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◎Art Exhibition◎
Mu Heqing had a happy birthday and received many birthday wishes, including one from Jiang Mu.
She replied with "thank you," and then sent a meme of a little person dancing.
The other person quickly replied with a smiley face.
Mu and Qing had mixed feelings about Jiang Mu.
Although his initial investigation into her behavior was unsettling, he didn't actually do much. He not only took her home but also treated her to dinner and changed her clothes last time. He didn't even ask her anything about the disappearance of the bloodstains.
Furthermore, he might be investigating her because of that strange "General Manager Yu," and his methods of approaching her were relatively mild compared to Ouyang Zhu's. He wasn't forceful in his actions, so it was difficult for Mu and Qing to truly dislike him.
However, Mu Heqing knew she couldn't outmaneuver him, so she maintained a respectful distance. If given the chance, she hoped to repay Jiang Mu's favor.
A few days later, on the day of Consort Si's art exhibition, Ouyang Zhu summoned Mu and Qing to Qingcheng for the same reason.
Sifei's art exhibition was held in the public exhibition hall next to the Guihui Group building, which attracted many painters or artists who came to admire her, but the main visitors were Guihui's partners.
Their purchase of Sifei's paintings signifies a close collaborative relationship with Guihui, a fact both parties are well aware of.
As long as Sifei's paintings depict concrete objects, they will not confuse the viewer. The exhibition hall displays these paintings. Apart from her paintings of Mu Heqing that do not resemble Mu Heqing, her other subjects are landscapes and architecture, and she rarely paints people.
According to Ouyang Zhu, Sifei has painted quite a few paintings over the years and is quite well-known in the industry.
Of course, there are also those who disagree, feeling that Sifei is all talk and no action.
"What is this painting? The overall composition is unbalanced, and the colors are randomly matched. If you didn't know it was supposed to be a snow mountain painting, you'd think it was a three-dollar ice cream. Did the person who painted this even study art? They're not even as good as my niece who's in elementary school." A man with a ponytail commented in front of a snow mountain painting.
Mu and Qing looked at the person with curiosity.
"You think so too, right?" the man said to Mu Heqing, handing her a business card.
Mu Heqing's attire was unlike that of business people, and the man mistook her for a fellow painter. If he knew that Mu Heqing had no artistic talent whatsoever, he certainly wouldn't have bothered with her.
The business card listed the man's name and the association he belonged to. His name was Qin You, and he was the president of an amateur art association in Qingcheng called Shise She. They mainly attracted painting enthusiasts to join the association online, and also held some offline events.
Mu and Qing seemed to have seen videos of this association online. It looked like a beautiful older sister was teaching people to draw. Her voice was gentle, her explanations were detailed, and her drawings were beautiful. Even Mu and Qing thought they were beautiful.
However, this association has a poor reputation online. They have a series of videos that critique the works of famous artists. In the videos, they use harsh language to criticize these works as worthless. As a result, the comment section of their videos is also quite interesting.
Mu and Qing had no interest in painting to begin with, and they stopped paying attention to the painting association after that.
Unexpectedly, I ran into the president of their association here.
"Are you here to look at the paintings? Or to buy them?" Qin You asked.
Viewing paintings makes you a fellow artist; buying paintings makes you a partner of Guihui.
Mu and Qing didn't understand these coded messages, so they simply said honestly, "Look at the painting."
"Oh? What do you think of these paintings?" Qin You asked, getting excited. He desperately needed someone to agree with his opinion.
"I don't understand." Mu Heqing was telling the truth.
Unexpectedly, Qin You nodded emphatically, "Yes, these paintings are just scribbling nonsense. They think they can rival the art masters of the past, but they can't even do the most basic thing of making people understand what the paintings are about. And they're holding an art exhibition here. It's just a money grab. How dare they dabble in art with commercial activities?"
What is this person saying?
Mu Heqing couldn't understand what Qin You was saying either; this was not an area she could dabble in.
When Qin You met Mu Heqing, it was as if he had found a kindred spirit. He then proceeded to critique another painting, all of which were negative.
“You’re wrong,” a middle-aged man with gray hair and a refined demeanor appeared and retorted.
Who is this? Mu Heqing was full of questions.
“Look at these paintings. Although the composition is unbalanced, they present an alternative aesthetic. If we always pursue absolute completeness and absolute balance, we will end up like those paintings you posted online, which are beautiful but soulless.”
After the middle-aged man finished speaking, he said to Mu Heqing, "Aren't you right, miss?"
Mu Heqing didn't dare to open her mouth; she couldn't understand it, she didn't know.
"Hmph, this young lady represents the public's aesthetic sense. If the public can't understand or appreciate a painting, what value does it have?" Qin You retorted.
Mu and Qing felt that what they said made sense, but the key was that asking her was useless. She had no artistic talent; she was the kind of person who could drive her art teacher crazy when she was a child.
The two looked like they were about to start arguing, and Mu and Qing silently cried out for someone to come and save them.
"He Qing?"
Unexpectedly, someone actually came to rescue her.
Jiang Mu was wearing a khaki suede short jacket over a white turtleneck, black trousers, and black high-top boots. He was tall and slender with stylish, fluffy hair. He emerged from behind a painting with a broad smile.
