Chapter 19: The Art of Listening
Zixuan suddenly asked if there were any other works like this. Not only Xiaojing, but also the young stall owner was quite surprised.
He thought for a moment and asked, "Do you really need this kind of painting?"
"Of course!" Zixuan said.
After she finished speaking, she seemed to think that the request was a bit harsh, and then she continued, "Of course it would be better if you have it. If not, you can also have other works by the artist of this painting."
"How much do you want?" the young man asked.
"If there are any, I will buy them all."
"All?" The young man gasped, thinking he had heard wrongly.
"Yes, all of them!" Zi Xuan emphasized again, her tone unquestionable, "Don't worry about the price, I will definitely satisfy you."
The young man's eyes lit up, and then he thought about it for a moment and said, "Wait a minute, I'll make a phone call and ask first."
"No problem." Zixuan nodded and gestured for him to make the call.
"It's too noisy here." The young man responded, "Wait a moment."
He walked quickly to a boutique on the street, greeted the beautiful female owner, and then took out his cell phone from his pocket to make a call.
Xiao Jing was full of questions. She was about to open her mouth to ask, but suddenly stopped.
She suddenly saw Zixuan, who was lying sideways beside her with a serious look on her face, and her left ear was trembling slightly and rhythmically.
Although Zixuan had her hair tied up, the hair hanging down from both temples almost covered her ears. If Xiaojing hadn't been close, she wouldn't have been able to tell.
The art of listening!
She actually used the art of listening!
Xiao Jing was so shocked that it seemed as if a wave of sea surged up in her heart, making it impossible for her to breathe normally!
The Divine Listening Technique is a top-level secret technique, and is ranked among the best in the Middle Thousand Worlds. A high-level late-stage practitioner of the Divine Listening Secret Technique can cultivate their hearing to an incredible level - through hearing, they can distinguish all things in the world from a distance, and even listen to people's voices.
The art of listening is extremely profound. It requires extremely high talent from the practitioner, especially physical acuity. In the middle and late stages, it also requires a large amount of natural treasures to cleanse the marrow and bones and transform the body. If it is unsuccessful, the practitioner may become a disabled person. Therefore, the difficulty and risk of practicing are extremely high.
The major royal families in the Middle Thousand Worlds had spared no effort in cultivating Diligent Listeners in the past. This was because once this secret technique was successfully cultivated, its effect would undoubtedly be enormous - especially in war, if there were no effective means to prevent the Diligent Listener from detecting, then one's whereabouts would be exposed, and the result of being passive everywhere was naturally imaginable.
However, it was also because of the difficulty, the resources consumed were astronomical, and the results were minimal - no one in the entire Middle Thousand Worlds could eventually reach the late high level, and only a handful could reach the middle level. Therefore, the plans of the various royal families to cultivate the Listeners on a large scale gradually died down amid numerous objections.
In the early stage of forming the elixir, Zi Xuan also practiced the Di Ting technique. However, no matter how she practiced, she could only get started, and finally had no choice but to practice other secret techniques. It is easy to imagine how difficult it is to practice.
However, even though she had just gotten started, Xiaojing knew that Zixuan could use her listening ability to hear the sounds of insects and ants hundreds of miles away.
However, Xiaojing couldn’t understand why she used the art of listening to listen to the conversation between two ordinary mortals at this time?
……
"Are you done?" Zi Xuan asked, "How was it?"
Just as Xiao Jing was lost in thought, the young man came over after finishing his phone call. Zi Xuan had already put away her secret technique and looked normal.
"I'm sorry, I may not be able to satisfy you with this request?" The young man scratched his head and smiled bitterly. Facing the woman who was buying this painting, he could not even think of deceiving her.
"Is this the only painting he made, or do you not even know the author himself?" Zi Xuan asked.
"There are too many paintings, and they are not painted by the same person. It is really hard to tell them apart!" The young man pointed at the pile of paintings on the stall and said, "So I don't know who the artist is?"
Zixuan nodded. This was similar to what she had heard.
The young man did not lie. He was not an art major. His paintings were either bought from wholesale markets, such as those printed materials, or were entrusted by art students to sell here. For art students, there are more channels for selling good works, such as participating in exhibitions across the country, entering galleries, etc. If you are not satisfied with your works or graffiti, you can give them to classmates who set up stalls, which is another sales channel. If they can sell, it is good, but if they can't, it can also be considered as a patronage.
The pile of paintings that originally contained the "Flaming Red Lips" was exactly like this. He got them from a friend at the Academy of Fine Arts. As for the price, his friend did not take it into account at all. They were like gifts. Because they were said to be the casual works of the lecturers and the exercises that the college students did not want.
After the young man contacted his friend on the phone, he couldn't help but feel a little regretful. Since he had no way of knowing the exact author and it was impossible for him to verify it one by one, he had to give up the deal.
"I'm so sorry!" The young man thought for a moment and said, "How about you take a look at the others? Are there any you like?"
"No need, let's come back next time when we have the chance." Zi Xuan shook her head.
"Okay, welcome back next time!" the young man said with a smile.
Of course, he knew in his heart that there would not be a next time, and this was just a polite remark. He carefully put the painting "Flaming Red Lips" into a plastic bag and handed it to Xiaojing who stretched out her hand next to him.
Zixuan smiled, opened her wallet, and paid for the painting according to the price Xiaojing gave.
Before leaving, Zixuan suddenly remembered something and turned to the young man and said, "What's the full name of Mr. Lin from the Academy of Fine Arts?"
"JJ Lin!" the young man answered casually.
"JJ Lin? What a nice name!" Zixuan nodded, thanked him, and left with Xiaojing.
The two walked for a long time before the young man realized——
Weird? Did I mention Teacher Lin? How did she know that my friend was Teacher Lin’s student?
……
Xiaojing and Zixuan walked in silence, as if the hustle and bustle of the street had nothing to do with them at all.
Zi Xuan glanced at her and asked, "Do you want to know something?"
"I'm just curious..." Xiao Jing raised the bag in her hand and sighed, "Of course, you don't have to tell me. I'll pretend I don't know."
"I was surprised too." Zi Xuan said, her voice a little hoarse, "I didn't expect it to appear in the end..."
Xiaojing stopped talking and listened quietly. She knew that if Zixuan didn't say anything, no one could force her.
The lights on both sides of the street were still bright, but Xiaojing could see that Zixuan's expression was a little gloomy and a little sad. She looked completely different from the confident and strong Zixuan that she usually saw.
"It's been so many years since this happened, and my heart has gradually grown cold. I didn't want to tell anyone, and buried it deep in my heart... It seems that I should let you and Lanlan know."
"Who is that person?" Xiao Jing was not surprised at all and couldn't help asking.
Zixuan's chest rose and fell, as if she was trying hard to control her emotions. She paused and continued, "A friend of mine."
"Is it a man?" Xiaojing asked.
"Yes!" Zixuan replied.
"I understand." Xiao Jing sighed, "Actually, you still don't have to say it."
"Perhaps, I need your help."
(End of this chapter)
