Bai Wei pricked up her ears and listened for a while, "I didn't hear any zither sound. Perhaps you misheard, Miss Feng Qingyi?"
Xue Cha also said, "I didn't hear anything either."
"Is that so?" Although Feng Qingyi was puzzled, she had no intention of investigating further.
"Miss Qingyi, that's the Leisurely Pavilion over there. Shall we go take a look?" Bai Wei pointed to the pavilion opposite.
Feng Qingyi looked in that direction and noticed a crowd gathering there.
"What's happening over there?"
Bai Wei said, "Perhaps someone is composing poetry or painting. Let's go and see."
Feng Qingyi followed the two to the pavilion, where she saw an old man with a white beard hunched over, painting.
Feng Qingyi moved closer, carefully examining his features. Isn't this the owner of the phone repair shop?
"Sir, do you remember me? You replaced my screen before!"
As soon as Feng Qingyi finished speaking, she was pushed aside by the people next to her.
"Who are you? Can't you see the master is painting? What are you yelling about?"
"That's right, get out of the way!"
Bai Wei steadied Feng Qingyi, "Miss Qingyi, are you alright? Are you hurt?"
Feng Qingyi shook her head, "I'm fine. Do you know who that painter is?"
"I don't recognize him," Bai Wei replied.
Xue Cha said, "Miss Qingyi, I know. He should be Qian Jue, the number one painter of Tianqi."
That title sounded quite impressive. Feng Qingyi stood on her tiptoes to look at his painting.
It was a traditional ink painting, which she had learned about in virtual classes. However, the work before her eyes didn't look like that of a famous master at all, but rather like a casual doodle.
"Bai Wei, Xue Cha, what do you think of his painting?"
Bai Wei shook her head, "I've never studied painting, so I don't know."
"I'm not sure either, but the painting seems quite nice," Xue Cha said.
"I actually think that if this is his level, he shouldn't deserve the title of the number one painter."
As soon as Feng Qingyi finished speaking, the people around her couldn't stand it anymore.
"How dare you question Master Qian Jue? Who do you think you are?"
"The master's painting once achieved instant fame, even the late emperor praised it endlessly."
"Master Qian Jue's paintings are priceless. What are you talking about, you ignorant person?"
"She's clearly pretending to know something she doesn't. Let's ignore her. She was the one making a fuss earlier, probably trying to get the master's attention."
"A woman should stay at home, tending to her husband and children. Why come out and make a scene?"
"..."
Feng Qingyi hadn't expected that her quiet comment to Bai Wei and Xue Cha would lead to such verbal attacks.
However, the so-called master's painting was indeed very perfunctory. She could paint better than this.
But the arguments of the people around her made her wonder for a moment whether it was she who didn't understand art, or if it was the onlookers who were clueless.
"Miss Qingyi, let's go back!" Bai Wei, worried that Feng Qingyi might feel embarrassed, suggested leaving.
Even though everyone around was looking at her with disdain, Feng Qingyi remained unmoved.
This painter looked exactly like the owner of the phone repair shop who had replaced her screen.
She decided to wait until he finished painting to have a chat with him.
After Qian Jue finished painting, he slowly stood up, and the crowd immediately became excited.
"Master Qian Jue, is this painting for sale today?"
"Master, I offer 100 taels."
"I offer 150 taels."
"200 taels."
"..."
Feng Qingyi felt like she had stumbled into an auction. In the end, the painting was sold to a young gentleman for the high price of 1,000 taels.
Feng Qingyi was shocked. If such a painting was worth 1,000 taels, she could probably become filthy rich.
If she exchanged the silver, one tael of silver was about 170 yuan, so 1,000 taels would be 170,000 yuan.
Moreover, this kind of painting didn't require much effort. She could paint several in a day.
After the painting was sold, the crowd gradually dispersed, and Feng Qingyi followed Qian Jue.
"Little girl, why are you following me?"
Feng Qingyi asked, "You replaced the screen on my phone before, do you remember?"
"I don't understand what you're talking about."
Feng Qingyi couldn't read anything from his face, not knowing if he really didn't understand or was just pretending.
"Are you really the number one painter of Tianqi?"
Qian Jue stroked his beard, "Girl, are you interested in painting? I see you have quite a talent. How about becoming my disciple?"
"...If this is your level of skill, I don't think you're qualified to take on disciples."
Qian Jue laughed heartily, "You're quite knowledgeable, girl. But since I'm called the number one painter, I naturally have the skills."
"Then why did you paint like this today?" Feng Qingyi asked.
Qian Jue dusted off his sleeves, "I was just bored today and casually painted in the pavilion. I didn't expect to be recognized by tourists. Since they were willing to pay a high price, why wouldn't I sell it?"
"Oh, I see. By the way, have you really never seen me before?" Feng Qingyi asked once more.
Qian Jue seemed to be getting impatient, "If you said this to a young and handsome gentleman, you might get a positive answer. But I really haven't seen you before."
"However, I see that you're quite knowledgeable. Why don't you become my disciple? Next time you ask me this question, I'll be able to say I've seen you before."
Feng Qingyi said, "You haven't even shown me your skills. How can I become your disciple so blindly?"
"My reputation is so well-known, you'd be lucky to be my disciple," Qian Jue said.
Feng Qingyi stared at him again, "Why do I feel that your voice is so strong? You don't seem like an old man."
"...Is that so? It must be your imagination."
"From now on, you're my disciple. If you have any questions, come find me at the Wenyuan Pavilion. I'll take my leave for today."
Feng Qingyi watched his figure disappear in a flash, stunned on the spot.
She didn't remember agreeing to be his disciple. Do they not ask for consent when taking on disciples these days?
Bai Wei and Xue Cha came running, out of breath.
"Miss Qingyi, we finally found you. We were so scared, thinking we had lost you."
"I'm sorry for worrying you. I just went to find Qian Jue," Feng Qingyi said.
Xue Cha said, "But Master Qian Jue left in that direction after selling his painting. How did you end up here?"
"He left in which direction?" Feng Qingyi asked.
Xue Cha pointed in the direction they had come from, and Feng Qingyi turned to look at the direction she had followed him.
These were completely opposite directions. Could he possess the ability to be in two places at once? It seemed that there was definitely something strange about this Qian Jue.
"Do you know where the Wenyuan Pavilion is?"
Xue Cha replied, "The Wenyuan Pavilion is within the Hanlin Academy. Master Qian Jue works there. If Miss Qingyi wants to find him, you can send a visiting card in advance."
