Chapter 30: Chapter 30: Don’t Disgrace the Sinclair Family

It was a rare weekend.

Zeke Quincy and his uncle, Tanner Sinclair, were in the game room, each at a computer, wreaking havoc in-game.

The background music and Skill sound effects from the online game *War of Glory* were loud enough to give anyone a headache.

Zeke Quincy was shouting nonstop, his face and neck flushed with excitement.

“Uncle, hurry, hurry, hurry—”

“Fuck, where’s the healer? I’m about to die—”

“Tank, do you even know how to fucking play? Hold aggro! I’m about to pull it!”

Jean Quincy had to shout twice from the doorway before Zeke Quincy finally spared a glance for the two girls standing there.

“Why is it either a school uniform or a tracksuit?” Zeke Quincy complained.

Tanner Sinclair turned around too, pursing his lips. “Jean, you have to take our little niece out and buy her a bunch of new clothes today!”

Jean Quincy rolled her eyes. ’Why am I getting blamed for Aurora Sinclair not having any clothes or makeup?’

In the living room, Master Sinclair chuckled as he looked at the new crystal hair clip in Aurora Sinclair’s hair. “Our Aurora looks beautiful no matter how she dresses!” he praised.

Butler Sinclair nodded in agreement, his face full of pride. “Of course. The Second Miss has a natural beauty. She looks good in anything!”

Everyone: …

’These two have no principles whatsoever!’

’They’d probably praise her to the high heavens even if she had a blade of grass in her hair.’

***

Today was the day Stella Sinclair had invited them to an exhibition at the National Art Gallery.

The Quincy siblings had arrived at their uncle Tanner Sinclair’s house early in the morning. One came to play games, the other to pick someone up.

Master Sinclair was naturally delighted that the younger generation of the family was accepting Aurora Sinclair and taking her out with them.

Before she left, Master Sinclair gave Aurora Sinclair an anonymous Golden Card and told her to buy whatever she wanted.

Jean Quincy was so envious!

A card from Master Sinclair had to have at least an eight-figure balance. Her own grandfather had never given her that much money.

The two of them got into the Sinclair family car together. Jean Quincy was still hung up on the rumors from the school forum and didn’t say a word to Aurora Sinclair the entire ride.

It wasn’t until they got out of the car that she asked awkwardly, “What’s your relationship with Ethan Lowell?”

Aurora Sinclair looked at her, puzzled, and uttered a single word: “Classmate.”

“Anything else? Did he say… that he likes you… or anything like that?” As Jean Quincy spoke, her cheeks flushed red. Her eyes were filled with anxiety, and she subconsciously fiddled with the hem of her skirt.

Aurora Sinclair shook her head. She suddenly remembered the lesson Alvin Morgan had given her yesterday, and after studying Jean for a moment, she asked quizzically, “Is this puppy love?”

Jean Quincy’s face instantly turned beet red. She frantically waved her hands. “No… I’m not in any puppy love…”

Aurora Sinclair nodded, but her gaze was a little serious. “You shouldn’t get into puppy love. They’re immature.”

Jean Quincy froze, staring at her as if she’d seen a ghost.

’Who the hell taught her that?’

Though shocked, Jean Quincy felt a sense of relief. She found herself looking at Aurora Sinclair much more favorably now.

“After the exhibition, let’s go buy a couple of outfits. You’re actually quite pretty, but you insist on dressing so plainly. It’s embarrassing for me.”

Aurora Sinclair nodded.

When Jean Quincy took a liking to someone, she became very chatty. She filled Aurora Sinclair in on a lot of school gossip, and when she got to the incident from a few days ago, she suddenly looked at Aurora’s arm.

“Oh, right, how is your arm so hard? It felt like a branding iron. You don’t have something strapped to it, do you?”

Aurora Sinclair’s steps faltered for a moment. Her gaze flickered, but she didn’t answer.

Seeing that she didn’t want to talk about it, Jean Quincy figured it was probably from martial arts training and casually changed the subject.

***

At the entrance to the art gallery, Stella Sinclair was wearing a casual dress and light makeup, looking both intellectual and mature.

Standing beside her was Sue Quinn, dressed in a blue qipao and carrying the same handbag as last time.

The moment Sue Quinn saw Aurora Sinclair, her brow furrowed involuntarily, and her tone became harsh.

“Second Miss, you are a young lady of the Sinclair family, after all. When you are out, please pay attention to your image and don’t bring shame upon the family. We are here to see an exhibition, not to attend a sports meet. Dressed like that, what will people think of my First Miss?”

Normally, Jean Quincy would have joined in on mocking Aurora Sinclair after hearing that, but now, she found the words exceptionally jarring.

Her expression hardened as she scolded, “Is there a rule at the art gallery against wearing tracksuits? My cousin hasn’t said a thing, so what gives a servant like you the right to boss people around? You have no manners!”

Sue Quinn’s face instantly froze, and she was speechless for a long moment. Jean Quincy wasn’t afraid of her, glaring daggers at her.

