Chapter 51 I promise you don’t believe what this brat says! ...
"Our prince has already invited a skilled repairman from Jiangnan. He has arrived at the palace today. The prince has said that he will not be looking for another repairman. Please return, young lady."
The next day, Jiang Tong went to ask for an audience with King Xiang. As soon as he explained his purpose, he received this reply from the doorman.
Jiang Tong's heart tightened. If this was true, they were afraid they would lose the only chance to contact King Xiang.
She was nervous, but didn't show it on her face. She simply said, "Please tell them that no matter how many wormholes there are in the painting, I can repair it within a month, and I guarantee that no one will be able to see any signs of repair."
The concierge took her as bragging, "Little girl, stop kidding. Tricking the prince is no joke. Many repairmen have come before, but they all said it couldn't be fixed. Even those who could said it would take years, not three or two years to fix it."
Jiang Tong said calmly, "I'm not lying. Uncle, just tell Your Highness that the 'Early Spring Picture' presented by Lord Xu Gong on His Majesty's birthday this year was restored by me."
As she spoke, she calmly took out a piece of silver and stuffed it in.
The doorman took the silver with some doubt and looked at Jiang Tong carefully, as if trying to judge the truthfulness of her words.
…No matter how I look at it, it doesn’t seem real.
However, whether the words were true or not was another matter, but at least the silver was real, so the doorman said "Wait a minute" and went in to report.
…
When Jiang Tong was invited in, Hu Shaoqing, the restoration craftsman who was hired by Zhu Zhanji at a high price from Yingtian Prefecture, was also present.
This old gentleman, who looked skinny and had the demeanor of a sick plum, had just heard from the doorman that a craftsman had come in who claimed to have repaired a painting for the emperor. He had originally wanted to make friends with him, but later he heard Jiang Tong boast that he could repair the painting within a month, so he decided that the other party was a charlatan.
When Jiang Tong was brought in, Hu Shaoqing saw that she was actually a little girl, and he sneered even more.
So, when Jiang Tong finished paying his respects to King Xiang and turned to greet Hu Shaoqing, he was given a blatant roll of the eyes.
Jiang Tong didn't care at all. He just smiled and sat down calmly.
This scene was seen by Prince Xiang Zhu Zhanji who was sitting in the upper seat. He originally thought that Jiang Tong was just a kid of about ten years old and didn't quite believe that Jiang Tong had any real ability, but seeing Jiang Tong's smiling attitude, he became a little interested.
Zhu Zhanji asked, "You said you edited 'Early Spring'?"
"Not bad." Jiang Tong said.
"Nonsense!" Zhu Zhanji glared. "Do you think I haven't seen that 'Early Spring' painting? That painting is perfectly intact, with no signs of repair at all."
Jiang Tong smiled, with a hint of undisguised pride in her smile: "If Your Majesty doesn't believe it, why don't you send someone to ask Lord Xu and find out?"
Zhu Zhanji twisted his broad, plump body, and the steward beside him understood and immediately whispered in his ear, "It is true. I heard that Master Xu brought four hundred taels of silver to ask Miss Jiang to repair his painting. Master Xu even knocked his head until it was broken before he could get Miss Jiang to agree."
"What did the painting originally look like?" Zhu Zhanji asked.
The housekeeper said, "I heard it's already in ruins."
Zhu Zhanji nodded secretly. As a lover of calligraphy and painting, he naturally knew that no matter how carefully a work of calligraphy and painting was preserved, it was bound to encounter problems such as degumming of the paper, loss of adhesive, and insect infestation. At the latest, after a hundred years or so, it would need to be repaired and remounted.
Logically speaking, it is impossible for the Northern Song Dynasty painting "Early Spring" to be as intact as he saw it that day.
The butler whispered something in his ear again. Zhu Zhanji's eyes lit up and he asked Jiang Tong, "Are you the newly famous calligraphy and painting restorer in this city?"
"It's me." Jiang Tong nodded.
"I heard you were very young, but I never thought you were actually a little girl."
Jiang Tong said sternly, "Your Highness, ability does not lie in age."
"Can you repair that Tao Te Ching?"
"Of course you can."
Hu Shaoqing, who was sitting nearby, scolded him, "You're so arrogant! Many experienced craftsmen, even those with decades of experience, wouldn't dare to answer you, yet you're speaking so arrogantly here. You're nothing but a newborn calf who's not afraid of a tiger."
"Thank you for your kind words, senior." Jiang Tong bowed slightly in the direction of Hu Shaoqing, looking very humble.
"You!" Hu Shaoqing paused. "Humph! Young man, don't try to be so good at talking. The real thing is to hone your skills."
Jiang Tong remained calm and composed. She nodded in agreement, "Senior is right. Winning or losing in words is meaningless. The real skill lies in the hands."
Zhu Zhanji found it interesting. He looked at Jiang Tong and saw that the girl was not shy at all. She sat upright and looked respectful, but in fact she was proud in her bones. It was not the blind pride of young people who did not know their place, but the extreme confidence of a craftsman in his own craft.
This kind of demeanor is something that ordinary people cannot fake.
If she hadn't looked like a little girl, he would have thought that a great master was sitting here.
Zhu Zhanji waved his hand and ordered his servants to take out the volume of "Tao Te Ching" and asked two servants to spread it out on the left and right.
The entire scroll was very long, more than thirty feet (more than ten meters) when fully unfolded, so the two servants only pulled apart part of it.
Jiang Tong walked forward and took a closer look.
The entire scroll was not seriously damaged, the main damage was to the wormholes. Each hole was not big, half the size of a sesame seed, but there were too many of them, more than tens of thousands. At a glance, they were all small holes, which made people's scalp numb.
