429 The Auctioneer Speaks (1/2)
Chapter 429: The Auctioneer Speaks
Translator: TransnEditor: Transn
Fragrance wafted from the Old Brush Pen Shop's kitchen. Ning Que stood behind Sangsang and could not help asking, ”Did anyone suspect that I was the one who released them?”
Sangsang did not turn around. She said, ”I heard that everyone thought that I secretly sold them.”
”I'm sorry you had to bear the burden of being called a thief.”
Ning Que said shamefacedly.
Sangsang glanced at the fire in the stove and kicked the door shut while ladling out the tofu. She said, ”Young master, its no problem as long as they sell well.”
Ning Que took the heavy bowl from her and said, ”I hope so.”
There was a news spreading that there were seven calligraphy sections from the Old Brush Pen Shop that were about to go on sale in calligraphy and antique shops in Chang'an lately. It was rumored that these sections were stolen by a favored money-grubbing handmaiden.
Of course, it was far from the truth. Six of the seven calligraphy sections were written by Ning Que on one of the nights. He was also the one who wanted to sell them. For them to take the longer route, involve Dewdrop into the situation and had no choice but to ruin Sangsang's reputation, it was for three main reasons.
Firstly, Ning Que did not want anyone to know that he needed a large amount of money. That's because he did not want anyone to know what he was about to do with the money. Secondly, he was now a world-class calligrapher and regardless from whichever perspective one sees it, selling own works was an embarrassing matter.
And the most important reason of all, was that if he openly sold his calligraphy sections, His Majesty would definitely take them away shamelessly or only pay the official price for them.
The calligraphy sections that His Majesty had borrowed from the Old Brush Pen Shop had never been returned. As for the official price... it was not sufficient for Ning Que's current needs. That was why he had thought of such a method.
Sangsang cut off the ends of some salted vegetables and placed them on the dish with chopsticks. She asked, ”Do you want to put some sesame oil on it?”
Ning Que shook his head and said, ”I'm so stressed up by this matter till I am getting heaty. I'd better eat lighter.”
Sangsang picked up some sesame seeds with her fingertips and scattered them in the beancurd. She asked, ”I've done the accounts with Mr. Qi yesterday. We still need a lot of money. Will the seven sections be too little?”
”No matter how precious an object is, the value of it will depreciate if there are too many of them. It's like the rouge of Chenjinji Cosmetics Store. If they sell it everywhere on the streets, it wouldn't be so expensive anymore.”
Ning Que said, ”I was worried that the seven calligraphy sections would cause the market value of my works to crash. But it seems that Stone House is indeed capable.”
angsang held up the bowl of beancurd with shiny eyes. She said, ”I wonder how much they would sell for.”
Ning Que said, ”The first six could probably sell for between eight to 10 thousand? The crux of the matter is the last Chicken Soup Calligraphy. I do not know for sure how much it could sell for.”
Sangsang asked, ”Is that the original Chicken Soup Calligraphy?”
Ning Que nodded and looked at the pestle shaped array eye that was left on an inconspicuous corner on the shelf. He said, ”That Chicken Soup Calligraphy was wrapping the pestle that Master had instructed you to hand it to me.”
Then, he said with heavy emotions, ”Master is an old cheat. I am so touched.”
His words were both mocking and a lament. It was also because of the whirl of emotions he felt from the conversation he had with General Xu Shi a few days earlier. Xu Shi insisted that Master Yan Se was righteous and of the light. It was proven today, that the deceased master was a mischievous man. Ning Que couldn't help but feel relieved.
Sangsang said worriedly, ”I am worried that Grand Secretary Wang would be angry.”
Ning Que said mockingly, ”He wanted to buy the Chicken Soup Calligraphy for four thousand taels of silver. Who else would master cheat other than someone so muddle-headed like Wang?”
Sangsang said, ”A cheater is still a cheater.”
Ning Que thought about it for a moment before he asked, ”What news have you heard?”
Sangsang said,”Grand Secretary Wang was originally from the Qing family of Chuan County. Lately, they have been planning on rebuilding their ancestral shrine and rewriting their ancestral records. The scholar'a mansion has taken to lead in doing that and have been preparing for several days.”
After eating the vegetable and beancurd porridge, Ning Que rubbed his tummy and got onto the horse carriage, which brought him to the Grand Secretary Mansion.
This was not the Mansion of Imperial Library Grand Secretary Zeng Jing, but the mansion of Grand Secretary, senior statesman Wang Shichen. Grand Secretary Wang Shichen was both highly experienced and powerful, unlike Grand Secretary Zeng Jing. Comparatively, his temper was also worse than Zeng Jing.
Grand Secretary Wang looked at Ning Que in the quiet study. Anger filled his slightly muddied eyes. He did not care that Ning Que was a student on the Second floor of the Academy and yelled at him shrilly. ”You imprinted your seal on the Chicken Soup Calligraphy in front of everyone in my house. Why is there another Chicken Soup Calligraphy out there now? I do not care if your handmaiden had stolen it. I just want to know why there is another Chicken Soup Calligraphy!”
Ning Que felt slightly regretful that he had come here today. After a long silence, he smiled bitterly. ”I did not know about this until I received Master's remains. I was drunk when I wrote the memo in the House of Red Sleeves, so I had not recognized that was a duplicate at your mansion. I did not expect that the old man had an interest in that.”
”Interest? What kind of interest is that!”
Wang Shichen's white hair crackled in the air as he descended beyond anger. He waved his trembling hand around and bellowed in anger. ”He had taken the Chicken Soup Calligraphy from his sleeves when I went to the gambling den in Southern Gate Temple. What kind of interest is this? He had obviously planned to cheat me of my money!”
Ning Que smiled and corrected him, ”My master had never thought that you would be the one to get cheated.”
After which, he said seriously, ”But that Chicken Soup Calligraphy was a duplicate of my master's and is naturally precious. Furthermore, he has already passed on, so please do not blame him.”
Grand Secretary Wang laughed coldly and did not reply.
Ning Que suddenly asked, ”I heard that your family is currently rebuilding your ancestral home.”
Grand Secretary Wang looked at him oddly and nodded.
”With your status, I am sure that the Emperor would be the one to come up with the words on the horizontal inscribed board. However, do you need someone to write on the couplet boards in the ancestral hall and for the genealogy records?”
Ning Que asked.
The Grand Secretary Wang paused before comprehending Ning Que's intentions. He was truly happy. The Chicken Soup Calligraphy might be precious, but to a scholar's family, their ancestral halls and genealogy books were things that would be handed down to their descendants. It'd be fantastic if Ning Que would personally write on these.