A Healing-Themed Artist Was Matched With a Human Weapon - Chapter 5

When Zhuang Ning woke up, he was already back in his dorm bed. As consciousness returned, he sat up with a start. “Where’s the painting?”

Lu Cen, who had just returned from dropping him off and making a quick stop at the restroom, heard the question and walked over to hand him the drawing tube from the table. “You have so little restraint couldn’t you hold yourself together?”

Zhuang Ning knew he was referring to him falling asleep while staring at the painting. “Don’t just stand there and talk try restraining yourself for once and see what happens!” He hugged the tube to his chest and then remembered, “I need to get a frame for this. Come on, come with me to buy one; I want to hang it over my bed, too.”

Lu Cen looked curiously at the tube on his bed. “What exactly did the master paint for you? Can I see it?”

“Not yet. If you look at it now, we might not make it out of the dorm today. All I can say is, the master is truly a master!”

Zhuang Ning dragged him out of the dorm, heading straight for the framing shop. As fate would have it, just as they walked out with their new frames, they bumped into Si Nuo and Zhang Yu, who were walking back from their own shopping.

Si Nuo noticed Zhuang Ning immediately. “Are you feeling better?”

Zhuang Ning rushed over, clutching his frame. “I’m perfectly fine! Are you guys here for frames too?” As he said this, his eyes landed on the small frame in Zhang Yu’s hand.

Zhang Yu had been waiting for someone to show off Si Nuo’s “chibi” (Q-version) portrait of him. Hearing Zhuang Ning’s question, he immediately turned the frame around to display it. “Look!”

Lu Cen and Zhuang Ning both focused on the chibi character. It didn’t carry the overwhelming spiritual impact of the landscape paintings, but it was incredibly cute, and the capture of Zhang Yu’s mannerisms was so precise that one knew exactly who it was at a glance.

“Did you paint this yourself?” Lu Cen asked, impressed.

Zhang Yu shook his head. “I could never! Si Nuo drew this. Isn’t it just like me?”

Zhuang Ning looked at Si Nuo with wide eyes. “Master, you can paint like this, too?”

Si Nuo smiled. “These chibi portraits likely don’t have the same healing effects as the landscapes.”

Lu Cen nodded. “You’re right, there’s no ‘resonance’ with this one. But Master, I just had a thought could you paint us two miniature versions of the landscapes? About the size of a palm, so we can keep them in our pockets and take a look whenever we need to? What do you think, Zhuang Ning?”

Zhuang Ning’s eyes lit up. “That’s brilliant! If we can carry them with us, we won’t have to be afraid when we’re out on missions!”

The two of them turned toward Si Nuo, pleading in unison, “Master!”

Si Nuo hadn’t expected them to order more commissions so quickly. “I suppose I can, but are you sure you want to?”

They both nodded vigorously. “Yes! We’ll pay now.”

Zhuang Ning suddenly remembered, “Oh, right! I haven’t paid you for the landscape painting yet. I’ll transfer it—”

“No need,” Si Nuo interrupted. “Lu Cen already paid for you. And for the miniature paintings, it won’t be 100,000 each. How about 20,000?”

“Master, are you sure? You have such a conscience! You really don’t have to save us money—we get monthly subsidies and our families are well-off…”

Si Nuo shook his head. “Whether you’re rich or not, I can’t gouge you. 20,000 is already plenty.”

Touched by his integrity, Zhuang Ning and Lu Cen transferred the money immediately. They agreed on a rough timeline for the first drafts, then went their separate ways.

Because of the new orders, Si Nuo dragged Zhang Yu to buy some thin wooden boards, which he had a master craftsman cut to size and drill holes into so they could be turned into keychains.

Zhang Yu looked at the boxes of boards. “Why did you buy so many? Just for Lu Cen and Zhuang Ning?”

“I have a feeling more people will need these later.” After all, military academy students like Lu Cen and Zhuang Ning constantly went out for field training; they couldn’t keep large paintings with them, but these small ones were perfect.

Zhang Yu realized the potential. “You’re right! You could even list them online to sell. The money will come rolling in!”

Si Nuo laughed. “Let’s go, let’s head back.”

Just as they stepped out of the shop, they bumped into Ren Ju and his lackeys. One of them intentionally raised his voice: “Ren Ju, you’re so lucky! You matched with an A-grade mental powerhouse on your first try. Have you decided when you’re going to meet up?”

Ren Ju looked toward Si Nuo and smiled. “That’s normal. Only the truly useless fail to find a match. We’re meeting this weekend.”

Zhang Yu rolled his eyes. “Acting like you’re already married. An A-grade powerhouse would want to marry a normal person with no mental power? I don’t believe it.”

Zhang Yu snorted and rushed past them, carrying the supplies. Back in the dorm, he slammed the door shut. “Disgusting! Just because he matched with someone doesn’t mean he has to show off like that. I still don’t believe an A-grade would look at him.”

Si Nuo watched Zhang Yu’s indignant expression and smiled. “Being able to find a match is actually quite impressive.”

Zhang Yu looked at him, remembering that Si Nuo had applied to the Central System for a match twice since turning eighteen, and both had failed. According to Imperial law, one could apply at eighteen, and by twenty-two, the system would perform a mandatory matching. The original owner had hoped to get a match early to receive the marriage and child-rearing subsidies, but he had been rejected twice.

Si Nuo thought it was probably because his body was too “useless” even the system couldn’t help him.

“Don’t lose heart. You can apply twice a month; you’ll match eventually. Wait, counting the time, your match results for this month should be coming out soon, right?”

Si Nuo paused. He’d forgotten that the original owner had immediately applied for a third time after the second rejection!

