Qi Wenshi evidently harbored no such intentions.
He disdainfully remarked, "Even I must admit that this painting is indeed impressive. However, Chairman Wu, you must understand that this artist, Sheng, is merely a high school student, at the tender age of seventeen or eighteen. For someone of such youth to create such a masterpiece is inconceivable. An artist capable of producing such a work would, at the very least, be in their thirties. Moreover, the depth of sorrow and hardship depicted in the eyes of the figures in this painting—can it truly be captured by someone without life experience?"
Wu Chuang fell into silence.
Despite his previous admiration and trust in Sheng, he could not ignore the doubt now festering within him. The complexity and maturity portrayed in the painting were indeed difficult to reconcile with the artist's claimed youth.
