Even though Zhang Shaofei was an excellent firewood collector, he could barely support his family, but Li Zhiwen suddenly became rich and became the richest man in Qiu County!
After Li Zhiwen became an apprentice in an antique calligraphy and painting shop, his business progressed by leaps and bounds due to his natural intelligence and extraordinarily hard work.
His absorption of all kinds of knowledge in this industry is almost crazy. One evening, it was about to close, and he and the second shopkeeper were the only two people left in the store. At this time, a man in very ordinary clothes walked in. However, the ancient painting "Portrait of Vimalakirti" he brought was extraordinary. The picture was extremely exquisite and it seemed to be a long time ago. What was even more unexpected was that the visitor actually said this was Gu Kaizhi's work!
Gu Kaizhi (AD 345-406), whose courtesy name is Chang Geng and nicknamed Hu Tou, was born in Wuxi during the Eastern Jin Dynasty. He once served as a regular attendant of Sanqi. He is known as "unparalleled in talent, painting, and infatuation."
Later generations commented on his paintings that "the intention is preserved first, and the painting is full of intention; the imagination is wonderful, and the form is used to describe the spirit." Once, he painted a portrait of Pei Kai. After finishing the painting, he painted on the character's originally smooth cheeks. Three more hairs were added! However, it is these three hairs that make the characters on the picture come alive immediately, making them more realistic than real people.
Very few of Gu Kaizhi's works have survived, and collectors are reluctant to sell them unless their family is ruined.
This painting was not signed, so the second shopkeeper concluded that it was a fake, a copy copied by an ancient master.
However, Li Zhiwen believed that this was really Gu Kaizhi's work, and repeatedly encouraged the second shopkeeper to buy it.
The second shopkeeper nodded in agreement. However, he had doubts: "Our Qiu County is not a cultural center like Chang'an and Yangzhou. How could Gu Kaizhi's masterpieces be left here?"
"Excuse me, what is the surname of the former governor of Qiu County?"
"Oh, that's right!" The second shopkeeper suddenly realized: "Yes, yes, Mr. Gu often boasts that he is a descendant of Gu Kaizhi. Could it be that the person who came just now is Mr. Gu's servant?"
Li Zhiwen nodded: "Although he is disguised, I can still tell that he is the follower of Mr. Gu. And this is one of the reasons why I believe it is an authentic product of Gu Kaizhi."
The year before last, Mr. Gu, who had served as governor of Qiu County for nine years, was promoted to Huguang Inspector, but his family members still stayed in Qiu County.
The eldest son of the Gu family was not a good person to begin with, but now that he is no longer restrained by his father, he can naturally take the reins freely and spend money wantonly.
However, he spent too much and had to secretly sell the antique calligraphy and paintings he collected at home. This is reasonable and not surprising at all.
Since ancient times, the prodigal son of a wealthy family has been the source of food and clothing for antique dealers and an opportunity to get rich.
A few days later, a Jinshan guest from across the ocean took a fancy to the painting and bought it for a high price of one thousand taels of silver.
As a result, Li Zhiwen's reputation spread throughout the Qiu County business community, and he became the new owner of the pawn shop.
At the beginning, the "Portrait of Vimalakirti" that brought Li Zhiwen both fame and fortune, first passed through the hands of Boss Li.
When the man brought the painting to the counter of the pawn shop, Boss Li was not sure. He was afraid that he would be deceived and mistake the fake for a treasure, so he sent him to the calligraphy and painting shop under various excuses.
You know, that's a thousand taels of silver! Boss Li worked hard, exhausted all his agencies, and lost all his conscience. The property he accumulated in his whole life was only two to thirty thousand taels of silver.
Ten days later, the man showed up again and brought the painting to the store. When he gently unfolded the scroll, he couldn't help but be shocked: on the screen, two heart-stoppingly beautiful immortals, a master and a servant, smiled at him, and his soul and soul could not help but be sucked away... …
Oh my God, this...this...this...this painting is actually Gu Kaizhi's "Ode to the Goddess of Luo"!
It is said that Li Shimin, Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty, who loved calligraphy and painting very much, had two big dreams, which was to own Gu Kaizhi's "Fu on the Goddess of the Luo" and Wang Xizhi's "Preface to the Lanting Collection".
Later, he heard that the authentic copy of Lanting was hidden in the hands of Zen monk Biancai of Yongqin Temple in Yuezhou, so he sent his minister Xiao Yi to obtain it through deception.
However, despite all his efforts, he could not find "Luo Shen Fu".
Unexpectedly, the priceless treasure "Luo Shen Fu" would actually be in his hands! If it weren't for the tongue blocking it, Boss Li's heart would jump out of his mouth and jump to this masterpiece.
However, the visitor said, "This treasure painting, which has been passed down from generation to generation, is just for sale, not for sale."
The visitor also said, "If it is really for sale, no one in Qiu County or even Hebei can afford it."
"Just take it. When the time comes, if you don't have the money to redeem it, it will still be mine! Moreover, there is no risk in this." Boss Li's Xiao Jiujiu is smarter than anyone else.
He used five hundred taels of silver and a pawn ticket to exchange the painting into his own hands.
