vrcanaries Chapter 249: The Painter
Chapter 249: The Painter
Chapter 249: The Painter
Satisfied with Granny Mei's reply, Ji Meiqing returned to her house, saying as she went, "By the way, Granny Mei, from now on you should change how you address me and call me... Madam Lu." She then noticeably quickened her pace as she walked back to her house.
Grandma Mei didn't react at first, but then she smiled and looked at Lu Yu, who hadn't entered the house yet, and said, "Young Master Lu, what happened between you two? How... how did you change your address?"
Lu Yu scratched the back of his head and replied evasively, "Grandma Mei, just call her whatever you want, you don't need to know anything else."
When Grandma Mei heard him say that, she stopped asking questions and said, "Then I'll go and get back to work."
After Granny Mei left, Lu Yu entered the house. As soon as he entered, he saw Ji Meiqing lying on the chaise longue, eating fruit beside her. Lu Yu looked at her and said, "You've become increasingly lazy lately, but that's alright, you were too thin before."
Ji Meiqing shook her head and said, "I just want to be lazy, I don't want to gain weight." As she spoke, she put down the food in her hand and sat down, looking very happy.
Lu Yu sat down next to her, picked up the tea on the table, and took a couple of sips. "Hmm, this tea is really good. You look very happy. Have you thought of something?" Lu Yu also noticed.
"You noticed? Just now I suddenly thought of a fun activity. When we didn't have money, we were always busy with this and that. Now that we have some capital, we're not so busy anymore," Ji Meiqing said meaningfully.
"What exactly do you want to do?" Lu Yu asked, puzzled.
Ji Meiqing continued, "I think there's a huge gap between the rich and the poor here, and the rich people are often very idle. We can start with them and build a maze."
"A maze?" This was the first time Lu Yu had ever heard this word.
“That’s right, I know you don’t understand, but you will when I’m finished building it. So I’ll have to trouble you to take care of the restaurant for the next couple of days. I need to find someone who can draw blueprints.” Lu Yu always felt that they shouldn’t use such novel things to retain customers, but since Ji Meiqing wanted to do it, he naturally supported her. Besides, he was really looking forward to the creation of Ji Meiqing’s ideas.
After resting for a while, Ji Meiqing's impulsive nature returned, and even though Lu Yu pleaded with her, she wouldn't let him come along. She felt that Lu Yu had been too clingy lately; why hadn't she noticed this before? Ji Meiqing got into the carriage by herself. "Master, go find someone who is good at drawing, the kind of person who can draw a blueprint based on my description."
"Alright, I do know such a person," the driver said with a hint of inexplicable pride.
On the way, the coachman introduced the man to Ji Meiqing. Because he was her coachman, she addressed him as "Madam" instead of "Lady" or "Miss." "Madam," the coachman said, "that painter is very poor. He originally wanted to become an official, not a painter, but failed the exams several times, thwarting his chance at officialdom. However, his painting skills are among the best in this area. His only problem is his temperament. After all, painting is a talent, not his true passion, so he's not very willing to paint and has driven away many people who wanted him to paint. That's why he's so poor now. If he didn't meet your requirements, I really wouldn't have brought you to see him. You'd better be careful later. I'm on Young Master Lu's orders to wait for you outside. If you need anything, just call me."
Ji Meiqing listened the whole way and finally came to the conclusion, "You're almost as long-winded as Brother Lu." The driver then fell silent.
About an hour later, the carriage stopped. The driver then said, "Madam, we've arrived." Ji Meiqing got out of the carriage and said, "Wait here for me." Then she walked into the dilapidated house in front of her.
She knocked on the door, but no one answered, so she simply kicked it open and went in. The coachman, watching her actions, felt ashamed and muttered to himself, "It seems my worries were unnecessary. I think that painter is in more danger."
Ji Meiqing walked in and, looking at the desolate scene before her, subconsciously said, "Does anyone really live here? Even if they do, they don't seem like people who are particularly good at painting." She cautiously asked, "Is...is anyone here? Answer me if you hear me." Unfortunately, she was met with silence.
The place was quite large, but looking at the lifeless rooms, Ji Meiqing still felt disgusted. Suddenly, she sensed someone behind her. Turning around, she saw someone lying there; she must have missed him because he was hidden by the grass. Ji Meiqing ran over to take a look. The person lying there had a long beard, obscuring his face, but she could tell from his dejected demeanor.
The man slowly opened his eyes and lazily glanced at Ji Meiqing beside him. "You're quite pretty, young lady, but that's no excuse for blocking my sun." Ji Meiqing stood up, letting the sunlight shine on him again.
"With your background, how can you own such a big house?" The man sensed her skepticism and replied, "Hmph, these are all family heirlooms. Now I'm the only one left managing them. Since you know my past, do you know why I had to become an official?" The man didn't mince words, revealing his true feelings even though he didn't know the person beside him.
Ji Meiqing was also curious. He could have made a living based on his talent, but he insisted on taking the official path, so she asked, "Why?"
The man sat up and said, almost self-deprecatingly, "For the sake of this family, as you can see, our family's life was originally quite good; we had enough to eat and wear. But then one day, my parents somehow got into an argument and even a fight with someone. That person had powerful connections; the former prefect sided with him and imprisoned my parents. In fact, my parents did nothing wrong. My father was a stubborn man. He himself was innocent and was wronged, but he had nowhere to seek justice. Over time, he became depressed and sick, and eventually passed away. My mother followed him. In the end, I was left alone to live in this world. From that day on, I decided that I wanted to become an official. I spent the family's money buying books and bribing people, but I failed several times."
Ji Meiqing suddenly realized, "So that's why you've been holed up here all by yourself. Then why did you tell me?"
"It's simple. You're the first person who didn't tell me what to do as their first words to me, even though your problems aren't much better. Plus, you look a lot like someone else."
Ji Meiqing completely forgot why she came here. She asked curiously, "Who does it look like?"
The man paused for a long time before slowly saying, "My mother."