Thrown Out

"Is this how you apologize? How much do you hate my apprentice? You were the ones who drove that craftsman to desperation, and my kind-hearted apprentice helped you avert your calamities, and you, instead, uttered vile words of humiliation and threats. Now you've ruined my apprentice's reputation. You have brought this upon yourselves; the Emperor has punished you for your mistakes, and instead of reflecting on your actions, you dare to harbor hatred? I do not accept this apology. Get out!"

Jia Songlin death, and kept explaining to Kang Shilin, "No, no, he's in pain. He's in so much pain from being beaten that he looks like that. It's not hatred, it's not resentment, we've come to sincerely apologize."

"No need. As long as you have a clear conscience and aren't afraid of going to the eighteenth level of hell after death, that's enough." Kang Shilin didn't want to talk to them anymore. "Guards, throw them out of here."

Each person who came to paint brought at least two attendants and guards. Kang Shilin shouted this, more than twenty servants immediately stepped forward. The dark mass of people startled the Jia Family father and son.

Seeing that Kang Shilin had already turned and gone back into the house, Zhao Ruxi and Wu Zong followed him in. This apology ended in failure, and the Jia Family father and son had no choice but to slink out the door.

"Master, please don't be angry. It's not worth getting angry over someone like that." Zhao Ruxi was afraid that the old man would get sick from anger, so she quickly comforted him.

She then showed him the painting she had only partially completed. "Master, look at this new style of painting I created by combining the techniques you taught me with my own."

She has now basically mastered the painting techniques that Kang Shilin taught her, and only needs time to improve. Originally, she didn't want to rush things. It would be better to wait until she was more skilled with the brush and ink and had reached a certain level in all aspects before creating new painting techniques. This way, she wouldn't appear impetuous, and she could create even better paintings in one go.

But after the Jia Family incident, everyone was worried about her safety. She herself didn't like this feeling of constant anxiety, so she decided to start a new painting style ahead of time and earn enough points to buy Agility Pill as soon as possible.

Given her "advanced age" of fourteen and her aversion to hardship, she couldn't practice martial arts on her own and could only rely on the pills produced by the system. The existence of the system itself was unscientific, so it's likely that the Agility Pill was also some kind of black technology.

Fortunately, she had been practicing this combination of Chinese and Western painting techniques during this time, so she wasn't timid when painting a picture.

Upon hearing that Zhao Ruxi had pioneered a new painting style, Kang Shilin's eyebrows furrowed, and he felt like cursing.

Wanting to fly before even learning to walk? How can you be so impatient?

However, since his young apprentice usually behaved too obediently, the old man managed to hold back his temper at this crucial moment, planning to wait until he had seen the apprentice's "new painting method" before scolding him, so that he would appear to have a reasonable basis for his criticism.

But after seeing the small half of Zhao Ruxi's painting clearly, Kang Shilin was stunned.

"This... how did you come up with the idea to paint it like this?" He looked up at Zhao Ruxi as if she were a rare treasure.

An expert can tell a lot from a single stroke. Although Zhao Ruxi's painting was only half finished, Kang Shilin immediately recognized its unique style, completely different from traditional Chinese painting and sketching.

It hasn't been long, and my little apprentice has already created a new school of martial arts. His talent is truly remarkable.

With such a disciple, Kang Shilin suddenly felt that his life was complete.

His paintings are not much different in technique from others. It's just that he is more talented, and his paintings are more lively, more expressive, and have a more distinctive style and flavor.

Although his three apprentices were also talented and each had their own unique style—for example, Gong Cheng's flower-and-bird paintings were exceptional, and Wu Zong's figure paintings were even more vivid and lifelike—their painting styles, like his, remained fundamentally the same and could not escape the established patterns.

But Zhao Ruxi's painting style, like her sketching, is a truly groundbreaking new style. It's a new style that blends traditional painting techniques with her sketching skills. What's most remarkable is that she has already fully demonstrated this style as soon as she started experimenting.

"Good, good, good." Kang Shilin seemed to have forgotten that he had just wanted to scold someone, and praised his little apprentice without reservation, "Someone like him, who can establish a school of painting at once and create two styles, you are the first person in hundreds of years. Zhiwei, with such talent in painting, why worry about not making money? I think you can give up those silver shops and the imperial examinations. Just focus on painting."

This won't do.

Zhao Ruxi quickly put on a serious face and spouted nonsense. "Master, although it is true that you can do something to the extreme if you are single-minded, without a broad vision, rich life experience, and inspiration from all walks of life and ordinary people, the path of painting will become narrower and narrower."

"People say that art originates from life but transcends it. Only by coming from life and returning to life can one create paintings that move people's hearts. I am still so young. If I don't experience life properly and instead shut myself off, the artistic inspiration I am showing now will eventually be extinguished and withered away."

"Art originates from life but transcends it?" Kang Shilin pondered this statement for a moment, then suddenly slammed his hand on the table. "Excellent! That's well said."

Outside the house, everyone watched Kang Shilin huff and puff as he went inside. They were already quite worried, but then they suddenly heard a loud shout from inside, which startled them.

They looked at each other, puzzled. "Should we go in and take a look?" they asked, then looked outside the courtyard. "Why hasn't Gong Cheng arrived yet?"

Gong Cheng was nowhere to be seen at the courtyard gate, but a short while later everyone saw Kang Shilin and Wu Zong come out of the house.

The two of them looked radiant, their eyes and brows smiling, which puzzled everyone.

"Mister Kumu, are you alright?" one of them asked.

"It's nothing, it's nothing." Kang Shilin waved his hand cheerfully, then realized something was off, "There's something, something, you don't know, Zhiwei has created a new painting method. Hahaha, she's completely surpassed her teacher!"

Although Zhao Ruxi pioneered a new style of drawing called sketching, this style had absolutely nothing to do with Kang Shilin. Sometimes, the old man would feel a little guilty, thinking that he hadn't given his apprentice any benefits, but rather benefited from his apprentice's success. Therefore, during this period, he insisted on forcing Zhao Ruxi to learn to draw from him.

But now he speaks with absolute confidence—his young apprentice has completely integrated the painting techniques he taught him with sketching, thus creating a new style of painting. The phrase "the student has surpassed the teacher" is most fitting.

"A new way of painting?" Everyone was in an uproar.

Those who come to learn painting are all passionate about it, adept at studying techniques, and willing to embrace new things. Those who are conservative and stick to the rules would never lower themselves to learn sketching from Zhao Ruxi.

Upon hearing about the new painting method, everyone was as eager as cats smelling fish.