"Why did he have to die at a time like this?"
Xiao He felt a sincere sense of disgust and disdain.
Don't give him any of that 'respect for the deceased' talk.
Once a person's eyes close, they're gone, but look at the world outside—how many people are running themselves ragged because of the crimes he committed, and how many others have lived their lives in regret because of him?
This kind of disloyal, unjust, unkind, and unrighteous person, who had no bottom line or morals, continued to cause trouble for others even in death.
"Now that he's dead, does it mean the whereabouts of the authentic 'stability of the world' painting are completely unknown?"
"And why did he suddenly pass away? Is it a real death or a fake one?"
It wasn't surprising that Xiao He suddenly had such suspicions; after all, the Yun Family had already dared to bring fakes into the country to scam people. Who could tell if this old man was truly gone or just faking it?
"I heard that because of what happened domestically, he got overly emotional and suffered a sudden fatal heart attack. As for whether the news is true or false, I don't know."
Qian Wenya spread her hands helplessly on the other end of the phone.
"However, my dad has already bought a ticket and is preparing to go abroad to see for himself."
Qian Wenya's father was Fourth Uncle Qian, the archaeology expert who had once fought with tomb raiders.
Compared to the others in the Qian Family, Fourth Uncle Qian was someone who had seen it all. He could go down into tombs for inspections and authenticate antiques, but he could also crack down on criminals. He had collaborated with Officer Chen from An City on several cultural relic cases.
With him making a special trip abroad, everyone felt relatively at ease.
Although Xiao He didn't know what kind of tricks the Yun Family was playing or if they were just in a death struggle, he wasn't particularly worried.
"Is Elder Qian doing okay after hearing this news?"
The Police had not yet publicly explained the part of the case involving Qian Congwen, but the Qian Family had still taken a bit of a hit.
Particularly those in the family pursuing careers in officialdom were most susceptible to the influence of these negative cases. After all, the higher one climbed, the more importance was placed on the family's reputation. Even a tiny blemish could be seized upon by competitors as leverage for an attack. Therefore, to prevent the other younger generations of the Qian Family from being too heavily affected and to preserve the family's honor, Elder Qian eventually stepped forward. He resigned from the Calligraphy Association and withdrew from several of his honorary positions in the calligraphy circle, taking the brunt of the responsibility and consequences upon himself.
By the time Xiao He found out, Elder Qian was already leisurely raising fish and drinking tea at home.
Unfortunately, that happened to coincide with the promotion period for "the thief catcher 2," and Xiao He had returned to Shanghai; otherwise, he would have definitely paid another visit to the Qian Family.
"Oh, Fifth Grandfather is doing great!"
Qian Wenya said with a smile, "He even went to the cinema specifically to watch Brother Xiao's 'the thief catcher 2' yesterday!"
"Brother Xiao, you have no idea. When Fifth Grandfather saw you use that De-boning Knife Technique, he was incredibly shocked. He even asked us how it was filmed because it looked so real, haha! And after watching the movie, he said his favorite character is Jiang Rushuai! Fifth Grandfather clearly said he liked Shen Jue at first! His change of heart was way too fast!"
Xiao He didn't know whether to laugh or cry, but hearing Qian Wenya's words, Elder Qian seemed to be in a good state, which relieved him.
"However, my brother's state hasn't been very good lately," Qian Wenya changed the subject. "My Fifth Grandfather plans to take him out to clear his head."
This brother was, naturally, Qian Wenhao.
After this incident, everyone finally understood his good intentions, but he still felt some guilt.
After all, Qian Wenhao was a relatively pure person who loved calligraphy and the history of Emperor Chen, and he had always held the most sincere heart.
But in the end, for the sake of the family's interests, he had chosen to hide secrets and even deliberately tried to burn the copy that might have been important evidence. This made it very difficult for Qian Wenhao to get over the hurdle in his heart, and he couldn't face his past self.
So, although everything had been brought into the open, he was still listless and lacked his former spirit.
