Reborn as a great painter, with a system, you can be willful

In the evening, the waves of the Hudson River shattered into thousands of gold foils. Jiang Zhe took a car to Chelsea Pier to attend the party hosted by Miller.

After getting off the bus, we followed the guide's instructions and came to berth No. 23. From a distance, we could see a 45-meter-long white yacht, which was the venue for today's party - "Luna".

The warm champagne light coming through the portholes dyed the water surface into flowing agate.

He arrived quite late, and guests started to get out of luxury cars and onto the yacht.

Jiang Zhe adjusted his windbreaker and complained to himself. In such cold weather, they actually went to a yacht to hold a party. However, Miller said Susanna would come and she had something to tell him.

"Jiang! You're finally here!" Miller came down the gangway with his arms open. The cologne was wrapped in the scent of cigars, and the pendant was glowing under the searchlight: "Susanna is here. Several collectors want to meet you tonight."

"Thank you for the invitation and introduction."

Stepping into the main salon, Jiang Zhe's leather shoes sank half an inch into the Persian carpet.

The temperature here is like spring.

The crystal chandeliers cut the space into prism-like blocks of color. In the main venue of the party, piano music was playing, forming an absurd chord with the surrounding noise. Under the Italian crystal chandelier, a lady in a dress was teasing a macaw in a cage; men wearing Rolex Yacht-Master watches were chatting with cigars in hand.

"Jiang! This is Mr. Raymond, the director of the Winnie Art Fund." Miller's crocodile leather shoes made a crisp sound on the teak floor as he introduced Jiang Zhe and a bald man.

Raymond shook hands with Jiang Zhe enthusiastically.

Jiang Zhe thought that Raymond would talk about the art market, but the topic that Raymond took the initiative to bring up was the restoration of oil paintings.

From the other party's words, I learned that the news of my oil painting restoration had spread. Considering the close ties between those professors and the art world, it was not surprising that they were even guests of many big collectors.

He soon saw Susanna.

The opal pendant on her earlobe swayed with her movements, like two drops of frozen moonlight.

In half a year, the two have become friends.

Susanna introduced Jiang Zhe to a woman who was also her good sister.

The woman, who was wearing Valentino couture, wanted Jiang Zhe to paint a portrait of her. She also told Jiang Zhe that she had seen Miller's portrait.

Jiang Zhe was wondering whether he should accept the order, and Susanna cleverly took over the topic.

Soon, the guests arrived and the waiter began to fill the champagne tower.

"2002 Krug Ambonnet Black Diamond Champagne shipped from Switzerland." Miller came to Jiang Zhe and said, "I think you will like it."

"Thank you."

Miller snapped his fingers, and immediately someone handed him three tulip glasses.

"I heard that when you restored Charles Howard's paintings, you even restored the air humidity in 1898?" Howard talked about the topic of restoration again.

Jiang Zhe shook the golden bubbles that kept bursting in the cup and said, "I just adjusted the evaporation rate of the varnish according to the meteorological files."

During the conversation, Miller introduced Jiang Zhe to a gallery owner named Vincent and two collectors.

However, after just a few words with Jiang Zhe, the two collectors stated their purpose: they wanted to buy a large number of Jiang Zhe's oil paintings, or to represent his works.

Of course Jiang Zhe would not agree, but this was Miller's party and he didn't want to embarrass his friend, so he tactfully indicated that he could not decide.

He found a reason to leave the small circle.

Miller leaned in and whispered, “Very smart refusal.

I am me and they are them. Our relationship should not be affected by them. Find a chance to talk to Susanna alone today."

"What's the matter? Do we have to communicate in this way?" Jiang Zhe asked.

Miller said: "I don't know much. I heard that some art dealers have been gathering at the 'Old Flatiron' bar recently. You have to be careful."

Before he finished speaking, the cheers from the stern drowned out his voice. Several models pushed a five-layer cake onto the stage, and a real flame was emitting blue light from the Statue of Liberty torch made of icing.

The party soon entered a lively stage.

Jiang Zhe went to the lower deck under the pretext of getting some fresh air, but encountered an even more magical scene - there were already drunk guests in the wine cellar; by the small swimming pool, there were crushed expensive cigars scattered around.

Miller's voice calling his friends floated down from the top deck. He was having a great time.

There was the roar of an engine.

Jiang Zhe looked up and saw a small private plane flying over the Statue of Liberty. The light spot cast by the belly of the plane drew a fleeting pattern on the river.

