To the astonishment of Elder Zhou, Zhou Lechi, and Master Ning, Ye Chen bent down, pulled up the bottom pole, and then with a sudden burst of strength, ripped the bottom pole off the calligraphy.

"Ye Chen, what are you doing?"

What do you mean?

Upon seeing this, Zhou Lechi shouted.

Although this painting is a fake, it still has some value and is worth some money.

Moreover, because it was a fake, the calligraphy by Huang Tingjian was still his due to the bet between the two. Now, in front of him, Ye Chen destroyed the calligraphy.

Isn't this a slap in his face?

"Ye Chen, if you can't handle the risk, don't bet."

Zhou Lechi reprimanded Ye Chen in dissatisfaction, thinking that Ye Chen had destroyed the calligraphy because he couldn't take the game and wanted to cheat.

Seeing this, Old Zhou did not speak. Ye Chen's actions just now also surprised him greatly. However, upon careful consideration, in his memory, Ye Chen was not such a reckless person.

Old Zhou looked at Ye Chen with puzzlement, ready to hear what Ye Chen had to say.

"What you're doing isn't a good idea."

Master Ning shook his head and criticized, "Although this calligraphy is a forgery, it still has some artistic value. It would be such a waste to destroy it like this."

"Don't rush."

Ye Chen slowly said something, then carefully tore open the rightmost corner of the painting pole. Under the astonished gazes of the others, Ye Chen slowly lifted the painting pole, and then an unframed calligraphy scroll slid out from the middle of the pole.

Upon seeing this, all three of them widened their eyes in utter astonishment.

This painting pole is actually hollow!

"This is Huang Tingjian's authentic work."

As he spoke, Ye Chen placed the unframed calligraphy on the table.

Old Zhou, Zhou Lechi, and Master Ning hurriedly came over.

Amidst the expectant gazes of the crowd, Ye Chen slowly unfurled the calligraphy. Instantly, a flowing, elegant work of calligraphy came into view.

Looking at the calligraphy that Ye Chen had unfolded, Master Ning exclaimed:

"The poem 'Passing by the Shrine of Fubo'—is this the poem written by Huang Tingjian?!"

Master Ning could hardly believe his eyes.

"That should be true."

Ye Chen nodded, and judging from the handwriting, it was undoubtedly Huang Tingjian's authentic work.

"That's impossible!"

Master Ning found it hard to believe. Rumor had it that Huang Tingjian's original calligraphy, "Poem on Passing by the Shrine of Fubo," was stolen by invaders during the wars at the end of the Qing Dynasty.

Later, it is said that the poem "Passing by the Shrine of Fubo" was collected by a private collector from a place where people were living a good life. But how did the poem "Passing by the Shrine of Fubo" end up here now?

Master Ning stared wide-eyed, observing carefully. This...this was indeed Huang Tingjian's authentic work, without a doubt. The charm of Huang Tingjian's calligraphy was something that no one else could imitate.

Looking at the poem "Passing by the Shrine of Fubo", Mr. Zhou repeatedly praised it, saying that looking at such a work was simply a pleasure.

As for Zhou Lechi, he was staring blankly, still not fully recovered.

How did you find out?

Master Ning asked Ye Chen, utterly perplexed.

He examined the calligraphy for eight or nine minutes, but found nothing unusual. How did Ye Chen discover the original hidden inside the painting? Did he not have X-ray vision?

"Didn't you notice that the hanging rod of this calligraphy piece is a whole size bigger than the others?"

Ye Chen pointed to the painting pole he had placed aside and explained.

Um?

Hearing Ye Chen say this, Master Ning and the others examined it carefully and compared the painting pole of this calligraphy with the poles of several other calligraphy and paintings. It was indeed extraordinary.

Ye Chen didn't notice anything unusual when he first looked at Huang Tingjian's calligraphy, but he noticed it on the second glance.

Because Ye Chen gained a wealth of knowledge after acquiring the [Top-Tier Appraisal Ability] from the game, he was able to deduce the result based on this knowledge.

This method of hiding things has appeared in history before.

"Wait, something's also off about that painting pole up there?"

Master Ning's insight became even more acute.

"This is only half of the poem on the Shrine of Fubo. The other half, barring any unforeseen circumstances, is inside the painting pole above."

After saying that, Ye Chen also tore down the top painting pole.

Sure enough, just like before, when Ye Chen tore open a corner of the painting rod, an unframed calligraphy scroll slid out from the middle.

When these two pieces of calligraphy are put together, they form the complete "Poem on the Shrine of the God of Subduing Bo".

It seems that the original painting, "Poem on Passing by the Shrine of Fubo," was too large to fit on a single hanging rod, so it was split in two and displayed separately.

However, it was not damaged. All that is needed is to find a skilled craftsman specializing in mounting to remount the two pieces of calligraphy and combine them into one. There will be no impact whatsoever.

“I understand now. The poem on the Temple of Fubo that was stolen is very likely a fake.”

Master Ning speculated.

The general situation should be like this: when war broke out, the owner of this "Poem on Passing by the Shrine of Fubo" asked a master to make a copy that was almost indistinguishable from the original in order to cover up the truth.

Then they cut the original in two and hid it inside this forgery that clearly wasn't the real thing...

"It truly lives up to its reputation as Huang Tingjian's masterpiece; it is simply perfect."

Master Ning sighed.

It was incredibly lucky to be able to see Huang Tingjian's authentic calligraphy, "Poem on Passing by the Shrine of Fubo," in person.

Old Zhou and Master Ning were equally excited.

At the scene, only Zhou Lechi was dumbfounded.

Is that so?

Staring at the poem on the table, Zhou Lechi still found it hard to believe.

This is all so dreamlike.

Among the pile of imitations he bought, there was actually one genuine piece.

"Master Ye... Master Ye, your appraisal skills are truly superb."

Master Ning looked at Ye Chen with admiration and praise. Even he, a renowned appraiser in Shanghai, had not noticed the anomaly, but the young Ye Chen had actually seen it.

Master Ning also began to address Ye Chen as "Master Ye".

Compared to Master Ye, his title of "Master Ning" is undeserved and he has no right to be called a "master".

Seeing Master Ning, whom he had invited, praising Ye Chen so highly, Zhou Lechi became even more frustrated.

Ye Chen's appraisal skills are truly impressive.

Besides looking at these paintings and calligraphy and "educating" Ye Chen, he invited Master Ning here today for another reason: he wanted Master Ning to help him authenticate the painting that he gave to his grandfather, but which Ye Chen said was a fake, to see if it was genuine.

It seems that no further testing is needed now.

wrong.

Suddenly, Zhou Lechi's heart skipped a beat. He remembered the promise he had made to Ye Chen.

If this calligraphy is genuine, then it should be given to Ye Chen.

Now that it's an authentic work, then...

Zhou Lechi's heart jumped, and then he asked weakly:

"Master Ning, how much is this poem, 'Passing by the Shrine of Fubo,' worth?"