Chapter 66 Thinking of Money
Fu Xicheng remained silent in the face of Fu Chengjin's praise.
This great-aunt always talks about being "amiable," but she's actually the most snobbish one.
Not only are they snobbish, but they also have double standards.
She would fly into a rage if her husband even glanced at another woman.
When Fu Wenyang did something disgusting, she could still turn around and advise Chen Tong to be magnanimous.
"If he were truly polite, he wouldn't have had the audacity to move into the Fu family's home. His intentions are obvious."
Fu Xicheng's words caused many people present to change their expressions.
Fu Chengjin gave her a disapproving look. "Chengcheng, it's your grandfather's birthday today. Watch your words."
Fu Xicheng pouted and turned her face away, refusing to look at her.
But Fu Chengjin continued, "In a way, he's your brother too. You can't be so rude."
Fu Xicheng immediately exploded.
"Who does he think he is, to be worthy of me calling him brother? Auntie, you really don't know how to talk when you're not the one suffering. When your father-in-law was messing around outside, why didn't you call that other woman your sister instead of making a scene about getting a divorce?"
Fu Chengjin is quite old, and the younger generation respects her; very few people dare to contradict her to her face.
Fu Xicheng's words were so offensive they practically ripped off her dignity, and her anger surged.
Just as the old man was about to speak, He Xin gave him a reproachful look.
“Chengcheng is still young and doesn’t understand things. She’s been like a fatherless child since she was little, so she speaks a bit bluntly. Please don’t mind her.”
Fu Wenyang's face darkened as well.
"What do you mean by this!" He and He Xin didn't get along to begin with, and he didn't respect her much.
He Xin, however, was not intimidated by him and looked up at him.
"The literal meaning is hard to understand? I told you to read more books, but you insisted on raising pigs."
Fu Xicheng pouted and huddled up next to He Xin, but almost burst out laughing when she heard what He Xin said.
"My dad isn't mentally sound, you know that."
Seeing that Fu Wenyang was about to retort, the old man spoke with a veiled warning: "Alright, today is my birthday, don't upset me."
Fu Wenyang's face turned bright red, and he still said he wasn't being biased!
Just then, Aunt You walked in.
"Assistant Qu is here."
Fu Yansheng calmly said, "Have him bring the things in."
"good."
Qu Jiang walked in carrying the framed calligraphy, first smiling as she wished the old man a happy birthday, and then went to unwrap the gift.
"Second Master knew you liked Old Master Xu's calligraphy, so he specially went to ask for it."
The outer layer of paper was sealed, and Qujiang tore it open cleanly and neatly.
The elegant characters “思钱想厚” (meaning “thinking of money and wanting to be generous”) are then displayed before people.
Grandpa Fu raised an eyebrow. "Hmm... that's a bit too common."
Qujiang: "Vulgar?"
He looked down and his pupils widened in shock.
You took the wrong one!
Fu Qingci scoffed, "Old Master Xu is such a noble person, would he really write such vulgar characters? This piece of calligraphy by my uncle is probably a fake."
Fu Wenyang couldn't wait to chime in: "It's utterly tacky! Even if you're buying fakes, Second Brother, you should at least put in some effort, right?"
Fu Chengjin had a stern face, clearly extremely dissatisfied with the calligraphy.
"It's too vulgar. No matter how well it's imitated, it's not the kind of writing that Master Xu would do."
Qu Jiang: "...I just picked up the wrong one. I'll go out and get another one, but this calligraphy is indeed well written by Master Xu."
Fu Qingci wanted to make a few more sarcastic remarks, but then she heard the old man speak up: "It was indeed written by that old man, it's not a fake."
He has collected many of Xu Mocun's calligraphy works.
Although there are counterfeit products on the market, they are not numerous.
"These four words may seem vulgar at first glance, but they align with the aspirations and expectations of the vast majority of people today. Not bad, not bad."
Fu Wenyang: "..."
Fu Qingci had no choice but to swallow back the words that were on the tip of her tongue, feeling as uncomfortable as if she had swallowed a fly.
