Shen Tu Liang was stunned, immediately shutting his mouth. The students in the activity room didn't dare breathe, and for a moment, the entire room was deathly silent. Shen Tu Liang stared blankly at Lü Qiushi; it was the first time he had ever seen the usually gentle and refined Lü Qiushi lose his temper like this. Although Lü Qiushi was a mid-level leader in the school and the head of the art department, most of the time he resembled a refined scholar, lacking the air of a typical bureaucrat.
Today, Lü Qiushi suddenly revealed his authoritative side, making Shen Tu Liang tremble.
"Deputy Director Shen Tu, what kind of noise are you making in front of so many students?" Lü Qiushi said coldly. "Besides, I just heard that you stipulated that every student must submit a competition entry, and it must be completed on the spot? Isn't this nonsense?"
"Deputy Director Shen Tu also told us that this was a collective decision of the art department's party committee." Having already offended Shen Tu Liang, Su He didn't care anymore, so she seized the opportunity to add a comment.
"This..." Shen Tu Liang inwardly gritted his teeth at Su He. Fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead, and a tuft of hair, styled in a comical "local-surrounding-the-central" manner, hung down. Many students, seeing the once arrogant Shen Tu Liang's embarrassed state, felt a surge of pleasure, wanting to laugh but refraining from doing so.
Shen Tu Liang stammered for a long time before finally explaining:
"Director, I mainly considered the importance of this calligraphy and painting competition. Our initial work on collecting works has been very difficult, so I wanted to put some pressure on the students..."
"We are engaged in artistic creation, not mechanical labor on a factory assembly line!" Lü Qiushi interrupted Shen Tu Liang mercilessly, saying, "Do you think good works can be created relying on administrative orders?"
Shen Tu Liang nodded meekly, repeatedly saying:
"Yes! Yes! Yes! Director, I didn't consider this carefully..."
Although Shen Tu Liang and Lü Qiushi differed by only half a rank in administrative hierarchy, their status in the art department and even the entire university was worlds apart. Among the many deputy directors of the Art Department, Shen Tu Liang was the least artistically accomplished, so he mostly handled specific administrative tasks. Lu Qiu Shi, on the other hand, not only held sway in the Art Department but was also a favorite of Principal Wei. He was also a nationally renowned calligrapher and a director of the China Calligraphers Association. Therefore, Shen Tu Liang could only bow his head and admit his mistakes before Lu Qiu Shi.
Lu Qiu Shi ignored Shen Tu Liang and turned to Shen Tu Fan, staring intently into his eyes until Shen Tu Fan felt uncomfortable before finally asking:
"Who stipulated that only members of the calligraphy and painting club are allowed to participate in the Rongcheng College Calligraphy and Painting Competition? Was it the competition organizing committee? Or did the school issue a special notice? Why didn't I know?"
Lu Qiu Shi's tone was calm, but to Shen Tu Fan, it was like a thunderbolt. He regretted jumping in without understanding the situation; the good impression he had painstakingly built with Director Lu was about to be ruined. "Uh..." Shen Tu Fan was stunned by Lü Qiushi's barrage of questions. His pale face flushed red with embarrassment, and he stammered for a long time, unable to utter a word.
Seeing that Shen Tu Liang and his nephew were speechless, Lü Qiushi gave them a cold look, then turned to Su He and asked with a gentle smile:
"Su He, could you tell me who your friend Chen Yang's calligraphy teacher is?"
Lü Qiushi had just reprimanded the annoying Shen Tu uncle and nephew, which was like venting his anger, so Su He naturally had a good impression of him. However, she couldn't answer his question. She didn't know much about Chen Yang's past, only some basic information.
Therefore, Su He pondered for a moment, recalling whether Chen Yang had told her anything about this. But Lü Qiushi, somewhat impatient, asked expectantly, his voice trembling slightly:
"His calligraphy teacher...is it Master Bai Yan?"
This question caused a huge stir. The students in the activity room all showed expressions of shock. Shen Tu Liang and his nephew looked at Lü Qiushi with disbelief, as if she had suddenly transformed into a stunning beauty.
Because Lü Qiushi's words were truly unexpected.
Master Bai Yan was a titan of Chinese calligraphy and painting, arguably the foremost figure in contemporary Chinese calligraphy and painting. He was also a renowned scholar of traditional Chinese culture and a collector. In the eyes of art students, Master Bai Yan was a towering monument, a deity-like figure.
Lü Qiushi was also a well-known calligrapher in China, but in front of Master Bai Yan, he was no different from a primary school student. Many people have heard the anecdote that in his youth, Lü Qiushi was fortunate enough to receive guidance from Master Baiyan, and reportedly benefited greatly. Later, no matter how high Lü Qiushi's achievements became, he always treated Master Baiyan with the respect due to a teacher.
Su He was also taken aback by Lü Qiushi's words. She hesitated for a long time before replying:
"Impossible! Director Lü, you must be mistaken. Although I don't know who Chen Yang's teacher is, it absolutely cannot be Master Baiyan!"
After speaking, Su He briefly introduced Chen Yang's background. After listening, Lü Qiushi thought about it and realized it was indeed unlikely. He nodded somewhat disappointedly, then couldn't help but look again at the signature on the painting of the lady, his face still showing an expression of disbelief.
