1121 Her Painting
The crowd fell silent for a moment as they looked at each other.
Ronai had already clearly expressed that he had no intention of reselling the painting, so why would Lu Huaiyu still make such a suggestion?
Everyone could tell how much Ronai cared about this painting. No matter who asked, he would probably still not agree.
As expected, after being momentarily stunned, Ronai still shook his head.
“Mr. Lu, I’m sorry, but I’m afraid I can’t agree to your proposal.”
Lu Huaiyu did not seem surprised by his rejection. The smile on his lips did not change.
“I know that this request is a little difficult for Mr. Ronai, but I also have my reasons for insisting on it.”
Shen Li was standing half a step behind him. The moment Lu Huaiyu opened his mouth, her gaze had already fallen on him and her heart could not help but feel like it was hanging in the air.
Lu Huaiyu–
Ronai’s brows furrowed slightly.
“What reason is that?”
Lu Huaiyu paused for a moment before smiling.
“Because… this is my girlfriend’s painting.”
Shen Li could hear her heart thumping so hard that her ears felt like they had gone numb.
The entire gallery was dead silent.
Everyone looked at Shen Li in shock.
Lu Huaiyu’s girlfriend? Wasn’t that her?
This painting was hers?
Even Ronai was shocked, and he looked over in disbelief.
“Shen Li? This is your painting?!”
How was this possible?
Her oil paintings were indeed very good, but her master was Mei Yanqing. It was a completely different style from the abstract style that was represented by Ronai!
How had this painting come from her hands?
And…
“I saw this painting three years ago in a souvenir shop in Leland. I talked to the shop owner for a long time before he agreed to sell it to me. How could it be Shen Li…”
“In August?”
Lu Huaiyu asked.
Ronai was suddenly at a loss for words.
“If I’m not mistaken, it should have been in early August, and the store’s address is 16 Susheri Street.”
Lu Huaiyu’s tone was calm and composed.
A hint of surprise flashed through Ronai’s eyes.
Shen Li’s eyebrows twitched when she heard this.
At this moment, Lu Huaiyu turned around and looked over.
Their eyes met.
He tilted his head slightly, a lazy smile on his lips.
“I’m not mistaken, right?”
Shen Li’s grip tightened.
She had not expected Lu Huaiyu to even know about this. How on earth had he…?
After what seemed like a long time, yet also like a brief moment, Shen Li let out a sigh.
“You’re right.”
The surroundings were deathly silent.
Ronai looked at Shen Li in a daze, while the others obviously had not reacted yet.
How was it that this painting that was hanging in Ronai’s private gallery suddenly become Shen Li’s?
Three years ago?
She had only been sixteen years old at that time!
And wasn’t she supposed to have been in China at that time…
“Three years ago in August, I came to Leland once. That shop was opened by an uncle of mine.”
Shen Li gathered her thoughts and said, “If Mr. Ronai still remembers, his name is Li Yan.”
As soon as she said this, Ronai’s eyes suddenly widened.
“… Wait! That person was you?!”
Anyone who saw his reaction would know that Shen Li was telling the truth.
Ella could not help but ask, “Ronai, have you seen her before?”
Ronai’s mind was swirling with his thoughts. He opened his mouth to speak.
“That day, when I went for a walk on Susheri Street, I saw this painting in the window of a small shop on the street. I liked it a lot, so I went in to look for the shop owner, but the shop owner said that it had been drawn by a friend of his and he wasn’t selling it. I saw someone leaving through the back door, but I didn’t expect it to be…”
He looked at Shen Li with a complicated expression.
When he went in, he had managed to catch a glimpse of the back of a thin and tall teenager walking away.
However, he had not thought twice about it since all his thoughts had been on the painting.
In the end, after asking around, he found out that the young man who had left earlier was the artist of that painting.
He had tried to persuade the shopkeeper for a long time. He wanted the painting and wanted to get to know the young man, but the other party had refused to agree.
“After I was rejected, I went there again the next day. Ultimately, for some reason, the shop owner agreed this time, so I brought this painting back. However, I could find anything out about the artist of this painting.”
As time passed, he had given up.
Since it was not this person’s ambition, he could not force it. It had already been good enough that he could get this painting.
He knew that the young man was a rare genius in oil painting, but other than feeling regret and pity, he had no other choice.
This was why he had been so envious when he found out that Mei Yanqing had such a talented disciple.
However, he really had not expected that the young man he saw back then was actually Shen Li!
Ronai let out a long sigh.
It was no wonder that when he first saw Shen Li in Bai City, he had felt that her back was very familiar.
Later, when he found out that she was Ning, he had automatically excluded her.
He had always felt that the artist of that painting was a teenage boy.
In the end–
At this point, everything had been made clear.
The way everyone looked at Shen Li changed.
She was Mei Yanqing’s disciple and came from a completely different school of painting from Ronai. However, this painting had a style that was distinctive to Ronai.
If one did not know any better, one would really think that this was a student that Ronai had personally and carefully taught.
No, even Ronai’s students might not be able to reach such a level… not to mention, this painting of hers was from three years ago.
Her talent in painting had completely exceeded their imagination.
Shen Li pondered for a moment and said, “I’ve said it before, I like your paintings a lot, so I studied them for a period of time.”
Everyone was stunned.
‘Like’?
She was able to draw like that just because she ‘liked’ his work?
Research?
How?
She had been in China and had been born in a lower-class city, so she had probably only been able to see a few of his works, right? Perhaps she had even been able to find some public lectures by Ronai?
And then?
And then she drew such a painting at the age of sixteen?
Ronai was the first to return to his senses. He was both surprised and delighted to hear her words.
“So that’s how it was…”
He had always wanted to take in a student like Shen Li, but such a genius was rare. When he first met Shen Li, she was already under Mei Yanqing.
For this reason, he had often lamented his bad luck.
He had not expected Shen Li to have already started to teach herself how to draw from his paintings a long time ago!
This was really a pleasant surprise. It could also be considered as making up for the regret of not being able to accept her as a student.
While he was happy, another thought came to his mind.
“But why is Mr. Lu so clear about this matter? Did she tell you that?”
“No.”
Lu Huaiyu put a hand in his pocket and chuckled.
“It’s because you weren’t the only one who was interested in the painting that day.”
Shen Li could not help but look at him again.
So it turns out that…
“It’s a pity that the painting was bought by you.” Lu Huaiyu said.
The first thought that came to Ronai’s mind was to rejoice.
He looked at Shen Li and said, “Actually, I never managed to ask you about this. Why didn’t you sell the painting on the first day, but then relented on the second day? ”
Shen Li pursed her lips.
Sensing something, Lu Huaiyu turned around.
“It’s because you offered a pretty high price,” Shen Li replied honestly.
Lu Huaiyu’s eyebrows twitched.