The smile on Stella Sinclair’s lips faded slightly. She glanced at Sue Quinn and said in a tone that was neither too light nor too heavy, “Matron Quinn, apologize to Aurora!”

Sue Quinn naturally understood her meaning. Suppressing the humiliation and rage in her heart, she apologized in a low voice.

Aurora Sinclair nodded.

Stella Sinclair linked arms with Jean Quincy and walked into the gallery with a smile, trying to calm her down as they went. “What’s wrong today? Why are you so worked up?”

Sue Quinn stared at Aurora Sinclair’s back and gritted her teeth so hard they could have shattered.

’You little monster, I’ll drive you out of the Sinclair family sooner or later!’

***

The art gallery was filled with a rich artistic atmosphere, causing Jean Quincy and Sue Quinn to instinctively slow their movements and quiet their breathing, afraid they might make a fool of themselves and draw the ire of the other patrons.

The gallery was a one-way path, its walls lined with paintings by famous artists.

There weren’t many people today, but they were all prominent figures, so the hall was rather quiet.

With her hands in her pockets, Aurora Sinclair quietly followed behind Jean Quincy and Stella Sinclair. Whenever they came across a masterpiece by a renowned artist, Stella would stop and explain it to the other two in a low voice.

“This is a work by Veridia’s top traditional painter, Master Flora Guthrie. It mainly depicts the lives of country girls during their leisure time in the countryside. This patch of plum blossoms is the essence of the entire painting, full of profound meaning. It symbolizes that girls should have a resilient character, just like plum blossoms…”

As she spoke, she glanced at Aurora Sinclair, dressed in her black tracksuit, out of the corner of her eye, a sneer hidden in her gaze.

At that moment, Aurora Sinclair was leaning forward to look at the painting on the wall, her expression very serious.

’Huh? Why is my master’s wife’s painting hanging here?’

Aurora Sinclair was very confused.

This was a portrait her master’s wife had painted of her and her junior sister. Because Tiger had smudged it, leaving a small, black handprint, her master’s wife had no choice but to add a few strokes over the handprint, turning it into plum blossoms.

’My master’s wife said this painting was defective, not presentable, and needed to be thrown away…’

Meanwhile, Stella Sinclair was proudly concluding her explanation, “My teacher has deep connections with Master Flora Guthrie, which is how he was able to acquire a few of her paintings. A collector from Crestland offered one hundred million Flower Coins for it, but my teacher refused, which shows how high its collection value is…”

Jean Quincy looked on with envy, taking another careful look at the painting on the wall, which was hailed as a shining example of Veridian art.

Before they moved on, Stella Sinclair saw Aurora Sinclair frequently glancing back at the painting, seemingly quite fond of it, and a triumphant look crept into her eyes.

They looked at a few more sections of the traditional painting exhibition, one of which featured an early work by Master Flora Guthrie titled *A Hen’s Daily Life*.

Stella Sinclair pointed at the painting and said, “This piece won many major international awards and is highly renowned. It’s considered one of Master Flora Guthrie’s representative works. It established her unparalleled status in the art of painting chickens.”

Just then, Sue Quinn, who had been trailing behind them, added with a proud expression, “It was after seeing this very piece that the First Miss was inspired to paint her own stunning *Child Feeding Chickens Painting*.”

Jean Quincy was once again full of admiration. “Cousin Stella, you’re so amazing!”

Stella Sinclair gave a faint smile, her gaze once again darting toward Aurora Sinclair, the mockery in her eyes growing stronger.

Aurora Sinclair glanced at the painting, her eyes flickering.

***

Next to the traditional painting section was the calligraphy exhibition, which mostly displayed masterpieces by famous artists.

There was also a live calligraphy and painting exchange event taking place.

Stella Sinclair immediately spotted Lana Guthrie, the vice president of the Calligraphy Association, among the crowd of onlookers.

Lana Guthrie was also a member of the Guthrie family and was a distant relative of Stella’s teacher, Zane Guthrie. She was famous in the art circle for her calligraphy, and her elegant, lively, small-kai script was highly sought after.

However, she had a very old-fashioned and reclusive personality. Although she was one of the association’s vice presidents, she rarely managed its affairs and had very few students. As a result, most members of the association had only heard of her name but didn’t know her personally.

The only reason Stella knew of her was that her teacher had introduced them once.

Her teacher had once subtly hinted that Lana Guthrie’s influence and status in the calligraphy and painting world were higher than his. Although he didn’t explain why, if Stella could gain her approval in calligraphy, her own standing in the art world would be much more secure.

Stella Sinclair immediately led them over to greet Lana Guthrie. Lana had some impression of her and gave a faint nod, her greeting less than enthusiastic.

The event host was continuously inviting onlookers to come on stage and leave behind a piece of their calligraphy.

Most of the people here were insiders with a background in calligraphy and painting. It was a tacit understanding that one could use such an event to network through art and increase one’s own fame.

Sue Quinn suddenly spoke up with a smile, “Second Miss, aren’t you a big fan of Master Flora Guthrie’s work? Why don’t you go up and write a few strokes, too!”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep