To ensure Brother Xiang stayed behind before Cai Huazhang returned to Singapore, Fang Yi lay awake all night, racking his brains and exhausting every possible option until he finally came up with a viable plan.
Quietly leaving Jincan Temple, Fang Yi went to the Zhong Estate and presented his idea to Madam Zhong and Zhong Hua.
"Painting one hundred doves in three days is definitely no easy task," Zhong Hua said. "While I'm very confident, I don't have absolute certainty." She paused to think for a moment, then added, "If we also ask Zhang Yao to join in, our chances might be much better. Zhang Yao has been studying bird-and-flower painting for the past few months, and he's gotten very good—his skill level is almost catching up to mine."
Chapter 128