is the young friend Wan Yunting I just mentioned to you."
Fan Liren also introduced Wan Yunting to Ouyang Shenhe. Ouyang Shenhe then reacted, looking at Wan Yunting and nodding with a smile, "You must be the youngest calligraphy master who has caused a sensation in the art world recently."
Wan Yunting politely clasped his hands towards him again and then humbly shook his head, laughing, "Elder He is joking. It's just a false reputation."
Ouyang Shenhe waved his hand and said with a smile, "I know Old Fan's character. If he praises you so highly, it means you have exceptional abilities. Besides, I've seen your calligraphy, and it is indeed extraordinary."
Facing such praise, Wan Yunting could only smile humbly.
"Xiao Wan, please sit. There's still Zhajiangmian in the pot, I'll serve you some…"
"Thank you, Elder Fan…"
Watching Fan Liren leave the sunroom for the kitchen, Wan Yunting turned back to smile at Ouyang Shenhe and found a place to sit. Ouyang Shenhe also smiled and said, "No need to be reserved, please sit comfortably."
"Alright, Elder He."
Wan Yunting nodded with a smile. Ouyang Shenhe was observing him and asked curiously, "Young friend, have we met before?"
Wan Yunting looked at him and shook his head, "Elder He, I don't think we have."
Ouyang Shenhe nodded and smiled at him, "But it's strange, why do I feel a sense of familiarity when I see you?"
Wan Yunting's expression froze because he felt a similar, strangely familiar sensation when he saw Ouyang Shenhe. He said, "Elder He, actually, I have this feeling too. Have we really met somewhere before?"
"You too?"
Ouyang Shenhe was startled and couldn't help but try hard to recall if he had ever met Wan Yunting somewhere. But after thinking for a moment, until Fan Liren came in with a bowl of Zhajiangmian and saw their exchange, he asked, "Old He, Xiao Wan, what are you two chatting about?"
"Old Fan, this is the first time I'm meeting your young friend, but we have a sense of familiarity. Isn't that strange?" Ouyang Shenhe pointed at Wan Yunting, who was sitting in front of him, and said to Fan Liren with inexplicable delight.
"Is that so?"
Fan Liren looked at the two of them and chuckled, "Could it be that you were grandfather and grandson in a previous life?"
Wan Yunting and Ouyang Shenhe's expressions froze. They exchanged a glance, and then burst into laughter. Ouyang Shenhe nodded with a smile and said, "It seems that way."
"Alright, let's have a toast with tea first."
Fan Liren poured tea for them. Wan Yunting and Ouyang Shenhe also picked up their cups, touched them together, and drank them down in one gulp.
"Xiao Wan, I didn't know you were coming today. Old He and I just made Zhajiangmian. Try it and see how it is."
Fan Liren happily offered it to him. Wan Yunting nodded, made no ceremony, and with Fan Liren's guidance, stirred the Zhajiangmian with his chopsticks before eating. His eyes immediately lit up, and he praised, "Delicious."
"Haha, it seems you're telling the truth, and I'm relieved," Fan Liren said happily.
Wan Yunting's visit made him genuinely happy. Ouyang Shenhe, sitting nearby, looked at Wan Yunting. Fan Liren's remark about them potentially being grandfather and grandson in a past life gave him a very strong and peculiar feeling!
This young man in front of him was like his own grandson, causing his old eyes to reveal a kind and gentle gaze. Looking at Wan Yunting, he also said with a smile, "If it's delicious, eat more. I have plenty here."
Wan Yunting was a bit hungry and ate the Zhajiangmian heartily. He also replied to Ouyang Shenhe without reservation, "Elder He, could you share some with me then?"
"Haha, here you go…"
Ouyang Shenhe immediately picked up his bowl of Zhajiangmian and used his chopsticks to give him half. Wan Yunting repeatedly said, "That's enough, Elder He."
Fan Liren saw the scroll Wan Yunting had placed aside and asked, "Xiao Wan, what are you holding?"
Wan Yunting saw him pointing at the scroll, then put down his bowl and chopsticks, picked it up, and said with a smile, "It's a piece of calligraphy I wrote. A little girl insisted on comparing calligraphy with me earlier, so I wrote this."
"Oh, let me see."