Qu Jiang smiled and took out a calligraphy piece from the car.
"This is the calligraphy that Second Master asked Old Master Xu for."
"Peace comes from stillness," is a common saying.
The old man was now thinking about the calligraphy from earlier.
"What about the one from before?"
Qu Jiang: "That was asked by Second Master's friend to be sent for framing."
Naturally, Yan Sui's things cannot be given away.
Grandpa Fu looked regretful. "Alright then."
Compared to the masterpieces before it, this calligraphy seems rather ordinary.
Fu Qingci secretly regretted that if she had taken it out first, she might have received some praise.
If I take it out now, I'm afraid the old man won't even want to glance at it.
Fortunately, Fu Chengjin smoothly shifted the topic to him: "Qingci, bring out the birthday gift you prepared as well."
Fu Qingci smiled and nodded, then unpacked the package.
In the blink of an eye, a piece of calligraphy exactly the same as the one before appeared before my eyes.
Fu Chengjin was taken aback. "Why are those four words again?"
Fu Qingci's face stiffened. The calligraphy had already been packaged when it was delivered, and he hadn't opened it to look at it.
Little did he know that this was originally written by Xu Mocun for Yan Sui.
When people are calm, things go smoothly; when the mind is calm, victory is assured.
Yan Mo randomly picked one, which happened to be the same one that Fu Yansheng had given her.
Fu Wenyang chuckled, "The fact that the characters are the same means that the characters are good and everyone likes them."
The old man nodded, but there was no longer much surprise on his face.
"Alright, keep them. You've given the gifts, so I won't keep you any longer."
Fu Chengjin then suggested, "Brother, it's so late, why don't you let these two kids have dinner at home?"
Fu Xicheng's face showed anger; she knew it!
Just as the old man was about to refuse, he heard Aunt You walk in.
She whispered a few words in He Xin's ear, as if she was unsure about something.
But this action displeased Fu Chengjin. "Why do you have to hide things and not just say them openly?"
He Xin looked at her, "Someone came to the door looking for Qing Ci."
Fu Qingci looked surprised. "Looking for me?"
Then I thought to myself, what's the harm in looking for him?
It's no secret that he lives in the Fu family's house, and he's not someone who can't be seen in the light of day.
Fu Qingci scoffed coldly, "Since you're looking for me, just let them in."
He Xin hesitated. She didn't care about Fu Qingci, but she was worried about affecting the old man's mood.
But every expression she makes is over-interpreted by Fu Chengjin.
"Who exactly is it that makes you so secretive? Is there something you're hiding that you're ashamed of?"
As He Xin hesitated, Fu Yansheng gave Qu Jiang a wink.
"Let him in."
Qu Jiang led his men into the house, and they turned out to be two police officers.
The old man's face was solemn, and he couldn't help but stand up.
"Two police officers have come over so late at night, there must be something they need?"
"Excuse me, it's about a theft case."
They then explained how Liang Fan stole genuine customer artworks and resold them at high prices, and how he deceived customers with counterfeit items.
According to Liang Fan's confession, he sold the original to a woman named Yan Mo.
They actually had someone contact Yan Mo first, hoping to get her to cooperate with the investigation, but she treated it as fraud and berated them.
They eventually found out that Yan Mo was here, so they came to look for her late at night.
Old Master Fu pointed to the calligraphy that Fu Qingci had sent and asked in a deep voice, "Take a look, is this the calligraphy you two are looking for?"
Fu Qingci's face turned extremely ugly, and she gritted her teeth as she questioned, "Didn't you ask Old Master Xu for this calligraphy?"
Yan Mo looked panicked and hurriedly defended herself: "Old Xu doesn't give me any face at all. He refuses to write it, and you're in a hurry to get it, so of course I can only find someone to buy it."
She originally wanted to buy a fake to pass for the real thing.
But Sister You said no, Old Master Fu could tell at a glance whether it was true or false.
She'll be the one who makes a fool of herself in the end.
Only then did she ask someone to inquire about the genuine article, but how could she know that Liang Fan was so bold as to steal a customer's item and resell it to her?
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