Chapter 35: Scammed Out of a Painting!

Liu Ruohan never dreamed she would witness such an incredible scene.

On one side…

A plain, ordinary small-time boss of a game company with a high school education. Not long ago, he had been struggling to find work, meeting with failure at every turn.

On the other side was a world-renowned figure, a representative of an entire artistic era and movement. He was currently the darling of capital investors, with every one of his paintings starting at prices in the millions or tens of millions.

Back when she was studying abroad, whenever her mentor discussed contemporary art, Mendeleev was a figure that simply could not be bypassed!

These were people from two different worlds, two different social strata!

So…

How were they sitting together drinking?

It was like seeing a ghost!

Liu Ruohan slowly approached the table.

Then…

“Drink! This calls for a grand toast! Once we’ve finished this, we’ll start all over again…”

“Good!”

“…”

She heard Zhang Yang’s voice, sounding somewhat excited as he proposed a toast to Mendeleev.

Mendeleev’s eyes were slightly bloodshot and his face was flushed from the alcohol, but he picked up his glass and drained it in one go, looking quite bold and unconstrained.

“Actually, all my life, I’ve longed for art. Some art serves as a witness to history, giving us the feeling of having a dialogue with people of that era… For a long time, I would often go to concerts to hear symphonies, or visit galleries to see paintings and sculptures… I truly revere art!”

Zhang Yang seemed a bit tipsy. His tongue was starting to trip over his words, making his speech slightly slurred.

But he was very earnest.

“I actually really love Mozart’s Requiem, and Tchaikovsky’s Pathétique Symphony. Of course, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5, Fate, is also a great favorite of mine…”

“The masterpieces created by so many at the end of their lives still echo in my mind today…”

“When you open a history book, no matter how many years have passed, you can clearly hear their voices. It’s as if you’re talking to them, listening to them tell their stories…”

“…”

“…”

Mendeleev listened to this, stunned.

He listened.

However, among the figures Zhang Yang mentioned, he hadn’t heard of a single one.

Was he just ignorant, or was something else going on?

Equally stunned were Shen Yi and Liu Ruohan, standing behind them.

They could understand Zhang Yang’s talk about art, but they didn’t have even the slightest impression of the people he was using as examples.

Was Zhang Yang so drunk that his mind had turned to mush?

Looking at his expression, though, he didn’t seem to be making things up!

They didn’t understand.

They only knew that Zhang Yang seemed to be venting something from the depths of his soul.

Then…

After a bit more wine, they suddenly saw Zhang Yang pull a pen and paper from his pocket.

“Mr. Mendeleev, actually…”

“Eh? Mr. Zhang?”

“Could I ask you to write a few words for me?”

“Huh? Sure, what do you want me to write?”

“Universe Technology. Just those words.”

“Oh? I can do that!”

“Um, Mr. Mendeleev? I have another question…”

“Go ahead…”

“In your opinion, how should one paint the universe?”

“The universe?”

“Yes. For example, if you were to paint the cosmic galaxy on this piece of paper…”

“This paper is so small, and you want a cosmic galaxy?”

“Can you do it? I know it might be very difficult, and in a setting like this where everyone is drunk, it might affect your creativity…”

“What kind of style do you want? It’s fine. I’ve painted on the walls of a cowshed¹ during the hardest times; this is nothing!”

“The simpler the style, the better?”

“Fine!”

Inside the small tavern.

Amidst the clamor and the dim lighting.

Mendeleev seemed completely unaffected. After writing the words “Universe Technology” in Chinese on the paper, he pondered for a moment…

Then, using the pen Zhang Yang provided, he drew a circle. Inside the circle, he began to dot in the stars.

Soon…

A simple prototype of the universe began to emerge under Mendeleev’s hand.

“Incredible, Mr. Mendeleev!” Zhang Yang’s eyes lit up!

“Haha, it’s just a simple sketch. While I was drawing it, I felt a sense of childlike wonder. It made me think of the days I spent in Huaxia many years ago…”

Mendeleev set down the pen and looked toward the noisy distance with drunken eyes, appearing lost in memory, with much he wanted to say.

But…

“Mr. Mendeleev…” Zhang Yang suddenly interrupted his reminiscence.

“What is it?” Mendeleev looked a bit dazed at being cut off.

“It seems to be getting late. How about we call it a night? It’s time to go home and sleep…” Zhang Yang tucked the paper away as if it were a priceless treasure and gave a light cough.

“Huh?” Over the years, Mendeleev had been surrounded by the rot of vanity and money, and he inevitably felt a sense of loneliness. He had finally found someone he could talk to through the influence of alcohol, and after holding it in for so long, he was just about to express his inner thoughts.

And then…

Before he could even get half a sentence out?

You’re telling me you want to go home and sleep?

“Mr. Mendeleev, your manager is sitting over there. I see she’s been waiting for a long time. Staying up late isn’t good for a lady…” Zhang Yang pointed to the red-haired woman not far away, then added very seriously, “Actually, I think making a lady wait this long isn’t very gentlemanly…”

“???”

When you were talking your head off just now, why didn’t you think about being a gentleman?

Now you’re suddenly a gentleman?

For a moment, Mendeleev couldn’t quite wrap his head around the sudden shift.

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At the entrance.

Mendeleev left.

He seemed to have a belly full of words² he wanted to say, but the other party hadn’t given him the chance!

Ultimately, he was helped into the car by the woman in red.

Before leaving, he glanced at Zhang Yang.

A myriad of emotions rose in his heart.

