162. Dialogue Beyond Time and Space

The last time she resigned, Ling Ling bumped into Yu Chuanbei in that unnamed park. They'd met by chance, fallen in love, argued, and then parted ways. This time, returning to the house without him, she inexplicably yearned for news of his well-being. Ling Ling spotted an international courier stuck to the doorknob. She removed it, then, after entering, set aside everything she was holding before opening it. Inside was a ticket for an exhibition titled "A Dialogue Beyond Time and Space: Artist Ling Xu's Exhibition." The date and location were written in both Chinese and German. Ling Ling quickly re-examined the envelope. It had been mailed from Germany, and the address on the ticket matched the address on the letter. This raised a wave of doubts. Who knew she was Ling Xu's daughter? Who knew she lived here? Her father's paintings were missing, and who could recover them all, enough to hold an exhibition? She only had one name in mind: Yu Chuanbei. Her heart clenched, a wave of bitterness welling up in her eyes. For so long, every little detail that evoked memories and longing had been treasured and secretly savored in her heart. She dared not reveal her lingering feelings for him in front of others, nor did she dare to cowardly forgive him when facing him alone. But now, it seemed as if those secret thoughts had been answered without fail, and he was still silently doing so much for her. Perhaps he was waiting for her in a distant place. Ling Ling reconfirmed the exhibition date. It had been over a week since it opened, and she had only just received the news because she was recuperating in the hospital. She didn't want to delay any longer. She quickly booked a flight and hotel to Berlin on her phone—she wanted to see him now. *~*~*~*~*~*~ After getting off the plane, Ling Ling didn't even have time to check into the hotel to drop off her luggage, but headed straight for the exhibition. Her body, fresh from surgery and exhausted from the long flight, felt weak, yet she persevered, hoping only to see Yu Chuanbei. She asked the ticket checker at the exhibition entrance if they had seen Yu Chuanbei before, but she didn't know his English name, let alone the German translation. After describing him to him, he simply shook his head. She had deleted all the photos of him from her phone when they broke up, but suddenly realized there might still be some in the cloud storage backups, so she dug out some old photos of him and showed them to the staff, only to receive another shake of the head. The only information she had was that the exhibition's curator was a woman; nothing else was known. Ling...

The last time she resigned, Ling Ling bumped into Yu Chuanbei in that nameless park. They met, fell in love, argued, and then parted ways. This time, she returned to the house without him, inexplicably hoping to receive some news about his recent situation.

Ling Ling noticed an internationally courier stuck to the doorknob. She removed it, then, after entering, set down everything she was holding before opening it. Inside was a ticket for an exhibition titled "Dialogue Beyond Time and Space: Artist Ling Xu's Exhibition," with the time and location information written in both Chinese and German. Ling Ling quickly re-examined the envelope. It had been mailed from Germany, and the address on the letter matched the one on the ticket, raising suspicions.

Who would have known she was Lingxu's daughter? Who would have known she lived here? Her father's paintings were missing, and who could have found them all, enough to hold an exhibition?

There is only one name in her mind that can do all this - Yu Chuanbei.

Her heart was gripped, and a wave of bitterness welled up in her eyes. For so long, every little detail that brought back memories and longing had been treasured and secretly savored in her heart. She didn't dare reveal her lingering feelings for him in front of others, nor did she dare to allow herself the cowardly thought of forgiving him when she was alone.

But at this moment, it seemed that those unspeakable thoughts were responded to without omission, and he was still silently doing many things for her. He might be waiting for her in a distant place.

Ling Ling reconfirmed the exhibition date. It had already been open for over a week, and since she was recuperating in the hospital and had just received the news, she didn't want to delay any longer. She quickly used her phone to book a flight and hotel to Berlin—she wanted to see him now.

*~*~*~*~*~*~

After getting off the plane, Ling Ling didn't even have time to go to the hotel to put her luggage down, and she headed straight for the art exhibition. Her body, fresh from surgery and exhausted from the long flight, felt very weak, but she still persevered, hoping only to see Yu Chuanbei.

She asked the ticket checker at the exhibition entrance if they had seen Yu Chuanbei before, but she didn't know his English name, let alone how to translate it into German. She described it to him, but he just shook his head. She had deleted all the photos of him on her phone when they broke up, but it suddenly occurred to her that there might still be some, as backed up in her cloud storage. So she dug out some old photos of him and showed them to the staff, only to receive another shake of the head.

The only information she had was that the exhibition's curator was a woman; nothing else was known. Ling Ling dropped her hands in disappointment, like a gold prospector who excitedly walks into a flickering cave, only to realize that the occasional flashes of dazzling golden light were merely reflections from stalactites. Inwardly, she blamed herself for harboring unrealistic hopes.

She walked quietly to the exhibition hall, concentrating on looking at her father's works. Most of them were paintings she had never seen before. There were avant-garde works from his school days, and even portraits of her mother in different poses that he had painted when they were in love.

Lingling felt as if she were strolling through her parents' romantic youth, accompanied by them. The curator thoughtfully arranged the paintings in chronological order, from her father's student days to his courtship and marriage, all the way to the birth of her. She even remembered that several paintings still contained oil paintings of her father holding her hand. She felt a warm feeling in her heart, as if her parents, who had passed away so young, had always been there for her in a different way.

