Chapter 84

When he heard Old Mr. Yang’s words, Wu Di’s head buzzed as if it were about to explode. In an instant, he even suspected that Old Mr. Yang had conspired with someone to take the painting. A sudden surge of anger rose in his heart, but then a chill rose from his wrist, quickly spreading throughout his body, making him calm down rapidly.

The old man was roaring in the courtyard, directing the servants to run around in confusion. Wu Di went up to hold the furious old man and forced a smile, saying:

"It’s just a painting, Old Mr. Yang, what’s going on?"

"Little Wu, I have no face to see you..."

Old Mr. Yang didn’t say anything else, just repeatedly said he had no face to see anyone.

Yang Yanzhi screamed and shouted:

"What’s going on here?"

Old Mr. Yang suddenly looked like a deflated balloon, his tall figure shrinking.

"Little Wu asked me to help him frame a painting. I didn’t expect that during a meal, someone actually swapped the real painting with a fake one. How can I explain this to him?"

Wu Di, upon hearing this, thought about the fake painting and had an idea. He stopped Yang Yanzhi from calling the police and said:

"Old Mr. Yang, let me see that fake painting."

A group of people rushed into the studio, and Wu Di immediately saw the painting on the desk. Indeed, it was as he thought!

Old Mr. Yang was still shooing people out, saying he wanted to preserve the scene. Wu Di smiled and said:

"Old Mr. Yang, the painting isn’t lost. It’s still here, isn’t it?"

Old Mr. Yang took a step to the desk and pointed at the painting:

"How is it not lost? Look, the umbrella and the rain are gone, and the whole atmosphere is different..."

"Take a closer look, Old Mr. Yang."

Old Mr. Yang stopped talking and carefully examined the painting. Suddenly, he said:

"This one seems to be a genuine Tang Yin painting too. Who is playing such a big joke on me?"

"Old Mr. Yang, no one is playing a joke on you. There’s only one painting, and this one is the same as the other one!"

"Only one painting? Explain yourself clearly, what’s going on?"

"Don’t worry, I remember a story. Once I tell it, you’ll understand."

"Tell it quickly!"

"Once, there was a great disaster in Jiangnan, and many people donated money to help. Even Tang Bohu donated a hundred taels of silver. However, there was a wealthy grain merchant in their town who had vast wealth but refused to donate a single tael. As more and more people starved, Tang Bohu was very anxious. One day, he discussed with a friend how to make the rich merchant donate money. The friend had no idea, but then he saw a painting Tang Bohu had just finished and had an idea. The next day, Tang Bohu invited many friends to admire a painting, including the rich merchant. Everyone praised the new painting. The next day, it rained heavily in Jiangnan. Tang Bohu’s friend secretly went to the rich merchant and told him that Tang Bohu had painted a magical painting where the umbrella would open on its own in the rain. The merchant didn’t believe it and sent his butler, who had been to Tang Bohu’s house the day before, to check. The butler found an excuse to go to Tang’s house and saw that the umbrella in the painting had indeed opened..."

"Are you saying this is the magical painting?"

"I wouldn’t dare say that, because the story ends with the rich merchant paying ten thousand taels for the painting, but the umbrella wouldn’t open. It turns out that Tang Bohu’s friend had him paint two identical paintings, changing only the umbrella. One was hung on a sunny day, and the other on a rainy day..."

"Where did you hear this story?"

"Hehe, hehe..."

"Tell us quickly!"

"It’s a story the old lady next door told her granddaughter!"

For a moment, there was chaos, and Wu Di fled under the intense pressure.

"Little Wu, are you saying this painting changes like the one in the story, showing one scene on a sunny day and another on a rainy day?"

"Not just that. Last night, when the rain was light, the figures were still visible, all holding umbrellas. Here, this is a photo I took."

Old Mr. Yang took the phone and looked at it for a while before returning it to Wu Di. On the way, it was intercepted by Zhong Qi, and several heads gathered to look at the phone and the painting on the desk, all marveling at the changes.

"Since it’s related to the weather, we’ll have to wait and see if the painting changes further. I really hope a strong wind comes up to see how magical it can be!"

Yang Yanzhi silently handed the phone to Old Mr. Yang, and the weather forecast clearly showed that the ninth strong typhoon of the year, "Anna," would land in Hong Kong at 4 PM.

Old Mr. Yang was stunned for a moment and then said:

"Ancient people could paint such a magical painting, but we can’t even explain it. Sigh, Little Wu, I was thinking of finding a way to keep this painting, but now I realize that even if I bankrupt myself, I couldn’t get such a magical painting."

