The Eldest Daughter is Delicate and Pretty, How Can She Be a Malicious Supporting Character - Chapter 35

Chapter 35: Painting

When Pei Lingyi arrived, she found that she was in the same group as Li Miaozhu and Xue Yiran, with four people in total. The fourth person was Shi Wei, an ally of Pei Sitang.
What a small world.

Pei Lingyi’s expression didn’t reveal her thoughts as she walked calmly to her position.
Li Miaozhu wore a gorgeous crimson long dress with a train that flowed like clouds, and her head was adorned with a set of pure gold ornaments made by Jinyu Pavilion, which looked noble and imposing.

If Xue Yiran and Li Miaozhu got along, it was because they both had extremely gorgeous looks and similar dressing styles, exuding the arrogance of noble ladies.
However, Pei Lingyi was different from them. She was gentle, dignified, and easy to talk to, without any airs.

This was also the aspect of her that they disliked the most, thinking that she was pretending to be something she’s not, abandoning the noble demeanor expected of a lady from a high-ranking family and instead resembling the daughter of a low-ranking official.
But the most important reason was probably the Crown Prince.

The position of Crown Princess had been vacant for a long time, and the Empress would naturally carefully select the candidate. The most likely candidate was among a few noble ladies, and Pei Lingyi was the most promising one in the capital city.

Li Miaozhu had been infatuated with the Crown Prince for many years and naturally saw Pei Lingyi as a thorn in her side. Seeing Pei Lingyi’s natural beauty, even with minimal makeup, made her feel annoyed.
Now that the four of them were in the same group, and the two people she disliked the most were together, how could she not be angry?

The examiner for this session hadn’t arrived yet, but Li Miaozhu glared fiercely at the two of them, disregarding her dignity.
Pei Lingyi ignored her, while Xue Yiran wasn’t intimidated and glared back.

“Dong——”
A clear bell sound was followed by the announcement: “Mister Xu is here!”
The two women straightened their posture.

Mister Xu?
Xue Yiran searched her memory and found that he was the Chancellor of the National Academy equivalent to the principal of the Imperial College.
In the original book, he was a significant figure.

She glanced at the two figures beside her and realized that this was indeed a competition between the female lead and the supporting actress. Even she, a minor character, could benefit from their presence and get Mister Xu’s personal attention.
She had chosen painting and calligraphy as her two skills.

As a modern person who excelled in the humanities, her handwriting, although not extremely beautiful, would suffice for the calligraphy section. As for painting, she had learned some basics in modern times, so she should be able to handle it.

The most important part was the final literary test, which was her true battlefield. She had memorized thousands of ancient poems in modern times, making her more than capable of handling this fictional dynasty.

Before long, an elderly man wearing a loose white robe walked slowly to the front of the stage. He was one of the people who had sat in the chair above yesterday.
His face was serene, with a warm smile that exuded a scholarly aura. Although his hair was gray, it was combed neatly and fixed with a peach wood
hairpin.

It was hard to imagine that such a simple old man was the renowned Chancellor of the National Academy.
“Greetings, Mister Xu,” everyone bowed respectfully.

The Great Ye dynasty revered scholars and people of knowledge, and Mister Xu was not only a literary master but also a rare master of painting and calligraphy in the current era.

The old man stroked his silver beard and nodded. “You are all talented ladies from various families. Today, I am fortunate to witness your skills in painting and calligraphy.”
After he finished speaking, a row of maidservants entered, each carrying various tools for the contestants to choose from.

There were four tables set up in the venue, each with brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones. Screens were placed between the tables to prevent others from peeking.
The items carried by the maidservants were various colors for the contestants to choose from.
This competition did not have a set topic, and the contestants were free to create as they pleased.

The final works would be judged by Mister Xu.
Although Li Miaozhu was arrogant, painting was her forte. She had been personally taught by Li Yan, a court painter, since she was young. It was no wonder she was so confident.

Li Miaozhu’s crimson dress was eye-catching, and after selecting her colors, she glanced at Pei Lingyi with a hint of disdain. In her opinion, among the four of them, only Pei Lingyi could rival her.

Although she had not seen any of Pei Lingyi’s paintings, her reputation as a talented lady was well-known. Li Miaozhu knew that Pei Lingyi was not someone to be underestimated, especially since they were both vying for the position of Crown Princess.

