CH 117

Chapter 117 – Born for Art

After Sylvester finished admiring all the entries in the Dream Cup capital division, he declined the invitation from the Dream Cup organizing committee. He hailed a taxi and headed straight to Q University.

Sylvester was a lifelong honorary professor at Q University’s School of Fine Arts, so he had unobstructed access to the campus and went directly to Zhuge Yu’s studio.

When Sylvester arrived at Q University, Zhuge Yu had just finished a class, and Chen Li followed him out. The two of them returned to the studio together and saw Sylvester waiting at the door.

Zhuge Yu wasn’t surprised by Sylvester’s presence. After all, the Dream Cup had started, and this guy never missed the Dream Cup in China. However, it was merely limited to observing. After all these years, Sylvester hadn’t taken any of the participants from the Dream Cup as his apprentice.

“Hey, Zhuge,” the blond old man greeted Zhuge Yu with a big smile.

“Sylvester,” Zhuge Yu replied with a smile. As he spoke, he opened the door to the studio, and the smell of art materials wafted out.

When Zhuge Yu and Chen Li entered the studio, Sylvester finally noticed Chen Li standing behind Zhuge Yu and felt that the young man looked somewhat familiar.

“Zhuge, aren’t you going to introduce me?” Sylvester quickly walked up to Zhuge Yu and asked.

For Chen Li, Sylvester was a complete stranger. Seeing Sylvester now, Chen Li felt a bit afraid. He stayed far away from Sylvester and took a few steps back when Sylvester approached.

Sylvester noticed Chen Li’s reaction, and scenes from a few months ago in Shanghai came to mind. He realized why he found this young man familiar; it was because this young man was the one praised by Zhuge Yu back then.

“This is my student, Chen Li,” Zhuge Yu said, adding, “He’s a bit shy. If you scare him, I won’t let you off!”

Sylvester thought to himself, ‘As expected. Zhuge Yu had indeed taken this young man as his student.’

“Aren’t you holding him back?” Sylvester frowned and said, expressing his disagreement.

He vividly remembered that the young man had painted traditional Chinese paintings, while Zhuge Yu specialized in oil painting. It was impossible for Zhuge Yu to teach Chen Li Chinese painting. There was a saying in China, something about leading someone astray.

With this thought in mind, Sylvester uttered the phrase “leading someone astray.”

During that time in Shanghai, he had seen the young man’s painting. Although he didn’t understand traditional Chinese painting very well, that particular piece had left a deep impression on him. At a glance, he could tell that the young man had extraordinary artistic talent.

“Half of the oil paintings in this studio are done by my student. After you see them, you can talk to me about leading someone astray,” Zhuge Yu said, displeased. His face immediately turned stern, and he stared at Sylvester, speaking with a serious tone.

“Why are you still so impatient?” Sylvester teased, but his feet were already in motion.

Sylvester and Zhuge Yu were old friends. At a glance, he could the paintings made by Zhuge Yu. The paintings in the studio that were not from Zhuge Yu’s hand were indeed the work of this seemingly timid young man.

When Sylvester saw the first painting by Chen Li, his steps froze, and his gaze was fixated on the painting. He couldn’t look away.

He felt it—the soul within the painting. Perhaps it had flaws, but the emotions it displayed could reach straight into people’s hearts, completely taking over their moods and emotions. Chen Li’s extraordinary talent and excellent skills were evident.

Zhuge Yu didn’t disturb the silence and allowed Sylvester to quietly observe. He believed that with Sylvester’s abilities, he could recognize Chen Li’s exceptional talent and skills.

Chen Li didn’t know who Sylvester was and felt somewhat scared. However, after seeing Zhuge Yu and Sylvester interacting, Chen Li realized that Sylvester was Zhuge Yu’s friend. Chen Li’s resistance subsided, but the underlying fear lingered in his heart. He could only stand at a distance, not daring to approach Sylvester.

Zhuge Yu noticed Chen Li’s tension and walked to his side. He gently patted Chen Li’s shoulder and whispered, “Don’t worry, he’s a friend of mine. He’s highly accomplished in abstract painting. Get to know him more, and you’ll learn a lot.”

Chen Li looked at Zhuge Yu, seemingly struggling with something. Finally, as if making a determined decision, he nodded and said, “Okay.”

Zhuge Yu smiled, feeling delighted.

He liked Chen Li’s purity. Setting aside matters related to Wei Chen, when it came to painting, Chen Li could take a big step forward courageously. Zhuge Yu could make Chen Li let down his guard and get close to him primarily because he could teach Chen Li about painting.

Chen Li was truly born for art.

Perhaps others could only focus on developing a specific aspect of their painting skills and not learn too much, fearing losing their own style and lacking the energy to learn more.

But Chen Li was different. He needed to draw on a wide range of influences. His mastery of painting techniques was heaven’s gift. It was as if they were engraved in his soul. He might forget them before learning, but as soon as he learned, he could immediately grasp those techniques engraved in his soul, using them effortlessly and skillfully.

