His mouth curved upward involuntarily as he held Ning Wanwan’s hand tightly while they walked south along Imperial Street, lined with stages featuring performances such as ball games, rope walking, sword swallowing, puppet shows, monkey acts, and more—creating a vibrant scene.
They ambled along, enjoying the beauty of the bustling moment.
“Passersby, don’t miss this! Master Cloud Li, a traveling artist, is here to paint portraits! Only ten taels of silver, and if it doesn’t look like you, it’s free!”
Ning Wanwan paused at the sound, glancing toward an elegantly decorated stage where a long-bearded artist painted a woman’s portrait.
“Do you want to paint?” Si Zhan asked.
“Grandmother has had an artist paint my portrait every year, but I haven’t had one this year,” she replied.
“Then let’s paint one,” he suggested.
“Okay,” she agreed.
Si Zhan led her to the stage, placed a silver ingot on the table, and told the young manager, “A portrait.”
The manager suggested queuing, but Si Zhan insisted on painting himself and only needed to borrow writing materials.
The manager quickly complied, and Si Zhan sat down, looking at Ning Wanwan.
Nervously, she asked, “Should I stand over there?”
Si Zhan gently shook his head. “Wherever you stand is the background. It’s perfect here.”
Yun Li, the painter, put down his brush, coldly snorting. “I have traveled for decades and painted millions of portraits, yet I’ve never seen anyone so arrogant as to show off their painting skills. Young sir, do you dare to compete with me?”
“How shall we compete?” Si Zhan asked, slightly furrowing his brow.
“We’ll compete in time and painting skill. Paint the woman beside you. If I lose, all portrait seekers will be free today. If you lose, you’ll pay for all day’s portrait fees,” Yun Li challenged. “Do you dare?”
Si Zhan lightly laughed. “Why not?” He turned to Yuan Bi. “Bring a blindfold.”
“Yes,” Yuan Bi agreed, then realized where to find a blindfold. He quickly tore a strip from his clothing.
“Master, will this do?”
Si Zhan gave the cloth strip an exasperated glance. “Blindfold me.”
Yuan Bi walked behind Si Zhan and blindfolded him. The crowd exclaimed, “He’s going to paint blindfolded? What an extraordinary person!” Passersby quickly filled the pavilion to capacity.
