Thankfully, there were relatively few ancient paintings on display today, so Xu Qingqing was able to relax a bit.
She came over to Wen Shouheng's side and watched him teaching his three apprentices some details of ceramic restoration.
The knowledge that seemed obscure and difficult to understand to others sounded so familiar to Xu Qingqing.
After Wen Shouheng finished teaching his three apprentices, he noticed Xu Qingqing listening from the side and thus invited her actively, "It is said that all arts are interlinked in the world. Why not give ceramic restoration a try, Miss Xu?"
Xu Qingqing felt a bit flustered. "I've only been listening for a while. If I were to start restoring directly, what if I damaged the ceramic? I'd better not. I'll just watch from the side."
Hearing what Xu Qingqing said, Wen Shouheng smiled. "Don't be so modest. Your grandfather could restore anything back then. A mere ceramic is nothing compared to what he used to restore."
Zuo Yinyin also encouraged her.
"Yeah, Sister Xu, give it a try. I'd like to see how much of a gap there is between us."
Seeing that both Wen Shouheng and Zuo Yinyin were inviting her, Xu Qingqing didn't decline.
After just one glance, she could already envision what the ceramic originally looked like in her mind. The corresponding pigments and tools were all laid out beside it, and she knew exactly how to use them.
After roughly formulating a restoration plan, Xu Qingqing got right to work.
At first, her movements were rather slow, but gradually, her strokes became more and more inspired. Her speed was so fast that it even exceeded that of Zuo Yinyin and the others, who had been learning from Wen Shouheng for a long time.
Zuo Yinyin was utterly shocked but said nothing while Xu Qingqing was restoring.
After Xu Qingqing completed the restoration, she put down the brush and looked at Wen Shouheng somewhat shyly. "I've made a fool of myself in front of the master."
But at this moment, Wen Shouheng's eyes were shining brightly.
Originally, he thought that although his three apprentices had mediocre understanding, their characters were good, and they had learned quite well. But today, Xu Qingqing demonstrated her skills. Clearly, she had never learned ceramic restoration before, yet her speed and technique were much better than Zuo Yinyin's and the others'.
Wen Shouheng was confident that if he were to train Xu Qingqing, she would reach his current level in less than three years.
"Miss Xu, to be honest, your talent far surpasses that of my three apprentices. I'm bound to choose one of them to be my long - term apprentice, but I believe that to carry forward the culture of ceramic restoration, I need Miss Xu's help."
"So, Miss Xu, would you like to be my apprentice? One of these three will be your junior brother or sister."
Saying this, Wen Shouheng looked at the three of them. "You three have seen Miss Xu's restoration skills just now. Reflect on your own, and you'll realize there's still a gap between you and her. So, if I take her as my apprentice and let her be your senior sister, do you have any objections?"
In his opinion, if he could take Xu Qingqing as his apprentice and let her be the senior sister, it would be extremely beneficial.
No matter which of the three children became Xu Qingqing's junior brother or sister, they would surely learn a great deal from her in the future.
The apprenticeship ceremony was just a formality, which would give him a reason to teach Xu Qingqing the craft of ceramic restoration.
In fact, Wen Shouheng didn't think Xu Qingqing's status was lower than his.
Zuo Yinyin looked extremely delighted and nodded repeatedly. "Sure! It would be so cool to have Sister Xu as our senior sister."
Zhao Luo nodded. "I have no objections."
Lin Sheng frowned slightly. "Master, I know Miss Xu is quite famous in the restoration field, but after all, the three of us were the first to enter the field of ceramic restoration. According to the rules, Miss Xu should be our junior sister."
"In my opinion, the rules shouldn't be changed."
Zuo Yinyin glared at him. "I thought you were quite smart usually. Why are you being so stubborn now?"
"If you make Sister Xu our junior sister, first of all, she's older than us. Secondly, our skills will surely be inferior to hers in the future."
"Do you really want a junior sister who outshines you in every way? I don't understand you. Anyway, if I were the senior sister, I'd be extremely ashamed and under great pressure. It would even affect my state of mind."
"Lin Sheng, you need to broaden your horizons if you want to achieve great things."
Lin Sheng: …
Admittedly, Zuo Yinyin's analysis made some sense, but deep down, he was still reluctant to admit it.
The concept of seniority was deeply ingrained in his mind.
Xu Qingqing felt rather helpless. She had just come here to learn, but now she was about to become Wen Shouheng's disciple, putting these three apprentices in such a difficult position.
For a moment, Xu Qingqing felt that she was the bane of Wen Shouheng's apprentices.
Because of her, Xiang Qiuwan came to cause trouble for her and was then driven out by Wen Shouheng, losing the chance to compete. The remaining three were having a fair competition, and now, because she came to learn ceramic restoration, Wen Shouheng wanted to take her as the senior sister.
Xu Qingqing thought that if they disliked her, it would be understandable.
"Alright. Since you've put it like this, I think it's okay. Besides, master may not choose me to be his disciple."
Lin Sheng finally compromised.
After Wen Shouheng settled the matter among his original apprentices, he looked at Xu Qingqing expectantly. "So, Miss Xu, have you made up your mind? If you don't become my apprentice, I won't be able to teach you the technique of ceramic restoration."
"On a small scale, it means that your comprehensive abilities won't be expanded. On a large scale, our ceramic restoration field will lose a pillar. If a peerless ceramic were to appear one day but there's a lack of restoration talents, Miss Xu, that would be your fault."
Xu Qingqing forced a smile. Teacher Wen Shouheng really would do anything to take on an apprentice.
"Okay. Since Teacher Wen has said so, I have no reason to decline."
Xu Qingqing said.
Actually, she was quite interested in ceramic restoration. Being able to apprentice under Wen Shouheng was definitely a pleasant surprise for her.
When Lu Chuanbai arrived, he happened to see Wen Shouheng accepting Xu Qingqing as his senior apprentice.
"It seems I've come just in time. Congratulations, Miss Xu." Lu Chuanbai said with a beaming smile.
His arrival caught everyone's attention. Zuo Yinyin's eyes were filled with admiration.
"Wow, a handsome guy! I didn't expect to see such a handsome man in a place like this!"
Wait, why did this handsome guy seem so familiar?