Ding Hanbai and Ji Shenyu had been cooped up in the study painting all day. Ruined sheets of Xuan paper littered the carpet. They were supposed to be competing, which meant their work had to be distinct. But they were also supposed to be collaborating, which meant they had to discuss and plan things out.

They put down their brushes at almost the same time. The horizontal Xuan papers were laid side by side, and two paintings of the same theme leaped into view. Ji Shenyu bit his lip hard. It was like kicking out suddenly in one's sleep, an unconscious action, but after he did it, his heart pounded with panic.

He had no time to compare, focusing intently on the other's painting. The flowing clothes of the figures and the flapping wings of the magpies were far too realistic, the textures as fine as silk, the complex folds not the least bit messy. He remembered how Ding Hanbai had painted the Ghostly Pattern, each stroke so meticulous that it had drawn applause from the onlookers.

Ding Hanbai was lazy and arrogant, yet his paintings were incredibly meticulous. That was why Ji Shenyu was so surprised.

"Anything you want to say?" Ding Hanbai was also examining the two paintings. "To be honest, your piece is very good if you were to show it to others. Here with me, it's just passable."

Ji Shenyu already admired the other's painting skill, so he didn't argue back. "How is it 'just passable'?"

Ding Hanbai pointed casually. "We're not painting for appreciation, but to lay a foundation for carving. So it must be precise, and it must be real. A certain painter once said that only through extreme likeness can one capture the spirit. Your 'extreme likeness' isn't quite there yet."

Ji Shenyu accepted the criticism humbly. "Are there any other problems?"

Ding Hanbai glanced at him, seemingly surprised that he would be so modest. His tone softened as he pointed out the issues. "Painting emphasizes two main points: a well-arranged composition and appropriate shades of color. We only need to look at the composition. Do you think there's a problem with your composition?"

Ji Shenyu studied it for a moment. "The living things are too concentrated, making it feel heavy on one side."

He sat down to redraw it. Once it was completely free of flaws, he merged his drawing with Ding Hanbai's. Merging the drawings meant completing one piece together. Facing a single sheet of paper, they had to blend their respective paintings into one, with no deviation, no stark differences. Outsiders had to be unable to tell them apart.

The posture was cramped. Ji Shenyu's right arm was pressed against Ding Hanbai's left. Just when he was about to run out of room to move, Ding Hanbai lifted his arm to get it out of the way, draping it behind Ji Shenyu and half-enclosing him. The two of them held their breath. They might have exchanged a glance when dipping their brushes in ink or switching them, but otherwise, there was no communication.

A silent collaboration ended with the setting sun. A complete painting was finally finished.

Ding Hanbai commented, "If you can paint like this, then why didn't you paint more precisely before?"

Ji Shenyu had also studied painting diligently and didn't want to be misunderstood for no reason. He got up, ran to his bedroom, and came back with a booklet. The hardcover only bore Ji Fangxu's seal. He said, "This is my master's painting. Take a look."

Ding Hanbai opened it. Inside were landscapes and figures, each with its own form. The lines were fluid and simple, the colors clear and elegant, yet they didn't stand up to close inspection. Any detailed areas were sketched over with just a few strokes. It had a certain charm, but it lacked meticulous craftsmanship, giving the impression that the painter was quite lazy.

Ding Hanbai shook his head. "That's not right. My family also has a painting album by Master Ji, and it's not like this."

Ding Hanbai searched for and found an album of flowers and birds, a birthday gift from a young Ji Fangxu to Ding Yanshou. Flipping it open, the flowers and grasses were all extremely realistic, and the birds seemed to come alive. It was a level of precision that was difficult to replicate.

Ji Shenyu immediately understood. Ji Fangxu had later become obsessed with antiques, and his focus had gradually shifted. In any case, there were gains and losses.

A night passed. Ding Hanbai didn't go to work again. Early in the morning, he carried an aluminum kettle to water the flowerbeds. The lilacs, sharing his surname Ding, were watered by him until they were a muddy mess. After watering, he went to the study to wait, preparing to finish the line tracing in the morning.

Ji Shenyu, chewing on a piece of candy, arrived late and slumped over the desk. "Senior Brother, I have a question."

Ding Hanbai was wiping a stone with a deerskin cloth. "What question?"

Ji Shenyu said, "Aren't we supposed to be competing? But carving a single piece together requires us to stay in sync. How do we determine who's better?"

Ding Hanbai raised his eyes, his gaze just like that time when Ji Shenyu was carving the Lucky Bamboo, and his tone was just as unfriendly. "It's enough if you can just keep up. Distinguish who's better? The only one better than me is Ding Yanshou. Distinguish my ass."

Ji Shenyu shot to his feet. He had long experienced Ding Hanbai's arrogance, but he never expected the other to still look down on him so much.

The two of them settled down before the Hibiscus Stone to trace the lines. This stone was a beloved treasure they could not afford to treat carelessly, so they put their rivalry aside for the time being and tried their best to cooperate. Ji Shenyu had already witnessed the speed of Ding Hanbai's tracing. His own lazy painting style, inherited from Ji Fangxu, couldn't be changed overnight, and he gradually started to fall behind.

