The Scandalous Actress Needs to Strive GL - Chapter 24

The production team had communicated with Zhou Yang beforehand. Based on his suggestion, this episode’s theme should be more focused on self-cultivation, which essentially meant painting. This was because President Zhou’s oil painting was considered to be quite good, but whether he personally possessed the skill was one thing, and whether others knew about it was another.

Therefore, with the goal of eliminating the negative impact left by the previous Zhou Lanlan incident, Zhou Yang was naturally eager to showcase his most perfect side and let people in the industry know that the head of the Zhou family was not merely a figurehead. His refinement and talent were not inferior to anyone else’s.

To increase the visual appeal, the production team set up a competition between two teams. The winning team would get a day and a night off to enjoy the city, while the losing team would have to stay behind and experience the traditional lifestyle of chopping wood and carrying water.

Li He had long known her President’s abilities after all, President Zhou’s masterpieces were featured in the corporate culture brochure. Thus, she was prepared to effortlessly win.

Lai Su looked at their composed demeanor, then glanced at Qiu Wan, who was idle, curiously scribbling and drawing with a pencil like a child. She rubbed her forehead and said, “I took traditional Chinese painting classes for a while when I was little. Although we don’t stand a chance of winning against them, at least we won’t lose too badly. As for you… just cheer me on from the side these few days.”

Qiu Wan nodded and then resumed her exploration of the new object. On the first day, Lai Su peeked into Li He’s courtyard. President Zhou had already started the base sketch.

They clearly weren’t taking the opposing team seriously, working boldly in the courtyard. Li He was happy to run back and forth assisting him, and a preliminary sketch of a ‘Gongbi Lady’ was quickly taking shape.

Meanwhile, in their courtyard, there were only unopened packages of paints and brushes.

On the second day, President Zhou was already in the process of transferring his sketch onto the canvas. He looked at Lai Su, who seemed to run over eight times a day to scout information, and said humbly, “Miss Lai, would you like to learn? We’ll be applying color tomorrow. If you still don’t have a subject, I can teach you a quick, common method. If you focus, you can paint something presentable in two or three days.”

“No need, we already have a subject in mind.” Lai Su lifted her chin. She wouldn’t lose face; losing a battle was fine, but not losing spirit. She definitely wouldn’t learn from him. If she did, wouldn’t that mean conceding defeat from the start?

“Is that so? May I ask what Miss Lai is planning to paint?” Seeing Zhou Yang smile without speaking, Li He knew it was her turn. She smiled and asked casually. As expected, the woman, who was feigning arrogance, instantly lost her composure.

Lai Su didn’t miss the mocking look in his eyes. Seeing the painting on their canvas, she retorted, “We’re also painting a ‘Gongbi Lady’. It’s still too early to say who will win or lose, don’t get too smug, hmph.”

Her defiant yet slightly nervous mannerisms were endearing, perfectly pleasing the audience watching the live stream. Amidst a flurry of comments worshipping Zhou Yang, a wave of comments supporting Lai Su began to appear, though they were a bit comical.

*Our Sister Lai is very capable, hmph*

*Don’t underestimate us, be careful not to be proven wrong, hmph*

*Let’s make a strategic retreat for now, and come back next year, hmph*

*Let’s go, go back and paint a beautiful court lady to amaze them, hmph*

Back in their courtyard, Lai Su immediately deflated after leaving their opponents. She had video called for advice the night before and searched for a lot of information, but painting wasn’t something that could be mastered overnight a last-minute effort wouldn’t work.

Returning to the courtyard and seeing Qiu Wan, who was starting to get interested in the paints, she felt even more disheartened. “We’re finished. I told them we’re also painting a ‘Gongbi Lady’, but I don’t even know how to properly paint one.”

“I have seen it. Does this red color come from the Caesalpinia sappan (Sappanwood)?” Qiu Wan looked up, holding a box of red paint, and asked.

“Red is red, what Sappanwood?” Lai Su answered perfunctorily, looking at the blank paper with a worried frown, picking up a pencil but unable to even draw a decent line.

Qiu Wan looked at the paint in her hand. She had the original owner’s memories and recognized the words on it, she was just slightly confused. The colors she was used to came mostly from natural sources, the majority of which were from plants. For example, red usually came from Rubia tinctorum (Madder) and Sappanwood, blue from Isatis indigotica (Woad), and black from Gleditsia sinensis (Chinese Honeylocust) pods and Rhus chinensis (Chinese Sumac) galls.

