Chapter 282: Li Yunsheng

“…It’s a long story, so let me make it short.”

Liu Xiaohua picked up the cup of bitter tea that had already gone half cold, took a gentle sip, put it down, and looked past Su Wanli and Meng Wange’s shoulders out the window at the blue sky.

“But back then, she wasn’t called Li Yunsheng, but Li Yunyun.”

“She was the sole heir to the Cloudborn Ocean Hotel. The hotel itself is older than most people in our county, so she was basically a local little rich girl.”

“Sister Yunsheng has been a legendary figure in our Yunsheng County since she was a child. Li Yunyun showed incredible talent for painting from a very young age. Her family supported her, signing her up for all kinds of classes and entering her in a ton of painting competitions. She won so many awards that her hands must have gotten sore. She was the kind of unreachable genius in the eyes of every kid in Yunsheng County back then.”

“…Really?”

“Of course it’s true!”

Even though the topic was that slacker hotel manager, Liu Xiaohua’s tone was full of admiration for her—

“However, even though Yunsheng County is only this big, Li Yunyun wasn’t the only painting prodigy. Back then there was another girl named Zhang Sheng. Her talent in painting was on par with Li Yunyun’s, and in some areas she even surpassed her.”

“Zhang Sheng? Is it the ‘sheng’ from ‘bamboo’ plus the ‘sheng’ that means ‘endless growth’?”

Meng Wange raised her hand toward Liu Xiaohua while jotting something down in her notebook.

“That’s right! That ‘sheng’! Hey, how did you know?”

Liu Xiaohua blinked at Meng Wange in confusion but continued—

“Anyway, those two names often appeared together in all the newspapers and news reports in our county during those few years, like two opposing morning stars, neither willing to concede to the other.”

“Unlike Li Yunyun, who was from the hotel family, Zhang Sheng’s family was in the fireworks business. I still remember her award-winning piece from her first national competition. She painted a firework exploding in the night sky. The colors and atmosphere were like she had branded a real firework onto the canvas.”

“Li Yunyun also entered that competition and ended up taking second place. Proud and mentored by famous teachers, she couldn’t stand it. In one interview, she even publicly belittled Zhang Sheng, saying her flashy, unorthodox style had no technique at all and suspected she didn’t even understand art.”

“But Zhang Sheng wasn’t someone to mess with either. Within two days she fired back, saying Li Yunyun was the fool trapped by the rigid rules of academic painting, and that her works had no soul at all—they were lifeless.”

“Wow, and then what happened? Did they fight?”

Su Wanli listened with great interest, even tapping the table with the chopsticks in her hand.

“No, they didn’t fight. Less than a month after that incident, somehow they suddenly went from being bitter rivals to inseparable best friends.”

“Later on, they started publishing works under the same pen name. Because one of their names contained ‘yun’ and the other contained ‘sheng,’ put together they just so happened to sound like the name of our county, Yunsheng. So they named their pen name ‘Yunsheng’—the ‘yun’ from the grass radical, and the ‘sheng’ meaning ‘endless life.'”

“…Hmm, if they were going to combine them like that, shouldn’t their pen name have been the ‘yun’ from grass radical and the ‘sheng’ from bamboo radical?”

Meng Wange, who had been quietly taking notes, suddenly looked up with a new question.

“Uh, I wouldn’t know about that. Maybe just for simplicity? If you get a chance, you can ask her yourselves.”

Liu Xiaohua cleared her throat and steered the topic back—

“Anyway, after that, the two of them under the pen name ‘Yunsheng’ released many incredibly amazing paintings. They held art exhibitions in South City, other cities, and even other countries. It’s fair to say they were the greatest pride of our Yunsheng County.”

“Moreover, no matter how far away they went or how great their achievements were, every mid-month, they would faithfully return to Yunsheng County and set off homemade fireworks together on the beach next to the Cloudborn Ocean Hotel.”

“At first, it was just the two of them setting off fireworks and the two of them watching. But later more and more people came to watch their fireworks until the whole beach was packed so full that even they didn’t have room.”

“So simply put, they set up a shed by the sea and started a dedicated fireworks show, naming it after their pen name—the ‘Yunsheng Fireworks Festival.'”

“…I see.”

Su Wanli silently put down her chopsticks and stroked her chin.

“What happened next? I see Yunsheng County doesn’t have many tourists. There must be a reason it ended up like this.”

“Mm, a very simple reason. Zhang Sheng died of illness.”

Liu Xiaohua spread her hands helplessly—

“After that, Li Yunyun never painted another picture again and held no more art exhibitions. To commemorate Zhang Sheng, she returned alone to that old street, to her family’s hotel, and devoted herself wholeheartedly to managing the storefront and the monthly Yunsheng Fireworks Festival. Also, she changed her name to Li Yunsheng.”

“But without the reputation of ‘Yunsheng,’ fewer and fewer tourists came drawn by their fame. Although they certainly weren’t the main reason, our county has indeed been declining gradually. Now, except for us locals of Yunsheng County, very few people bother to attend that fireworks show.”

The story paused there. Liu Xiaohua let out a long sigh, her face full of regret.

“So, if only Zhang Sheng hadn’t died back then. Sister Yunsheng probably wouldn’t have put down her brush, and the two of them definitely could have become even more remarkable artists. Maybe even our whole Yunsheng County could have ridden on their coattails.”

Su Wanli listened, the corners of her eyes slightly moist.

“…I see. So that front desk woman who always has a cigarette in her mouth, wears a lazy, casual expression, and constantly tells dirty jokes actually has a story like this hidden behind her.”

Beside her, Meng Wange simply nodded thoughtfully and quickly scribbled something down in her little notebook.

“I see. Thank you, Teacher Liu.”

“Heh, no need to thank me. It’s all old news. You can ask any passerby about Sister Yunsheng and they’ll tell you a story or two.”

Liu Xiaohua waved dismissively toward Meng Wange—

“Oh, I almost forgot the main thing! You said you wanted to look around, right? Actually, this afternoon there’s going to be a really lively festival here! That’s exactly why I came back to Yunsheng County!”

Liu Xiaohua stood up, smoothed down the hem of her shirt, and beckoned to Su Wanli and Meng Wange—

“If you’re done eating, I’ll take you both there! I promise you’ll have a blast!”