With just one glance, Lawyer Bian was completely captivated.
His gaze was as if glued to the screen, watching the video titled "Xiao Ran Learns Chinese Painting" from start to finish.
My goodness, was this really painted by Gu Nanyan?
She shouldn't have entered the entertainment industry, but instead should have pursued painting.
If she had pursued painting, she might have become famous long ago. Ah, what a waste to enter the entertainment industry!
Originally, Lawyer Bian intended to call Zhan Yiran and inform her that Master Le wanted to meet her, but now he had changed his mind. He would go in person, he wanted to see those paintings with his own eyes, especially the Phoenix Nirvana.
It was so beautiful, so overwhelmingly stunning!
Unable to wait even a minute, Lawyer Bian hurried to the Zhan residence.
The first thing he said upon seeing Zhan Yiran was, "Can I take a look at the Phoenix Nirvana?"
Zhan Yiran's eyes widened in surprise, "Lawyer Bian, you watch TikTok too? I thought someone as busy as you wouldn't have time for that."
"Miss Zhan, please let me take a look," Lawyer Bian urged impatiently.
"This way." Zhan Yiran led Lawyer Bian over.
The Phoenix Nirvana had already been mounted and hung in the collection room.
Before coming, Lawyer Bian had expected that the original painting would be even better than the video, but still, when he saw the original, he was utterly awestruck.
Damn, damn, damn...
After silently uttering countless "damns" in his heart, Lawyer Bian finally regained his composure and prevented himself from losing his cool.
Ah, it's just too beautiful!
"Can I touch it?" Lawyer Bian cautiously requested. Does such a painting truly exist in this world?
Zhan Yiran bluntly refused, "Of course not, what if you damage it? Quick, go, just looking is enough. By the way, Lawyer Bian, why did you come? Do you have something for me?"
It was then that Lawyer Bian remembered the purpose of his visit. "Master Le has found me, saying he wants to meet you and your elder sister-in-law."
"Meet us?" Zhan Yiran pointed at herself, initially not understanding, but soon realizing, "Is it because Master Le saw the short video I posted? Does Master Le really admire the Phoenix Nirvana?"
Lawyer Bian nodded, "Master Le said your elder sister-in-law is a genius, with extraordinary talent in painting."
"Hahaha!" Zhan Yiran burst into laughter. Great, even Master Le praised her elder sister-in-law, let's see how Le Xuanji can still act arrogant.
Although Zhan Yiran disliked Le Xuanji, she greatly respected Master Le. She had recently been learning about various Chinese paintings from her teacher and knew Master Le's status in the art world. She had also seen many of Master Le's works and admired them greatly.
"Lawyer Bian, you can go now. I'll go and tell my elder sister-in-law this good news right away."
She hurried upstairs as she spoke.
Lawyer Bian followed closely behind.
"Elder sister-in-law, elder sister-in-law, I have good news!" Zhan Yiran called out even before reaching upstairs.
However, when she reached the top, she didn't get the chance to speak before Lawyer Bian.
Lawyer Bian spoke first, "Madam, I have good news. Master Le Chang greatly admires your work and wishes to meet you."
What was this annoying Lawyer Bian doing, stealing her chance to speak?
Zhan Yiran turned her head and glared at Lawyer Bian with a deadly stare.
But Lawyer Bian was completely oblivious to Zhan Yiran's gaze, his full attention on Gu Nanyan.
"Madam, may I make an impertinent request? Can I touch the hem of your robe?"
Whether it was the Phoenix Nirvana or Gu Nanyan herself, they didn't seem real. Lawyer Bian really wanted to touch the hem of her robe.
"Get lost!" Zhan Yiran was furious. This wretched man, how dare he want to touch her elder sister-in-law's robe! She ordered the servants to chase Lawyer Bian away.
After Lawyer Bian was driven away, Zhan Yiran carefully tugged at Gu Nanyan's robe herself.
Heheh, only she could touch her elder sister-in-law's robe!
"Elder sister-in-law, Master Le Chang is a formidable painter. Should we go and visit him?"
Gu Nanyan nodded, "Naturally."
She kept her personal and professional matters separate and would never vent her anger on others. The conflicts between the younger generation had nothing to do with the elders. Moreover, Gu Nanyan had seen Master Le Chang's works, they were indeed impressive, his skill was worthy of being a court painter.
Gu Nanyan respected every talented individual, even more so Master Le Chang as an elder.
"Wonderful, then let's go see him now, elder sister-in-law. I have so many questions I want to ask Master Le."
