To the north of Evenyuan Street is Qinyuan Street.

Most of the shops on Evenyuan Street are shops dealing in literati supplies such as pen, ink, paper and inkstone, and some are shops that make calligraphy and painting mounting, while Qinyuan Street to the north is mostly engaged in antique calligraphy and painting.

Liu Xu and the three of them came to Qinyuan Street and visited a few shops, but they didn't find any suitable connoisseurs of calligraphy and painting. Of course, Liu Xu can't distinguish the level and authenticity of these calligraphy and paintings, he can only roughly see whether the painting looks good or not, and whether the characters are well written.

When he walked to the sixth storefront, Wang Zongyuan stopped in front of a painting and admired it carefully.

Liu Xu and Wang Zeng saw Wang Zongyuan stop in front of the painting, and they also stepped forward to watch. I saw that Wang Zongyuan hung an ink landscape painting in front of him, Liu Xu didn't know how to taste the painting, but he saw that this painting was also good, the painter's pen power was vertical and horizontal, the pen was dense, the mountain peaks in the painting were towering, the river was turbulent, and it was very spectacular.

However, Wang Zongyuan looked at it for a while and shook his head.

An old shopkeeper in the store saw Wang Zongyuan and the three of them tasting paintings there at first, but he didn't come to disturb. After seeing the painting, Wang Zongyuan shook his head as if he saw the doorway and didn't like this work. From under the cabinet, he took out a piece of paper and said: "The distinguished guest must not like it, Gu Sanqi that landscape painting, I don't know if the guest intends to Gu Sanqi calligraphy works?" Distinguished guests, please take a look. As he spoke, he handed the piece of paper to Wang Zongyuan to look at.

Wang Zongyuan took it, just watched it for a moment, and then smiled. handed it to Liu Xu and Wang Zeng, and said, "You two will see what's wrong, and take the test for you." ”

Liu Xu looked at it, and the words on the paper were in italics, and most of them could be recognized. Liu Xu only felt that his pen was very powerful, and his writing was very extraordinary. As for what's wrong, I don't know all the words, so how do I know it's wrong.

However, Wang Zeng seemed to see something, and muttered: "Uncle, this work seems to be written in the late Jin Dynasty when Liu Yu's Northern Expedition was the capital of our Qingzhou, the Southern Yan State Murong Clan, is this the "Sacrificial Tooth (Flag) Text" written by Gu Sanqi when he followed Liu Yu's Northern Expedition to Southern Yan?" This article actually ended up in our Qingzhou? ”

Wang Zongyuan said with a smile: "Since it is a sacrificial tooth inscription, it is naturally burned to the heavens and the earth, so is there a real work?" Then he pointed to the ink landscape painting and said to the two: "This painting uses a dense brush, tight and dense, and intends to imitate Gu Sanqi's dense body painting method, but the brush is sluggish, too much imitation, and lacks charm." And you look at this inscription, it is the first year of Yixi, at this time Gu Sanqi to the twilight of life, its painting method to achieve the greatest, less youthful publicity, return to the simple, brushwork such as spring silkworm silk, like clumsy victory, Fu with a strong color, slightly embellished, and the spirit is fluttering. This painting imitates his early paintings, but the inscription is a later work, which is undoubtedly a fake. ”

Wang Zongyuan said to the old shopkeeper: "Uncle, don't fool us with some fakes, if there is a genuine masterpiece, take it out, let us have a look, if it is like, we will buy it." If we don't have a good work, we'll go somewhere else. ”

The old shopkeeper was listening to Wang Zongyuan's tasting, and when he saw that the head was Tao, he knew that he was an expert, and the fakes couldn't look down on them, so he had to take out his own town store treasure. The old man took out a scroll from a cabinet next to him, came over and handed it to Wang Zongyuan: "Distinguished customers are also people who know goods, the so-called connoisseurs of goods selling, this is the treasure of the store in the town, the nobles appreciate it, if you like it, you will sell it to your customers." ”

Wang Zongyuan took the scroll and slowly unfolded it on the long case next to him. Liu Xu saw on the side that he painted a painting of landscape figures in a pavilion. This time, Liu Xu first took a look at the inscription, and just now he learned some knowledge, and he knows that he must read the inscription when looking at paintings, and he is now learning and selling. However, Liu Xu didn't know any of the words on the inscription that made Liu Xu depressed, and he didn't know if it was a seal character or something.

