Chapter 57: Floating like a startled swan, winding like a swimming dragon

  "Sorry, sorry, I've been looking for a while."

  It wasn't until Kong Fang woke up from his emotions that it had been a while.

  "It's okay, we've been here all day and there's nothing else to do."

  Everyone around was a fan of Zhou Yifan. Although they didn't know the old man, they saw that he was extraordinary in his behavior and speech, and should be a very knowledgeable person. In their hearts, they were very polite to Kong Fang.

  "By the way, is this book still for sale here?"

  "This one might be gone now. The Hai Da Bookstore just moved over a thousand copies earlier, and they were sold out quickly. It's possible that there will be more available this afternoon."

  "Oh."

  Kong Fang closed the book and returned it to his friend, "Thank you for the book, little friend."

  After finishing speaking, he was about to leave, but suddenly turned his head and said another sentence, "By the way, take good care of this book, especially this signature."

  "Signature?"

  Several friends were shocked in their hearts and subconsciously thought of something. But Kong Fang didn't say much, took a glance at the front, and walked over.

  The Book and Sword Enmity Record Signing Ceremony.

  Originally, Kong Fang wasn't particularly interested in the author of "The Book and Sword Grudge Record", Zhou Yifan. However, after seeing Zhou's signature and reading the contents, he became interested. He wondered what kind of person could write such an innovative book and wanted to meet him.

  Just walking forward, suddenly, Kong Fang saw a couplet.

  The couplet reads: "With determination, one will succeed; breaking the cauldrons and sinking the boats, the 102 Qin passes will eventually belong to Chu."

  A hero will always be rewarded by heaven, lying on thorns and tasting gall, the three thousand elite troops of Yue can swallow Wu.

  Good connection.

  This poem is written with great momentum and inspires people's will at all times.

  It was just that horizontal banner with red flowers and a gathering of heroes, but Kong Fang didn't understand its meaning for the time being.

  But anyway, this couplet is well-written, I don't know which master created it.

  If this couplet is an original work, it can be passed down for thousands of years, just like Tang poetry and Song lyrics.

  This is certainly no bragging, as a professor of Chinese department, Kong Fang has his own unique professional insights.

  This is just a union, the style of the atmosphere, which makes Kong Fang very interested.

  But apart from Lian, this word also shocked Kong Fangyi.

  "What's this font?"

  At a glance from afar, I already feel that this character has its own style, with a grandeur of its own. Compared to the three characters signed in the book earlier, it is even more extraordinary and ethereal, with an inexplicable charm. Moreover, at first glance, this character seems like regular script, but upon closer inspection, it also resembles running script, and from another angle, it looks like cursive script, truly embodying the essence of diverse styles.

  This font has been unseen and unheard of for decades since Kong Fang's time.

  Originally, I thought he had a universal style, but now it seems that this character is not at all universal, it's actually unique. However, just as I was about to take a closer look, I saw the girl about to put away this couplet. My heart skipped a beat, and before I knew it, I blurted out, "Little girl, wait!"

  Everyone heard the voice and turned their heads back.

  "Sorry, I just saw this calligraphy work and got too absorbed in it."

  Kong Fang expressed his apologies to everyone, but Lu Feiqing seemed to feel that he had seen this old man somewhere before. However, for the time being, he couldn't recall where. Just then, Kong Fang walked up to Lu Feiqing and said, "May I borrow this calligraphy piece to take a closer look?"

  "Of course."

  Although he didn't know who this old man was, judging from his attire and demeanor, he seemed to be a gentleman of some standing, so Lu Feiqing did not refuse.

  "Thank you."

  Kong Fang was overjoyed and took out a magnifying glass from his pocket, examining each character carefully one by one.

  This performance has sparked interest among many onlookers.

  Could it be that the work written by Zhou Yifan just now is truly a rare calligraphic masterpiece?

  If so, then Hong Hua's group of heroes would have gone mad.

  After more than ten minutes, Kong Fang finally finished reading it all, but he didn't stop, instead, he recited a line of poetry.

  Light as a swallow, elegant as a dragon flying.

  Glory in autumn chrysanthemum, magnificent in spring pine.

  Like a light cloud covering the moon, fluttering like a gentle breeze sweeping away snow.

  This is a phrase from "Ode to the Goddess of Luo", describing the goddess's stunning beauty.

  Unexpectedly, this old gentleman actually used the famous Ode to the Goddess of Luo to evaluate this calligraphy work.

  "Good connection, it's really good connection."

  Kong Fang let out a deep sigh.

  My heart is racing with excitement. You see, Kong Fang has been teaching for decades and researching academics, also a master in the calligraphy world. He has an unrelenting pursuit of perfection in his calligraphy works. However, over the past few hundred years, the calligraphy world has always been imitating the styles of their predecessors, never having its own unique style. Of course, even imitation is not easy to come by. I didn't expect that in the midst of a bustling city, I would be able to see a truly divine piece of calligraphy.

  "Linked well, words even better. This couplet is out, can be considered the best in the world..."

  Kong Fang originally meant to say that he was the best calligrapher in the world.

  For him, this work can absolutely live up to the title. But he stopped halfway through saying it. He knew that if he said this sentence, the impact would be enormous.

  "The Number One Under Heaven..."

  What's the matter?

  Everyone is searching for it, could it be the best in the world?

  This is also too much, right?

