Chapter 19: The Chuigong Collection

Qiunuo took up her brush without hesitation, her hand moving with fluid grace. The 196 characters flowed from her brush as naturally as drifting clouds and flowing water. By the time she set the brush down, Wei Yong, who had approached with skepticism, was left struck with astonishment.

The 196 characters Qiunuo had written on the rice paper were vigorous and powerful, soaring like dragons and dancing like phoenixes. Wei Yong was completely mesmerized.

"Miss Qiu, your calligraphy is masterful. I, Wei, have been ignorant and narrow-minded; I never imagined that the 'Qiushan Scroll' was merely a preliminary attempt, and that the true genius lay in these 196 characters," Wei Yong said, unable to tear his eyes away from the work. "Would you be willing to gift this piece to me?"

"If Secretary Wei likes it, then consider it a small display of my clumsy skill," Qiunuo replied with a graceful, modest smile.

Wei Yong glanced at Yue Leiting, who stood by in silence, and smiled. "Mr. Yue, your trip was not in vain. An unintentional act has yielded a fruitful result, allowing me to witness the 'Sanqiu Masterpiece.' Though not the original, judging by Miss Qiu’s skill, it is likely indistinguishable from the authentic work. I must thank you for this, Mr. Yue."

Yue Leiting finally breathed a sigh of relief. He had not expected Qiunuo to inadvertently help him out of a tight spot. Seeing Wei Yong in such high spirits, he felt the favor had been repaid.

My gaze was not on the calligraphy that had so enthralled Wei Yong, but fixed on Qiunuo in a daze, my face filled with bewilderment and confusion.

Wei Yong spent a long time discussing calligraphy with Qiunuo with great interest, but I didn't hear a single word; my mind was in complete disarray.

On the way back, I didn't say a word. Yue Leiting, having successfully resolved such a major issue, was in high spirits and failed to notice the change in my expression. Back at the hotel, I brought Qiunuo into the living room without a second thought, my anxiety palpable.

"How do you know the 196 characters that follow the 'Sanqiu Masterpiece'?" I asked bluntly.

"Aunt Qing taught me when I was young... Brother Yanhui... what is wrong?" Qiunuo asked, looking surprised.

"Aunt Qing also knows the calligraphy from the 'Sanqiu Masterpiece'?!" I asked, even more shocked.

"I don't know if Aunt Qing knows it herself. My mother was rarely around when I was growing up, so it was always Aunt Qing who taught me. I remember she was especially strict with me; I had to learn everything from music and chess to calligraphy and painting. She made me copy the 'Sanqiu Masterpiece' endlessly; I suffered quite a bit for it," Qiunuo explained.

"You... you mean!" I stared at her, wide-eyed. "You’ve been copying the real 'Sanqiu Masterpiece' since you were a child?!"

"Yes! Otherwise, how would I know the final 196 characters? And I knew Uncle Yue’s 'Qiushan Scroll' was a fake without even looking closely at it," Qiunuo said, lifting her head calmly. "Because the original has always been in my home."

I was speechless for a long time, standing there in a daze, unable to make sense of so many things.

"By the way! I knew Uncle Yue’s was fake because I knew the original was at my house," Qiunuo asked with sudden curiosity. "Then... how did you know it was fake without even looking?"

I walked to the window, lost in thought, and took a deep breath. "Because the 'Book of Burials' records that the 'Sanqiu Masterpiece' is in the Qianling Mausoleum!"

Qiunuo looked up, her face full of confusion. "How could the 'Sanqiu Masterpiece' be in the Qianling Mausoleum?"

"In fact, the 'Sanqiu Masterpiece' was not written by Yu Guangwen. You know Tang dynasty history well, so you should know who Yu Guangwen’s master was."

"Wu... Wu Zetian was deeply fond of cursive script and once summoned Yu Guangwen to the palace to teach her calligraphy."

"The student surpassed the master. Perhaps even Yu Guangwen did not expect that Wu Zetian’s mastery of calligraphy would far exceed his own," I said, looking out the window. "Wu Zetian emulated Wang Xizhi. After drinking, she wrote 276 characters in one go, which later became the 'Sanqiu Masterpiece.' Even Yu Guangwen had to admit his inferiority. Unfortunately, as an empress, her behavior had to be orthodox; losing composure while intoxicated would have harmed the imperial dignity, so she attributed the 'Sanqiu Masterpiece' to Yu Guangwen."

"Then... what happened later?"

"Wu Zetian could never recapture the feeling she had while intoxicated that day, and the calligraphy she wrote afterward could not be compared to the 'Sanqiu Masterpiece.' Therefore, she treated it as a priceless treasure and had it buried with her in the Qianling Mausoleum when she passed away." I turned back to look at the bewildered Qiunuo. "That is why I was so shocked when I saw you write it."

"Since it is a peerless work, perhaps Yu Guangwen made a copy that was passed down to posterity?"

"What Wu Zetian wrote was an imperial brushwork; how many heads did Yu Guangwen have to dare steal the original?!" I shook my head and sighed. "How could Aunt Qing have something from inside the Qianling Mausoleum? Could it be... that Aunt Qing has been inside the Qianling Mausoleum?!"

"That shouldn't be possible. Aunt Qing hopes you will find the Ming Fourteen Tombs. To help you, she didn't hesitate to take out the 'Luoxuan Divine Strategy' and the Buddha's true relic. If she had been to the Qianling Mausoleum and needed the Imperial Jade Seal now, there would be no reason for her not to give it to you."

