Chapter 65: Grandma and Grandpa

Chapter 65 Grandma and Grandpa

Time was short, so the yamen runner grabbed some paper and a brush on the spot, and after asking a nearby shopkeeper who had a table if they could use it, the group ducked into the shop together.

Yin Hongxue sat in the center seat, under everyone's watchful eyes, grinding ink and picking up the brush with practiced ease.

The face of the man in gray surfaced in his mind without effort, and the brush flowed like water, bringing the thief to life on the page.

A man who had been pickpocketed and was anxious to recover his belongings got a good look at Yin Hongxue's drawing. His eyes went wide, and he shouted, "Yeah, that's him! I remember now! That's exactly what he looked like!"

His sudden outburst made Runner Wang jump, who'd been staring intently at the figure on the paper.

The runner shot the man an annoyed look.

Just a moment ago, he'd been stammering and unsure. Now that the young painter had finished the portrait, all of a sudden he remembered.

Why not wait until the thief was caught and the guy's face was shoved right in front of him before saying he remembered?

The runner kept that thought to himself, not daring to say it out loud.

Yin Hongxue lifted his brush for the final stroke, then gently blew on the painting, waiting for the ink to dry before handing it to Runner Wang.

"This is the thief."

Not just the guy who'd spoken up, but the others who saw the clear likeness also felt fragments of memory stirring—vague impressions coming back.

Gu Chaoning and Gu Muan had also gotten a good look at the thief, and they both chimed in to confirm.

Seeing everyone's reaction, Runner Wang knew the portrait was spot-on.

He and the other runners breathed a silent sigh of relief—without this drawing, tracking the guy down would've been a real headache.

No time to waste. Runner Wang asked Yin Hongxue and the others their names and where they lived, then took off with the other runners to hunt the thief down.

Most of the onlookers drifted off with the runners, but those who hadn't lost their purses and were just there for the show lingered around Yin Hongxue and his companions.

A babble of voices rose up—some praising Yin Hongxue for being so skilled at such a young age, others asking who his teacher was, and still others asking how long he'd been studying painting.

Yin Hongxue had faced the yamen runner and painted under dozens of watchful eyes without a single flicker of nerves.

But now, surrounded and peppered with questions, the tips of his ears started to turn red.

Gu Chaoning noticed he was uncomfortable and quickly stepped in to field the questions for him.

While dealing with the crowd, he also made sure to shield Yin Hongxue and Gu Muan as they made their way out.

Once the three were outside, Gu Chaoning looked around, then pulled the two young men into an alley.

They just needed to wait until the crowd's enthusiasm died down, and then they could leave.

But to their surprise, someone had followed them.

Luckily, it was just an old lady.

"Little Xue," the woman said, stopping two steps away from them, "I saw how well you paint. I was wondering—do you take commissions for portraits? And if so, how much would you charge?"

Yin Hongxue blinked, not expecting someone to come looking for him to paint.

He had nothing pressing at the moment, and doing another painting was doable.

He hesitated for a moment, then said, "Thirty wen per portrait."

The old woman hadn't expected him to agree so readily, and her face broke into a delighted grin.

"Good, good, good..."

"May I ask who you'd like painted?" Gu Chaoning cut in. "We three brothers are out on our own, and our family elders might worry. If it's not urgent, could you let us go tell them first?"

"No rush, no rush," the woman said, grinning from ear to ear. She tugged at her clothes, thought for a moment, then said, "How about we meet at the tea stall outside Tongfu Inn in half an hour?"

The three agreed right away.

Remembering they still had the tea stall to get to, they didn't linger and headed to the market to run their errands.

Gu Muan, the little flatterer, finally had his chance to shine.

He scurried over to Yin Hongxue's side, grabbed his hand tightly, and said with bright-eyed earnestness, "Xue Age, you're really amazing!"

Not only had he spotted the thief's face and painted it, but he hadn't been afraid of the yamen runner either, painting right in front of everyone.

He himself had been too scared to even speak just a moment ago.

And on top of that, the old woman had come specifically to ask Xue Age to paint for her.

The young man's eyes sparkled with undisguised sweetness and admiration.

"Xue Age is the most, most amazing Age, the most amazing painter!"

If one painting was worth thirty wen, then Xue Age had painted him seven pictures...

Gu Muan counted on his fingers but couldn't quite figure it out.

Hmm... that was a whole lot of money—enough to buy tons and tons of meat.

Gu Muan was thrilled.

The three bought peach pastries that the adults loved, along with some dried fruit, and then headed back to the carpenter's shop.

The shop was still buzzing with activity.

Not only were all the carpenter uncles running around in a frenzy, but even Chen Youyan, who knew the cabinet designs well, had been roped into explaining things to the steady stream of curious customers.

The three slipped through the gaps, set the pastries on the counter, and brewed a few pots of tea for everyone first.

There was no energy left for snacks—their lips were probably worn thin from all the talking.

Gu Chaoning and the others found a moment to let Chen Youyan and Gu Wen know they were stepping out, then headed off for Tongfu Inn.

The tea stall outside Tongfu Inn was, they'd heard, run by the innkeeper's parents. It was cheap, mostly serving customers waiting for a table at the inn.

When the three arrived, the outermost table already had paper and brush laid out, and across from it sat the old woman, now dressed in fresh clothes.

Seeing them, she beamed and stood up, while beside her stood an old man with a distinctly sulky look on his face.

Before the woman could speak, the old man hurriedly said, "Little painter, could you do one for me too?"

The woman, annoyed at being cut off, shot him a glare. "Dressed like that, so sloppy—what's there to paint?"

"I don't care, I want one!"

As he spoke, the old man also glanced over at Yin Hongxue.

Yin Hongxue looked at the two of them, hesitated, and nodded: "I can draw it, but Grandpa, you'll have to wait a bit. I'll finish Grandma's portrait first, then I'll draw yours."

The old man agreed, ignoring Grandma's sharp looks, and stood by watching Yin Hongxue grind ink and pick up his brush.

Yin Hongxue had taken a liking to Grandma, so for the base fee of thirty wen, he added a bit more detail to the drawing.

It was a simple black-and-white ink portrait, yet it captured Grandma's expression and clothing with remarkable clarity.

Seeing the portrait that resembled her so closely, Grandma was grinning from ear to ear with delight, while the old man behind her awkwardly turned his head away.

A faint redness seemed to creep into the corners of his eyes.

Then, before Grandma turned to look at him, he quickly hid all his emotions.

"Oh my, this, this painting makes me look way better than I do in real life!"

Grandma gave him a playful shove, "Alright, come on, it's your turn now."

The old man sat down beside Grandma, his eyes glistening with moisture, fixed intently on Yin Hongxue: "Little painter, I'll give you sixty wen. Can you, can you draw me and your grandma on the same piece of paper?"

Yin Hongxue was a bit surprised, but then he nodded firmly.

"Yes, I can."