Perhaps other people need a strong personal style to showcase and promote themselves, but Chen Li doesn’t. Every painting he creates reflects a unique style that is unpredictable yet captivating.

Once, Zhuge Yu thought Chen Yunlan was a favored child of heaven, someone truly born for painting. However, after meeting Chen Li, Zhuge Yu gave up on that idea.

Perhaps both of them had exceptional talents, but Chen Yunlan lacked Chen Li’s purity and dedication to painting.

And Zhuge Yu believed that this would lead to vastly different outcomes.

While looking at Chen Li’s paintings, Sylvester remained completely silent. Not a word escaped his lips. But he spent a considerable amount of time in front of each painting, completely absorbed in the process. In Sylvester’s eyes and mind, there was only Chen Li’s art.

After viewing three paintings consecutively, Sylvester stopped. He couldn’t continue anymore; he feared becoming too immersed in the profound souls captured within these artworks.

“Zhuge, I must retract what I said before,” Sylvester exerted great effort to tear his gaze away from the paintings. He looked at Zhuge Yu with genuine sincerity. “He truly is a genius, and you, for discovering this talent, I want to express my gratitude. Thank you for injecting such a strong force into the art world.”

Sylvester’s words were filled with excitement and enthusiasm.

Some people not only achieve remarkable accomplishments in their own profession but also dedicate themselves to the development and growth of that profession, devoting their whole being to it.

Sylvester was such a great person. It could be said that he had played a part in the modern art world’s development and growth. He delighted in seeing talented individuals engage in the art world, reaching out to the public and inspiring more people to understand and love this profession.

So when he saw Chen Li’s paintings, he expressed awe and gratitude.

Zhuge Yu understood his friend’s selflessness. He stepped forward and patted Sylvester’s shoulder, grinning. “Since you say so, during your time here in China, help me guide my student.”

Naturally, Sylvester wouldn’t refuse. He even felt honored. That’s what Sylvester thought, and that’s what he said, “Of course, I’d be delighted. It’s my honor.”

“Thank you,” Zhuge Yu said, although they were friends, he couldn’t let the other person work for free. “I’ll cover all your expenses during your time in China.”

Sylvester became even happier. “That’s great!” The excitement in his eyebrows and eyes was about to overflow.

Zhuge Yu couldn’t help but tease, “You’re still the same stingy person!”

Knowing that Sylvester was like this, although he could auction a painting for millions, he was thrifty to the extreme. He was frugal not only towards others but also towards himself. The outfit he was wearing now, Zhuge Yu had seen him wear it three years ago.

However, although Sylvester was thrifty, he was quite generous when it came to the art world. The concept of money disappeared for him in that moment.

That was something Zhuge Yu admired about Sylvester.

Later, Zhuge Yu acted as the intermediary and introduced Chen Li and Sylvester to each other.

Sylvester’s enthusiasm soared, and he seemed eager to immediately replace Zhuge Yu’s place in Chen Li’s heart, his eyes shining with excitement.

Although Chen Li was somewhat timid, he mustered up the courage to interact with Sylvester.

However, a problem quickly emerged—Sylvester’s Mandarin wasn’t very good, and Chen Li didn’t know English at all, which posed a severe barrier to communication. Consequently, when Sylvester and Chen Li spoke, Chen Li looked puzzled the entire time.

After a while, Sylvester realized this and turned his head to look at Zhuge Yu, hoping that Zhuge Yu could act as their translator.

Zhuge Yu nodded and accepted Sylvester’s request.

With Zhuge Yu mediating between them, Chen Li naturally became more at ease. While Sylvester was speaking, he suddenly realized something. He looked at Zhuge Yu, his voice filled with curiosity. “I came from the Dream Cup capital exhibition. I noticed that Chen Li’s leading piece wasn’t displayed. Instead, there was an empty frame with a note saying that the artwork was too astounding and would be exhibited during the final exhibition.”

“I know about that,” Zhuge Yu, being one of the judges for the Dream Cup finals, naturally participated in the discussion. However, he didn’t express his opinion during the discussion to avoid suspicion.

“I wanted to ask you, is that piece left for the final exhibition Chen Li’s work?” Although Sylvester phrased it as a question, his tone was incredibly certain.

Sylvester had reason to believe that Chen Li’s artwork deserved such treatment.

“Yes,” Zhuge Yu didn’t deny it, raising an eyebrow and smiling. “Are you looking forward to seeing that piece? I have a photo of it on my phone.”

Sylvester immediately nodded, his curiosity reaching its peak. He was eager to see just how remarkable the participating artworks could be. Even if he couldn’t see the original in person for now, seeing a photo would suffice.

Zhuge Yu smiled and took out his phone, opening the photo album and selecting a picture. “Here, take a good look.”

Sylvester practically leaned in to see the moment Zhuge Yu handed him the phone. However, as soon as his gaze fell upon the phone screen, all his excitement vanished, replaced by helplessness.

On the screen, there was no painting by Chen Li. It was just an emoji—a Shiba Inu side-eyeing him, surrounded by colorful rotating light trails.

Sylvester felt blinded by the sight.