ebookslot Chapter 19 Breaking the Stone to Obtain an Interior View
Chapter 19 Breaking the Stone to Obtain an Interior View
So-called fate is actually an equal exchange.
This is the true meaning of the existence of the Kiwanis.
Cheng Ting, from Longxing Trading Company, who had been influenced by his elders' business acumen since childhood, was the first to react and immediately took out a piece of paper:
"The president has gone to great lengths for the Tongji Association. This is the land deed for a courtyard house in the middle of Changle Street. I have always wanted to give it to the president as a token of my respect."
The first thing you see is a large mansion, located in a bustling area of the old district of Tianjin, on Changle Street.
Zhou Chongyue smiled and pointed to the upper left corner of the interior view, saying, "There is indeed a courtyard house in this picture. Cheng Ting, you are destined to see this picture."
Fang Qi and the others looked in the direction he was pointing, and there was indeed a house there.
But that house was not a courtyard house at all; it was clearly just a thatched hut.
However, this also made them understand the true meaning of the word "fate".
Zhou Wei, who works at Tongda Shipping, is similar to Cheng Ting in that she comes from a wealthy family. While she couldn't provide the traditional courtyard house, she directly gave her a share of the shipping revenue from her home.
Similarly, Zhou Chongyue pointed to a small ditch on the interior view and said that it was shipping, a matter of fate.
Compared to the two, Xu Fangjing, the daughter of the owner of the Xingyi Quan school, seems to have less of a connection with the interior painting.
After thinking for a long time, she hesitantly took out two gold leaves.
She acquired this gold leaf by chance some time ago. In terms of value alone, it is only worth two or three hundred dollars, but the leaf itself is exquisitely crafted and is undoubtedly a precious work of art.
Zhou Chongyue's eyes lit up instantly.
nice one!
The area, about the size of a leaf, is covered with intricate patterns, as if it contains a whole world.
While Zhou Chongyue was overjoyed, Fang Qi's expression turned strange.
The two gold leaves that Xu Fangjing took out were clearly the work he had made while researching the array patterns in "Divine Notes on Array Formations" in the cultivation world. He didn't have suitable materials at the moment, so he used gold leaves as a substitute.
Does the value change drastically simply because it's engraved with array patterns?
I remember that at the time, a total of seven gold leaves were used. Six of them were exchanged for silver dollars in the Republic of China era as ordinary gold leaves, and he still had one left...
Just as he was pondering this.
"Does Miss Xu also have these gold-inlaid ancient leaves?" Meng Yusen from Fenglei Martial Arts School also took out two gold leaves.
The pattern is different from Xu Fangjing's two pieces, but the craftsmanship is equally amazing.
"Ancient leaves inlaid with gold?" Xu Fangjing looked puzzled.
"Yes! Inlaid gold leaf, a court craft from the ancient Han Kingdom more than two thousand years ago."
Is that right?
Fang Qi suddenly realized that the advanced book "Divine Notes on Formations" wasn't entirely useless.
Zhou Chongyue carefully compared the four gold leaves and smiled, "It is indeed the gold inlay technique of the ancient Han Kingdom, but this item should not be from the ancient Han Kingdom period, but rather a replica made in the previous dynasty."
"Of course, no matter what era it is, fate is the most important thing."
He pointed to the leaves on the small peach tree in front of the thatched cottage in the upper left corner of the interior painting on the table and smiled, "You all have a connection with this painting."
With the four having confirmed their fates, only Fang Qi and Liu Yanru remained present.
Liu Yanru was a capable subordinate of Zhou Chongyue, the leader of the Qingyan Hall of the Black Dragon Society, so it was only natural that they were destined to meet.
Therefore, Fang Qi became the only one whose fate was not yet confirmed.
Meng Yusen looked at Fang Qi and sneered inwardly.
An outsider who fled to Tianjin from an unknown place due to family decline is already doing well to have a foothold. In terms of family background, how can he compare with them?
As I said before, if you're not part of a certain circle, don't force yourself to fit in.
This time, let's see how you make a fool of yourself.
Seeing Fang Qi's silence, Xu Fangjing guessed that he couldn't produce the "item of destiny," and smiled.
"The martial arts school in the new district has recruited quite a few apprentices. I've been a bit busy lately and haven't been able to send over my share of the profits on time." She took out two more gold leaves. "I hope you'll forgive me, sir."
Fang Qi and Xu Fangjing also reached an investment cooperation agreement for the martial arts school, but the new district martial arts school had only been open for a short time and had not generated much revenue.
Moreover, even if there were profits, the dividends would be far less valuable than two gold leaves that have already been named "Inlaid Gold Ancient Leaves".
Xu Fangjing's actions clearly indicate that she wants to help Fang Qi.
Zhou Chongyue saw through it but didn't say anything. For him, it didn't matter who brought up this "fate," what mattered was that the "fate" ended up in his hands.
Liu Yanru, Cheng Ting, and Zhou Wei looked at Xu Fangjing with considerable surprise.
Xu Fangjing was actually willing to give away such a wonderful item as the inlaid gold leaf as a favor.
To their even greater surprise, Fang Qi refused.
"I appreciate Miss Xu's kind offer."
After thanking him, Fang Qi took out a stone.