After getting into the car, he suddenly felt he was being a bit ridiculous.

The whole thing was quite absurd—a famous painter drinking with an ordinary person he’d met by pure chance…

In fact, after they finished drinking, all he knew was that the man was the boss of some small company. He hadn’t even bothered to ask what kind of company it was…

This…

No one would believe it!

The bodyguards glanced around, remaining highly alert as they followed him into a nearby van.

Zhang Yang waved at Mendeleev’s car. Once the vehicle had disappeared into the distance, he reached into his pocket under the glow of a streetlamp.

He grinned, his smile exceptionally bright.

He patted his pocket.

Then, he climbed into a taxi that seemed to have been waiting for him, finally vanishing into the vast expanse of the night.

Shen Yi and Liu Ruohan stood in the distance, silent for a long time. In the end, they chose not to go over and strike up a conversation.

Everything they had witnessed today was simply too bizarre…

The words they had prepared to poach him were now stuck in their throats. For a moment, they didn’t even know how to open their mouths.

Liu Ruohan, meanwhile, was searching the internet for Mozart’s Requiem, Tchaikovsky’s Pathetique Symphony, and of course, Beethoven’s Fate Symphony…

No matter how she searched, neither the people nor the compositions existed.

Was that guy just bragging?

He certainly made it sound real!

She shook her head, utterly speechless.

Of course…

She had no way of knowing that in the coming years, these works…

Well, that was a story for the very distant future.

…

There were four hours left until the release of Beat the Grass Mud Horse!

Mendeleev was unable to sleep.

Anyone involved in the arts was prone to getting stuck in a mental dead end.

Zhang Yang’s words had been like a sudden enlightenment, a wake-up call that left him feeling profoundly ashamed.

Even an ordinary businessman sees the world more clearly than I do…

And I actually…

Morning came.

Mendeleev climbed out of bed. His body felt weary, but his spirit was soaring.

A sudden thought struck him.

He rushed into the bathroom and stared at his reflection.

The more he looked, the more disgusted he felt!

He finally clenched his fists.

Then…

“The fallen painter!”

He went to his studio and used his own likeness to paint a satirical piece.

In the satire, a painter lay atop a mountain of money and fame, snoring away.

Beside him stood a group of pot-bellied capitalists.

On the other side, there was a young man, acting like a madman, desperately trying to wake the painter up!

When he finished, he felt the complex emotions buried deep within his heart finally clear away.

The morning sun shone into the studio.

Facing the dawn, he felt as if he had been reborn.

He felt a sudden, inexplicable surge of gratitude toward that young man…

But right then!

His phone rang.

After taking the call, he looked dazed. Soon after, his agent walked in carrying a stack of documents.

One was a news report, the headline of today’s art world. It detailed how he had destroyed his own painting on the spot, causing a massive sensation in the industry.

The other document was a headline from a popular internet forum.

In the news…

“An Interview with Mr. Zhang Yang, Chairman of Universe Technology!”

“Zhang Yang: The friendship between gentlemen is as pure as water³. Every one of our games is a work of art!”

“Last night, Mr. Mendeleev and I had a deep discussion about the art of gaming. We talked about everything from primitive human games to the high-tech games of the future. Mr. Mendeleev was deeply moved, feeling a burst of inspiration. We shared several drinks on the spot, and in a moment of high spirits, he took up the brush to personally add the finishing touch to our ‘Universe Technology’ name. Furthermore, he designed a logo for Universe Technology and encouraged our company to keep striving for excellence!”

“I’m sure everyone has heard about Mr. Mendeleev destroying his painting at the exhibition!”

“Many people think Mr. Mendeleev has gone mad!”

“However, I believe he isn’t mad at all. On the contrary, his understanding of art has reached a new level!”

“He has broken his shackles to reach the summit once more!”

“Our logo is the work of Mr. Mendeleev’s rebirth, symbolizing his rejection of worldly vanity and his return to the highest temple of art! In the future, it will undoubtedly be a representative work of an era. I predict it will wander through the long river of art history, a landmark that no one can bypass…”

“We do not produce art; we are merely the porters of human art⁴…”

“Below, I will analyze the state of mind Mr. Mendeleev was in when he created this piece. This Universe Technology painting incorporates many of Mr. Mendeleev’s philosophies…”

“…”

“…”

After reading it…

Mendeleev’s entire body trembled!

Instantly!

He felt his blood pressure skyrocket!

How is this guy even better at boasting than those loathsome capitalists!

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Translator’s Notes

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1. cowshed: In a Chinese historical context, a ‘cowshed’ refers to the makeshift prisons where intellectuals and artists were confined during the Cultural Revolution. Mendeleev’s mention of painting there signifies he lived through a period of severe political persecution and hardship. ↩
2. a belly full of words: In Chinese linguistic tradition, the belly is often seen as the seat of thoughts and emotions. The expression “a belly full of words” (憋了一肚子话) describes the specific frustration of having many things to say but being denied the opportunity to speak, creating a sense of internal pressure. ↩
3. The friendship between gentlemen is as pure as water: A well-known proverb (君子之交淡如水) from the classical text Zhuangzi. It refers to an ideal relationship between virtuous people that is simple and pure like water, lacking the ‘sweetness’ of material interests or ulterior motives. ↩
4. We do not produce art; we are merely the porters of human art: This line parodies the famous slogan of Nongfu Spring, a prominent Chinese bottled water brand: “We do not produce water; we are merely nature’s porters.” The character adapts this well-known corporate phrasing for his own marketing purposes. ↩