Tokyo: The story begins with a confession.

Page 197

Back in his room, Uesugi Kenichi composed himself and proofread the chapter he had just written, checking for any typos or other errors.

Once everything was ready, the first and second chapters were published, and the chapters immediately showed as being under review.

A phone rang, and when Uesugi Kenichi picked it up, he saw it was that bastard Li Yang.

Li Yang is the person he referred to as Nick Yang in the group chat.

Li Yang is Zheng Chen's childhood friend. They were classmates for three years in elementary school and three years in junior high school, and they even went to the same high school and university, making them as close as brothers.

Although they often had arguments, it did not affect their relationship at all; in fact, they became closer despite their fights.

Aside from Li Yang, several other people in the group chat were also very close to him.

But Li Yang was still the one who got along best with Uesugi Kenichi's temper. Let's put it this way: whenever Li Yang had any bad intentions, like stealing chickens or doing something sneaky, the first person he would call on was Uesugi Kenichi.

Uesugi Ken will most likely respond and act with him, while the others will probably just keep watch.

Hey, Gay Melon, what are you doing?

...

I've told you a million times not to call me gay melon, why won't you listen?

Haha, don't worry about the details.

If you have something to say, say it quickly.

Let's go play some games tonight, or maybe we should go save my brother Wen?

Okay, see you at the internet cafe downstairs from my house then.

Kenichi Uesugi hung up the phone very quickly.

Uesugi Kenichi couldn't remember when they gave him that nickname.

They all come from the same hometown, went to university in the same city, and have all stayed in the city after graduation, so it's easy for them to get together whenever they want.

Two days after they moved in, Uesugi Kenichi brought them over to check on the new place.

The places where they are currently living are not far from his residence.

Looking at the time, it was almost seven o'clock. Uesugi Kenichi took out his phone, ordered takeout, and sat down.

Ding ding ding… He took out his phone, intending to scroll through Douyin to kill some time, only to find that Douyin was already filled with selfish thoughts, and he couldn’t scroll to the bottom even after several swipes.

The short video I just casually posted has already garnered over 100,000 likes and more than 10,000 comments!

Kenichi Uesugi couldn't help but click on the Douyin video he had just posted.

It has already received nearly 11 likes.

There are also more than 10,000 comments in the comment section.

Curious, he clicked in to see what was said.

The top comment was from @江南烟雨: "So, are you going to come and write it yourself, or send your hand over?"

@0648: My God, this handwriting is amazing.

@TimeReversal: "To be honest, this calligraphy is at least the result of 20 years of hard work. It is powerful and steady, and at first glance, it is full of sharpness, but upon closer inspection, it is like a gentle breeze. It's a pity that such good calligraphy cannot be replaced with a better set of calligraphy. I have already sent you a private message, asking for a piece of calligraphy. As long as it is of this quality, you can name your price."

@HanYu: "Is this calligraphy for sale? How much? I'll buy it, okay?"

@Lingnan: "I really envy people who have beautiful handwriting, especially those who write so well."

Kenichi Uesugi kept scrolling through the comments with a seemingly tireless enthusiasm. Receiving such a high number of likes and comments for the first time in his life filled him with a sense of novelty.

Among the numerous comments, there were also some critical voices.

With this level of skill, I could do it too. The author's handwriting looks elegant, but it's too flamboyant and lacks composure.

Uesugi Kenshin wasn't angry at all. He'd seen all sorts of comments on Weibo over the past two years, and he wasn't so easily offended as to get upset over such a small criticism.

Looking at the private messages I received, most were requests for calligraphy, with prices that were shockingly high. Even the person who asked about "time travel" messaged me, asking for 10,000 yuan for a single piece of calligraphy, with the option to add more if needed, just hoping I could use a good set of brushes and ink.

Some people asked him where he was from and how old he was.

Uesugi Kenichi spent a long time going through almost all the private messages sent to him before he finally stopped.

Someone actually offered 10,000 yuan to buy one of my calligraphy works?

Kenichi Uesugi felt a little dizzy. The ancients said, "A single word is worth a thousand pieces of gold," and he never imagined he'd have such a day…

After thinking about it, I realized I couldn't reply to all the private messages, so I left a message in the comments section.

Thank you all so much for your support. I never expected so many people to like it; I'm truly flattered. Since everyone enjoys it, I'll release more videos. Thank you all!

After finishing writing, I also sent a private message to Time Traveler.

Ten thousand sounds a bit unbelievable, but since you like it so much, I'll write one for you. Just leave your address.

Uesugi Kenichi had just sent the message when he unexpectedly received a reply from him immediately.

Brother, let me tell you, if you sell me this calligraphy for 10,000 yuan, I definitely won't lose out. But if you give it to me for free, I wouldn't dare take it. This piece of calligraphy requires countless years of hard work and talent to achieve such a result. If you give it to me for free, I won't want it.

After looking at it, Uesugi Kenshin felt a little embarrassed. He hadn't put much effort into the items given away by the system lottery, so he felt uneasy about taking so much money from them.

Okay, add me on WeChat and we can chat. My number is 1358534××××

I opened the app and searched, and found that the profile picture seemed to be of me; the person in the picture looked to be a middle-aged man in his fifties.