Jiang Zhe was thinking about Susanna, and after some searching, he finally found Susanna who was tasting cigars with some friends.

Susanna saw Jiang Zhe, confessed to a few friends, and led Jiang Zhe to a lounge.

She asked the waiter to bring cigars and drinks and closed the door herself.

Jiang Zhe was a little nervous.

But Susanna picked up several different sizes of cigars and asked him to choose.

Jiang Zhe participated in some social activities and gained some preliminary understanding of cigars.

He selected a light cigar and lit it.

“These parties look boring,” Susanna said, “but here you can see the true flow of art—from canvas to auction house.”

"Miller, tell me, you have something to say to me? Do you need to use this method?" Jiang Zhe said.

"There's an art exhibition next Friday. Will your work be included in it?" Susanna slowly exhaled smoke.

"Yes, it was you who arranged it for me." Jiang Zhe said.

“Because I’m one of the supporters, I got the news that some people don’t like you. They are ready to attack your reputation.” She bit the laser pointer, “So that many buyers would not dare to buy your works.”

"Who are they?" Jiang Zhe remained calm, cursing his bad luck in his heart. He encountered troubles in China, but in the United States, there were more unfair competitions, from schools to the art market, everywhere.

The roar of revelry from the top floor penetrated the oak hatch, and someone on deck knocked something over.

Susannah mentioned a few names.

Jiang Zhe remembered that he had met these people once before, but they did not have a cooperative relationship.

"There are also several art dealers and art investors who you don't know, but your work is in competition with the works of the artists they represent." Susanna said, "These people are quite powerful, and they have gathered a lot of people. You know, discrimination is everywhere, but conflicts are also everywhere."

Jiang Zhe felt sick, but not worried.

"You don't seem worried?" Susannah asked.

Jiang Zhe has a system to back him up, so he's not worried about these tricks. He expressed his gratitude to Susanna.

"Have a drink? Relax." Susanna suggested. She was relaxed as she talked about these things.

Jiang Zhe didn't order any wine, but opened a can of Coke.

At this moment, there were sounds of falling into water and laughter coming from the main deck, as if someone was pushed into the swimming pool by his companions.

The party atmosphere is getting more and more lively.

Susanna picked up the cigar cutter and played with it. At the same time, she said to Jiang Zhe, "If you think they can't hit you with the exhibition, then there is one more thing you need to pay attention to."

Jiang Zhe looked at Susanna seriously.

"Someone is planning to let the sellers see that the price of your works is going down at the auction." Susanna said: "It is said that three galleries have jointly put pressure on the auction house, saying that the price of oil paintings by Chinese artists should not exceed that of local painters.

"They hired three art critics to publish articles in authoritative magazines and newspapers." Susanna pulled up the files on her phone and showed them to Jiang Zhe. "It is said that even the arguments have been written. They say that your award-winning paintings are just byproducts of cultural relic restoration."

When Jiang Zhe saw the attitude of Susanna, the heir to a wealthy businessman, he knew that these people were not simple.

Christie’s auction is very important. I don’t want to cause trouble, but I’m not afraid of it either.

"Thank you. I will be careful." "For various reasons, I can only help you secretly." Susanna said: "You try your best to convince Christie's Auction Company."

Through chatting, Jiang Zhe knew why Susanna didn't tell him directly on the phone.

A very important reason is that Susanna and Miller cannot help themselves openly because they also have various networks around them.

At the party, amid the applause of the crowd, the representative of a major gallery in Asia quietly left the venue. The golden decoration on his lapel was the logo of an organization that was investigated for the cultural relics incident three years ago.

Jiang Zhe's phone screen lit up, and he received a text message from Professor Kerry.

He looked out the window—the yacht was passing right at the foot of the Statue of Liberty.

The light of the torch pierced the clouds.

Jiang Zhe had already found out everything he wanted to know, and he wanted to go back and make preparations.

When the yacht docked, he said goodbye to Miller
Miller drunkenly put his arm around his shoulders and asked him to come to the next party.

Jiang Zhe walked off the yacht and Susanna called him.

"I have a car, I'll take you back."

……

Jiang Zhe got out of the car and waved goodbye to Susanna.

Susannah said, “You should have your own car.”

"I already have a driver's license and I plan to find time to buy one."

After returning home, Jiang Zhe turned on the system.

There are new prompts on the system page.

