Brother Dao Took the Entertainment Industry by Storm, Fans Beg Me Not to Kill Anymore

Chapter 749: Two Identical Copies!

"Qian Wenhao, what are you doing?"

Xiao He burst through the door, the first thing he saw was a blazing crimson flame.

When he looked closer, he realized Qian Wenhao was using a lighter to ignite a rolled-up, mounted scroll in his hand.

Although he wasn't entirely sure of Qian Wenhao's intentions, Xiao He certainly wouldn't just stand by and do nothing. The house itself was decorated in a classical style, surrounded by wooden furniture, and both sides were lined with Qian Wenhao's own bookshelves. Burning something here was extremely dangerous. So without hesitation, Xiao He charged forward, snatched the item down, and threw it to the ground.

Qian Wenya, who had followed him in, let out a bewildered scream: "Bro! What are you doing?!"

Her scream drew everyone from downstairs. Qian Wenhao's parents, who had been discussing his health with the doctor, immediately rushed upstairs.

The scroll on the ground was still burning. Qian Wenhao, seemingly shocked that someone had discovered him so quickly, panicked. Instinctively, he tried to push Xiao He aside to retrieve the burning scroll.

Xiao He, quick on his feet, was in no danger of being pushed over. He smoothly sidestepped, grabbed Qian Wenhao by the collar, and yanked him back. "It's dangerous! Don't touch it! You'll burn your hand!"

Qian Wenhao, in poor mental and physical condition, started panting heavily at the slightest exertion. The smell of smoke in the air triggered a coughing fit. His face grew even paler as he coughed, almost hacking up his lungs. The strength he had mustered to resist Xiao He dissipated with the coughs. Xiao He easily carried him aside like a limp chicken, where Qian Wenya, who had rushed up, caught him.

After confirming Qian Wenhao was safe, Xiao He strode forward and quickly stamped out the flames on the scroll.

Fortunately, though the scroll had caught fire fiercely, Xiao He had discovered it in time. After a few quick stomps, only a few sparks remained.

Everyone else arrived at that moment.

"What's going on?"

Qian Wenhao's mother, seeing the chaotic scene, rushed to check on her son. Perhaps because she was too anxious, she inhaled some of the smoke. Qian Wenhao, still coughing uncontrollably, was a mess, tears and snot streaming down his face.

The doctor also arrived and immediately began directing: "Get him out of here! To a ventilated area! Don't crowd around him! Give him fresh air!"

The Qian family members scrambled, grabbing Qian Wenhao's limbs and carrying him at a run towards the large balcony on the second floor.

In an instant, Qian Wenhao's bedroom was empty. Everyone had swarmed out to check on him.

Xiao He's mouth twitched. He stretched out a pleading hand gesture. "It's not... necessary for that many people to go..."

Hmm, it was clear this family was very united.

Even Qian Wenya, the fangirl he had just met, had squeezed out and disappeared from sight.

Xiao He sighed helplessly, crouched down, picked up the scroll, and carefully brushed off any remaining embers.

But Qian Wenhao's actions still baffled him.

He didn't understand why Qian Wenhao would want to burn this scroll as soon as he got home.

Was there some secret hidden inside?

Driven by curiosity, Xiao He slowly unrolled the scroll before him—

A familiar calligraphy piece appeared before his eyes.

Xiao He was completely stunned.

The familiar starting strokes, the familiar sharp edges, the familiar transitions and turns—the four characters, "Stabilize the Realm," were unmistakable.

This was the main source of all the recent commotion.

The regret that everyone had been carrying in their hearts all this time.

Ever since confirming that the authentic script exhibited at the art center was a fake, everyone had felt a sense of regret.

It meant they might have completely lost "Stabilizing the World."

Maybe one day in the future, the truth would be uncovered and the real whereabouts of "Stabilizing the World" would be known. But the greater possibility was that it wasn't in the Yun Family's possession, or that it had been completely destroyed long ago, lost to the passage of time.

So how could they not feel regret?

Seeing this piece, almost identical to the one at the art center, Xiao He admitted his heart skipped a beat.

But he quickly realized this was just a copy, a forgery, not the real "Stabilizing the World."

Because he now had a golden finger called "Treasure Hunting and Theft."

As long as he handled something, he could tell whether it was genuine or fake.

This was a huge cheat for treasure hunting and an infallible tool for appraising antiques and cultural relics—

Xiao He smiled bitterly, but his smile quickly faded.

Why did Qian Wenhao have a meticulously mounted copy like this?

Was this the one he had written?

Of course, Xiao He remembered. Back then, Qian Wenhao had also asked him for a piece of calligraphy of the same kind. That was the one Xiao He had personally written at the Calligraphy Association.

At the time, Qian Wenhao had said he would treat it well and have it mounted for his collection...

Xiao He himself didn't mind whether his works were kept safely or burned. But he found this particular piece very strange.

Qian Wenhao's attitude was even stranger.

Xiao He studied the piece in front of him meticulously. Finally, his gaze landed on a corner under the "roof" radical of the character "An."

—There was a strange gap there, one that didn't quite fit the logic of the strokes.

Although it was odd, the gap was very small, smaller than a grain of rice, and hardly affected the overall layout. Since Xiao He was like a human printer, perfectly replicating the piece from the art center, he had included the same gap in all subsequent copies.

And thanks to him, even though this piece had been partially burned, the flames hadn't reached the central characters themselves. They had only damaged the outer mounting layer. So, the characters Xiao He saw were complete, with nothing missing.

But on this piece, the "An" character didn't have that gap.

Xiao He figured that unless Qian Wenhao, with his OCD, had deliberately filled in the gap after he left, this piece couldn't have been written by him!

At that moment, the thoughts in his mind suddenly clicked into place.

The original piece had that gap. Xiao He had mindlessly copied it without understanding its significance, never realizing it would become the only difference between one piece and another!

Xiao He took a deep breath, turned around, and searched the bookshelves, rummaging through Qian Wenhao's room.

In no time, he found another almost identical piece, placed next to the one that had almost been burned.

Xiao He gently tapped the newly found copy. His gaze moved back and forth between the two calligraphy pieces, which were practically 1:1 replicas. Finally, he let out a long sigh.

He understood.

What was there left to understand?

He hadn't written many copies. The Qian Family had only three.

The first was written during the audition and taken by Old Qian. But the paper was of poor quality and the ink had bled poorly, so it was useless as a reference and could be ignored. The second was also given to Old Qian as an official collectible. However, Old Qian had later lent it to the restoration center for reference and hadn't gotten it back yet. The third, of course, was in Qian Wenhao's hands.

But Qian Wenhao now had two almost identical pieces!

One, intact, was his. The other, slightly charred, belonged to another mysterious person.

At this point, Xiao He understood completely.

—The Qian Family, or more precisely, Qian Wenhao, had another copy created by that original forger from years ago.

In fact, the one in Qian Wenhao's hands might be the most perfect replica created by that forger.

The small pause gap at the art center was a clue left by the forger of that time.

It was also proof that the forgery was imperfect.

Ironic. Regrettable.

How many years had passed?

Only now had someone finally understood the problem.