Sweet slice-of-life love story: Wife, Let's love again
Chapter 146 - 144: Adults Don’t Have Summer Vacation_2

Chapter 146: Chapter 144: Adults Don’t Have Summer Vacation_2

Qin Guanglin listened as Chen Rui spoke confidently, nodding occasionally. He had to admit that Chen Rui was indeed professional in this area and was not secretive about anything.

"Then if I have a better idea while drawing, can I make minor changes to the storyline?"

"It’s best not to," Chen Rui shook his head. "If you were drawing your own comics, you could change it however you want, but this story has another author. He is the original creator."

"Okay," Qin Guanglin asked casually, without any current thoughts of making changes.

"Respect the original work," Chen Rui didn’t skip the topic but continued, "After all, no one knows what he was thinking when he wrote the story. What you think can be improved might be something he is aware of too, but he chose to design it that way for a reason; due to certain sentiments, feelings, or experiences... That’s unclear to anyone but himself, who knows which parts are written for his eyes only."

"That makes sense..." Qin Guanglin nodded as he listened, then hesitantly added, "But compared to writing for himself, isn’t making the story more exquisite for the readers more important?"

"What do you mean by ’exquisite’?" asked Chen Rui.

"Er..." Qin Guanglin was stuck.

"Sometimes it’s precisely the stuff written for oneself that truly attracts readers," Chen Rui said with a smile, "because creation is often imbued with personal style and ideas meant to attract like-minded people... Humanity’s sorrows and joys may not coincide, but literature, painting, music, poetry, and such arts can resonate emotionally. To me, that’s where the charm of comics lies."

"Is that so?" Qin Guanglin vaguely felt something was off but couldn’t quite grasp what it was.

"Is there anything happier than finding a group of friends with shared interests?" Chen Rui retorted.

"Hold on."

Qin Guanglin pondered for a moment, then realized what was off. "Isn’t the ultimate goal to make money? Going against the current mainstream market surely won’t work; we should prioritize the readers’ tastes..."

"That’s true, but not entirely," Chen Rui tapped his fingers lightly on the table, looking at him, "What happens if everyone caters to the mainstream audience, drawing the types and styles they like?"

"What will happen?" Qin Guanglin didn’t bother to think and just waited for him to answer.

"Every comic will look the same. Wouldn’t that be dull?"

"Surely not..."

"This isn’t something that hasn’t happened in other industries," Chen Rui said, waving his hand with a smile. "It’s true that the reader is god, but we have to be staunch atheists. You might cater to the moment but not forever. The readers’ tastes can change at any time, mainstream trends can shift, and only by satisfying yourself first, conquering others with your distinctiveness, can you create genuine masterpieces — so comics can flourish with diversity rather than just skin-deep variations of the same formula."

"Hmm... that makes sense."

Qin Guanglin felt Chen Rui was starting to sound dramatic again. Gathering his materials, he rose from his seat, "I need to get going."

Diversity in blooming... that’s an industry thing.

He didn’t want to bloom; he just wanted to make money.

"Think about it, I hope you find your own style," Chen Rui swiveled in his seat, turning to look out the window.

If the aim was just to make money, why would he bother with hand-drawn comics when using computer templates to make third-rate comics was faster and more stable?

Yet what was the point of making fast-food works just for money?

There was no point.

The meaning of life isn’t to make money.

Qin Guanglin returned to his seat, not rushing to pick up his brush to draw, but holding his unfinished work and looking through it again.

Reflecting, pondering, digesting.

Anything that needed changing he changed, things he wasn’t sure how to change he marked to consider later. Before he knew it, it was time to leave work.

"Time to clock out, see you, boss," Jiang Lingling, with her bag on her back, passed by Qin Guanglin’s place and after a couple of steps stopped, "Boss, are you free this weekend?"

"I’m busy, have something to do," Qin Guanglin waved his hand, "goodbye."

"Alright then."

Jiang Lingling nodded, smiled inexplicably, didn’t say more, and walked out of the company with light steps.

After tidying up his things, Qin Guanglin looked at Sun Wen, who was still busy at his desk, leaned over, and asked, "Working overtime again?"

"Not anymore," Sun Wen finished his last stroke, set down his pen, and started packing up his things, "I can draw at home too. Come Monday, you can take a look and give me some pointers."

"I’m saying, why don’t you stick to your coloring job, and insist on drawing these pictures?" Qin Guanglin wondered, "What’s gotten into you? Surely it’s not because of that breakup?"

"Hey, I’m free anyway, just learning."

Sun Wen always fobbed him off like this, and Qin Guanglin was too lazy to ask for a reason, "You’re just going to stay at home and draw over the weekend?"

"What else could I do?" Sun Wen countered, and then slapped his forehead, "Oh right, Yu Fei’s wedding is on Sunday. Should we go together or what?"

"Let’s go together; I’m not too familiar with the place he’s booked, wouldn’t want to take the wrong path."

"Fine, we’ll meet at my... at Xiao Yu’s place, and the three of us will go together," Sun Wen nodded.

After quickly agreeing on the plans, they both walked down the stairs and headed for the bus station. Qin Guanglin’s bus arrived first. He called out, got on the bus, dropped in his coins, and sat down in the back.

It was his first time attending a wedding of someone his own age, and he felt subtly different inside... It was really time to get married, the past few years of jesting and playing around in school still felt like yesterday. In the blink of an eye, it was time to settle down.

Yu Fei, that guy, used to hold onto a basketball every day, playing by himself under the sun in the heat of summer when everyone else found it too hot, like a silly fool.

He wondered if marriage would change him.

Riding the bus all the way home, he got off at the nearby intersection and immediately heard Little Fatty’s screams. He was running around chaotically holding Aunt Li’s black cat.

"What are you shrieking about?" Qin Guanglin cleared his ears, the kid’s yelling was truly annoying.

"Big Black Charcoal’s super transformation mode!" Little Fatty, holding the black cat, pointed at Qin Guanglin, "Brother Lin, you better surrender, or my level two cannon..."

"What’s all this nonsense? Go home and eat, or your mom’s going to beat you."

"I already ate." Little Fatty, holding the cat, followed behind Qin Guanglin, "Brother Lin, can you draw me a Big Black Charcoal from Ironclad Little Treasure?"

"No."

"Come on, Brother Lin, just draw one for me..."

"Draw it yourself." Qin Guanglin pocketed his hands and headed home, "You just told me to surrender; not drawing squat."

"I was wrong, Brother Lin, please draw it for me~" Little Fatty persisted, tagging along beside Qin Guanglin.

"Is it an assignment from your teacher?"

"No, I just wanted..."

"Want my foot, get on home." Qin Guanglin waved him off, "Did you do your homework?"

"It’s summer break, there’s still so many days left, no rush." Little Fatty lifted his head defiantly, looking somewhat smug at Qin Guanglin, "Adults don’t have summer vacation, do they?"

"So what if we don’t?"

"I have one, two months, nyah nyah nyah nyah nyah~" He stuck out his tongue multiple times, as if to taunt Qin Guanglin for not helping him draw, and ran off into the distance with the cat.

"..."