The Versatile Master Artist

”Just casually throwing out some bait.”

The Underworld Godfather was unconcerned: ”It’s best if it works, but it’s no big deal if it doesn’t.”

The Bald man nodded,

Before he turned to leave, he couldn’t help asking: ”Do I really not need to have him tied up? He wouldn’t be harmed. Drug lords in the Golden Triangle like to use heroin injections to control informants, once hooked, they’ll be more obedient than a dog. They wouldn’t even blink when killing their own father. Brother Hao, you don’t like this method, but for a high school student, there’s no need for drugs, just starve him for two or three days, and he’ll definitely be obedient.”

”This shows you still don’t understand.”

Brother Hao’s face bore a smile full of lasting significance.

He held some fish food, slowly extending his hand into the aquarium, while shaking and slowly opening his palm.

”This is still the mindset of raising ordinary carp. An artist desires that precious spirit. You drug him, and he becomes useless. Deprive him of food, and though he yields, that fighting spirit might be gone.”

”To hold this koi in your hand, you can’t use a hook, nor can you crudely use a fish gun or spear. If it’s bruised, injured, or bumped, it’s not worth much anymore.”

”You need patience and the willingness to spend, only then can you fully tame Mr. Xiao Gu.”

Brother Hao applied gentle strength, firmly grasping the tricolored koi eating bait in his hand.

Splash...

The koi surfaced, furiously flicking its tail, but unable to move.

”Rest assured, he won’t escape.”

The middle-aged man showed a smile.

...

[Will there be a day I can fly free like a bird?]

[Is it sudden, between sunrise and sunset?]

[Or within a week, a hundred weeks, a thousand weeks?]

[Or after a cycle of Spring and Autumn, when seas run dry and rocks crumble?]

[...]

Gu Weijing gently sketched with the tip of his fountain pen, depicting a little boy wearing a golden scarf, sitting on the beach gazing at stars.

From the computer speakers beside him, ethereal music with small hand drum accompaniment resounded.

For some reason,

Mr. Tree Sloth recently seemed to want Gu Weijing to speed up his drawing progress, increasing his daily reading time by more than half an hour.

The ”Little Prince” book was originally not very thick.

The selected key paragraphs had already been read to the end.

Today, Mr. Tree Sloth changed the way of connecting.

He didn’t read certain paragraphs aloud as usual.

Instead, he played for Gu Weijing a song, ”Equation,” the theme song from the highest-rated animated French movie of 2015 on IMDB, ”Little Prince.”

”The protagonist of a fairy tale is the sum of all the story characters’ intersection. I think, sometimes, a song might have more penetration than the vast amount of text, Lady Detective Cat, have you seen the shadow of the Little Prince in your heart?”

On the other side of the computer, Anna paused the music playback.

She had always liked the theme song of this animated film, ethereal and full of fairy tale charm.

Among all the music adaptations of ”Little Prince,” Anna actually loved the soundtrack of the 2002 French stage musical the most, with this song as her second choice.

The musical’s soundtrack had a more classical style.

When she was a little girl, she was once taken by her aunt to watch this stage musical live from the VIP box at the Paris Garnier Opera House.

Now, her study still treasures the LP record of this musical released by Sony.

However,

The stage play was too long to play.

Illustrating needs simplicity, clarity, and eye-catching qualities which align with the essence of popular music.

Even if the animation’s plot, compared to Saint-Exupéry’s original work, has many subjective amendments by the director, the lyrics themselves are still quite aligned with the original artistic spirit of ”Little Prince.”

Thus, after much contemplation, Anna still chose ”Equation” for Detective Cat Sister.

Anna’s phone ringtone was this song.

If it weren’t for her own voice not fitting well with the current situation, she would have preferred to personally sing this tune to Lady Detective Cat.

Gu Weijing glanced at the sketch before him, nodding with satisfaction.

”Hmm, I think I’ve captured the fairy tale image of all the characters from ’Little Prince.’ I should be able to start drawing that cover now.”

The cover illustration

The Scholastic Group’s requirements were not complicated, similar to the perspective chosen for most ”Little Prince” book covers or movie posters.

”Background as a desert, the protagonist Little Prince looking up at the stars.”—the directive on the contract documents stated.

The image of the Little Prince gazing at stars in the desert could be said to be the most classic public impression of the character.

Don’t be fooled by the simple cover request,

Mr. Tree Sloth insisted that he place this illustration last in the tasks.

Only after having a deep concept of all character images and feeling supremely confident could he begin drawing.

The cover illustration was the most crucial piece for book publishing illustrations, equivalent to a beauty model’s face or a commercial movie trailer.

Whether an illustration can captivate viewers largely depends on the cover.

If the cover is messed up, even if the inside is drawn beautifully, you can’t save it.

Just this cover illustration, the publisher’s quote was as high as twenty-five thousand dollars, nearly a fifth of the total contract fee.

”Great, I trust your ability. Can you provide me with this cover illustration by the end of this weekend?” Mr. Tree Sloth asked.

”Actually, it could be done today. Eager much?” Gu Weijing noticed a certain implication in the other’s tone.

The ’Little Prince’ project team at the publisher had been urging Anna repeatedly.