Ch. 791..795

Chapter 792 Mr. Carmine turned to the voice, as did Sylvia. Lily was standing about a meter away from the crowd with Odell beside her. The man’s upright figure and handsome looks stood out from the others.

When Sylvia turned around, she found him looking at her with his deep gaze. The cold look on his face shielded his thoughts from her. Sylvia locked eyes with him for a second before she looked away. Mr. Carmine smiled and asked, “Lily, are you trying to flatter me?”

“Of course not. I’m telling the truth,” Lily said with a smile. Mr. Carmine was over the moon because of the praise. He then shot a displeased gaze at Sylvia, expressing his annoyance. Sylvia frowned.

Simon wanted to step up to defend her. He disliked the man’s attitude and wanted to comment on his painting as well but Sylvia stopped him.

She then said to Mr. Carmine, “Ms. Springsteen is right. Your painting is impressive, it's me who is short sighted.” Only then did Mr. Carmine give her a slight smile.” You’re still young, but I'll take your advice and see what to improve.” Sylvia tightened her lips but remained quiet.

Then, someone in the crowd said, “Ms. Springsteen is a fan of painting as well. Why don’t you give us a live demonstration as well?”

Everyone then looked at Lily.

Lily smiled. “Painting is just my hobby, I’m an amateur in this. | wouldn’t want to embarrass myself.” “Ms. Springsteen, we are all amateurs here, please grant us the pleasure of watching you paint.” “Yeah, Ms. Springsteen. We really want to see you paint.”

The others started to echo the suggestion.

Mr. Carmine chuckled and added, “Lily, it's been many years since I’ve seen you paint. This is your grandfather's event, and as his granddaughter, | think you should do a live demonstration for us, for his sake.”

With an embarrassed smile on her face, Lily said, “Okay, but please don’t laugh at me if | embarrass myself later.” “Oh, who would dare to laugh at you in front of Master Carter?” Mr. Carmine said. “Yeah, we would not dare to.” The crowd teased her and she smiled shyly.

Odell stood beside her as he listened to the flattery and praise with an expressionless look on his face. His eyes, however, remained fixed on Sylvia.

Sylvia looked down and silently stood in between Simon and Christopher as if she were a statue.

He frowned. Then, as the crowd cheered, Lily moved over to the table with the painting tools. The crowd gathered closer as they wanted to watch Lily paint up close. Sylvia was quickly pushed to the back of the crowd Since she did not want to be sandwiched in amongst the crowd, she held her belly with one arm and slowly retreated from the crowd.

As she drew distance from the crowd, someone knocked her on the shoulder and made her lose her balance. Fortunately, before she fell, a strong arm caught her and helped her back to her feet. She had thought it was Simon or Christopher , but when

she regained her balance and turned around, she saw Odell’s handsome looks.

He frowned and gruffly said, “Be careful.”

Sylvia’s gaze shifted and she quickly drew back her arm. She then hurriedly walked away from the crowd, leaving the man behind.

The man was disheartened when she left him in such a hurry.

He wondered if she was really that scared of him?

Seeing that she had made her way over to Simon and Christopher, he grunted before turning away. He headed to the rest area, where Master Springsteen was.

The rest area on the second floor was equipped with a soft couch. Not only did it provide a place for people to rest, but it also enabled one to have a bird’s eye view over the hall.

Master Springsteen was seated there as he enjoyed his tea. Someone whispered into his ear, “Sir, Ms. Lily is painting. Would you like to go and take a look?”

Chapter 793

“It's not necessary. | know what level she’s at,” Master Springsteen said. Odell’s entrance into the rest area caught Master Springsteen's attention. With a polite nod to Master Springsteen , Odell then sat down on the other side of the couch. Master Springsteen glanced at him a few times before

continuing to sip on his tea.

As soon as Lily started painting, the hall quieted down.

Sylvia, Simon and Christopher left the crowd and sat down, but Christopher's extroverted side soon drew him back to the crowd. Sylvia continued to sit with Simon.

“Sylvia, are you alright?” Simon asked.

Earlier, Ramona had been mocking Sylvia about her status as an ex-wife. Then, Mr. Carmine had given her a hard time. Even as a bystander, Simon had not been able to stand the insults, let alone the victim herself.

Sylvia pursed her lips and said, “I’m fine. Don’t worry.”

She had been able to put up with the insults so far.

Simon felt relieved after seeing her relaxed expression.