This time won’t have a good result either, right? he thought.

Before he could dwell on it, he received a message from his teacher, Zhao Chunsheng: [Si Nuo, are you free? Come to my office. Oh, bring Zhang Yu with you.]

They arrived to find three other people in the office. Zhao Chunsheng got straight to the point: “Our school’s anniversary celebration is next month, and some officials are coming to visit. The school wants the art students to redo the wall paintings outside. Four walls in total, one for each grade. The theme is ‘positivity and progress.’ Submit your drafts to me soon. The time is tight, so work quickly. Each of you will receive 1,000 in prize money. It’s not much, but it’s a reward for your hard work and will look good on your resumes.”

For a reward of 1,000, even if there hadn’t been one, they couldn’t have refused a school assignment anyway. Zhao looked at Si Nuo: “Si Nuo, your health isn’t great, so let Zhang Yu assist you. Any objections, Zhang Yu?”

Zhang Yu shook his head quickly. “None at all!”

“Good. Decide among yourselves how to split the money and go prepare.”

Outside the office, Zhang Yu laughed. “Zhao Chunsheng didn’t even look for Ren Ju—he came to you! If Ren Ju finds out, I can’t wait to see his face!”

“You can take the prize money,” Si Nuo said.

Zhang Yu looked at him, stunned. “Why? This work is clearly harder for you.”

“I don’t lack money anymore,” Si Nuo said with a smile. It was true between his commissions, he’d already made over 200,000!

Zhang Yu didn’t argue. “You’re a real brother! 1,000 isn’t much, but it’s still money out of the school’s pocket. I’m really looking forward to running into Ren Ju now!”

Back in the dorm, Si Nuo started work on the small landscape paintings for Lu Cen and Zhuang Ning. Zhang Yu watched him pull out his brushes. “Starting already?”

“Yeah, I’ve got the inspiration!” Si Nuo nodded.

Zhang Yu clapped him on the shoulder. “Should you register an online store?”

“Can I?” Si Nuo asked, his eyes wide.

“Of course! It’s easy, but you have to list a product within ten days of opening, or it gets reclaimed. You only get three chances before you lose the right permanently.”

“I’ll wait until I have more works ready before listing them.”

Si Nuo began to sketch. For the small boards, he worked fast. When Zhang Yu came out of the shower, Si Nuo was already finished with the first one: a whale leaping through colorful clouds.

“Wow! How did you think of painting a whale in the clouds? The color palette is so soothing,” Zhang Yu exclaimed.

“Is it okay?”

“It’s perfect!”

Si Nuo continued to the second board a lush spring landscape with an endless field of canola flowers beneath green hills. Zhang Yu didn’t disturb him, but instead took out his own drawing board to practice lines. His roommate was too talented he couldn’t afford to fall behind.

When Si Nuo finished the second one, he looked back to see Zhang Yu asleep on the desk, face covered in pencil lead. He smiled and shook his head, then lay down to rest. He realized he needed to start exercising; otherwise, his body wouldn’t handle larger projects.

The news about Si Nuo’s assignment spread through the class chat the next day. In the middle of the discussion, Ren Ju abruptly left the group. The chat went quiet. Si Nuo, however, was busy messaging Lu Cen and Zhuang Ning to tell them the paintings were ready.

Lu Cen replied that they had been placed under “closed training” for a week and couldn’t leave. He asked if Si Nuo could drop them off at the dorm’s reception desk instead.

After lunch, Si Nuo headed to the First Military Academy. The guards checked his identity and let him in. It was his first time inside the prestigious academy, and the place was surprisingly empty, likely because everyone was in training.

He got lost. After circling a building twice, he stopped to check his map. Just as he was wondering if he should call Lu Cen, a tall, imposing man in a military uniform walked out of a building nearby.

The man had sharp features, fierce black eyes, and an intimidating air. As he passed, Si Nuo called out, “Excuse me, could you tell me how to get to the AD dormitory?”

The man stopped, his piercing gaze sweeping over Si Nuo. Si Nuo felt an inexplicable sense of dread the man’s eyes reminded him of the killer in his dreams. He regretted asking and wanted to turn away.

“You’re not a student here,” the man said.

“Right, I’m just here to deliver something to a friend. My map is glitching if you don’t know the way, I’ll ask someone else.” Si Nuo turned to leave.

“Show me your student ID, and show me what you’re delivering.”

Si Nuo hesitated, thinking this must be a high-ranking instructor. He opened his digital ID on his terminal and held out the two small wooden boards.

The man looked at his ID, scanned the photo, then took the small paintings to inspect them. Si Nuo’s heart hammered against his ribs. After a moment, the man handed them back. “Good painting. Go straight down the road behind this building; you took a wrong turn.”

“Thank you!” Si Nuo hurried away, feeling a lingering sense of unease. Was that… the person from my dreams? No, that’s impossible.

Watching the youth run away like a startled rabbit, Guan Xingchen raised an eyebrow. Huh. Interesting.

Si Nuo didn’t stop until he was far away, heart pounding. He delivered the paintings to the reception desk and messaged Lu Cen.

Back at his school, he ran into the “Fatty” who was usually Ren Ju’s lapdog. “Si Nuo! Wait up! Is it true you made 100,000 on a painting? What kind of painting is worth that much?”

Si Nuo gave a perfunctory answer: “Just a regular landscape.” He brushed past him and headed to his room.

Back in the dorm, Zhang Yu was incensed. “He went to bother you? Don’t tell them anything! Let them guess! And from now on, we go everywhere together I don’t trust them not to pull something.”

Si Nuo smiled, feeling a bit warmer inside. Life, it seemed, was finally looking up.