Painting

The chief examiner was Zhong Ziqi, a Grand Secretary of the Cabinet. He was a little old man with white hair all over his head, but he was extremely serious and upright on weekdays. He just opened the scroll in his hand and began to read out today's test questions.

Regarding the "painting" category, it was actually different every year. But this year, since the assessment happened to coincide with the Chrysanthemum Banquet, the topic was much simpler. Just like the "calligraphy" category, which was about chrysanthemums, the "painting" category was also about chrysanthemums.

There were five long tables on the stage, with brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones on them. The students walked to the tables in order, and the drummer who beat the drum struck it heavily, and the assessment began.

Everyone stretched their necks to look up.

These five people were really a very distinctive group. Ye Amy was a well - known talented girl, Qin Qing was beautiful and proud, Fan Liu'er and Zhao Yan were a pair of sisters with a good relationship, and Ye Lily, of course, was the stupid and ignorant dunce.

Most of the men were looking at Ye Amy and Qin Qing, while most of the women were looking at Ye Lily.

Bai Wei covered her mouth and said, "Ye Lily looks quite well - behaved today. She hasn't made any strange moves and looks quite decent."

Including this time, Ye Lily had participated in the assessment four times. The first time she drew chess, she randomly placed a few pieces and was quickly defeated. The second time she drew calligraphy, she knocked over the inkstone and soiled her clothes. The third time she drew the qin, she broke the strings of the fine Zhuxiang Qin. It was less about people coming to see Ye Lily on stage and more about watching her make a fool of herself in full view.

But today was a bit different.

The high platform was spacious. The young girl sat upright in front of the table. Her posture of holding the brush was very proper, as if she had received strict training, and not a single flaw could be found. In the golden autumn of October, the rustling cold wind passed through the hall, lifting the broken hair on her forehead. She slightly lowered her head, and only her oval - shaped small face could be seen, and her drooping eyelashes drew a beautiful arc.

She was actually quite beautiful.

The lotus - colored cape fluttered in the wind. She sat upright, but her strokes were unrestrained. It seemed that she didn't care at all, yet that air of certainty was like the begonia in her black hair, blooming flamboyantly in a restrained way.

Madam Yi pursed her lips and said to Ren Wanyun with an ambiguous expression, "Lily has really grown up."

Ren Wanyun forced a smile, but her hands secretly tightened.

Behind them came the voices of the young girls talking.

"Ye Lily hasn't made a fool of herself yet. Could she really have changed her nature?"

"Impossible. She's probably just putting on an act. Didn't you see that she didn't even think before she started painting? Ye Amy still needs to think for a while. The most likely thing for her is to just scribble."

Feng Anning looked at Ye Lily on the stage, and that strange feeling came again. She suddenly had an intuition that today's Chrysanthemum Banquet might not be the same as before. For example, Ye Lily on the stage, would she really make a fool of herself?

Or, in an irresistible way, shatter all the wrong perceptions people had of her.

In the men's area, some people also gradually noticed the difference.

This group was probably the most pleasing to the eye in the entire female group. Ye Amy was elegant in pink, gentle and charming. Qin Qing was proud and beautiful in a cyan wide - sleeved dress. Fan Liu'er was charming and lively, and Zhao Yan was mischievous. If we were to say who had the least characteristics, it would be the stupid, cowardly, and vulgar Ye Lily, right?

But at a glance, among the five people, Ye Lily was not overshadowed at all. Instead, she stood out.

She just sat there quietly. Although she was clearly lowering her head, she had a sense of looking down on all living beings, as if... as if that delicate figure was standing in a position of decisive power, making people involuntarily feel a sense of submission.

Liu Yan frowned. How could a person's temperament change so drastically? Was this really Ye Lily?

Xu Hao couldn't hide his surprise. He didn't notice the huge difference between Ye Lily now and before. Instead, the way Ye Lily sat, with her straight back, and her every move reminded him of someone.

The current mistress of the six palaces, the Empress.

Xu Hao knew his idea was absurd. The whole Dingjing City knew that Ye Lily was infatuated with him, and he also hated being loved by such a woman. But most of the time, the news about Ye Lily he heard was from rumors. It was rumored that Ye Lily was ignorant, vulgar, rough - mannered, stupid, and cowardly. Now, he only had one feeling in his heart. Perhaps those rumors were not all true.

"How strange," the young man in the blue shirt who had been scolded by Cai Lin before said in surprise. "Didn't they say that Ye Lily from the second - year class is a dunce? She doesn't look like it."

Cai Lin was also stunned. His eyes had been following Ye Amy, but Ye Lily seemed to have a kind of magic that made people involuntarily notice her. As if she was born to stand in a place where people could see her, especially today. He tried to suppress his strange thoughts and snorted, "She's just putting on an act."

"Big brother, she will win, right?" Su Minglang tugged at the sleeve of the person beside him.

Su Mingfeng's eyes were smiling, but his expression was a bit strange.

"Ye Lily?"

After the time it took to burn an incense stick, the drummer struck the drum again, indicating that the time was up.

Ye Amy put down her pen. She was very confident in her painting today. On her left was Qin Qing, who had also completed her painting and was washing her brush. Even such a simple action, when she did it, was as beautiful as a painting.

But no matter how beautiful she was, in the assessment, it was never about beauty.

She turned to look at Ye Lily again. She thought that Ye Lily always failed in everything. Today, she didn't make any mistakes. Maybe she really had become smarter with someone's advice. A person could pretend, but talent couldn't. At this moment, she should be in a hurry and not have finished, right?

However, in front of her eyes, Ye Lily had already put down her pen and was looking calmly at the person who came to collect the scrolls.

Ye Amy's smile froze.

"Okay, go down." After all the scrolls were collected, it was time to judge the assessment of the second - year female students, which also took time.

"Fifth Sister, what exactly did you paint?" After Ye Amy stepped down from the stage, she couldn't wait to ask Ye Lily tentatively.

For some reason, Ye Lily made her very uneasy.

"You'll know later," Ye Lily smiled slightly, and the smile seemed to contain something more profound.

She turned around and walked to a place where no one could see. Then she said to Guyu beside her, "Find a way to send this to the second young master of the Jingdian Shi's residence. Look, it's the person in the lake - green clothes, the third one from the left in the opposite seat."

Guyu hesitated for a moment, still a bit confused, and then said, "This servant understands."

"Go," Ye Lily patted her on the shoulder, walked back to her original seat, and looked at Liu Yan from a distance.

As soon as Liu Yan looked up, he met a pair of eyes. From a distance, he could see the scrutiny in them.

I'm sorry, Liu Yan. Ye Lily thought to herself. I'll use your hand to shake the seemingly unshakable foundation of the Mingqi royal family.

After all, you owe me.