At least, it can be kept in your hands within the current period of two months.
Besides, that playboy spends money like water. Once the period is over, this priceless treasure will truly be his!
The visitor looked at the pawn ticket and said, "This painting is extremely valuable. It can be said to be a priceless treasure. What if it is lost or damaged?"
Boss Li had an idea and said: "Since it is a priceless treasure, how can I compensate it according to the price? So I did not indicate its estimated value."
The man was helpless and said: "Just symbolically write it as a pawn shop to pay for it. Anyway, you know its origin in your heart, and you don't dare to cause trouble! Unless you don't want to live!"
If no one knows about the treasures in the family, it is like walking at night in brocade clothes.
So, the next day, Boss Li quietly called the second shopkeeper of the calligraphy and painting shop to his pawn shop and asked him to appreciate this famous painting.
Sure enough, when the soul-stirring scene slowly unfolded in front of the second shopkeeper, he couldn't help but exclaim: "This is a rare treasure!"
However, when his fingers accidentally touched the mounting material, the corner of his mouth subconsciously twitched a few times, and his eyes no longer stared at the picture, but repeatedly observed the framed Ayako.
Finally, a subtle look passed over his face.
Boss Li's heart skipped a beat: "Is there something wrong with this famous painting?"
He asked again and again, and the second shopkeeper pointed out a small flaw: "Although the mounting material looks like old damask, this damask was produced more than ten years ago. Ten years ago, he used this when mounting calligraphy and paintings. I grow Ayako and am very familiar with it. Although the forger has antiquated it and it is difficult to distinguish from the color, its texture is still the same, so when the second shopkeeper touched it with his hands, he noticed the flaw. Just imagine, three hundred years ago How can the calligraphy and painting be framed by Ayako from ten years ago?"
Boss Li was like a splash of cold water - from head to toe.
I don't know how long it took for his mind to slowly wake up like a frozen snake. Where is the second shopkeeper? Long gone.
Five hundred taels of snowflake silver were wasted in this way, and not even a sound was heard. Boss Li was unwilling to give in and went straight to Master Gu's house.
"What? Our Gu family will take advantage of it? You were instigated by someone, must you be deliberately trying to ruin the reputation of the Gu family! Get out! If my young master finds out, I won't break your legs!" The butler paused. curse roundly.
Mr. Gu's follower even refused to admit that he had ever been to his pawnshop.
Just think: Which thief would confess where he has visited?
Not only did Boss Li fail to get his money back, but he became angry as a coward. Moreover, even the beautiful woman in the fake painting seemed to be smiling mockingly at him...
Laugh, laugh! Make you laugh!
Boss Li rushed over like crazy, cut the beauty's face to pieces with scissors, and then set her on fire, finally letting out a sigh of relief.
Originally, he only lost a few hundred taels of silver, but although his impulse was pleasant, it caused the disaster of ruining his family——
When Li Zhiwen showed up at his pawn shop with the five hundred taels of silver intact, he suddenly realized that he had fallen into a long-planned and carefully designed series.
Everything, including the "Portrait of Vimalakīrti", was part of the whole scam. The purpose was to arouse his greed and then use his greed to plot his entire family fortune.
He was heartbroken, devastated, and miserable. However, Li Zhiwen sprinkled a pinch of salt on his bleeding heart.
Li Zhiwen said: "Boss Li, a few years ago, on the day you forcibly carried away my beloved Lingmei in a sedan chair, I made up my mind that you must repay me double! So not only do I have to take over your business for dozens of I want Lingmei to come back to my pawnshop!"
Boss Li is desperate, like a bereaved dog. He wandered by the river in a daze.
At night, the painted boats cruising in the river and the high-rise boats docked on the shore are lit with candles and colored lanterns, lighting up the night sky and reflecting the red surface of the river.
Boss Li saw a colorful fantasy world in the water. He stretched out his hand and slowly walked into it...
Li Zhiwen got his wish and got Boss Li's Qiu County Pawn Shop. However, Lingmei decisively left the pawn shop backyard. And she soon married Mu Shui.
You know, the reason why Li Zhiwen worked so hard to build Boss Li's family business was mainly to get Lingmei!
Unexpectedly, instead of happily falling into his arms, Lingmei regarded him as a snake and scorpion and hated him like a devil.
What's even worse is that no one in the entire Qiu County business circle has any contact with him, let alone any business transactions.
Even the neighbors around him avoided him all the way like the god of plague. People say that money can make all the difference. He had money, lots and lots of money, but he seemed to be haunted by ghosts.
The one who entangled him was Boss Li's son who had unsaleable products - he had to avenge the murder of his father, the hatred of breaking up the family, and the hatred of taking wealth.
On a dark and stormy night, a raging fire broke out in a pawn shop in Qiu County. The blazing fire turned half of Qiu County red and illuminated the entire night sky.
However, people just watched from a distance and no one went to put out the fire.
The entire pawn shop, along with the house behind where the family lived, was reduced to ashes. Where is Li Zhiwen? Some people said that he had been burned to death in the fire; others said that he was burned beyond recognition, but luckily saved his life. In order to avoid the pursuit of Young Master Li, he had to go far away...
