Chapter 635 - 635: God of Calligraphy

"Old Lin, how can you be so stingy? We're not asking you to give Master Zhao's calligraphy away, just to lend it to us so we can take it home to appreciate and study it. You won't even agree to that? That's not very friendly of you, is it?"

"Exactly! Come on, Old Lin, we've been friends for decades! You won't even agree to a small thing like this? You're showing us no respect at all!"

"Old Lin, I'm not asking for much. Just lend me that 'Supreme Among the Five Mountains' piece in Seal Script. You know I practice Seal Script myself. Master Zhao's command of the script is simply breathtaking, a work of divine creation. If I could take it back to study, my own skill in Seal Script would surely see a massive breakthrough!"

"Old Lin, just do your old pal a favor and lend me a piece! I just want that one in the Slender Gold style… ah, no, I mean, *lend* it! Don't worry, I'll definitely give it back!"

Everyone talked at once, some chiding Lin Liangzhe, others appealing to his emotions and reason. They had only one goal: to "borrow" a piece of calligraphy from his hands.

Lin Liangzhe, however, was unmoved. He spread his arms wide, physically shielding Zhao Yuan's calligraphy as if terrified his old friends would snatch it away.

At the same time, he retorted loudly, "I know the character of you old rascals all too well. 'Lend'? A likely story! If I really lent Zhao Yuan's calligraphy to you, it'd be like throwing a meat bun at a dog—it would be gone for good. There's no way I'd ever get it back!"

Hearing this, a flicker of embarrassment simultaneously crossed everyone's faces. They had, in fact, been planning to "borrow" the pieces with no intention of returning them.

Lin Liangzhe keenly noticed the change in their expressions and snorted. "See? I knew it!"

Resigned, they had to settle for the next best thing. "Fine, we won't borrow the calligraphy," they said. "But you can't refuse us if we come to view Master Zhao's work in the future!"

Lin Liangzhe knew that while it was one thing to refuse to let his old friends take the calligraphy, refusing to let them come view it at all would be going too far and would damage their decades-long friendship.

However, although he had compromised, he had his own conditions. "You can come view it, but you have to make an appointment in advance and get my approval. If you don't have an appointment, I won't be receiving anyone. Also, since you're coming to view Zhao Yuan's calligraphy, you surely can't come empty-handed. Ahem, you see, I just so happen to have run out of good tea recently…"

Everyone rolled their eyes in unison.

It was obvious to them that Lin Liangzhe was soliciting gifts.

'But the problem was, could they refuse? Did they dare refuse?'

'Not only was Master Zhao's calligraphy in Lin Liangzhe's hands, Master Zhao himself was his grandson-in-law. If they offended him, where else could they go to view Master Zhao's work?'

So, even though they were resentful and unwilling, and even though they were mentally cursing Lin Liangzhe to high heaven, on the surface, they had to plaster on smiles and curry favor with him. "Old Lin is right. We can't impose on you empty-handed, of course. You're out of tea, you say? No problem. We'll be sure to bring you some fine tea next time we visit."

Lin Liangzhe was grinning so widely he couldn't close his mouth, yet he still put on a show, saying, "Oh, how could I possibly accept?"

'They were absolutely furious. 'Damn it, you were the one who asked for it, and now you're pretending to be embarrassed? Your skin is unbelievably thick!''

Furious as they were, they still had to go against their true feelings and insist that Lin Liangzhe must accept their tea, or else it would mean he was looking down on them.

Lin Liangzhe said hypocritically, "Well, it's hard to refuse such kindness. In that case, I'll be shameless and accept your gifts. Ahem, but don't bring too little, now!"

Everyone couldn't help but roll their eyes again.

'Weren't you just saying you were embarrassed? Then why are you telling us not to bring too little? Hypocrite! You're just so unbelievably fake!'

The crowd didn't stay any longer, and one by one, they took their leave.

They were afraid that if they stayed a moment longer, the shameless old geezer would once again make another bold-faced demand. It was best to leave quickly, before he decided to ask for the moon.

Lin Liangzhe saw them to the villa gate, then said, "Oh, right, I almost forgot to mention. From now on, I will only allow three people at a time to come to my house to appreciate and study Zhao Yuan's calligraphy."

The group was shocked, and they immediately began to protest.

"What?"

"Only three people at a time? But there are so many of us!"

"How is that supposed to work? Three people is far too few!"

However, Lin Liangzhe was unmoved by their questions and protests.

The calligraphy was in his hands, so naturally, he made the rules. Besides, his three-person limit wasn't entirely without reason. He immediately explained, "If too many people come, it will inevitably get noisy, which will negatively impact your study and appreciation. Therefore, I can only allow three people at a time, no more!"

Lin Liangzhe had made up his mind, so their protests were useless. Besides, they were the ones asking for a favor and didn't dare offend him. In the end, they had no choice but to obediently compromise and accept Lin Liangzhe's arrangement.

'But in their hearts, they all griped, 'Only allowing three people at a time to appreciate and study Zhao Yuan's calligraphy… to put it bluntly, it's just a case of the highest bidder wins! That old man, Lin Liangzhe, is just too devious and cunning!''

Still, some of them were already plotting to find some top-tier teas when they got back, all to secure a chance to appreciate and study Zhao Yuan's calligraphy.

After seeing everyone off, Lin Liangzhe turned and went back into the villa.

He was in a great mood, his steps light and a cheerful tune on his lips.

Today, he had not only shown off spectacularly in front of his old friends but had also reaped all the benefits.

This was all thanks to Zhao Yuan, and because of it, he found himself liking his grandson-in-law more and more.

「At the same time.」

As soon as Yan Heyun got in his car, he took out his phone and pulled up the photos he had taken in Lin Liangzhe's study.

The photos were all of the calligraphy pieces written by Zhao Yuan.

The more he looked, the more he couldn't help but marvel. How could anyone in this world write calligraphy that was so good, so utterly masterful? That "Dao" character, in particular, was like a miracle.

After looking at the photos for a while, Yan Heyun sighed deeply. "What a pity. No matter how clear these photos are, they're nothing compared to seeing the real thing."

His apprentice, Wang Lin, unable to contain his curiosity, asked, "Teacher, what exactly did you all see at Elder Lin's house?"

"What did we see?"

Yan Heyun's expression suddenly turned serious.

He considered the question seriously for a moment before saying, word by word, "We saw… the God of Calligraphy!"

"Huh?" Wang Lin was dumbfounded.

'The God of Calligraphy? What in the world was that?'