He knew Ding Hanbai was slowing down to wait for him, but if slowing down by forty percent would have been just right, Ding Hanbai only slowed down by less than twenty percent.

Ji Shenyu's palms started to sweat. "Senior Brother, wait for me."

With a smooth flick of his brush tip, Ding Hanbai didn't slow down at all. "Why beg someone to wait? You might be refused, ridiculed, or looked down upon. Better to grit your teeth and catch up, level with them, and then surpass them. Then you can shame them, mock them, and crush them."

Ji Shenyu clenched his teeth and sped up, focusing intently, and just barely managed to not fall behind. When he finally finished tracing the lines, he was covered in a fine sheen of sweat. He asked, "One day, if I really do shame you, mock you, and crush you, what will you do?"

Ding Hanbai answered, "Nothing. That would just mean I didn't work hard enough myself." He rinsed his brush clean, tapping the handle against the brush washer to flick off the water droplets. The beads of water flew off, but a faint smile appeared on his face. "Never resent a strong opponent. Whether you're in the spotlight or down on your luck, you must always maintain a good posture."

Ji Shenyu nodded. Ever since arriving here, Ding Hanbai had said a lot of things to him—cold words and warm, good and bad. Some he agreed with, others he forgot as soon as he heard them. But he remembered what was just said. He committed it to memory, along with Ding Hanbai's expression and tone.

After the painting came the rough carving. From concept to painting skill, they had each won a round. Now came the most fundamental and crucial part: cutting with the knife. Not ten minutes later, another disagreement arose.

Like a thief, Ding Hanbai stole several glances at the other. "Zhenzhu?"

He even pretended to be affectionate when he spoke. "We're doing a rough carving to get the basic shape. What are you doing with that small knife, carving so finely?"

Ji Shenyu held a small, long-handled knife. "Traditional fine workmanship does indeed start with a rough carving, but my master doesn't do it that way. He defines a few key points, fixes the overall structure, and then carves from the center outwards."

Ding Hanbai thought of the Nanhong Agate Statuette. The high praise he had given it at the time was all because of the light effects. But once a cut was made, there was no turning back; every cut had to be decided in advance. "Does doing it this way determine the brightness?" he asked. "Are you actually determining the points of light?"

The tip of the knife stopped short. Ji Shenyu grew a little anxious. "You... you can't..."

Ding Hanbai was intrigued. "Can't what?"

For a rare moment, Ji Shenyu spoke with severity. "You can't steal my master's technique! This is something he developed himself. It's not to be passed on to outsiders!"

This technique went against traditional carving methods. It seemed like just a few extra cuts made in advance, but without extensive research and practice, it was impossible to achieve the desired effect. Naturally, it wasn't easy for an outsider to learn.

Ding Hanbai said deliberately, "Don't let it be lost in your hands."

"No need for your concern," Ji Shenyu said defiantly. "In the future, I'll pass it to my children, and then to my grandchildren. It will be passed down for generations without end... Maybe I'll even apply for a patent."

Ding Hanbai laughed. Hidden beneath the laughter was a trace of regret. He had spoken too soon. Perhaps Ji Shenyu really could compete with him on an equal footing. Setting aside inspiration and unique skills, he only observed the look in the other's eyes.

Ji Shenyu was completely engrossed in his work, his face as placid as still water, only his eyes alive and active. The emotion in them was very simple; besides concentration, there was a thick layer of fondness.

Ding Hanbai thought back. Ji Shenyu had never looked at his father that way, nor Jiang Caiwei, and certainly not himself. He only looked at this piece of Hibiscus Stone this way. But he understood that if it were a piece of Chicken-Blood Stone, or Ice-float Agate, or Hetian Jade, the look in Ji Shenyu's eyes wouldn't change.

He had said it before: once he picked up a knife, his eyes and heart held only the material.

He could do it, and Ji Shenyu could do it too, but there was a huge difference.

The rough carving was completed in the afternoon. Ji Shenyu went back to his room. Ding Hanbai covered the Hibiscus Stone with the deerskin cloth and sat quietly for a moment, thinking about this and that, before getting up to greet the bright sunshine.

The weather was so nice, why not go for a walk?

Ding Hanbai changed into a pair of white sneakers. Instead of using the corridor, he stepped onto the railing and leaped two meters out, reaching the archway in a few steps. The bedroom door creaked open, and Ji Shenyu stood in the doorway. "Are you going to Jade Pavilion?"

Ding Hanbai stuffed his hands in his pants pockets. "I'm going out to have some fun. If you want to come, go change."

Ji Shenyu was quite wary. "To the bathhouse?"

His heart still hammered with fear; the sensation of the body scrub and sauna lingered unpleasantly for days. He changed his clothes and went out with Ding Hanbai. Ding Hanbai gave him a ride on his bicycle. The wobbly ride made him almost forget the "asshole, bastard" on the beam.

"Senior Brother," Ji Shenyu apologized, "I'm sorry."

Ding Hanbai was completely unconcerned. "It's fine. It was my fault for forgetting to pick you up that time."

