Chapter 37

Realizing that his overconfidence had led to a mistake, Lu Li was momentarily stunned, cold sweat breaking out on his forehead.

He quickly turned his head and helplessly found Fang Gai’s eyes gleaming with a look of shock.

Looking at Liu Deyuan, he saw that he was pointing at the inscription, trembling as he complained, "You—You, what a perfect work of art, how could you make such a low-level mistake, even getting the date wrong."

Lu Li helplessly spread his hands and forced a laugh, "A slip of the pen, definitely a slip of the pen."

Liu Deyuan glared at him, "A slip of the pen? I don’t believe it. Even if it were a slip of the pen, it’s impossible to write such unrelated characters."

"Um, maybe I was too familiar with Fang Gang’s work, so I accidentally put myself in his place."

"Ah."

Seeing that Lu Li had indeed not done it intentionally, Liu Deyuan sighed deeply and said hesitantly, "This work is a masterpiece in both painting and calligraphy, but it’s just this final inscription. It’s a pity to erase it, but it can’t be left as is."

After listening, Lu Li thought for a moment and said, "I think we should cut the entire strip from top to bottom, and I’ll rewrite the inscription."

"There’s no other way."

Liu Deyuan nodded helplessly. Such an outstanding work, it would be a shame to scrap it due to a mistake in the inscription. This was the best solution.

He watched as Lu Li carefully cut off the inscription, rolled the cut-off rice paper into a ball, and threw it into the trash can, feeling even more pained.

"Lao Fang, what are you doing?"

"Nothing, I just think Lu Li’s calligraphy is very good, and it’s a pity to throw it away."

Fang Gai bent down to pick up the paper ball, carefully unfolded and flattened it, and under Liu Deyuan’s astonished gaze, folded it and put it in his pocket.

"Lao Fang, Xiao Li is right here, isn’t it just a matter of asking for his calligraphy? Is it really necessary!" Liu Deyuan said, unable to help laughing and crying.

"Hmph, that’s just how I am."

Fang Gai glared, defiantly.

"Fine, fine, you decide, okay!"

Liu Deyuan felt helpless and surrendered with a bow.

After rewriting the inscription, the entire work was finally completed.

Lu Li put down the brush, a look of satisfaction on his face, his eyes filled with unhidden joy.

"Let’s put it here for now, wait until the ink dries, Lao Fang, you can take it directly. Xiao Li, let’s go eat first." Liu Deyuan glanced at Lu Li, secretly marveling. This kid is really something, the more he interacts with him, the more profound and mysterious he seems, excelling in both painting and calligraphy, and knowledgeable in medicine. He really doesn’t know what else he can do.

Perhaps because he had created a satisfying work, at the dinner table, Lu Li specifically requested to open a bottle of Wuliangye.

The three of them drank and chatted, but soon Liu Deyuan and Fang Gai, unable to hold their liquor, were defeated, leaving only Lu Li to drink alone.

After two bottles of white wine, he was already dazed. At Liu Deyuan’s suggestion, he staggered into the study, picked up the brush, and wrote two more calligraphy pieces.

After finishing, he went to the guest room and fell into a deep sleep.

When he woke up, it was already evening. Lu Li shook his head, feeling parched and dizzy.

"Bad habits can kill."

He hadn’t expected that the habits from his previous life were still so strong. Back then, whenever he created a satisfying work, he would drink until he was completely drunk, without exception.

In the living room, Fang Gai had already left.

According to Liu Deyuan, as soon as the ink dried, the old man had rushed off, not even resting at noon.

After lingering at the Liu family’s place for a long time, Lu Li, after dinner, politely declined Liu Deyuan’s offer to send him in a car and got up to leave.

Walking out of the neighborhood, he recalled his actions of the day and couldn’t help but laugh bitterly.

Since this was a high-end neighborhood, almost every household had a car, so there were rarely any taxis around.

Lu Li had anticipated this before leaving and wasn’t in a hurry, walking along the small road toward a bus stop. The road was lined with tall plane trees, their branches lush and leaves dense, the air filled with the scent of the sea, and the breeze was very pleasant.

Luxury cars sped by, but there were few pedestrians.

After walking about 700 to 800 meters, Lu Li suddenly turned his head and saw a Mercedes-Benz van speeding toward him, braking sharply, the tires screeching against the asphalt.

Immediately, the car door opened, and three tall men got out, each holding a machete. One of them waved his hand, and the other two, under his contemplative gaze, flanked him from both sides, dragged him into the car, and drove off, closing the door.

From the time the car stopped to when Lu Li was dragged into the car, it took less than ten seconds.

Sitting in the spacious van, Lu Li glanced at the four people, including the driver, and smiled, understanding the situation.

In fact, when they first appeared, he had already guessed. The only person who could act so brazenly was probably Xia Ming.

If it weren’t for Wang Xuexi, he would have acted long ago.

"Where are you taking me?" Lu Li asked calmly, hoping that Wang Xuexi wasn’t too far away, as this might be a good opportunity for revenge.

"You’ll know when we get there," the man on Lu Li’s left said coldly.

The other three almost simultaneously looked at him, noticing that he showed no fear or resistance, and were somewhat impressed.

They had seen many people beg for mercy, try to bribe them, or faint from fear, but Lu Li was the first to remain so calm.

Lu Li asked again, "Will I be able to come back alive?"

The man in the passenger seat looked at Lu Li in the rearview mirror, thought for a moment, and said, "You’re a brave man. If possible, we’ll give you a quick death."

Lu Li’s lips curled into a meaningful smile.

The van sped along, and Lu Li, looking out the window, was surprised to find that they had left Hai Cheng and were heading toward Lüping City.

Lüping City is a county-level city under the jurisdiction of Hai Cheng, the base of the North Sea Fleet. It is rumored that foreigners must obtain military authorization to enter Lüping City.

The road from Hai Cheng to Lüping runs along the mountains on one side and the sea on the other, with beautiful scenery, making it a famous tourist route.

After passing through a tunnel over a kilometer long, the car suddenly turned and drove straight to the sea. Ten minutes later, it stopped, and one of the men quickly opened the door, pulling Lu Li out.

After getting out of the car, Lu Li looked around and saw a tented sports car parked not far away, with a person leaning against the hood, facing away from him. On either side of the person, three black-clad men stood guard, looking alert.

Hearing the footsteps, the person didn’t turn around but said admiringly, "The night view of Hai Cheng is beautiful, isn’t it?"

"Perhaps," Lu Li raised an eyebrow and replied.

Xia Ming turned around, looked Lu Li up and down, and smiled lightly, "I’ve checked you out. You come from an ordinary background but have excellent grades. To be honest, I wanted to let you go. Unfortunately, you shouldn’t have provoked the woman I like, nor should you have meddled in other people’s affairs. Your background may be ordinary, but you know many extraordinary people. If they join forces, even the Xia family will have trouble."

Lu Li’s heart stirred, realizing that Xia Ming wanted to get rid of him not just for Shen Muqing but also for Wang Xuexi. Clearly, the latter was the key.

Thinking of this, he smiled faintly and said loudly, "If you don’t want others to know, you mustn’t do it. Since you’ve done it, you must take responsibility."

"Ha ha. You’re very brave. If it weren’t for that incident, after I’m done with her, I could give Shen Muqing to you. But now—" Xia Ming’s eyes turned cold, and he suddenly waved his hand, "Act, and leave no trace."

***

If the recommendation votes exceed 100, I will add an extra chapter. Please support and collect!

Page flip AD starts

Page flip AD ends