"What are you doing?!"
Zhou Qiqi's first instinct was to protect Zhouzhou behind her, but by the time she tried to grab the drawing board, it was too late.
Yu Yang's mother held the picture frame high, and Zhouzhou's portrait sketches were displayed prominently in front of all the parents.
Yu Yang's mother was initially furious, but after seeing Zhouzhou's drawing, she laughed mockingly.
"Hahahaha! My God! What... what the hell is this?! Is this even a person?"
Her laughter was shrill, drawing the curious glances of all the parents.
In the center of the drawing paper are two large ovals that almost take up half of the paper, resembling "eyes".
In the center of each eye, she placed a huge, shimmering point of light in bright yellow. This point of light was exceptionally full, surrounded by embellishments of different colors, including clouds, stars, and flowers.
Apart from those eyes that dominate the picture, there's nothing else!
No facial contours!
It has no nose, mouth, or ears!
No hair!
No clothes on my body!
The model's shoulders are depicted only below the eyes with a few simple, short lines, drawn somewhat abstractly, resembling two small wings.
On the left and right sides, a few strokes of light blue were also casually applied, looking like the hem of a garment being blown by the wind.
This isn't a portrait sketch at all; it doesn't even depict a complete human figure.
The parents were all taken aback.
Seeing the crowd's reaction, Yu Yang's mother crossed her arms and began to incite them.
"Look at this, everyone! You call this a painting? And you claim to be number one? Isn't this an insult to us kids and parents who studied so hard for the exam?"
This sentence immediately aroused Zhou Qiqi and Shen Duzhou's hatred to the max, and the parents started whispering among themselves.
"Yes, how can someone who draws like this have the nerve to take the exam? The child is immature, but aren't the adults immature too?"
"She has absolutely no self-awareness! She has the nerve to call herself number one; my child draws much better than her..."
......
Amidst the clamor of voices, Zhou Qiqi gently covered Zhouzhou's ears, letting her hide behind her. Her fingertips touched the soft hair on the back of the child's neck, and a sudden pang of sadness struck her heart.
"Yu Yang's mother!"
She suddenly raised her head, her eyes sharp as knives, and stared directly at Yu Yang's mother, who was in the lead.
Her voice wasn't loud, but it was clear, cold, and filled with suppressed anger, instantly drowning out the whispers of the parents.
"The exam is about comparing children's drawing skills, not who has the longest tongue or the sharpest words!"
“My daughter Zhouzhou has no foundation, but she dares to pick up a pen and draw, and dares to express the world she sees. This courage and purity will always be number one in my heart! No matter what teacher or master, even if Leonardo da Vinci, Van Gogh, or Monet came, they would all have to step aside!”
"Besides,"
She took half a step forward, her voice so cold it could freeze a person.
"Whether her drawing is good or bad is none of your business! It's not your place as a student's parent to point fingers and make sarcastic remarks!"
As soon as Zhou Qiqi spoke, the entire small art studio fell silent.
Her words were clear and logical, and every sentence hit home. Yu Yang's mother was so speechless that her face turned red and she couldn't speak for a long time.
The other parents also looked at Zhou Qiqi in shock, never expecting that she, who looked so gentle and lovely, would have such a strong explosive power.
And listening to what she said, I actually felt that it made a lot of sense.
They were all led astray by Yu Yang's mother.
"You, you, you..."
Seeing that all the parents had quietly left her side and turned to Zhou Qiqi instead, Yu Yang's mother rolled her eyes and was so angry that she couldn't speak.
As soon as he looked up and saw the teaching assistant come in, he immediately raised his voice.
"You've got a sharp tongue! I can't judge, but surely the teacher can!"
She grabbed the teaching assistant's sleeve in a few quick steps and spread Yu Yang's and Shen Duzhou's still life sketches and figure drawings on the table.
"Teacher, come and look at my son Yu Yang's painting. Which one is better, my son Yu Yang's painting or this little mute boy's painting? Who got first place in today's exam?"
"this..."
The teaching assistant stared at the two drawings, his Adam's apple bobbing.
Lele's mom, who had been asking questions and stirring up trouble, sneered from behind.
“Yu Yang won the first prize in the ‘Golden Child Star Cup’ competition. We can all tell who draws better, so why can’t the teacher see it?”
The teaching assistant had originally planned to wait for Teacher Wu to return before making the evaluation, but after being provoked by these words and hearing the name "Golden Child Star Cup," he cleared his throat and spoke.
"Yu Yang's drawing is definitely better. The lines are steady, the structure is correct, the light and shadow are all in place, and the portrait is also quite good. He should get first place."
After finishing speaking about Yu Yang, he turned to look at Chen Duzhou's painting and scratched the back of his head.
"As for this child's, the apple doesn't look like an apple, and the person doesn't look like a person. It's not up to standard."
Before the words had even finished, Yu Yang's mother jumped up as if she were on a spring, glancing sideways at Zhou Qiqi.
"Did you hear that? The teacher said your kid's drawing is garbage! It's a complete waste of paper! With this level of skill, you dare to come here to take the exam? Get out of here! This spot is for my Yu Yang!"
Yu Yang's mother's words were incredibly humiliating, but Zhou Qiqi didn't even look at her. Instead, she walked through the crowd, nodded slightly to the teaching assistant, and spoke gently, yet with a sharp edge.
"Teacher, I don't think you're entirely right. Is the true essence of painting simply like taking a camera, rigidly transferring what you see onto paper?"
"Although I have never studied painting, I personally believe that judging whether a painting is good or not should never be based solely on whether it 'looks like the real thing,' but rather on whether it has 'soul,' 'emotion,' and 'unique expression'!"
Her voice was gentle, without a trace of aggressiveness, but in front of so many parents, the teaching assistant still couldn't save face and frowned.
"Parent, do you think my evaluation was wrong? Are you a sore loser?"
"that is!"
Yu Yang's mother immediately chimed in, her back ramrod straight.
"You're so quick to spout nonsense! All you do is argue! Are you more professional than the teacher?"
Zhou Qiqi glanced at the teaching assistant, gave a light scoff, and shook her head.
“My Zhouzhou has never lost, so what’s this about being a sore loser? I thought this art studio was amazing, but now I see… it’s just so-so.”
As she spoke, she tucked the two paintings under her arm, took Zhouzhou's hand, and headed towards the door.
"Zhouzhou, let's not argue with them over this. Let's go."
Yu Yang's mother clicked her tongue twice behind her back and whispered to the parents next to her.
"She throws a tantrum because she can't draw well; she's so sensitive..."
She was beaming with pride, like a victorious rooster, but little did she know—
As they were talking, the sound of footsteps came from the stairs. An old man with a full head of white hair walked down the stairs quickly with a cane and a loud voice.
"Hey, wait a minute!"
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