Jiang Tong understood why no one dared to answer the call for such a long time.
If we try to fill them one by one, it may take forever to complete them.
Hu Shaoqing squinted at Jiang Tong and snorted coldly, "You said you could finish it within a month?"
Jiang Tong smiled restrainedly: "This is my estimate before I saw the calligraphy and painting, so it can't be accurate..."
Upon hearing this, the old man smiled with satisfaction. He bowed to Zhu Zhanji and said, "Your Highness, I'm not boasting. The flourishing of Wuzhong's literary talent is unrivaled throughout the land. Naturally, Yingtian Prefecture excels in the restoration of calligraphy and painting. How can a little northerner like me be compared to you? Since Your Highness has discerning eyes and summoned me, why bother looking for anyone else?"
"Old sir, I haven't finished what I was saying." Jiang Tong protested dissatisfiedly.
"You say." Zhu Zhanji said.
"Yes," Jiang Tong continued calmly, "When I said one month before, it was just a conservative estimate. Now that I've seen this scroll, I can guarantee that it can be repaired within half a month."
Hu Shaoqing's eyes immediately widened as if he had swallowed a frog. He had been engaged in this business for most of his life and had already accepted a bunch of disciples. He originally estimated that even if all his disciples worked together, it would take at least half a year to complete the repairs.
So when he heard Jiang Tong say this, he immediately scolded him without thinking: "Boasting! Your Majesty, don't believe the words of this yellow-mouthed brat!"
Zhu Zhanji also raised an eyebrow and looked at Jiang Tong: "Little girl, you must think carefully and don't make big promises. If you promise me something and fail to keep it, I will not let you off easily."
Jiang Tong smiled confidently, "Your Highness, rest assured. I never make random promises to customers about repairs. If I say I can fix it, I definitely can."
Hu Shaoqing shouted, "Your Highness, don't believe her! Even if I were to repair it, it would take me half a year. This little girl is arrogant and conceited, and all she knows is bragging. If you teach her calligraphy and painting, I'm afraid she'll ruin it!"
Seeing Jiang Tong's calm demeanor, Zhu Zhanji was originally tempted, but now he couldn't help but hesitate. If it was just an ordinary calligraphy or painting, it would be fine, but it was Wang Xizhi's calligraphy after all.
Jiang Tong noticed Zhu Zhanji's hesitation and said, "If Your Highness is worried, I can repair the painting here in the palace. Your Highness can have someone supervise every step. If there is any damage to the painting, Your Highness can report it at any time."
"Good, you're brave! I really want to see if you're just bragging or if you're truly capable." Zhu Zhanji picked up the tea beside him and took a sip. "How about this? Tomorrow, each of you will repair one first. I'll see who repairs the best, and that person will take on the rest."
…
It was still early when Jiang Tong returned home.
Ever since Jiang Huaishan got into trouble, Zhong Wanci has been crying every day.
Jiang Tong herself felt very upset and had no energy to comfort her mother, so she tried her best to avoid her mother during this period.
Things had made progress today, and Jiang Tong was in a good mood. She felt that she had the energy to face her mother's tears again.
She walked briskly to the main house, but was stunned when she reached the door.
She actually heard loud laughter coming from the room.
Shouldn't her mother be hiding and crying secretly at this time?
But Zhong Wanci was indeed smiling happily.
Sitting in front of her was a woman who looked 60% similar to her, with the same hibiscus face and big eyes, but that woman had an oval face, uh, an oval face that had gained weight.
It was Zhong Wanci's half-sister Zhong Yan Ge.
...From her facial features, it seems that her aunt has lived a much more comfortable life than her mother in recent years.
Zhong Yange held her sister's hand, and the two sisters were talking about something, giggling non-stop. They didn't even notice Jiang Tong coming in, but a short, fat man nearby greeted her.
"I guess this is cousin Tongtong, right?"
"You are Fan..." Jiang Tong was stuck when the words came to her lips. She really couldn't remember the name of this cousin whom she had hardly met.
"My name is Fan Yanyu."
Zhong Yange also noticed Jiang Tong. She came up and took Jiang Tong's hand with a smile: "Tongtong, this is your cousin Yanyu. Oh, it's been many years since you last met. I remember the last time we met, Tongtong was wearing open-crotch pants... "
Zhong Yange continued to giggle, and when she had finished laughing, she pulled Jiang Tong over and looked her up and down: "I haven't seen you for so many years, Tongtong has grown into such a beautiful girl."
"Cousin Yanyu is also a handsome man." Jiang Tong said politely.
"That's right! I'm not bragging, but your cousin is simply perfect. Look at him, he has a good appearance, a good temper, and great abilities. There's nothing wrong with him at all!"
Jiang Tong took advantage of her height and glanced at the slightly sparse hair on the top of her perfect cousin's head.
Jiang Tong listened to Zhong Yan Ge praising her son in various ways for a while, but her patience finally ran out.
She didn't show it on her face, but kept smiling: "Aunt, please sit down for a moment. I have something to do and I'll have to excuse myself."
After saying that, she left on her own. She went straight to the study to find Zhao Quesheng. She had to make arrangements for tomorrow's affairs first.
Seeing Jiang Tong leave, Zhong Yan Ge was obviously not satisfied yet. She praised her son to her sister again, without noticing her son's somewhat impatient expression at all.
"My son is just a little short, but Tongtong is not tall either," Zhong Yan Ge said.
Zhong Wanci couldn't help but mutter, "Tongtong is still young, she will grow taller."
"It can't grow any taller. If it does, it will be terrible! It will be so ugly standing next to Yanyu!" Zhong Wanci said, slapping her thigh. "But don't be afraid. When she gets married to our Yanyu, what will happen to the child's height?"
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