The Versatile Master Artist

Jean Arnou was very angry.

The old gentleman even felt a bit aggrieved in his heart — I held up the pressure of the ”Oil Painting” and respectfully invited you, this little painter, to be a guest at the ranch.

Gave you plenty of face, and this is how you repay me?

Did she really think he couldn’t deal with her just because he usually kept a low profile?

”Shut it off, shut it off, turn off the TV. Immediately! We’re not watching anymore!” Jean Arnou ordered in a rage.

”Wait.”

Dr. Jin Anqing suddenly spoke up.

This psychologist had been very silent while Tony was viewing the painting.

He was standing by with a frown, lost in thought.

At this moment, Dr. Jin suddenly spoke, stopping the assistant ready to turn off the TV.

Everyone was stunned.

The psychologist took a few steps, walked over to Jean Arnou, and gazed at Tony’s tear-streaked face for a few seconds, softly saying, ”It’s not a bad thing.”

”Dr. Jin?”

The hand caressing his son’s back paused, and Jean Arnou looked puzzled.

”There’s a saying among psychotherapists that a good therapist always has tissues on their desk. Guiding clients to cry is never a bad thing. On the contrary, shedding tears might be one of the healthiest sensory behaviors.”

Dr. Jin Anqing indeed pulled out a pack of tissues from his pocket.

”Crying isn’t a bad thing? Can’t you see how heartbroken this poor child is?”

Anya couldn’t help but voice her criticism.

Humph!

These people, each and every one, all have hearts of stone.

”She is sad because of Amy’s departure. Tears are the result, not the cause.”

”People become sad due to breakups, illnesses, losing jobs, and various negative pressures. Crying is a process of venting such pressure. The most dangerous are those who bottle up all kinds of pressure inside, feigning smiles.”

Dr. Jin shook his head: ”Clients who cry often feel much better with just a stack of tissues and an understanding embrace. Conversely, those who pretend to be strong are more prone to depression.”

”I once saw a case in medical school, a 35-year-old law firm partner at his engagement party, surrounded by friends and family, kissed his young, beautiful fiancée, and then, during a trip to the restroom, leapt off a seventeen-story building.”

”Only in his accompanying suicide note did people discover he had long suffered from pressure and depression, and the coroner found he had a habit of self-harm with blades and was addicted to drugs. Yet until he leapt off the rooftop, everyone around him remembered him as a cheerful, fun-loving, healthy individual.”

The doctor handed tissues to the illustrator, for him to wipe his son’s tears, and softly asked, ”How long has it been since you last saw Tony cry so heart-wrenchingly?”

Jean Arnou froze again.

Truth be told.

As a child who never grows up, Tony certainly cries enough in daily life.

He cries when he trips over his shoelaces, cries when he can’t hold onto a coffee cup and it breaks.

Sometimes, in the middle of the night, Tony’s cries for his cat or for Amy would echo through the ranch. Several caretakers have been tormented to the point of mental breakdown.

But those cries are often either panic or bewilderment, and they come and go quickly.

The kind of gut-wrenching, soul-piercing, life-or-death cries... have not appeared in a long time.

Such pure and heavy sorrow like water... has also not appeared in many years.

The night Amy died, it was as if a part of this child’s soul was forever taken away.

”As a doctor, I rarely draw conclusions without lab reports, but the moment I saw Tony crying his heart out, in such an emotional breakdown, I knew it was a cry worth 2 points.”

Dr. Jin nodded.

”What does ’worth 2 points’ mean?”

The assistant was still puzzled, but Jean Arnou’s face already showed a hint of surprise: ”You mean...”

”Yes, I believe that just this cathartic crying session alone might reduce Tony’s autism severity rating by two points on the ABC Autism Scale.”

Dr. Jin nodded: ”It appears Detective Cat’s idea was right.”

The illustrator detected the deeper meaning in the psychologist’s tone.

The old gentleman blinked slightly: ”Doctor, did you already know what kind of work Detective Cat was going to create?”

”Mr. Tree Sloth is Detective Cat’s agent.”

”He had a brief communication with me in advance, and we had an exchange about the general painting concept. It’s a very bold idea, bold to the point of being a bit over the top. However, he still convinced me.”

Dr. Jin Anqing looked at the flames on the screen and shrugged: ”Of course, this is also the first time I’ve seen the physical painting. I didn’t anticipate beforehand that Detective Cat’s work would be so, so...”

”So penetrating.”

The psychologist carefully chose his words.

After Anna discussed with Detective Cat that day, they decided to create a piece of work that ”faced the soul head-on.”

Miss Elina immediately communicated their ideas to Dr. Jin Anqing.

This was both communication and smartly finding someone to back up their plan.

As a newcomer artist just beginning to make a mark, Detective Cat could afford to be simple, inexperienced, and focused only on the emotional impact of her work.

However, Miss Elina, as Detective Cat Sister’s agent, had to consider all aspects.

Needless to say.

If no heads-up was given, and a scene like just now occurred, Jean Arnou could have furiously turned off the TV, putting Detective Cat on the blacklist of an art giant’s mind.

Failing to build good connections might turn all the effort put into the painting into enmity instead.

Wouldn’t that just leave them empty-handed!

Several major misconceptions in an artist’s life typically include — thinking that hard work guarantees good art, believing good art guarantees awards, and assuming awards mean one won’t lose out to pre-determined selections.

The biggest taboo in art is ”thinking you know.”

Even in an absolutely fair situation, an excellent piece of work might not satisfy everyone.

Every audience member is a subjective individual.

A great work of art can earn praise from the majority of viewers, but some just won’t sync with it.

No matter how good it is, it cannot beat a simple ”I don’t like it.”

On a darker note.

Even if Tony wasn’t moved by the sketches and even forced over the edge.

Detective Cat Sister made sure to get the primary doctor’s approval first, rather than acting on her own.

Dr. Jin Anqing would take the blame.

Initially, when Anna proposed her painting concept, Dr. Jin also thought it was quite risky.

Anna convinced him with a single sentence.

”Doctor, I am a pet lover; before my closest relative passed away, they handed me a puppy, asking me to love it as I had loved them. So in a way, I can understand Tony’s feelings and experiences.”

”From the so-called ’ritual of love’ at the pet hospital, everyone has been carefully maintaining a lie, telling him that his beloved cat, Amy, never left. This lie has been maintained for thirty years, and Tony has been self-deceiving for thirty years.”

Mr. Tree Sloth continued: ”Perhaps, over this long period, a part of Tony’s soul already realized that Amy would never appear by his side again. Yet he still allows himself to maintain the fantasy of searching for Amy.”

”Escapism is like alcohol, both are placebos. They are weights on the balance of emotions towards happiness. People can temporarily overcome pain by constant evasion. But it’s always a short-term analgesic with a time limit.”

”But once it is exposed to the sun and evaporates cleanly, the disappointment returns again and again, stubbornly without release.”