At this moment, hearing Elder Tian's inquiry, Wang Guan hesitated slightly but ultimately told the truth, "It's nothing much, just a scroll of calligraphy." "What scroll?" Elder Tian asked curiously, "A piece by a famous calligrapher?" "Yes," Wang Guan admitted with a nod. "Whose calligraphy?" Elder Tian grew even more curious, knowing that not just anyone could be called a master.

If one casually labeled some obscure person a master, they’d certainly face ridicule. We won't mention contemporary masters; they haven't stood the test of history yet.

Any moderately famous person can be called a master now, but in the public eye, only ancient masters are the true masters. As for current masters, they need at least a hundred years, weathering the baptism of time, before a final judgment can be rendered.

Time, after all, is a grand crucible that serves to refine the pure from the dross. "Well, this..." Since he intended to seek Elder Tian's appraisal upon bringing it back, Wang Guan had no intention of hiding it, yet he paused playfully, chuckling with a hint of mischief, "If I tell you, I'm afraid you won't believe it, Elder." "What is there not to believe?" Elder Tian smiled gently, "Even if you brought me an authentic, original manuscript from a Tang Dynasty master, I wouldn't find it strange." "A Tang Dynasty master is out of the question; I truly cannot produce that," Wang Guan shook his head slightly, smiling faintly, "This is an authentic work by a Song Dynasty master.

I wonder if it will meet with Elder Tian's approval." "Hmm." Elder Tian raised an eyebrow and immediately extended his hand. "Let me see it." "It's a long scroll," Wang Guan reminded him, handing over the brocade box.

"What is it?" At the same time, Elder Ji and Elder Xing ceased their bickering and casually surveyed the brocade box in Elder Tian’s hands. Everyone has some degree of curiosity, and the others were no exception; they all turned to look.

Just then, Elder Tian had opened the lid and immediately saw the long scroll. "Looks promising." Elder Tian picked up the long scroll, judging by the feel of the mounting material that it didn't seem newly made.

Of course, this was merely the most rudimentary assessment and meant nothing conclusive. The key lay in the content: the inscription, the seals, and the personal style, among other aspects.

It's worth noting that personal style isn't just limited to the written characters' script; it also encompasses details such as the author's use of ink, coloration, and overall compositional structure during the creation process. Ultimately, everyone has their own distinct characteristics: the method of holding the brush, the speed of execution, the pressure applied at the stroke's beginning, and the rhythm of turning the brush tip—all these involve different methods and habits.

Even the placement of a seal, whether stamped before or after the inscription, or to the left, to the right, or separated by a certain measure of space, carries significant meaning. Furthermore, some individuals prefer to place a seal in the upper right corner of the opening section; this is called an Yinshou Zhang (leading seal), corresponding to the Yajiaozhang (corner seal) placed in the lower left.

There are also Qifeng Zhang (riding-the-seam seals) stamped across the gaps between characters. In short, everyone has their own set of sealing customs; sometimes, connoisseurs can even judge the authenticity of a work based on the style of its seals.

Of course, that is a digression. At this very moment, Elder Tian had untied the scroll’s cord and gently unrolled it a short distance, just enough to reveal the first few lines of text at the beginning.

"Oh!" At first glance, Elder Tian felt a wave of profound surprise. "Ode to the Red Cliff!" Elder Xing leaned in for a look, equally astonished, "What a coincidence, another tracing or imitation?" "Let's look first, see first," Elder Tian’s fingers traced lightly over the surface of the scroll, displaying a measure of astonishment.

He discovered the scroll’s medium was silk—an ancient, lustrous silk. "Clear the table," Sensing the scroll was quite long, Elder Xing simply called out for help, asking everyone to push three or four tables together.

After wiping the tabletops clean with a rag, they invited Elder Tian to spread out the scroll so everyone could admire it together. Elder Tian nodded with pleasure, sensing the object was unusual.

He placed it carefully on the table and began unrolling it bit by bit. Instantly, everyone saw a grand, sweeping calligraphic long scroll, its ink vibrant and its spirit unrestrained.

"Further Ode to the Red Cliff?" Someone with sharp eyes noticed the beginning of the Further Ode to the Red Cliff appearing about a third of the way down the scroll. "Both Odes to the Red Cliff?" Elder Tian paused briefly, somewhat surprised, but quickly composed himself.

After all, he himself had once written both Odes together in one piece, and with precedents like Zhao Mengfu, Zhu Yunming, and Dong Qichang, a combined 'two-in-one' situation was hardly novel. At the same moment, someone praised, "The writing here is quite good." Since this was the Calligraphy and Painting Association, naturally, some members studied calligraphy.

After a quick glance, they observed the scroll’s characters possessed well-balanced spacing and rhythm, with variations in ink intensity—the first impression was excellent. However, as they delved deeper into the study, some immediately frowned.

It wasn't because it was poor, but rather… it was too good. "A master, absolutely a master," A moment later, an elder exclaimed with excitement, "The brushwork in these characters is rich and full; the structure of the script is expansive, light on the horizontals and heavy on the verticals—it deeply captures the essence of Su Dongpo's calligraphy." This elder's critique pointed out the more obvious characteristics of Su Dongpo’s writing.

