Cheng Qiyue took out her phone and carefully entered "129600" as the transfer amount. She dared not get a single digit wrong, terrified that she might accidentally add an extra zero.
Leaving out a digit would be fine; she could always make up the difference. But if she added an extra zero, she might displease this senior.
After checking several times, she let out a small breath of relief and entered her payment password. Only when the transfer confirmation appeared did she say, "Senior, I've transferred the money. Would you please check that the amount is correct?"
"No need."
Lin Zhishui said with perfect composure, "This piece hasn't been signed yet. I'll wash my hands, then add an inscription for you. Take it to the desk in the front room and wait for me there."
Suppressing the urge to lean back triumphantly, he turned and walked unhurriedly toward the bathroom.
What made a true master?
Treating money like passing clouds-that was a true master! Counting it would be beneath me.
Cheng Qiyue was not surprised in the slightest.
She knew that experts of his caliber could divine events and perform calculations, holding heaven's will within their hearts. Their spiritual perception was countless times stronger than the so-called sixth sense. They could confirm something this trivial without even looking.
Thus, she nodded respectfully. "Yes."
Lin Zhishui nodded with a smile and walked into the bathroom with measured steps. Once he shut the door, he whipped his phone out of his pocket and opened the new balance notification. A grin immediately spread across his face.
Excellent. The transfer of 129,600 yuan really had arrived.
His current balance had reached an all-time personal high: a whopping 140,000 yuan.
He breathed a sigh of relief. This money would keep both him and the woman back home from worrying about their livelihood for the rest of the year. He could even get her a high-end hearing aid.
He really had gone three years without a sale, then made enough in one sale to last three years.
Standing before the mirror with his lips slightly curved, Lin Zhishui washed his hands in an excellent mood, then returned to the front room.
Cheng Qiyue stood somewhat stiffly beside the desk. The calligraphy reading "A bright moon rises over the sea" had already been laid out neatly on it.
Lin Zhishui stepped behind the desk and picked up his beloved brush from its rest. Holding the black shaft, he soaked the bristles in the inkstone, where the ink had already been ground, and asked casually, "Your name?"
"My name is Qiyue," Cheng Qiyue replied respectfully.
Lin Zhishui nodded slightly. After a moment's consideration, he swept his brush across the paper, adding two lines of smaller script in the lower-left corner to identify both the recipient and the calligrapher.
-At the request of Miss Cheng Qiyue
-A casual work by Lin Zhishui, at He Mingxuan in midsummer of the gengzi year
So this senior's name was Lin Zhishui?
Cheng Qiyue quietly committed that name, worthy of reverence from every cultivator under heaven, to memory while observing closely from beside him.
How could she miss such a rare opportunity to watch an expert of his caliber write?
The brush tip danced across the paper. As the ink soaked into it, the "Dao resonance" contained within the calligraphy slowly withdrew and concealed itself, seemingly undergoing a wondrous transformation.
At the sight, she understood at once.
From now on, this calligraphy belonged to her. Everyone else would, at most, be able to sense its most superficial Dao resonance. Only she could comprehend the deeper, mysterious principles within, and she could now perceive its subtle changes more clearly than before. Its benefits to her were even more astonishing than she had imagined!
Cheng Qiyue could not help feeling awed. Could this be the legendary art of immortal decrees?
Such a profound immortal art could actually be applied to calligraphy. Senior Lin truly embodied the saying, "Skill can reach the Dao, and art can touch the divine"!
"I never use a seal. My signature is enough."
Having finished the inscription, Lin Zhishui set down his brush and said, "Once the ink dries, you can put it away and take it home."
"Yes." Cheng Qiyue bowed again in gratitude.
"No need to stand on ceremony." Lin Zhishui gave a serene smile, looking every inch the mystic. "It was merely a chance encounter and a transaction."
Hearing this, Cheng Qiyue hesitated before asking, "Senior, may I tell my family about this?"
Lin Zhishui gave a light cough. "I've always let fate take its course, and I dislike disturbances. Deliberately pursuing things only takes the pleasure out of them. Let this remain a little secret between us."
