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墨書 Inktalez
"Mr. Lin, where should I put this?" A young man with a tattooed arm asked while holding up a picture frame. His name was A Long, one of Old Zhou's earliest students, who had once roamed the streets and now made a living through his tattoo artistry.
"Don't call me Mr. Lin," Lin Xiaofan replied as he took the painting. "Just call me Xiao Lin."
A Long grinned, revealing a gap where a tooth used to be. "Teacher Zhou said you're a good person, willing to give the best spot to the 'Garbage Man's' painting."
Lin Xiaofan felt a heaviness in his chest. In the most prominent position in the exhibition hall, Old Zhou insisted on hanging the painting titled "Dignity of the Beggar"—depicting a ragged old man standing tall as he received bread, rather than groveling for alms.
On the last day of the exhibition setup, Lin Xiaofan found Old Zhou alone in the storage room, polishing an old photograph. When he noticed Lin Xiaofan enter, the old man hurriedly stuffed the photo into his pocket but accidentally dropped it.
The yellowed photograph showed a group of miners wearing hard hats, posing at the mouth of a mine. Lin Xiaofan bent down to pick it up and was immediately drawn to a young man in the corner—his familiar features unmistakably belonged to a younger Zhao Tianming!
"This is..."
"That was over twenty years ago," Old Zhou snatched the photo back, his voice suddenly cold. "I took it when I was working as a safety officer at the mine." He turned his wheelchair to leave but paused. "Mr. Lin, once the exhibition is over, we settle our accounts."
Lin Xiaofan stood there, perplexed. Suddenly, his system vibrated:
【Warning!】
【Detected rising danger level of associated individuals】
【Some funds have been frozen】
【Suggestion: Handle historical relationships with caution】
On the day of the exhibition opening, attendance exceeded expectations. Old Zhou's paintings sold out at an astonishing rate, especially "Under the Overpass Veteran," which was purchased by an entrepreneur for a high price of one hundred thousand. Lin Xiaofan stood beside the cash register, watching the numbers on his system continuously increase but feeling no joy.
"Mr. Lin." The entrepreneur approached with a check in hand. "I'd like to add five hundred thousand in sponsorship, but there's one condition—I want to meet this painter."
Lin Xiaofan led him to the lounge only to find Old Zhou confronting an unexpected guest—Zhao Tianming stood before him in a suit, holding "Under the Overpass Veteran," with his signature smile on his lips.
"Old Zhou, your skills have improved over the years," Zhao Tianming's voice was disturbingly gentle.
Old Zhou's wheelchair jerked back suddenly, knocking over a cup of water. "How did you..."
"Is Zhao Huizhang interested in art too?" Lin Xiaofan quickly interjected between them.
Zhao Tianming seemed to just notice him and maintained his smile. "Lin Xiaofan, what a coincidence." He shook the painting slightly. "I just came to buy a painting and perhaps..." His gaze swept over Old Zhou's empty pant leg. "...catch up."
The entrepreneur stood awkwardly by, holding his check which now seemed utterly ridiculous. Zhao Tianming handed the painting to his assistant and pulled out a gold-embossed business card, slipping it into Old Zhou's pocket. "Consider my proposal, Old Zhou. Your students... could really use professional guidance."
After Zhao Tianming left, Old Zhou slumped in his wheelchair as if all strength had drained from him. He trembled as he pulled out a small pill bottle from his inner pocket and swallowed two white tablets.
"Do you know Zhao Tianming?" Lin Xiaofan crouched down beside him.
Old Zhou's gaze fell upon the sold-out display board in the distance. "Twenty-three years and four months..." the old man murmured, "I lost this leg in their mine."
That evening, when the accounts were settled, the system displayed a cash return amount exceeding one million, but 30% of the funds remained frozen. Lin Xiaofan stared at the numbers on the computer screen, yet his mind was flooded with the image of Old Zhou's terrified eyes when he saw Zhao Tianming, along with the young faces in the miners' group photo...
Su Yuqing entered, holding a document. "I found something. In 1999, there was the Xishan Mine Disaster, which claimed twelve lives. Zhao Tianming was the deputy mine manager at that time..." She paused, "The accident investigation report shows that safety officer Zhou Guoan had repeatedly reported excessive gas levels, but the mine management pushed ahead to meet deadlines..."
Lin Xiaofan suddenly stood up, his chair scraping loudly against the floor. He realized what the system's warning meant—Old Zhou and Zhao Tianming's feud was far more dangerous than he had imagined.
"There's something even stranger." Su Yuqing pulled up an old photograph. "Look at this safety officer. Who does he resemble?"
On the yellowed newspaper, a young man wearing a hard hat stood in front of the mine, and he bore a striking resemblance to Lin Xiaofan.
"This is..."
"Lin Jianguo, your father." Su Yuqing said softly, "He was also one of the survivors of that mine disaster."
Outside, a flash of lightning split the night sky, illuminating Lin Xiaofan's pale face. The number representing frozen funds on the system screen suddenly began to flicker ominously, like some foreboding countdown...
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