Endless Winter: My Camp Upgrades Infinitely Chapter 1248 - 414: Birthday, the Painter Dwelling in Xia City, Soaring Population, Despondency, _3

Shortly after, a servant guided a young lady in simple green clothing, with an ordinary look, gradually toward the main hall's doorway.

The green-clad woman possessed tanned skin and had been examining the Yuan Mansion's furnishings ever since she stepped inside, her gaze brimming with astonishment, evidently overwhelmed. She bowed her head only upon arriving at the main hall's entrance and spotting Shi Lu in elegant finery. In a somewhat anxious voice, she said, "Painter Chu Yan’er offers her respects to Lady Yuan!"

Shi Lu showed no contempt for Chu Yan’er’s outfit or looks. Her eyes sparkled with interest as she grinned and inquired, "Miss Chu’s reputation precedes her, and it’s delightful to encounter you at last. I’ve heard you can create art from a single look, and the images you produce come alive. Could you confirm if that’s accurate?"

"It’s just minor talents unworthy of note. Madam, you overpraise me. My memory is sharp, so yes, one glance suffices for me to depict. Regarding the portraits seeming to animate, it’s merely illusions of light and shade, which the artist Bai Yunzi exposed ten days back."

Though Shi Lu wasn’t entirely clear, she verified that the artworks truly animated, heightening her fascination further. She gave a nod, eyed Chu Yan’er, and summoned two servants, telling her, "Accompany the servants to the adjacent room. My Shao’er and his young companions are waiting there. How about sketching a picture of kids at play? Is that feasible?"

At those words, a spark lit up in Chu Yan’er’s eyes, and she bobbed her head vigorously, replying, "Yan’er will strive to please Lady Yuan!"

A hint of approval appeared on Shi Lu’s features, and she went on, "I understand you ask 1,000 taels per piece in the Outer City. I’ll offer 1,500 taels, and if it excels, I might increase it slightly."

Delight immediately lit Chu Yan’er’s face, and she curtsied in thanks, exclaiming, "Gratitude to Lady Yuan!"

It appeared Xiang Liang’s words held truth. She truly hailed from the Outer Realm past the Extreme North Domain, unaware of worldly ways. Without arriving in Great Xia, her artistic gifts could have stayed hidden indefinitely.

Observing Chu Yan’er’s response, Shi Lu remembered Xiang Liang’s earlier account of her, then agreed with a nod, directing the two servants to escort Chu Yan’er right away.

"Miss Chu, come with us!"

Chu Yan’er promptly trailed after the pair of servants, making her way to the side hall.

Shi Lu and the servants alike failed to spot how, the instant Chu Yan’er pivoted, the happiness faded from her expression, supplanted by profound curiosity and excitement hidden in her gaze.

"This opportunity arrived effortlessly, rewarding my toil of illustrating in the Outer City for more than a fortnight. At last, I can infiltrate the Inner City and even create art for the elite heirs of Great Xia’s leaders. If I manage to include them all in my work..."

Beneath Chu Yan’er’s serene facade beat a heart overflowing with elation.

On the nineteenth of the prior month, alongside six companions like Chen Yimou, she had posed as wanderers to enter Xia City secretly. Yet she discovered access limited to the Outer City, barring entry to the Inner City or deeper probes into Great Xia’s realities.

Therefore, she resorted to displaying her artistic prowess to attract notice.

As an artist who valued excellence above volume and poured her soul into each creation, she once crafted no more than one work every half-year at Chen Cang. But in the recent half-month, she had rendered likenesses for almost a hundred individuals, the mental toll of which was profound.

Still, when Xiang Liang visited the day before to relay that Inner City’s Lady Yuan sought her services for her son Yuan Cheng’s birthday, Chu Yan’er realized her recent labors bore fruit.

"It was just a hunch yesterday. Today, it feels confirmed. The residence lies so near the central hall; this Lady Yuan must be the Garrison Department’s head, among Great Xia’s Eight Divisions, and Yuan Cheng’s spouse."

"Miss Chu, look—the boy in front is our young master Yuan Shao, while the other twenty-seven hail from prominent Inner City families."

As Chu Yan’er mulled over her thoughts, the servants had already ushered her to the side hall’s threshold. Heeding the servant’s gesture, she peered through the pane and beheld several young children inside the room, wielding toy arms in their games, causing her eyes to focus intently.

"Very well, I’ll begin drawing right here!"

Maintaining a steady demeanor, Chu Yan’er unpacked her bundle, withdrew a fresh sheet of paper, laid it across the servant-provided surface, and retrieved a dark ink brush from within her garments, commencing her artwork without delay.

"In Great Xia, individuals with Cold Resistance Level cultivation appear to have triggered a bloodline-esque protective ability that prevents my brush from seizing their essence. Yet those in the Logging Realm and Earth-digging Realm generally lack it, indicating that lower cultivators miss this inherited feature.

The eldest youngster present is merely eight and has recently advanced to the Earth-digging Realm, so recording their appearances poses no challenge whatsoever!"

With her face brightening more and more, Chu Yan’er’s strokes accelerated.

Within under thirty minutes, the once-empty canvas now captured the side hall in exquisite detail, including the flickering glows from the lamps, rendered with striking realism. The twenty-eight youngsters appeared in motion and repose, leaping and chatting, laughing and brandishing their playthings, their vibrant forms leaping off the page as the image approached its finish.

All that remained absent were twenty-eight sets of eyes.

The attending servants had watched intently for some time, anticipating Chu Yan’er’s addition of the concluding details to those twenty-eight gazes.

A glint passed through her eyes as Chu Yan’er raised her brush and initially brushed the features of Yuan Shao at the artwork’s core, evidently planning to animate him foremost.