I agreed with Qiunuo’s logic and sighed, sitting back on the sofa.

"Besides teaching you to copy the 'Sanqiu Masterpiece,' what else did Aunt Qing teach you?"

"She taught me everything—all sorts of cumbersome rituals and etiquette, as well as music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. I suffered a lot as a child," Qiunuo recalled, her memories still vivid. "But I seemed to have a talent for calligraphy, so Aunt Qing arranged for me to spend more time practicing that. However, most of the time, I was copying my mother's calligraphy."

"Aunt Li’s calligraphy?" I thought, lost in contemplation. "Does Aunt Li know calligraphy too?"

"My mother didn't just know it; her level is one I still cannot reach. Her calligraphy was grand and magnificent, with endless charm and rhythm that stirs the soul," Qiunuo said firmly. "Especially a few pieces that were powerful, unrestrained, and strictly disciplined. Her style was vigorous and elegant, her brushwork fluid, her structure perfectly balanced, and every stroke resounded with strength."

"Whose calligraphy is so good? The way you describe it, it sounds like something not of this world," said Yue Qianling and Xiao Lianshan, who had just walked in.

"Brother Yanhui and I were talking about calligraphy, and we happened to mention my mother," Qiunuo replied with a sweet smile.

"Qiunuo, hearing you describe it so well, I’ve become quite interested in calligraphy. Why don't you show us a few strokes today?" Yue Qianling sat down beside Qiunuo with a smile.

I was also quite interested in Li Zhao’s calligraphy, especially after hearing Qiunuo’s evocative description.

"Exactly. The 'Sanqiu Masterpiece' you wrote for Wei Yong was praised even by someone as picky as him. Since you say Aunt Li’s calligraphy is even better and you’ve received her true teachings since childhood, you must write a piece to broaden our horizons."

Qiunuo did not decline. She rolled up her sleeves, Xiao Lianshan prepared the brush and ink, and Qiunuo began to write gracefully on the desk in the living room.

Yue Qianling watched in silence for a long time, her face filled with joy and admiration.

"Qiunuo, you are too amazing! I didn't realize your calligraphy was this good. It’s grand, majestic, and ethereal. It captures the spirit of the two Wangs while having your own unique style. If this were passed down for a few generations, it would be a treasure."

Qiunuo smiled modestly, her hand not pausing for a moment. Soon, half the rice paper was filled. Xiao Lianshan didn't know what made for good calligraphy, but seeing Yue Qianling’s astonishment, he tilted his head to read the characters.

"The Jianwen [Emperor] offered infinite alms, and the three Huai rivers boiled with waves, the five peaks erupted with smoke. Temples filled the roads, yet could not save the disaster of collapse. Monks covered the paths, yet where was the army to aid the king..."

Xiao Lianshan hadn't read many books; if Yue Qianling hadn't reminded him, he wouldn't have recognized many of the characters. He struggled to read a single line, but he had no idea what it meant.

"Clang!"

The sudden sound startled Qiunuo, Yue Qianling, and Xiao Lianshan, who had been fully focused. They looked up to see that the cup in my hand had shattered on the floor. I stood up slowly from the sofa, my hands rising slightly, my lips trembling as I muttered in a trance.

"The next sentence... the next sentence is: 'Even if the monks' money is collected, it cannot support one in a hundred. The statues are vast, yet they cannot be left exposed. Covering them with a hundred layers, I still worry it is not enough. As for the remaining corridors, they cannot be entirely absent. The Tathagata established the teachings, with compassion as the essence!'"

Yue Qianling tilted her head to look at what Qiunuo had written; it was exactly the same as what I had said.

"Wow, I didn't realize you were so learned, knowing exactly what Qiunuo was writing."

"Brother Yanhui, how... how did you know what I was writing?"

My raised hands trembled as I asked in confusion, "These... these were written by your mother?!"

"Yes, my mother loved calligraphy, especially the works of the two Wangs. Combined with her love for Tang history, she would copy various Tang documents in her calligraphy. Later, she had me copy them. But it’s strange—after I started studying Tang history, I discovered that these documents don't exist at all. I don't know where my mother found them."

I took a deep breath and couldn't help but step backward.

"How could she have found them..."

"Brother, you seem to know what this is," Xiao Lianshan asked with concern, seeing my unusual expression. "Brother, are you alright?"

"This is the 'Cui Gong Collection'! It is impossible for anyone in the world to know its contents, because the 'Cui Gong Collection' is buried in the Qianling Mausoleum!"

"The 'Cui Gong Collection'?" Yue Qianling, who studied archaeology, widened her eyes at the name. "Are you saying that what Qiunuo is writing is the 'Cui Gong Collection' that Wu Zetian specifically instructed Li Xian to bury with her before she died?"

I nodded stiffly.

"How... how could this be the 'Cui Gong Collection'? My mother always kept it casually in the study. If it were such a precious thing, she would have cherished it. Besides, I got many of the pages dirty when I was copying them," Qiunuo said, even more stunned.

"What are you talking about? What is the 'Cui Gong Collection'?"

"The 'Cui Gong Collection' was written by Wu Zetian, emulating the running script of Wang Xizhi. It consists of one hundred volumes, recording many major court events from the reigns of Emperor Gaozong and Wu Zetian. It has significant historical value for studying Tang history and uncovering many mysteries of the era," Yue Qianling said like a treasure trove. "At the same time, the 'Cui Gong Collection' is also a masterpiece of Chinese calligraphic art, written by Wu Zetian during her spare time from state affairs in the Wang style!"