Chapter 126: Chen Hao's Painting

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Zhuge Taxue exclaimed, her face bright with excitement. "I absolutely love these mysterious, under-the-table kinds of things! You just say the word—no one will ever dare disturb us in this private room."

"Under the table..." Chen Hao chewed on the phrase, feeling a bit unsettled. "I suppose that’s not an inaccurate way to put it! What I’m about to tell you is indeed not something that sees the light of day."

Guo Yunhai furrowed his brow.

Thinking that Guo had misunderstood him, Chen Hao hurriedly explained, "You don't need to get the wrong idea. This 'not seeing the light of day' doesn't mean anything illegal or illicit. It’s just that the nature of what I’m about to share is quite unique—it’s rather sci-fi, and most people wouldn't believe a word of it."

Guo Yunhai shook his head. "I wasn't frowning because of that. Go on..."

Chen Hao nodded. "Right! Let me think where to begin. Let’s start twenty years ago. You and Taxue should both know this, right? The truth is, Krystal used to be a barren and desolate wasteland. Well, 'barren' might be an exaggeration since there have always been people living here, but the development was incredibly backward.

"The environment for the people living here was extremely primitive; you could barely find a single modern element. Forget about cars—even television sets were a rare sight."

Zhuge Taxue nodded in agreement. "That’s certainly true. I grew up here, so I know the situation better than anyone. Krystal only really started to develop in the last dozen years—or, to be precise, the last ten. But the strange thing is, they built an airport and hotels here, yet they didn't build roads or develop a tourism industry. It’s always been very bizarre."

"Exactly! There’s a special reason for that, which I’ll get to later. Let me continue. Even though Krystal has always been backward, it actually houses something quite extraordinary. It is no exaggeration to say that the existence of this 'something' could make Krystal the most watched city in the entire world. And in fact, that is exactly the case!" Chen Hao said.

"Something that could make Krystal the most watched city in the world?" Zhuge Taxue asked, surprised. "What is it?"

Chen Hao looked at the two of them, then picked up a sheet of rice paper from the shelf beside the table. He selected a calligraphy brush and began, unhurriedly, to grind ink using the Four Treasures of the Study.

Seeing this, the two realized Chen Hao was being deliberately mysterious and couldn't help but roll their eyes.

"Hey! Chen Hao, do you even know how to use that stuff?" Zhuge Taxue asked, crossing her arms with a skeptical look.

Chen Hao didn't answer. He simply smiled and began to draw on the paper with the brush, saying as he worked, "It’s a pity this is raw rice paper instead of sized paper. Raw paper is best for calligraphy, but it’s a bit lacking for painting.

"Of course, some people do like using raw paper for painting, but they mostly do freehand brushwork, like large-scale landscapes. Those works express more of an artistic mood rather than focusing on external appearance—what people often call the 'spirit' of Chinese painting. Because raw rice paper is so absorbent, the outlines of the drawings produce irregular edges depending on the paper’s quality.

"What I’m drawing today, however, isn't freehand; it’s *gongbi*, or fine-brushwork painting, which focuses on detail. If I used raw paper for this, the overall lines would become very messy. If I had sized paper, which is treated with alum during production, the water wouldn't be absorbed immediately, allowing for repeated layering of colors."

Hearing Chen Hao explain it so articulately, Guo Yunhai was genuinely surprised. Could this kid be a master of both arts and combat? Not just physical, but also scholarly? He not only knew martial arts but also had studied traditional ink wash painting?

"Chen Hao, you understand ink wash painting too?" Guo Yunhai asked.

Chen Hao tilted his chin up, acting cocky. "A little bit!"

Chen Hao wasn't just talking big; he actually had a solid foundation in ink wash painting. His grandfather had been a master of ancient Chinese culture, proficient in everything from the qin, chess, calligraphy, and painting to blades, spears, swords, and halberds. Influenced by his grandfather, Chen Hao had naturally been steeped in those arts. He wouldn't claim to be on par with the great masters of national painting, but compared to modern youngsters who didn't even know what ink wash painting was, he could certainly be considered an expert.

As for the tea house owner, Zhuge Taxue, although she couldn't paint herself, the farmers who adopted her could. Otherwise, she wouldn't have the Four Treasures of the Study in the house, nor would the tea house have been decorated in this style.

