From Robinson Crusoe

Although the zebra wood carving on Saturday made "God" very unhappy about his appreciation of his own work, he still answered Chen Zhou's questions truthfully.

Upon hearing that the wood carving was made by Zebra, Chen Zhou nodded thoughtfully.

Zebra excelled in woodworking, creating mortise and tenon joints of far superior quality to those of the other natives.

If he carved such a wood carving, it wouldn't be surprising.

"Zebra, he's quite talented."

Chen Zhou rotated the wood carving in his hand, carefully examining its details once more, before placing it back on the wooden shelf.

"What do you think about making Zebra the third manager? He's always performed very well."

Facing Saturday, Chen Zhou asked.

He plans to select three people to be in charge of fishing at sea. Among the natives, Zebra is the most trustworthy and quick-witted, and seems to be the right person to manage the fishing affairs.

However, Chen Zhou knew that his observations of the indigenous people had been insufficient recently, and his understanding of them was far less than that of Saturday and Sunday.

After all, the teachers and daily affairs management for the indigenous people are usually done on Saturdays.

Since deciding to "not use those you doubt, and not doubt those you use," he has rarely personally and meticulously handled the relationship with the indigenous people.

Now that such a significant decision is being made, he must consult Saturday and Sunday beforehand, just as an emperor would consult his prime minister on important matters.

He is just an ordinary person, not an omniscient and omnipotent god. Seeking opinions from all sides is the wise choice.

……

Upon hearing Chen Zhou's question, Saturday lowered his head.

The "god" may not know, but he does know what has happened recently.

While Zebra's past performance was indeed impeccable, what happened a few days ago has overshadowed its "excellent conduct."

After thinking for a moment, Saturday finally told the truth about the problems caused by the zebras and the natives regarding the sugar-stirring incident.

Chen Zhou stood aside, listening quietly to Saturday's story, and gradually frowned.

He had always had a good impression of the natives.

Although the natives were fierce in their fighting and lifestyle habits, they were still relatively simple and honest by nature, which was significantly different from the shrewdness and sophistication of modern people. They were not good at performing or disguising themselves.

After hearing what he said on Saturday, he realized that humans are very complex animals, and that both in modern and primitive societies, there will naturally be some outliers.

Perhaps due to environmental issues, the probability of such people appearing in indigenous tribes is relatively low, but it is not impossible.

As luck would have it, the "perfect" zebra ended up in his possession.

……

With his thoughts racing, Chen Zhou recalled when Zebra first arrived on the island. After being frightened by bullets, Zebra was the first to give up resistance, even though he was the tallest and strongest of all the natives.

After being captured, among all those who were taken into the cave for interrogation, he was the most sensible one, spilling all the secrets he knew like beans spilling from a bamboo tube.

Afterwards, Chen Zhou heard that Zebra had shared the chocolate he was rewarded with with the other natives.

He always thought Zebra was a kind-hearted, simple man who was good at socializing and eager to learn.

After listening to what Saturday said, and reviewing Zebra's past performance, Chen Zhou realized—

It turns out that Zebra isn't a nice guy at all; everything he does has a clear purpose.

He simply concealed his purpose very well, and with the added advantage of his indigenous identity, it was difficult for others to detect his intentions.

……

"In that case, let's put this matter aside for now."

Chen Zhou made his decision.

He then patted Saturday on the shoulder approvingly.

"You handled it very well. You didn't use force directly, nor did you make a big fuss about it. At the same time, you took care of Kulu and Zebra, and you also hinted at and deterred him."

As a manager, your performance this time was outstanding.

……

Upon receiving the praise from the "god," Saturday's round face immediately turned bright red, and she was somewhat embarrassed.

After waiting for a while, seeing that Chen Zhou was still standing behind him and showed no intention of going into the house to check his paintings, Saturday finally couldn't resist anymore.

He carefully pointed to the painting hanging on the wall and said softly.

"Could you take a look at my painting? I feel there's still a lot of room for improvement."

After saying that, Saturday paused and added a sentence.

"You haven't guided me in drawing for a long time."

Chen Zhou was thinking about how to deal with the zebra—

Through Saturday's account, he realized that this guy was a fence-sitter and not as trustworthy as he appeared.

Driven by fear of the incredible power of firearms, he could betray his tribe and the Spanish without hesitation.

That means that if he encounters a larger and better-equipped enemy with artillery in the future, he is very likely to betray the island again and take the island's secrets to another side.

Such "traitors" and "spineless cowards" have always been the most hated by the Chinese people.

In wartime, if such a deception and cover-up had occurred, Chen Zhou would have skinned the zebra alive.

