The Real And Fake Painting Of Bada Shanren
Li Mo moved the mahogany box to the desk outside, opened it, and took out a scroll of paintings. He held his breath and slowly opened it. A familiar painting style greeted him.
Lotus flowers, stones, mandarin ducks.
Li Mo looked at the interlinked inscription. It looked like the words "Crying And Laughing". This was the effect of the four words "Bada Shanren" linking up together.
In his alternate pupils, this painting emitted a dark gray luster. There were 300 to 400 halos spreading, as if the entire world had turned gray.
Without a doubt, this was the authentic work of Bada Shanren, [Lotus Stone Mandarin Duck].
"It's really scary to be uncultured." Li Mo sighed deeply at the prodigal son of the Shi Family. If he had the knowledge, this study and this secret room could have saved him. Unfortunately…
"Little Mo, whose painting is this?"
Liu Yingying, Shiniang, Song Yuanning, surrounded the desk and sized up the painting. They could roughly guess that this painting was extraordinary.
"It's the authentic work of Niu Shihui's older brother, Bada Shanren." Li Mo calmed down and carefully rolled up his sleeves before continuing, "I originally thought that I only picked up Niu Shihui's bargain. I didn't expect the real bargain to be in the secret room behind the study."
"Is it even more precious than the five screens of [Bamboo Stone Lonely Bird]?"
"In terms of artistic achievements, the Bada Shanren is a little higher. The value of this painting is also much higher."
Li Mo recalled what Old Master Qin had said. The Shanghai financial tycoon who had passed away had bought a painting of Bada Shanren at an auction a few years ago for more than 100 million yuan, but he did not know if it was the one in front of him.
Li Mo put this painting together with Niu Shihui's painting and his gaze landed on the second painting in the mahogany box.
"Little Mo, look at the second painting. It might be another painting by Bada Shanren."
Li Mo took out the second painting and slowly opened it. Then, he felt terrible. Even the mother and daughter watching from the side revealed shocked expressions.
The second painting and the first painting were almost the same in terms of composition and content. Looking at the inscriptions and seals, it was difficult for the naked eye to distinguish any differences.
"The two paintings are almost the same. Little Mo, what's going on?"
Even Li Mo was a little confused. The first painting was definitely the real one. Logically speaking, this second painting was definitely not made by Bada Shanren. It must be an imitation.
Li Mo looked at it with alternate pupils. The second painting emitted a milky white luster, but there were actually 200 to 300 halos. This meant that even if it was a modern imitation, it still had very great artistic achievements and value.
He really couldn't think of which extraordinary master could imitate such an artistic masterpiece.
"Little Mo, is it fake?"
Li Mo nodded gently, then shook his head.
"You nodded and shook your head. What do you mean?" Liu Yingying was anxious.
"The first painting is the real work of Bada Shanren. Although the second painting is a replica, the painter has a powerful background. His ink painting has reached the realm of a Chinese painting grandmaster. I need to spend time appraising who made it."
Li Mo put away the second replica and placed the seven paintings into the red wooden box. Anyway, he couldn't figure it out for the time being. He would find a time to consult Old Master Qin later.
"Good stuff, they're all good stuff." Liu Chuanqing walked out of the secret room in surprise. Ever since Li Mo escaped death, his luck had been extremely good. Not to mention anything else, just the number of authentic porcelains in the secret room was more than the number of authentic ones that he had personally sold.
As for the porcelain that had yet to be confirmed, he would wait for Little Mo to appraise it personally.
"Dad, you kept staring at those porcelains. Aren't you being annoying? Little Mo just discovered the authentic work of Bada Shanren. There's even a copy of it."
Liu Chuanqing looked at Li Mo and asked him what was going on.
"Calligraphy and painting are not our forte to begin with, but I already know an expert in this field. I'll ask him for guidance later."
"Don't forget your etiquette," Liu Chuanqing reminded him.
"Hehe, he likes porcelain and calligraphy. I'll choose one for him."
"Isn't that too expensive?"
"It's not expensive. That old man is not simple. He actually wanted to give me an inkstone. It's the only one in the world, Su Shi's Inkstone."
Li Mo was smug. Although Su Shi's Inkstone did not have a market reference price, it was worth about 10 million yuan when compared to Ji Xiaolan's inkstone.
He liked uniqueness.
"Master, should we take a few of these porcelains and put them in Guyun Pavilion?"
"No, I don't feel at ease putting them there."
"Then I'll leave them in the secret room for now. I'll slowly tidy them up when I'm free. I'll buy some bed products in the afternoon, household appliances, and so on. I'll move in when Dad and Mom come back. They like romance. This place is suitable for them. I'll live in the old house alone."
"Let Yingying accompany you in the afternoon. Girls should be more careful. We won't wander around with you then."
"Dad, leave this to me. I won't earn money, but I will spend money."
Before Li Mo left, he asked the property management staff to clean up all the books on the bookcase before taking a taxi with Yingying.
"Yingying, where are you going for your graduation trip? Tell me in advance so that I can do some travel strategies. Otherwise, I won't be happy when I'm in an unfamiliar place."
"It's a secret for the time being."
***
It was already past eight in the evening when they returned to Book Fragrance Park. Under Yingying's command, they could already move into Imperial Linglong's mansion. However, it was a little lonely to live alone in such a large area. Their humble abode was still the most comfortable.
Just as he was about to charge her phone, he received a call from Old Master Qin in the capital.
"Old Master Qin, you haven't rested yet?"
"I just came back from a walk. I have something to tell you. My precious granddaughter, Sirui, will be filming in Shanghai for a few days today. Go and see her when you have time."
"Old Master, what do you mean? My relationship with Missy Sirui isn't really close. You know that. Besides, she's a big star. I'll probably be stopped outside before I see her."
Old Master Qin laughed out loud. "Little Friend Li, you don't understand my granddaughter. She's been too independent since she was young and has a cold personality towards everyone. However, didn't you say that she's only cold on the surface but warm on the inside? Ever since you left last time, she's nagged at me a few times. How about you help me visit her?"
"Alright, I'll go to the filming location tomorrow to take a look." Li Mo had no choice but to agree. He changed the topic and said, "Old Master, let me ask you something. Who among the modern Chinese art masters likes to imitate famous paintings?"
"Whose painting is the master imitating?"
"Bada Shanren."
Old Master Qin thought for a moment before saying, "There's someone who's very good at imitating. Not only has he imitated the Bada Shanren, but he's also good at imitating the paintings of Tang Yin, Shi Tao, and the others."
"Who's so remarkable?"
"Zhang Daqian!"
Li Mo was silent for a long time. It was Master Zhang's imitation. No wonder it was so artistic.
"Little Friend Li, why are you suddenly asking about this?"
"I encountered two identical paintings. The inscription and seal are both from the Bada Shanren. It's only because I encountered a real and fake painting that I asked you for guidance. I'll bring them to the capital for you to take a look when I have a chance."
"That's settled. I've always wanted to collect a set of authentic Bada Shanren paintings."
"No problem. If you like it, I'll find more calligraphy, paintings, porcelain, and so on when I'm free."