Hu Meizi

54.

Xie Tang found that Sun Du was unusually silent today. The butler said that Sun Du didn't eat anything when he returned to the house after painting, and stayed on the balcony on the second floor and never came down.

Xie Tang thought that Sun Du was bored, he knew his old man's work and rest, Sun Du, a young man, stayed with him for a long time, it was inevitable that he would be bored and feel bored.Thinking that nothing will happen tomorrow, Xie Tang said that he would take Sun Du to a western restaurant in City C. He had eaten a tribute banquet from the chef of this restaurant before, and it tasted good.

Sun Du did respond with a smile, and he could see that he was also interested, but the exhaustion on his face couldn't be concealed.

The two of them were sitting in the box of the most prestigious western restaurant in C City, Xie Tang glanced at Sun Du who had been absently cutting the steak without taking a bite.

Sun Du had almost shredded the steak.

"What's wrong?" Xie Tang picked up a tissue to wipe his mouth and asked.

He looked at Sun Du with calm and penetrating dark blue eyes.

Sun Du stopped the hand that abused the steak, he pursed his lips and raised his head to look at Xie Tang, "Xie Tang, did you already know... about my painting?"

After finishing speaking, he also felt that he was quite funny. Wouldn't Xie Tang let his assistant investigate the past?You can find out by looking it up, why did he bother to ask?What a brain twitch.Sun Du smiled, "Yes...you should have known..."

Xie Tang put down the tissue paper, "Sun Du, money doesn't have great powers. It's just half-knowledge. I never rely on the information I find out to judge people."

He looked at Sun Du, with a sincere expression on his deep-featured face, "I apologize to you for my offense, but all I checked was the reason why you stopped learning to draw."

The smile on Sun Du's face was so bright that it seemed to bleed, "The reason? What is the reason—because I cheated?" He asked softly.

Xie Tang looked at him indifferently, and after a long time, he said matter-of-factly, "This is how the files are recorded."

Sun Du was silent, he didn't look at Xie Tang, he looked away and looked at the red wine glass on the side.He picked up the red wine glass on one side and shook it, the dark red and almost purple liquid rolled in the glass.

Sun Du took a sip lightly, barely wetting his lips.

"You didn't believe it? People are alive, but files are dead. People can lie and talk sweetly, but files can't." Sun Du looked at Xie Tang, and he didn't smile anymore. His face was calm, like a pool of stagnant water, "C Who in the city doesn't know that my Sun Du is not in the top class, that I am humble when I live, I study hard and learn to draw but I have no ability, and I even fail to cheat. I was born to inherit my mother's mantle and be a dirty bitch the fate of the son."

Xie Tang looked at him quietly, his eyes were still filled with ice and snow, without a trace of ripple or emotion.

"I said before," Xie Tang said lightly, "money is not supernatural, and I don't rely on the information I find out to judge a person."

"Then what's going on with Professor Li?" Sun Du put down the red wine glass, his expression was also indifferent. When he was not smiling, the eyes of the up-tuned fox were no longer a pool of vivid autumn water. It has a sharp taste.When he looked at someone, he was quite aggressive, domineering and glamorous.

"You know one version of my story from the file, and you know another version of my story from Professor Li—or someone else, so, Xie Tang, are you testing me?" Sun Du asked .

Xie Tang stared at Sun Du expressionlessly. He didn't have the slightest desire to explain anything. He pondered for a while before stating, "No, Sun Du, I've never been a fool to test people around me."

Xie Tang looked at Sun Du with peaceful and quiet eyes.

"It's not a temptation, it's a pity," he added.

Sun Du looked at him, speechless for a moment.He turned his head slightly to look at the budding roses in the glass water bottle on the dining table, not knowing what to say.

The petals of roses are layered on top of each other, wrapping the most tender stamens inside. The outermost wine-red petals have the largest arc, and their corners are slightly curled and slightly yellowed. They show themselves cautiously and explore this side. Pioneer of heaven and earth.The thorny dark green branches are inserted into a glass vase filled with a little water, and the branches are connected with a few trembling leaves, which are quite green.

