I Became the Rich Second-Generation Villain
Chapter 83: Surprising the Audience!

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“Haha, Haoran’s words are a mark of arrogance.” Mu Zong chuckled.

He obviously didn't believe him. In fact, his tone carried a hint of disdain.

Calligraphy is easy to learn but difficult to master, especially in modern society where people are used to writing with ballpoint pens. How could such people possibly get used to calligraphy with brushes?

It wasn’t just Mu Zong. Qin Yunhan, Mu Zhaozhao and the other guests looked at Wang Haoran with doubt in their eyes.

Needless to say, the only person present who was confident in Wang Haoran’s abilities was Wang Xiang.

The reason? He simply felt that his son was and is superior.

“May I have the Four Treasures of the Study?” Wang Haoran understood the meaning behind Mu Zong’s eyes. Rather than arguing, he politely made his request.

“Of course, I always have these items ready for my use.”

Mu Zong immediately sent someone to fetch a brush, ink, paper and an inkstone.

A few moments later, the table in the banquet hall was cleared and covered with paper.

All the guests gathered around him and directed their full attention to Wang Haoran.

The pen and paper are ready, but the ink has yet to be ground.

Wang Haoran walked up to Mu Zhaozhao with a sunny smile, as he asked:

“Might I borrow your slender jade hands to grind the ink?”

Grinding the ink is also a technical activity.

Mu Zong should be quite good at this, but it would be improper to have him do it.

Mu Zhaozhao has studied calligraphy since childhood; thus, she must be quite experienced. This makes her the most suitable candidate.

“Um- sure.” Mu Zhaozhao was very friendly to Wang Haoran, so she naturally agreed to his request.

After a bit of time, the ink has been successfully ground.

Wang Haoran wet the tip of the brush with ink, immediately beginning to write on the paper.

The brush walked between dragons and snakes, as an elegant and flexible font began to manifest on the paper.

If one were to look closely, the handwriting would grow clearer:

“In the ninth year of Yonghe, at the beginning of the late spring, we have gathered at the Orchid Pavilion in the North of Kuaiji Mountain for the purification ritual.

All the literati, the young and the old, have congregated.”

[Samael: Thank you, Wikipedia! I was way out of my league for that one. By the way, this is an actual text. Read more about it here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lantingji_Xu]

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After a short amount of time, an article of 324 words was finished.

However, rather than stopping, Wang Haoran began to write on another piece of paper.

The article just now was written in running script. In this new article, he wrote in cursive.

A few minutes later, he finished the article, just like the last one.

One more sheet of paper.

This time, he used another calligraphy style.

The people’s attention was drawn to his work, as time quietly passed.

About half an hour later, Wang Haoran wrote the last word of the last article.

As the last drop of ink fell, his brush stopped.

By the end of it, there were dozens of broad sheets of paper lying around on the ground.

Each piece of paper contained exquisite calligraphy, all in different styles.

With Wang Haoran’s [Master-level Calligraphy and Painting Copying Skills], copying the works of famous calligraphers was simply too easy.

Mu Zong's eyes swept across the calligraphy on the ground. He was shocked to his core, having practically lost his voice.

“Wang Xizhi's Preface to the Orchid Pavilion, Luyang Xun's Thirty-Six Laws, Zhenqing's Magu Immortal Altar Records, Huai Su's Autobiography, Liu Gongquan's Lady Su Epitaph, Su Shi's Dark Clouds on Sky's Edge…”

For Mu Zong, these works were all too familiar to him, for they were masterpieces done by famous masters.

When he first learned calligraphy, he too started by imitating these ancient masters of calligraphy. Only by learning from them did he create his own unique style.

The ones written by Wang Haoran were so close to the original author in terms of their charm and style.

If Wang Haoran's calligraphy and the original author's were put together, Mu Zong would admittedly be unable to distinguish them just by comparing the handwriting.

‘How can a person imitate famous calligraphy to such a degree?’

‘This is incredible!’

Aside from Mu Zong, the other guests were similarly astounded.

Among them, those who knew calligraphy could naturally discern the value of Wang Haoran’s work.

The crowd didn’t hold back, as they practically showered Wang Haoran with praise.

Wang Xiang felt very proud, as he couldn’t help but loudly proclaim:

“That's my son, my son!”

Wang Haoran didn't care for the roaring noises around him. He simply replied to Mu Zong, “Wang Xizhi, the first master of running script, Master Huai Su, the master of cursive script, and the four masters of the regular script: Ouyang Xun, Yan Zhenqing, Liu Gongquan, Zhao Mengfu.”

“I have copied one work from each of the Song Dynasty’s calligraphers: Su Shi, Huang Tingjian, Mi Fu, and Cai Xiang. Does Grandpa Mu replace my performance to be acceptable?”

“Haoran, I didn't expect you to have such an accomplishment in calligraphy. I'm but a clumsy, old man. I underestimated you before.” Mu Zong exclaimed in admiration.

In truth, Wang Haoran had only ever seen the works of these famous calligraphers. He never once copied them…

Now was his first time doing so, and he can make out a few minor flaws.

With a bit of practice, he could practically pass them off as the real deal.

But even with the flaws, Mu Zong was still surprised.

“If a beautiful woman grinds the ink, then it’s only natural for me to perform exceptionally. Otherwise, I probably wouldn’t have been able to write as well.” As Wang Haoran spoke, he didn’t forget to cast a sultry look at Mu Zhaozhao with a pair of lovestruck eyes.

When everyone heard this, they all subconsciously looked at Mu Zhaozhao.

Mu Zhaozhao felt shy after being stared at by so many people, her face inadvertently taking on a red glow.

[Ding! The heroine, Mu Zhaozhao, has experienced an increase in her favorability toward the Host by 10.

• The current total favorability is 30 (Very Friendly).]

[Ding! The host affects the plot direction, receiving 200 villain points!]

“Even if it drops by one level, it is still quite impressive. If I were to copy the same work, I think mine won’t fare much better than yours.” Mu Zong praised him, as he admiringly glanced at his work once more.

However, one of the works caught him a bit off-guard.

“Haoran, what about this final piece? Which famous calligrapher from ancient times did you copy?” Mu Zong couldn't help but ask.

“Grandpa Mu, can’t you see that I'm copying yours?” Wang Haoran smiled.

Naturally, Mu Zong was very familiar with his own style. In fact, he could already tell it was his. But even so, he wanted to hear it from Wang Haoran himself.

“Haoran, you’ve replicated my works just like these famous calligraphers’. You think too highly of me.” Mu Zong stated.

“There’s no need to hold your head low, Grandpa Mu, you’re a contemporary master of calligraphy, with countless excellent works. After many years, I’m sure that you too will become famous across the ages. In the future, I’m sure you’ll be on equal footing with the four families of the Song Dynasty.” Wang Haoran sternly replied.

When Mu Zong heard this, every cell in his body felt rejuvenated.

As a famous calligrapher, he wanted his work to circle the globe and be showered with the praises of future generations.

Wang Haoran’s words were precisely what he wanted to hear!

If it wasn't for fear of losing his composure, he would’ve hugged Wang Haoran on the spot! He might even kiss him a few times.

After quite a while, Mu Zong’s excitement finally began to subside. He then suddenly asked Wang Haoran:

“You’re excellent at copying famous calligraphy, which means you must be very interested. Not only that, but you’ve put in a lot of hard work. Do you plan on refining your skills?”

Wang Haoran heard that Mu Zong was thinking about accepting disciples, but he didn’t have any inclination to accept. Thus, he politely declined, “Calligraphy is just one of my hobbies, and I don't plan to make it the centre of my future plans.”