Professor Xie, isn't this a case of forcing customers to buy products that don't match the

Xie Jing reached out and gently pressed his hand on Shang Song's arm, which was trying to block the crowd.

Shang Song turned to look at him in astonishment.

Xie Jing's gaze swept past Shang Song's reddened eyes before turning to the expectant old man and the crowd of people behind him making eager requests.

He said, "Yes."

A small cheer immediately erupted from the crowd.

Shang Song became even more anxious.

He grabbed Xie Jing's sleeve, speaking rapidly and in a low voice, "Xie Jing! You don't have to force yourself! They're just saying it, we can go..."

"It's alright," Xie Jing interrupted him, his voice only audible to Shang Song, "It'll be quick."

After saying that, he moved the newly written Spring Festival couplets on the table to the side to dry the ink before taking out a new sheet of red paper and laying it flat.

It remains a dignified and elegant clerical script, with each stroke steady and each character rounded.

Shang Song stood there, watching Xie Jing's profile as he wrote with his eyes lowered, his feelings extremely complicated.

I felt a little sorry for Xie Jing having to deal with so many strangers, a little proud that everyone was vying to have Xie Jing's calligraphy, and even more so, I felt a flutter in my heart.

Xie Jing stayed because of him...

He stopped stopping him and silently walked to the table, helping to move the Spring Festival couplets that Xie Jing had written to the side to dry, and then helping to hand over new red paper when appropriate.

People kept coming to ask for his calligraphy, even more than when Teacher Guo was there. It wasn't until all the red paper on the table was used up that Xie Jing put down his brush and nodded slightly to the newcomers behind him: "We're out of paper, sorry."

"Let's go." He rolled up the first couplet and handed it to Shang Song, who had been standing guard to the side, keeping him away from the crowd and handing him paper and couplets. His expression was unreadable, but Shang Song knew that Xie Jing seemed to have secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

"Yes! Let's go home!" Shang Song nodded vigorously, hugging his precious Spring Festival couplets, and pulled Xie Jing towards home.

On the way home, Shang Song looked at Xie Jing with bright, shining eyes, filled with undisguised joy and heartache. "Actually, you didn't need to write so many for them. You must be tired, right?"

"Not tired." Xie Jing's gaze fell on Shang Song's joyful eyes, and he added, "Now that you have the Spring Festival couplets you wanted, that's good."

Shang Song grinned, his smile dazzling in the sunlight: "Xie Jing! You're so kind!"

Xie Jing's lips curved upwards slightly, but he didn't respond.

The two returned home.

The kitchen was filled with the rich aroma of fried food.

Mrs. Shang was taking the fried meatballs out to drain the oil when she saw them return. She wiped her hands and said, "You received them? Let me see."

"Mom! Look!" Shang Song carefully unfolded the couplet in his arms and spread it on the clean dining table as if presenting a treasure.

The horizontal scroll reads: "Peace and Prosperity in All Seasons".

The couplet reads: Heaven adds years and man adds longevity; Spring fills the universe and blessings fill the door.

The large characters in the clerical script are upright and elegant, full of spirit and charm.

Mrs. Shang leaned closer and examined it carefully, her gaze sweeping from the first word to the last, then going back to look at it again.

"This handwriting... doesn't look like Teacher Guo's handwriting?" She looked at Shang Song.

Shang Song puffed out his chest, a barely suppressed smile on his face, his voice brimming with smugness: "It was written by Professor Xie! My boyfriend wrote it! Isn't it great?! The best in the world!"

Mrs. Shang was stunned. She looked at the calligraphy, then at Xie Jing who was hanging up his coat, and then at her son's shining face.

Someone who can write like this... can't be bad.

A complex yet relieved smile appeared on her face as she carefully stroked the curled corners of the Spring Festival couplets. "Beautiful! Absolutely beautiful! Xiao Xie, your handwriting... it's just like this."

She gave Xie Jing a thumbs up, "Our storefront is truly splendid this year."