She looked at the palette, eager to try. Seeing no one was paying attention, she dipped a little of each color, carefully distinguishing and mixing them. In doing so, she found the familiar shades, but not only were the names different, the colors were also purer.

Lai Su had thought that she had studied for some time, but now that she held the brush, she didn’t know where to start. She put down the pencil and looked at Qiu Wan, who was treating the palette as a rainbow coloring game. She couldn’t help but ask bluntly, “Besides playing the pipa, can you do anything else? Like painting? Don’t tell me you really are just a pretty face.”

She thought she must be crazy to be so desperate as to delusionally hope this woman could surprise her. What level of wishful thinking was this?

The audience shared the same thought as her:

Is Lai Su losing her mind? This was the general sentiment of ordinary viewers.

If Qiu Wan could paint, would she be playing with the colors like a kid? This was a question from the curious onlookers watching the live stream.

Although our sister is great, I really haven’t heard that she can paint. This was the resigned comment from Qiu Wan’s fans and some CP fans.

Just admit defeat already. The rumored female celebrity shouldn’t pretend to be innocent. Does playing coloring games like a child mean you won’t lose? This was from the active anti-fans.

Qiu Wan finally put down the palette. She looked at the sky. Unbeknownst to them, it was already afternoon. Two days had passed, and Miss Lai’s progress was zero.

Fortunately, she had roughly familiarized herself with modern painting tools and materials. Otherwise, putting all hope on this arrogant singer would surely lead to a terrible loss.

“It’s getting late. Today, please ask the production team to buy some Chinese brushes, ink, and an inkstone. I will paint tomorrow.”

“You mean you’re going to paint with a Chinese brush? No, wait, can you paint?” Lai Su, having completely lost her fighting spirit, said in disbelief. She felt as if she had heard either the most amazing news or a joke. Looking at the calm woman in front of her, she had a sense of unreality, yet she subconsciously believed her.

“Yes, I can paint a ‘Gongbi Lady’.” Qiu Wan couldn’t help but smile, seeing Lai Su’s stunned look. She didn’t dare claim her painting was a masterpiece, but in the circle of well bred young ladies during her dynasty in the capital, she always surpassed others. However, she wasn’t sure about the skill level of President Zhou Yang’s painting. All she could do was try her best.

On the third day, upon hearing that their opponents were already applying color and would finish that evening, Lai Su, clinging to a final thread of hope, personally went to the production team to collect Chinese brushes, ink, and an inkstone.

Then, with shimmering eyes, she intently watched Qiu Wan’s movements. Her grip on the brush seemed right, her grinding of the ink seemed right, and the lines were good, done in one fluid motion, good. The overall composition looked promising; most importantly, her posture was correct, looking at a glance like someone who was confident in their abilities.

The skill in her hands wasn’t fake she painted with divine assistance, and the painting she created was quite convincing, indeed looking like a ‘Gongbi Lady,’ somewhat resembling what was seen in history textbooks.

Hmm? Something felt wrong. Lai Su widened her eyes, staring closely at the painting Qiu Wan was creating, the shock in her eyes growing. This “pretty face” was serious!

The cameras cooperated with Lai Su’s shock, giving several close-ups of Qiu Wan’s expression and movements, and also capturing the gradually completed ‘Gongbi Lady’.

The comments:

*Holy sh**, this sister is for real, haven’t seen this before.*

*This is real traditional Chinese painting, my grandpa told me to say this. He’s the Vice Chairman of the Provincial Calligraphy and Painting Association.*

*The comment above is funny, my grandma is the Chairman of the association, she told me to say one thing: It’s excellent.*

*As an art student, I’m telling you, it’s excellent. Not bragging or criticizing, this level is genuinely high.*

*What kind of surreal operation is this? Sister, are you still the “pretty face” I thought I knew?*

Simultaneously, the several close-up shots, along with the short video from the live stream, which were instantly trending, propelled the hashtag #IsQiuWanJustAPrettyFace# into the top ten hot searches.

By evening, both sides were almost simultaneously finished. Li He held up the oil painting of the ‘Gongbi Lady,’ which was vibrant in color and highly three dimensional, facing the camera with a winning smile already on her face.

