Chapter 47 Tong Zhongyuan, what kind of person is he?
In the afternoon, she sent a message to her high school classmate Huang Qian, who is now an oncologist.
"That's nonsense," Huang Qian said disdainfully. "There's no official data supporting stem cell treatment for cancer. Chemotherapy is still the first choice. Forgoing formal treatment without going through the hardship is a fatality. If you want to suffer less, you can get imported chemotherapy at your own expense."
"How much does that cost?"
"How can you explain it? Specific treatment depends on the specific case. One million, two million, three million, it's a bottomless pit if you want to."
Qin Tian was silent for a moment, then asked, "One more thing. Do you know anything about Alzheimer's? Besides conservative treatment, have there been any breakthroughs in recent years?"
"It's like a world of difference between different professions. If you want to know, I can ask for you. Your relatives?"
"My dad."
After hanging up the phone, she found Sun Minfu's phone number and called him.
"Uncle, I'm Xiao Qin from the Shanghai Museum. Are you home this afternoon? I'd like to come over. I want to tell you about your Buddha statue."
"Oh, Xiao Qin," Sun Minfu said, "The Buddha statue is not with me now. The little boy took it away yesterday."
"What did you say?" Qin Tian stood up holding the phone.
"The little boy came yesterday and said he would help me sell it. I'm sure it will be sold within three months."
Qin Tian opened the window to get some fresh air and forced himself to calm down. Impossible! How could Tong Zhongyuan do that? How could he dare? And why would he do such a thing? He never meddles in other people's business.
"Did you make a mistake? Did he take it to you for appraisal? Will it be returned in a couple of days?"
"How is that possible! He said clearly that he would help me sell it, and no matter the selling price, he would give me three million. Three million, I couldn't even dream of that. Didn't you say it could only be sold for 200,000?"
It was a hot day, but she felt a chill. She tried to regain her voice, to gather her thoughts. There must be some misunderstanding. Sun Minfu hadn't understood the situation, and even asked Shang Bo to issue a certificate for him. How could she trust him and doubt Tong Zhongyuan?
"He can't possibly give you 3 million. Even if the museum purchased it, it wouldn't reach that price. Besides, his personal promise is invalid. Without any evidence, what basis does he have for making such a promise? Even the auction house wouldn't dare to make such a promise. You can ask him to return the Buddha statue. I will definitely help you find a way to go through the formal museum cultural relic purchase process."
"Why did you come back? Isn't Xiao Tong also from your museum? When he came yesterday, he brought a contract with him. He said he wanted...what, an agreement? Oh, he wanted to sign an agreement."
"You signed? What agreement did you sign? What does it say? Who is the buyer?" Qin Tian clenched his phone tightly, and a trace of disbelief quickly occupied the sky like dark clouds before a storm.
"I don't know the details. Anyway, Xiaotong said that he would help me sell the Buddha statue. No matter what the price is, he would give me 3 million. He also gave me 1 million as a deposit. If he doesn't sell it within three months, he won't keep the 1 million. It will be compensation to me, and the Buddha statue will be returned to me. Xiaotong is really a good person. The auction house only gave me a reserve price of 50,000 before, and there was no guarantee that it would be sold. Xiaotong's 1 million is a timely help. Even if he doesn't sell it, I will be satisfied. 1 million, it's enough. How can I not sign such a good deal?"
The storm rolled down with hail, and she felt completely chilled. Every time she thought she understood him a little, he would always prove to her that he and she were not creatures of the same dimension, and his thoughts were beyond her imagination.
"He said he would give you 1 million, did he give it to you?" The only thing she was sure of was that Tong Zhongyuan couldn't have transferred the foreign funds so quickly, as he had been spending her money on his own food, clothing, housing and transportation.
"It's written in the contract that he should transfer the money to me within ten days."
"He took the Buddha statue away before you paid him? If he hadn't transferred the money within those ten days, he would have taken your Buddha statue away too." She said anxiously.
"Xiao Qin? Doesn't Xiao Tong work at the Shanghai Museum? Why do I hear you say he's trying to scam me? I don't understand your business, but I'm old enough to have seen a lot of people. As an old man, I can say that Xiao Tong isn't that kind of person. Even though the 1 million hasn't come in yet, he paid a 200,000 yuan deposit yesterday."
Qin Tian closed the window and sank weakly into a chair. Sun Minfu wouldn't ask Tong Zhongyuan for the statue. Even if he did, with Tong Zhongyuan's methods, the agreement should be flawless. She still didn't understand why Tong Zhongyuan did this, but she had never really understood him. How could she possibly guess his logic?