But this was during normal times, and the zebra hadn't done anything too outrageous. If the zebra were executed simply for this incident, it would likely only cause fear among the natives.

……

Chen Zhou subconsciously wanted to distance himself from Zebra.

However, he also valued Zebra's carpentry skills and was pondering if there was a better way to deal with it when Saturday's words interrupted his thoughts.

With a helpless smile, Chen Zhou rubbed Saturday's head, his tone slightly reproachful.

"I was just thinking about something."

Although he was scolding him, the smile on his face did not disappear.

Indicating that there was no need to apologize on Saturday, Chen Zhou took two steps forward, took down a thick stack of framed paintings from the wall, and picked them up one by one to appreciate them carefully.

……

After taking over educational affairs on Saturday and becoming a teacher and housekeeper on the island, the physical labor decreased, but the working hours did not decrease.

He has so many trivial matters to deal with that he rarely has time to paint.

But I heard a quote from Chen Zhou on Saturday: "Time is like water in a sponge; you can always squeeze some out."

Saturday didn't know what a sponge was, but he did understand that as long as you use your time more wisely, you can always do what you want to do.

With this spirit, he seized every short break each day and painted many pictures on Saturdays.

He kept Chen Zhou's teachings in mind and always prioritized basic skills when he didn't feel the urge to create.

After countless practices, his lines have become quite skillful, and his handling of perspective, light and shadow, and form has gradually acquired the flair of a professional painter.

……

The first few paintings that Chen Zhou looked through were all relatively complex still life paintings.

Most of them are wood carvings and pottery, with a few metal products.

With neat and standard hatching lines, Saturday successfully drew the shape, texture, and light and shadow of the object.

As Chen Zhou slowly flipped through the pages, the smile on his face grew even wider.

By Saturday, his skill level was comparable to, or even slightly better than, that of someone who had taught himself sketching in high school.

This shows that not only did he practice diligently on Saturday, but he also has a great talent for painting and is not mediocre at all.

If things continue like this, Saturday's sketching skills will probably surpass his very level very soon.

However, although their sketching techniques were almost identical, Chen Zhou was able to offer some critiques of the flaws in Saturday's artwork.

Even if you haven't eaten pork, you've still seen pigs run, right? Chen Zhou's own painting skills aren't that high, but he has seen many famous paintings and has learned a lot of professional knowledge about painting.

With this knowledge, even if his drawing isn't much better than Saturday's, it doesn't prevent him from offering critical guidance to Saturday—being a keyboard warrior is something he used to excel at.

……

While looking at it, I pointed out several problems with Saturday's painting.

Seeing that Saturday had written down all these opinions on paper, and seemed to take them very seriously, Chen Zhou shook his head again.

Sometimes people become obsessed with something for no reason at all.

When he first started teaching Saturday painting, he never imagined that this boy with no prior experience would get to where he is today.

Despite having so many things to do on Saturdays, he still manages to practice consistently and make slow but steady progress. Perhaps this is what love and passion are all about!

Unfortunately, he has lost that passion for painting.

……

As Chen Zhou flipped through the pages, he came to the last painting in the entire collection.

Among a sea of ​​black and white sketches, this one stands out for its unique touch, incorporating pink and purple.

When Chen Zhou saw the painting, he was stunned.

The mountains and rivers in the painting are not gloomy and deep, but rather a white, undulating outline.

Against this backdrop, rice seedlings, field ridges, dark clouds, raindrops, the hazy outline of a small courtyard, a watchtower faintly visible, indigenous people working in the fields, and even the wrinkles in the indigenous people's wet clothes are all combined in a harmonious way.

This is a drawing method that is quite different from sketching.

It does not pursue the accuracy of the material shapes in the painting, but seeks a spiritual feeling, which is a particularly important aspect of Chinese painting—the artistic conception.

……

Looking at the painting, Chen Zhou was stunned for a long time before asking about Saturday.

"Did you draw this?"

On Saturday, he was initially quite confident, thinking that this was his most outstanding work. However, after seeing Chen Zhou look at it for so long, he became less certain.

He hesitated for a moment, then answered softly, "I drew it."

After saying this, Saturday lowered his head—

The techniques used in this painting are quite different from the sketching techniques taught to him by the "gods." Although he thinks the painting has a unique aesthetic, he cannot guarantee that the "gods" think so as well.

……

Upon hearing Saturday's answer, Chen Zhou fell silent once again.

After more than ten seconds, he finally spoke—

Do you know what artistic conception is?

Seeing that Saturday shook his head, Chen Zhou hung all the sketching exercises back on the wall, took only the painting in his hand, gestured for Saturday to follow him, turned around, pushed open the door, and left the cabin.

