586: Chapter 582 Ye Tian’s Calligraphy 586: Chapter 582 Ye Tian’s Calligraphy “So it turns out that the champion of this calligraphy competition was predestined, wasn’t it?”
Ye Tian said with a smile, undoubtedly touching the raw nerve of Cui Fengliu, the master calligrapher.
A look of extreme displeasure had already surfaced on Cui Fengliu’s face!
Standing his ground, Cui Fengliu wouldn’t lose his temper hysterically, he just frowned slightly and said, “Young man, don’t be too arrogant when you speak, it’s not good for your future development.”
Seeing Cui Fengliu somewhat upset, the two organizers of the calligraphy competition hurriedly joined in to ridicule Ye Tian!
“That’s right, why are people nowadays so unreliable?
Especially the Chinese, all so frivolous, speaking of the vast and rich Chinese land and its profound cultural heritage, but in reality, that’s all there is to it!”
“Exactly, exactly!
Not a single Chinese has genuine talent!
They’re all about pretentious flamboyance!”
The biting remarks from the two organizers not only targeted Ye Tian personally but also mocked his nationality.
The surrounding crowd also began to blame Ye Tian one after another!
“Where is this Chinese from?
Coming to Seoul, South Korea, to cause trouble?
Don’t you know that Korean culture is broad and profound, something you Chinese wouldn’t understand?”
“That’s right!
People like you, a mere clown, where do you get the qualifications to practice calligraphy here?
Get lost immediately!”
“Chinese don’t deserve to be in Gyeongbokgung Palace, stop embarrassing yourself here!”
…
The onlookers were all Koreans; naturally, their words wouldn’t be kind.
Yun Xinyan and the other employees of Yun Corporation were all seething with indignation…
These Koreans, weren’t they shameless?
To say that “Korean culture is broad and profound,” that “Chinese don’t deserve to be in Gyeongbokgung Palace,” such words made everyone want to curse!
But after all, this was their territory, so they couldn’t say much; everyone looked to Ye Tian, wondering how he would react after hearing these words?
However, curiously, the usually formidable Ye Tian was exceptionally calm this time, without a hint of anger…
“Mr.
Cui, since you Koreans believe that Korean culture is broad and profound and that Chinese culture is not worth mentioning, then why not let me, who comes from China, show my skills?
If my work is not good, won’t you be able to mock me mercilessly?”
Ye Tian’s words made Cui Fengliu’s eyebrows shoot up slightly!
Indeed, as a master calligrapher of Korea, his calligraphic works, not to mention Korea, were nearly unparalleled in the whole world.
This young Chinese man in front of him, at such a young age, couldn’t possibly have much accomplishment in the field of calligraphy.
How could he compare with himself?
“Very well!
Go ahead and try!”
Cui Fengliu eventually relented, and seeing the master himself had spoken, the two organizers no longer stopped Ye Tian from approaching the table.
However, the Korean audience below was still unrelenting with their contempt!
“Is that guy really going to make a fool of himself?
Ridiculous!”
“I don’t believe a mere Chinese can produce anything worthwhile!”
“Hehehe~~~~ The moment his work comes out, we’ll scorn him harshly!”
…
Including Yun Xinyan, the whole crowd from Yun Corporation was also watching Ye Tian with glowing eyes.
Although everyone disliked these Koreans’ attitudes, Cui Fengliu’s recent calligraphic work, in terms of spirit and expressiveness, had already reached an extraordinary realm.
The difficulty for Ye Tian to outdo Cui Fengliu in creating a better piece at this time was undoubtedly immense!
And in such an environment, even if Ye Tian’s work were good, it was likely to be judged as “bad” by this group of Koreans…
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Ye Tian’s hand nimbly caught the brush, with a sheet of rice paper already laid out before him.
“What shall I write?”
Ye Tian closed his eyes briefly, pondered for a while, then opened his eyes, revealing a pair of bright and piercing eyes!
He lightly tapped the brush, dipped it in the inkstone once and lifted it, absorbing the ink into the brush, and then, with a vigorous stroke, Ye Tian’s brush touched the rice paper!
“Swoosh swoosh swoosh~~~~~~~~”
Crisp sounds echoed on the rice paper, and everyone, including Cui Fengliu, watched Ye Tian’s brushwork in astonishment.
Because Ye Tian’s brush strokes were much more vigorous than other calligraphers, and although the brush was soft and not likely to damage the rice paper, Ye Tian’s movements were too quick.
It was hard to imagine he could produce any good work at such speed.
“Hmph!
Just some trivial skill!”
Cui Fengliu snorted coldly; after all, in the practice of calligraphy, one must write with a tranquil and slow heart, even in cursive script, which is not done in one breath, there must be some bluntness left by the brush to show the spirit.
Moreover, what Ye Tian was writing did not seem to be cursive script.