The exhibition concludes with several sketches of my father's paintings of tulips, followed by the final finished product. Tulips were my father's favorite flower, and he painted them in all colors and at all different blooming times. Next to his paintings is a photograph of the tulip painting she drew, which still hangs in Yu Chuanbei's home. Below the photo are a few lines of poetry:

His every stroke,

It was his every frown and smile.

You inherited his paintings.

And absorbed his love.

Some mistakes are catastrophic.

But he was the only one who was destroyed.

Not his love for you.

He will love you forever in another time and space,

Speak to you in every way you can.

I hope you can remember him every moment you miss him.

Feel the warmth and companionship,

Forgive him for leaving without saying goodbye.

——North of Gushan Temple

Ling Ling stroked the small poem beneath the transparent acrylic board, tears welling up in her eyes. This exhibition, without him, held his most thoughtful thoughts. This poem was not only his way of comforting her to accept her parents' untimely death, but also his plea for forgiveness.

Ling Ling didn't dare cry out loud in public, so she could only cover her face and weep silently. She thought she had forgiven him, long before all this happened.

She heard footsteps coming towards her from behind. She turned around suddenly and saw that it was not Yu Chuanbei who came, but Yu Jinnan.

"Sister Jinnan--" Ling Ling wiped the tears from her face.

Seeing her like this, Yu Jinnan couldn't help but sigh. He took her hand and said gently, "I've asked the staff to keep an eye on her. If they see anyone coming with the ticket I gave you, notify me immediately. I just rushed over and was afraid I would miss you."

"Sister Jinnan, where is Yu Chuanbei?" Ling Ling asked with tears in her eyes.

Yu Jinnan shook his head in confusion and said, "I don't know either. Let's go to the coffee shop in the back and talk."

A cup of warm coffee was placed in Ling Ling's palm, but she only used it to warm her hands.

Yu Jinnan spoke slowly, "Yu Chuanbei has been asking Lingdong and me to find your father's paintings for years, and I finally tracked down the person who took his paintings from your hometown. That person was indeed a Chinese classmate of your father's when he was studying in Germany, but they weren't particularly close. He was more of an opportunist, planning to resell your father's paintings. I couldn't convince him at the time, but thankfully Yu Chuanbei came specially and stayed for a week. Finally, he convinced him that he was willing to hand over all of your father's paintings to you. We only need to pay a reasonable storage fee. He also helped us locate some of Mr. Ling's student works. Now the paintings in the entire exhibition are yours. This is the transfer agreement, officially transferring our gallery's escrow rights to your name. Since the exhibition opened, many interested and wealthy buyers have been inquiring about prices. Here's also a catalog of all your father's paintings for you."

Ling Ling looked at the agreement calmly, but did not rush to sign it. She just asked Jin Nan persistently: "Why did Yu Chuanbei do this?"

Jinnan said, "He said your parents' early death has always been a knot in your heart. They were too focused on their own dreams and love lives that they neglected you, and ultimately left you so young, which made your growth process much more difficult. Your grief turned to resentment, making you unwilling to rely on anyone and disdain long-term relationships. Of course, he didn't want to use your original family to bind you or define you, but he wanted to eliminate even the slightest possibility that it would affect your happiness. He also said... he's afraid he'll never be able to forgive the pain he caused you, but he hopes to make up for it."

Ling Ling's tears flowed uncontrollably again. "Why, when I was completely independent, I unexpectedly received the property my father left me? When I no longer longed to be loved, I learned that he still loved me deeply." She wiped away her tears again, flipped through the album, and said in a calmer voice, "I only keep these few of my father's paintings because they contain traces of me and my mother. Please help me ship them back to China and hang them in Yu Chuanbei's home. Please help me sell the others." Then, she choked up and repeated the question again: "Where is Yu Chuanbei now?"

Jin Nan held her hand tightly, tears in his eyes as he said, "He's still in deep hiding. Last time, for Mr. Ling's painting, he came to Berlin briefly. After that, I couldn't stop him, and he left again. I don't know his exact location. Lingling, I have always wanted to apologize to you on behalf of Yu Chuanbei. Before he left Beijing, he came to me and told me everything. He cried like a baby that day. He knew he had done something so wrong that he deserved death, but he still hoped to do something, even if it wasn't to ask for forgiveness, but to make you feel better. He said it was worth it."

Ling Ling didn't want to let her sadness overwhelm her reason. She said in a trembling voice: "I'm going to find him now and tell him that I forgive him."

"But," Jin Nan said hesitantly, "he has been migrating with the deep-sea project team. I have tried to contact him before, but he always avoids me and doesn't listen to my advice at all. Except for your message, he doesn't reply to any other messages. Of course I want to ask you for help. I know that only you can persuade him, but he doesn't allow me to disturb you. He is my parents' only son, and I am really afraid that something will happen to him. The last time I saw him, I found that his eyesight had deteriorated, and he had joint pain. These are all symptoms that will appear in the abnormal air pressure environment of the deep sea for a long time. In this kind of extreme sport, every minute and every second may mean death. I have heard that one of his teammates had an accident, and in the end, even the body was not found. Maybe when I talk to you now, he may have-" Jin Nan sobbed and couldn't continue.

Ling Ling sat down beside her and gently stroked her trembling back. "Sister Jinnan, tell me all the ways and channels you used to contact him before. I will try them one by one. I must find him."