"Immortals, you mean?" "Those who seek no fame or fortune, who genuinely pursue poetry, calligraphy, and painting as their passion."

Wang Guan explained, with a hint of genuine admiration in his voice, "Unlike Tang Bohu or Wen Zhengming who repeatedly failed examinations, Shen Zhou never served as an official and was exceptionally filial. Once, an official sought to employ him as a strategist, but he unhesitatingly refused, citing the need to care for his aging mother."

"Precisely. Shen Zhou lived by the principle: 'While my parents are alive, I shall not travel far.' He served his mother his entire life, until she passed away at the venerable age of ninety-nine, by which time he himself was eighty."

Pi Qiushi sighed profoundly, "According to ancient customs, one must observe mourning for three years after a parent's death, and Shen Zhou fulfilled this duty. However, three years later, he too passed away."

Hearing this, the others were moved to some extent. By modern standards, many ancient customs seemed inhumane and unnecessary. Yet, Wang Guan was certain that most people in antiquity held a far deeper understanding of filial piety than many today.

After a moment of reflection, their attention returned to the calligraphy and painting. Earlier, Pi Qiushi had mentioned that many of Shen Zhou's works were forgeries, and that some, even when known to be copies, Shen Zhou himself had allegedly helped inscribe with calligraphy, warranting extreme caution.

Hearing this, Yu Feibai also began to harbor doubts. "Surely Wang Zhi’s luck couldn't be that abysmal, could it?"

"That's hard to say. He was a great pirate; collecting such artworks was likely an attempt to appear cultured. It’s perfectly normal for him to be fooled due to a lack of connoisseurship," Wang Guan chuckled. "Don't assume that because the pieces are from a similar era, they must be originals. Even if they are copies, since they survived through that time, they can’t be called forgeries now—they are imitations."

"Imitations?" Yu Feibai frowned, scrutinizing the painting closely, unable to immediately judge if it was genuine or a copy.

"Enough," Wang Guan said. "Let's pack up for now. We can study it properly when we get back." At the same time, Wang Guan smiled. "Take what you wish to keep, and the rest... how do you plan to handle it?"

"Sell it. Straight to the bank," Yu Feibai replied casually. "Selling them off in batches is too much trouble."

"True enough." Wang Guan nodded slightly, not pressing for further details, as he'd simply be waiting for his share of the money anyway. For now, the task was to lift two or three large crates, load them onto the vehicle, and then speed back to the grand residence.

"Old Man Qian, we need an appraisal on a painting!"

As soon as they entered, Yu Feibai rushed in shouting, "They say it’s a replica, but I think it’s genuine!"

"Whoa, when did we say it was a replica? Don't put words in our mouths. We merely expressed suspicion. After all, the item is quite precious and requires careful authentication," Wang Guan retorted, keen to avoid Yu Feibai claiming any glory later should the painting prove to be authentic, suggesting Wang Guan had been overly critical.

"What painting is so important that you treat it with such seriousness?" Old Man Qian asked, intrigued. "Which master's work is it?"

"Shen Zhou’s long landscape scroll," Wang Guan smiled. "Judging by the broad brushstrokes, it should be a late-period work."

"Really?" Old Man Qian looked pleasantly surprised.

"We just aren't entirely certain if it’s authentic, which is why we sought your esteemed guidance." As he spoke, Wang Guan and the others quickly cleared the table, then carefully unrolled the nearly two-meter-long landscape scroll, inviting Old Man Qian to appreciate it closely.

Old Man Qian’s gaze swept over it, and he immediately chuckled, "It certainly looks like a late-period piece." This was primarily because Shen Zhou favored smaller formats early in his career. After middle age, he began creating larger works. His middle-aged style was rigorous and delicate, with restrained and strong brushwork that emphasized structural integrity. His later years featured looser, bolder brushwork and immense momentum. Thus, the size and brushwork of the painting generally allowed one to determine the period. Of course, if the inscription on the scroll didn't match the style, one might suspect forgery. The date on the inscription indicated the tenth year of the Hongzhi era, which, chronologically, did indeed place it in Shen Zhou's later years—no immediate issue there. Furthermore, there was a square red seal reading 'Youzhu Zhuang' at the beginning of the scroll, Shen Zhou’s own colophon at the end, and two white seals, 'Shitian' and 'Shuiyun Ju'.

After closely examining the inscription and seals, Old Man Qian suddenly frowned, appearing deep in contemplation. Seeing this, Wang Guan grew alert. "Old Man Qian, is something amiss with the painting?"

"No rush, let me look closer," Old Man Qian murmured, scrutinizing the mountains, trees, rivers, and landscapes depicted in the scroll. However, the more he looked, the more his brow furrowed.

"No way," Yu Feibai observed his expression and exclaimed in surprise, "Is my luck really that terrible?"

"It’s not your bad luck; it’s Wang Zhi’s," Wang Guan smiled faintly. "He was terribly unfortunate to have bought, or perhaps seized, a fake painting by accident."

"Are you certain it's a forgery?" Yu Feibai glanced at him. "Tell me, where exactly is the flaw?"

