Yunding Ranch

Chapter 7 Degas's Paintings
In an instant, countless thoughts flashed in my mind, surging and boiling.

Lu Li couldn't help but took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down as much as possible, and said in a deep voice, "So, what's going on with this painting?"

"Jesus Christ, you are still so calm, why didn't I hear the screams and shouts?" Marianne's teasing made Lu Li laugh out loud, and his nervousness became more relaxed, "You must know , Degas’s works in his later years are very rare. Many of them have not been exhibited in public, and many of them were even destroyed by him. I don’t know about them. I asked around just now, and in the end it was the guy who knew French art like the back of his hand I recognized it. You should have seen his expression, he was so excited that he almost swallowed my phone!"

"Ha, no wonder you spent nearly a century just now." Lu Li also joked again, and his mentality gradually calmed down.

"You should be glad that I finally found the answer!" Marianne said hotly, "This work was completed in 1884. When he created it, Degas was always worried that he was in danger of blindness, and the strength of his wrist also appeared. The signs of weakening caused the details of the paintings to be far inferior to those at their peak. Later, Degas became more and more paranoid and fanatical, with perverse temperament, and the spirituality in his works when he was young also weakened a lot."

Marian continued to explain, dumping all the information she got from her friend to Lu Li, "This work is the most famous among those works, and many people even think it surpasses Degas' peak work. , in this painting, Degas's use of space and the superposition of characters are even more complicated than those of the most famous ballerinas. According to my friend's original words, he's exhausted put all your talents into the work you create'."

"Wow." Even though Lu Li had limited understanding of art and Degas, he could still hear the admiration in Marianne's words.

"It is rumored that this painting was snatched by the Germans from the Catherine Palace in St. Petersburg in 1941, along with a batch of other artworks, and no one has seen it since then." Marianne continued to add.

It is no wonder that there is almost no information on the Internet. It turns out that this painting has disappeared for more than half a century; Damaged or even disappeared during the handling process, there is no way to count.

Now, Lu Li finally understood the reason why Marian brought up World War II just now, "Wow!" Apart from sighing like this, Lu Li found that he was a little short of words - this was really rare for him in the Department of Journalism.

Marianne screamed without warning, startling Lu Li, "Do you know what this means?" Lu Li's thoughts couldn't keep up with Marianne's jumping speed for a while, but Marianne immediately He said, "This means that if this work is rediscovered, it will definitely cause a sensation! All artists, all connoisseurs, and all collectors will be crazy about it!" Marianne was obviously not satisfied. I have to emphasize Lu Li's flat "Wow" reaction just now.

"Ha, so, are you looking forward to a donation or an auction?" Lu Li also came back to his senses and made a little joke.

"Whether it's an auction or a donation, as long as you let this painting out of your friend's attic, this is a breakthrough in the history of art!" Marianne was very emotional, and she didn't know whether it was because of this Degas or the power of alcohol at the party , "More importantly, if along with this painting, you follow the clues and find other works of art that the Germans robbed from the Catherine Palace, this is a real discovery!"

Lu Li's mind once again came up with other items in the ring—could it be that this ring was left behind by a soldier who participated in World War II?If so, it would make sense, since the Chrysler Building was created before 1941, so the timeline would be fine.So, what about the other three sketches?What about other works of art?

"I will relay all the news to my friend as it is. I hope we can enjoy this painting in museums or galleries in the near future." Lu Li remained calm, joking with Marianne, "When the time comes , you can explain to me in detail why this painting is so good. You know, I am a complete layman."

"God, I'm jealous of you." Marianne rolled her eyes fiercely. "You owe me dinner when spring break is over!"

"No problem." Lu Li simply agreed, and then hung up the phone.

Lu Li looked at the Degas painting again. He realized that compared to other paintings and so-called art treasures, he should not be so greedy. The most urgent task is to verify the authenticity of this painting.If it is false, then all speculations are in vain, and there is no need to waste time and energy; if it is true...

