The Versatile Master Artist

Mrs. Sakai paused for a couple of seconds, then suddenly let out a snicker and looked playfully at Koshiba Tarou.

"You are nearly five years older than Gu Weijing, who was born in a remote rural area. Without talking about future potential and only considering current painting talent, are you really sure you can outmatch the so-called Gu Weijing?"

After saying this, she didn’t even glance at Koshiba Tarou, and strutted off into the depths of the corridor like a proud old princess.

Koshiba Tarou stood frozen like a statue for over ten seconds.

His face turned alternately blue and purple, wanting to burst out in anger, but for some reason, he held it back.

After a long while,

Koshiba Tarou leaned against the wall, pulled out his phone from his pocket, and opened the photo wall update from a while ago by Koizumi Katsuko in his specially followed friends list.

A base image of an oil painting caught his eye.

It truly was a striking piece of work, with elegant brushstrokes and fresh, harmonious colors.

The shadows of the leaves seemed to be swaying in the wind, creating layers upon layers of effect, giving the painting a harmonious and unified aesthetic.

Koshiba Tarou checked Shengzi’s Instagram every day, and he saw this photo not long after it was updated.

However, no matter what, Koshiba Tarou refused to believe that this was a draft created by Gu Weijing.

"Who does he think he is? Who does he think he is!" Koshiba Tarou exclaimed.

There really are predecessors in the world who can seamlessly blend different art trends in their hands, and he himself had accompanied his father to pay visits to a painting master living in Yokohama, who is now over seventy years old.

This master skillfully combined the two-dimensional painting technique of Jean and Fa with the Brazilian artistic flair that bore strong colonial characteristics, and in Japan’s art scene, he is considered a highly respected expert.

The media flatteringly dubbed his achievements as "Impressionism Second/Recreating Impressionism."

Excluding the hype stirred up by the local media, that old gentleman with a white beard truly mastered such an innovative painting style with half a century of meticulous refinement and relentless artistic pursuit.

Among the seventy to eighty billion people in the world, there are rare geniuses.

Graduating from the British Royal Academy of Fine Arts at sixteen, winning the Pulitzer Prize for comics at twenty-seven, and selling a single oil painting for seven hundred thousand US dollars at thirty.

Koizumi Katsuko is one of them.

Koshiba Tarou knew that he himself couldn’t count as a genius, if not for the help of his good family background, allowing him to immerse himself in a rich artistic environment from a young age.

At most, he could be considered a pretty talented art seedling; the word "genius" is not something he deserves.

Koshiba Tarou did not feel too discouraged either.

Those who can truly change art history, who among them wasn’t born with natural talent, nurtured by destiny, and emerges only every five, ten, fifteen, or even fifty years?

Moreover, to produce great works, their careers are often fraught with adversity.

Not to mention Van Gogh, Monet endured persecution from the Academic School, Cao Xuan experienced great national upheavals, Picasso has had the glory, but he was both a rogue and a misogynist.

Those tales of romantic escapades that outsiders envy so much, those entangled love affairs between artists and their numerous beautiful lovers.

For later generations, every page seems stained with blood and tears.

His life was both tormenting his women and himself.

Genius is a kiss left by God after sipping poison.

Koshiba Tarou didn’t have such talent, and he could choose not to be envious.

But damn it, why does Gu Weijing have it!

How is he worthy of creating such outstanding work at this age?

Especially the sweet and tender caption Miss Sakai left on the Instagram photo — [My love].

Seeing this made Koshiba Tarou feel like a thorny blunt-headed fish, almost about to puff up in anger!

He tore off the Ray-Ben sunglasses on his forehead and smashed them hard onto the corridor floor, letting this pair of two-thousand-dollar Ferrari co-branded sunglasses shatter into pieces, scattering everywhere.

"Fuck! Gu Weijing."