I'm so angry I won't allow you to insult my mother
Wen Duo has been abroad for too long, so long that even though he is an archaeologist by profession, his Chinese sounds like something he just learned. Some conventional expressions are reversed, and the listener needs to react before they can understand what he is saying.
The collision just now was very effective. Wen Zichuan pinched himself quietly under the table, hoping to be more sober and get more information from Wen Duo's words.
"What? You are also being slandered and defamed?" He had heard Wen Duo's story, but was not sure which part it was.
"It's all in the past," Wen Duo smiled. "Didn't she tell you about it?"
"she?"
"Oh, Lin Hanzhen, your mother."
"How dare you mention her? How dare you even mention her!" Wen Zichuan was already drunk, so he decided to just go wild. "You left her behind to go abroad, and she lost her job at the archaeological institute because of you, so she went back home to work odd jobs to support me! She's waited for you for half her life, how could you have the heart to do this to her! Are you even a man?!"
"This is her choice, and I respect her choice."
"What do you mean?"
"Back then, I persuaded her to go with me, but she insisted on staying."
"Of course she chose to stay! Her parents, friends, and job are all here. What's so good about being abroad? Are you going to force her to go with you?"
"No, she's just stubborn. She's just determined to prove that she's right and I'm wrong. Even if it means risking decades of her life and her destiny."
"You're fucking sick--!!"
Wen Zichuan was furious. His stomach, which had been peaceful all night, suddenly began to ache. He pressed his abdomen and remembered that the cause of his stomach problems was also related to the unruly man in front of him. He wanted to rush up and punch him a few times.
Wen Duo remained remarkably calm throughout the entire conversation. He leisurely pulled out a business card from his pocket and handed it to him: "I've seen your paintings, but you're not in great shape. Take a rest first. We'll talk tomorrow."
Wen Zichuan looked at the direction he left and confirmed that he also lived here. So Wei Jing came to Jiqing specifically for vacation and buying porcelain for his new home was just a superficial purpose. Was his real purpose to make an appointment with Wen Duo?
He was so drunk that his head was dizzy and he had to desperately try to keep his consciousness to realize that there seemed to be a key point that he had not figured out.
Judging from the timeline, Wei Jing was first rejected by Cheng Sizhou, and then hooked up with Wen Duo.
When Wen Duo returned from abroad, no matter what the actual situation was, at least he appeared to be elegant, easy-going and well-mannered in front of others. In addition, his background in the cultural relics market made it easy for him to gain Wei Jing's trust.
Wei Jing asked Wen Duo to give him advice on cultural relics and antiques. What was Wen Duo's purpose in getting in touch with Wei Jing?
Is it just because Wei Jing is rich that he identified this fat sheep and wanted to make a fortune?
If they were just doing a simple deal, the situation of giving away the "Two Sheep in Pujiao" painting worth 500 million yuan should not be so calm.
At this point, Wen Zichuan's thoughts were completely blocked by alcohol, and he was drunk and unconscious.
When he woke up the next day, Wei Xiaoming had already returned. Seeing him open his eyes, he immediately put down the mobile game and went to make him some sobering tea.
"Why did you drink so much yesterday? Who were you drinking with? Why were you drinking secretly behind our backs?" Wei Xiaoming didn't know that his good friend had broken up with her gay boyfriend.
"No one, I'm alone." Wen Zichuan supported his aching head, "It must be a high degree. I didn't pay attention."
"What's the point of drinking alone? You might as well come camping with us."
"Xiaoming, I want to ask you something."
"Just ask."
"Do you know Aldrich?"
"Aldridge? I know him, he's my godfather's friend."
"Then do you know what he does?"
Wei Xiaoming stirred the cup while glancing at the ceiling, as if thinking about something.
Wen Zichuan sighed silently, the child's brain really doesn't remember much, but his words are always easy to use.
"He is an expert, a professional." Wei Xiaoming handed over the cup.
"Professional eyewitness?" Wen Zichuan took it and wanted to drink it but it was a little too hot.
"Yeah. You know, my godfather has always liked antiques. Like the other day, there are so many people rushing to offer their treasures. As for the things, there are definitely real and fake ones. He may be rich, but he can't let people cheat him, so he wants to find someone who knows the business and can give him advice."
"What about before he met Aldridge? Who advised him?"
"Those who play this kind of thing all have their own circle, uh... team friends, you get the idea, right? They're in the same team and have known each other for years. When they have something good, they share it with everyone. Hey! It's because Teacher Xiao Cheng didn't agree! It just so happened that Mr. Aldridge was going back to China, so my godfather chatted with him a little more and we became friends."
So that's how it is.
After Wen Zichuan finished drinking the sobering tea, he rubbed the slightly protruding foot ring of the porcelain cup with his fingertips.
According to Xiaoming, it was a coincidence that Wei Jing and Wen Duo became friends, but that was because he didn't know that Aldridge was Wen Duo, his father.
"Hey, Zichuan, has anyone ever told you that you..."
"What?"
"The way you look down at your head, thinking about something, is very similar to Mr. Aldridge."
Wen Zichuan stood there in a daze as if he had been struck by lightning.
Lin Hanzhen had told him more than once that he and his father looked extremely similar. If the father and son stood side by side, the only difference between them would be their age and their clothing.
After spending quite a while with Wei Xiaoming, Wen Zichuan knew that he had mild face blindness. He would not be able to tell the teachers he had met once in the crew apart from each other the next time he met them. He had even been accused of being a big shot because of this.