The application was approved very quickly after it was submitted.

Hello, my name is Hou Liang. May I ask your name, brother?

My name is Kenichi Uesugi, you can just call me Kobayashi.

No, no, no, with your name, how could I dare to call you Little Lin? Calling you Master Lin wouldn't be an exaggeration.

Yes, I really admire your calligraphy. To be frank, I'm quite knowledgeable and have seen many calligraphers, but there are very few who are at your level.

Ten thousand is not just a lot, it's actually very little. I hope you don't mind. I genuinely admire your calligraphy.

After watching Hou Liang ramble on for a while, Uesugi Kenichi noticed that Hou Liang had sent him a transfer of 10,000 yuan.

Since the other party had already said this much, he didn't argue any further and confirmed receipt of the payment.

I'll accept the money. What would you like me to write?

Hou Liang, behind the screen, couldn't help but feel happy when he saw that the other party had received the money. He had been immersed in calligraphy for nearly 20 years. Although his skill level was not very high, he just loved it. Besides, for his wealth, 823 yuan was really nothing. The calligraphy he usually bought was not only more expensive than this, but it was also not as good as Uesugi Kenichi's.

Okay, okay, just write the calligraphy you just wrote. It's best to use a fountain pen. My address is ×××. Thank you.

Okay, I'll write it and send it to you.

Even after putting down his phone, Uesugi Kenichi still felt a little unreal. He'd already made 10,000 yuan? This money was too easy to earn. Why bother writing novels? He could just sell his words.

He shook his head to dismiss the unrealistic idea; who would be willing to spend so much money to buy his calligraphy every day?

At that moment, Uesugi Kenichi had no idea that so many people were actually willing to buy it.

He suddenly realized that his fame value had reached over 5000, so reaching one million in a year didn't seem too difficult.

After thinking for a moment, Uesugi Kenichi went to a supermarket not far from his neighborhood and spent nearly 600 yuan on a Parker fountain pen, a bottle of good ink, and a few sheets of Xuan paper before returning home.

After filling the pen with ink, I drew circles on a piece of scrap paper, letting the ink flow smoothly before stopping.

Then, lay the Xuan paper flat on the desk, fix the phone on the selfie stick, and point it at your hand.

After finishing everything, Uesugi Kenichi closed his eyes and began to regulate his breathing.

I only turned on the recording function on my phone after I had calmed down.

Picking up the pen beside him, he began to move his hand. The black ink gradually stained the snow-white Xuan paper. The black ink did not ruin the beauty of the Xuan paper. Instead, it was like a few proud plum blossoms growing in a vast expanse of white snow, adding countless charms to the snow scene.

Of all the lovely flowers of land and water, Tao Yuanming of the Jin Dynasty alone loved chrysanthemums, and since the Tang Dynasty, people have greatly admired peonies. I, however, love the lotus alone, rising from the mud unsullied, washed by clear ripples without being seductive, its stem straight and hollow, neither creeping nor branching…

Kenichi Uesugi had copied this poem, "On the Love of Lotus," many times since junior high school, and now, with his mastery of calligraphy, he seemed even more adept at it.

After a short while, Uesugi Kenichi stopped.

The short essay "On the Love of Lotus" is only about a hundred words long, but he felt as if he had been writing it for several hours straight.

My energy and spirit were highly concentrated at the time, but now that I've finished writing, I feel somewhat exhausted.

Uesugi Kenichi put down his pen and focused his gaze on the essay on the love of lotus that he had just written.

On the Xuan paper, this piece of calligraphy even amazed Uesugi Kenichi, who had just written it. "Is this really something I could write?"

The entire piece of calligraphy resembles a runaway horse galloping through the air and disappearing into the distance; or a dragon soaring through the sky, twisting and turning, coming from nothingness and returning to emptiness. This almost frenzied, primal impulse of life contains the spirit of heaven and earth.

After the ink dried, Uesugi Kenichi carefully rolled it up and put it away.

Pick up your phone and upload the video you just recorded to Douyin.

He took out another piece of paper, wrote down the words Hou Liang had asked for, and then sat down to rest properly.

Chapter 338

I had barely sat down when the takeout arrived.

After quickly finishing his dinner, Uesugi Kenichi genuinely missed the food at home.

My grandma's simple stir-fried cabbage is so much tastier than this takeout fast food.

Eating at home is what truly counts as eating; eating like this at other times is merely survival.

Of course, there are delicious foods, but they are all very expensive.

It's not easy for anyone living alone in a big city; the city is just too big. Even though it's so big, it's hard to find a place for you.

The things I want to buy are all expensive, the places I want to go are far away, and the person I like is outstanding.

Therefore, you have no choice but to work incredibly hard.

If you want to be prominent in public, you'll inevitably suffer in private.

After quickly tidying up, Uesugi Kenichi packed the calligraphy he had promised to give to Hou Liang, went downstairs, found a courier point, and mailed the item.

I checked the time and it was already 8 o'clock, so I made a phone call to Li Yang.

The call was answered quickly.

"Why haven't you arrived yet?" Uesugi Kenichi asked.

Here we come! I just ran over to Xiaowen and dragged him up. Find a few players to join, we'll be right there.

Okay, hurry up.