"What goes forward must be taken back, neither drooping nor shrinking" is one of the basic brushwork techniques in calligraphy. It is the method of closing the brush when writing vertical paintings. The specific steps are as follows:
1. When writing vertical paintings, retract the tip of the pen upwards and retract the pen, which is called "no hanging, no shrinking".
2. When writing horizontal strokes, stroke to the right. When writing to the end, draw the tip of the stroke to the left, so that the strokes are subtle, vigorous and powerful.
This method of closing the pen is mostly used in seal script, official script and regular script to make the strokes subtle and steady.