Chapter 1730 - 1731: Never Heard of It

Zhang Mengyao nodded, sat down next to him, and asked curiously, "Lin Xian, I didn't expect you

to be so good at painting. How come I've never heard of it before?"

"Maybe I'm just more low-key, like how you didn't know I could play guitar before," Lin Xian

laughed softly.

Zhang Mengyao thought about it and found it quite reasonable.

In her impression, Lin Xian was indeed very low-key, not standing out in high school,

quiet and reserved.

If she hadn't come into contact with him through Yan Xiaoman, she would never have discovered

how interesting and talented he was.

Thinking of Yan Xiaoman, Zhang Mengyao suddenly pouted, "Lin Xian, can you not paint

for other girls in the future... If you must, don't make it so good."

After saying that, Zhang Mengyao felt a little guilty.

She thought her request was somewhat unreasonable since Yan Xiaoman was Lin Xian's

official girlfriend.

But she couldn't help feeling upset when she thought of Lin Xian painting such beautiful works for other girls.

Lin Xian lightly tapped her adorable little nose and shook his head with a laugh, "What are you

thinking? Do you think a painting like this can be done just casually?"

"To be honest, this painting might be the pinnacle of my life's work. From now on, it's hard

to say surpassing it, even creating something at the same level would be very difficult."

There's nothing untrue about that.

Everyone in any field has their own masterpiece.

For example, Da Vinci had many outstanding paintings throughout his life, like The Last Supper and

the Virgin of the Rocks.

But the true peak masterpiece was Mona Lisa's Smile.

Da Vinci himself once said that after finishing Mona Lisa's Smile, he knew

he would probably never create a work that surpassed it.

Similarly, Van Gogh had countless outstanding works, but the most satisfying was Sunflowers.

Now, Lin Xian had that same feeling.

Why feel this way?

Sorry, this is an intuition exclusive to masters. If you can't understand, it just means you haven't

reached that level yet.

Hearing this, Zhang Mengyao immediately showed a smug smile, feeling extremely happy in her heart.

Hmph, Princess Yan, this time I've won!

This painting not only has the quality of a world-famous painting but most importantly, the person in it is

her. And it was painted by the person she loves.

This is a painting that's exclusively hers, one of a kind.

Thinking of this, the happiness in Zhang Mengyao's heart was almost overflowing.

"Lin Xian, you're really wonderful!"

Zhang Mengyao rested her head on his shoulder, her voice like a purring cat.

Seeing this, Lin Xian wrapped an arm around her waist and whispered in her ear, "With me being so good to you, don't

I get any reward?"

Zhang Mengyao bit her lip and, unusually, didn't retort; instead, she pecked his cheek lightly, then whispered,

almost inaudibly: "Tonight."

"Whoa!"

Lin Xian raised his eyebrows, surprise in his eyes.

It's rare for Zhang Mengyao to give him such a benefit voluntarily; not easy!

It seems she's extremely satisfied with this painting.

The two of them lingered in the small pavilion for a while, and when the paint on the paper had completely dried by the wind,

Lin Xian reached out to take down the painting, rolling it into a scroll.

Seeing this, Zhang Mengyao complained, "Lin Xian, be gentle!"

Lin Xian laughed helplessly, "The quality of this paper is quite good; it's not that easy to damage."

"Never mind, let me hold it!"

Feeling uneasy, Zhang Mengyao gently took the scroll, her careful demeanor as if she were holding

a priceless treasure.

But it makes sense; to Zhang Mengyao, this painting is indeed her exclusive priceless treasure.

If it were damaged, this girl would be heartbroken for a long time.

Hugging the scroll to her chest, Zhang Mengyao eagerly said, "Lin Xian, let's go get it framed."

"Alright!"

Seeing her so excited, Lin Xian packed up the painting tools and board.

With the painting bag on his back, the two of them left the pavilion and started heading down the mountain.

Going down is always faster than going up, and more relaxing.

It took an hour to go up, but only half an hour to come down.

