Chapter 33

Following Lufang into the luxuriously decorated lounge, Luli found that there were only two people in the room: Liudeyuan and an elderly man.

He suppressed his doubts and stepped forward to ask, "Grandpa Liu, is there something you need from me?"

"Xiao Li, come and sit down," Liudeyuan said with a full smile, kindly. "Is that calligraphy really your work?"

Seeing Luli come in, Old Song was greatly surprised, clearly not expecting the person who wrote such calligraphy to be so young.

Luli was taken aback for a moment: "It is indeed my work. I haven't written for a long time, so I'm a bit rusty." There was no need to deny this, and even if he didn't say it, he believed that as long as they found Fan Yide, they would still get an accurate answer.

Liudeyuan's beard stood up straight. "You haven't written for a long time and you can still write like this? How are the rest of us supposed to live!"

Old Song smiled and asked, "Young man, how long have you been practicing calligraphy? Who is your teacher?"

"More than ten years. I learned from my mother."

This wasn't a lie. Luli's mother, Xiao Junlan, was passionate about calligraphy, and Luli had started practicing with her at a very young age. However, his talent for calligraphy was quite average, and after ten years of practice, he could only write in a regular and proper style. If it weren't for the memories of his previous life, his calligraphy wouldn't have been presentable at all.

Liudeyuan and Old Song exchanged glances, slightly surprised.

"Father, the guests have left. Here is the calligraphy you wanted," said Liu Zhongtian, pushing the door open and holding a piece of calligraphy.

Liudeyuan waved his hand and instructed, "Unroll the calligraphy and let Luli see if it's genuine. Xiao Fang, unroll Luli's calligraphy."

"Ah?"

Liu Zhongtian was greatly surprised. He had been busy entertaining guests and hadn't seen Luli's calligraphy, so he found the old man's actions quite puzzling.

He glanced at Luli strangely and then went up without hesitation, spreading the calligraphy on the coffee table. At the same time, Lufang unrolled another piece of calligraphy.

The two pieces of calligraphy were placed side by side. In terms of brushwork style, they were almost identical. However, Luli's calligraphy was more vigorous and had a stronger personality, slightly better than the so-called Fang Gang's genuine work.

Liudeyuan and Old Song leaned in to admire them for a while, becoming more and more impressed.

Lifting his head, Liudeyuan said to Luli, "Xiao Li, you are an expert on Fang Gang. Do you think this piece of Fang Gang's calligraphy is genuine or fake?"

Hearing Liudeyuan's question, Liu Zhongtian wished he could turn and run. Luli was present when they bought this calligraphy, so there was no need to ask, right?

Sure enough, Luli merely glanced at it and said with a sneer, "Definitely a forgery."

"Hmph."

Liudeyuan clearly trusted Luli very much. Hearing this, he turned around and glared at Liu Zhongtian, "How much did you pay?"

"Eight—eight million." Liu Zhongtian smiled bitterly.

"Next time you buy calligraphy, call Luli."

Lufang, standing to the side, covered her mouth and laughed lightly, "Father, when you bought this calligraphy, Luli was also present and said it was a forgery."

Liu Zhongtian glanced at his wife and gave her a "I'll deal with you later" look.

Liudeyuan became even more dissatisfied and scolded him without hesitation, "You never listen to others. If you keep this up, you'll eventually suffer."

"Alright, everyone makes mistakes," Old Song chuckled.

"Put it away!" Liudeyuan waved his hand irritably. While the two were putting away the calligraphy, he looked at Luli and asked thoughtfully, "Xiao Li, do you know the Fang family?"

Hearing this, Luli's heart skipped a beat. He took a deep breath and said, "No, I don't."

"That's strange. Old Fang saw your calligraphy and ran away as if he had seen a ghost, even skipping the birthday banquet. I thought you might know each other or have some conflict. But don't worry, Old Fang and I are old friends. If there is any conflict, I can smooth things over."

"Old Fang?"

Luli shouted in his heart, "Damn, could he be a descendant of Fang Gang? This can't be a coincidence!"

"Old Fang's real name is Fang Gaizhi. He comes from a family of scholars, and his ancestor was one of the four great calligraphers of the Qing Dynasty, Fang Gang. He inherited Fang Gang's talent in calligraphy and painting and is now the honorary president of the Calligraphers Association. Xiao Li, with your level of calligraphy, I think you have a good chance of becoming a contemporary master. When that happens, I'll talk to Old Fang and have you participate in more calligraphy exhibitions to build your reputation."

Sure enough!

Luli didn't know what to feel—joy, distress, and mostly confusion. He had just established a relationship with the Xue family, and now he unexpectedly encountered the Fang family, which was truly unbelievable.

"I'm still in school. I'll think about participating in calligraphy exhibitions after I graduate."

Not to mention whether he was willing to acknowledge it, even if he did, it wouldn't be easy. The Fang family was different from the Xue family. Xue Tianci was the first reincarnation, and he was outgoing and spirited, leaving a legacy of returning after nine reincarnations before he died.

But in Fang Gang's lifetime, he was cautious and, although he understood the cause and effect before he died, he didn't say much.

Hearing Luli's refusal, Liudeyuan frowned and said, "Old Fang will be back in a few days. When that happens, come over, and we'll discuss the details."

"Alright."

Since there was no legacy left, Luli wasn't worried about exposing any inconsistencies.

"It's getting late. Let Haijian take you back. When Old Fang comes, I'll call you."

Luli nodded and was about to get up to leave when he suddenly had a thought and asked tentatively, "Grandpa Liu, how is the investigation into Wang Xuexi's case going?"

"I specifically talked to Director Zhang of the Municipal Bureau. He reviewed the recent missing persons reports and found that Wang Xuexi's name was indeed on the list, reported by her parents."

Liu Zhongtian, who had been in charge of this matter, continued, "However, it's strange. Initially, the police took this case very seriously, but they couldn't find any clues and eventually put the case on hold."

"On hold?" Luli's face darkened.

"Exactly."

Seeing Luli's unusual expression, Liu Zhongtian comforted him, "Don't worry. I've already talked to Director Zhang, and he promised to reopen the investigation and inform me as soon as he has any news."

"Thank you, Brother Liu."

"Don't be so formal with me." Liu Zhongtian waved his hand and smiled.

"Grandpa Liu, Sister Lu, I'll take my leave now."

Luli finished speaking and turned to leave the lounge.

As soon as he left, Liudeyuan said casually, "Is the resistance very strong?"

Liu Zhongtian clearly understood what the old man meant and hesitated to speak.

"You can trust Uncle Song," Liudeyuan added. "Tell Uncle Song about it."

Liu Zhongtian agreed and recounted Luli's request.

Old Song frowned and said, "This is a case of gross negligence! It's unacceptable."

"What's the situation?"

In front of the old man, Liu Zhongtian spoke frankly, "The resistance is very strong. The case was put on hold before Director Zhang took office, and the person who gave the order has been promoted to the provincial bureau. In China, cases involving human life are always major cases, and anyone who wants to stop the investigation has to think twice. It's likely that only someone with close ties would intervene."

Liudeyuan and Old Song exchanged glances, both feeling the situation was quite difficult.

If they hadn't retired, they could have intervened even at the provincial level. Unfortunately, they were no longer in a position to do so, and intervening now could easily cause dissatisfaction from relevant authorities.

"Since Xiao Li has come to us, we must not let him down," Liudeyuan said solemnly. "We will do our best to find out the identity of the culprit and bring him to justice."

"Alright."

Liu Zhongtian agreed, his expression filled with determination.

***

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