Ren Yaoqi chuckled lightly and raised her voice, "Father, your daughter has returned!"
Before long, Ren Shimin appeared at the door of the east wing. Seeing Ren Yaoqi, he looked somewhat surprised, "Yaoyao? Why have you returned today?"
Ren Yaoqi took Ren Yaohua’s hand and stepped forward to bow to Ren Shimin, smiling as she said, "I came back with my aunt and uncle. I heard that Father was here at Concubine Fang’s place, restoring some ancient painting, so Third Sister and I came to take a look."
As soon as Ren Shimin heard Ren Yaoqi mention the ancient painting, his eyes lit up, and he beckoned to her, "Yaoyao, come quickly and look—these are two beauty paintings by Jiang Yuanyi."
"Jiang Yuanyi’s paintings?" Ren Yaoqi was somewhat astonished.
Jiang Yuanyi was a court painter from over three hundred years ago, most skilled in painting beauties. It was said that he painted over two hundred beauty paintings in his lifetime, most of which were collected in the imperial palace. Unfortunately, during a dynastic change, a great fire broke out in the palace, destroying many calligraphy and paintings, including the majority of Jiang Yuanyi’s works. As a result, only about twenty of his paintings have survived to this day.
Jiang Yuanyi’s paintings were characterized by their ornate style and vivid figures. He had once made a grand vow to paint all the beauties of the world, so only those with exceptional looks could enter his paintings. Fortunately, as a court painter at the time, the emperor’s vast harem provided a steady stream of subjects for his masterpieces, and palace consorts of that era took pride in being painted by Jiang Yuanyi.
After Jiang Yuanyi’s death, many imitated his style, but over the centuries, no one has surpassed him. Instead, a painting school known as the "Jiang School" emerged. Works of the Jiang School share two common characteristics: an ornate style and the requirement that all subjects be beauties.
In his youth, Ren Shimin had been quite enamored with figure painting and happened to be an admirer of the Jiang School style. Although Third Master Ren had since shifted his passion to landscape painting, Jiang Yuanyi’s works still held a special place for him.
Ren Yaoqi recalled that in her previous life, Ren Shimin had also acquired two paintings by Jiang Yuanyi. However, that time, he did not restore them himself but entrusted them to an old-established painting and calligraphy shop in Yunyang City. For some reason, those two paintings were never retrieved, as if they had been destroyed?
Ren Yaoqi didn’t remember clearly, as Ren Shimin had always been displeased whenever those paintings were mentioned, so she never asked again.
Ren Yaoqi had already followed Ren Shimin into the east wing.
Fangzhi Courtyard also had a study arranged in the main room, but perhaps Ren Shimin found it too small and inconvenient for his work, so he had Concubine Fang clear out two adjoining rooms in the east wing.
In the center of the east wing stood two large huanghuali wood desks placed side by side, on which lay two paintings, along with brushes, ink, pigments, and some restoration tools.
Seeing Ren Yaoqi and Ren Yaohua enter, Concubine Fang said nothing more. With a gentle smile, she turned and softly instructed her maid to bring tea and snacks.Ren Shimin had already walked over to the writing desk and turned to Ren Yaoqi, saying, "I've carefully examined it—it's genuine. However, the painting wasn't preserved well initially. I heard it was hastily buried in the backyard by its owner during wartime turmoil and remained buried for decades. When it was unearthed, it was nearly in fragments. From the layers visible when the backing paper was removed, it appears it had been repaired once before, but the person who did it was too careless—they almost ruined a fine painting!" As he spoke, Ren Shimin's expression grew indignant.
Just as Ren Yaoqi was about to lean in for a closer look, she heard an unfamiliar woman's voice say, "Please rest assured, sir. This humble woman will be extra careful when removing the backing."
Only then did Ren Yaoqi notice a woman who had been bending over by the writing desk. She had initially assumed she was a servant in the courtyard and hadn't paid her any attention. Now, as the woman turned to speak, Ren Yaoqi got a clear look at her face and confirmed she had never seen her before.
The woman appeared to be in her early thirties, her hair styled in a married woman's bun. Her profile was quite attractive, though her full face seemed rather ordinary. From her earlier self-reference, she didn't seem to be a servant.
The woman set down a small bamboo tweezer she had been holding and bowed to Ren Yaoqi and Ren Yaohua. "Greetings to the two young ladies."
Her movements were graceful, carrying a certain charm.
Ren Yaohua frowned, scrutinizing her for a moment without returning the gesture. She harbored no goodwill toward anyone appearing in Concubine Fang's courtyard.
"And who might this be?" Ren Yaoqi smiled at the woman and asked Ren Shimin.
Ren Shimin's attitude toward the woman was quite amiable. "She is someone I invited to help restore calligraphy and paintings. Her family has been in this trade for generations. Thanks to her, I nearly made a serious mistake earlier."
Inviting a woman into the inner courtyard to restore paintings? Ren Yaoqi thought, only her father would do something like this.
However, the fact that this woman appeared in Concubine Fang's courtyard inevitably raised suspicions.
"Oh? Female painting restorers are quite rare, and to earn your praise, Father, she must truly be skilled. Where did you find her?" Ren Yaoqi stepped forward to examine the painting, asking casually as she did.
"I wasn't comfortable entrusting the painting to a shop for restoration, and I worried I couldn't handle it alone. Concubine Fang found Sun Shiyi Niang for me." Ren Shimin carefully brushed away residual paper scraps from the backing paper with his index finger.
So it was indeed Concubine Fang who had brought her.