Realization dawned on Cheng Qiyue. Now she understood why her ancestor had never revealed what he had experienced at He Mingxuan. She quickly said, "Yes, I understand."
Lin Zhishui quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
After all, this girl was only a high school student. Even if she came from an exceptionally wealthy and influential family, spending over a hundred thousand yuan on a piece of calligraphy at her age was rather hard to justify.
If her parents found out and came knocking, things could get troublesome.
Best to keep it secret if possible.
Making money quietly was the way to go.
He had asked Old Master Cheng to keep it secret back then, too. Asking his descendant to do the same now shouldn't be too unreasonable... should it?
"Oh, right."
Lin Zhishui picked up the other piece on the desk, which read, "Thinking of the journey ahead: a thousand miles of misty waves, heavy evening haze beneath the vast skies of Chu," and said, "Since Old Cheng passed away, I intended this piece as a gift for him. Once I've mounted it, you can take it home."
Cheng Qiyue glanced at the inscription in its lower-left corner. Sure enough, it was dedicated to her ancestor.
No wonder she had not sensed any Dao resonance in this piece earlier. It had already been inscribed and belonged to her ancestor, so only he could sense the Dao resonance contained within it.
"But... my ancestor has already departed. How could this piece..." Cheng Qiyue asked in confusion.
"That's all right. You only need to place it before his memorial tablet. I have my reasons." A mysterious smile played at the corners of Lin Zhishui's mouth.
"Yes. I will certainly carry out your request, Senior." Cheng Qiyue could not fathom the thoughts of such an expert. Perhaps it had something to do with the upper realm or ascension.
Clearly, however, secrets this unfathomable were beyond someone at her level.
"Of course, not now. The time isn't ripe yet."
Lin Zhishui added, "When you need to gain greater recognition within your family, find a suitable opportunity to place this piece before Old Cheng's memorial tablet."
He had already thought it all through.
A high school girl spending over a hundred thousand yuan on calligraphy was not something she could easily conceal forever.
To truly resolve the issue, Cheng Qiyue needed greater standing within her family and more of their affection. Then they would not quibble over this little expense.
Merely giving a family elder "A bright moon rises over the sea" clearly would not be enough.
But if she waited for the right moment, such as the anniversary of Old Master Cheng's death next year, and placed "Thinking of the journey ahead: a thousand miles of misty waves" before his memorial tablet as a tribute, the family elders would naturally see her as a filial child and think more highly of her.
That would take care of any future trouble.
Tsk, tsk. How clever of me. Lin Zhishui could not help marveling inwardly at his own brilliant idea.
A suitable opportunity?
Cheng Qiyue, however, was rather bewildered by what she had heard.
When would the opportunity be suitable?
Her ancestor had ascended to immortality, not died. There was no anniversary of his death. Yet Senior Lin had told her to place this calligraphy before his memorial tablet. Clearly, the purpose was not to honor the deceased.
Even without giving it much thought, she knew there was another purpose behind it.
But ascension meant that heaven and the mortal world lay between them. Even if the family exhausted its treasures, it could probably do no more than barely establish brief contact with their ancestor far away in the celestial realm. Under normal circumstances, how could the family contact him on a whim?
Could it be... that Senior Lin had divined something?
At that thought, Cheng Qiyue's heart tightened. Vaguely sensing the gravity of the matter, she nodded solemnly. "Yes. I will keep your words firmly in mind. Thank you for your guidance."
"You're a clever child. Naturally, you understand what I mean."
Lin Zhishui smiled calmly. "I don't like meddling in other people's affairs, but both you and Old Cheng are my customers, after all. Offering a little help is simply a small gesture of goodwill."
His words made Cheng Qiyue even more certain of her suspicions. A somber look settled over her handsome, androgynous face. Taking a deep breath, she said, "I understand."
"Take these two pieces with you, then." Lin Zhishui gave a small, satisfied nod.
Talking to a clever child who understood what he was implying really was effortless.
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