Chapter 647: The Rigged First Prize

The next day!

At Beijing.

The ‘Youth Chinese Arts Cup’ competition had ended. The artworks from various locations had been sent over.

The competition was organized by the Chinese Arts Association and it had the support of the government.

At the entrance of the association.

The workers carried a giant box and mumbled to himself, “How many artworks are there in this box? Why is it so heavy?”

However he didn’t think too much about it, he just had to send it to the destination.

At the spacious classroom, there were several people waiting there already.

“Be careful, this is a little heavy. I don’t know how many artworks are there,” the worker said as he handed the box over.

“Haha, how heavy can it be? There would at most be 100 pieces of artwork for this Youth Chinese Arts Cup. Hey, why is it so heavy?” Another worker carried the box and almost fell to the ground. He almost let go of it. Then, he was shocked. He immediately placed it on the floor and when he opened it and saw how many artworks there were, “D*mn, so many of them?”

The other workers came over and were stunned. “There’s at least four or five hundred of them.”

“Let’s not talk about it. We should arrange them nicely for the teachers to judge them later.”

“Let’s go.”

These kids’ artworks were definitely not as good as the teachers’ artworks. However, the Chinese Arts Association had the responsibility to continue the legacy of Chinese Arts. They could only attract people to let their kids learn Chinese Arts by organizing events like this.

As for the prizes, they served as a form of motivation.

At 9am!

Some sound could be heard outside the spacious classroom.

The teachers of the Chinese Arts Association were here. They obviously didn’t get the most experienced teacher there to judge the teenagers’ artworks. They only got the average members of the association to be the judges.

They entered the classroom and when they saw the artworks squeezed together in the spacious room, they were stunned.

“There seems to be a lot of artworks this year.”

“It doesn’t just seem to be. There are really a lot of them. Three years ago, there were only about a hundred pieces. This looks like there are at least four to five hundred of them. It is going to be a draining task.

“That’s okay, how can the artworks of kids be that complex? You can finish looking at an artwork in three seconds.”

“That’s true.”

After entering the classroom, the teachers discussed among themselves. Then, they used their pens to mark a circle on the artworks that passed. In the end, they would come together and discuss about it again.

Then, the teachers from the association started to look at the artworks one by one.

“Decent, this one is decent. It looks to be worthy of the second prize.”

“I think this is worthy of the third prize.”

“Hey, this year’s standard is really much better than the past years. Looks like the kids are getting better at this.”

“Yeah, I saw twenty artworks and the standard was pretty good. Furthermore, they were only eight years old. Isn’t that unbelievable?”

“D*mn, if they’re this good at such a young age, they’d be unstoppable if they continue to be developed.”

Time past quickly.

It was 1030 pm.

The teachers of the association stopped but it was obvious that they were dumbfounded.

“Elder Qiu, what now?” A middle-aged lady asked.

The crowd was stunned. They didn’t know what to do.

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“That’s not right. The standard is so much different from the past years. How can these children improve so much in such a short time? According to our rules, there would be only one first prize winner, ten-second prize winners, twenty-third prize winners and fifty commendable prizes. However, these artworks are all equally good.”

Elder Qiu was an elderly man of the association. He had a pretty high status. Everyone looked at him and waited for him to make a decision.

Elder Qiu said, “That…”

He was also stuck in the middle. There were a total of 483 artworks. Initially, they could’ve settled the list of prize winners easily but now, it was difficult.

1 of the 370 artworks from Shanghai shocked them the most. The artist was only six years old but his artwork was exceptional. In their hearts, he had won the first place already.

The other artworks could only win the second and third spot.

However, the difficult task was the limit set for the second, third and commendable prizes. It was difficult to judge them.

What was with Shanghai? They literally didn’t give the other states any chance at all. They completely dominated the prizewinners’ list. The young artists from Shanghai were simply too good and their standard was much better.

“How about we give all the artworks from Shanghai a placing?” Elder Qiu said.

“That’s not good. What about the other places then? If the name list was published, we’d be scolded to death.”

Elder Qiu added, “What else do you want then? Shanghai’s artworks are simply much better than the other cities.”

“Is it okay if we were to adjust the winning prizes? Would that be a problem?”

“That’s a good idea. If we don’t give the prizewinners any encouragement, we wouldn’t feel happy about it too. I think we should follow your idea.”

“Let’s re-look at it. We have to look closely and take note of the intricate details and strokes. Use our professional judgment to choose the prize winners.”

“If we were to judge the details, the second and third prizes would be easier to split up. However, Shanghai’s artworks have clinched all the spots for second and third place. Which artwork deserves the top spot?”

Elder Qiu replied, “I have two artworks here. One is from Shanghai and one is from Beijing. However, I think the one with mountains and waters is better than the one with birds and flowers. Therefore, I believe we should award this Lil’ Fatty with the top prize. What do you think?”

Everyone started to discuss about it.

“Yeah, this six-year-old artist, Lil’ Fatty is impressive. The artwork is meaningful and it is worthy of the first place. Let’s give the other one a second place finish then.”

“We’ve never seen anything like this from Shanghai before.”

“Who knows? Anyway, this has already exceeded our targets. We have to rush the production of the prizes.”

“I just realized how painful it is to select the best children’s artworks.”

“It’s not just you. We’re all in pain.”

Dong dong!

Then, someone knocked on the door. A man walked in.

Elder Qiu asked, “Lil’ Chen, what is it?”

Lil’ Chen was the person in charge of the public relations of the Chinese Arts Association. Although he wasn’t there to draw, he was needed because the Chinese Arts Association needed to communicate with others.

Lil’ Chen was a bespectacled man and he looked decent. At the same time, he was enthusiastic. “Elder Qiu, have you selected the winning artwork?”

Elder Qiu nodded, “Yes. It is to be given to a six-year-old artist from Shanghai. It is really impressive.”

Lil’ Chen hesitated for a moment, “We have to give the first prize to Wang Hao Yang of Beijing. Wang Hao Yang’s dad is a notable leader in Beijing. He just called to request his son to get the first prize. Also, Wang Hao Yang is Elder Wu’s student. We have to give him some face.”

Elder Qiu was stunned, “You mean, Wu Guan Ming, Brother Wu’s student?”

Lil’ Chen nodded,” Yes, that’s right. Therefore, you have to give the first prize to Wang Hao Yang. You can select the others.”

“Lil’ Chen, that’s not right. We have to be fair and judge based on their abilities. They can’t just win based on authority. Furthermore, Wang Hao Yang’s artwork is really bad compared to this one.”

Lil’ Chen shook his head, “Everyone, how can you think of it this way? This is a competition for kids. It’s not like we’re not giving the kids their award. Don’t offend someone else because of this. Furthermore, if a six-year-old were to win the first prize, he would be arrogant and proud. Let’s not take that risk and perhaps it would be easier for him in the future.”

Everyone shook their heads. Perhaps the matter was finalized.

Elder Qiu didn’t say anything much, “Alright then.” He somewhat agreed with Lil’ Chen’s explanation.

Lil’ Chen nodded, “Alright, I won’t disturb all of you anymore. Oh, right, please pass me the name list for the prize winners. I will contact the company to make the prizes and certificates.”