Among the Four Great Masters of the Northern Song—Su, Huang, Mi, and Cai—Su Dongpo used heavy pressure in his brushwork; Huang Tingjian used a lighter touch; Mi Fu wrote rapidly; and Cai Xiang favored an abrasive, scratching style. Everyone possesses a distinct style.

Coincidentally, this elder specialized in Su Dongpo’s running script and was intimately familiar with his characters. Knowing the difficulty of replicating his style so faithfully, he couldn't help but marvel upon seeing something written so convincingly.

"That's right, it's incredibly similar," Someone nearby concurred, "Even though it's large-scale script, the brushwork is natural and unrestrained, carrying strong nuances of running script. This mirrors Dongpo Jushi's style, which avoided rigid adherence to calligraphic rules." Because the scroll was so long, everyone viewed a different section.

Some saw the beginning, others the middle, and naturally, some noticed the end. It was then that someone's expression grew peculiar, "It’s not just the calligraphic style that is similar; the inscription signature is also that of Dongpo Jushi." "What?" Many people gasped in surprise and rushed towards the end of the scroll to look.

"Not only the signature but also the colophons from Dongpo Jushi himself, including Huang Shangu, Zhu Xi, and others," someone else interjected, their expression equally complex—a mixture of surprise, bewilderment, confusion, and doubt. "Really?" At this point, many others noticed that after the main text of the Odes to the Red Cliff, there were indeed successive colophons.

Each colophon had a different handwriting style, clearly penned by different individuals. Elder Tian scanned them briefly and formed a preliminary judgment.

Barely containing the surging excitement within him, he immediately turned back and asked, "Wang Guan, what is the story behind this?" "What story?" Wang Guan feigned ignorance, his face relaxed and amiable with a smile. "Stop playing games," Elder Tian laughingly chided him, pressing further, "Where did this come from?

Is this an authentic work by Dongpo Jushi?" "Something I just managed to acquire," Wang Guan beamed, "Whether it's real or fake, I wanted Elder Tian to lend his expert eye to examine it." "Not a single honest word..." Sometimes, telling the truth meant no one believed you. Elder Tian shot Wang Guan a glare, tinged with a hint of reproach.

However, he didn't have time to argue with Wang Guan. He immediately waved for the others to step back a few paces, then instructed someone to fetch his equipment from the room.

"Brother Tian, is it real?" Meanwhile, Elder Xing, Elder Ji, and the others had realized the immense significance of this long scroll. Everyone was extremely animated and excited, their eyes shining with anticipation.

A complete long scroll of Su Dongpo's Odes to the Red Cliff—if confirmed as genuine—would undoubtedly be a priceless national treasure, comparable to, or perhaps even surpassing, the status of the Huangzhou Cold Food Tablet housed in the Taipei Palace Museum. After all, the Cold Food Tablet contained only two poems, whereas this scroll held both Odes—in terms of sheer word count, it already outweighed the Cold Food Tablet.

Of course, the quantity of text could never determine the quality of the work. The authentic manuscripts of the Sage of Calligraphy, Wang Xizhi, were mostly brief expressions of courtesy, sometimes only twenty words long, yet they were considered unparalleled treasures.

This illustrates that what truly dictates the quality of a work is never the word count, but the quality of the script and its added value. The so-called added value naturally refers to the various colophons by famous figures included in the long scroll, the fascinating anecdotes from its provenance, and the scholarly significance of the work itself...

Regardless, the value of the object could be discussed later; the most crucial step now was determining its authenticity. Otherwise, if it turned out to be a forgery, all the joy would be in vain.

"I must study it before I can give a definitive answer," Under everyone's watchful gaze, Elder Tian shook his head slightly, unwilling to jump to conclusions. He simultaneously signaled, "Brother Ji, call Brother Chi and the others immediately." "Right, right, I almost forgot them," Elder Ji snapped back to awareness and hastily made the call.

Just then, someone brought Elder Tian's equipment—a portable leather case. Upon opening it, one could see it was packed with numerous items; there were over a dozen magnifying glasses alone.

Knowing the object's precious nature, Elder Tian dared not treat it casually. After donning white gloves, he picked up a magnifying glass and began his meticulous examination.

However, he wasn't studying the text or the colophons first, but the paper itself. "It's silk," While studying, Elder Tian casually inquired, "Wang Guan, what are the characteristics of Song Dynasty silk?" Wang Guan understood that Elder Tian was not ignorant but was using him as a conduit to explain his actions to the others.

He promptly and seriously replied, "Song Dynasty silk threads, both warp and weft, were single filaments, making the threads relatively thick and the color deeper. Furthermore, as time progresses, weathering creates a bright, smooth patina, imbued with an ancient, lustrous, and antique charm." "If it were counterfeit silk, the weaving technique would be wrong from the start.

Moreover, artificially aging silk fabric would inevitably leave behind various obvious traces. Therefore, generally speaking, those who forge paintings and calligraphy rarely dare to tamper with the silk medium itself." With Wang Guan's explanation, everyone's eyes lit up.

By this logic, the possibility that the piece was authentic had increased once more. "This is not silk produced by modern techniques," At this point, Elder Tian nodded with certainty, but just as everyone began to look pleased, he dampened the mood, "Of course, we cannot rule out the possibility of a skillful imitation..."