It was then the crowd that surrounded Lily suddenly erupted.

“Oh my god! Ms. Springsteen’s painting is gorgeous!” “It’s amazing! It carries a certain mood.” Sylvia turned to the lively crowd.

Simon grumbled, “Bunch of suck-ups.”

Sylvia smiled. “Maybe she really is good at painting.”

“If she was really that good at painting, she wouldn’t be nameless in the art world. Given her family’s influence, if she possessed even a sliver of talent, her family would definitely have turned her into a famous artist.”

Sylvia did not comment on his remark.

Then, Christopher came back. “Sylvia, Simon, Ms. Springsteen would like your critiques on her painting. Please go and have a look.”

Simon frowned. “I don’t want to.”

Christopher pursed his lips. “Come on, please do it for me.”

Simon pouted in silence.

The crowd around Lily quieted down and started to look

in their direction. They were waiting for them to comment on Lily's painting.

Christopher found himself in a quandary.

Sylvia then said, “Mr. President, please allow me.”

If Simon really commented on Lily’s painting, he would definitely offend every one of the Springsteens.

Christopher breathed a sigh of relief but whispered into Sylvia’s ear, “Remember not to mention the flaws and just focus on the good things.”

“l understand.”

Sylvia and Christopher returned to the crowd and went to Lily.

Everyone had their eyes on Sylvia and Lily. Some of them could not suppress their urge to gossip.

One of them was Odell's current fiance while the other one was the man’s ex-wife. The two of them might be polite and friendly to each other, but who knew what was truly behind their smiles? Especially now that the fiance had requested for the ex-wife to comment on her painting

Lily smiled at Sylvia and said, “Ms. Ross, please comment on my painting and give me a piece of advice or two.” Sylvia replied with a smile. “Okay.” She then had a look at the painting.

The painting had been done with watercolor. At first glance, the colors were vibrant and lively, but on second look, it had a poor finish.

Fortunately, even though her skills were not fully developed yet, her painting could be considered the one of the best among amateurs. With Christopher's reminder in her mind, Sylvia said, “ Ms. Lily is a good painter, the colors are vibrant and lively.”

Lily smiled. “Then are there any flaws?”

“No.”

Lily smiled wider. “How would you rank my painting among painting enthusiasts?” “It could be considered as one of the best.” “Oh? What if it’s compared to the professionals?” she asked.

Chapter 794 Sylvia pursed her lips.

To be honest, anyone from the Westchester Art Association could do better than her. But if Sylvia chose to be honest, she would definitely make Lily unhappy.

As Sylvia was pondering how to resolve this dilemma, Christopher stepped in with a smile, “Ah, naturally Ms. Springsteen’s skills are on par with the professionals.” Lily looked at Sylvia excitedly, “Really?”

“Yeah, really,” was Sylvia's stilted reply. Lily smiled brightly.

Before Sylvia could breathe a sigh of relief, Lily added,” Ms. Ross, | heard that your paintings are hard to find. Why don’t you do a demonstration for us and enlighten us with your skills?”

The hall quieted down once again as everyone turned their attention to Sylvia.

Sylvia was stunned. She choked on her words for a few seconds before she successfully uttered a full sentence.” Ms. Springsteen is too kind, but | don’t have any inspiration now. Perhaps another time?”

“It’s you who’s being humble, Ms. Ross. You are the famous Sunflower. Even if you are not at your best, even your scribbles must be better than mine,” Lily said. Someone echoed Lily's words.

“Ms. Sunflower, why don’t you grace us with a demonstration of your painting skills? I've never seen a master at work with my own eyes.”

“Yeah, please do a live demonstration. | want to see Ms. Sunflower’s skills.” Sylvia frowned and turned to Christopher for help.

She had no inspiration at all and she was not prepared to paint. Christopher also found himself in a quandary.

While he was considering whether to reject the request on Sylvia’s behalf, there was a commotion from behind. “Master Springsteen is here,” someone said.

“Is he here to see Ms. Sunflower paint?”

The crowd automatically parted to open up a path as Master Springsteen came over with the help of his assistant. He looked very excited, as if he was looking forward to seeing Sylvia paint.

The assistant brought him a chair from the side. After Master Springsteen sat down, he said to the crowd with a smile, “You guys continue, just ignore me.”