After calming himself down slightly, Lü Qiushi turned to Shen Tu Liang and said,
"Deputy Director Shen Tu, these two works... and Shen Tu Fan's landscape painting, should be directly submitted for the competition. For the other works, you should convene the department's expert panel to discuss and decide."
Not all works have the opportunity to participate in the competition. As a well-known university in Southeast Province, Rong University would damage its image if it submitted works of too low a standard. Therefore, the Art Department would organize an expert panel for a preliminary selection. Lü Qiushi's opinion was that Su He and Chen Yang's works should skip the preliminary selection and be submitted directly for the competition.
In the end, he gave Shen Tu Liang some face and also selected Shen Tu Fan's work. To be fair, the painting was of good quality, and Lü Qiushi, being a scholar, wouldn't completely reject Shen Tu Fan's work because of what had just happened.
After thinking for a moment, Lü Qiushi emphasized again:
"Participation in the competition should be based on personal voluntariness; we can't use that administrative quota system!"
"Yes! Yes! Yes!" Shen Tuliang repeatedly agreed.
Lü Qiushi looked at the remaining works, then left the calligraphy and painting club with a few staff members. Shen Tuliang hesitated for a moment, then left hastily without saying a word. Being reprimanded by Lü Qiushi in front of so many students made Shen Tuliang lose face. He had considered giving some instructions, but then decided against it.
Afternoon, Rongda Stadium.
Su He and Chen Yang strolled side by side on the grass of Field C. They had arranged to have lunch together. Chen Yang had spent half the morning writing a paper in the archives with the icy Liu Xinyao, leaving him dizzy and exhausted. So, after lunch, he suggested a walk together, which Su He readily agreed to.
From lunch until now, Su He seemed to be in a very good mood, smiling constantly. Chen Yang finally couldn't help but ask:
"What's wrong with you today? You seem so happy, did you win the lottery?"
Su He chuckled and retorted:
"How can you be so materialistic! Is money the only thing that can make you happy?"
After saying that, Su He couldn't help herself and began to describe to Chen Yang what had happened at the calligraphy and painting club that morning, especially when she talked about how Shen Tu Liang and his nephew were mercilessly reprimanded by Lü Qiushi. Su He's face lit up with excitement.
Su He was usually quite gentle and rarely held grudges. She was always kind to others and generally wouldn't take offense even if someone offended her. However, Shen Tu Liang and his nephew Shen Tu Fan were targeting Chen Yang at every turn, which Su He couldn't swallow. In her eyes, Chen Yang was perfect, and she would never allow anyone to slander him.
"By the way, do you know what Director Lü of the Art Department said after seeing your painting of a lady?" Su He asked.
"What did he say?" Chen Yang replied cooperatively. In fact, he had strong confidence in his work, thinking that as long as the department head's judgment wasn't too bad, he wouldn't say anything negative.
"He actually asked me if your calligraphy teacher was Master Baiyan..." Su He burst into laughter at this point.
"Oh! He has quite an eye for talent!" Chen Yang said with a chuckle, "He even noticed that!"
"Come on! You're getting cocky!" Su He thought Chen Yang was joking, so she lightly punched his shoulder and said coquettishly.
"I don't remember my teacher having a disciple surnamed Lü! I didn't expect him to have such a sharp eye!" Chen Yang thought to himself.
In a sense, Lü Qiushi's guess was correct. In his previous life, Chen Yang was Master Baiyan's last disciple, and Master Baiyan had praised Chen Yang's achievements in calligraphy and painting, especially calligraphy. Master Baiyan once said that Chen Yang was the only disciple who had grasped the essence of his calligraphy.
The few characters Chen Yang inscribed on the painting of the lady, while visually quite different from Master Bai Yan's style, would be easily mistaken for the original by an artist who has studied Bai Yan's work in depth.
Lu Qiushi's ability to spot this immediately suggests a close connection with Master Bai Yan.
As Chen Yang was trying to recall, his phone suddenly rang urgently.
"Sister Qian! What brings you to call me? Are you done with things at home?" Seeing it was Ning Qiaoqian calling, Chen Yang answered immediately.
"Chen Yang, drive to Xiamen right now!" Ning Qiaoqian's voice was filled with anxiety and urgency. Chen Yang hurriedly asked,
"What's wrong? What happened?"
"I need your help with something important. You need to come right away! I'll text you the address!" Ning Qiaoqian's words were vague, and she hung up after saying that.
Hearing the busy tone on the phone, Chen Yang was completely confused. Facing Su He's questioning gaze, Chen Yang shrugged and said,
"It was Sister Qian calling. She didn't explain clearly, saying she needed me to drive to Xiamen immediately, that she needed my help urgently, and then she hung up…it seemed very urgent."
"Then hurry up and go!" Hearing it was about Ning Qiaoqian, Su He urged him quickly, "Don't delay Sister Qian's business."
"Okay!" Chen Yang nodded, gently put his arm around Su He's shoulder, then let go and strode towards the stadium exit.
"Should I ask the bar for leave for you?" Su He called out loudly from behind. "No need! The car is parked at the bar! I'll just ask Brother Qiang for leave when I get the car!" Chen Yang waved his hand without turning his head.