Xiao He slapped his forehead.
Ah, he forgot to give the guy some psychological counseling before he left last time.
Look at his memory! He had been purely shocked by the matter of the two calligraphy copies at the time.
He'd see if there was a chance later...
Xiao He just hadn't expected that this chance would come so quickly—
—
The next day, "the imperial cause" Film Crew in Hengdian resumed work. The crew specifically invited a brand-new lineup of investors and producers to participate in the resumption ceremony.
They even made it very ceremonial, with a setup and process similar to the initial blessing ceremony; they even had a Taoist priest perform a ritual on-site again.
Xiao He hadn't expected Director Qiu, the leader, to go for all this.
But it was fine; it would drive away the bad luck and ensure he continued to make a fortune—
Xiao He offered incense and prayed very piously.
Afterward, he saw Elder Qian and Qian Wenhao at the scene.
"Eh? Elder Qian, Qian Wenhao, you guys came too?"
Xiao He remembered that the remaining parts were basically battle scenes for conquering the world, without many dramatic scenes that required writing.
He wondered why Elder Qian and the others had come.
"Ah, I brought him here to clear his head."
Elder Qian answered Xiao He with a smile and nudged the person beside him.
Seeing Qian Wenhao this time, Xiao He felt he wasn't as haggard as before. His mental state wasn't as bad as Qian Wenya had described, but his eyes were much dimmer, and he was very awkward when looking at people. His overall state was far inferior to when they first met.
Pushed in front of Xiao He by Elder Qian, the young man hesitated for a moment before bowing deeply to Xiao He in gratitude: "Teacher Xiao, thank you so much for what happened this time."
If Xiao He hadn't discovered and stopped him in time, that important piece of evidence might have really been burned by him.
Thinking back now, Qian Wenhao himself found it somewhat unbelievable.
He couldn't even recall what had possessed him to want to destroy that calligraphy copy regardless of the cost.
Clearly, doing so had violated the family education he had received since childhood and his own principles of integrity as a person.
But at the thought that the significance of this work's existence might be a blow their entire family couldn't withstand, Qian Wenhao had gone ahead and done it as if possessed.
Oh, he had even started the fire directly in his own bedroom!
He was truly crazy then—or perhaps he had been hoping for something?
For example, for Xiao He to burst in and stop him from doing such a thing?
Qian Wenhao wasn't sure.
However, upon confirming that the work hadn't actually been destroyed by him, he still felt a huge sense of relief.
"You're welcome. It was just something within my power that I wanted to do."
Xiao He accepted Qian Wenhao's thanks candidly, then patted the other's shoulder with a smile, looked him seriously in the eyes, and said with a firm tone:
"I also believe that after these events, you will be able to persist in your hobbies more firmly and look back at your past choices more calmly. After all, no matter who it was, they might not have been able to handle such a situation perfectly..."
Qian Wenhao listened in silence and didn't answer, but Xiao He believed that with the company of the Qian Family, he would understand this sooner or later.
"Little Qian, your Uncle Qin was looking for you just now. Why don't you go talk to him?"
Once this brief exchange ended, Elder Qian signaled for Qian Wenhao to go find Screenwriter Qin of the Film Crew.
"Okay."
Qian Wenhao seemed to know that Elder Qian had something to say to Xiao He. He nodded, thanked Xiao He once more, and turned to leave.
Once Qian Wenhao had left, Elder Qian said to Xiao He with a smile, "CCTV is going to start a large-scale Cultural Relics Exploration Program in a while. I wonder if you're interested in participating in the opening promotion of the prologue and the recording of the first episode on-site? This is a project the officials recently brought up on short notice. Although it's a bit rushed, it's absolutely important. As a specially invited star for the opening, your value will definitely far exceed those who join the program later."
Xiao He was stunned for a moment, then his eyes lit up: "Elder Qian, you have a recommendation slot?"
This was an opportunity that could be sought but not easily found!
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