Chapter 233: Master Wu: It’s Done, It’s Done!
If we are talking about who is currently the most outstanding painter in the painting world, then it is definitely Cui Ruozhuo. His works have been collected by leaders of multiple countries, as well as by the Great Hall and Diaoyutai State Guesthouse.
This is one of the highest honors for domestic painters.
From 2015 to 2022, he also continuously topped the Furun domestic art rankings, once becoming the number one most expensive artist in the world.
It is just that in the past two years, he has produced very few works, mainly because he is facing a creative bottleneck and serious homogenization problems.
Artistic creation cannot lack inspiration, so over these two years he has mostly participated in various exchange forums. Even when he painted, he was dissatisfied with many works and destroyed them himself.
Early this morning, he attended an art student exchange meeting at an academy of fine arts. He was very disappointed, feeling that the students’ creative thinking at this academy was somewhat skewed, too eager to flatter poor-quality foreign works.
Who is he? The paintings he creates can be collected by those national leaders. Naturally he disdains these people, but for the sake of social niceties, he cannot say it aloud and can only complain in his heart.
At the end, however, his assistant reported some news to him: “Teacher Cui, that Master Wu went to the Chen Clan side to seek inspiration. He plans to paint while listening to the Chen Clan’s 《Ancient Quiet Heart Art》.”
“The Chen Clan you mentioned before?” Cui Ruozhuo asked curiously.
He had been lacking inspiration since 2 years ago. Some time ago, his assistant told him there was an ancient architecture tourism site of the Chen Clan, where the 《Ancient Quiet Heart Art》 could calm the mind and bring one into a state of undistracted focus. Rumor also said it would benefit creation, and suggested that he go try it.
He had actually intended to give it a try, but never found the time.
He did not expect that this old man Wu went first.
As a master in the field of painting art as well, he naturally knew of him. So when the assistant handed him the mobile phone playing the live stream, he took it and watched.
At a glance he recognized that the one being surrounded was the old man Wu Sheng. But with so many people crowding around and such noisy sounds all around, could he really paint?
Moreover, being watched by so many people would more or less affect one’s painting mentality. Could this really work?
He even felt that this old man Wu might be grandstanding.
While he was still puzzled, he heard in the live room the sound of chanting scriptures. As this chanting sounded, he clearly saw that the tourists around all fell silent in unison.
It seemed as if the whole world suddenly became quiet, leaving only the sound of chanting.
Cui Ruozhuo was immediately astonished. That collective halt to the clamor was somewhat unbelievable. The key was that he could see from these people’s faces a kind of enjoyment, as if they had entered a special state just as in the rumors.
“Does it really have the rumored effect?” Cui Ruozhuo asked his assistant in surprise. “Why is it that listening to this 《Ancient Quiet Heart Art》 through the live stream gives no feeling?”
The assistant replied, “People online are all saying that recordings have no effect. You must listen on scene for it to work.”
Just then, Cui Ruozhuo saw in the live stream that Wu Sheng picked up his brush, a look of surprise on his face.
Wu Sheng was indeed pleasantly surprised. He had already had some inspiration before, but something was still missing. This time, while listening to the 《Ancient Quiet Heart Art》, he suddenly had a flash of inspiration again.
He knew what he wanted now. After the surprise came a return to a state of complete focus, and his hand had already begun to paint on the scroll.
In this undistracted state, his whole mind and body were in the brush.
Watching the live stream, Cui Ruozhuo’s gaze was completely drawn in. From the moment Wu Sheng set down his brush, he felt something different.
The painting was smooth, the brush like a dragon in motion, vigorous and powerful, not simple at all.
When Wu Sheng outlined the shape of a longevity pine, he was even more shocked.
Longevity pines usually grow on mountain peaks and in rock crevices, and serve as the central image. Through artistic techniques they present the pine’s sturdy uprightness and vitality, conveying the meaning of longevity, tenacity, and auspiciousness.
Now, with just an outline of the longevity pine, Wu Sheng had already expressed all of this.
As the painting progressed, the main body of the longevity pine became increasingly clear, with a rugged form. The twists and mottling of the trunk were distinct, perfectly embodying the vicissitudes of time.
When the dense pine needles appeared in well-defined layers, rendered with rich ink or verdant colors, it was not only a display of technical skill but also of vitality.
With just the main body of this longevity pine, this old man Wu Sheng surpassed all his previous works.
Then they saw him start to paint the background. Although the chanting of the 《Ancient Quiet Heart Art》 soon ended, his brush still flowed like dragons and snakes.
