Chapter 23: Inside and outside the door. She only gave him this privilege.

Su Guanqing didn't say anything or make any noise. He groped along the wall to find his bed and sat down quietly.

As soon as I sat down, I heard Zhao Jilue's surprised voice: "Miss Jiang, shall we take a shower with hot water?"

"You've never used hot water?" Jiang Tong asked back.

Zhao Ji replied, "I dare not use it, for fear of damaging it, so I always use cold water."

"Don't be afraid, you can use boiling water when necessary. Remember, the hotter the water, the cleaner it will be." Jiang Tong's voice was neither slow nor fast, and his explanation was well-organized, with the demeanor of a master.

As she used a large brush to apply water to the painting, she said, "But it's not a blind belief that hotter is better. If the painting is too damaged, with the edges of the paper already flocculent, then don't use too hot water. If the painting has just been repaired with glue and alum, don't use too hot water either, or it will dissolve the glue and alum, and the repairs will be in vain..."

Each of her key points was the product of countless accumulated experiences. Mistaking even one could ruin a priceless ancient painting. It could be said that these were experiences amassed with real money.

Zhao Ji naturally understood the value of these experiences and listened very attentively.

Su Guanqing was even more serious than him.

Su Guanqing sat quietly on the edge of the bed, listening to every word Jiang Tong said. His brows were relaxed, and there was a faint curve at the corner of his mouth, as if he was not listening to some boring techniques, but the sound of nature.

The rustling sound of washing paintings stopped in my ears.

Jiang Tong's voice rang out again: "The painting is clean, and the paste on the horoscope paper has almost been dissolved by the warm water. We can now peel off the horoscope paper. The reason I asked you before about using this red color for the long case is due to this step. Have you figured out the answer?"

Jiang Taidou's voice was full of majesty, and Zhao Ji suddenly seemed to have returned to the time when he was an apprentice. His liver trembled for a moment, and he subconsciously changed his address!

"Uh... this... I am a foolish disciple, so please teach me, Master!"

"Just imagine, if the painting's center had the same color as the table, what would happen when it was unmounted?"

Zhao Ji slapped his stomach and suddenly realized: "If the center of the painting has the same color as the table, it will be difficult to distinguish between them when unmounting, and it will be easy to accidentally damage the center of the painting!"

After all, he was an experienced craftsman, so he immediately drew inferences: "And the inconsistency in color will help us discover the damage to the center of the painting!"

After he finished speaking, he looked at Jiang Tong as if asking for praise. Seeing Jiang Tong nodded with satisfaction, he showed a satisfied smile, just like when he was an apprentice as a child.

However, his smile did not last long.

In the next step of unmounting and mounting, because the paper is old, it is impossible to tear it off directly as a whole sheet, and the silk that serves as the core of the painting has long been brittle. In order to protect the core of the painting as much as possible, they can only use their fingers to gently rub off the paper bit by bit.

This step usually takes several days. Jiang Tong did not let Zhao Ji do it alone, but washed his hands and helped him to remove the mounting.

When Zhao Ji finished rubbing a corner, he felt that his technique was skillful and his movements were quick, and he was about to ask for praise, but when he looked up, his expression froze.

Jiang Tong's progress is three times as fast as his.

Moreover, the center of the painting was smooth and flat where Jiang Tong had peeled off the paper, without any trace of the life paper left.

In order to avoid hurting Hua Xin, he left the fate paper in some places.

Zhao Ji: “…”

...Is the method different?

Zhao Ji began to observe Jiang Tong's techniques and movements carefully. After watching for a long time, he didn't find any special techniques, but the other person's movements were faster and more delicate.

He finally realized that it was no wonder that Jiang Tong was not afraid of him stealing her skills. There are some things that you cannot learn even if you are shown them clearly.

I had the audacity to say that I wanted to help others, but now it seems that I may have to make them redo the work I had already done.

His thoughts were at rest, and he lost interest in unwrapping the scroll, and began to wander—

He thought that this business was found by Su Guanqing, and the work was done by Jiang Tong himself. His Qiao Workshop did not do anything except providing some repair materials.

In fact, the other party could have just bypassed him for this business, but Jiang Tong just now said that he would not lose a single cent of Qiao Workshop's commission, which shows that the other party is open and honest and is definitely not someone who is greedy for small profits.