Wang Zongyuan carefully tasted the painting in front of it, slowly smiled, and said to Wang Zeng and Liu Xu: "You two take a good look and tell me what you think." ”

Liu Xu didn't know anything, so he had nothing to say. Wang Zeng looked at it for a while and said: "This painting looks like the true handiwork of Yan Youxiang." ”

Wang Zongyuan said: "Oh, let's talk about it. ”

"My nephew has never seen Yan Youxiang's paintings, but he has read Yan Youxiang's biography and some wild history essays. Yan Youxiang inherited his family education at a young age, and later studied under Zhang Sengqiu, whose painting style was deeply influenced by Zhang Sengqiu, and followed Zhang Sengxiang's sparse style. And Zhang Sengqiu's sparse painting style, Mrs. Wu Ziwei's "Pen Array Diagram", and Yan Youxiang and Zhang Sengqiu's master and apprentice both like to use Zhong Wang style to inscribe poems. The nephew is not very good at appreciating the paintings, but the calligraphy nephew can see the inscription poem of this tower looking at the river, which is deeply rooted in the essence of Zhong Wang's style, and the nephew is based on this inference that this painting is the true work of Yan Youxiang. Of course, I peep at the leopard in the tube, and it is still biased to draw conclusions from only one point, I don't know if it is correct, and I hope that my uncle will give me advice. ”

Wang Zeng's words, Liu Xu suddenly collapsed, just now there was a Gu San riding Liu Xu in front of him, but he didn't know, and now there is another Yan Youxiang. Fortunately, in the end, Mrs. Wei, Zhong Wangti, and Liu Xu still knew. Later generations of regular script were passed down from Zhong Wangti, and Mrs. Wei's master was Zhong Xuan, and her apprentice was Wang Xizhi.

Wang Zongyuan glanced at Wang Zeng appreciatively, and said to the two: "Although you only know a little, you are also very right, in my opinion, this painting should be the real work of Yan Youxiang." You see this painting with a brush, the brushwork is round, the rhyme is vivid, talk about a few strokes to outline the charm of the characters, and the building, the river is also very bright, the essence of the sparse body painting. In addition, the inscription poem you mentioned has won the charm of Zhong Wangti, so I conclude that this painting should be genuine. ”

After Liu Xu heard this, he immediately admired Wang Zeng's uncle and nephew, like a surging river. Tasting a painting, you can tell countless allusions, look at the year name, people will roughly know when it is, Liu Xu is ashamed of himself. Liu Xu originally wanted to plagiarize a few poems in the Song Dynasty and fill a great talent, but when he saw this scene, he could only sigh with admiration. If you pretend to be a talent, people will test yourself with a random question, and you will have to show your stuff.

The old shopkeeper who was listening to Wang Zongyuan's tasting also nodded frequently.

Wang Zongyuan said to the old shopkeeper: "This painting is good, we want it, let's make a price." ”

The old shopkeeper said: "Listen to the taste of the distinguished guests, but also the person who knows the painting, this is the treasure of the small shop town, the price is three hundred, not two prices." If you have any intentions, you can take it. ”

"Three hundred?!" Liu Xu couldn't help but shout, he has been busy working lately, and he has only earned four or five hundred yuan, and this painting has to be three hundred, what kind of painting, so expensive. "Who painted this painting, who is Yan Youxiang?"

Wang Zongyuan's uncle and nephew, plus the old shopkeeper, looked at Liu Xu, who was dressed as a scholar, with idiotic eyes, and said silently in their hearts: We have been talking about feelings for a long time, and even Yan Youxiang doesn't know who this thing is. Just now, I said that the old shopkeeper of the connoisseur felt very sad that the painting was sold to him.

Wang Zongyuan sighed and didn't speak.