Mu and Qing had a headache; this person always looked like he had just finished a fashion magazine shoot whenever he appeared.
"Jiang Mu!" Mu Heqing called out happily. There was no one else to rescue her at the moment. She nodded to the two who were about to argue and walked to Jiang Mu's side.
Without an audience, the two could only glare at each other fiercely during their argument.
Jiang Mu was surprised that Mu Heqing was so happy to see him, and his smile deepened.
"He Qing, what are you doing here?" This time, Jiang Mu took the initiative.
Mu Heqing said, "I received an invitation from the Guihui Group."
She's gone astray too; she only talks about the surface, never explaining how she received the invitation given her status, nor any other nonsense.
The two stopped in front of a painting.
This painting was one that Mu and Qing had seen in Sifei's studio, and they actually exhibited it as well.
"Heqing, are you interested in this painting?" Jiang Mu bent down, placed his hands on his thighs, and his face was parallel to Mu Heqing's face.
As long as Mu and Qing turn their heads to the side, they can see Jiang Mu's eyes.
"I just saw this painting too. It seems to be part of a series of paintings. Look at the four paintings side by side, they represent joy, anger, sorrow, and fear."
The last time Mu and Qing saw it was fear.
The painting does not depict specific human faces, but only their expressions.
“These paintings are very strange. I’ve never seen this kind of painting before. It’s a bit like making clothes and then placing them on a plastic mannequin. The focus is on expressing expressions and demeanor, which isn’t so strange. What’s strangest is that these expressions are not like normal human emotions such as joy, anger, sorrow, or fear. Instead, they all have a strange quality.” Jiang Mu’s artistic talent was clearly much greater than Mu and Qing’s.
Mu and Qing looked at a painting. The painting depicted joy, but not natural joy, not the joy of success. Instead, it was a distorted joy, with the figures' expressions far exceeding normal curves.
Were you happy then?
Is this really her expression? Mu Heqing felt a kind of nausea, as if she were staring directly at herself.
She looked away, no longer looking.
Jiang Mu keenly sensed this and said, "He Qing, you don't like these paintings. Shall we look at something else, or go out for a walk? Last time you weren't feeling well, I didn't take you around Qingcheng."
Mu Heqing and Jiang Mu left the art exhibition and went to a strangely styled coffee shop.
The bitter aroma of coffee calmed Mu and Qing down. They had intended to repay Jiang Mu's favor, but instead, they felt even more indebted.
"Jiang Mu, your home should be in Qingcheng, right? I thought it was in Ancheng, since you seem to know so many shops there." Mu Heqing chatted with Jiang Mu.
Jiang Mu nodded: "That's right, in Qingcheng. My parents are here, and I grew up here. I only know a few shops in Ancheng, and I'm not really familiar with the others. He Qing, what about you?"
"My home is in Huacheng, but I stayed in Ancheng after graduation." Mu Heqing took a sip of coffee.
"Hwaseong? I haven't been there much, but I'll definitely go and see it when I have the chance."
"Yes. Huacheng is very nice. It has a beautiful river and lots of delicious food. If you go, I'll take you there." Mu Heqing's mood lightened, and her eyes sparkled when she mentioned her hometown.
Jiang Mu was also infected by her bright expression. He suddenly felt that Mu Heqing's expression was good. She shouldn't show the painful expression she had at the art exhibition earlier.
"I'm really looking forward to it, with Qing."
Jiang Mu's tone suddenly became a little impulsive. He asked, "He Qing, what's troubling you? You can tell me, maybe I can help you solve it."
"Hmm?" Mu Heqing blinked.
As soon as Jiang Mu finished speaking, he regretted it. Mu and Qing clearly didn't want to talk about those things, yet he still said those words. Their current relationship wasn't suitable for saying such things.
He assumed that Mu and Qing would remain distant as before.
But Mu and Qing simply shook their heads and gave a faint smile. "It's alright, I'll handle it myself."
She will definitely solve it.
Jiang Mu smiled too, "Really? Then be sure to call me if you need anything."
Mu Heqing suddenly couldn't understand Jiang Mu anymore. At this moment, he was sincere and genuinely wanted to help her.
Why?
"Why do you want to help me?" Mu Heqing asked.
Jiang Mu was stunned.
"Anyway, thank you. If you need any help, feel free to call me." Mu Heqing rarely showed such a bright smile.
Mu Heqing stopped thinking about it. She wouldn't get any results from thinking about it too much. After so many interactions, it would be too contrary to her principles to doubt Jiang Mu again.
If Jiang Mu is troubled by that strange "President Yu," she can help him.
Jiang Mu might not be able to help her much, but she was grateful that someone was on her side and told her she could contact him if she needed anything.
However, because of Mu and Qing's special past, most people wouldn't offer to help Mu and Qing solve their problems, even if they didn't know what had happened to them.
Jiang Mu was a little strange.
Jiang Mu knew he had achieved his goal. He had always wanted to enter Mu Heqing's social circle, become her friend, and then find some interesting things to do. But for some reason, he was now a little afraid to look directly at Mu Heqing's smile.
He took a sip of coffee to avoid making a scene.
Strange, why was his heart pounding so hard? He couldn't help but stroke the coffee cup.
He then heard Mu and Qing ask a new question.
"So, you helped my boss back then because you had good intentions?"
How should I put it?
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