Chapter 24: [24] Isn’t this too difficult for someone? _1

Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

“Mr. Zhang, do you think I passed this challenge?”

After Tang Feng repeated the information given by the system, he looked at Mr. Zhang with a smile.

“Ahem… um…”

Mr. Zhang hurriedly composed his astonished expression and nodded to Qin Yanan, “Mr. Tang is indeed highly accomplished in the field of ancient coins, far surpassing me.”

Qin Yanan breathed a sigh of relief, hastily laughing and waving her hand, “Mr. Zhang, you’re being too modest, I know your capability… ”

She had originally wanted to save Mr. Zhang’s face.

But Mr. Zhang shook his head firmly, “You don’t have to flatter me, Mr. Tang is indeed much stronger than me in the realm of ancient coins.”

“Many of the things he just talked about, I haven’t even heard of. I’ve truly learned something.”

Tang Feng suddenly felt quite a bit of respect for Mr. Zhang.

Appraisers of his age usually cared a lot about face.

There were not many who would admit to being less skilled than someone else.

Especially when the other person was a youngster in their early twenties.

Yet, Mr. Zhang could take the initiative to admit his inferiority.

Just that magnanimity alone was worthy of admiration.

Mr. Zhang turned to look at him, nodding appreciatively, “Mrs. Qin was right about you; with your skill, you are indeed qualified to take charge of Ya Garden.”

“However, we had agreed beforehand that you must answer two questions correctly, so I hope this examination can continue,” Mr. Zhang said.

Tang Feng naturally had no objections, “Please pose the next question, Mr. Zhang.”

Mr. Zhang pondered for a moment, seemingly considering what difficult question to ask next?

After a moment of silence, he suddenly stood up and went into the back room. After a while, he came out holding a scroll.

“I wonder if Mr. Tang is knowledgeable about painting and calligraphy?” He did not immediately open the scroll but asked first.

“I have some research on the subject,” Tang Feng replied nonchalantly.

“That’s good. Then have a look at this calligraphy and determine its authenticity,” Mr. Zhang said while slowly unrolling the scroll.

The scroll was a four-foot hanging scroll, inscribed with Su Dongpo’s “Tune: Set the Tides Still – Don’t Listen to the Sound of Leaves Being Smashed in the Forest.”

Unfortunately, the scroll was not well preserved; the signature part was severely damaged and the name of the author was illegible.

However, the handwriting seemed to be from Su Dongpo himself.

“What excellent calligraphy!”

Although Tang Feng’s own handwriting was akin to a dog’s scrawl, that did not prevent him from appreciating others’ work.

Even without using the scanning system, he could tell the calligraphy was of high quality.

When Qin Yanan saw the calligraphy, she was surprised and looked at Mr. Zhang, “Why did you bring this piece out? Isn’t this making things too difficult for him?”

But Mr. Zhang just laughed it off indifferently. “I’ve made an impromptu change to the question. I thought the previous questions were too easy for Mr. Tang, so I decided to up the challenge.”

Qin Yanan immediately shook her head with a wry smile, “This isn’t just a little more challenging, this is hellish difficulty.”

Mr. Zhang glanced at Tang Feng with a smile, “It’s okay, we agreed before that answering two out of three questions correctly would suffice to pass, so even if this question is answered incorrectly, it’s not a big deal.”

Tang Feng was suddenly speechless.

Not to mention whether the question was difficult or not, the way these two went back and forth could scare the faint-hearted into having a heart attack.

It’s just a piece of calligraphy by Su Dongpo, right?

Although it was indeed worth a fortune, was such an exaggeration really necessary?

Thinking this, he immediately activated the scanning system.

When he saw the results provided by the system, he immediately understood the significance behind their earlier conversation.

It seemed… there really was something interesting.

Mr. Zhang had a faint smile on his face, “Let’s follow the previous rule, give you half an hour to determine the authenticity of this calligraphy.”

After scrutinizing the calligraphy for a moment, Tang Feng looked away with a grin, “I think the answer is quite obvious, so there’s no need to waste that time.”

“Oh? Do you already have an answer in mind?” Mr. Zhang’s face suddenly showed a peculiar expression.

“Of course, I think anyone with a bit of knowledge in calligraphy would see it at first glance,” Tang Feng said, smiling confidently.

At this moment, Qin Yanan suddenly reminded, “Tang, I advise you to take another careful look. There’s quite a lot of knowledge in this piece of calligraphy; one could easily be mistaken.”

Facing her well-intentioned advice, Tang Feng just pursed his lips and smiled, “Sister, I trust my own judgment, I have an answer already.”

Hearing him say this, Qin Yanan could only helplessly spread her hands.

But Mr. Zhang shook his head in disappointment, “Since you already have an answer in your mind, go ahead and share it.”

Tang Feng pointed at the calligraphy, “The handwriting is quite obvious; at first glance, it’s the work of Mr. Dongpo, and it even showcases his early style.”

At this, Mr. Zhang’s face showed a vaguely meaningful smile as he took a sip from his tea cup, “It’s rare for you to discern Su Dongpo’s early handwriting.”

Though he was complimenting, Tang Feng could tell here was a hint of sarcasm behind his praise.

But he pretended not to notice and continued, “Of course, Mr. Dongpo must be considered one of the top calligraphers of the Song Dynasty. I recognize his handwriting, of course.”

Mr. Zhang glanced at him, “So you think this piece is a genuine work of Su Dongpo?”

But Tang Feng suddenly waved his hand, “I didn’t say that. I only said the style is that of Mr. Dongpo; I didn’t say the characters were written by Mr. Dongpo himself.”

Mr. Zhang and Qin Yanan, who had already looked disappointed, were suddenly taken aback.

“Why do you say it wasn’t written by Mr. Dongpo?” Mr. Zhang asked eagerly.

Once again holding back, Tang Feng passed his tea cup to Qin Yanan, “Sister, the tea’s gone cold, can you get me some hot tea?”

Qin Yanan really felt like hitting someone now.

Why did this guy always pull stunts at crucial moments? Couldn’t he just finish his sentence before doing anything else?

But in the end, she still managed to suppress her anger and went to refill his tea.

Tang Feng took the tea bowl from her hands, sniffed it with his nose, and remarked, “Delicious.”

It was unclear whether he was commenting on the tea or her.

Qin Yanan glared at him, “Hurry up and drink. Once you’re done, get on with it.”