……

The two walked quickly, one after the other, and arrived at the cave bedroom in the blink of an eye.

Chen Zhou placed the "Farming in the Rain" picture from Saturday on his desk and took two books from the bookshelf next to him.

These two books have been on the island for over a year, but because they are not very practical, he has only flipped through them a few times.

The titles of the books are "An Introduction to the Techniques of Fine Brushwork Flower and Bird Painting" and "An Introduction to the Techniques of Traditional Chinese Painting".

They were delivered to the island along with the second anniversary gift package, which included two books, five rolls of Xuan paper, an inkstone, and three large bags of bulk Chinese painting pigments.

The set includes a brush, ink, paper, and inkstone; everything is included except for the brush.

Opening the book "Introduction to Chinese Painting Techniques," Chen Zhou found a page with a landscape painting and pushed it in front of Saturday.

The painting depicts a misty, rainy day, using only black and white to outline the clouds, mountains, and water.

The water is depicted using blank space, with only a few light ripples outlined on it, yet it evokes a feeling of drifting clouds, swirling mist, light rain, and flowing water.

On the water, there is a covered boat with a fisherman wearing a straw raincoat and hat, leaning on a long pole. He is facing away from the viewer, as if admiring the rain scene in the distance.

Judging from the overall content of the painting, it is quite similar to the "plowing in the rain" painting from Saturday.

……

I saw paintings of many different styles at Chen Zhou's place on Saturday.

The design drawings are meticulous and feature clean, sharp lines.

Some works feature realistic and accurate sketches; others are humorous and witty cartoons that accurately capture the characteristics of characters and exaggerate them.

But this style of painting was indeed the first time he had ever seen one.

At first glance, he thought the painting was very simple, even to the point of being somewhat crude.

But in those blank spaces on the paper, he vaguely saw things that weren't drawn on the paper.

It could be flowing water, clouds swept by the wind, or even the invisible wind and damp air, as well as some emotions he could feel but could not express.

"So, can you understand this feeling?"

Looking at the dazed Saturday, Chen Zhou asked.

There was no response on Saturday.

Chen Zhou did not press further, but instead flipped through "Introduction to Chinese Painting Techniques" and showed Saturday another painting.

This painting is quite famous; it's "Fishing Alone on a Cold River" by Ma Yuan of the Southern Song Dynasty.

On the yellowed paper, there is only a small boat and an old man fishing on the boat. Yet, the viewer can see endless water ripples and seem to feel the vastness of the river and the biting cold air on the river.

……

Tropical regions never experience winter, and on Saturdays, one cannot feel the coldness of the river surface; one can only appreciate the profound artistic conception expressed by the painter through the vast expanse of blank space.

Unsure whether he had truly grasped the artist's feelings, Saturday nodded hesitantly.

"I think I can understand..."

……

Without expressing dissatisfaction with Saturday's ambiguous answer, Chen Zhou took out a piece of paper and wrote a poem on it.

"Birds have vanished from a thousand mountains, and human tracks have disappeared from ten thousand paths."

An old man in a straw hat and raincoat, alone in a small boat, fishes in the cold river snow.

Placing the poem next to "Fishing Alone on a Cold River," Chen Zhou reminisced with a touch of emotion.

"There are so many things worth mentioning in my hometown."

Whether it's poetry, painting, or calligraphy, they are all worth a lifetime of study.

Because they are so profound and complex, I haven't even scratched the surface of them, so I've never explained them to you.

"However, today, I seem to see a potential in you, a potential that is suitable for traditional Chinese painting."

Remember when I asked you, "Do you know what artistic conception is?"

Seeing Saturday nod again with a bewildered look on his face, Chen Zhou turned to the first few pages of "Introduction to Chinese Painting Techniques".

In the introduction to the concept of artistic conception, the author wrote the following:

"The artistic conception of Chinese painting is a comprehensive expression of capturing the spirit through form, the interplay of emptiness and fullness, and the fusion of poetry and Zen."

Its essence lies in expressing infinite meaning with a limited canvas, using brush and ink to articulate one's own philosophy, thereby uniting natural scenery with one's state of mind, allowing the viewer to feel the artist's emotions through the painting.

On Saturday, he lowered his head and stared blankly at the line of text.

His Chinese proficiency was still not high enough. Although he recognized each individual character, he couldn't understand them when they were put together.

Seeing this, Chen Zhou did not blame him, but simply patted Saturday on the shoulder.

"From today onwards, these two books are yours. Take them home and read them at your leisure. I think this path suits you better." (End of Chapter)