Chapter 46 He was afraid that just one response would break his will
"Are you back?" Her voice rang out in the darkness, like falling snow.
He didn't answer.
She stood up, walked towards him, raised her face, and her eyes traced his eyebrows.
"Are you tired after driving for so long?" she asked softly.
Although there was still some distance between them, he could feel her warm breath lingering on his lips as she spoke.
"Not tired." He answered briefly, his voice colder than usual.
"You're just being stubborn," she retorted gently, with pity in her eyes, "Go back and rest."
She sat back down, picked up another sample tube, separated it, and returned to the experiment. Her breath, which had been lingering around him, thinned and faded, and she untied him.
His fingers loosened the door frame and he walked away without looking back. The sound of his footsteps gradually faded away and disappeared into the corridor.
She listened carefully but couldn't hear his voice anymore, so she shook her head and focused on her work again.
Wang Yijian sat in his office, bored. It was already 4 a.m. He called Director Chen countless times, but at first no one answered, then the phone was turned off. At this prime moment in his life, a new employee, only three months old, calling him without any regard was too much.
At daybreak, he couldn't hold on any longer and fell asleep. He didn't even hear his phone ring.
Qin Tian took off her radiation-blocking glasses and leaned back in her chair, feeling as if all her strength had been drained from her. The printer chugs away, churning out 20 appraisal reports one by one. With her last remaining strength, she takes a photo of each report and sends them to Wang Yijian on WeChat. She wants to call him again to confirm, but she's too exhausted to speak. She crawls onto an empty desk, curls up, and falls asleep instantly.
Outside the window, the sky grew brighter, the cooing of pigeons mingling with the early morning birdsong. In her sleep, Qin Tian felt her body lighten and float, slowly moving through the clouds until she was placed on a patch of soft green grass. A cloud drifted over, covering her with warmth. She sighed comfortably, clutched the cloud, turned over, and fell into a deep sleep.
Qin Tian was awakened by the sound of cars being directed to the garage outside her window. She slowly opened her eyes, momentarily unable to remember where she was. Everything she saw was unfamiliar. She was sleeping on the reception sofa in the appraisal department, covered with a shawl from her office. The man sitting in the chair across from her, browsing on his phone, looked familiar.
"Tang Zhixu?" she called out in a hoarse voice.
He put down his phone, his face as gloomy as water, and said calmly: "I'll take you back to catch up on some sleep."
"Why are you going to work so early today?" she asked hoarsely.
"I'm worried about you." He answered without hesitation.
She sat up, fully awake. She had a strange feeling that something was different about Tang Zhixu today. But before she could dwell on it, something more important rushed into her mind.
Cell phone! She searched everywhere for it, but it wasn't on the couch. She jumped up and searched for it on the table in the thermoluminescence lab. She remembered she'd fallen asleep holding her phone. But it wasn't on the table either.
"Where's my phone?" she asked Tang Zhixu. He glanced at her, walked into her office, and picked up the phone from the table and handed it to her.
She checked the time and saw it was past 8:00. She immediately called Wang Yijian, but he didn't answer until the call disconnected. She redialed, but still no one answered.
She put down her phone. She thought she had received the message. She was probably busy dismantling the exhibition.
Wang Yijian stared at his phone with a grim expression. "Within 50 years, within 50 years, within 50 years..." All the appraisal reports pointed to the same conclusion. He looked up at the wall clock, and the hands moved one notch, crossing 8 o'clock.
He suddenly hugged his head and let out an unforgivable long and echoing roar.
"ah!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Inside the Kongbot exhibition hall, all the staff were ready and engaged in a cheerful discussion, the atmosphere as festive as if it were Chinese New Year. Director Chen took a tour and asked, "Where's Xiao Wang? He called me several times yesterday, but then my phone ran out of battery. Where is he now?"
Wang Yijian ran into the special exhibition hall like crazy, waving his hands and yelling.
"Cancel the special exhibition! Cancel the special exhibition immediately. All the exhibits are fake!"
Everyone in the room turned their gazes on him. The vast museum was as quiet as an ancient tomb. The door creaked open, and a beam of sunlight gradually widened until it illuminated the entire exhibition hall. The deputy director, accompanied by the first group of national cultural relics experts and local museum directors, entered with laughter and cheers.
Wang Yijian watched this scene unfold before his eyes. His body went limp, his hands gripping the edge of the booth. As if in slow motion, the plum vase tilted, fell, and, upon hitting the ground, exploded like a firework, shattering to pieces.
Amidst everyone's astonishment, he sat among the debris on the ground, covered his face and closed his eyes.
The Kongshan Museum's exhibition of patriotic Ming and Qing porcelain has opened. I heard the first day was dedicated to professional and media receptions, with the second day opening to the public. But even just one day of professional exhibitions was enough to spread rumors about Kongshan Museum within the cultural and museum community. This small, often overlooked local museum has become known to major museums nationwide for its absurd and performance-art-like special exhibitions.
