"Give me a photo!" Jiang Ye said.
Li Nannan sent a photo, then a video.
Jiang Ye and Cen Yemeng looked at the photo together. It depicted a slightly plump male military officer with a distinguished and heroic demeanor. He didn't seem particularly extraordinary, just very lifelike.
However, the viewing experience was completely different when watching the video!
Li Nannan's video was taken as she walked around the painting, constantly changing her height.
The person on the canvas instantly came alive!
Jiang Ye didn't know how this effect was achieved. Upon close inspection, it was clearly a static painting, but with a slight lapse in attention, the figure in the painting seemed to become a living person!
"So magical!" the couple exclaimed in unison. "Our son is amazing!"
Li Nannan: "We have many renowned artists here, and they all say Jiang Senlin's painting skills have already reached the semi-master level, the kind of master that appears once in a century. If this painting can be completed with stable execution, its selling price will likely be astonishing. I've already been contacted by auction houses and art companies, with offers reaching fifty million. This price is definitely not suitable; it's far too cheap."
Jiang Ye replied: "We are very pleased that our son is showing his talent, but we also ask you to take good care of him. He's still young, and we're worried he might overwork himself."
Cen Yemeng snatched the phone and sent a message, also reminding: "Don't praise him too much. He's getting quite arrogant lately, dipping his brush into his apprentices' mouths. I'm afraid if he gains too much fame and fortune too early, it might lead to arrogance."
Li Nannan: "Okay, I've basically finished the major tasks I had. I'll soon be Jiang Senlin's full-time nanny. Don't worry. I envy you so much for having such an accomplished son."
Jiang Ye replied: "He's your son too, what's there to envy."
Li Nannan was clearly pleased and replied with two smiling emojis.
Jiang Senlin slept until two in the afternoon before slowly waking up.
His eight apprentices were already waiting, their faces filled with admiration. They served their teacher his meal, helped him bathe and dress, and then placed him on a small bed and carried him to the studio.
The number of people in the studio hadn't decreased from the morning; instead, it had multiplied several times. They were blocking the door, preventing those outside from entering and those inside from leaving, like a bustling marketplace.
Jiang Senlin's apprentices puffed out their chests and shouted loudly with pride:
"Teacher Jiang Senlin has arrived!"
"Please make way, Teacher Jiang needs to paint!"
Jiang Senlin sat up from the bed and was a little surprised to see countless phones and cameras pointed at him.
His apprentices quickly shielded him with their bodies, "No photos, no photos! Please do not disturb the teacher's work! Everyone, please remain quiet!"
The crowd finally parted, creating a path.
Jiang Senlin was placed on a lifting platform.
He looked at the crowd in the studio with a dazed expression, somewhat bewildered. It was usually very quiet when he painted.
"Teacher, don't mind them, just focus on your painting," one apprentice said.
Jiang Senlin turned to look at the painting and quickly entered his zone, forgetting his surroundings.
After gazing at the artwork for five minutes, he raised his hand.
The apprentices rejoiced, knowing their teacher was about to begin, and immediately operated the lifting platform to ascend.
Soon, a complete set of painting tools was placed at Jiang Senlin's feet.
He was too lazy to bend over, so he gestured with his hand, and a disciple immediately handed him the corresponding brush and paints.
The moment he received the brush, the entire studio fell into sudden silence.
Hundreds of spectators held their breath, gazing at Jiang Senlin standing high above, feeling as if they were witnessing a painting deity. As he began to paint, Jiang Senlin exuded an indescribable and great aura, almost like a giant!
To everyone's surprise, Jiang Senlin did not paint a second figure but continued to refine the first.
The audience was stunned.
It was already so divine, and he wasn't finished yet?
Jiang Senlin calmly applied layers of gradient colors, one after another.
Over the course of two hours, he added three more layers of paint to the first figure and its surroundings.
Then, Jiang Senlin put down his brush.
"I'm hungry, let's go eat," he said, counting on his fingers. "I want to eat Lüdagun, Songzi Zao Ni Ma Bing, Pidanshu, mushroom soup, and lobster meat."
"Yes, Teacher, we'll inform the restaurant to prepare it for you immediately," one apprentice quickly pulled out his phone to make a call.
The other apprentices hurried to carry him to the bed and, in a flurry, carried the small bed away to the restaurant. They were more dedicated than eunuchs serving an emperor.
The spectators swarmed forward, pushed aside the lifting platform, revealing the painting behind it.
A tremendous uproar almost shook the studio!
"Divine! It's a miracle!"
"How can such an effect be achieved! How was this done?"
"My God, who said painting is dead?"
"So moving, I feel like crying."
"It's so lifelike, it feels even more real than a real person, but being this real must mean it's fake. Ah, my head hurts! Is this painting real or fake?"
Suddenly, Li Nannan, accompanied by a team of guards, rushed in, pushed the crowd back, erected a cordon in front of the canvas, and secured the base to the floor with nails.
"Maintain distance! Don't touch the canvas! Anyone who touches it goes to jail!" Li Nannan scanned the crowd sternly.
Several guards remained, steel rods at their waists, standing with their hands behind their backs, their faces stern, preventing anyone from getting too close to the canvas.
Barriers and guards were also added at the entrance to control the flow of people into the studio.
The people in the studio were unwilling to leave, but many hadn't eaten lunch and their stomachs were rumbling. Various long, short, dull, and sharp stomach growls could be heard in the studio, making it quite lively.
Someone handed a camera in from the doorway.
The camera was mounted in a corner, capturing a panoramic view of the studio, and was being live-streamed online.
The live stream channel number was shared in the school groups of major art academies, spreading at an astonishing speed.
A large number of viewers flooded into the live stream, and comments began to scroll rapidly.
"Where is this?"
"Holy crap, I see some familiar masters!"
"Isn't that old Master Xia Mu in the white clothes on the left? Textbooks call him a master who completely surpassed Qi Baishi! His 'Group of Shrimp' painting was auctioned for two billion last year!"
"And the bearded man chatting with Master Xia Mu is Master Priestley! My God, a dream collaboration, they're actually together!"
The camera adjusted its angle, revealing more side profiles of people in the studio.
The live stream channel completely erupted, and the viewers were going a bit mad, as they saw too many divine faces.
"Professor Shao Jinwen! Oh my goodness! Why is she here!"
"Xi Lingling, the master of the Fauvist Revival! We have her paintings in our textbooks! She's so beautiful in person!"
"Is that pink-haired person with the explosion hair Maltz Rex? He looks very energetic, why did he stop painting? A huge loss for the art world!"
"Damn, what kind of place is this? So many deities gathered together! Even the annual meeting of the Artists Association isn't this complete! If I were there, I'd be so happy I'd faint!"
"The large canvas on the wall seems to have part of a painting, but it's not clear. Are these masters here to see the painting?"
"No way? Whose painting could attract so many masters? I think it might be an alien artwork, or an ancient painting restored from excavation."