Seeing their suspicious gazes, Wang Guan remained remarkably relaxed, offering a smile and a gesture: "Old Zhang, whether this thing is a sesame seed or a watermelon, why don't you take a look before you judge?"

"Of course I have to look."

At this point, Elder Zhang managed to steady his nerves. As he brought out the oversized brush, he spoke, "Though I trust you wouldn't be so unwise, I also feared you might have momentarily lost your head..."

"Oh?"

As he spoke, Elder Zhang's hand swept over the thick, stout brush handle, and he hesitated slightly: "This feels like metal... No wonder it's so heavy."

"That's right, the handle is made of copper, just coated with a layer of black lacquer," Wang Guan nodded and smiled. "The craftsmanship is excellent."

"It’s just a copper tube with an iron core, what craftsmanship is there to discuss?"

However, Elder Zhang shook his head. "If it were made of bamboo, wood, jade, or even gold, silver, or ceramic, and could be proven to be an ancient imperial implement, then a value of a million wouldn't be out of the question. But for copper and iron items, the price is drastically discounted. Besides, this thing is black from end to end, without any distinguishing features—it just doesn't look valuable no matter how you examine it."

Elder Zhang's assessment was perfectly fair. The large brush was certainly big, but it was uniformly black—not only was the lacquered handle black, but the brush tip was also black, and not even thoroughly so, showing hints of mixed coloration.

Generally, when a color reaches an extreme purity, it begins to emit a sheen. Take black pottery, for instance: a black that shines, a pitch-black color filled with an elegant aura. This massive brush, however, exhibited no such quality; instead, it had a mottled, grayish-black patina. In summary, its poor outward appearance naturally diminished its perceived value.

Thinking this, Elder Zhang's brow furrowed like the character 'Chuan' (), his face etched with confusion. "Wang Guan, you shouldn't have misjudged this item's worth. I genuinely don't understand why you chose it. Have you suddenly changed your nature, hoping to mend fences with Longhu Mountain?"

"How could that be," Wang Guan chuckled lightly. "I am captivated by money and have no faith in gods or Buddhas. I chose this item for my own reasons. Elder Zhang, you know I visited Hanzhong; do you know why I went there?"

"Hmm?"

Elder Zhang paused, mainly because the topic had jumped so abruptly; he naturally failed to grasp the connection. It was Fang Mingsheng who suddenly seemed to have an idea, his expression a mixture of surprise and elation. "You mean there's a subtle hidden mechanism within this large brush?"

"Precisely."

Wang Guan admitted it directly, smiling. "When I picked up the brush, I immediately felt something was off. Not just because it was constructed of metal, but mainly because of its significant weight. Typically, for a large brush of this size, if it were metal, the handle ought to be hollow to be reasonable. Yet, this one is solid, which struck me as odd..."

"While the brush is heavy, I didn't find anything particularly strange about it," Elder Zhang frowned.

"It's mainly because you haven't visited the Hanzhong Mechanism Research Institute, Old Man."

At this, Wang Guan explained with a smile, "Otherwise, you'd react just as I did. After that visit, I've developed a lingering 'wind-blown bird, grass-turned-soldier' syndrome; now I suspect every object might conceal a secret mechanism."

"Exactly, exactly..."

Fang Mingsheng wholeheartedly agreed. "I have the same symptoms, especially when I see boxes or cases; my first instinct is to guess if they have any hidden mechanism."

Elder Zhang seemed to grasp something. He then examined the large brush closely, hesitating. "Wang Guan, when you say this thing has a mechanism, is that your suspicion, or have you actually found one?"

"Of course, I found the mechanism," Wang Guan smiled. "I'm not a fool; I wouldn't discard the Fisherman's Painting for this brush based on a fleeting suspicion."

"Then what is hidden inside the mechanism?" Elder Zhang naturally pressed.

"I'm not entirely sure about that," Wang Guan feigned ignorance. "The situation was rather rushed; as soon as I discovered the mechanism, Zhang Qing came upstairs, and I couldn't continue investigating..."

"In that case, there's a bit of risk involved," Elder Zhang frowned. "If this brush merely has a mechanism but nothing is stored inside, wouldn't you have lost out?"

"It’s a gamble, a toss of the dice."

Wang Guan’s smile was warm and expansive. "You both know my luck has never been poor. Since I found a clue, there’s no reason to pass up such an item. Besides, I can afford the loss; at worst, I'll wait another year."

"I don't believe Longhu Mountain, having tasted the benefits, would only rent the Zitan Sinking Wood Beads for one year. When the lease expires next year, I’ll demand the Fisherman's Painting outright; they’ll have to give it up."

Put plainly, this was Wang Guan's calculation. Otherwise, the rental terms wouldn't have been so straightforward, not as draconian as Zhang Qing and the others had imagined. Killing the goose to get the golden egg might yield immediate profit, but a steady stream is the true path. It was like growing leeks: as long as you don't dig up the roots, you can harvest stalk after stalk. Only by casting a long line can one catch a big fish...