She had seen the process often enough. Having watched her adoptive father paint since she was a child, she understood a thing or two. She could tell that Chen Hao’s grip on the brush and his technique were of a high standard, and while the "spirit" of the painting was perhaps a bit lacking, it was still impressive.

Zhuge Taxue couldn't help but feel a bit more curious about Chen Hao—though, of course, it was just curiosity. After all, she was a lesbian.

Soon, as Chen Hao talked, a fine-brushwork ink painting appeared before them.

The content was simple and recognizable at a glance. Around the edges of the paper were vast stretches of trees, and in the center stood a strangely shaped building.

Indeed, Chen Hao had drawn the bizarre building from the Krystal forest—the very thing from his own memory. He had rendered it with near-perfect accuracy.

Zhuge Taxue, who had grown up in Krystal, recognized it immediately. "Huh? Isn't this the red sandalwood of Krystal?"

"Oh? These trees are called red sandalwood? I didn't know that, but you're right—these are the trees from Krystal," Chen Hao nodded.

"So, the scene you've drawn is the Great Forest of Krystal?" Zhuge Taxue asked.

"Exactly! The Great Forest. And this strange building in the middle is located right inside it," Chen Hao said.

"There’s a building like this in the Great Forest? I’ve never heard of it! What kind of building is it? Is it part of those luxury villa estates the foreigners built?"

"Luxury villa estates?" Chen Hao was the one stunned this time. "Wait, you mean foreigners are building villas in the forest?"

"What? You didn't know that?" Zhuge Taxue asked, now confused herself.

Not only did Chen Hao not know, but Guo Yunhai was also unaware of this. Both of them shook their heads in bewilderment.

"It was about ten years ago, I think. A huge group of foreigners arrived with a massive fleet of vehicles, brought in by large transport planes. They drove their vehicles straight into the forest.

"The town mayor told us that those foreigners were taken by Krystal's pleasant climate and beautiful natural environment. They intended to build a luxury resort here, and they had already spent a lot of money to rent out the entire forest, making it private property.

"The fleet of vehicles they brought was actually full of construction crews, all there to build this luxury villa resort."

"I see!" Chen Hao nodded in realization. "So that was the official story they put out back then?"

"Official story?" Zhuge Taxue muttered.

"Haha! You didn't know the truth, but I can tell you for a fact: those foreigners didn't come to Krystal to build luxury villas. They didn't come for the climate or the scenery at all. They had a different purpose, and that purpose is this building I've drawn."

"Are you saying this building already existed before those foreigners came?" Taxue asked.

"Exactly! And it had been there for many years before they arrived. As far as I know, the first group of people who came to Krystal because of this building were your parents' generation, Taxue."

Hearing this speculation about her parents, Taxue remained calm, showing no signs of distress, as if she were hearing about a stranger. "Are you saying that my parents came to Krystal because of this building, and that my becoming an orphan is also because of it?"

"Uh..." Chen Hao scratched his head. "I can't say for sure, but they definitely came here for this building. I know this because my father and my sister’s father were part of the same group that came to Krystal with your parents. And unfortunately, her parents passed away in that same incident, just like yours."

"Your sister’s parents... you mean your adoptive sister, right?" Guo Yunhai asked.

"Yes!" Chen Hao nodded. "Since her parents passed away and my father was friends with hers, he brought her back to be raised in our family. She grew up with me. This trip to Krystal was to accompany her. That was the original reason I mentioned for coming here."

"So, it seems your father didn't perish, but survived? And he adopted a daughter, so your family background must be quite significant. Who exactly are you?"

Chen Hao slapped his forehead. "My fault, my fault! I’ve been talking for so long, and other than my name, you don't know who I am. Well... I wasn't trying to be intentionally low-key or arrogant by hiding it. My father is Chen Ding'an, and I am the young master of the Chen Corporation..."

Zhuge Taxue didn't have much of a reaction to the name, simply saying "Oh" to acknowledge it. Guo Yunhai, however, had his mouth hanging open for a long time without a word.

"You really do have quite the pedigree..." Guo Yunhai finally managed to say. "So, you learned all this from your father?"