But why would Concubine Fang bring a woman in her thirties here? If her intention was to secure favor, she should have sought someone younger and more beautiful. This Sun Shiyi Niang, while not unattractive, was not exceptionally beautiful and was also older.
Ren Yaoqi was momentarily puzzled, thinking she would need to investigate Sun Shiyi Niang's background further.
"Father, when it comes to color restoration, shall I assist you?" Ren Yaoqi sat down at the writing desk, resting her cheek on her hand as she tilted her head.
Hearing this, Ren Shimin glanced at Ren Yaoqi hesitantly.
Color restoration was the most critical step in the entire repair process. It involved using ink and pigments to meticulously fill in the missing parts of the ancient painting and retouching areas where the colors had faded—a task that demanded exceptional painting skills from the restorer.
Ren Shimin had intended to handle this part himself, but now that his younger daughter had offered, he found it difficult to express doubt in her abilities.Ren Yaoqi flashed a big smile. "I don't care, I want to help restore the painting too. If you don't agree, I'll steal it and do it myself."
Ren Shimin broke out in a cold sweat. He wanted to get angry and lecture her, but seeing his youngest daughter's smiling face, he couldn't muster the temper. He thought to himself that this was because Yaoyao loved painting just like he did.
Concubine Fang entered carrying a tea tray, smiling as she mediated. "Fifth Miss, the master really likes this painting. You should let him handle it himself. If Fifth Miss wants to try restoring ancient paintings, I can find one for you another day."
Ren Yaohua said coolly, "I remember Fifth Sister likes paintings by Wen Zhouzi from the previous dynasty. Since Concubine is so enthusiastic, why not give her two more? Oh, and she only likes authentic works."
Ren Yaoqi looked at Concubine Fang with great anticipation.
Concubine Fang's smile stiffened slightly, revealing a bitter expression.
Seeing them making such a fuss, Ren Shimin, still preoccupied with his painting, compromised with Ren Yaoqi. "You can come along, but if you want to use the brush, you must have my permission. When the time comes, I'll let you paint the simpler parts."
Ren Yaoqi immediately nodded, beaming. "Understood, Father."
Concubine Fang seized the opportunity to smile and say, "Ninth Miss also said she wants to learn. Could the master let her come and watch too? She won't touch the brush, just learn a bit more from you and Fifth Miss."
Ren Yaohua bluntly retorted, "She should learn how to behave before learning how to paint! Last time she said she wanted to ask Fifth Sister for painting advice. Fifth Sister helped her revise that 'Snow Scene' painting, but this time at the Thousand Gold Banquet, she painted a copy based on Fifth Sister's revisions. She can't even tell the difference between creating and copying!"
Concubine Fang's hand tightened around her handkerchief.
Ren Shimin frowned at Concubine Fang. "Did this really happen?"
Ren Shimin was fond of the refined elegance of famous scholars and despised underhanded tactics used for fame and profit. He had always disdained associating with such people.
That was why he had become suspicious of Han Yunqian's character when Han deliberately lost to him during their chess game. Ren Yaoyu copying Ren Yaoqi's revised painting just to show off at the Thousand Gold Banquet disgusted Ren Shimin.
Concubine Fang's face paled slightly as she forced a smile. "Master, Fifth Miss is still young and doesn't quite understand..."
Ren Shimin said coldly, "Then teach her properly! Teach her until she understands! And don't mention her learning painting with me again."
Concubine Fang bit her lip, lowered her head, and looked on the verge of tears.
Ren Shimin no longer paid her any attention.
Ren Yaohua curved her lips into a smile, feeling quite pleased. Seeing Concubine Fang humiliated made staying to watch the painting restoration no longer seem like a boring task.
Ren Yaoqi and Ren Yaohua stayed in the east wing of Fangzhi Courtyard a while longer. Since they didn't speak again to disturb Ren Shimin, he didn't chase them away.
Around noon, Sun Shiyi Niang left the Ren Family, reportedly because she had matters at home and would return the next day. Seeing how meticulously she handled the detailed work of restoring the painting, Ren Shimin became even more amiable toward her and even had Concubine Fang reward her with ten taels of silver.
Ren Yaoqi and Ren Yaohua were summoned by Old Madam Ren's servants to go for lunch. As they left Fangzhi Courtyard, they happened to overhear two cleaning women talking.
"...Now that you mention it, I do see some resemblance too.""Doesn't she look just like her? When I first saw her the other day, I thought that young lady from the Fang family had come to visit the manor again."
"Who knows which family's madam she is now."
Ren Yaohua walked over and asked, "What are you talking about? Which young lady from the Fang family?"
The two maids who were speaking turned around and were startled to see Ren Yaohua. Noticing her impatient expression, they quickly replied, "We were saying that the lady who just came out of Fangzhi Courtyard looks somewhat like the young cousin from the Fang family who stayed at our manor several times many years ago."
The young cousin from the Fang family? Fang Yahui?
Readers have asked for release time announcements for the next chapter, but this author's predictions are rarely accurate...〒_〒
Sometimes I think I can finish in two or three hours, but while writing, I might pause to consider certain details or look up information. So the update ends up being later than expected.
This makes me feel very sorry, truly apologetic.
Generally, updates are around midnight. If there are extra chapters, they usually come around nine or ten in the evening, a few hours past midnight, or in the morning—rarely in the afternoon.
For example, today's bonus chapter for pink votes might not be finished and posted by midnight tonight. I'll try to make it up tomorrow morning or noon.
Once again, apologies for the efficiency!〒_〒
Finally: I hope readers who still have pink votes can support with one vote~
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