Meanwhile, Lai Su also held up the ‘Gongbi Lady’ painted by Qiu Wan. It was the simplest ink wash painting style, with distinct layers of ink wash. Although the figure was not as realistic as the one painted by Zhou Yang, it captured a certain charm that color could not express.

Just as the comments were in a frenzy and the production team struggled to decide, the Vice Chairman of the X Province branch of the Cloudland Calligraphy Association publicly spoke on his official account Qiu Wan’s ‘Gongbi Lady’ has high collection value, and the association is willing to purchase it.

Following his lead, various industry experts observed and unanimously agreed that Zhou Yang’s ‘Gongbi Lady’ was an ordinary oil painting and had no comparability to Qiu Wan’s. Now, these experts had inadvertently praised one while stepping on the other. The production team also knew how to make a decision.

The audience was completely stunned. On the scene, Li He and Zhou Yang were smiling brightly until the associate director informed them that they had lost, and the winning team was Qiu Wan and Lai Su’s group.

The smile on Li He’s face instantly cracked. She couldn’t control herself and questioned, “Impossible! There must be foul play! Don’t think that just because they are female celebrities, you can bully our President Zhou, who doesn’t mix in the entertainment industry. This isn’t a competition based on looks.”

The smile on Zhou Yang’s face also gradually disappeared, but he still maintained his composure, saying gently, “I wonder if we could have a chance to observe their painting. We would like to lose wholeheartedly and sincerely.”

At this moment, the comments were:

/They really aren’t bullying you. How sour! What kind of nonsense is Li He talking?/

/It’s really not based on looks. If it were, you would have lost long ago./

/What kind of confusing statement is Li He making? Losing badly and being a sore loser. As a two-year fan, I’m switching sides./

/Sister above, take me with you. As a five-year fan, I say we can climb together. The “pretty face” next door is pretty good./

After seeing Qiu Wan’s painted ‘Gongbi Lady,’ Li He, who didn’t understand and couldn’t see the artistry, was still arguing. Zhou Yang, however, expressed himself very courteously: “Miss Qiu’s painting skills are extraordinary. I graciously admit defeat. When will you have time? We could learn from each other.”

“President Zhou is too kind. You are a busy man. How dare I take up your time? My skill is just a small trick, a coincidence, an over-performance. If I were to do it again, I certainly wouldn’t be as good as you.” Qiu Wan tactfully refused. What a joke! She was trying to avoid him; how could she dare to “learn from each other”?

“Miss Qiu must be upset that Mr. Zhou failed to keep our last appointment. I was indeed busy last time, but now I happen to be free. Why don’t you come to our courtyard for a chat and have dinner together?”

Zhou Yang was very skillful in his words. Firstly, he brought up that Qiu Wan had privately invited him, but he didn’t attend. Secondly, he appeared gracious in this loss, expressing a desire to seek guidance, and then suggested having dinner together in the farmhouse courtyard now, which was a way to dispel any suspicion of ulterior motives. In this context, Qiu Wan’s subtle refusal just now seemed like she was trying to hide something, and coupled with the fact that she had previously invited the powerful CEO only to be rejected, this ‘femme fatale’ was indeed restless.

The internet was in shock over this huge piece of gossip. Qiu Wan realized what was happening and stopped retreating. If she were to confirm the suspicion that she was trying to latch onto a powerful figure here, she would never be able to clear her name.

She smiled and said, “President Zhou must be too busy and misremembered. I am an artist under Zhou’s Entertainment. Why would I invite you for no reason?”

“Is that so? I remember it was around the third day of the tenth lunar month, because I had an important meeting that day.” Zhou Yang feigned confusion, looking up in thought, seemingly trying hard to recall.

Qiu Wan’s heart sank. Her smile remained, but a momentary flicker of panic crossed her eyes. It was that night. This man was doing it on purpose. Her face blushed slightly, with a hint of shyness, and she said, “President Zhou must be mistaken. I was with my beloved that day. However, it might have been my former manager who invited you. She has already been dismissed now.”

So, even if there was such an invitation, it was the manager’s private decision, and look, the company even fired her for it. “I was having a romantic night with my beloved, who would care about you?”

“Snap.” In front of the live screen, the pen in Mu Qingchen’s hand broke. The third day of the tenth lunar month, it was that day. So, Qiu Wan had appeared scantily clad at the hotel, waiting for Zhou Yang.