Chapter 573: She Scratched Him
Chapter 573: Chapter 573: She Scratched Him
Brooke Mitchell felt frustrated and aggrieved. It seemed as though Vera Xavier had bullied her, yet not a single word she’d said was out of line, and none of her actions were inappropriate. On the contrary, Vera smiled at her the entire time. Her demeanor was poised and graceful, and her words and actions were unfailingly polite and courteous.
She couldn’t find any fault with Vera, even if she wanted to. She couldn’t even complain about her to Beckett Nathan!
And yet, she felt that she had truly, genuinely been bullied by Vera today!
She bit her lip and said, "Whatever the case, she’s just too much! I will absolutely not let Nathaniel marry her. If we really let her into the family, she’ll walk all over me in the future!"
Beckett Nathan was still utterly confused by her outburst. He could only ask, "Then can you tell me what she did? I can tell Nathaniel is very happy with her. If we’re going to object, we at least need a reason, right?"
"Leaving everything else aside, with her family background, she can forget about marrying into the Nathan Family!" After thinking it over, Brooke realized that was the only reason she had. She truly couldn’t find any other fault with Vera!
But she was still extremely unhappy, so she added, "And her looks... she’s like a little seductress. You can tell at a glance she isn’t good wife and homemaker material. How can a girl like that marry into our family? Don’t let her ruin the Nathan family’s reputation!"
As soon as Beckett Nathan heard this, he felt his wife was being a bit unreasonable. But she was furious right now, so he didn’t criticize her. Instead, he went straight into the study to see what Vera had been doing.
When he went inside, he lifted the sheet of white paper Brooke had placed over Vera’s painting. He was stunned for a moment when he saw the verdant painting, *Jungle Dyeing*, and then said in surprise, "The quality of this painting is very high. She painted this?"
Brooke nodded. "Yes, she’s the one who painted it. I asked her to make a copy."
"This is very well painted," Beckett said, curious. "Are you angry because she lied to you before, saying she only knew a little about painting but couldn’t actually paint?"
"No." Brooke couldn’t quite articulate what she was truly feeling. "She genuinely can’t paint. She doesn’t even know how to mix colors. But it’s obvious she’s practiced calligraphy. When she started applying color, they were all wrong. After I gave her a small reminder, she was immediately able to mix the right shades. That initial awkwardness wasn’t an act."
"What’s more, after she mixed the colors, she just picked up the brush and started painting with these rapid strokes, without another glance at the original. I asked her, ’How can you make a copy if you don’t look at the original?’ And you know what she said?"
Beckett shook his head, but Brooke didn’t wait for an answer. She went on, "She actually said, ’I’ve already studied the original painting. It’s all in my mind now; I don’t need to look at it anymore.’"
"That’s pretty bold," Beckett chimed in. "Does she have a photographic memory or something?"
"Who knows!" Brooke said sullenly. "Look at this painting. The first half is clearly unpracticed, but the second half is surprisingly professional. The brushwork is fluid, the mood profound, and most importantly, she finished the whole thing in just ten minutes."
Beckett examined the painting closely. Sure enough, there was a significant difference in skill between the first and second halves. Because it was painted so hastily, some of the finer details weren’t handled with precision. But it was precisely this roughness that gave the painting an added touch of grandeur.