Sitting on the edge of the bed, looking at the brightly lit scene outside the window, the turbulent clouds are magnificent, and the towering buildings of the Empire State Building are particularly conspicuous surrounded by dots of light. The pulse of the city can still be clearly heard indoors.The couple's conversation next door penetrated the paper-thin wall and echoed softly in the night. Everything was so familiar and real, no different from the past few years, but at this moment, Lu Li felt a strong The feeling of unreality, as if the feet are hanging in the air, is so empty that it makes people panic.

Lying on the bed, he thought that he would toss and turn, unable to fall asleep. Whether it was the shock brought by the space ring or the opportunity brought by the inheritance gift, he needed a little time to digest.But he didn't expect that not long after his head touched the pillow, he fell into a drowsy dreamland and slept until dawn.

When the first ray of morning sun fell on the foot of the bed, he felt the faint warmth, as if even the air smelled of dry sunshine.Stretching, sitting up straight, looking at the mobile phone next to the bed, it was already nine o'clock. Only then did he realize that he forgot to draw the curtains last night.

In New York, due to the existence of high-rise buildings, it always takes more time for the sun to shine into the house, so if you want to get up early, the best way is to set the alarm clock, but last night was too tired and too excited, he forgot to set the alarm clock. The alarm clock also forgot to pull the curtains, and fell asleep directly, so I woke up later than usual.

Fortunately, today is spring break.

Between "going back to bed for a good night's sleep" and "starting a new busy day", Lu Li chose the latter. Today he not only has to deal with that Degas painting, but also visits Mark at the law firm. , This will be a day full of schedule, and more importantly, he is not too tired, and the deep sleep last night eliminated all fatigue.

He lifted the quilt and got out of bed, went into the bathroom to brush his teeth, but looked around, but couldn't find the mouthwash cup.He was stunned for a few seconds, and then he realized that he took the mouthwash cup to the room last night, so he went back and saw the transparent mouthwash cup on the cabinet by the door.But... this is not right!

The mouthwash cup was already full of tomato seedlings, and the crowded tomato seedlings almost burst the entire quilt, so that it looked like a pinch of leeks, so... this is what he threw last night. The seeds that go in?
In just one night, all the seeds not only germinated, but sprouted?This is really incredible!It simply violated the law of natural growth, all this is the credit of that cup of space spring water!Thinking about it carefully, he also drank a cup last night. After waking up this morning, not only did he not feel tired at all, but he was also full of energy, as if the fatigue of the past period of time had been swept away.

Sure enough, the spring water in the space is not ordinary water. Could it be the legendary water of life?If he puts the spring water up for auction, can he become a millionaire in no time?No, this is too ostentatious, and if you are not careful, you will be caught and studied; then, what if the spring water is used to moisten plants?Is it possible to increase production, or optimize product quality, or to promote growth like those tomato seedlings; since the spring water has an effect on him—although it has not been directly proven, can it also be used to feed cattle and sheep? To make their meat more delicious, or to cultivate breeds/cattle, breeds/horses... thoughts surged for a while.

Thinking of this, Lu Li couldn't help feeling a little overwhelmed, even more excited than Degas's painting last night.After all, it is better to teach a man to fish than to give him a fish. Degas's painting is a fish, but the spring water can be the starting point for fishing.

After the excitement passed, after calming down for a while, Lu Li realized that his thoughts were too greedy - the spring water in the space was only half a pool, not to mention mass production, it might not be long before it bottomed out, not to mention, he It is not sure whether the spring water can be regenerated.Therefore, it is obviously unrealistic to want to get rich quickly through space spring water.

However, Lu Li quickly thought of another important thing - the ranch that Liz left for him.If space and ranch are combined, does this mean that even as a layman, he can successfully run the ranch?Does this mean that he can control his own destiny and make better choices?

Last night Fred's question resurfaced again: city, or country?

He let out a long breath, put away his complicated emotions, and smiled quietly on the corner of his mouth.Now, the first thing he needs to do is to find a reliable intermediary or gallery or... an auction house to appraise the Degas in his hand.

After thinking about it carefully, Lu Li decided to look for an auction house. Compared with intermediaries or galleries, although auction houses also need to earn intermediary fees, at least their reputation is more trustworthy.If Lu Li, a layman, was looking for an agency or gallery, he might be scammed around without knowing it.It's just whether he can afford the appraisal fee.

(End of this chapter)