chapter 19 superfluous

Elder Han smiled. He was not a vain person, but seeing the envious expressions on everyone's faces, he still felt a little proud in his heart. It took him a lot of effort to get this authentic painting of Master Louis. Now it seemed worth it. "The name of this work is "Eagle Perched on a Tree". What do you think after reading it?" Elder Han asked with a smile. Someone immediately replied: "This painting follows Master Louis's consistent concise painting style, with distinctive features. There are only a few strokes, but people can tell at a glance that this is an eagle and this is a tree." Elder Han nodded: "Most of the paintings only focus on the shape, but lose the spirit. Master Louis's works have both form and spirit, which is why it is difficult for ordinary people to imitate." Everyone agreed. Then several people expressed their views. Harry Zhu also thought for a moment and said: "I think this painting actually reflects a state of mind of Master Louis." "Oh? Why do you say that?" Everyone was interested. Harry Zhu cleared his throat and said: "Look at this tree, although there is not much ink, it seems to be a shadow, representing the current predicament." "Look at this eagle again. It seems to be perched on a tree, but it is not. It should express a kind of helplessness." "May I ask which eagle does not desire to fly high? But it has no choice, so it is forced to land on the treetops. This is a kind of helplessness." "Then, here comes the important point. There is a red mark on the eagle's head, which is in stark contrast to the gray tone of the whole painting. What does it mean?" "It shows that this eagle is not reconciled, it is eager to fly to the blue sky again." "So my final conclusion is that this painting reflects the current situation of Master Louis. This should be the work of Master Louis during the trough of his life." After Harry Zhu finished speaking, the audience was silent for a moment, and then there was warm applause. Explained too well. It was like a roundworm in Master Louis’s stomach! Elder Han was also full of praise: "If Master Louis heard your analysis, he would definitely regard you as a bosom friend." Then he looked at Hendra Zhu again, and said with a smile: "Hendra, your son surpasses the master!" Hendra Zhu said proudly: "Ha ha, I have already said that this kid has a bright future. It is better for me to cultivate him. I have instilled a lot of calligraphy and painting knowledge in him since he was a child." He really wasn't humble at all. There were constant praises from around, and even Lewis Lu couldn't help applauding Harry Zhu. When I drew this picture myself, I didn't think so much, but you actually analyzed it, what a talent. Hearing the compliments from the seniors around him, Harry Zhu couldn't help showing a smug smile, and suddenly glanced at Sally Liu and said, "I don't know what Miss Liu thinks of this painting?" From the moment Sally Liu entered the door, Harry Zhu showed hostility, because he felt that Sally Liu didn't deserve to be here at all. A seductive woman who knew shit about calligraphy and painting. Harry Zhu asked the question on purpose, just to see Sally Liu. Everyone's eyes instantly moved to Sally Liu. Elder Han encouraged with a smile: "It's okay, Miss Liu, there are a thousand Hamlets for a thousand readers, it's okay to tell your feelings, let's exchange ideas." Sally Liu nodded and said, "I'm personally a loyal fan of Master Louis, so I'm very happy to see this painting today. This painting is indeed Master Louis consistent painting style..." "Don't talk nonsense, get straight to the point." Harry Zhu interrupted impatiently: "The characteristics of the painting style have already been mentioned before, and you don't need to repeat them." "Harry, don't worry, let Miss Liu finish first!" Elder Han said. Because Harry Zhu performed well just now, Elder Han had a good impression of him, so he directly called him Harry. Even though Harry Zhu's interrupting behavior was very rude, Elder Han didn't reprimand him. Sally Liu frowned, but continued what she said just now: "This "Eagle Perched on a Tree" is excellent overall, but I think that red mark is a failure." Sally Liu expressed her thoughts. She also felt strange in her heart, it was obviously a perfect painting, why did Master Louis add extra touches to it? This was not at all like Master Louis's previous style. When Lewis Lu heard this, a smile could not help but appear on the corner of his mouth. Sister Sally still understood him! Because the red mark was not painted on at all, but the juice that accidentally dripped on it when I was eating red berries. However, when the people around heard this, their faces changed drastically. Hendra Zhu reprimanded loudly: "You are simply talking nonsense. It is impossible for any redundant ink to appear in the works of Master Louis." Everyone also expressed their dissatisfaction. Master Louis was their idol, and no one was allowed to slander them. This woman actually dared to say that Master Louis was superfluous, wasn't she looking for scolding? Harry Zhu sneered and said, "I've said it a long time ago, how can this kind of woman know how to paint? Inviting her here is purely to defeat our elegance." Elder Han also showed displeasure. Although he said that he wanted everyone to express their opinions, what he really wanted to hear was praise from different angles, not criticism. Sally Liu's evaluation displeased Elder Han very much, and he didn't even give her a good face afterwards. Sally Liu was naturally aware of the change in Elder Han's attitude, and was filled with disappointment. She thought it was really an exchange meeting for calligraphy and painting lovers, but she didn't expect it to be full of flatterers, even Elder Han was no exception. Shouldn't have come tonight? Sally Liu wanted to leave directly, but Lewis Lu pulled her back and said, "Wait and see." Lewis Lu had never been the one who suffers, these people dared to bully Sister Sally like this, how could he leave willingly. It seemed that it was time to reveal the identity of Master Louis. Just as Lewis Lu was thinking about how to reveal his identity, what happened next made him change his mind.