The powerful longevity pine, paired with high mountains and a sea of clouds, further created a sense of dangerous heights and vast openness of a “pinnacle”.
When Wu Sheng completed the final stroke, Cui Ruozhuo knew through the live stream that this year, even setting aside the Furun ranking, this painting alone absolutely deserved first place in artistic painting appreciation.
He definitely felt ashamed by comparison, ready to cast his vote for him.
“Teacher Cui, is Master Wu’s painting going to be enshrined again?” the assistant asked blankly.
“Mm.” Cui Ruozhuo nodded subconsciously, then immediately instructed his assistant, “Help me arrange a trip to the Chen Clan. I want to go listen to this 《Ancient Quiet Heart Art》.”
He could clearly see Wu Sheng’s transformation. It absolutely showed that the 《Ancient Quiet Heart Art》 was extraordinary.
Not only he, but many viewers of the live stream could see how powerful this painting by Master Wu was. Even through a live video it was obvious.
Huang Tao was one of them. He was not a painter and did not understand painting, but looking at this painting by Master Wu, he could feel that the painting had come alive, as if there really was a longevity pine before his eyes.
He knew this was a true master. There were so many painting bloggers online, and while their paintings all looked quite pretty, many lacked spirit and essence.
But this painting by Master Wu made people see its spirit and essence in a single glance.
At the scene, Wu Ying also saw that her father’s painting surpassed his previous works. It was obvious at a glance. She subconsciously looked at her father and saw him calmly set down his brush.
This surprised her. After painting such a work, her father should have been very satisfied, so how could he be so calm?
However, she quickly noticed that after her father put down the brush, he could not help but tremble all over. This made her realize that he was not calm at all.
“Hahaha.” Wu Sheng could not help laughing. “It worked, it worked, hahaha, the Chen Clan’s 《Ancient Quiet Heart Art》 is truly amazing!”
This loud laugh traveled into the live room, so that viewers like Huang Tao saw it. All the viewers felt it was unbelievable.
When they had heard the online rumors before, many had not taken them seriously. But now this master had created such a painting within the 《Ancient Quiet Heart Art》, and then laughed like this. This did more for credibility than all those long-running rumors, and caused an even greater sensation.
Indeed, with the end of this session of chanting the 《Ancient Quiet Heart Art》, together with Wu Sheng’s painting, the online popularity of the Chen Clan’s 《Ancient Quiet Heart Art》 suddenly rose like a storm. The heat reached a very high level very quickly.
In the kitchen, when Chen Han carried today’s medicinal cuisine to the table, his junior sister rushed in. “Senior brother, our Chen Clan’s 《Ancient Quiet Heart Art》 is on fire online.”
“Wasn’t it already popular before?” Chen Han, unaware of the situation, asked in confusion.
Xiao Yu hurriedly explained, “Senior brother, it is even more popular now. A master of Chinese painting listened to the 《Ancient Quiet Heart Art》 while painting and created an incredible longevity pine. Someone streamed it live, and now everyone online is talking about it.”
As she spoke, she had already handed him the mobile phone with the related video on it.
Chen Han took the phone and watched, seeing an old man painting in the video, along with his shout, “It worked, it worked, the Quiet Heart Art is amazing,” and his laughter.
The key was that the popularity was really high. It had already become a trending topic. Looking at the time when the old man painted, it had reached this level of popularity in a very short time.
After he learned of this old man’s status, he was not surprised. There were not many masters of Chinese painting, especially the kind whose every painting could sell for at least one million.
At this speed, it might directly impact the hot search list.
Just as Chen Han expected, by the afternoon the popularity of the Chen Clan’s 《Ancient Quiet Heart Art》 was even higher, and the reason was actually another master.
Cui Ruozhuo, the master who had once become number one in the world of painting art, posted a Weibo: 《Why are the Chen Clan’s rooms so hard to book?》
This Weibo clearly told everyone that he also wanted to go to the Chen Clan, obviously wanting to listen to the 《Ancient Quiet Heart Art》.
For this, Xiao Yu specially went to find Chen Han. “Senior brother, this master is even more famous than Master Wu. Should we reply to him? After all, we still have some internally reserved detached courtyards.”
“No need. We are the Chen Clan.” Chen Han shook his head directly.
His junior sister clearly did not understand the Chen Clan’s current status. That Cui Ruozhuo was a very famous master, but so what?
To be honest, his real connections were not as strong as Liu Ye, that tycoon, and even less so than the Zheng Family of Ming City.
So if he could not book a room, then he could not book a room. Should the Chen Clan take the initiative to contact him and beg him to come just because he posted a Weibo?
