131 Honored Guest

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A portrait of a courtesan was displayed in front of everyone.

The brush strokes of the entire painting were concise. The thickness of the lines varied greatly. Moreover, they fluctuated and had a unique rhythm.

The entire painting used ink as the only material. The outlines, pauses, and fluctuating thickness of the brush strokes caused rich changes in the details of the courtesan’s expression.

In the courtyard with lake rocks, a beautiful woman held a fan in her hand and looked into the distance with a sad and bleak expression.

When they saw the poem on the left side of the painting, everyone felt dazed.

“Autumn comes and fans should be kept. Why is the beauty so sad?”

“Please look at the world in detail. Everyone is chasing fame. People are truly snobbish!”

“This is actually Tang Bohu’s Autumn Wind Fan Painting! A few odd stones and a little green bamboo as decoration actually displayed the bleak autumn wind courtyard!”

“This kind of depiction style that focuses on the meaning of the writing and pursues similarity without relying on similarity in form is definitely Tang Bohu’s real work!”

“This maidservant is alive. The resentment between her eyebrows and the freshness and beauty of her face makes one feel pity for her!”

A trace of joy flashed across Ye Xuan’s eyes. After carefully looking at the painting, he sighed. “Tang Bohu was extremely talented in his life, but his encounters were bumpy. He used Consort Ban’s fate to complain about the pain of being unable to fulfill his ambitions and being put aside by the autumn wind. Even if a beauty accompanied him and he used alcohol to drown his sorrows, he couldn’t get rid of this melancholy.”

His young voice combined the painting with Tang Bohu’s fortuitous encounter and pointed out the deep meaning contained in it.

Among them, the person who understood Tang Bohu the most was the young Ye Xuan!

The shopkeepers’ expressions were a little ugly. The bald shopkeeper looked at Ye Xuan and felt that this child was very interesting, so he asked, “Let me ask you, do you know what allusion Tang Bohu obtained from Consort Ban?”

Ye Xuan nodded. “Consort Ban was originally the favorite concubine of Emperor Cheng of Han. She was talented and beautiful, but she was harmed by Zhao Feiyan. She wrote the Song of Resentment. By using the metaphor of a fan losing its use in autumn, she metaphorically described the tragic fact that she was abandoned because of her old age. ‘The unwanted fan is stored away and forgotten.’”

Everyone was shocked by Ye Xuan’s knowledge.

It was fine if he knew that Consort Ban used the metaphor of a fan losing its use in autumn, but he could even recite a few lines from the Song of Resentment.

One had to know that this was a poem that described the grievances of a daughter. Which adult would take the initiative to ask a child to memorize it?

This could only mean that Ye Xuan had read a lot of books and had a good memory. Furthermore, he used them appropriately.

This was nothing to an adult whose logical thinking had already taken shape, but to an eight or nine-year-old child, it was rare!

The bald shopkeeper clicked his tongue and glared at Zhao Yuan. “Master Zhao, where did you bring this child from? Not bad!”

Zhao Yuan’s expression turned solemn as he hurriedly corrected him. “No, no, no! Little Friend Ye isn’t inferior to me in terms of appraisal. I was also lucky enough to meet him, so I specially brought him here to meet you guys and admire the high-quality products together.”

When they heard Zhao Yuan’s high evaluation of Ye Xuan, everyone’s expressions were colorful and indescribably flashy.

This was Zhao Yuan. They could observe his appraisal ability with their eyes. Otherwise, those appraisal programs would not have been specially scheduled. They would not have to wait for Zhao Yuan’s schedule either.

How could such a person admire a child so much?

Everyone’s eyes were filled with shock and disbelief.

Ye Xuan did not mind everyone’s scrutinizing gazes at all. Instead, he smiled faintly and said, “Gentlemen, it’s already rare to admire a painting like the Autumn Wind Fan Painting. Don’t waste your time.”

This simple sentence turned everyone’s attention to Tang Bohu’s painting again.

