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With a smile, Song Jingyun took out the items, “I’ve also come to give you both something. I hope Young Master Jiang and Master Yin won’t look down on it.”
Jiang Junli and the Crown Prince were aware that Song Jingyun had been busy weaving bamboo paintings in the courtyard these days. When they saw him bringing something over, they could guess what it was.
However, when Song Jingyun unfolded the bamboo paintings in his hands, both Jiang Junli and the Crown Prince were taken aback.
They had seen bamboo weaving paintings before, but ones as exquisite and beautiful as the two in Song Jingyun’s hands were a first for them.
The painting Song Jingyun opened at this moment was a landscape, showing layered mountains and water as smooth as a mirror. A small boat sailed leisurely, with a solitary figure resembling a scholar standing at the bow, looking up at a flock of geese crossing the sky. The reflection in the water was clear and visible, showing the craftsmanship’s finesse.
The landscape painting, with its majestic and yet serene atmosphere, seemed to depict scenery, yet its implications were vast, inevitably stirring up emotions within, like the surging tides of the sea.
Jiang Junli’s eyes were fixed on the painting, and the emotions within them gradually became complex and fervent.
The solitary figure standing at the bow of the boat in the painting, could it be anyone but him?
With lofty aspirations yet enduring hardships in the boundless waters, like a small boat in an endless sea, finding the shore was truly difficult. All his aspirations could only be transformed into a flock of geese, soaring in the sky.
The more Jiang Junli thought about it, the more he felt his emotions were hard to suppress. Without regard for the Crown Prince’s presence, he reached out and took the bamboo painting from Song Jingyun’s hands, “I’ll take this one.”
The Crown Prince, who had a great friendship with Jiang Junli, naturally didn’t mind a single bamboo painting and just nodded with a smile, “Then I’ll take this one. May I ask what is depicted in your other painting, Scholar Song?”
Song Jingyun smiled but did not speak, instead opening the other bamboo painting.
As the picture of Guanyin Bodhisattva slowly unfolded before the three of them, Jiang Junli was taken aback and looked uneasily at the Crown Prince.
Due to the current emperor’s obsession with the gods, neglecting state affairs, the Crown Prince had always disliked talk of ghosts and gods, often showing displeasure even with mentions of Buddha and Bodhisattvas.
Now, the bamboo painting that Song Jingyun presented was of Guanyin Bodhisattva…
“Perhaps…” Jiang Junli wanted to take the initiative and exchange the landscape painting in his hand for the Guanyin Bodhisattva bamboo painting.
However, the Crown Prince stared at the Guanyin Bodhisattva bamboo painting for a moment before interrupting Jiang Junli, “It’s alright, I’ll take this one.”
With that, he took the bamboo painting with both hands, “Thank you, Scholar Song, for your generosity.”
His tone was relaxed and indifferent, with a slightly rising intonation, showing no displeasure. Jiang Junli also noticed that the Crown Prince’s expression was normal, and only then did he feel relieved.
Perhaps it was because he didn’t care about any talk of gods or spirits, so he didn’t mind what he received.
After all, he was the Crown Prince, different from ordinary people since childhood, and had experienced much in recent years, naturally able to remain unperturbed by praise or disgrace.
Jiang Junli’s heart gradually felt relieved, and Song Jingyun, seeing that both of them were quite happy to receive the two bamboo paintings, also smiled repeatedly.
The three of them talked for a long time in the courtyard and even had lunch together. In the late afternoon, Song Jingyun took his leave, and the Crown Prince did not stay any longer, departing from Splendorous Garden.
Riding in the carriage back to his residence, the Crown Prince examined the Guanyin Bodhisattva bamboo painting in his hands the entire way.