Fan Liren put down his bowl and chopsticks, took the scroll Wan Yunting handed over, and opened it. Seeing the lines of the poem "Cong Jun Xing" written in his wild cursive script, Ouyang Shenhe also couldn't help but get up and stand behind him to look. The moment he saw the piece, his old eyes instantly widened. The shocking scene of soldiers wielding long swords and bravely fighting enemies on an ancient battlefield bizarrely appeared before him…
"Old He…"
It wasn't until Ouyang Shenhe heard Fan Liren call his name that he snapped back to reality. His old eyes looked at Fan Liren and Wan Yunting with astonishment and asked, "What is it?"
"I say, Old He, are you alright?" Fan Liren knew he had been lost in thought.
Ouyang Shenhe immediately understood what was happening. His old eyes widened, he pointed at the calligraphy in Fan Liren's hand, and exclaimed in surprise, "This calligraphy, why does it have such a peculiar aura that draws one in involuntarily? What is going on?"
Fan Liren placed the calligraphy on the coffee table and said with a smile, "This is the artistic conception of calligraphy. Of course, only Xiao Wan can write with such artistic conception. Even I can't write calligraphy that can captivate the soul like this."
Ouyang Shenhe's old face was filled with surprise, and after a long moment, he uttered, "It's too miraculous."
Wan Yunting, who was still eating Zhajiangmian, smiled and said, "Elder He, if you like it, I'll give you this piece."
"Truly?"
Ouyang Shenhe's heart leaped with joy. He had long desired such a miraculous piece of calligraphy but felt hesitant to ask for it from a junior.
"It's my honor that you like my writing," Wan Yunting smiled.
"Good, good, good, then I won't be polite."
Ouyang Shenhe, excited, unceremoniously picked up the calligraphy from the coffee table and couldn't help but stare at it again. Between the lines, he could still see the scenes of soldiers wielding swords and fighting bravely. Ouyang Shenhe frowned and asked, "Young friend, why does your calligraphy feel like watching swordplay?"
Wan Yunting, having finished his Zhajiangmian, wiped his mouth with a napkin and explained, "Elder He, I've integrated sword intent into my calligraphy, which is why you see the feeling of someone practicing sword techniques."
"Sword intent, no wonder."
Ouyang Shenhe sat down, holding the calligraphy in his hands. Now he had the feeling of seeing someone wielding a sword and practicing swordplay on the rice paper. He looked at Wan Yunting in surprise and asked, "Young friend, are you a martial artist?"
"Mm."
Wan Yunting took a sip of tea and nodded.
Ouyang Shenhe's eyes lit up. He put down the calligraphy and asked, "What is your martial arts realm?"
Wan Yunting was slightly taken aback. Ouyang Shenhe's question about martial arts indicated he had some understanding of it. He smiled and replied, "Mid-stage Martial Dao Dan Jin!"
"What, mid-stage Martial Dao Dan Jin? How is that possible?"
Ouyang Shenhe's old eyes widened, and he looked at Wan Yunting in disbelief, saying, "I know an old master from the Wudang Sect. He's over eighty years old, and he's only at the late stage of Martial Dao Dan Jin. How old are you, young friend, to have reached such a high realm?"
Fan Liren, who was listening beside them, also looked at Wan Yunting in surprise and said, "So, Xiao Wan, you are also a martial arts prodigy."
"More than just a prodigy,"
Ouyang Shenhe said with some excitement, "Looking at all the major sects in the martial world, at your age, there are only a handful of people who have reached mid-stage Martial Dao Dan Jin, easily countable on five fingers. I know of two from the Wudang Sect!"
"Senior Sister Ziqing!" Wan Yunting smiled.
"Hmm, you know her?"
Ouyang Shenhe looked at him in surprise. Wan Yunting nodded and smiled, thinking to himself: Not only do I know her, but she's currently living in my home.
"I haven't met her, but I've heard of her when I went to Wudang Sect. They say she inherited the legacy of the Wudang Sect's Sword Dao ancestor and has very high attainments in sword dao," Ouyang Shenhe said.
Wan Yunting nodded and smiled, "Senior Sister Ziqing's sword dao is indeed very formidable. I can't even defeat her."
Ouyang Shenhe pointed to the calligraphy and said, "Young friend, the fact that you can infuse sword intent into your calligraphy indicates that you also have high attainments in sword dao."
Wan Yunting smiled modestly and said, "I'm just scribbling aimlessly."
Ouyang Shenhe looked at him and smiled, "You are quite humble."