"I'm not deeply familiar with Shen Zhou’s works," Wang Guan chose his words carefully. "And the brushwork style of this piece is incredibly similar and convincing; I genuinely can't find any fault with it..."

"Then why waste breath?" Yu Feibai pouted. "I thought you had spotted some real weakness."

"No major flaw, but there is a minor one," Wang Guan said with a smile. "I owe Old Man Qian’s expression for guiding me smoothly to discover something that doesn't quite fit."

"What's wrong?" Yu Feibai pressed immediately. Even Old Man Qian paused his study, turning back with a subtle smile to see if Wang Guan had truly found something.

Wang Guan smiled and stated frankly, "I dare not say more about other aspects right now, but the seals seem a bit off."

"The seals?" Yu Feibai hesitated. "Youzhu Zhuang, Shitian, Shuiyun Ju—what’s wrong with those? Youzhu Zhuang and Shuiyun Ju were places Shen Zhou resided, and Shitian was his sobriquet. That seems normal, right?"

"It is abnormal," Hearing this, Pi Qiushi was the first to react, feeling like a cloud had lifted. He then laughed, "Shen Zhou, courtesy name Qinan, sobriquet Shitian—that is correct. Since he never served the government, he devoted himself to landscape, living in seclusion in the countryside. Naming his residences Youzhu Zhuang and Shuiyun Ju is also entirely unproblematic."

"After all, ancient literati always enjoyed giving elegant names to their dwellings, like Su Dongpo’s Xuetang, Tang Bohu’s Peach Blossom Hermitage, or Pu Songling’s Zhaizhi. This is quite common." While speaking, before Yu Feibai could urge him on, Pi Qiushi revealed the answer: "However, in his later years, Shen Zhou adopted the sobriquet 'Baishi Weng' (Old Man of White Stone), or 'Yutian Weng'. To be precise, around the twentieth year of Chenghua, when he was fifty-eight, he began calling himself Baishi Weng and used that seal impression on his works subsequently. But this work is from the Hongzhi period, yet it still bears the Shitian seal. That is clearly inconsistent."

When men in ancient times dared to call themselves 'old man' in their thirties, adopting the title 'Weng' at fifty-eight was actually rather late. Moreover, Ming Dynasty scholars were meticulous about their seals; they used the correct seal for the appropriate period and never accidentally mixed them up. Therefore, this flaw was by no means minor; in fact, it was a very obvious major problem.

"It really is a fake." Disappointment flooded Yu Feibai’s face.

"It shouldn't be called a fake; it should be called an imitation," Wang Guan corrected. "Didn't we discuss this earlier? Shen Zhou was a genuine professional painter; his main income came from selling his art. But due to his immense fame and the popularity of his paintings, many people at the time made a living producing fakes of him. He was magnanimous, took it calmly, and never held a grudge, which is why he was so highly respected."

"Historical records note that Shen Zhou might paint a piece in the morning, and shortly after it sold, a copy would appear by the afternoon, spreading throughout major Jiangnan cities within ten days," Wang Guan recounted with a smile. "The quality of these imitations was not low; even Shen Zhou’s disciple, Wen Zhengming, was once fooled. Apparently, one day he purchased what he thought was a Shen Zhou work for eight hundred cash. A friend visiting admired it greatly and asked him to part with it. Wen Zhengming refused. The friend immediately departed, only to return later after purchasing an identical piece from an antique shop, leaving Wen Zhengming dumbfounded when he realized he had been mistaken and bought a fake."

"It wasn't just Wen Zhengming; even Emperor Qianlong was fooled," Pi Qiushi chimed in with a slight chuckle. "Over centuries, most of Shen Zhou's forgeries vanished into the river of history, but some have survived. The prime example is the Shen Zhou Landscape Hanging Scroll housed in the National Palace Museum in Taipei. It was collected by the Qing Palace during the Qianlong era, listed in the Shíqu Bǎo Jí, and even bears seven imperial seals from Qing Dynasty emperors. But regrettably, that piece is an unmistakable old imitation."

"Tsk, he only has himself to blame, Emperor Qianlong," Yu Feibai sneered. "He misjudged the item due to his own poor eyesight but was too proud to admit it. Since he declared it genuine, none of his ministers dared to contradict him, so they just let the mistake stand."

"Exactly, exactly..." The others nodded in agreement.

"We’re getting sidetracked," Wang Guan said, smiling. "Since it’s only a minor flaw, at most it raises suspicion about the work’s authenticity. Truly confirming its genuineness requires starting from the most fundamental aspect." The most fundamental aspect, naturally, was the brushwork and style of the piece. An imitation, no matter how good, always had vulnerabilities. The seal inscription was one thing; there were certainly others.

"Old Man Qian, what do you think?" Yu Feibai immediately asked. "Are there any other flaws in this painting?" As Wang Guan had said, the seal inscription was a minor issue that caused doubt but left room for the slight hope that perhaps Shen Zhou had mistakenly used the wrong seal.

"Wang Guan is correct; the possibility of this being an imitation is very high." However, at this moment, a single sentence from Old Man Qian shattered Yu Feibai’s lingering hope.

"Why is that?" Having lost hope, Yu Feibai seriously asked for instruction. "Besides the seal, what else is inconsistent?" (To be continued…)