"You treat them like an ATM?"

Elder Zhang was momentarily speechless, stifling a laugh. "You are clearly viewing them as fat sheep, shearing them annually."

"You can't put it that way; this is mutually beneficial," Wang Guan argued with righteous conviction. "Don't look at it as them hemorrhaging resources now; they will surely recoup their investment with interest down the line. By comparison, they are eating the meat, and I am only sipping the soup."

This wasn't false modesty after gaining an advantage; given Longhu Mountain’s capabilities and possessing a treasure like the Zitan Sinking Wood Beads, the two elements complemented each other perfectly, certain to yield grand results.

In this era, besides women's money, religious organizations were probably the easiest to earn from. Otherwise, why would a swarm of 'Masters' pop up every year, causing city-wide commotion?

The concept of freedom of belief states that if one's heart is sincere, the spirits will respond. If you don't believe, others will. Furthermore, despite Wang Guan’s claims of not believing in immortals or Buddhas, when he actually entered a Buddhist or Taoist temple, he couldn't avoid the common practice of lighting a few sticks of incense as a gesture of respect. This seeming contradiction was actually a very common and subtle psychological trait.

"Stop talking nonsense," Elder Zhang interrupted, unwilling to delve into religious matters, pulling the conversation back. "Where is the mechanism you mentioned?"

"It's in the..."

Just as Wang Guan prepared to point it out, Elder Zhang suddenly changed his mind and held up a hand to stop him. "Never mind, don't tell me yet; let me find it myself."

Saying this, Elder Zhang placed the large brush on a nearby table and began to observe and explore it carefully. He quickly locked onto the key to deciphering the mechanism at the upper end of the brush handle. After all, compared to the smooth, seamless, and black-lacquered handle, the top, which was sealed and tied with ribbon, was indeed the most suspect area.

"It should be here," Elder Zhang murmured.

Elder Zhang studied it for a moment, noticing a small screw at the top of the handle where the ribbon was tied through a hole. After some contemplation, he tentatively pressed the screw but found it completely immovable.

For a moment, Elder Zhang seemed to be wrestling with the screw. Pushing didn't work, so he tried turning it, then rubbing, pinching, and pulling, but the screw remained unresponsive.

After a while, Elder Zhang temporarily gave up, his eyes filled with doubt. "Wang Guan, is there really a mechanism in this brush?"

"Of course, would I lie to you, Old Man?" Wang Guan nodded seriously, then smiled, "If you don't believe me, shall I crack the mechanism open?"

"Fine, you do it."

Elder Zhang didn't fuss; he simply stepped aside. The old man was straightforward—if he couldn't do it, he let the capable person take over, unwilling to dawdle for the sake of face. Nor should one assume Elder Zhang lacked skill; it was just a matter of specialized knowledge—not everyone studied the mechanics of contraptions.

Even Wang Guan, without cheating, would probably have been stumped by this large brush. But now, knowing the secrets of the mechanism, he was naturally at ease, handling it effortlessly.

"Elder Zhang, actually, you should have been a bit more patient," Wang Guan said with a smile. "Your inspection of the tip was the correct breakthrough point; it was just the direction that was wrong. It shouldn't be the top of the handle, but the bottom end..."

The lower end of the handle was, in fact, the brush tip. Since this was a large brush, the tip was naturally not small, splaying out like a miniature broom. According to Elder Zhang's earlier assessment, the bristles were likely horsehair, which doesn't absorb ink well, suggesting the tip was purely decorative and rarely used for actual writing.

Now, Wang Guan pushed the bristles aside and indeed found a stopper inside the handle.

Ordinarily, brush making involved hollowing out the bottom end of the handle and then inserting the tip. But this large brush had an extra small stopper, which was decidedly unusual.

Since Wang Guan knew this stopper was the key, he immediately reached out, pressed down hard, and gave it a twist.

" Kacha! "

The sound of the mechanism engaging confirmed Wang Guan was right; the object did indeed conceal a secret. At that very moment, the screw at the upper end of the handle—which Elder Zhang had been unable to budge—suddenly sprang outward.

"Oh, so that's how it opens," Elder Zhang exclaimed in astonishment and quickly leaned in to observe. Once the screw popped out, an opening appeared in the handle. However, the aperture was small, only large enough to fit a thumb.

For an adult-arm-thick handle to contain an internal opening the size of a thumb immediately spoke volumes. Moreover, Wang Guan had verified the brush had a mechanism, heightening the anticipation regarding the handle's interior. Did it truly hide something? If so, was it some treasure?

With this thought, Elder Zhang immediately lifted the slightly heavy handle and gently shook it. A moment later, there was a soft pa, and something seemed to fall out of the aperture in the handle.

"It really hid something!"

In an instant, everyone present experienced a surge of joyous surprise and quickly looked down at the tabletop.

"Huh?"

At first glance, everyone froze. Looking around, the tabletop appeared empty, with no particular discovery.

"Did it fall on the floor?"

Elder Zhang frowned, bending down to search the floorboards.