Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Xu Jiaojiao did not think much of it. She still felt that Qi Shenbaiâs work was much more important than her own matters.
She did not want to be a clingy girlfriend. She would rather be kind and understanding.
When Qi Yunduo became even more anxious, Su Luo teased her. âAre you sure?â âOf course!â Qi Yunduo pouted angrily.
âLuoluo, stop teasing her.â Xu Jiaojiao understood Su Luo. She knew that Su Luo was teasing Qi Yun, so she hurriedly stopped her.
âAlright! 1 wonât say anymore!â Su Luo agreed with a smile.
At the same time, the judges on the stage began to announce the top three winners of the contest.
The third and second place were contestants who had chosen the theme âTomorrowâ. The announcement of the champion was saved for last.
âItâs coming, itâs coming,â Su Luo said excitedly.
âPlease, heavens, please!â Qi Yunduo clasped her hands together and closed her eyes. She was extremely nervous.
âThe winner of this yearâs Ma Liang Cup is Xu Jiaojiao with the theme of âGoodbyeâ,â the chairman of the judging panel announced loudly.
âJiaojiao, itâs really you. Itâs really you! Youâre first place,â Su Luo said excitedly, practically jumping up and down.
Qi Yunduo slowly opened her eyes, unable to believe her ears. âDid I really hear that right? Is it really my sister-in-law?â
âYes, itâs really her.â Su Luo hurriedly replied. She seemed to be even happier than the actual winner.
âXu Jiaojiao, please come on stage to receive your award,â the chairman of the judging panel continued loudly.
âWait a minute!â
A loud voice shouted suddenly. Xu Jiaojiao looked over from afar and saw that it was Bai Mengyao speaking into the microphone.
âMs. Bai, do you have any doubts?â The chairman looked at Bai Mengyao.
âOf course. Xu Jiaojiaoâs painting is flawed. She doesnât deserve to be champion,â said Bai Mengyao sharply. She glared fiercely at Xu Jiaojiao.
The chairman of the jury was confused. âWhy would you say that? All the works were selected by the panel of judges. How could there be a mistake?â n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
âOf course thereâs a mistake. Chairman, 1 heard that youâre close friends with Xu Jiaojiaoâs teacher, Mr. Sun. Are you biased towards her?â Bai Mengyao looked suspiciously at the chairman of the judging panel.
âI admit Iâm close to Mr. Sun, but that wonât affect my judgment. Besides, Iâm not the only one who scored the partcipants. The entire committee participated. The outcome is not something I can control.â
The chairman of the jury was not angry. Instead, he spoke calmly. He was too experienced to be taken aback by Bai Mengyaoâs actions.
âEven so, Xu Jiaojiaoâs painting is still flawed. She canât get first place,â Bai Mengyao insisted.
âWhy do you think so?â The chairman of the jury disagreed with Bai Mengyao.
Bai Mengyao smiled contemptuously. Then, she took out Xu Jiaojiaoâs painting and pointed to a spot on it. âHere. She drew this personâs hair wrongly, but in order to cover up this fact, she added other colors to it.â
Looking at the shortcomings Bai Mengyao pointed out, the chairman of the judging panel looked at Xu Jiaojiao. âXu Jiaojiao, do you have anything to say?â âYes!â Xu Jiaojiao quickly walked to the stage and stood in front of Bai Mengyao.
âI didnât draw anything wrong here. The real scenery has light and shadow changes. If you turn off a few lights, you can see that I didnât draw anything wrong here,â Xu Jiaojiao said as she walked to the back of the state and turned off a few spotlights.
As expected, the place Bai Mengyao pointed at changed.
How could this be?
âBut 1 clearlyâ¦â
Bai Mengyao could not believe it.
Xu Jiaojiao looked at Bai Mengyaoâs gradually darkening expression and continued, âOver here, 1 was portraying my grandmotherâs hair. Back when 1 was in school, my grandmother would send me off every day. Every time she walked me to the school gates, I would say goodbye to my grandmother. Every single goodbye was etched deep into my heart⦠until my grandmotherâs black hair turned white.
âThatâs why Grandmaâs white hair is even more prominent after the lights are turned down. I also titled this painting Goodbye: Grandmaâs White Hair.â
After Xu Jiaojiao finished speaking, she looked at Bai Mengyao. The latter was pale and a cold sweat had broken out on her forehead.
âCanât you see such a simple brushwork, Ms. Bai? Orâ¦â Xu Jiaojiao continued to stare at Bai Mengyao, making her panic.
âIâm sorry, 1 saw wrongly.â Bai Mengyao had no choice. After all, she could not say that she had tampered with the painting..