Scoring Begins
But since everyone was pointing fingers at him and cursing him, Zhang Xiuyan had no choice but to prove his innocence, no matter how much he dared not.
His face flushed red, and he mustered his courage to shout, "I didn't. I don't think I painted it well. I just want to say that the painting at the auction couldn't possibly have been painted by Miss Zhiwei. She's just a fourteen or fifteen-year-old girl. No matter how talented she is, how could she compare to Mister Kumu?"
At this moment, two other officials arrived. Hearing the old man and Zhang Xiuyan's argument, the two curiously looked at Zhao Ruxi's painting. Upon seeing it, they were also so shocked that they were speechless.
The old man recognized them. Both were officials from the Ministry of Revenue, one of whom was Qi Xugu, the Minister of Ministry of Revenue.
He quickly cupped his hands in a respectful bow to Qi Xugu: "Lord Qi, you've come to see the paintings too?"
Qi Xugu stared intently at Zhao Ruxi's painting, seemingly oblivious to what was happening.
It wasn't until the old man called him twice more that he seemed to wake up from a dream, looking at the old man blankly with a somewhat displeased expression, as if he was very Gao Xing about being disturbed while looking at the painting.
The old man quickly bowed and said, "I am Tang Zhongming, a senior official in the Ministry of Ministry of Justice. I was just arguing with Mei Zhongjun's apprentice. I believe this painting is by the same person as the one that sold for 25,000 taels of silver at the first auction. But this young man says it's impossible. I thought that Lord Qi should have also attended that auction and seen the painting, so I'm asking Lord Qi for confirmation."
Qi Xugu glanced at Zhang Xiuyan and nodded, saying, "This painting is by the same hand as the one at the auction."
Before he could finish speaking, another person came over, pointed at Zhao Ruxi's painting, and shouted, "Hey, this painting is in the same style as the one the Emperor bought! Could it be by that same artist?"
Tang Zhongming looked at Zhang Xiuyan without saying anything more, only snorting lightly and raising his chin slightly, with an expression that said, "That's the truth, I won't argue with you."
Zhang Xiuyan couldn't care less about Tang Zhongming. Hearing everyone say that this painting was the same one from the auction, he felt as if he had been hit with a sledgehammer. His eyes were fixed on Zhao Ruxi's painting, and he stood there dumbfounded, his face showing a deep sense of shock.
Lin Yunshen and Zhong Lei weren't much better off.
Upon seeing this, the official who had come with Qi Xugu felt some sympathy for the group.
He patted Zhang Xiuyan on the shoulder and comforted him, "It's undeniable that geniuses exist in this world. We're just ordinary people; don't compare yourselves to geniuses, or you'll feel like you can't go on living."
It would have been better if he hadn't said it; saying it only made Zhang Xiuyan suffer an even greater blow.
He was modest in public, but because his paintings were indeed excellent and he was always admired, he secretly believed that he was a genius and that few painters in the world could surpass him. Even if there were, they were not in his age group.
How can he accept being told he's just an ordinary person and shouldn't compare himself to geniuses?
But now everyone says that the painting was painted by Zhao Ruxi. The group that came later had obviously attended the auction. After being shocked by Zhao Ruxi's painting, they were as excited as if they had solved a mystery that had been difficult to solve for thousands of years. They were all very excited and, without any regard for their official image, they started to talk about it excitedly.
It's said that the artist of this painting is a girl of fourteen or fifteen years old. Someone came to Zhang Xiuyan to verify. "Was this really painted by a little girl? Very young? Younger than all of you? Did you see her paint this picture with your own eyes?"
Zhang Xiuyan really didn't want to talk.
But these were all officials, and Tang Zhongming recognized his identity. If he didn't speak up, he would offend them.
He could only force a stiff smile and said, "I did indeed see Miss Zhiwei draw it with my own eyes. Miss Zhiwei is not very old, only about fourteen or fifteen years old."
"To be able to draw like this at fourteen or fifteen? What was I doing when I was fourteen or fifteen?" the man said absentmindedly.
Clearly, Zhang Xiuyan was not the only one severely affected.
Zhang Xiuyan found it boring and whispered to Lin Yunshen and the other man, "Let's go."
But the three of them were now surrounded, and getting out was no easy task. These people were all officials in the court, and they dared not push or shove them, hoping that others would give way to them.
Those who came to look at the painting were so engrossed in it that they didn't notice the three people at all, let alone pay them any attention. The three people walked for a long time but didn't take more than a few steps.
By this time, all the contestants had left. Kang Shilin four companions, who had been sitting in a nearby shop drinking tea, were invited out to begin judging the paintings.
When the officials saw them enter to score, they all quieted down and did not make a sound so as not to disturb the five judges. But they did not leave; they all stood still.
Although everyone is quite certain that this painting and the one at the auction were painted by the same person, it has never been confirmed.
Since everyone said that the painting was done by a girl named "Zhiwei," and Zhiwei was Mister Kumu's newly accepted disciple, and now that Mister Kumu. Mister Kumu was present, they naturally wanted to ask him for confirmation.
To avoid a situation where "the best is right in front of everyone, and everyone else gets zero points," Kang Shilin and the others started judging from the bottom left corner. That was the lowest-ranked entry in the semi-finals. They judged in order, with Zhao Ruxi being the last one to be judged.
Everyone could only wait patiently.
Zhang Xiuyan and his two companions couldn't leave, and seeing that the scoring had begun, they gave up the idea of leaving.
They wanted to see how many points their paintings would get, and how the judges would evaluate them.
Fortunately, there were only thirty people in the final round. Kang Shilin and others were experienced and could tell at a glance whether a painting was good or not, and what score was appropriate, so the scoring process was very fast. In less than the time it takes to eat a meal, they had already reached the group of Zhao Ruxi and Zhang Xiuyan.
Kang Shilin is old and experienced, and has an impatient temperament. He doesn't need to consider others when doing things, and in previous years he has always been the fastest to grade. While others are still grading in the teens, he has already finished grading all the paintings.
But this year it concerns his youngest apprentice, so it wouldn't be appropriate for him to be at the forefront and be the first to score Zhao Ruxi, as it would easily draw criticism. So he patiently followed behind Peng Guoan and took his time.
Peng Guoan was an upright and honest man, a true gentleman. Seeing this, he didn't think much of it and continued to climb the ranks at his own pace.
When Zhong Lei saw him standing in front of his painting, his heart jumped.
"Six points," Peng Guoan said.
Zhong Lei deflated like a punctured balloon, instantly becoming listless.
The scores announced by the group were all quite loud, and everyone present could hear them. Compared to the others, Zhong Lei's six points were actually not low; even with the three people ahead of him, he could still make it into the top ten.
But all Zhong Lei heard were officials praising Zhao Ruxi's paintings, so hearing this score of six inevitably made him feel frustrated.
Peng Guoan had already walked forward and stood in front of Lin Yunshen's painting. After glancing at it, he said, "Six-thirds."