This is always the case with Xie Tang, he always has the ability to silence the eloquent Sun Du, even though Xie Tang doesn't talk much, and rarely argues.

"I like your paintings very much, Sun Du," Xie Tang said, "I'm very sorry."

Xie Tang's eyes were bright and cold, he looked at Sun Du with scrutiny and appreciation.

Sun Du looked at him, and suddenly laughed again, his smile was very shallow, not at all charming as usual, "Thank you, Xie Tang, I am also very sorry."

Like Xie Tang, he didn't say anything about his regrets, but they knew each other well.

Sun Du picked up the fork, inserted the steak that he had cut into small strips on the plate, and delivered it to his mouth.

This restaurant is really capable. The medium-rare steak is a bit cold, but it is still tender on the outside and tender on the inside, with a faint milky taste unique to beef.

"It's been a long time since this happened," Sun Du said after taking a few mouthfuls, then put down his fork again.

Sun Du looked across the table and looked at him quietly, pretending to listen to Xie Tang, "I've already put it down."

"It doesn't matter if you don't let it go," Sun Du smiled self-deprecatingly, "If you don't let it go, I might not be there anymore."

Xie Tang didn't interrupt him, but just nodded slightly, indicating that he was listening.

Like every time they communicated, Sun Du said slowly, "I only started to learn painting in high school, and I started late. My mother heard from my teacher that I have talent and can be admitted to a good university by painting, so she immediately signed up for me Tell me to study hard, regardless of the high cost. I am also interested in it, participated in several competitions, and the teacher often praised me, and I began to feel confident."

Sun Du's eyes widened, and he recalled his rare and happy time, and the smile on his face also relaxed, "During my third year in high school, I decided to try Yangmei's special trick. My teacher thought I could do it." , always encouraged me, he knew my family’s situation and bought me a train ticket out of his own pocket. My mother was also happy, told me to take the exam, and gave me all the money I could give. Of course I knew that this opportunity was meaningful to me How important it is, I also take this matter seriously. Every day when I open my eyes at five o’clock, I ride a bicycle to the studio, and when I get home at one or two o’clock in the morning, I lie on the bed and close my eyes. —At that time, I didn’t have the mentality of betting, and it was just a mock exam, I wanted to practice, so I prepared for a long time.”

Apparently, Xie Tang didn't quite understand how to draw a picture in Chinese education. He raised his eyebrows slightly, but he didn't interrupt Sun Du either.All of this was very novel to him.

Sun Du's smile faded a little, "When I took the exam, I got a creative question, which was almost the same as the one I had bet on. I was so happy at the time. I thought my luck was really good, so I put my The well-prepared and well-painted picture was basically painted on it intact. I was so happy after the exam that I told the teacher, my mother, and...my first love about it when I got back. I am waiting for the result with joy, and I think, this time it will definitely not be too bad.”

"In the end, what I waited for was that my papers were judged as plagiarized papers, and I couldn't take any art exams for a year."

He still smiled lightly and said, "Then, there is nothing to say. My teacher investigated and found that the paintings of many people in our studio were secretly photographed and made into high-definition cheat sheets, and several people were also shot. The person in charge of the studio The man was furious, he must be an insider who got in through the gate control, he thought it was a teacher who was cheating, he must adjust the monitoring, and let this person not be able to get mixed up in the painting training industry in the future."

Xie Tang looked at him quietly, and he watched the faint smile on Sun Du's face gradually disappear, like a deer that strayed into winter and gradually went away until it was swallowed by heavy snow.

"The person who took the sneak shot is my boyfriend, who is also my first love." Sun Du's face was so cold that he was numb. His grandma grew up. His grandma was old. She fell from the top of the stairs and got a big cut. She bled a lot and was hospitalized. The operation cost a lot of money. Someone found him and told him to secretly take a few pictures and give him a few Thousands of dollars, he agreed. At night, he told the security guard that he had something to do with me—the security guard also knew that we were in a relationship, so he let him in."

"When the truth came out, he cried and knelt down and begged me for forgiveness, saying that he was forced to the point where he couldn't help it, and he was sorry for me for the rest of his life. He also didn't expect to bet on the winning question. The people who gave the money said that most of them would not bet In the middle, it was to deceive the students. He believed it."