Just those two sentences. After they were spoken, neither said another word. The journey to their destination was quiet. They entered through the main gate, passing a long screen wall. Behind it, the air was filled with the noisy chatter of a bustling crowd coming and going.

Ji Shenyu followed Ding Hanbai, and after walking around the screen wall, he stepped into a vast new world—the Daimao Antique Market.

It was a dazzling array of treasures covering the ground. Setting aside the matter of authenticity for a moment, the sheer variety of beautiful things was enough to overwhelm the eyes. The people were as numerous and varied as the objects. Ding Hanbai began to browse, walking down the narrow paths, fascinated by this and that, completely forgetting Ji Shenyu behind him.

Ji Shenyu couldn't be bothered with anything else either. He carefully examined every stall. After squatting for a long time, someone kicked him in the butt. He stood up, searched around, and saw Ding Hanbai picking out some prayer beads not far away. He went over to watch and thought the wooden beads were really ugly. Turning his head, he saw many stalls were selling wooden beads.

The boss was trying his best to praise his wooden bracelets. "Zitan, very oily, beautiful gold stars..." Ding Hanbai played with them and said, "Seven out of ten Zitan are fake. I can see the texture of your beads isn't good. They'll probably crack and splinter in a couple of years."

The boss guaranteed it. "Impossible! Mine definitely won't crack!"

Ding Hanbai added, "If they don't crack, it means the density is low. High-quality wood is always dense, so your raw material must be no good."

The boss was trapped by his logic, damned either way, and it looked like they were about to argue. Ji Shenyu hid behind Ding Hanbai and tugged on the corner of his shirt, not wanting to cause trouble.

Who would have thought that after nitpicking, Ding Hanbai would obediently take out his money and buy all the bracelets.

They browsed for a long time, not missing a single spot from beginning to end. Finally, they were drinking soda outside a small shop, the bracelets spread out on the table. Ji Shenyu picked one up, sniffed it, and frowned. "Fake Zitan."

Ding Hanbai nodded in agreement. "Indeed."

'Then why did you buy it?' Ji Shenyu wanted to ask. Before he could, Ding Hanbai asked him first, "Wooden ones, walnut ones, top-grade twelve-petal Vajra Bodhi... what do you think of these bracelets?"

Ji Shenyu didn't even have to think. "Ugly. I wouldn't wear them even if you paid me."

Ding Hanbai finished his orange soda. "I think they're ugly too, but a lot of stalls are selling them, more popular than jade bracelets. This is the market trend, the next fad that's about to get hyped up."

This antique market was a microcosm. Fakes were rampant, buyers were ignorant, and more and more people were entering the circle, yet the real, high-quality items couldn't find a market. To adapt meant to lower one's standards. For Jade Pavilion specifically, lowering standards was a death sentence.

"So what do we do?" Ji Shenyu asked this time.

Ding Hanbai replied, "Nothing. This is fine too. The high-class things remain high-class. The tacky trends can come and go, it doesn't matter."

They continued to walk, but Ji Shenyu was no longer as excited as before. He vaguely sensed that Ding Hanbai hadn't finished his sentence. In other words, he couldn't really talk to him about it.

He also vaguely felt that Ding Hanbai was hiding something in his heart, something more important than Jade Pavilion.

After walking for a while longer, Ding Hanbai saw that Ji Shenyu's hands were empty and wanted to fulfill his duties as a host. "See anything you like? I'll buy it for you."

Ji Shenyu said consciously, "I'll just look. There's nothing I want."

Ding Hanbai misunderstood him. "Are you afraid of picking a fake?"

In that moment, Ji Shenyu read a sense of smugness in Ding Hanbai's eyes. Looking again, he saw that Ding Hanbai was exuding the effortless air of a wealthy big shot. He thought Ding Hanbai was about to waste money, but unexpectedly, Ding Hanbai leaned in and whispered something to him.

"I can tell the real from the fake among these things, with no mistakes at all."

Ji Shenyu was led around, still in a daze when they stopped in front of a stall. He saw all kinds of unique items and was a bit overwhelmed. Ding Hanbai told him to pick one. He casually picked a brooch with an enamel design.

Ding Hanbai frowned. "You're going to wear it?"

"I'll give it to Aunt to wear," he said.

Ding Hanbai snatched it and put it back. "I'm giving it to you, and you're giving it to Aunt. Making an offering with borrowed flowers and telling me to my face. Should I thank you for it?"

After speaking, he pushed Ji Shenyu's hand away and chose one himself. After filtering out the flawed items and fakes, he made his choice at a glance, picking up an Amber Pendant. "This one." He tossed the pendant to Ji Shenyu, paid, and left.

On the way back, the sun was about to set. Ji Shenyu sat on the back of the bike, looking at the pendant. He held the cord, moving his hand up and down to find the best light. Against the distant evening glow, the amber twirled, revealing the beauty formed over tens of thousands of years.

He said, "Thank you, Senior Brother."

Ding Hanbai pedaled the bike, not saying "you're welcome."

Ji Shenyu asked again, "Why did you choose this to give to me?"

"The color is beautiful," Ding Hanbai answered this time, but he didn't say the other half of the sentence—'like your eyes.'