Standing by the roadside, waiting for a taxi, Zhang Mengyao suddenly asked, "By the way, do you

know where there's a shop for framing paintings?"

Framing paintings is a very ancient craft.

In ancient times, this craft was very sought after because there were many calligraphies and paintings back then. A good piece of calligraphy or painting would

be framed and then hung up at home.

But in modern times, as calligraphy and paintings become less common, this craft has gradually begun to decline.

Frankly speaking, many people know there's a craft for framing paintings, but if you suddenly ask

where exactly such a shop is, the majority of people would be clueless.

Honestly speaking, 99% of people in the country have never encountered a framing shop in their life.

Lin Xian had never encountered one either, so he was stunned for a moment.

After thinking for a bit, he mused, "Let's go to Chaotian, there should be a framing shop over there."

Jinling, as the ancient capital of six dynasties, has a deep cultural heritage.

And the Chaotian Palace, as one of the cultural centers of Jinling, has countless antique shops, so there should be

a framing shop too.

Once decided, Lin Xian flagged down a taxi, and the two of them headed for Chaotian Palace.

Although Chaotian Palace is a tourist attraction, it's actually not as famous as the Confucius Temple, but it's

extremely well-known across the country as an antique trading market.

In the north, there's Pan Garden, and in the south, there's the Heavenly Palace.

These are the two major antique trading markets in the country.

A couple of minutes later, the taxi stopped steadily by the roadside of Chaotian Palace Antique Trading Market.

After paying, Zhang Mengyao hugged the scroll, feeling a bit lost, and asked, "Lin Xian, where should we go now?"

The antique trading market is a long alley, with ancient shops lining both sides of the street, and at the end of the alley,

there's a large open space.

On the open space, hundreds of stalls are gathered together, with chatter and haggling sounds in the air, bustling indeed.

It was Lin Xian's first time at Chaotian Palace Antique Trading Market, and he found it quite interesting, so he smiled and said,

"Let's look around; there should be a framing shop here."

Antique calligraphy and painting shops and framing shops are inseparable; where there are antiques, there must be framing shops.

Wrapping an arm around Zhang Mengyao, the two of them stepped into the alley.

Today being the weekend, the antique trading market was exceptionally lively.

The not-so-wide alley was bustling with people coming and going.

Zhang Mengyao was also visiting Chaotian Palace for the first time, so her big eyes kept curiously taking in the shops around.

"Lin Xian, do you think you can really buy antiques here at a low price?" Zhang Mengyao asked curiously.

Lin Xian shook his head with a laugh, "Maybe 20 years ago it was possible. But now,

the chances are smaller than winning the lottery; these people are sharper than ghosts, and trying to find a bargain from them

is less likely than expecting pigs to climb trees."

Zhang Mengyao asked quizzically, "Then why are there still so many people here?"

"For the excitement, and people have a lucky mindset; if they find a bargain, they could get rich overnight."

Lin Xian paused for a moment and then continued explaining, "Besides, this is also a place for antique collectors to communicate."

Imagine a few collectors gathering, drinking tea, sharing experiences, and showing off

their newly acquired antiques, how pleasant that is.

Walking down the alley to its end, Lin Xian still hadn't found a framing shop.

Instead, Zhang Mengyao, with the scroll in her arms, attracted quite a few glances, and even a few

employees from antique shops asked if she wanted to sell the painting.

Request for flowers

Looking at the shops on both sides, Lin Xian suddenly chuckled, "Zhang Mengyao, I've realized we're being a bit silly."

"What do you mean?"

Zhang Mengyao raised an eyebrow, puzzled.

"Why search aimlessly when we can just ask someone?"

With that, Lin Xian turned and walked into a nearby antique shop.

The calligraphies and paintings in these shops, whether real or fake, have to be framed to be sold, so they look

the part to customers.

Therefore, they definitely know where the framing shop is.

Walking into the shop, Lin Xian smiled and asked, "Owner, may I ask if there's a framing shop nearby?"