Chapter 76: The Dangerous Painting
by xennovel“An oil painting?”
Lu Xin paused, giving his sister a curious glance.
With the fat Manager Liu standing right beside him, it wasn’t convenient to speak directly to his sister.
His sister, buzzing with excitement from uncovering secrets, cooperated readily. “Yeah! I just heard that woman tell the old man she became like *that* because she saw that oil painting. The old man seemed nervous and quickly asked which one. She said it was from the batch brought back by the scavenger team from outside the city.”
“The one covered with a black cloth, just in a simple wooden frame.”
“She also said when she went to pick up the goods, the scavenger team members were all dead. Looked like they had internal conflict and shot each other. The scene was chaotic, and the oil painting was there, but it wasn’t on the original list they provided…”
…
Lu Xin nodded slowly without changing his expression, then half-turned and gave his sister a meaningful look.
The look meant: “Keep listening!”
His sister nodded excitedly and happily crawled back.
The door opened slightly and closed gently again. No one knew his sister had slipped back inside.
Lu Xin pondered for a moment, then suddenly remarked, “This Mr. Xu seems quite wealthy.”
The fat man beside him paused, then replied with a smile, “Mr. Xu is a person of considerable status, even in the Main City.”
Lu Xin nodded. “I noticed earlier his living room has many nice paintings and statues.”
Manager Liu looked surprised. “Mr. Lone Soldier, you know about art pieces?”
Lu Xin nodded. “I learned a little from a teacher when I was young. Just the basics.”
“That’s already quite impressive.”
Manager Liu nodded repeatedly, then chuckled. “You have a good eye. Mr. Xu is one of the few people post-Cataclysm who still understands the precious value of art and has dedicated his life to searching for and protecting it!”
“As you know, everyone’s focused on rebuilding civilization and order now. Art is an indispensable part of our culture, and people are paying more attention to pre-Cataclysm art pieces. But during the initial collapse of civilization, these things were considered worthless, tossed aside like trash in abandoned cities…”
“Frankly, back then, many didn’t believe civilization even had a chance of being rebuilt.”
…
Lu Xin nodded. “So how does this Mr. Xu usually collect these art pieces?”
Manager Liu glanced at Lu Xin, then smiled. “That, I’m not too clear on. However, if Mr. Lone Soldier is also interested in art, perhaps we can interact more in the future. Whether you’re looking to sell or collect, I have some connections…”
Lu Xin just gave a noncommittal “Mm.”
Inside, however, he was slowly putting things together.
If his guess wasn’t wrong, the art collected by the Xu father and daughter was likely obtained illegally.
Satellite City has many scavenger teams. It’s currently the highest-paying but also one of the riskiest job types in Qinggang City.
The mission of these scavenger teams is to explore old cities one by one, collecting usable resources.
There are many types of scavenger teams, formed in various ways.
Some are commissioned by the Qinggang City Administration Hall, others by companies, or even private commissions from certain big shots.
The scavenger team this father and daughter mentioned – they help them collect various art pieces?
…
…
From the conversation his sister relayed, he could guess what happened. That scavenger team obtained something the father and daughter wanted, so Mr. Xu’s daughter, Xu Xiao Xiao, went to retrieve it. But when she arrived, she found the entire scavenger team dead. At the scene, she discovered a painting that wasn’t originally part of their collection plan, but she brought it back anyway.
And it was precisely because she saw this painting that such a huge problem arose.
That explained things.
Just as Mr. Xu had said, the Main City’s defenses were extremely strict. It would be very difficult for any Special Pollution Source to enter from the outside, and his daughter wouldn’t have had the opportunity to come into contact with one. So, how did she get polluted?
The reason was simple: she must have encountered it when she left the city…
…
…
Just as Lu Xin was slowly piecing things together, the living room door opened.
Mr. Xu appeared at the doorway, leaning on his cane. He looked somewhat nervous but hid it well, smiling and nodding at Lu Xin. “We owe you greatly this time, Mr. Lone Soldier. My daughter has recovered, but she’s still very weak. To ensure she gets better care, I plan to take her back to the Main City tonight to recuperate… As for the payment this time, I will definitely…”
Lu Xin glanced through the open door and saw Xu Xiao Xiao leaning against the sofa.
Having just been cured, she should have been mentally exhausted, yet she kept watching the outside nervously.
Her eyes held a subtle fear, yet also an unusual greed.
Shaking his head slightly, Lu Xin said, “Now isn’t the time to collect payment.”
Mr. Xu paused, hesitating. “Mr. Lone Soldier, you mean…”
“Your problem hasn’t actually been resolved yet!”
Lu Xin stated, “The Pollution Source hasn’t been dealt with. How can I accept money now?”
“This…”
Mr. Xu looked at Lu Xin’s rather sincere face with some surprise. After a pause, he chuckled softly. “Heh, thank you for your kind intentions, Mr. Lone Soldier, but I don’t think you need to go to such trouble. I asked my daughter carefully just now. She didn’t come into contact with anything strange. It was just due to excessive stress before, leading to this rebellious phase…”
“Rest assured, Mr. Lone Soldier, this matter ends here. Even if there are issues later, I won’t blame you.”
He paused slightly, then added, “When you file your report, Mr. Lone Soldier, you can write it this way. There won’t be any problems!”
Hearing this, Manager Liu at the side also seemed a bit puzzled.
He quickly chimed in with a smile, “Since Mr. Xu says so, the commission can conclude here…”
Turning to Lu Xin, he continued, “The payment this time…”
Listening to them, Lu Xin frowned slightly.
His sister silently appeared behind Mr. Xu, hanging upside down from the doorframe, swinging back and forth as she grinned at Lu Xin. “Brother, brother! They were just discussing secretly taking that oil painting she hid back for research…”
“She said the painting is very valuable and no one else must know…”
…
Lu Xin’s frown deepened slightly.
Facing the smiling faces of Mr. Xu and Manager Liu, he slowly shook his head. “That won’t do.”
“Work must be taken seriously.”
Then he looked up. The lights in the villa cast uneven shadows across his face as his gaze settled on them, his expression unnervingly serious. “Since I accepted your commission and took your money, naturally, I must resolve the problem completely for you – both the polluted person and the Pollution Source.”
“The contract stated it clearly: a complete cure earns the hundred thousand payment, didn’t it?”
…
The atmosphere grew somewhat tense.
Mr. Xu and Manager Liu looked taken aback, feeling there was something wrong with this interpretation of the contract.
Lu Xin simply watched them quietly.
He couldn’t quite understand why they would lie and secretly hide something they knew was dangerous…
Are this Xu father and daughter crazy?