You have encountered new enemies and are faced with greater challenges. Will you consume your accumulated rewards to meet this challenge?
Seeing that the reward he needed was equivalent to more than two months of accumulated learning rewards, Jiang Zhe felt a little distressed.

However, the money that should be spent still needs to be spent.

Don't be afraid of the other party, but be careful in dealing with them.

Click Use Rewards.

The system prompts the next step...

Jiang Zhe remembered the methods and steps firmly.

On Christmas Eve in New York, freezing rain formed icicles on the buttresses of Columbia University's philosophy building.

Jiang Zhe handed over the latest research materials to Professor Kerry.

Professor Kerry was very satisfied after reading it. "Next, you should relax and have a good rest for a few days. You have been doing research continuously for the past month. You are too tired."

"Thanks for the advice. I was just planning on taking a few days off."

"You have completed your research assignment for this semester ahead of schedule. If you didn't have some finishing work to do, you could have taken a vacation early." Professor Kerry said, "Have a good rest. If there is any good news at the auction, please let me know in time."

……

In the studio of the mansion.

Jiang Zhe adjusted the angle of the nib of the ox-ear hair round-tipped brush, dipped it in the blended paint, and drew the outline of the dome of the Columbia University Library in the upper right corner of the canvas.

The pigment, under the combined effect of the base color and the medium, has a pearly luster, like a bronze statue covered with snow.

He started a new creation.

This is a new creation, with the teachers and students of Columbia University as the main images and the campus as the background.

The best way to deal with enemies is to create the scene they least want to see, so he started new creation with full energy.

Finish the first layer of sketch effect...wait for it to dry...

The first layer of glaze is completed, allowing the Corinthian columns of the library in the painting to reveal the hidden brushstrokes and texture.

This is a shading method that Jiang Zhe improved based on existing techniques. For this, he lost an opportunity to observe a master's creation.

On the same day, the auction house sent the auction catalogue.

The valuation has not been lowered.

It is still unknown whether there will be any changes on the day of the auction.

……

After completing the third layer of glazing, Jiang Zhe began to create the texture effect of the paint layer.

He used different thicknesses of color to create a 0.03 mm bulge in the arched window of the library in the painting - a visual effect created with reference to Rembrandt's light and shade method. When the morning light shines into the window at a 42-degree angle, the two-dimensional canvas actually creates the illusion of light and shadow projected on the ground by a Gothic rose window.

Christmas Eve.

Jiang Zhe is still painting.

In the painting, there is a professor running fast with books in his arms, a teaching assistant with a fluttering scarf, and students of different skin colors... Each image becomes more vivid and lifelike under his pen.

When he finished painting the main image and creating the highlights, the entire painting space seemed to suddenly become brighter.

As he surveyed the picture, the viewer could simultaneously see the library shrouded in morning mist, the memorial hall with snow melting in the midday sun, and the engineering building.

A few days later, Jiang Zhe applied a coat of dammar resin with a brush to give the painting a final insulating layer.

The time for the auction to begin is approaching.

JFK Airport remains busy.

Wang Zhen was wearing a thick down jacket and pushing a suitcase as he walked in the airport lobby.

After a few months, he came to New York again. It was already winter here. The cold wind blew in, making him feel extremely uncomfortable.

As soon as I reached the exit, I saw Jiang Zhe standing not far away, waving at me.

Although the two had always kept in touch through phone or video calls, when they met in person, the feeling of reunion after a long separation immediately came over them.

Jiang Zhe saw Wang Zhen coming over and hurried to greet him.

A warm hug.

Needless to say, it's a great feeling to meet old friends in a foreign country.

"It's just an auction, there's no need to make a special trip." Jiang Zhe said that Wang Zhen didn't need to make a trip, but the smile on his face was very bright.

"This auction is very important. Of course, the main reason is that I haven't seen you for a long time and I wanted to come and see how you are. Many friends heard that I came to see you and asked me to convey their greetings." Wang Zhen was also very happy.

"This time, stay at my house." Jiang Zhe took the luggage.

"When I went back last time, your house was not ready yet. I'm going to see how you have decorated it."

Jiang Zhe pushed the luggage and led Wang Zhen to a Chevrolet SUV.

Wang Zhen asked, "Did you drive here? Or did you hire someone to drive you here?"

Jiang Zhe put the luggage into the trunk: "I drove here by myself. I just bought this car."

"It seems that you are doing well."

(End of this chapter)