"Old Mr. Yang, you’re exaggerating. No matter how precious it is, it’s just a painting. But as collectors, we value antiques more. Anyway, I’ll leave the painting here for you to enjoy for a few more days in Hong Kong."

"Thank you, thank you, Little Wu, for your trust."

After that, no one spoke, all staring at the painting, waiting for the typhoon to land.

At 3:30 PM, the wind started. The half-mountain position was high, and the wind was particularly strong. Gradually, the painting began to change. Zhong Qi watched as the figures’ clothing flapped in the wind, becoming clearer, and he was speechless. Wu Di found it even more incredible. He could explain the opening of the umbrella with the ink in the painting layers absorbing moisture, but he couldn’t imagine why the wind would also cause changes. As the wind grew stronger, the figures’ clothing flapped to a certain extent and then stopped. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, as this was another change. But if you counted the gradual changes, how many changes would there be?

Suddenly, a thunderclap was followed by a torrential downpour. The rain started to fall rapidly in the painting, and the umbrellas opened. The rain grew heavier, and the painting became increasingly blurry, but it was different from the heavy rain before lunch. Zhong Qi and the others were seeing this change for the first time, and despite being prepared, they were still stunned.

"This is the fifth change, right? A storm is different from just heavy rain. Oh, to see such a magical painting, I’d be willing to live a few years less."

The typhoon came quickly and left quickly. By 6 PM, the wind had stopped, and the rain had turned into a light drizzle. The painting returned to what Wu Di had seen last night.

Old Mr. Yang patted his growling stomach and smiled bitterly:

"Let’s have dinner. No one can talk about this, remember, not even your closest family! Possessing such a treasure is a sin. This painting can’t be protected by the Yang family. It looks like our plans will change. I need two days to frame it, and we’ll go to Beijing the day after tomorrow!"

After dinner, the old man went to work overtime, and Zhong Qi and the others lost their interest in going out. They all locked themselves in their rooms, doing who knows what. Wu Di, thinking about the old man’s words, agreed. He needed to notify his godmother and master as soon as possible. There’s no wall that doesn’t leak, and they needed to make arrangements early. At this moment, he understood his master’s feelings when he saw Lu Zigang’s three thousand miles of rivers and mountains, and realized how wise his master’s actions were and how lucky he was.

At 9 PM, Wu Di was woken by a knock on the door. When he opened it, Zhong Qi led the way, and Chang Linlin and Yang Yanzhi also looked unfriendly. Seeing the three of them ready to confront him, Wu Di was puzzled:

"What’s going on?"

"What’s going on? You almost got away with it! Tell us, where did that painting come from?"

Wu Di sighed with relief and pointed to the backpack in the corner:

"Take a look."

Zhong Qi, under the curious gazes of the two women, pulled out the split woodblock and was surprised:

"Another one from inside something?"

"Yeah, when I bought this woodblock, I noticed a small crack on the side. You know, woodblocks are usually carved from a single piece of wood. Could there be another reason for this? So I bought it. Last night, I couldn’t sleep, so I pried it open and found the painting."

"Damn, Shi Tao’s paintings are like this, and Tang Yin’s paintings are like this too! I’ve decided that from tomorrow, anything my company auctions with a crack will be pried open to check!"

The two women were speechless at Wu Di’s luck. Yang Yanzhi, trying to make conversation, asked:

"If this painting were auctioned, how much would it be worth?"

"If the promotion is done well, five hundred million? No, one billion, maybe even one billion dollars!"

"You’re kidding?"

"No, because this painting is different from other famous paintings. It represents a mysterious event that science can’t explain. Once it’s revealed, powerful organizations and collectors won’t let it go."

After a few more words, Yang Yanzhi suddenly said:

"Tell me, what else don’t I know?"

Wu Di was taken aback and hadn’t had time to speak when Zhong Qi raised his hand:

"I’m jealous and decided not to keep this secret anymore. I need to vent... Little Wu saw a piece of Tianhuang stone in Chun City but didn’t buy it because it was expensive. He regretted it later, but when he went back, the shop owner had gone bankrupt, and the stone was brought to Hong Kong. That’s it."

"That’s not all, right?"

"Of course not. Little Wu said he felt something was off about the stone. You don’t know, Little Wu is amazing. In Chun City..."

Chang Linlin took over, spilling out everything that happened in Chun City and Ruili to Yang Yanzhi. Although they had talked about it occasionally, Wu Di had never heard the full story. Combined with the shock of the magical painting, he felt Yang Yanzhi’s gaze becoming increasingly strange.

Chang Linlin gave Zhong Qi a meaningful look:

"Little Wu, I can only help you so much. It’s up to you now. By the way, Yanzhi’s hug is so soft."

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