It's That Painting
Not long after Zhao Ruxi finished painting, someone shouted, "Time's up, contestants please leave."
Zhao Ruxi had already packed her things. Upon hearing this, she left decisively.
Zhang Xiuyan deliberately pretended to pack his things, dawdling around. After Zhao Ruxi left, he glanced at her painting.
He was completely stunned by that one glance.
The mountains are majestic and magnificent, with sheer cliffs and waterfalls cascading down from the peaks. The spray feels as if it's falling on you, and you can almost hear the roar of the waterfall. This is not a painting; it is the masterpiece of nature, capable of shaking the soul and making one feel insignificant and the greatness of nature.
Not only Zhang Xiuyan wanted to see Zhao Ruxi's paintings, but Lin Yunshen, Zhong Lei, and others behind him also wanted to see them.
However, due to the obstruction of the people in front, they could not see the entire painting.
The competition area was surrounded by rope railings, but there were openings in the middle of both the east and west sides. When Lin Yunshen and Zhong Lei left, they could have simply walked a few steps back and exited through the opening on the east side.
But in order to catch a glimpse of Zhao Ruxi's painting, they didn't turn after leaving their seats on the right. Instead, they walked straight ahead, intending to go around Zhao Ruxi's location, then circle around from the north to the west, making a large loop around the competition venue before exiting through the opening on the west side.
When they arrived at Zhao Ruxi's painting and saw it, they were equally stunned, as if someone had pressed the pause button, freezing in place, their eyes glazed over, their lips slightly parted, and their expressions exactly the same as Zhang Xiuyan's.
The students from the Imperial Academy were helping to maintain order saw that the group was about to leave, but after taking a few steps, they stopped and stood still, their eyes fixed on other people's paintings. They ran over and said to them, "Since you're leaving, please leave quickly, otherwise it will be considered as exceeding the time limit."
After saying that, he specifically reminded Zhang Xiuyan.
Upon hearing the word "time out," Zhang Xiuyan, Lin Yunshen, and the others finally snapped out of their daze.
Zhang Xiuyan picked up his packed belongings, forgetting that he could leave directly from the east exit. Instead, he mechanically followed Zhong Lei in circles, unable to calm down from the shock he felt.
Only after walking out of the examination hall through the western opening and standing outside did Zhong Lei speak, "Her drawing... was absolutely superb."
Zhang Xiuyan remained silent.
While it's true that there's no first place in literature but no second place in martial arts, it's still possible to tell whether a painting is good or bad. Especially for those skilled in painting, they have a scale in their hearts for what constitutes a good painting and what constitutes a bad one, and they can judge the quality at a glance.
Faced with Zhao Ruxi's paintings, which were clearly on a completely different level from theirs and even better than his master's, Zhang Xiuyan simply couldn't bring himself to say they were bad.
Saying that Zhao Ruxi's paintings are bad will not only fail to tarnish his Zhao Ruxi, but will also make people think that he is distorting the truth, jealous of talent, and despicable.
Faced with such a powerful being, Zhang Xiuyan knew that he had no hope of winning first place.
He stood there dejectedly for a while, and was about to say goodbye and leave when he heard a commotion from the corner to his right.
The group looked up and saw that the onlookers seemed to have been dispersed, and in their place stood people who were clearly officials. An old man was standing there, pointing at Zhao Ruxi's painting and saying something, looking very agitated.
Lin Yunshen and Zhong Lei exchanged a glance, their curiosity piqued. They quickly walked around from the outside to find out what was going on. Zhang Xiuyan followed closely behind.
As they approached, they heard the old man exclaim, "It really is! I'm not mistaken! It really is the painting that the Emperor bought at the auction. The price is the same as Mister Kumu's, worth 25,000 taels of silver!"
"How is that possible? Someone who can paint a picture worth 25,000 taels of silver should have already achieved fame and success, right? How could they possibly participate in this kind of competition?" Some people around still didn't believe it.
"I can't be mistaken, I was sitting in the audience at the time. I saw that painting with my own eyes. A painting like that, once seen, is unforgettable. No one else could have painted something like that. It must have been her without a doubt."
No one can refute what he said.
Indeed, anyone who has seen a painting like Zhao Ruxi's will be deeply moved; no matter how many years have passed, that feeling remains unforgettable. What this old man said might actually be true.
Hearing the old man's words, Zhang Xiuyan couldn't help but say, "Impossible. How old Miss Zhiwei? She's only been a student of Mister Kumu for half a year. No matter what, her paintings couldn't sell for such high prices."
The painting by Zhao Ruxi that went to auction was so strange. It was painted extremely well, yet no one knew who the artist was. Everyone speculated about it and discussed it as a strange event. It was truly a well-known and famous painting.
Zhang Xiuyan acknowledged that the painting before him was done by Zhao Ruxi. After all, he had seen her paint it with his own eyes. He also accepted that Zhao Ruxi painted well, even better than him. This was a fact, and there was no room for argument.
Zhang Xiuyan simply couldn't believe that Zhao Ruxi's painting had sold for 25,000 taels of silver, the same price as Mister Kumu's painting.
His master's paintings only sold for a little over three thousand taels of silver at most. No matter how good Zhao Ruxi's paintings were, they weren't worth such an astronomical price.
Lin Yunshen and Zhong Lei couldn't believe it either.
Lin Yunshen murmured to Zhong Lei, "That shouldn't be possible, right?"
Zhong Lei stared at Zhao Ruxi's painting, remaining silent.
"Ambition knows no age; a life without ambition is a wasted life. As long as you paint well, what does age or how long you've been apprenticed to a master matter?" the old man retorted.
After saying that, he looked Zhang Xiuyan up and down a few times and immediately recognized Zhang Xiuyan's identity.
He snorted coldly and said, "You're Mei Zhongjun's disciple, aren't you? You're also participating in the competition? Do you think your painting is better than this one?"
He pointed to Zhao Ruxi's painting.
Today is a day off, and quite a few officials came to the competition venue to watch the excitement. However, since the competition had already started, the officials didn't come to watch so as not to disturb the participants. The onlookers were mostly people who enjoyed painting.
The competition had just ended when the officials came over for a walk. The onlookers, seeing them arrive, all discreetly moved away.
Clearly, the old man arrived after Zhao Ruxi left and didn't know who the painter was. But that didn't stop him from recognizing Zhao Ruxi as the painter of the painting that fetched a high price at the auction.
Mei Zhongjun's background was similar to Kang Shilin's; both came from prominent families. However, due to his passion for painting, he did not participate in the imperial examinations and therefore held no official position or title.
Zhang Xiuyan's social status was even lower than that of Mei Zhongjun and others. Although his family was somewhat wealthy, he was of commoner origin. He was only accepted as an apprentice by Mei Zhongjun because of his talent for painting.
Since the old man had attended the auction, he must have been an official, and of a fairly high rank.
Normally, Zhang Xiuyan wouldn't dare to say much to someone like that.