The Versatile Master Artist

Chapter 47: Chapter 34: The Way of the Painter

”Is there something going on?”

Gu Weijing walked over to Koizumi Katsuko.

Strangely, this time Yakai Gangchang did not follow his sister around like a little shadow.

He glanced at his sister and Gu Weijing, then at the black sedan nearby, with a peculiar expression on his face.

”I heard about the mural. If it wasn’t for your excellent painting, Gangchang might have caused you a lot of trouble today.”

Koizumi Katsuko bowed to Gu Weijing.

”Gangchang, come over and apologize.”

She waved at Yakai Gangchang behind her, and although a bit unwilling, he shuffled over step by step under his sister’s stern gaze.

”Sorry, I didn’t carefully check the registration form.”

He said dejectedly.

”My father said that even Elder Cao praised you today, what a pity... I can only look at the photos.”

She looked up and down at Gu Weijing, with a tone filled with regret for not being able to see him mixing colors for the mural firsthand.

”Ahem.”

Koizumi Katsuko was about to say something else when a coughing sound interrupted her.

”Shengzi, aren’t you going to introduce this stranger to me?”

A cold voice came from the open window of the Mercedes S65.

Gu Weijing’s gaze fell on the car, where a young man in his twenties with a small moustache and a pair of large Ray-Ban & Ferrari series sunglasses on his forehead sat.

The young man’s overall appearance was a mix between an old Edo-era samurai and a pilot from the movie ”Top Gun” flying an F-14.

Very much in the style of an artist.

”Sorry, this is Mr. Gu Weijing. Mr. Gu, this is my senior, Koshiba Tarou, and the one in the passenger seat is my mother. They flew from Osaka to Yangon to visit us.”

In the passenger seat, Mrs. Sakai was a blonde-haired, blue-eyed beauty who looked young and attractive.

Gu Weijing recalled that in their first meeting, Shengzi had mentioned that her mother was Spanish.

”Hello, Auntie.”

He nodded towards the car.

Mrs. Sakai had no intention of getting out of the car to meet Gu Weijing; she merely nodded slightly through the glass as a greeting.

”Are you Gu Weijing? I heard Professor Lin Tao thinks highly of you.”

Koshiba Tarou opened the car door and got out from the driver’s seat.

He was tall, slightly more than half a head taller than the not-yet-grown Gu Weijing.

Koshiba Tarou pushed his sunglasses up on his forehead with his index finger, peering at Gu Weijing through the bottom of the frames.

It seemed he already knew a bit about Gu Weijing, contrary to the stranger he referred to earlier.

”Senior Xiaosong is a renowned emerging artist in Japan. Also, his father is the famous oil painting master, Koshiba Kentaro, lauded as the ’Klimt of Osaka.’”

”You’re the son of the founder of the Xiaosong Gallery?”

Gu Weijing raised his eyebrows in surprise.

Koshiba Kentaro is a well-known contemporary Asian oil painter, whose work style is influenced by the Pre-Raphaelite and Symbolism movements, focusing on asymmetrical composition and patterned forms, favoring vibrant colors and linear styles, and using a gilded tone and textures symbolizing hidden mystique, enjoying international fame.

Beyond his identity as a painter, Koshiba Kentaro is also a very successful businessman.

He founded the Xiaosong Gallery brand.

Compared to Xiaosong Gallery, the difference with Gu’s Calligraphy and Painting Shop is like the difference between a small shop selling spicy snacks at a school gate and a 7-Eleven, one of the Fortune 500 companies.

Last year in the fourth quarter, Xiaosong Gallery’s annual sales of artists under contract approached 1 billion yen, ranking fifth in all Japan and the largest gallery in Osaka today.

Back when Koshiba Tarou was still in school, he accompanied his father Mr. Xiaosong, who was the chairman of the All Japan Calligraphy and Painting Federation, to visit Professor Yakai during the Japanese New Year.

The first time he saw Koizumi Katsuko, he was dumbstruck for three seconds before regaining his composure.

As the Young Master of the Matsuboto Family, Koshiba Tarou, the kind of upper-class Young Master, was no stranger to beautiful women.

However, adorned in a traditional dress for Japan’s most important traditional festival, the slender figure of Koizumi Katsuko appeared to him both genuinely Eastern pure and charmingly Western, with a serene demeanor.

Koshiba Tarou was instantly captivated, and the tavern passersby he used to frequent became uninteresting common faces in comparison.

She was like a pure butterfly that appears and flies away in every man’s youth, and Koshiba Tarou dreamed of capturing this butterfly as his private treasure.

Currently, Japan’s upper society still maintains relatively traditional marriage ties. The legal marriage age in Japan is eighteen.

Many girls from prominent families are engaged early and become full-time housewives as soon as they graduate from university, or even earlier. Some even marry first and then attend university.

His father, Koshiba Kentaro, very much supported his son’s decision.

Forming a marriage alliance with a great artist like Yakai Ichiro would also benefit the Xiaosong Family Art Gallery greatly, appearing much more respectable than dallying with some TV actress.

The only thing that made Koshiba Tarou a bit discouraged was.

He realized after getting closer that Koizumi Katsuko was actually a very aloof person, and her reaction to his almost direct pursuit was neither distant nor welcoming.