Xie Jing hung up his coat, turned around, and gave a slight bow to Shang's mother: "Auntie, you flatter me."

Shang Song then vividly recounted the events to his mother.

Just then, Mr. Shang returned from the market, carrying large and small bags. As soon as he entered the door, he saw the three people gathered around the dining table looking at the couplets. He casually asked, "Did you bring the couplets back? How did Teacher Guo write them this year?"

Mrs. Shang smiled and said, "It wasn't written by Teacher Guo. Teacher Guo had to leave, so Xiao Xie wrote it on the spot! Old Shang! Come and see Xiao Xie's handwriting, it's absolutely amazing!"

When Mr. Shang heard that Mrs. Shang had changed how she addressed Xie Jing, a look of surprise flashed across his face for a moment. Then, he readily followed suit and changed how he addressed him.

"Written by Xiao Xie?" Mr. Shang put down his bags, washed his hands, and walked over while drying them. "Then I'll have to take a closer look..."

When he saw the large calligraphy scroll spread out on the table, his words came to an abrupt halt.

He bent down, leaned close, and almost pressed his face against the paper to examine it carefully, looking from right to left, then stepped back two steps to examine the whole picture.

"This...this was written by Xiao Xie?" Mr. Shang's shock was even greater than Mrs. Shang's. "These characters are incredible! You can't write like this without ten or twenty years of dedicated practice! The structure, the strokes, the spirit—all are top-notch! And the choice of clerical script is excellent too—simple, elegant, and dignified!"

He is a history teacher, and although he is not an expert in calligraphy, he has a good eye for it.

"That's right!" Mrs. Shang chimed in, briefly recounting what happened that morning. "Songsong said that as soon as Xiao Xie's calligraphy came out, everyone in line behind him begged to write it, and they didn't come back until they had used up all the red paper that Teacher Guo had left behind."

Mr. Shang nodded repeatedly, admiring the couplet with obvious delight: "Excellent! Truly excellent! I think Xiao Xie's calligraphy has even more flavor than those so-called calligraphers' exhibited works! It's profound! It has an antique feel!"

He liked it more and more as he looked at it, but then he frowned: "But this couplet has to be pasted outside the door, exposed to the wind and sun!"

He looked at Xie Jing and made a gentle request: "Um... Little Xie, look, your calligraphy is so good. Your uncle has a favor to ask. Could you write a couple more small pieces for the family? Just some auspicious words or classical poems, and we'll frame them and hang them in the living room. It would look so cultured! If you could also add your signature and seal, it would be even more perfect!"

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Shang readily agreed, "Yes! Yes! It'll be a keepsake for our family, adding a piece of calligraphy!"

Shang Song's eyes lit up, and he immediately looked at Xie Jing, his eyes full of anticipation.

Xie Jing's gaze swept over the expectant faces of the Shang family, then inadvertently turned towards Shang Song's bedroom. He remembered the box of gold bars hidden deep in the wardrobe, not allowed to see the light of day.

Several pieces of calligraphy written by him and bearing his name seal seem more suitable for this scholarly family than gold and silver, and better express his feelings.

"It is my honor that you like it, Uncle," he replied. "However, I did not bring the seal with me on this trip."

"It's alright! Just add the cover next time you come to our house!" Mr. Shang quickly said.

After a moment's thought, Xie Jing sent Lin Zhou a brief message, asking him to arrange for someone to bring his personal seal from the Xishan Study.

Lin Zhou was currently coordinating security somewhere nearby. The team members responsible for retrieving items from Xishan received the order to "retrieve the head of the household's private seal." Faced with several cabinets of seals categorized and used for various purposes in the study, they were at a loss.

The head of the family's personal seal? He uses so many seals! Which side does he belong to?

He dared not act on his own initiative, and was even more afraid of making mistakes.

To be on the safe side, he simply packed up all the seals that the head of the family used, along with their matching items, and sent them over.