As for Xue Yiran, Li Miaozhu sneered. What painting skills could a lowly concubine-born daughter have? And Shi Wei was completely ignored by her.

The competition began, and the four contestants walked to their respective positions.
Mister Xu, sitting in the audience, watched with interest, stroking his beard. He thought about the Crown Prince and smiled to himself, knowing that the young man would likely be celebrating his wedding soon.

Pei Lingyi’s face was serious as she spread out the xuan paper smoothly. Her green sleeves were rolled up, revealing a small, frost-like arm. The sunlight shining on her made her look like a goddess, breathtakingly beautiful.

She chose fine gold dust and peacock green ink, and her brush moved smoothly as she drew the colors from her mind.

Meanwhile, Li Miaozhu began to paint, creating a magnificent peony picture. The peonies were so vivid that they seemed to leap off the paper. She was completely focused on her painting, without any sign of impatience.

Xue Yiran looked at the many pigments and brushes in front of her and was momentarily unsure of where to start. However, she had prepared herself in advance. She knew she couldn’t compare to the refined painting skills of the noble ladies, so she would have to rely on her creativity to impress Mister Xu.

She folded the xuan paper into four sections and cut them apart, then began to paint on each section.

The maidservant who was grinding ink nearby was surprised by her actions but didn’t say anything, as no one had specified that cutting the paper was not allowed.

Shi Wei was painting a plum blossom scene in the snow, and the red blossoms against the white snow created a unique charm.
As time passed, everyone eventually stopped painting.

The maidservants carefully collected the paintings and arranged them neatly on a lacquer tray, waiting for the elderly Mister Xu to evaluate them.
After finishing her painting, Xue Yiran looked around.

Li Miaozhu seemed quite confident, fiddling with her newly dyed nail polish. When she noticed Xue Yiran looking at her, her expression immediately turned disgusted, and she turned her back, as if looking at Xue Yiran would contaminate her.

Xue Yiran rolled her eyes, thinking that Li Miaozhu was indeed a vicious supporting character. She had clearly made an enemy of her.
Then she glanced at the figure in green, whose slender figure and delicate profile were visible from her angle.
The girl’s long eyelashes were striking.

Xue Yiran thought that the female lead was indeed stunning, even just standing there.
She sighed, comparing herself to the female lead’s body, which had bigger eyes and a more delicate nose. She had only inherited some of her mother’s charm. Xue Yiran comforted herself, thinking that she was still young and could develop her own beauty with modern cosmetics.

However, for some reason, when Xue Yiran looked at the girl bathed in sunlight, she felt a sense of unease. She thought about the original story and the female lead’s shining moments, which seemed to be connected to this gathering.

Xue Yiran felt a pang of guilt, thinking that she was sorry for the female lead, but she was desperate. If she couldn’t win the top prize in this gathering, she wouldn’t be able to defeat Xue Baohua.
She rationalized her actions, thinking that the gathering was about competing based on individual abilities.

Just then, Pei Lingyi, who had been waiting quietly for the results, seemed to sense someone looking at her. She turned around and met Xue Yiran’s gaze.

Pei Lingyi smiled faintly, which made Xue Yiran feel even more guilty. She thought about how Pei Lingyi had helped her out in the teahouse and the princess’s mansion.
She felt even more indebted to Pei Lingyi.

Unfortunately, this feeling of guilt didn’t last long.
“The paintings you all created are indeed each unique and outstanding. As someone who has dedicated their life to the study of painting, I must say that I am impressed by the talent of the younger generation. Perhaps in the future, our country will produce several female masters,” the elderly man in white said, stroking his beard with a smile as he looked at the people below.

Li Miaozhu was confident that her painting would stand out, but to maintain her composure in front of Mister Xu, she restrained her curiosity.

The elderly man in white continued, “This ‘Four Seasons of Life’ painting, done with just a few strokes, is quite interesting. It deserves an A grade.”
Li Miaozhu, who had expected to be the first to be praised, saw her smile falter as she turned to look at Pei Lingyi, but the latter showed no reaction.

A sweet voice came from behind, “This humble girl, Xue Yiran, thanks Mister Xu for the praise.”