Now, even people with face blindness think that he looks like Wen Duo. That must be an extreme resemblance. No matter whether it is Wei Jing or anyone else, as long as they have seen Wen Duo, they will feel that he is related to him.
Wen Zichuan had never felt frustrated because of having such a face, but he understood why Lin Xin lost control of his emotions when he saw him.
If Wen Duo had left the Lin family shop, Cheng Sizhou would have been older and had a deeper memory, and would have been as full of resentment towards Wen Duo as his master's wife Lin. Then the day they first met would have been like "enemies meeting, with eyes full of jealousy."
So, the ending was already written, wasn't it? They were destined not to be together.
"What's wrong with you? Are you feeling unwell?" Wei Xiaoming asked quickly when he saw that he hadn't said anything for a long time.
"I'm fine. I haven't asked you yet, why did you come here so early? Does Mr. Wei know?" Wen Zichuan changed the subject.
"As for him, there were so many mosquitoes camping last night that he fanned me all night and didn't get much sleep. He's catching up on some sleep now."
"Then you can rest here for a while. I have something to do. I need to go find Aldridge."
"What's going on? Can you take me with you? I'm so bored alone."
This time, he really couldn't take him with him. Wen Zichuan's mind raced as he quickly made up an excuse: "Well... Actually, I had a quarrel with Teacher Xiao Cheng. Aldridge also studies cultural relics and antiques. I wanted to ask what gift would be appropriate to give him as an apology."
Wei Xiaoming winked at him, "Oh! I get it. Go ahead and go! I wish you immediate success in winning back Teacher Xiao Cheng's heart!"
Wen Zichuan pursed his lips helplessly. He wanted to win back Brother Zhou's heart, but unfortunately, he no longer had the chance.
Wen Duo was used to living on the highest floor. This small town B&B only had three floors, so he stayed in the room on the third floor with the best scenery and view on the south side.
Wen Zichuan found out the room number at the front desk, sorted out all his questions, and went over the possible situations in his mind before slowly walking to the third floor and knocking on Wen Duo's door.
Unlike his nervousness, Wen Duo seemed to know he would come. He had already gotten up and tidied the room. Then he sat by the window in a suit and tie, drinking tea with a calm expression.
Wen Zichuan walked in and glanced into the cup. It was just ordinary green tea, but the way the man drank the tea was as artificial as if he was tasting some kind of nectar.
Wen Duo smiled at him and made a "please" gesture: "Sit down."
Wen Zichuan didn't like him and labeled him with negative labels. Even though the other party was polite and courteous to the point of being impeccable, he still felt disgusted and disgusted.
"I know what you want to ask." Wen Duo went straight to the point.
"Then you speak first?" Wen Zichuan looked away and didn't look at him.
Wen Duo took a sip of tea, and the smile on his face immediately disappeared: "Wen Zichuan, whether you are willing to recognize me or not, I am your biological father, right?"
Wen Zichuan remained silent, neither agreeing nor objecting.
What does a biological father-son relationship really mean? A whim over twenty years ago, followed by more than twenty years of indifference, does this mean that they must be tied together and mentioned in the same breath simply because of blood?
Seeing he remained silent, Wen Duo continued, "While your mother wasn't a top scholar at the Institute of Archaeology, she was calm and thoughtful, always had a strong sense of purpose when it came to important matters. But I never expected her to treat you so casually, not only leading you to an unrelated career but also leaving you destitute and in debt."
After hearing this, Wen Zichuan was so angry!
This man who went to a foreign country alone had no idea what the mother and son had experienced, nor how he grew up!
Yes, he did not enter the museum or cultural circle, but Lin Hanzhen respected him very much and let him choose the path he liked. Even though she worked three jobs a day at most and was busy from morning to night, she never complained or felt tired, just to support him.
He admitted that he was stupid and foolish. He followed the wrong boss and did not read the contract carefully, which led to him falling into the debt trap. But he is trying his best to make up for it and has achieved some results.
To put it another way, even if everyone in the world can laugh at him for not doing well, Wen Duo is the least qualified one.
Wen Zichuan silently pondered the purpose of coming here, repeatedly reminding himself not to be led by the other party's emotions: "I don't care what you say, but I won't allow you to insult my mother."
Wen Duo spread out his hands and nodded. What he was about to say had nothing to do with Lin Hanzhen.
"The entertainment industry has a lot of bad things going for it, but it makes money quickly. People, only when you have money can you feel confident."
"What do you want to say?"
Wen Duo's smile returned and his speech slowed down: "You can tell that the painting is a fake without even looking at it."
Wen Zichuan stared at him and suddenly understood what his smile meant.
In his opening remarks, Wen Duo said that his mother was capable but did not train him to work in the cultural industry. In fact, he was mocking his shallowness for daring to test others with an imitation.
"I was at the Nanzhu auction of 'Two Sheep in the Suburbs of Pu'. An anonymous buyer bought it for a whopping 500 million yuan. In terms of market value, the painting is relatively recent, and the artist isn't famous, so a few hundred thousand or a million yuan is probably the limit. So, the rule of thumb when it comes to ancient calligraphy and painting is, 'A thousand dollars can't buy what you love.'"
Pinault said that this painting has irreplaceable significance to Qin Zhihan. He not only bought it for collection, but also copied it with great care.
Noticing that Wen Zichuan's mood had calmed down, Wen Duo also poured him a cup of tea: "If the buyer likes something so much, we won't let it easily enter the market again, unless..."
"Unless what?"
"Only when he dies and his unfilial sons and daughters have a hard time dividing the inheritance will they sell it off."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