"The investigation is clear. My first love just turned 18 years old and was imprisoned. A few other classmates found a relationship to explain the situation, and nothing happened. I have no choice, because I was lucky, and the people who copied my paintings It’s a big background, it’s the son of someone I only saw on TV at the time, and I only found out about it later... They don’t allow their son to have such a stain. In the end, the person who plagiarized my painting took it out , I became the guy who bought the cheat sheet to plagiarize his son's painting."

Sun Du suddenly smiled, "If it wasn't for him, I wouldn't have known that my painting would have been rated as the number one art examination special recruit that year."

Xie Tang opened his mouth to say something, but Sun Du interrupted him, he looked at Xie Tang with calm eyes, "Xie Tang, don't comfort me. I know, you are not good at comforting others, and I don't need comfort. "

"Then do you hate them?" Xie Tang asked.

"Hate?" Sun Du chewed the word carefully, he shook his head, "No, I don't hate, this is fate."

"Shortly after my first love went to prison, his grandma found out about it. His grandma knew what his grandson had done. She felt ashamed to see me and my mother, so she jumped to death in the hospital. I don't hate them. Back then, my mother and I When hiding in this place, if he and his grandma were not willing to take us in and rent us a room cheaply, my mother and I would have frozen to death on the street. I don’t hate them.”

"The one who copied my paintings and turned black and white—what should I say—my family has no money, and I can't afford to study, and I don't want my mother to go out to pick up guests anymore. I have nothing to do like a little gangster, and finally By coincidence, I was picked up by Du Shaoyu, probably because I was also a fresh product, and a young boy who had just grown up was also interesting, so Du Shaoyu sent me an invitation letter. I don't care, I just happen to be short of money, I just climbed up to Du Shaoyu," Sun Du said the name indifferently.

He didn't want to be Xie Tang but frowned, "You are only 17 years old in the third year of high school in China, this is not correct."

Sun Du was suddenly interrupted by Xie Tang, thinking that he was about to say something important, and was listening intently, but he didn't want to hear this.

He laughed out loud, "I'm an adult, Xie Tang, and I've already been an adult for more than half a year at that time."

After Xie Tang nodded with a serious face, Sun Du continued, "From then on, if I blow the pillow, that one is destined to not live long. Because some people said that he plagiarized and had no strength, he bullied his classmates in his sophomore year. He was expelled from Central America. His father gave him money to send him to study abroad, but within a year, his father was dismissed, and his mother ran away with the money without hesitation. He took drugs, raced cars, fought and picked up girls every day abroad. I heard it died last year—who knows, I don't pay much attention to that."

"I don't hate them." Sun Du said firmly, "I just realize more clearly the importance of money and power. Without these things, I am nothing."

Xie Tang nodded, "They are indeed important."

"But it's not the most important thing." Xie Tang said.

He looked at Sun Du with terrifyingly penetrating eyes, "You like to have them, and you also enjoy chasing them."

Sun Du grinned, and it was his trademark gorgeous smile again. The thick and gorgeous smile was like a cold snake hovering over a person's head. It spit out snake letters, and slid down against the person's skin coldly.

"Who knows?" He asked back, and then said softly, "I was born with a lowly fate."

"No one is cheap," Xie Tang said expressionlessly, "You are very powerful, Sun Du."

In fact, Xie Tang seldom praises people, and when he praises his subordinates, it is nothing more than saying "yes." He can make his subordinates burst into tears, and he rarely appreciates anyone. The last person he admired was Marx.But when he met Sun Du, he praised and affirmed it, and there was no shortage of it.

He himself was a little surprised by this.

"Maybe." Sun Du said with a smile, "These things are in the past, and I don't care anymore."

More than ten years ago, the end of spring and the beginning of summer went, and it just went, many things passed, and it just passed, and many people left, and they just left.But the people who should be met, the bunches of winter jasmine, oleander and early cherry blossoms that should be greeted, will always come no matter how long or late. They come on the moon and go away with the wind.

The author says:

Sun Du’s high school past can be written as a side story after the end, to see if you want to read it, alas, it’s my first time to write a long story, please bear with me, I love you all