Wang Zeng said: "Brother Shi is joking, Yan Youxiang is the former Tang Dynasty master Yan Liben Yan Youxiang." ”

Liu Xu said silently in his heart, who is joking with you, I really don't know that Yan Youxiang is Yan Liben, don't you just say the name? Yan Liben I don't know yet, there are his "Bu Yuan Diagrams" in middle school textbooks, and the twenty-four heroes on Lingyan Pavilion are not painted by him, and I, Liu Xu, have also read a lot of history books in my later life.

Liu Xu said in his heart: Yan Liben's paintings are naturally good, and they are all priceless treasures in later generations, and three hundred yuan is not a loss, but Liu Xu still asked very mercifully: "Can it be cheaper?" ”

The old shopkeeper glanced at him, silently rolled up the scroll, and went to open the cabinet, ready to put it in.

Liu Xu couldn't help but be depressed, this old man has a big temper, why don't you cut the price, why is he still so angry. In fact, Liu Xu really doesn't know the mentality of the literati, if you meet an expert in this painting, they may sell it to you cheaper, but you are a mallet, and people will not sell it to you if you add money, so you will not be ruined. In other words, this old shopkeeper used to be a literati.

Wang Zongyuan felt persuaded the old shopkeeper and said: "Don't be angry, three hundred is three hundred, this kid is a moneymaker, this painting is for others, don't be like him." Wang Zongyuan persuaded him, and the old man was angry.

Wang Zongyuan drank tea with the old man in the shop and arranged for Liu Xu to go home to get the money.

At this time, paper money did not appear in the Great Song Dynasty, and the world's earliest paper money "Jiaozi" did not appear until 30 years from this time to Liu Xu, the first year of Renzong Tiansheng, so Liu Xu needed to go home to make his copper coins hidden in the cellar.

Of course, it is more convenient to exchange for silver storage, but silver is not a universal currency in circulation at this time in the Great Song Dynasty, and the price is still basically priced in copper coins.

Of course, the "flying money" invented in the Tang Dynasty was more progressive and convenient in the Song Dynasty. Some large store numbers have semicolons in various places, and people can deposit copper coins locally, receive the "flying money" voucher given by the store number, and receive copper coins with the "flying money" voucher in other places, of course, this kind of "flying money" is to pay a fee. Since Liu Xu didn't go to other places and was reluctant to pay the fees, he could only put the money in his cellar like a miser.

When Liu Xu and Wang Zeng loaded all the three hundred yuan into the rented donkey cart, Liu Xu was already tired and sweating, panting, and his waist couldn't straighten up. In the past, Liu Xu moved forty times a day into the cellar, but he didn't feel tired. Who would have thought that he would spend so much in one go today, knowing that it would be much easier to exchange words for silver. At this time, the copper coin weighed about seven or eight catties, and three hundred pounds weighed more than two thousand catties.

However, Liu Xu was surprised to find that Wang Zeng, who had moved more than 2,000 catties of copper coins with him, did not blush and panted.

Liu Xu couldn't help but be a little depressed, he was also a scholar, why was his body so bad, it seemed that his exercise should also be grasped. In fact, Liu Xu's thinking stayed on the misunderstanding of scholars in later generations, and he always thought that scholars were weak and powerless. In fact, the scholars at this time were studying in the academy, and they didn't want to be like the Ming and Qing dynasties in later generations, they only knew how to read to death, and they could only do eight-strand essays. At this time, the atmosphere in the academy was far more active than that in the Ming and Qing dynasties, and the students could also express their opinions, and the academy not only learned literature, but etiquette, music, archery, royalty, calligraphy, and mathematics. Wang had learned archery and royalty in the academy, and his body did not fall. Liu Xu's own body, it is estimated that the nerd Liu Xu used to stay at home all day long and study, leaving a weak foundation.

Liu Xu and Wang Zeng drove a donkey cart to Qinyuan Street and bought the picture of Yan Liben's tower looking at the river. When he left the store, Liu Xu couldn't help but ask the old man: "Yan Youxiang is Yan Liben, who is Gu Sanqi?" ”

The old man was so angry that he said loudly that he would return the money to Liu Xu and not sell his paintings.

Liu Xu took the scroll and left in a hurry.

Of course, Liu Xu finally learned from Wang Zeng's mouth: Gu Sanqi is the great painter Gu Kaizhi.