Fu Qiyuan did not answer Jiang Shan's question. He picked up a mechanical bird, fiddled with it a couple of times with his slender fingers, and the bird spread its wings and flew away.
"Daddy! Fly! Fly, fly!" Jiang Huai shouted excitedly, pushing aside the wooden horse and running a few steps toward the mechanical bird.
Qiao Sheng pursed his lips, his gaze lingered on the wooden horse for a moment, and then he lowered his head slightly.
"The Fu family's ancestors came from the martial arts world and had some connections outside, so searching for some playthings wouldn't be difficult," Fu Qiyuan explained to Jiang Shan.
The Fu family? Jiang Shan searched her memory and confirmed that she had absolutely no recollection of the Fu family.
The mechanical bird flew around twice and landed not far away. Jiang Huai ran over and picked it up, holding it tightly in his arms.
"Huai'er, come here, I'll teach you how to play." Fu Qiyuan beckoned to Jiang Huai, and the little boy ran over excitedly.
Whether it was intentional or not, when Jiang Huai called Fu Qiyuan "father," Fu Qiyuan never denied it or explained it. When there were no outsiders around, he responded very readily, but he remained silent in front of outsiders.
There's a saying that goes, "Silence is the best explanation."
Jiang Shan explained it a hundred and eighty times but still couldn't correct the way Jianghuai was called, so he simply gave up.
Therefore, those who are familiar with him know that Fu Qiyuan is Jiang Huai's adopted father.
Even Jiang Shan comforted himself in this way.
Her son has his own ideas, and as his mother, she should give them full respect!
Watching the father and son interact together, Qiao Sheng turned away sadly and let out a sigh of frustration.
Jiang Shan glanced back at Qiao Sheng but said nothing.
Today, Sanlang visited Master Wu at Qingfeng Academy, bringing with him a cart full of gifts that Jiao's mother had carefully prepared for him.
The Wu family never expected that Sanlang would suddenly visit them; it was a delightful surprise.
Madam Wu couldn't get enough of looking at Sanlang. He had grown a head taller than when she left, and he had shed his childish ignorance and gained a refined and elegant air, like a gentle and refined young master from a noble family.
"Master, today, your student..."
“Call me Senior Brother! I am the youngest disciple our master took in, and you are his last disciple. We can address each other as fellow disciples.” Master Wu waved his hand, interrupting Sanlang.
Saburo was stunned, his mind racing with a hundred alpacas.
“This is inappropriate! The Master once taught me, and I am deeply grateful. How can I disregard etiquette and teachings…” Sanlang still tried to struggle.
"I am the senior brother, and I make the decisions! You two, quickly pay your respects to your junior uncle!" Master Wu pointed to his two children, his tone leaving no room for refusal.
Wu Youmei and Wu Tao exchanged a glance, stood up and bowed to Sanlang, "Greetings to Junior Uncle."
Saburo almost jumped up, his little face turning bright red with anxiety.
Madam Wu grabbed him and said with a smile, "We're not outsiders. Your senior brother is the elder and you are the younger, so listen to your senior brother!"
After scratching his head for a while, Sanlang had no choice but to clasp his hands in greeting and say, "Senior brother, senior sister-in-law, junior... junior nephew, Sanlang has brought you gifts. Would you like to go and see them?"
So the whole family happily went to the yard to see the gifts.
The gifts prepared by Jiao's mother were all thoughtfully chosen. They weren't particularly expensive, but each one was exquisite and practical, covering everything from food and clothing to daily necessities. Madam Wu liked them very much and, in front of Sanlang, instructed the two children to help her put away the gifts one by one.
Master Wu then took Sanlang to his study to ask him about his studies, and afterwards Sanlang gave Master Wu a painting.
Master Wu carefully unfolded the painting and burst into tears.
"I never imagined that I would live to see my mentor's masterpiece again, sob sob... Thank you so much, junior brother!"
Saburo swallowed hard, somewhat at a loss, and said, "Brother... this isn't Teacher's painting..."
"Junior brother, don't try to fool me. Even if I'm not good at recognizing things, I can't mistake our teacher's painting! Look at the brushstrokes of these plum blossoms and the way the colors are mixed. Only our teacher could mix such nuanced colors! There's no mistake!"
Sanlang said weakly, "But this is my drawing... I know that my senior brother misses our teacher very much, so I copied one of our teacher's paintings, thinking that I would give it to my senior brother as a keepsake when I have the chance..."
Wu Zi slowly shifted his gaze from the painting to Sanlang's face, staring at him with a strange look for a long time before asking, word by word, "You mean, this is a copy of your teacher's painting? When was this done?"
Sanlang scratched his head. "About three months ago, I copied several of them. I also drew the seals on them. Since they were gifts for my senior brother and I got the teacher's permission, they are not considered forgeries."
Master Wu sat down at the table again, scrutinizing the details of the painting over and over again. Finally, he said with great frustration, "I still can't see any difference between this painting and yours, Master."
Sanlang sat down next to Master Wu and said sadly, "My teacher won't let me paint freely. He only makes me copy, saying that my temperament is unstable and that I need to be more disciplined!"
Master Wu's eyes lit up, and he hurriedly ran to the inner room to retrieve a painting. He said to Sanlang, "This is an authentic work by Master Qi Yuan. Apart from my teacher's work, this is the only other treasure I have. Take a look at it first, and then paint it in your own style!"
Saburo nodded, pondered for a moment, and then picked up his brush to draw.
As Master Wu watched, his eyes slowly widened, and a fine layer of sweat gradually appeared on his forehead.
Half an hour later, Sanlang put down his pen and silently stepped aside.
This is a landscape painting. With just a few strokes, it vividly depicts the magnificent momentum of the mountains and rivers. The vastness of the sky and earth, the safety of the mountains and rivers, and the peace and prosperity of the country are all fully revealed in the painting.
"Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful!"
Master Wu praised him three times and said sincerely to Sanlang, "Junior Brother, you have fully mastered the teacher's teachings. With such talent, you will surely... surely... in the future!"
I'm too excited to continue!
Sanlang couldn't understand his senior brother's feelings. He scoffed inwardly and thought to himself: "Teacher says every day that I'm not calm and collected, that I'm too busy playing and neglecting my studies, that I'm not as reserved as Xiaoqi, and that he says to take from those who have more and make up for those who don't. There are so many things I need to change. How can I be as good as my senior brother says!"
In Sanlang's heart, he had too many things to worry about and couldn't concentrate on studying with his teacher. He knew he wasn't a good student, and he felt guilty whenever he thought about it, feeling that he had let down his teacher's careful guidance.
If his teacher hadn't forced him to copy the model, given his impetuous nature, he certainly wouldn't have received such high praise from his senior!
Therefore, Sanlang decided that after returning to Yuzhou, he must seriously learn painting from his teacher and never paint arbitrarily again!
Master Wu had no idea that his words had inadvertently corrected Sanlang's thoughts and values, saving him from many detours and making him famous at a young age, shocking the court and the public.
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