  However, Kong Fang did not want to explain and instead turned to Lu Feiqing and said, "This young lady, I don't know if she would be willing to part with it, but I'd like to ask her to give me this couplet. I can exchange something for it."

  Then, Kong Fang took a wooden finger from his own thumb.

  This piece of board refers to others who don't know the inside story, but Kong Fang is anxious.

  As for the history, this wooden ruler can be dated back to the Spring and Autumn period or the Warring States period. It's absolutely an antique. Kong Fang also obtained this wooden ruler by chance. He has been wearing it for decades and really likes it. To be honest, he was reluctant to exchange this ruler for a couplet. However, after some hesitation, Kong Fang finally made up his mind.

  This calligraphy work can be said to have opened up a new path for the calligraphy world in the past few hundred years, its significance is enormous and not trivial at all. Although one's own brush tip is precious, but if we talk about its impact on the calligraphy world or the art world, it is one ten-thousandth of what this work has achieved.

  "This is..."

  Everyone looked at the board in Kong Fang's hand, although they didn't know what kind of antique it was, but seeing its emerald green transparency. Those who have studied jade directly said that this is a top-quality green jade, worth a lot of money. Even some friends who are not aware of the truth think that such a board is likely to be a rare antique. Plus the old man's temperament, which adds to the weight of this board.

  Exchanging an antique for a newly written calligraphy work, no matter how you look at it, seems like the old man is being taken advantage of.

  Unfortunately, Lu Feiqing refused outright, "Sorry, sir. This couplet does not belong to me personally, it belongs to all members of our Zhou Yifan fan club. I am not authorized to make this decision. Moreover, this couplet was a gift from Zhou Yifan himself, and we will not give it away to anyone else. We apologize sincerely."

  *sigh*...

  Kong Fang sighed and said, "This is because the old man was a bit too anxious."

  "Ah, sir, I wonder what you think of this piece?"

  The conversation on this side had already startled many people. Li Qiang, from the Xinsheng Bookstore next door, probably envious of the attention here, suddenly walked over, holding Ming Lei's work from earlier and wanting Kong Fang to comment on it.

  "What's this picture?"

  Kong Fang took a look at the couplet brought by Li Qiang and felt a little strange in his heart.

  "Yes, it's this one. I feel that the characters in this piece are written neatly and powerfully, looking beautiful and elegant, should be a good work."

  Li Qiang's self-evaluation is feeling good.

  But after saying this sentence, Kong Fang burst out laughing and said, "Young man, are you joking with old me?"

  "Come on, old man, how can you joke about this? Don't you think it's a bit serious?"

  Just as he finished speaking, Kong Fang coldly snorted, "Not joking around, why bring a mediocre piece of work for me to critique?"

  When they heard this, all the onlookers at the scene burst out laughing.

  Some even laughed so hard they fell over, crying out in pain from their stomachs.

  This was a dramatic scene. Li Qiang listened and still felt unconvinced in his heart, but his face changed color. "Hmph, an unrefined work. I don't know what qualifications this old gentleman has to say it's unrefined?"

  However, Kong Fang did not answer this sentence. Someone in the audience was already furious, "What kind of thing is it? Even Professor Kong Fang from Shuimu University doesn't qualify, then who do you think qualifies?"

  "Ah, Confucius?"

  At the mention of Kong Fang's two words, it was not only Li Qiang who was surprised, but also some other onlookers, whose mouths were agape with astonishment.

  "Good heavens, it's Professor Kong, Professor Kong of the Chinese Department at Mizuki University."

  As a cultural figure of the Tai Shan Bei Dou level, Kong Fang is very low-key, but his academic foundation is admired by everyone. Many major media outlets have reported on Kong Fang's contributions to the academic community, such as his key statements on the integration of Chinese culture, and his contributions to the promotion of Chinese culture... etc., each of which can be talked about with relish. Not to mention the many honors he has received.

  Originally, at Professor Kong's current age, he should have retired. However, as a national treasure, Shuimu University still invited him to come. Unexpectedly, this legendary academic giant appeared here.

  "Professor Kong is good."

  When someone pointed out Kong Fang's true identity, everyone turned to ask him. Of course, at this time, Li Qiang saw that things were not going well and quickly slipped away. Along with that, the signing ceremony on the other side also ended in a very short period of time. However, when leaving, Li Qiang glared at Li Zhi Cheng and said, "Li boss, you win today. But in the future, I'll see how many sets of your book 'The Record of Sword Enmity' can be sold. 500,000 sets... Haha... This is probably the highest record for Sanlian Publishing House."

  Li Zhi Cheng didn't have any thoughts about Li Qiang's words, in his opinion, what did this guy know. It was just that today at the signing event, they had already sold over a thousand copies. Not to mention adding on the pre-orders and other cities' records that hadn't been fed back yet. At this rate, selling 50,000 sets within a month was more than normal.

  "What's going on over there?"

  Hearing the noise downstairs, Zhou Fan signed his name while asking the person next to him.

  "It's like this, Professor Kong Fang of Mokusei University happened to pass by here."

  "Ah, Confucius."

  As soon as he heard it was Kong Fang, Zhou Fan immediately stood up.

  When he was reborn and came here, he had a general understanding of the culture of this world. In this general understanding, an old man named "Kong Fang" made Zhou Fan extremely admire him. At that time, Zhou Fan thought that if he wanted to study, he should also look up to Mr. Kong Fang. Now that this idol-like figure has appeared, how can he still be calm?

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