Then he thought, with Jiang Tong's strength, she would sooner or later become famous, kicking Zhao Ji out and setting up her own business. It would be easy. By then, even if he wanted to keep her, he was afraid he would not have anything that could impress her.

It would be better to curry favor with the other party and win him over while he is still young.

Zhao Ji was pondering over what to do when Jiang Tong discovered that the other party was pretending to do something but was actually distracted.

When teaching her apprentices, Jiang Taidou never hides anything, but if the apprentices are lazy or slack, she will never be polite.

Her expression darkened. "If you have other concerns, Manager Zhao, please don't waste time with me. I've accepted this painting, and I'll definitely restore it as scheduled. Please rest assured, Manager Zhao."

Having said that, she didn't wait for Zhao Ji to respond and directly ordered him to leave: "Guan Qing, please send Manager Zhao out."

Before Zhao Ji could react, Su Guanqing had already stood up and said, "Manager Zhao, please come this way."

"...Uh, thank you, sir."

After leaving the study, Su Guanqing closed the door and gave Zhao Ji an apologetic smile: "Miss Jiang never likes to be disturbed when she is repairing her paintings. I hope Manager Zhao will not be offended."

"Hey! How can you say I'm surprised," Zhao Ji waved his hands repeatedly. "Miss Jiang is a truly skilled person. Every skilled craftsman has his or her own temperament and preferences. I've benefited greatly from Miss Jiang's invitation to observe her today. How can I say I'm surprised?"

Having said this, Zhao Ji glanced at Zhao Quesheng, who was originally squatting at the door and was now following him silently, and suddenly an idea came to him.

"I see that Master Su has difficulty seeing, and the Jiang Mansion doesn't have a servant to help him. My niece is very hardworking and is good at cooking, washing clothes, and chopping wood. Why not let her stay and let the young lady take care of her?"

"How can this be possible?" Su Guanqing naturally refused to agree.

Zhao Ji didn't give him a chance to refuse. He said to the stunned Zhao Quesheng, "You stay here and help Master Su with his work. Cook dinner tonight and then go home!"

Su Guanqing hurriedly tried to stop him: "Manager Zhao, this is unacceptable. This matter..."

As he was speaking, he heard Zhao Quesheng's thin voice: "Master Su, my uncle has passed away."

…

Jiang Tong only found out about this matter when it was time for dinner. By then, Zhao Quesheng had already gone home.

Jiang Tong followed Su Guanqing with his hands behind his back: "So, tonight's meal was prepared by that little girl?"

"How can I have the nerve to order the girl around? But when I don't let her help with cooking, she goes to clean the yard and I can't stop her." Su Guanqing said as he poured the food that had been distributed to Zhong Wanci and the others into two large bowls.

Jiang Tong casually picked up two bowls and sat on the threshold. "When she comes tomorrow, you should refuse her. This is one thing for another. Qiao Workshop and I are just cooperating. How can I take advantage of her for no reason?"

"I think so too." Su Guanqing came over with two pairs of chopsticks.

Jiang Tong handed him a bowl and took the chopsticks from him. Seeing another small red spot on the back of his hand from being burned by the oil, he felt a little sad. "Guan Qing, you've been busy all the time, both inside and outside the house. I even said that I could hire someone back after selling the paintings..."

"Why would I need to hire anyone?" Su Guanqing also sat down by the door. "How can such a small task be so difficult for me? Besides, if I don't do these things, I can only sit there and stare blankly, which is so boring."

"No, I said I would take care of you. Just wait for me, let's move to a yard that can accommodate servants and hire someone to serve you." Jiang Tong said seriously.

Su Guanqing held the bowl, with the corners of his mouth slightly curved, and replied softly, "Okay."

…

As it got dark, Jiang Tong was the only one left in the study. She was still sitting at the desk, continuing to rub the fortune paper.

In fact, this is a bit abnormal for her.

In her previous life, she basically stopped doing repair work after the sun went down.

Firstly, this kind of work is rarely urgent, and customers are not in a hurry for one or two days.

Secondly, light is very important for restoration work, especially the full color and brush connection processes, which must be carried out in sufficient light to avoid mistakes.

Third, this is also the health-preserving method that enabled Jiang Taidou to live to nearly 100 years old.