Ming Yuanxing held his forehead and listened to Qin Tian's account of the whole process.
"I'm responsible for this," Ming Yuanxing said self-reproachfully. Protecting and respecting the dignity of donors is a consistent practice at the Shanghai Museum. He knew all the artifacts Zhou Qiang donated were fakes, yet he didn't disclose the fact to anyone.
Qin Tian remained silent. She didn't ask Wang Yijian if her appraisal report was sent too late, or if she hadn't informed him in time. She still had a question: "Why is the Kongbo exhibition still going on?"
Ming Yuanxing said, "Now that the exhibition is closed, it may have a greater impact on Kongbo's reputation. Not many people can tell the truth from the false."
Qin Tian really couldn't understand this kind of behavior of being so stubborn and willing to suffer in vain. She said unconvincedly, "That wouldn't be a good deal for Zhou Qiang. He donated so many fakes, and now Kong Museum continues to exhibit them. Isn't it tantamount to telling everyone that his things are all real? Then wouldn't the 3,000 pieces of porcelain in his home be put on the market and harm people? The unlucky ones are still the people."
Ming Yuanxing rubbed his solar plexus. Qin Tian was very capable, but her skills were limited to her professional expertise, not the complexities of social interaction. Some things she could only slowly grasp on her own.
"Let me think about what to do."
Qin Tian understood what Director Ming meant, but she still had something to ask her and was dawdling, refusing to leave the office. Seeing her still standing there, Ming Yuanxing took the initiative to ask her what she wanted.
Qin Tian stammered, "I just want to ask, how much of our museum's budget is left for redeeming cultural relics this year?"
Ming Yuanxing was surprised. "How can the Shanghai Museum have the budget to redeem this piece year after year? If necessary, it would cost tens of millions. Without the right artifact, even a few million a year wouldn't be enough."
"I mean, redeem the cultural relics in the country." Qin Tian said.
"Domestic ones don't need to be redeemed, right? If you find something suitable, just buy it. There really aren't many on the market right now, and even if there are, they're rare. It won't cost much. If you're sure, you can buy it first and then repurchase it."
"What about the treasures? What's our budget?"
This question is difficult to answer. For the Shanghai Museum, redeeming overseas cultural relics has always been a mission. While domestic cultural relics are also collected, the purpose is entirely different: preserving existing culture. After all, the vast majority of extremely precious artifacts are preserved by museums. Even if there are a few treasures in the private sector, they have their own custodians. They have been passed down from generation to generation, and even if they are not in museums, they are within China and cannot be freely traded. Therefore, the Shanghai Museum does not feel a sense of urgency.
"How should I put it? It still depends on the quality and the willingness of the custodian. If the custodian wants to sell it to a museum, it does have this value, so it's not impossible to buy it. But this proportion still falls within the scope of domestic cultural relics purchases."
Qin Tian understood Ming Yuanxing's meaning. She could buy it, but not spend too much money. She was a little disappointed and walked out of Ming Yuanxing's office.
Song Suiyang finally caught Qin Tian having dinner. She had almost forgotten what she wanted to gossip about last time. Qin Tian had been working non-stop since returning from Xi'an, making it hard for her to even see him. And Tang Zhixu was trying to steal him. Qin Tian had clearly come to the museum yesterday, but Tang Zhixu insisted that she needed a break and sent her away. She checked the almanac and realized it was probably Mercury retrograde recently. Everyone seemed a little different than before. Even Tong Zhongyuan hadn't been seen in a few days. At this rate, completing two artifacts in two months wouldn't be easy. Had even such a self-disciplined person been affected by Mercury retrograde?
"What have you been busy with recently?" Song Suiyang said resentfully.
Qin Tian was still thinking about Sun Minfu, and blurted out, "Let me ask you this. If your family is sick and needs money, and you have a valuable cultural relic, but you can't sell it domestically, you have to smuggle it abroad. What would you do?"
Song Suiyang wanted to gossip with her about who Tong Zhongyuan had been texting that day, but she was stifled by her question. Qin Tian was really just a person whose head was full of artifacts. She couldn't even imagine what kind of boyfriend she would find in the future. Why not find an archaeologist? Each of them would have a Luoyang shovel.
"Smuggling is illegal. What if I fail to sell the goods but get in first?" she answered listlessly.
“What if it’s certain to sell?”
"Then sell it, why not? My family members are all sick, so why would I care if it's a cultural relic? If it's sick, will the state treat it?"
Qin Tian didn't respond, as if this was the standard response, as if she was the one who didn't fit in. Perhaps she truly didn't understand the bond between family members. In the afternoon, she sent a message to her high school classmate, Huang Qian, who was now an oncologist.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