With him writing so quickly, how could he possibly produce a good piece?
“Look, look, that Chinese is doodling there!”
“Right!
It’s just a child’s scribble!
To think they had the nerve to perform in front of a master, aren’t they ashamed?”
“Hehehe~~~~ All Chinese are like this, have you ever seen a Chinese who’s made something of themselves?”
…
The group of Korean spectators below all echoed this sentiment, sparing no effort to mock Ye Tian.
Yun Xinyan and the employees of Yun Corporation were also inevitably worried…
Although her own skills in painting and calligraphy were not high, Yun Xinyan had been exposed to music, chess, calligraphy, and painting from a young age, she knew very well that works of calligraphy and painting required painstaking effort and very few people could produce a good work in an extremely short period of time.
Since Ye Tian was writing so quickly, even the sound of the brush could be heard, it was hard to imagine what kind of calligraphy he would produce…
As for the discussions of the others, Ye Tian didn’t seem to care at all, he just continued to wield his brush without any pause.
On the rice paper, characters had begun to appear, Cui Fengliu craned his neck to look but couldn’t recognize what Ye Tian was writing—not Korean, nor Chinese…
While Ye Tian’s writing was not yet finished, the ink on the brush nearly ran dry, Ye Tian quickly dipped his brush into the inkstone and in an instant brought the tip back to the rice paper, finishing in one go, without the characters on the paper being affected in the slightest.
As Ye Tian’s calligraphy work was nearing completion, Cui Fengliu once again sneaked a peek at it.
But this look made his eyes unable to move away…
Cui Fengliu only felt a surge of energy coming at him, of course, it wasn’t an actual force, but an illusion of Cui Fengliu’s.
Despite his disdain for Ye Tian, Cui Fengliu was indeed a master of calligraphy and painting in Korea, and he was capable of evaluating good works of art.
Good works were divided into three levels!
The first level had only “form” but lacked “spirit”; the second level possessed both “form and spirit”; as for the highest level of calligraphy and painting, it no longer possessed “form” but only “spirit”!
To take his own calligraphy and paintings to the next level, Cui Fengliu had also put in a lot of effort, constantly refining his skills to improve his works.
But no matter how hard Cui Fengliu tried, his works only managed to reach the threshold of the second level, he couldn’t yet be considered a master of both “form and spirit”.
As for the highest third level, he was far beyond reach.
Yet, the work that this Chinese man was writing, while the characters were indistinct, seemed to hide a profound charm within, surprising Cui Fengliu greatly.
“Mr.
Cui, what’s wrong?”
Two organizers, noticing something off about Cui Fengliu’s expression, cautiously inquired, but were unable to pull his gaze away from Ye Tian’s work.
Under Cui Fengliu’s gaze, Ye Tian’s brushwork finally stopped, and what was left on the rice paper was an indistinct image that simply didn’t make it clear what was written, let alone whether it was “writing” or “painting”, no one could tell.
“What did he write?”
“Can’t understand!
Is this a child’s doodle?”
“What is this thing?”
…
All the Koreans present were confused, including the two organizers who were seasoned in the field of painting and calligraphy, none of them understood what Ye Tian had written.
Considering the Chinese man’s vigorous brushwork, it was disheartening to see such a work in the end.
Yun Xinyan and the staff of Yun Corporation were equally baffled, after all this fuss, Ye Tian had written a work that no one could understand.
What exactly did he write, Chinese or Korean?
There was a buzz of discussion among the crowd, yet Ye Tian was calm and collected, took a sip of water, and then with a “pfft!”, he sprayed the mist onto the rice paper!
Immediately, the outline of the entire work became clear!
“It’s Chinese!”
A Korean exclaimed, what Ye Tian had written on the rice paper was indeed genuine Chinese.
“Since it’s Chinese, why couldn’t any of us tell it was Chinese in the beginning?”
Another Korean was surprised.
Although he too recognized it as Chinese, why had everyone not been able to see it until Ye Tian sprayed water mist onto the paper?
Although everyone recognized the characters written by Ye Tian as Chinese, they still couldn’t understand what the characters on the rice paper were.
Including Yun Xinyan and other employees of Yun Corporation, they actually couldn’t recognize them.
“How strange!
How could I not recognize Chinese characters?”
“I can’t recognize it either, I know it’s Chinese, but I can’t read it, looks like my university and graduate studies were all for naught!”
“What is Ye Tian trying to do, putting on such an enigmatic act?”
…
While people were discussing animatedly, Ye Tian had already left the table and walked down.
Everyone watched Ye Tian’s movements…
What did he write?
No one knew, so, no one could evaluate whether what he wrote was good or bad.
The two organizers didn’t know what to say either, Ye Tian’s writing was strange, and his behavior was also strange.
The two Korean organizers, who had wanted to ridicule him offhandedly, could not find the right words to say.