PPS Chapter 60

Li Ze held the work Xie Haoran handed over, his eyes filled with unconcealed disappointment. It was far too different, far too different from the work he had initially seen.

“I’m sorry, teacher, I grabbed the wrong one. It’s this one. They were together, and I mixed them up.” Xie Haoran had been observing Li Ze’s expression since he handed over the painting. Seeing his disappointment, he quickly pulled another one from his bag.

Li Ze’s frown didn’t ease. No teacher likes a careless student. “You must be careful next time. Carelessness is unacceptable.”

After a perfunctory scolding, he accepted the other painting.

The moment he saw it, his eyes lit up. The painting was like a window into a dreamlike world, seeming to possess the power to draw the viewer’s soul.

On the canvas, colors intertwined and blended in an almost magical way, showcasing the artist’s unparalleled ability to capture light and shadow and revealing an unspeakable emotional depth. The use of color was particularly outstanding, from the warm orange-yellow like the first rays of the sun to the deep blue-purple like the night sky. Each color was imbued with a unique emotional temperature, complementing each other to weave a visual feast that was both harmonious and full of contrast.

It was a very warm painting, making people feel happy involuntarily.

However, some details were not handled perfectly, with some minor flaws.

But overall, the merits outweighed the defects.

“This has some level of skill. If it had been the one you just showed me, I would have chosen to disqualify you from the competition, so you wouldn’t embarrass me.” Li Ze nodded in satisfaction. If Xie Haoran continued to perform at this level, it wouldn’t be impossible to win a place in the competition.

Xie Haoran breathed a sigh of relief and respectfully said yes, but his hands, hanging by his sides, were clenched tightly, his knuckles slightly white from the force.

“I’ve been too busy with school matters lately. There’s a lot to handle at the beginning of the semester. My state isn’t very good, I apologize.”

Li Ze placed the painting on the table, raised his head, and looked at Xie Haoran standing in front of him.

“Your talent is strong. I hope you don’t let other things affect you. If the class affairs are too busy, you might as well resign from the position of class monitor.” Li Ze gave his advice sincerely. They needed to constantly study and practice, and too many class affairs would affect them greatly.

Moreover, he seemed to have heard that Xie Haoran also held a position in the student union.

He didn’t object to student activities, but he still felt that it was a pity to waste hard-earned talent because of other things. Since Xie Haoran was his student, it was understandable for him to say a few more words.

“It’s okay, teacher. It’s just been busy for a while at the beginning of the semester. There won’t be much later.” Xie Haoran’s smile became a little forced, his face stiffening.

Li Ze sighed inwardly. It was already difficult for these wealthy young men to devote themselves to art. For them, the so-called student union was more like a gathering place for the wealthy young men of A City, the best way for them to make friends with their own kind before entering society.

He understood, but still felt it was a pity.

“Alright, I’ll take it to submit later. If there’s nothing else, you can leave now.” Li Ze ultimately didn’t say much. He couldn’t forcibly impose his ideas on his students.

Xie Haoran nodded, turned, and left, still holding the first painting he had handed over.

After he closed the door, the respectful expression on his face completely disappeared, and he threw the painting in his hand directly into the trash can beside him.

He hadn’t walked two steps before he saw someone coming out of Professor Qin’s studio.

It was Chu Zhaoyi.

Chu Zhaoyi was leaving for class because he had one soon. He noticed Xie Haoran, but didn’t intend to pay attention to him.

Seeing his aloof appearance, an unnamed fire ignited in Xie Haoran’s heart, but he still maintained the so-called decency of a class monitor.

“Chu, are you going to class too?”

“Mm.” Chu Zhaoyi closed the door of the studio, checked his backpack to see if he had brought everything, without giving Xie Haoran even a glance.

“Is this the assignment for Teacher Zhang’s class? I heard Li Yu say that you were the only one left. They couldn’t reach you, and I was worried you didn’t know.” Xie Haoran took two quick steps to get beside Chu Zhaoyi, noticing the oil painting in Chu Zhaoyi’s hand.

“Mm.” Chu Zhaoyi still gave a simple monosyllable.

“I’m going to the teacher’s office anyway, I’ll take it over for you. Li Yu already gave it to the teacher.” Xie Haoran said this.

Hearing this, Chu Zhaoyi’s gaze slowly landed on Xie Haoran’s face.

Seeing his eager look, he didn’t speak.

“What’s wrong… is there something on my face?” Even Xie Haoran, who had seen many kinds of people, couldn’t help but feel a little panicked under the gaze of those dark pupils.

“No.”

“Thank you, class monitor.”

Chu Zhaoyi handed over his assignment.

He wrote his name and the date in pencil in the corner of the painting.