But now, the night was getting darker, the dew was heavier, the candlelight was flickering, and Jiang Tong was still buried in her desk. Except for the slight movements of her arms, she was almost like a clay sculpture or wooden carving.

Jiang Tong didn't stop working until the candlestick beside the desk flickered, the lamp oil burned out, and the entire study was plunged into darkness.

At this moment, the news that Aqiao told me during the day finally came to my mind again.

If Aqiao had not lied to her, then the one who had been lying to her all along was Jiang Huaishan.

But why did he do that?

What did he use the money for?

Over the years, he has been indulging Jiang Ming in a life of debauchery. Is it just to let Jiang Ming take the blame?

But if everything was his plan, then why would he be so angry about Jiang Li's gambling addiction?

Also, if Jiang Huaiyan is not Jiang Xuan’s biological father at all, then was the scene he performed when he came to the house before deliberately performed for the mother and daughter to see?

Jiang Tong sat quietly in the dark for a while, but still couldn't figure out anything.

After a long while, she stretched her sore neck and stood up. Fearing to disturb Su Guanqing, she did not say a word and tiptoed out.

Just as he opened the study door and was about to step out, he caught a glimpse of the boss's dark shadow from the corner of his eye. He was immediately frightened and a layer of white sweat broke out on his body.

Fortunately, Jiang Taidou was a shrewd man who remained calm even when faced with a huge disaster. Although he was frightened, he did not make any sound.

After she calmed down, she finally recognized what it was.

"Guan Qing?!" Jiang Tong looked back at the bed in the study in surprise, then looked at Su Guan Qing, who was curled up and sleeping at the door. "Why are you outside?"

——Although Jiang Tong's room was empty, Jiang Tong took into consideration that Aqiao was secretive and always appeared and disappeared, so she simply assigned the room to Aqiao so that she could come and go without having to worry about others.

So Su Guanqing still slept in the study.

After finishing her meal, Jiang Tong wiped her mouth and went back to her study to revise her painting. As soon as she started revising her painting, she was so focused that she didn't even notice Su Guanqing was still outside.

After Su Guanqing finished cleaning the kitchen, he found himself locked out. He didn't knock on the door to disturb them, but simply waited at the door. He didn't know how long he waited, but he actually fell asleep.

Although it is mid-spring now, it is still very cold at night.

As soon as Jiang Tong opened the door, he felt the cold wind blowing in his face, and he felt distressed and annoyed at the same time.

"Why didn't you knock? Do you think you're made of iron and won't be cold outside?"

Facing the furious Jiang Tong, Su Guanqing simply moved his stiff limbs, tilted his head back, and asked gently, "Tongtong, are you hungry? I've cooked some food in the pot. Shall I bring it to you?"

Jiang Tong felt a ball of fire rushing up from her spine, almost burning her forehead, but it was suddenly dissipated by his mellow breath.

She squatted down and placed her hand on the back of Su Guanqing's hand, which was icy cold to the touch.

She subconsciously held the other person's hand, wanting to pass on her warmth to the other person.

Su Guanqing himself didn't know how long he had been curled up at the door. He just felt that his whole body was frozen. Suddenly, he felt a little warmth, as if he was scalded. He trembled slightly and instinctively wanted to pull his hand back, but Jiang Tong held it tightly and he couldn't break free.

Or maybe he didn't want to break free.

"You're so old, don't you know you're cold? Why don't you go to the kitchen and warm yourself by the fire?" Tongtong's tone told him that she was unhappy.

Su Guanqing was a little timid: "I can't hear the sound of you opening the door in the kitchen."

Jiang Tong was stuck again.

Su Guanqing tilted his ears and did not hear Jiang Tong's response, but he felt the warm hands pulling him up. He did not dare to disobey and stood up by himself following her strength.

The hands then pulled him into the study again. When they reached the bed, he tripped and fell onto the bed.

He sat up somewhat helplessly, and heard Jiang Tong's fierce voice say, "From now on, if I close the door to fix a painting, you can just come in. Just don't disturb me. If I find you belittling yourself like this again, I'll show you how I'll deal with you!"

It was very cold at night, but Su Guanqing felt warm from the bottom of his heart.

This was the only time that Doctor Painting Jiang made an exception. No one ever dared to disturb her when she was closed for painting. Her apprentices also had the experience of standing in the snow outside their door, but she never felt sorry for anyone.

She gave this privilege only to him.