Edited 07/01/2025
While Hua Jie silently observed and reflected, marveling that the two were indeed worthy disciples that Shen Jiaru was willing to take on, the ‘senior sister’ and ‘senior brother’ were also covertly observing her.
Their postures were rigid and their painting style formal, which was not their usual demeanor.
They had known since last weekend that the teacher was taking on a new disciple and had prepared themselves accordingly.
So, they came early today, waiting to see just what kind of local dumpling could have been newly accepted by the teacher.
The paintings they clipped to their drawing boards and placed on the floor today were the best they had selected from their thousands of works from the previous week.
It was all to show off their skills and intimidate the new student, letting her know what real artistic talent looks like.
They intended to suppress Hua Jie’s momentum, stake out their territory, and if necessary, step on the new student.
With this mindset, although they were tired, both sat firmly, posing for Hua Jie to assess them.
Seeing that the local dumpling indeed showed a look of recognition and admiration, they felt slightly proud.
They felt they had won this silent competition by a margin.
Hua Jie sat for a while, then finally set down her drawing board, picked up her kraft bag, and prepared to submit her homework to Shen Jiaru and discuss today’s lesson.
Suddenly, the sound of the doorbell echoed through the room.
She turned to look at the door, assuming it was the last student who had just arrived, right on time.
Thinking that Shen Mo would be outside to open the door, she carried her kraft paper bag and crossed the studio in two strides towards the room where Shen Jiaru was.
The doorbell kept ringing.
“I thought you were getting up to open the door,” said the quiet young lady suddenly, frowning.
Realizing she was being addressed, Hua Jie stood at the doorway of the inner room and turned back:
“Isn’t Shen Mo outside?”
He had just broken some dishes five minutes ago, he must be furiously cleaning up the pieces right now.
“…” The young lady gave a ‘are you kidding me?’ look.
“Shen Mo never opens the door for any of us, nor does he speak to us.”
“Even if Lu Yunfei keeps ringing the doorbell to the point of breaking it, Shen Mo won’t bother.”
The young man sitting in the eastern corner scoffed, gave Hua Jie a sideways glance, then put down the gouache landscape he had been displaying for Hua Jie to admire, and got up to open the door.
“…” Hua Jie was stunned.
When she arrived and just pressed the doorbell, Shen Mo immediately opened the door.
…
Lu Yunfei, with his neatly combed short hair and an expressionless face, followed behind the irritable young man into the studio, took a brief look around, and then sat down in the vacant north corner.
Shen Jiaru emerged from the inner room, seeing his four disciples each occupying a corner, with himself standing in the middle, almost like a sacrificial offering in a magical array.
“Last week’s homework.” He pulled up a chair to sit in the middle, propped up one leg, and began with a frown.
It turned out everyone had homework. Hua Jie, holding her kraft paper bag, was the last to hand it in.
Seeing the other three standing, Hua Jie also stood to the side, somewhat awkwardly waiting for the teacher to check the homework, feeling like a primary school student handing in work, both novel and nervous.
Shen Jiaru inspected the work in the order it was handed in, first examining the painting by the quiet and obedient disciple, Lu Yunfei.
During his careful scrutiny, everyone remained silent and motionless, a strange, oppressive atmosphere permeating the studio.
Hua Jie stood behind, peering over the young lady’s head to observe Shen Jiaru.
Today, he seemed completely different from the last time she saw him. Previously, she thought him refined and unconventional, but today he seemed especially stern and severe.
“Lu Yunfei.” Shen Jiaru suddenly spoke, then flipped the gouache painting to show it to the four students.
“What do you think of your own work?”
“…” Lu Yunfei was taken aback by the question, nervously swallowing:
“It’s a bit rigid.”
His voice carried a somber tone, the first time Hua Jie had heard him speak.
Just from his tone and expression, it was clear he was a very introverted person.
“Ah, you know it’s rigid.” Shen Jiaru then turned to ask the female student:
“Fang Shaojun, what do you think, how can this painting be improved?”
“Don’t make the outlines too solid, you can omit the outlines here.” Ponytail Miss Fang Shaojun even pointed to a specific spot in the air.
“Uh, Qian Chong, what do you think?” Shen Jiaru asked the irritable male student.
