Chapter 739: Capturing Hu Xing
The museum suddenly became dark and people who were viewing the exhibition screamed in panic.
Soon the staff came out to explain that there was a problem with the museum's line and urgent repairs were needed.
The opening day will be postponed by one day.
Hearing that there was a sudden power outage, the noisy crowd quieted down. Although they felt disappointed, they did not think much about it and left in an orderly manner under the arrangements of the staff.
After the crowd left, the bustling museum became quiet, without a sound.
After receiving the news that everyone had left the museum, Gu Xue picked up the calligraphy and paintings and walked towards the meeting room.
The corridor was extremely quiet, with only the emergency lights on.
In this silent atmosphere, Gu Xue could clearly hear his own heartbeat.
“Bang—bang—”
He stood in front of the meeting room door, hesitant to push it open.
His hands were shaking as he held the fake calligraphy and painting. This was clearly the most familiar conference room, but now it had become his courtroom.
Director Hu, who was usually impatient, did not rush him today, but stood silently behind him.
His heavy and disordered breathing made Gu Xue's mind even more confused.
"call--"
After letting out a long breath, Gu Xue pushed open the door of the conference room.
It was a rainy day, the light was dim, there were no lights on in the conference room, and the cold air spread silently.
Wang Honghong and Zhou Liang sat on chairs by the door, their postures not very straight, their legs stretched out carelessly, looking bored.
Tang Panxia and Song Zhishu stood in front of the window, seemingly enjoying the rain.
Ji Chunming stared at Tang Panxia's back.
Liu Yutang, Zhou Yuqing and Zheng Zhiyuan sat together, their backs bent.
Sun Baiqing sat beside Ye Rou, seemingly bored of waiting. He lay on the table, resting his head on his arm, and tilted his head to look at Ye Rou.
Gu Xue turned his gaze and fell on Ye Rou.
She was wearing a gray and white plaid waist-length skirt, her black hair half tied up, and her outfit was particularly student-like. She sat in the middle of the long table, looking at him calmly.
Gu Xue walked in.
It felt like a thousand-pound iron block was weighing down my legs, and I walked very slowly.
Finally, he stopped in the middle of the long table, put down a calligraphy and painting he was holding tightly, and his voice was dry.
"This calligraphy and painting is indeed a fake."
No one spoke.
In the dead silence, Gu Xue swallowed his saliva and continued:
"This calligraphy and painting is kept in a safe. Only Director Hu and I have the key and combination."
"No one had touched the safe before it opened, and we don't know when it was replaced and became a fake."
After the words were spoken, no one spoke.
Gu Xue raised his head and met a pair of exceptionally calm eyes.
Like the clouds and mist lingering in the mountains, no emotion can be detected.
Ye Rou ignored him. Gu Xue felt somewhat embarrassed. He turned his gaze to Zheng Zhiyuan and said in an almost flattering tone, "Senior, please help me..."
He didn't say what he wanted to help with, but everyone present knew that he wanted Zheng Zhiyuan to help him persuade Ye Rou.
But he asked the wrong person.
Who is the angriest among those present?
Answer: Zheng Zhiyuan.
He is a person who loves calligraphy and painting very much.
This calligraphy and painting was a gift bought by Ye Rou for him, and she lent it to Gu Xue with great reluctance.
But he never imagined that calligraphy and paintings would be stolen right inside the museum.
Zheng Zhiyuan said in a cold voice, "Only you and Director Hu have the key and password, which means that only you two can swap the calligraphy and paintings."
Director Hu had been standing outside the conference room when he heard Zheng Zhiyuan say this. He couldn't wait any longer and pushed open the door and strode in: "It's definitely not us two!"
He stood beside Gu Xue with a frank look in his eyes.
Zheng Zhiyuan knocked on the table and said in a deep voice, "Evidence."
Director Hu paused, wanting to say something but stopping himself.
Gu Xue said, "Only the two of us have the key and the password. If one of us removes the painting and calligraphy, it would be like trying to cover up one's own faults."
What he said does make sense.
"It's very simple." Sun Baiqing was still lying on the table, his chin resting on his arm, and he said slowly: "It was either you two, or someone around you did it."
Ye Rou's eyes turned slightly, and she asked calmly, "Director Hu, where is your nephew?"
Director Hu was confused.
He never doubted Hu Xing, not even thought about it.
Deathly silence.
But did he really not notice anything wrong?
This reminds me of Hu Xing’s strange behavior today.
Director Hu broke out in a cold sweat and held onto the table, his heart being tightly gripped by a big hand.
"Impossible, it couldn't be Hu Xing. That kid is timid. He wouldn't dare to do such a thing."
Ye Rou suddenly smiled.
Her eyes were extremely cold, and she said something that completely crushed Director Hu's spine:
“How did you become a museum director?”
Director Hu was hit hard by these words. His face turned pale and he looked gloomy.
His head, which had been held high the whole time, was hit hard and never raised again.
Ye Rou glanced at Wang Honghong.
Wang Honghong stood up and took Zhou Liang out to catch the man.
The conference room fell silent again.
Gu Xue stood stiffly in front of the long table. Although he had cleared himself of suspicion, he was also wrong in terms of cause and effect.
He knew that Director Hu was nepotism, but he still allowed him to appoint Hu Xing. Ultimately, it was his fault.
Gu Xue slowly clenched his hands at his sides into fists.
"Bang!"
The door of the conference room was forced open, and Wang Honghong grabbed Hu Xing's collar and dragged him in. Yang Fan followed closely behind.
Director Hu didn't even look at his nephew. He noticed the wound on Yang Fan's face and said unhappily, "This has nothing to do with Yang Fan. Why hit him?"
Wang Honghong rolled her eyes.
He ignored him and pulled Hu Xing forward.
"Sister-in-law, this guy must have stolen the painting. When we passed by, he had beaten someone and was trying to escape through the window!"
After he finished speaking, he patted Yang Fan on the shoulder and said with a smile:
"Thanks to this little brother, he noticed something was wrong with Hu Xing and rushed over to hold him back, so we were able to catch him. If he had been a second later, he would have gotten away."
Yang Fan looked miserable. His eyes were smashed by Hu Xing's fist. His right eye was bloodshot and his cheeks were bruised. It was obvious that he had been through a fierce battle.
Gu Xue looked at Yang Fan in surprise, and asked in a surprised tone: "How did you find out that Hu Xing was wrong?"
Yang Fan looked hesitant and glanced at the teacher carefully.
Director Hu smiled bitterly and waved his hand, saying, "Don't worry about me. Just tell the truth."
Yang Fan got the teacher's permission before saying:
"The teacher said that only he and Director Gu have the key and password. I believe that it is definitely not the two of them who swapped the calligraphy and paintings."
"After thinking about it, I remembered one thing: a few days before the museum opened, the person on night shift had something urgent to do, and Hu Xing volunteered to take his place."
As Yang Fan spoke, he pulled a muscle at the corner of his mouth and grimaced in pain. He glared at Hu Xing, who was still struggling and unwilling to accept it, and continued:
"Hu Xing is a lazy fellow. He's never been proactive at work and is the ultimate slacker. How could he be so kind as to cover for someone else? Unfortunately, although I had my suspicions at the time, I didn't investigate further as the museum was about to open."
When Yang Fan said this, his tone was full of annoyance that he couldn't hide.
If he had been more careful at the beginning, none of this would have happened.
"You're talking nonsense, I didn't steal any calligraphy or painting!" Hu Xing glared at Yang Fan fiercely and cursed.
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