No need.
Now it was he who needed to come.
After Master Wu created such a painting, Cui had no choice but to come. Regardless of whether he believed in the Chen Clan’s 《Ancient Quiet Heart Art》 or not, he had to come and try it.
On the other side, Cui Ruozhuo was also very helpless. He had originally thought that, with his reputation, after posting such a Weibo, the Chen Clan would definitely contact him and help arrange a room.
Previously, when he went to other places, this was always how it went. The persons in charge of those places eagerly contacted him to make arrangements. This was the treatment a master like him received.
But this time, the Chen Clan did not buy it. After he posted this Weibo, no one paid any attention to him.
At first he was somewhat annoyed, but then a thought struck him. If the Chen Clan’s 《Ancient Quiet Heart Art》 was real, then the Chen Clan was definitely different.
It was he who needed to listen to the Chen Clan’s 《Ancient Quiet Heart Art》, not the Chen Clan that needed his celebrity effect to invite him.
Thinking this, he could only helplessly ask his assistant to see if there were any connections that could help arrange something.
What surprised him was that besides him, several other artists also posted Weibos, saying that the Chen Clan’s rooms were very difficult to book. The implication was clear.
But obviously, the Chen Clan ignored everyone. However, this pushed the Chen Clan’s 《Ancient Quiet Heart Art》 straight onto the hot search list.
Everyone’s curiosity about the Chen Clan’s 《Ancient Quiet Heart Art》 reached its peak, and they were all discussing it.
Wu Ying naturally saw this surge of popularity, and knew even better that if a news interview special on the 《Ancient Quiet Heart Art》 was done at this time, it would definitely go viral and attract many viewers.
…
In the courtyard, Chen Han was studying the Spirit Jade Ball. If he encountered any trouble in the future, he might have to rely on this thing to save himself, so he had to fully understand its use.
Unfortunately, he still did not have any method for refining a magic treasure. If he could refine the Spirit Jade Ball, he could store it in his Dantian, and when needed, activate it instantly. That would be much faster than taking it out of the game warehouse.
But thinking further, even with a refining method, his spiritual meridians had not been opened. Without enough strength and realm, it would be hard to hide the magic treasure in the Dantian for nurturing.
Putting away the Spirit Jade Ball, he picked up his mobile phone and took a look. Many people had tagged him. When he opened it, all of it was about the 《Quiet Heart Art》 videos.
He also found that the heat around this matter had dragged down many Daoist sect places.
Because all over the Daoist sects there were 《Quiet Heart Arts》.
For example, famous Daoist places such as Wudang and Baiyun Temple had Daoist priests posting videos.
《The Daoist sect does indeed have a Quiet Heart Art passed down, which can calm the mind and bring undistracted focus!》
《At Wudang we also have scripture chanters chanting the Quiet Heart Art every day. Devotees who come to Wudang can listen. As for why the chanting tone of the Chen Clan’s Quiet Heart Art is different from the current one, it should be due to a different inheritance.》
Obviously these Daoist sects also wanted to take the opportunity to ride the wave of traffic and popularity, while the effect of the Quiet Heart Art remained ambiguous.
Seeing this, Chen Han naturally understood their intentions. But there was one thing he could be sure of: at this point, the effect of the Chen Clan’s Ancient Quiet Heart Art would become widely known.
Especially because of this master of Chinese painting, Wu Sheng. After he produced that painting, when more master artists came, the Chen Clan’s Ancient Quiet Heart Art would definitely take root in people’s hearts.
This would certainly attract idle people to investigate. That was why he had not directly used up that book of the 《Ancient Quiet Heart Art》 before. Now it could be put to use. It was all part of the Chen Clan’s long-standing inheritance and foundation.
When the time came, they would definitely not reveal the matter of the underground formation, but instead use cultivation as the pretext. They would publish the content and melody of this Ancient Quiet Heart Art, and it would not matter even if others learned the melody.
After all, their cultivation would not be sufficient.
As he was thinking this, his ringtone sounded. It was actually Reporter Wu. He answered, asking, “Reporter Wu, is there some problem with the handover of the Thunder Bamboo Spirit Tea?”
Wu Ying’s voice came through. “Chen Family Head, the matter of the Chen Clan’s Ancient Quiet Heart Art is very hot online, right? I wanted to ask if we can do a special interview on the 《Ancient Quiet Heart Art》 for the Chen Clan?”
When Chen Han heard this, his eyes lit up. “Reporter Wu, that is no problem.”
Was this not an opportunity delivered right to his door?