“Ah… Even for close-up still life, there should be a mix of blurred and clear elements. When painting, you cannot simply copy what you see, but also analyze it. You need to present the relationships in sketching and color on the canvas,” Qian Chong said.
Hua Jie silently remembered their names, her eyes also fixed on the gouache painting.
At that moment, Shen Jiaru turned his gaze to Hua Jie, “Hua Jie, what do you think?”
All three students turned to look at her, which was also a way for the teacher to introduce her to the others.
The young girl took a deep breath.
She knew that facing the other three classmates, she must not show any weakness; otherwise, she would definitely be stuck in a never-ending situation of being looked down upon by others.
Artists, especially those talented and capable enough to be taken under Shen Jiaru’s wing, are not only highly competitive but also proud and arrogant.
She needed to make a strong impression right away to ensure they wouldn’t underestimate her.
Only then could she earn their respect and avoid being seen as the lowest in the studio because she was the last to arrive.
Under the watchful eyes of her fellow senior students, Hua Jie took a step forward and began speaking with the tone and presence she had used in her previous life as an online teacher:
“Qian Chong made a very good point. Only by presenting the sketching relationships in the painting can it become three-dimensional.”
“Painting is not like photography, which simply requires reproducing reality. Painting sometimes requires exaggeration to express depth and perspective.”
“For instance, the contrast between light and dark here should be stronger to bring the foreground object closer to us.”
“The objects in the background could be greyer to push them back, enhancing the sense of space in the entire painting.”
“Otherwise, it’s easy to see the still life as flat at a glance.”
Qian Chong suddenly heard Hua Jie mention his name, initially pleased by the recognition, but as the young girl continued with a detailed explanation, including how to address and resolve issues, his feelings changed.
He immediately straightened up, his eyebrows raised, adopting a poised, assertive stance.
Fang Shaojun, who had been casually asked by Shen Jiaru and had only made a brief comment, also felt her competitive spirit ignited, realizing she had spoken too little and should have observed more carefully and thought more deeply to offer more insights.
Lu Yunfei frowned at his own painting, his fists slightly clenched.
“Although the painting is a bit too cautious, the use of colors is very solid.”
“Accuracy in form is a strong point.”
“The sense of color is very good; here, you can almost see all the environmental colors.”
“Just relax and ease the pressure on yourself when you paint, and you’ll instantly achieve a significant breakthrough in terms of layering.”
Hua Jie said this and nodded vigorously. The technique of starting with criticism and ending with praise was something she was getting very good at using.
Lu Yunfei’s fists, which had been clenched, gradually relaxed.
“…” Shen Jiaru’s eyes were fixed on Hua Jie the whole time. His expression remained unchanged, but his gaze had softened considerably.
She had covered most of what needed to be said about the painting, so he didn’t have much to add.
He nodded, handed the painting back to Lu Yunfei, and after thinking a bit, he simply said:
“Hua Jie spoke well, think over what she said.”
“Let go of your desire to win or lose, don’t worry about painting too much or making mistakes, we’re not asking you to take an exam right now, nor are we asking you to produce a work for exhibition immediately.”
“The learning process is about daring to make mistakes, with a teacher to guide you, go ahead and take bold actions.”
“Thank you, teacher,” Lu Yunfei took his painting back, gazing down at it intently, and quietly stepped back to stand behind Qian Chong.
“Qian Chong, take a look at your own painting,” Shen Jiaru then lifted Qian Chong’s painting for everyone to see.
It was a photo-realistic painting of Yueyang Tower.
“The completion is too low…” Qian Chong said reluctantly.
“Hmph,” Shen Jiaru glared at him and turned to Lu Yunfei, “You give your opinion.”
Finally, Lu Yunfei lifted his gaze from his painting, studied the gouache of Yueyang Tower for a while, and then spoke deliberately:
“Too many details are omitted; even the main tower is a bit off.”
Qian Chong turned back and glared at Lu Yunfei, who remained unfazed.
“Fang Shaojun,” Shen Jiaru continued calling names.
“Look at the trees, it’s clearly summer at Yueyang Tower, but you used too many cool tones and too few warm tones, the overall color temperature of the painting is off,” Fang Shaojun stated bluntly.
