PDLP Chapter 452
Chapter 452
That evening, Zhou Chu was writing in his study when Chunlan knocked on the door.
"Young Master, Grand Secretary Yang requests to see you."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Chu put down his brush.
"Let him in. Oh, and go call Chen Tong over."
Zhou Chu was not surprised by Yang Yiqing's late-night visit. Yang Yiqing had come to see him simply because of his grandson Yang Shengzhai's future career.
Both Yang Yiqing and Xie Qian had reached this age. Yang Yiqing had already reached the pinnacle of his official career, and it was almost impossible for him to advance further. So he had lost that ambition. The two of them were more focused on paving the way for their descendants.
However, Yang Yiqing and Zhou Chu are not on good terms, so it is reasonable for Yang Yiqing to come in broad daylight.
The fact that Yang Yiqing came to see him was something that could be kept from others, but not from the emperor. Otherwise, what would the emperor think if the Grand Secretary and the Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard were secretly colluding?
This is also why Zhou Chu asked Chunlan to summon Chen Tong. As the emperor's eyes and ears, Zhou Chu summoned Chen Tong at this time so that whatever he and Yang Yiqing said would reach Jiajing's ears, and Jiajing would not have any suspicions.
Soon, Yang Yiqing arrived at Zhou Chu's study, led by Chunlan, and then Chen Tong also came in.
Chen Tong seemed to understand why Zhou Chu had summoned him. After entering, he stood quietly in the corner, acting as a perfect invisible man, without saying a word.
Yang Yiqing glanced at Chen Tong and instantly realized that the eunuch in front of him might be one of the emperor's men, and couldn't help but think more highly of Zhou Chu.
No wonder the emperor never doubted this commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. How many people could achieve this level?
"I wonder what brings the Grand Secretary here so late at night?"
Zhou Chu said with a half-smile.
"As I get older, I sleep less. Since I couldn't fall asleep, I thought I'd come to Lord Zhou's residence to take a look. I've long heard that Lord Zhou's calligraphy is exceptional, having studied under Tang Bohu and Wen Zhengming. Seeing it today, I can confirm that his reputation is well-deserved; he already has the air of a master."
Yang Yiqing glanced at the characters Zhou Chu had just written on the desk and couldn't help but praise them.
This wasn't Yang Yiqing flattering Zhou Chu, but rather that Zhou Chu's calligraphy had truly reached a high level. After all, he had studied under Tang Bohu for so many years, laying a solid foundation, and then Wen Zhengming taught Zhou Chu his own techniques.
In calligraphy, once you have a solid foundation, everything else will fall into place. Zhou Chu has been practicing calligraphy every day according to Wen Zhengming's techniques, and his calligraphy has made great progress.
In terms of calligraphy alone, Wen Zhengming was far superior to Tang Bohu. Wen Zhengming's calligraphy could not only be called the best in his time, but also ranked among the best in the entire history.
However, Tang Bohu's calligraphy, when placed within the broader historical context, is somewhat lacking.
"Lord Yang is too kind. Calligraphy is a profound art. When I first started learning from my teacher, I thought his writing was nothing special. But after studying for a while, I realized how good his writing was. Later, after I had a solid foundation, I met Master Zhengming and discovered that there is always someone better."
As Zhou Chu spoke, he had a maid in the study pour a cup of tea and place it in front of Yang Yiqing.
"Mr. Shizong, you're not here so late to amuse me, are you?"
Zhou Chu took a sip of tea.
Yang Yiqing wasn't in a hurry and carefully tasted the tea.
"Good tea. This must be pre-rain Longjing tea that just came down this year."
Yang Yiqing couldn't help but praise.
"Lord Yang is truly knowledgeable; he can even tell the difference between new and old tea."
Zhou Chu smiled.
This tea is indeed a pre-rain Longjing tea that was just harvested this year. The Longjing tea of today is different from the Longjing tea of later generations. Many Longjing teas of later generations are just using the Longjing name. The only truly authentic Longjing tea is produced in Lion Peak Mountain in Zhejiang Province, and the output is very limited. The Longjing tea in Zhou Chu's hands is the best of this year's pre-rain Longjing tea, and it was specially presented to him by Dong Rui, the prefect of Shaoxing.