Zhan Yiran was so excited she was about to jump up and down, pulling Gu Nanyan to choose outfits.
"Elder sister-in-law, how about wearing a Han robe? I think your aura is perfect for wearing Han robes."
Zhan Yiran truly believed so. Her elder sister-in-law had an indescribable aura, like the elegance of a renowned scholar from the Wei and Jin dynasties, combined with the grandeur of an emperor - glamorous yet noble.
Zhan Yiran couldn't quite put it into words, but she felt her elder sister-in-law was perfectly suited for ancient costumes.
"Han robe?" Gu Nanyan raised an eyebrow.
Zhan Yiran nodded, showing her a fashion album.
As the young Miss of such an affluent family, major luxury brands would regularly send new collection catalogs to their doorstep for her to select, with many styles not yet available in the market.
Gu Nanyan initially thought Han robes referred to clothing from the Han dynasty, but after flipping through the album, she realized it meant ancient clothing, not limited to a specific dynasty.
"No Han robes," Gu Nanyan closed the album.
Zhan Yiran was surprised, she thought her elder sister-in-law would like it. "Why not?"
Gu Nanyan frowned slightly, "I've worn enough."
She had worn ancient costumes for over twenty years, more than enough.
Moreover, the styles in the album were quite crude, both in material and design, leaving Gu Nanyan extremely disdainful.
The clothes she used to wear were made from cloth worth thousands of gold, meticulously embroidered by thousands of skilled seamstresses from Jiangnan.
Having been accustomed to the finest, Gu Nanyan looked down on the so-called luxury items of modern times.
They were just hype, not worth mentioning, incomparable to true fine things.
She once had a robe made of feathers from hundreds of birds, a tribute from a vassal state. The entire nation had to mobilize to catch birds, then select their most skilled embroiderers, taking three years to weave this single robe.
The Feather Robe was incredibly vibrant, with colors changing from every angle.
However, later, Gu Nanyan ordered a ban on tribute dresses made from feathers of hundreds of birds, as letting so many bird species go extinct for a single dress was simply not worth it.
As the Crown Princess of the nation, Gu Nanyan was below only one and above ten thousand others. Whatever she fancied, others had to comply.
If she indulged in extravagance, the entire nation of Great Qi would exhaust its resources to procure rare and precious items for her, an act that would burden the people and undermine the nation's strength.
This was something Gu Nanyan would never allow.
Hence, she never took pleasure in such rare and exotic items.
Gu Nanyan walked into the dressing room and picked out a wool sweater, a pair of jeans, a stylish leather jacket, and a pair of Martin boots.
"This outfit is not bad," she nodded in satisfaction.
Having finally transmigrated to the modern era, women were free from restrictions in their choice of clothing, able to wear pants instead of being confined to skirts.
She would have to be crazy to wear those fussy ancient costumes.
If she dressed the same as before, what was the point of transmigrating? There would be no difference.
Modern people are interested in the beautiful and ornate ancient attire precisely because they have never worn it, and they want to experience it.
But Gu Nanyan had been living in ancient times since childhood, wearing ancient clothing every day until she was sick of it.
Gu Nanyan loved new things, with an open mind and broad vision, never bound by her past.
She wanted to try different things.
At the same time, on the other side, Le Xuanji was lying on her bed, rolling around and wailing.
Why, why did this happen?
How could Gu Nanyan possibly paint the 'Phoenix Nirvana'?
Just now, Le Xuanji had searched online for 'Gu Nanyan', and all the results were filled with scandals.
Things like falsely claiming to resemble a top actress, trying to stir up rumors of dating a popular idol, bullying others, and feigning victimhood... so many despicable acts.
How could someone with such a rotten character create the masterpiece 'Phoenix Nirvana'?
Wait a minute...
Le Xuanji considered a possibility - the short video on TikTok only showed a hand, without revealing the face, so it might not have been Gu Nanyan's painting at all.
And even if it was her painting, Le Xuanji hated her!
A woman who would stoop to any means to marry into a wealthy family did not deserve to be mentioned in the same breath as Princess Changning.
The more Le Xuanji thought about it, the more she resented Gu Nanyan for daring to use Princess Changning's painting techniques. Finally, in anguish, she hugged a pillow and cried.
She was so heartbroken that she opened her phone and listened to Jia He's song 'Peace of Mind' to calm herself down.
Le Xuanji immersed herself in Jia He's beautiful voice.
Jia He's vocals were truly enchanting. It was said that she wrote both the lyrics and music herself - truly a talented little fairy.