She had one last question left.
"Under what name did he sign the contract with you?"
"What name? What name is it?"
"Is it his own name or the company's name on the contract for purchasing your Buddha statue?"
"Oh, oh. It's in English. I don't understand it. He said it's a British company. Actually, it doesn't matter who buys it. The key is the price, right? Three million. I'm satisfied."
Qin Tian hung up the phone and slumped over his desk, his head in his hands. A British company, ready-made contracts, access to goods, and the ability to authenticate artifacts. This was the truth. No wonder his first instinct was to ship the Buddha statues out of the country and sell them. No wonder he was so rich, she had naively assumed it was because the British Museum salaries were high.
So he didn't let her knock off the outer shell of the Buddha statue, so he told Sun Minfu that they still needed to discuss, so he used words to calm her down and give him time to move the Buddha statue.
More than anger, she felt a sense of shame, the humiliation of being looked down upon. Over time, she had grown increasingly trusting and dependent on him, even doubting herself at the mere mention of him. She even had a fleeting illusion that he cared about her. Only now did she realize that she had this illusion because he wanted her to have it, just like how he had treated that little girl that day.
Qin Tian couldn't sit still any longer, so he pushed open the office door and walked out.
Song Suiyang was restoring a Qing dynasty purple clay teapot, a relatively easy task. She'd recently benefited from watching Tong Zhongyuan's restorations, so she decided to practice on a simple artifact. The door rang, and Qin Tian, his face frosty, strode in. Her brush trembled with fear, and she made a mistake in her strokes.
Qin Tian quickly glanced around and asked coldly, "Where is Tong Zhongyuan?"
Song Suiyang was about to complain to her that he had scared her into going back to work, but seeing her attitude, he dared not say anything more and replied, "Teacher Tong hasn't come in since yesterday."
Qin Tian was even more furious: "Why didn't you tell me? You didn't even tell me during lunch."
"You didn't ask me." Song Suiyang said in a very low voice.
Qin Tian turned and walked out of the restoration room. Song Suiyang was stunned for a long time. How had he offended her? She had never seen Qin Tian lose his composure at work like this before. How could Tong Zhongyuan, with his indifferent and independent personality, offend anyone?
Qin Tian stood in the corridor and called Tong Zhongyuan, but the tone was always busy. She sent him a WeChat message: Answer the phone.
After about ten minutes, Tong Zhongyuan replied: What's the matter?
Qin Tian found that he had a way of getting angry. She didn't believe that he didn't know why she was looking for him. She called him again, and this time when the dial tone sounded, he answered.
She thought he would continue to act as if nothing had happened after the call was connected, but he obviously knew she had something to say. He said, "I'm not in the city. You have to wait. I'll be back in the evening."
"What if I can't wait?"
He was silent for a moment, then said, "I'll be back in two hours. Choose an address and send it to me."
"No need to choose, just the lobby of your hotel."
"good."
For the past two hours, Qin Tian had been on pins and needles, completely distracted from his work. Unable to stay any longer, she simply went straight to his hotel lobby, ordered a cup of coffee, and stared towards the entrance. She had wanted to confront him on the phone, but hearing his quiet voice, she still couldn't believe he would do that. Was there some misunderstanding? Did he have some hardship? These thoughts held her back; important matters needed to be addressed in person.
About an hour and a half later, Tong Zhongyuan came in from the hotel entrance. He looked calm and thoughtful, as if he had guessed that she would come early to wait. He glanced at the lobby cafe as he entered. Qin Tian's eyes met his.
He walked over and sat down across from her. A waiter brought him a drink menu and asked what he wanted to drink. He ordered a bottle of sparkling water and a glass of ice, then asked her, "What else do you want to eat?"
Qin Tian saw how calm he was, and wondered if he had done anything wrong, or how could he be so strong-minded. Or maybe he simply didn't take her seriously, and what if she knew? Judging from Sun Minfu's description, he hadn't intended to hide it from her.
He leaned back in his chair, his eyes distant, waiting for her to speak.
It was she who wanted to find him, and it was she who was waiting here. But wasn't it he who took the initiative to explain this to her first?
Seeing that she was reluctant to speak, Tong Zhongyuan poured the Perrier into the ice glass. The bubbles hit the ice cubes and made a hissing sound in the summer. He picked up the glass and took a few sips, looking past her at the hustle and bustle of traffic outside the floor-to-ceiling window.
She finally lost her patience and asked, "Why?"
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