Rebirth: Once Again With You

After the awkward introduction, the three were finally seated, with Li Caiyi sitting beside Dai Shenqiang and Shao Jingfei sitting across from them. To be fair, Shao Jingfei was pretty carefree and laid-back, and only Dai Shenqiang was the nervous wreck.

"Don't be so tense. I'm in the same year as Caiyi, so no need to be so stiff with me." Shao Jingfei said lightly. "You haven't even touched the cake I made."

"Oh! I'm sorry!" Out of reflex, Dai Shenqiang spoke formally, making Shao Jingfei laugh again.

"When I heard from Caiyi, I didn't believe it at first, but you are very different from your brother."

"Y-you know my brother?"

"Well, not personally, but he has been the unbeatable top-ranking student in our year for two consecutive years. It will be weird if I don't know him."

"Is that so? My brother is indeed amazing," Dai Shenqiang's tone eased up a lot at the mention of his brother.

"I might be young, but I'm very strict with my job. Professional is my middle name, so expect some criticism if I see something that can be improved."

Dai Shenqiang straightened his back. "Y-yes! Looking forward to receiving your advice!"

Shao Jingfei and Li Caiyi shared a dumbfounded look before they burst out laughing.

"Man, he is hilarious!" Shao Jingfei said in the middle of his laughter.

"Stop it. You will only make him even more nervous, pfft!"

Dai Shenqiang's face heated in embarrassment. He couldn't calm down and accidentally made a fool out of himself.

Shao Jingfei wiped the tears from the corner of his eyes after he had his fill of laughter.

"Okay, putting the joking aside, can I see your work now? The one you made together with Caiyi?"

Dai Shenqiang flinched before he swallowed his saliva nervously. "Yes, I have it here with me."

"Show me?" Shao Jingfei opened his hand, and Dai Shenqiang put the file in his hand. He waited with bated breath as Shao Jingfei pulled a stack of paper from inside it and read it at fantastic speed.

He finished reading everything within two minutes. Dai Shenqiang couldn't help but admire him. His facial expression changed from a goofy guy into a professional working instantly.

"I have read it. First of all, the story is interesting, and you also draw well."

Li Caiyi and Dai Shenqiang smiled at each other at the positive comment until they heard his following sentence.

"But there is nothing extraordinary about this. It doesn't grab my attention at all."

Dai Shenqiang felt his blood turn cold at the sharp comment. Shao Jingfei put down the manuscript in his hand before heaving a deep sigh.

"I know this will happen somewhat. But I thought it's not bad to give you guys a chance. It turns out the same as I expected, after all."

"Can you tell us what's wrong with it?"

"Frankly speaking, it didn't mesh together. There are a lot of instances where the perspective of your drawing is too monotone and doesn't display the sequence of events well. Your drawing style also isn't suitable for this. It can't keep up with the story Caiyi had written."

Disappointed by the response he got, Dai Shenqiang tried his best not to let it show on his face before asking again, "Then, what should I do about it?"

"Either you change your drawing style altogether, or you ask other people to make the story for you. I'll be blunt here. At this rate, you'll only drag Caiyi down."

"Jingfei…" Li Caiyi called out to him with an unsure expression.

"I told you, right? I'm a professional. When it is due, I will give a compliment, but if not, it is what it is. Don't take it personally to heart, but it will never make it big, even if you can gain some readers using this. I don't see any reason to invest in something that has no chance of being popular."

Faced with Shao Jingfei's straightforward response, Li Caiyi could only bite her lips before looking to her side hesitantly. She knew Shao Jingfei would never evaluate their works unfairly, but she wondered if Dai Shenqiang could take the harsh criticism.

'What if it blew Shenqiang's confidence? I wonder if I should comfort him?' Li Caiyi's thoughts went awry inside.

To her surprise, Dai Shenqiang took a deep breath before he raised his head. "I understand. Can you tell me anything you find unsatisfactory in this manuscript? I'm sure you still have a lot to say about it."

Shao Jingfei's brows raised slightly at his question. The corner of his lips curved up in amusement before saying, "Sure, but let me warn you, my critics can be harsh."

"I get it just from your 'brief' comment earlier. I want to hear everything and carve it in my mind."

"At least you got determination," Shao Jingfei smiled before pointing out a mistake in one of the panels.

His explanation was clear, and there was no room left unexplained. Dai Shenqiang even took out a note to jot down Shao Jingfei's critics and advice.

Li Caiyi was left to watch their conversation in silence. Since they were talking so seriously, she found it hard to intervene. Fortunately, Dai Shenqiang wasn't poorly affected by the criticism and listened earnestly to Shao Jingfei's words.

She glanced at Shao Jingfei and couldn't help but admire him once again. It was amazing how he could point out everything and even suggest some advice to improve it. Although Li Caiyi was still skeptical about his family, at least she knew that the Shao family was wise to not let go of such a talent.

They were so into it they didn't notice Li Caiyi left her seat to refill their empty glasses with more drinks.

It took about an hour before Shao Jingfei finally emptied his glass again.

"I think that's all I can point out for now. My stand remains strong. Your drawing style is not suitable for a manhwa. It will better suit something else, rather than this. That is if you want to be popular as soon as you can."

"I see. But changing my drawing style will take a lot of time and effort."

"That's why I said it will be better for you to start with something else. To make manhwa, you'll need a simpler and creative point of view to depict the scene, which is something the current you don't have."

"What do you suggest me to do, then?"

Shao Jingfei folded his hand in front of his chest while pondering thoughtfully. "If I can suggest something to you, I'd say your art style is more suitable for an illustration, like a fairy tale book illustration."