Looking at this huge work of Tang Bohu, the gazes of the shopkeepers had changed from the initial shock to greed.

If they could keep such a rare painting in their bags and evaluate it when he had nothing to do…

It would simply be a happy life, like that of a god!

Just thinking about it made the shopkeepers feel their hearts soar.

However, soon, a hint of helplessness began to appear in their eyes.

Tang Bohu’s paintings had always been sought after by many collectors.

His Pine Cliff Scroll had even been sold for more than 70 million yuan!

Even though most of the premium of that painting could be attributed to dozens of very famous collectors who previously bidded, the value of Tang Bohu’s paintings also changed with the times.

Once the price started to rise, there was no stopping it.

They carefully recalled the prices of Tang Bohu’s paintings during the spring and autumn auctions in the past two years. Looking at this Autumn Wind Fan Painting, the price was definitely not low!

It was not an exaggeration to say that it was worth an astronomical price!

“Ahem, Elder Lin, what price are you prepared to offer for this Autumn Wind Fan Painting?” The shopkeeper in a long robe gritted his teeth and asked.

If the price was below 50 million, he could still consider it.

Lin Dongpeng didn’t want to leave them hanging and simply said, “What I’m going to mention is the starting price. It’s 150 million!”

When the shopkeepers heard this, it was as if a firecracker had been lit. They immediately exploded.

“What! Old Lin, are you crazy?! Did you know that the highest price on the spring auction is only 70 million yuan! Did you simply double the price?!”

“Oh my god! I thought a price of more than 50 million yuan was already the maximum, but it’s only a fraction of your price! I’m not buying it anymore. This is simply raising the market price!”

“Tang Bohu’s paintings are definitely good paintings, but the seller is a bad person!”

Lin Dongpeng looked coldly at the shopkeepers who were throwing a tantrum and said directly, “If you think it’s not suitable, you can leave!”

They could leave?

The managers’ faces turned green. Was he starting to chase them away?

Alright, alright, alright. They would go!

The shopkeepers also lost their temper. They flicked their sleeves angrily and left together.

Zhao Yuan looked at the disappearing figures of the shopkeepers and sighed.

He had not said anything just now. When everyone left, he said, “Elder Lin! Your price is indeed a little high!”

“Think about it. This is 150 million yuan in cash. Even if the four shopkeepers are rich, most of their money is liquid. How can they spare it? If you really want to sell it, I’m afraid that the price will have to be reduced!”

Lin Dongpeng knew that Zhao Yuan was doing this for his own good and was speaking from the bottom of his heart. However, he was also a hot-tempered old man. Once he set his mind on something, he was unwilling to change it.

“This painting is worth this price. Why should I lower the price?! If he really angers me, I’ll send him to an auction house. I don’t believe it!” Lin Dongpeng spoke angrily.

Their family ran an antique business. If they needed to go to the auction house to sell paintings, it would be a slap in the face.

However, Lin Dongpeng thought even more clearly. A slap in the face was nothing!

However, he could not let Tang Bohu’s painting be covered in dust and have its price tarnished!

As Lin Dongpeng spoke, he was about to put away the Autumn Wind Fan Painting. Zhao Yuan could only shake his head and sigh.

He was also very helpless, okay?

With such a high price, he could only join in the fun. He really couldn’t afford it!

In this world, there were very few people who could afford this painting!

However, no one expected a small hand to suddenly stop Lin Dongpeng from putting away the painting. It was Ye Xuan who reached out to stop him.

Seeing Lin Dongpeng looking over with a frown, Ye Xuan looked into his eyes and said, “Why are you putting it away? If they don’t want to buy it, I’ll buy it!”

Ye Xuan’s voice wasn’t loud, but everyone present heard him clearly.

Lin Dongpeng was stunned. His hand that was putting away the painting stopped in midair.

Not only was he stunned, but Lin Zhixi and Zhao Yuan were also stunned.

What did they hear?

Did Ye Xuan say that he would buy it?

This was 150 million!

