Chiang Xiao was still grateful, and having accepted the commission from Uncle Lee, she received two thousand yuan. With this, she had enough for the house purchase, but a major renovation and new furniture were needed, and she still had to figure out how to secure that money.
As for what He Jin suggested, letting her deliver a few paintings to his Mingchen Studio for consignment, Chiang Xiao hadn’t agreed yet and only said she’d think about it some more.
No matter how much she needed money, she didn’t want to sell her paintings all over the place right after winning an award.
Her teacher used to be most upset with her for this.
Not to mention failing to win awards, in her past life she had completely degenerated into a third-rate artist who painted only to sell.
Every single painting was for the money, the money, the money!
This was unforgivable in the eyes of her teacher.
Though art can indeed be exchanged for money, when art thoroughly loses its soul and is solely viewed as a tool for making money, that’s truly tragic. Towards the end, her teacher had said that her paintings lost all the "Spiritual Energy" they initially had.
Even though others were still eager to buy her paintings, Chiang Xiao knew at that time it was probably because of the "Magic Brush." If not for the "Magic Brush," her later works looked exquisite but lacked essence—the body was there, but the soul was missing.
That’s why now Chiang Xiao didn’t want to follow the same old path.
She would still sell her paintings but wouldn’t paint just for the sake of money.
After she declined, He Jin wasn’t angry or disappointed at all. Instead, he looked at her deeply and finally couldn’t help but laugh out loud, giving her a thumbs-up.
"Xiao Chiang, I, He Jin, am truly convinced! Remember to bring a few pieces to Mingchen Studio if you have them, really."
He was genuinely impressed by this young girl.
To win the provincial art contest at such a young age, with so many clamoring for her paintings—each worth at least two or three thousand yuan—what concept was that?
If it were any other kid, they might have gotten carried away, abandoning other pursuits to paint every day, quickly taking advantage of this momentum to sell more and easily becoming a ten-thousandaire!
And their fame would surge too!
Yet, Chiang Xiao managed to stay so calm under such circumstances and rejected his offer.
Even when she clearly needed money!
How much calm and rationality were needed to make such a decision!
Was this really a thirteen-year-old child?
He genuinely felt she was far stronger than many adults! He sensed that Chiang Xiao clearly knew what she wanted and which path she wished to take.
"Alright, if I paint something satisfactory, I’ll definitely consider placing it with Mingchen Studio first," Chiang Xiao confidently agreed.
After she left, Uncle Lee praised her with a pat, "This Xiao Chiang, not bad."
He Jin nodded his agreement, "Indeed not bad. It’s just a pity, a real pity."
"What nonsense are you pitying again?"
"The pity is that she’s too young; otherwise," He Jin laughed heartily, "I’d bet the entire Mingchen Studio to marry her!"
"Pfft!" Uncle Lee nearly spat out, "Dream on, Comrade Little He, you’re in your twenties, and she is but thirteen! I won’t allow you to harbor such thoughts!"
He Jin glanced at him disdainfully, "Old Lee, didn’t you hear me just now? I said exactly that—it’s a pity she’s too young. Would I entertain such thoughts about her?"
Anyone who harbored those kinds of thoughts towards such a little girl was a beast!
He Jin couldn’t have imagined that there really were such beasts out there.
At that moment, Meng Xinian was sipping water from the cup Chiang Xiao had gifted him.
He always felt that water drunk from this cup was especially sweet. The sensation was so distinct that he had already tried several times using a different cup to compare.