“…” Qian Chong’s face fell.
“Listen honestly, and remember it,” Shen Jiaru glared at Qian Chong again, whose expression then slightly improved.
Hua Jie silently observed everyone, realizing that none of the students in this room were easy to get along with.
Lu Yunfei was not talkative, too introverted, and likely a vengeful schemer.
Fang Shaojun carried an air of nobility, a strong sense of superiority, and was unsparing in her comments, completely embodying a self-centered young lady’s demeanor.
Qian Chong was even more exaggerated; even in front of Teacher Shen, he was so unreceptive to guidance. Any criticism from others, and he could shoot daggers with his eyes. If Shen wasn’t there, he would probably start arguing or even swearing.
She scratched her head, thinking she also couldn’t be too compliant, or wouldn’t she be overshadowed by these self-proclaimed talented kids, appearing too easy to bully?
“Hua Jie,” Shen Jiaru called her again.
Hua Jie turned her head and met Qian Chong’s very unfriendly, threatening gaze.
“…” Hua Jie innocently blinked, acting as if she hadn’t received any threatening message from him, and then focused on the painting, saying very rationally:
“You are too impatient; painting requires patience.”
“And starting to run before you’re steady, it’s easy to trip and fall.”
“This painting focuses only on Yueyang Tower, with the foreground trees, distant trees, and sea of clouds, while the structures below and in the background are all blurred and roughly painted. This isn’t artistic handling; it’s just laziness.”
“…” Qian Chong’s eyes widened, infuriated by the audacity of the newcomer.
He silently gathered his strength, thinking: when it’s time to critique her painting, he definitely won’t hold back!
He would unleash his full force, critique her until she cries, critique her until she trembles at the sight of him!
Qian Chong was clearly the most difficult among the three senior students.
Hua Jie understood that facing him, she had to charge fiercely to make him wary.
If she only triggered his contrariness without suppressing him, and he saw her as a rival constantly provoking, that would lead to the worst kind of relationship.
Facing others’ competitive and jealous nature, the best way to handle it is often not to back down, as that would only encourage them to become more aggressive.
Sometimes, a villain needs to be countered with harsh measures.
Therefore, she needed to strike a deadly blow, critique mercilessly to have a deterring effect.
Hence, Hua Jie continued:
“If these roughly painted parts were correct, that would be one thing.”
“Relying on blurring to think others won’t notice issues, just casually painting, this will become the biggest obstacle on your future path.”
“Unless you only want to fool ordinary people in the future and don’t aim to climb to higher levels, then these omitted details must be accurately depicted.”
“This part of the color, and this section here, are both wrong.”
“The overall effect looks like there’s a strange light shining on the painting, very discordant.”
“In fact, in a setting like Yueyang Tower, it’s impossible to have such lighting, especially during the daytime.
“Masters can instantly tell you’re just making things up; even if you might fool someone at first glance, it definitely won’t sell for a high price.”
“…” Qian Chong’s expression turned completely dark.
If what Hua Jie said was wrong, he could still grimace and glare at her, acting as if she was just talking nonsense.
But… she was spot on.
The young man clenched his teeth, feeling both embarrassed and angry.
“However, in terms of expressiveness, it’s indeed strong.
“It’s a kind of talent that others might not achieve even if they try all their lives, a rare gift.”
Suddenly, Hua Jie changed her tone:
“Especially the handling of warm and cool tones, omitting all information about the foreground and background to elevate Yueyang Tower boldly and coolly.
“It instantly gives Yueyang Tower a sense of mystery; those blurred parts seem to harbor evil spirits and demons, which is particularly captivating.
“If you could be patient, master the details first, establish a solid foundation, and then express your personality on that basis, that would be outstanding.”
“…” Qian Chong’s eyes, which were nearly bursting with rage, finally cooled down, staring at his painting and thinking: at least she has some aesthetic sense, recognizing that his personal expression is something others might not achieve in their lifetimes.
Shen Jiaru pursed his lips, handed the painting back to Qian Chong, and said bluntly:
“Hua Jie’s last comments you can ignore. For next week’s homework, fill in all the details of this painting, don’t blur any part of it.”