in2ebook Chapter 247 Landscape Painting
Chapter 247 Landscape Painting
Chapter 247 Landscape Painting
"Zeng Xi, the Half-Saint?"
Ye Ru thought for a moment, recalling how Confucius had his disciples Zilu, Zeng Xi, Ran You, and Gong Xihua each express their aspirations in the "Advanced" chapter of the Analects.
When it was Zeng Xi's turn, he said that his ideas differed from the other three. His ambition was: "In late spring, when the spring clothes are ready, I would like to go with five or six adults and six or seven children to bathe in the Yi River, enjoy the breeze at the Dance Altar, and sing as we return." This greatly impressed Confucius, who believed that Zeng Xi shared his ambition.
Thinking of Zeng Xi's words, Ye Ru knew that some semi-saints could establish their own fiefdoms, and such fiefdoms were generally the semi-saints' own aspirations.
"How about this? Is it acceptable?"
The teacher from Yuzhang Academy spoke again.
In his opinion, few people could resist such temptations, especially things like sacred pages and rare treasures.
"If that's true, then it's possible."
Ye Rudao.
"With Scholar Su present, he can certainly bear witness. If we lose, I will send one of our academy teachers to fetch you on the day the Holy Path opens. But what if you lose..."
The man frowned and spoke again.
"I lost, so all these literary treasures are yours, how about it?"
As soon as Ye Ru spoke, a burning desire appeared in the eyes of the students from the other two academies.
There were five fourth-grade literary treasures here, their value immeasurable, which surprised Grand Scholar Su and Yu Mengyang.
Ye Ru made such a grand gesture before even hearing the exam questions; this shows a lack of consideration.
"Director Ye, think thrice before you act."
"It was Su Dashi who said in a deep voice."
"Don't worry, I wouldn't give this away if I wasn't extremely confident."
Ye Ru smiled and said, then looked at the teacher from Yuzhang Academy and said:
"What do you think, sir?"
"Alright, Junxian, come and seek guidance from Chief Ye."
The man spoke to Gu Junxian, who then stood up, his face still showing some anger:
"Master Ye, don't let your words slip. Since you want to compete, how about we compete in painting?"
"The Way of Painting..."
Many people's expressions changed. Painting was the signature skill of Yuzhang Academy, but according to their information, Ye Ru had never studied painting. This was like a tiger without claws or a deer without antlers; he was simply courting death.
"How utterly shameless! To resort to such methods to achieve victory—is the Left Prime Minister's backyard always this shameless?"
Grand Scholar Su took a deep breath, his face contorted with anger, and then shouted sternly.
He knew that Yuzhang Academy was cultivated by the Left Prime Minister, and most of its members were his henchmen, but he never expected them to be so shameless.
“Grand Secretary Su, I respect you as a Grand Secretary, which is why I was so respectful just now. You can insult me, but insulting Yuzhang Academy and the Left Prime Minister is already a breach of etiquette!”
At this moment, a scholar from Yuzhang Academy stood up and made a rebuke.
"Hmph, you two are in cahoots, shameless! Chief Ye, we will not compete with him anymore. If you continue to speak so rudely, don't blame Yingtian Academy for kicking you out."
Grand Scholar Su glanced at the Hanlin scholar and said.
"Scholar Su, please don't be angry. The outcome is still uncertain. However, Brother Gu has studied military strategy and is well-versed in the Records of the Grand Historian. He knows that killing eight thousand enemies while losing a thousand of your own is unwise. Avoiding their strength and striking their weaknesses is the only option. But if you really adopt this attitude, then Brother Gu has chosen the wrong person..."
Ye Ru chuckled, which only fueled Gu Junxian's anger. He said:
"Do you dare or not? If you don't dare, then admit defeat, and these five fourth-grade literary treasures are all ours."
"Why wouldn't I dare? I am not very talented, but I do know a bit about painting. Today I'm here to give it a try. I wonder if any of you here would be willing to lend me your brush?"
Ye Ru looked around, and then Scholar Su said:
“I happen to have a third-grade literary treasure called Ink Sinking Boat. You can borrow it. If you win, I will give you Ink Sinking Boat as a gift.”
After saying this, Grand Scholar Su flipped his hand, and a paintbrush appeared. The paintbrush was surrounded by thick ink, and the fragrance of ink could still be faintly smelled. It was obviously a fine paintbrush.
"Thank you for the gift, Your Excellency."
Ye Ru took the paintbrush and looked at Gu Junxian: "So you are a guest. Brother Gu, please give us the test questions."
"Landscape painting is unique to the Wei, Jin and Southern and Northern Dynasties. It mainly depicts natural landscapes. However, the consciousness of our Confucian and Taoist continent is to travel and enjoy the mountains and rivers. Taking mountains as virtue and water as nature has become one of our channels for self-cultivation. From landscape paintings, we can see the artistic conception, style, charm and color of the painting. So let's compare landscape paintings."
Gu Junxian smiled.
"Then let's compare landscape paintings. Brother Laigu, please go first."
Ye Ru extended his hand and said.
"Alright, then I'll make a fool of myself."
Everyone stopped drinking and crowded around Ye Ru and Gu Junxian, but there was more worry in their eyes when they looked at Ye Ru.
After all, although Ye Ru had dabbled in landscape painting, no one had ever seen him paint. As for Gu Junxian, they had all heard of him; he was the foremost painter in Yuzhang Academy.
After saying this, Gu Junxian began to grind ink. He painted the green mountains and clear waters of traditional landscape painting, which is a typical painting style when landscape painting was formed during the Wei, Jin and Southern and Northern Dynasties.
Landscape painting in shades of blue and green can be divided into two categories: large blue and green and small blue and green. The former involves more outlining and less texturing, with heavy coloring and a strong decorative quality; the latter involves applying a thin layer of blue and green over a base of light ink and color. Furthermore, the brushwork can be divided into meticulous blue and green and freehand blue and green.
At this moment, Ye Ru knew that this was a period of discontinuity between the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties and the Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties, and there was no distinction between large and small green and blue.
Time passed, and Ye Ru carefully observed the brushwork of Gu Junxian's landscape paintings.
Although the other party was arrogant, he had the right to be so. With just a few strokes of his brush, he created the outline of a mountain, which looked quite exquisite. Moreover, the sense of weight and solidity of the mountains and rivers was also presented outward from the paper.
Many people were also captivated by the sight, and some gentlemen with expertise in painting nodded in approval, a hint of admiration flashing in their eyes.
Half an hour later, the overall outline of the landscape painting came into view, which amazed people and made them even more worried about Ye Ru's performance.
"This painting was inspired by my visit to Mount Tai a few days ago. I was deeply moved by the thought of Qin Shi Huang's Fengshan ceremony, and that's why I painted it today. I wonder what Brother Ye thinks of my painting?"
Gu Junxian raised his head, finished his last stroke, and looked at Ye Ru with a seemingly provocative expression, saying.
Upon hearing this, Ye Ru pondered for a while. The landscape painting, which focused on Mount Tai, seemed perfectly fine at first glance, but he still felt something was off.
Those around him fell silent, then shook their heads, all agreeing that the painting was a masterpiece.
After a moment, Ye Ru raised his head, put his hands behind his back, and commented calmly, "The composition of this painting is problematic."
The moment he finished speaking, the entire room erupted in uproar!