Even the four rich shopkeepers left with a flick of their sleeves. Did a child who was eight or nine years old actually said that he wanted to buy it?

At that time, Lin Zhixi wanted to retort. She did not believe that this child could fork out so much money!

However, she was worried that she would be too rude. She really liked this child and couldn’t bear to hurt Ye Xuan.

Zhao Yuan came back to his senses and bent down to look at Ye Xuan at eye level. “Little Friend Ye, this painting is sold for 150 million yuan, not 15 yuan. Don’t joke around.”

He was the one who brought Ye Xuan in. If Ye Xuan really angered Lin Dongpeng, he would also be implicated.

Meanwhile, Lin Dongpeng looked at Ye Xuan with disdain. This was just a child’s joke.

Then, he shook his head and smiled bitterly.

No one was willing to offer a fair price to buy the great work of Tang Bohu. How ridiculous!

The most ridiculous thing was that this value could only be realized by a child’s joke!

How sad!

At this moment, Lin Zhixi also walked over. She squatted down and said to Ye Xuan nicely, “Little kid, when you grow up and earn money, you can come and buy it, okay?”

Ye Xuan looked at the faces with different expressions in front of him and blinked.

He knew that these people did not believe in his strength.

However, no matter how he explained, it was redundant. Ye Xuan took out a card and threw it over. He said to them, “There’s money in this card. You can try it.”

When everyone saw the black card Ye Xuan threw out, their expressions simply froze.

The color of this card represented extraordinary strength.

Could it be that what this child said was true?

Everyone was resisting this answer in their hearts. They could not believe that an eight or nine-year-old child could have such strength!

It was too terrifying!

Seeing that they were still in disbelief, Ye Xuan searched his pockets and only found Liu Yanran’s business card.

He handed the business card to Lin Zhixi and said, “I don’t have a business card yet. This is my secretary’s business card. Are you guys willing to try it now?”

Lin Zhixi took the business card. There were a few simple words printed on it. It said, “Director of Huaxia Bank, Liu Yanran.”

Was Liu Yanran actually Ye Xuan’s secretary?

The Director of Huaxia Bank was his secretary. How high was this person’s status?!

Lin Zhixi could not speak. With trembling hands, she stuffed the business card into her grandfather’s hands.

This was the first time Lin Dongpeng had seen his granddaughter so excited. He picked up the business card in confusion and looked at it, unable to look away.

Who could tell him that what he saw was not real?!

What else could he say with such proof?!

“Zhixi, go get the credit card machine.” Lin Dongpeng calmed down and instructed his granddaughter.

Lin Zhixi walked to the back without hesitation. When she returned, she was holding a credit card machine.

She swiped his card skillfully and entered the amount.

Then, she entered the price of 150 million yuan.

Lin Zhixi carefully confirmed it a few times before pressing the confirmation button nervously.

Ye Xuan looked at the notification and replied without waiting for Lin Zhixi to ask, “There’s no password.”

Lin Zhixi nodded in a daze and clicked the “confirm” button.

There was only three to four seconds of waiting, but it felt like several years had passed.

The sound of paper being inserted could be heard. The credit card machine had already begun to print out the receipt.

This familiar sound meant that she had successfully swiped his card!

The three people present looked at one another in shock. They could not even speak.

It was 150 million yuan. Did it succeed just like that?

Oh my god, this was too exciting!

Lin Dongpeng’s old face twitched. He was so excited that he almost had a stroke!

His Tang Bohu painting had really been sold for 150 million!

While he was happy, he noticed that Ye Xuan was actually standing in front of them. Lin Dongpeng’s expression froze and he immediately raised his hand at Ye Xuan and invited him. “Aiya, why is this little friend still standing? Please sit, no, please take a seat, honored guest!”

Zhao Yuan looked at Lin Dongpeng in surprise. Lin Dongpeng’s attitude took a shocking 180-degree turn.

Previously, he had ignored Ye Xuan. Now, Ye Xuan was directly conferred the title of an honored guest!