The stone was dull and cracked, neither round nor square in shape, and it didn't look hard at all, unlike the roadside stones.
How dare you even bring out such a piece of junk?
Meng Yusen's sneer was barely contained.
Do you really think that just because there's a rock in the interior picture, picking up a rock means it's "fate"?
It's utterly ridiculous.
And what kind of good person carries around a broken stone?
If it weren't for Chairman Zhou, Liu Yanru, and others being present, Meng Yusen would have mocked them on the spot.
"This thing..." Zhou Chongyue looked at the stone, his brows furrowing slightly.
He didn't think that Fang Qi, a young man with considerable shrewdness, would produce a useless stone, nor did he believe that Fang Qi still didn't know what "fate" was.
However, after examining the stone carefully several times, he couldn't find anything unusual about it.
"Mr. Fang, are you sure you didn't take the wrong one?"
Meng Yusen offered a "well-intentioned" reminder.
Fang Qi smiled faintly, walked to the side, took the candle from the incense stand, and shone it on the stone.
In an instant, that ordinary, broken stone shone with golden light, dazzling and eye-catching.
Everyone present, including Zhou Chongyue, was stunned.
They were all wealthy and powerful, and had seen all sorts of strange things. But a broken stone, which was worse than a roadside stone, turned into a dazzling golden stone under the candlelight, which really opened their eyes.
Liu Yanru, Xu Fangjing, Cheng Ting, and Zhou Wei stared wide-eyed, momentarily forgetting the interior scene diagram, and instead staring intently at the metal stone.
As for the kind-hearted Meng Yusen, his face was gleaming gold under the light of the stone, completely obscuring the iron-black color.
"Haha! Young Master Fang has a great connection with this painting!"
Zhou Chongyue pointed to the center of the interior scene, where there was a ferocious-looking tiger, and beneath the tiger was a huge rock.
Fang Qi smiled and handed the stone to Zhou Chongyue.
He had indeed been pondering what to use to buy "fate," and when he saw Xu Fangjing and Meng Yusen take out gold leaves, he had an inspiration.
As a cultivator, the stone he took out was naturally not just a roadside stone.
However, although this stone seemed mysterious, to him it was not much different from any other roadside stone.
He had been studying the array patterns in "Divine Notes on Array Formations" a few days ago. He not only carved array patterns on gold leaves, but also used up two spirit stones.
This stone is a metallic spirit stone whose spiritual power has been almost completely exhausted.
Even if only a trace of spiritual energy remains, and even if the array patterns within the spirit stone are not yet fully formed, it will still burst forth with spiritual light once lit.
There is no spiritual energy in this world, so the stone naturally has the effect of intimidating people.
Zhou Chongyue was very satisfied with the stone; in fact, he could say that it was the best and most unexpected of the five "destined encounters."
This child has an extraordinary background.
He glanced at Fang Qi, then smiled and said, "Since we are all destined to meet, this picture will be displayed in the association for everyone to see from now on."
"However, it can only be viewed during the event!"
"Thank you, Chairman." Cheng Ting, Meng Yusen, and the others were overjoyed.
Cultivating inner realms is difficult, but with the aid of inner realm diagrams, it's like having a lighthouse, greatly reducing the difficulty.
Fang Qi was equally delighted.
Trading a useless array-patterned spirit stone for the opportunity to cultivate an inner vision diagram—that's a huge profit.
With fate set, the meeting of the Tongji Society's Wangjiang branch expanded from the original two items of information exchange and martial arts sparring to include a third item: comprehension of inner vision diagrams.
However, the inner vision is the construction of a martial artist's spiritual world, and even with the guidance of the inner vision diagram, it cannot be accomplished overnight.
Meng Yusen, Cheng Ting, and the other three observed for a whole day, but felt dizzy and didn't understand anything.
Fang Qi fared slightly better. He had cultivation techniques and the aid of the [Nine Heavens Mysterious Mirror]. Although he hadn't gleaned anything from the inner vision diagram, he had memorized it.
After that, you no longer need to study actual pictures, and you can comprehend them anytime, anywhere.
"Inner vision enlightenment is a gradual process that requires both patience and a spark of inspiration."
Seeing that it was getting dark and the group hadn't made much progress, Zhou Chongyue put away the inner vision diagram and told everyone to go back and come back to study it next time.
After exchanging greetings, Meng Yusen and the others reluctantly left.
Liu Yanru saw Fang Qi out the door and then went back upstairs.
"Yanru, who do you think among them can comprehend it?"
Zhou Chongyue stood by the window, gently wiping the scroll of the painting.
"I can't guess," Liu Yanru said with a wry smile. "Meng Yusen and Cheng Ting are the strongest, so they're more likely to be included. Mr. Fang has high comprehension, so perhaps he's also a possibility?"
She herself cannot understand it, so how can she evaluate others?
Zhou Chongyue smiled meaningfully: "This painting is called 'Tiger Roaring Across Mountains and Rivers,' which I created after observing twelve different kinds of demons."
"Of the four of them, Cheng Ting and Zhou Wei have families that deal in demons and monsters, so they have the opportunity to come into close contact with them and thus have a slight chance of comprehending their secrets. As for Meng Yusen and Fang Qi..." He shook his head, "It's almost impossible."