Christopher immediately swallowed his thought of rejecting the request. He walked to Sylvia and said in a small voice, “Sylvia, why don’t you just draw something? Just a simple item or a scenery.”

Sylvia frowned.

She wanted to tell everyone that she could not draw a thing now. It had been six months since she had touched a brush or canvas now. She even felt as if she had started to forget how to hold a brush.

“Ms. Ross, is there a problem? Or do you really not feel like painting?” Lily asked.

Some of the guests started to grumble softly. “No way. Is she going to reject Master Springsteen as well after saying no to Ms. Springsteen and us?” Christopher stepped in to defend her. “Ms. Springsteen, | believe Sylvia is thinking about what to paint

now. He then shot a gaze at Sylvia, signaling her to simply paint something Sylvia then looked at Lily.

The young lady was standing demurely nearby, with a constant smile on her face. She looked polite and kind as her lips curved into a smile. Yet behind that fake smile was the nobility and aggressive arrogance of the well family that she came from.

Sylvia’s eyes quickly scanned the crowd. Everyone was looking at her. If she rejected the request, it would mean being disrespectful to everyone, including Master Springsteen.

With that many pairs of eyes on her, Sylvia walked to the table with the paper and tools and simply picked up a brush. She dipped some paint and performed a stroke on the paper.

The crowd gathered closer to have a better look at what she was drawing

Even Master Springsteen extended his neck to have a better look at her painting. Everyone anticipated her painting, except for the man with the towering figure, standing further away. He was looking at her pale face through the crowd and his brows furrowed. ‘She’s good at painting, so why is she so reluctant to paint now?”

Chapter 795

The hall went quiet for a while.

Shortly after Sylvia had started painting, some people in the crowd gasped. Several people started to grumble and some started to whisper.

“What is this?”

“It's a blob of black. Even my dog can paint better than

her.”

“Isn’t she a famous artist? Is that all she’s got?”

“God knows. Ms. Springsteen is a lot better than her, yet she calls herself a master artist.” Surrounded by the crowd, Sylvia was standing stiffly in front of the table with the brush in her hand.

She had only painted a black blob on the paper before her. There was no pattern and no shapes to it whatsoever.

She had no idea what to paint and while she was struggling with her thoughts , she had heard the crowd commenting on her skills.

Everyone mocked her and belittled her for her poor performance.

Their words woke her up from her trance. Then, when she saw what she had drawn on the paper, the brush fell from her hand. Her limbs went cold and her body stiffened.

The criticism skyrocketed.

Mr. Carmine, who she commented on earlier, grunted and complained , “I thought she was a good artist yet she’s even worse than me, an amateur.”

“She’s not even half as good as you, yet she critiqued your painting.” “I don’t know about this but I've heard that her artworks were highly sought after in the past. | wonder what has happened?” Ramona and Madam Springsteen had already stood beside Lily the moment Sylvia started painting.

Seeing Sylvia’s wretched appearance put a smile on their faces.

Ramona even echoed the criticism that she heard from the crowd. “Hmph. She must have done so many evil deeds that it has robbed her of her ability to paint.”

Sylvia was so petrified that her hands were tightly clenched. Standing just outside the crowd, Odell frowned coldly at the situation. Just as he was about to walk over to her, Simon came in from the side and stood in front of Sylvia.

Odell froze. He pursed his lips and suppressed his urge to go over. Aiming a frosty look at the crowd, Simon argued,” Watercolor is not her forte and yet you people forced her to paint with this. It’s natural that she isn’t able to perform well.”

“Even if it’s not her forte, she shouldn’t have done so poorly.” “Yeah, wasn’t she good before?” “Why are you so anxious, Mr. Amos. Is it your baby that she’s having?”

“Yeah. She divorced Master Carter some time ago, yet now she’s pregnant?” “I heard she has a complicated private life.”

The criticism started to grow out of control.

Sylvia clenched her hands tightly, until even her nails were digging into the palms of her hands. Simon angrily argued, “You people call yourself the upper class yet none of you can speak decently?” Tensions rose to a new high.

The crowd became angrier after being shouted at by Simon and a few seconds of silence later, the insults became worse.

“He’s so anxious that we must be right.”

“He calls himself a master artist with that personality? | think he’s a liar.”

Further away, Odell’s expression turned grim. He moved his feet and wanted to intervene. “Enough!” All of a sudden, Master Springsteen bellowed.

It silenced the crowd immediately, and it also stopped Odell from coming over.