Chapter 1989: Chapter 1949: Longevity Picture

Performances like lion dances are very popular during holidays, especially in the South, and overseas Chinese also enjoy them a lot.

Currently, the Cao Family has invited two lion dance troupes from the Capital City’s Lion Dance Association. One from the north and one from the south were competing for attention while the surrounding guests watched as they ate and enjoyed the festivities.

Despite the weather still being quite hot, the sunshade had been set up early, so it wasn’t too glaring.

While the lion dance troupes performed, other entertainments such as shadow puppetry and folk magic were also very popular.

This kind of folk magic is different from foreign magic tricks; it appears very realistic with effects like spouting smoke from the mouth and so on.

Liu Lingxiu remembered seeing it last year at the temple fair in the City God Temple with Ye Qiu.

The performances lasted almost until noon before wrapping up.

However, the celebration was for the whole day, with a feast and performances scheduled for the evening. Guests could either rest at the Cao Family courtyard, return home, or relax at nearby hotels.

Ye Qiu, Cao Ling, and Liu Lingxiu planned to return to the five-star hotel to rest.

Despite the atmosphere of Cao Family’s grand birthday being affected by someone sending a coffin, the place quickly became lively again.

When Ye Qiu drove back to the five-star hotel and returned to their room with Liu Lingxiu, she rested on the large bed while Ye Qiu sat in the rattan chair.

Ye Qiu mused about the incident of someone sending a coffin to the Cao Family. He knew that Cao Family’s third great grandfather wouldn’t be needing that coffin, but someone else would soon.

Thinking of this, his expression naturally changed a bit.

He picked up the phone in the living room to call the front desk.

"Hello, Mr. Ye," the female receptionist promptly answered.

"Could you have something sent to my room?"

"Certainly, Mr. Ye, what would you like?"

"The Four Treasures of the Study."

The Four Treasures of the Study?

The receptionist was a bit incredulous as she asked.

"The standard Four Treasures of the Study."

"Alright, Mr. Ye."

After hanging up, the receptionist found it odd, but being a five-star hotel, they needed to fulfill any service requests guests made.

The hotel had a staff member tasked to purchase the best Four Treasures of the Study in the vicinity.

Ye Qiu hung up the phone, and Liu Lingxiu asked him, "Ye Qiu, are you going to paint?"

"Yes, you’ll see soon."

Liu Lingxiu already knew Ye Qiu was very good at painting oil portraits, and she also knew these kinds of paintings were quite valuable abroad.

From this spot, one could see a panoramic view of the Imperial Palace; she felt that if Ye Qiu painted an oil portrait of it, it would certainly be exceptional.

Liu Lingxiu didn’t go back to sleep but instead sat beside Ye Qiu. When Ye Qiu embraced and affectionately kissed her hair, she nestled against him like a contented kitten, enjoying the affection he showed. Both remained quiet, peacefully listening to the rapid beating of their hearts.

Half an hour later, there was a knock at the door. Liu Lingxiu went to open it, and the female receptionist delivered the Four Treasures of the Study to Ye Qiu.

The so-called Four Treasures of the Study refer to the brush, ink, paper, and inkstone.

The brush, ink, paper, and inkstone are unique writing tools of Huaxia, known as the Four Treasures of the Study.

The names "brush, ink, paper, and inkstone" originated in the Northern and Southern Dynasties. Historically, the items referred to by "brush, ink, paper, and inkstone" have changed several times.

During the Southern Tang Dynasty, "brush, ink, paper, and inkstone" specifically referred to Zhuge brushes from Xuancheng, the ink by Li Tinggui of Huizhou, Chengxin Hall paper, and Longwei inkstones from Wuyuan, Huizhou.

Since the Song Dynasty, "brush, ink, paper, inkstone" has specifically referred to Xuan brushes, Huizhou ink, Xuan paper, She inkstone, Tao inkstone, and Duan inkstone.

After the Yuan Dynasty, Hu brushes flourished while Xuan brushes declined, but since the economic reforms, Xuan brushes gradually revitalized. As the hometown of the Four Treasures of the Study, Xuancheng’s Xuan paper, Xuan brushes, Huizhou ink, and Xuan inkstones are world-renowned, cherished by scholars and literati through the ages.

The hotel’s staff bought the high-class brush, ink, paper, and inkstone from nearby.

"How much is it?"

Ye Qiu asked.

"Sir, it’s not too expensive, just a few hundred yuan in total."

A few hundred yuan?

This was indeed painting-grade Xuan paper, and the ink was genuine Huizhou ink.

Ye Qiu handed a thousand yuan to the female receptionist and then closed the door.

He spread everything out on the living room table.

Compared to foreign oil paintings, Ye Qiu was more skilled in landscapes, a category of traditional Chinese painting, largely due to absorbing too much Soul Consciousness.

Recently, Ye Qiu had been pondering a suitable gift for his third great grandfather.

Ordinary gifts wouldn’t do; if he was going to give one, it had to be the best.

Liu Lingxiu quietly watched Ye Qiu without speaking.

Even though ink required grinding, she didn’t quite understand the process. As a child, she had written calligraphy with brushes, but the ink she used came pre-prepared ready for writing.

Ye Qiu prepared everything and laid out the materials. The dimension of the painting wouldn’t be as large as an oil portrait, and he didn’t want the subject matter to be overly complex.

As he carefully ground the ink, a waft of ink aroma filled the air, and Liu Lingxiu found herself liking the scent. It reminded her of her childhood when reading books, as the ink smell was the most familiar, though now it seemed to have vanished.

With advancing technology, modern printing has improved, and the scent of ink isn’t something one encounters as often anymore.

Once the ink was ready, Ye Qiu picked up a brush. It was a good-quality Hu brush.

After dipping the brush in ink, he worked swiftly, creating a painting on the writing paper.

It consisted of a few strokes, but when Liu Lingxiu looked at it, she felt it was entirely different — it was stunningly beautiful.

This painting was a Shoushan Fuhai Painting.

The central theme featured the sea, with rocks and bats flying over the sea. In the painting, "sea" signified the "East Sea," "bat" sounded like "blessing," and rocks symbolized the "South Mountain."

It conveyed the message, "Blessings as vast as the East Sea, longevity like the South Mountain."

Liu Lingxiu had to admit Ye Qiu’s artistic talent was incomparable.

Of course, this was just the first piece.

Ye Qiu set the first painting aside and prepared a second sheet of Xuan paper, confirming the size before beginning the next piece.

This was the Song and Crane painting.

It featured pine trees and cranes. Pine is a long-lived tree; the ancients revered it, mystifying its longevity. Consequently, pine became a symbol of longevity in people’s lives.

The Longevity Picture uses pine to represent longevity. In traditional belief, the crane is a richly spiritual symbol of auspiciousness, representing immortality and longevity.

Ye Qiu executed this painting fluidly, and when he paused, Liu Lingxiu was almost bewildered by it.

The painting included poetry, likely a spontaneous creation by Ye Qiu.