Almighty painter

Chapter 773: Haoge, Elena's Family and Mr. G (Part )

Anna Elena sat on the edge of a chair, holding a small, Japanese-made women's short fountain pen with a gold nib, and on the table in front of her was a telephone that led to an unknown direction.

She stared at the phone in front of her, her fountain pen hanging lightly on the paper of her notebook, the sunlight shining on the triangular inlaid nib of the 14K gold pen, refracting multi-colored light.

Faced with the other party's strange opening remarks, the woman hesitated about how to respond in order to get the information she wanted from the other party.

Considering the other party's special identity, Brother Hao, who is now in prison, has nothing to lose.

In a special sense, this person is one of the very few interviewees Anna comes into contact with on a daily basis who completely ignores the power and wealth of Elena's family.

The only thing Anna had that could entice the other person to speak was her conversation skills.

It went unexpectedly smoothly.

The other party seemed to have a strong interest in the Elena family. This was a good start. She felt that she should lure the other party to continue talking about this topic to see whether this strong interest in the Elena family would turn into a motive for him to target the Elena family for fraud.

"Now that you've met, I hope you're not disappointed." - The tone of the complaint was a bit too strong. "It seems that we are of the same kind in some sense." - No, Anna didn't think that she and the other party were of the same kind. Even if she came for something, she was not used to speaking in such a flattering tone.

Or "Underground Godfather... Well, it sounds like you are very proud of your identity. The Irina family has played an important role in the careers of many painters in history. Can you tell me about any cases you are proud of?"

Fortunately.

This problem immediately ceased to be a problem.

In the brief moment that Anna hesitated, Brother Hao had already spoken.

"Not long ago, I just told a young man that my meeting with him happened much earlier than I thought. I didn't expect that he would have the courage to come to Xihe Hall to meet me. But my meeting with you happened much later than I thought."

"At the charity auction a few years ago, I bought the painting 'Woman Combing Her Hair' which was provided by the Irene Family Foundation. Do you still remember it?"

"Well, it should be the work of Pierre-Auguste Renoir. I remember taking a picture of that painting--" Anna said after thinking for a while.

"360 million dollars. 360 million dollars, Ms. Elena."

"I spent a total of 360 million US dollars to buy the collection held by your family foundation. I was waiting in the VIP box for the handover of the auction collection, and I thought I could see you in person. In the end, only your personal secretary showed up and said that you had left first because of something. She said a few high-sounding words of thanks to me, and then turned around and left."

Anna turned her head and looked at Elliot with a questioning look.

The secretary silently spread her hands, indicating that she could not remember clearly.

The Irina Family Private Collection and the Irina Family Foundation's collection list together hold nearly 3 registered artworks of all sizes.

Some of them are in collection libraries, and some are on long-term loan to famous museums around the world.

Even the Renoir collection, which is worth millions, is only a drop in the bucket. Similar exhibit exchanges or charity auctions take place every year.

Not only was Miss Elena busy with her work, but Elliot also met countless collectors and attended various art events on Anna's behalf. Most of the time, she just smiled, thanked him, and then said some clichés.

At that time, Brother Hao probably had disguised his face.

Elliott really couldn't match the face of a man he had seen at an auction a few days ago with the face of the forgery godfather in the underground art world in the newspaper.

"I spent $360 million and I didn't even get a chance to meet you in private."

The middle-aged man on the other end of the phone smiled playfully.

“Buffett’s dinner probably isn’t this expensive.”

"If you are saying this as a buyer at a charity auction, I can apologize. But the charity auction is selling Renoir's works, not tickets for the Irene family dinner reception."

Anna said.

She pondered for a moment, and finally decided to say what she wanted to say. "But if you are speaking to me as a money launderer or the godfather of underground art smuggling, then, with all due respect, the auction cannot choose the buyer. Otherwise, I will not be willing to sell the work to you, whether you offer $360 million or $720 million."

"The origin of your money is not clean at all."

"From a public perspective, the Elena family does not want to have any financial relationship with you."

"From a personal perspective, your generosity... fundamentally does not make the world a better place."

“Even if you can launder the money, it’s not really innocent.”

When Anna speaks venomously, she really means it.

He spent a huge sum of 360 million US dollars to buy the collection of Elena's family. He didn't even get to meet Miss Anna herself, and was despised by her from head to toe.

Elliot felt that if she were Brother Hao, who once called the shots in the underground art market, she would be choked and speechless at this moment.

I don’t know if it was Miss Anna’s sharp comments that caused the opponent to receive a critical hit with real damage.

There was a long silence on the other end of the phone, and even the thin and long breathing sound could not be heard.

Officer Dan Minming, who was sitting next to them, had his wandering eyes drawn to the young woman in the wheelchair.

Learned a lot.

He is indeed a chaebol.

It was the first time that Dan Minming heard someone speak to Brother Hao in such a condescending tone. He stared at Anna for two seconds, and then his eyes flickered away.

What does this have to do with me?

At most, you can secretly gossip with your daughter about the aura of a real super daughter while on the phone.

The call was interrupted for about half a minute because of Anna's sharp comments.

Suddenly, a middle-aged man's laughter came from the receiver of the mobile phone.

It was completely different from his long, thin breathing and weak tone of voice.

The laughter Chen Shenglin was showing at this moment was more like madness than complacency.

His slightly rough laughter echoed in the office, interspersed with continuous coughing.

He coughed so hard that it seemed as if he was going to cough out his lungs, but he just couldn't stop laughing.

What's wrong with this person?

Anna frowned.

She waited silently, without saying a word, until the voice on the other end of the phone finally calmed down.

"I'm fine... No... No need to call a doctor... Relax, it's hard for a person to commit suicide by laughing... No, the interview can continue, um..."

Brother Hao seemed to be on the far end of the line, saying something vaguely to the guard or the caretaker, and then his voice became clear again on the phone.

"Ms. Elena, you are so powerful and——"

The middle-aged man's voice had completely returned to normal, only becoming slightly hoarse due to his uncontrollable laughter just now.

"——What a noble statement. It's exactly how I imagined the heiress of the Elena family would talk." He commented.

"I don't think this is funny." Anna's voice was full of authority. "This is not a joke."

"As for the words themselves, maybe not, but when you say them, it has a comedic effect. Especially in this situation, hearing these words makes me feel so... familiar?" Familiar.

"Can you tell me more about it?" The woman asked with a hint of confusion.

"There is a man named G. As agreed, I will call him Mr. G here."

Mr. G?

Anna's heart was slightly touched by this name.

She had seen Brother Hao sign the stolen Picasso painting worth half a million euros with a marker.

"It's Mr. G in "Can people really defy fate? Become the Prometheus of the world. You will watch me, right? Mr. G." "

There was a subtle change in her tone that was hardly noticeable.

The woman was interested in the name in Chen Shenglin's words.

"You made sufficient preparations before the interview, Ms. Elena," replied Brother Hao.

Of course Anna remembered this sentence.

The Gothic heroic spirit in these words made Miss Elena not even realize at first that they were written by a fake painter.

"Can you tell me about him in detail? Who is he, his background, his name. Is he someone you know, or a partner?" Anna asked.

Officer Dan's eyes drifted over again.

"Cough cough."

The middle-aged man cleared his throat and wanted to take the phone temporarily.

"Agreement!" He tapped the table twice with his fingertips and interrupted, "We agreed on the privacy clause in advance."

"I've signed the agreement." Miss Elena forcefully pressed the phone on the table to prevent him from taking it. "I will consider the content of our chat today. If the name that appears in the interview article involves sensitive content, it will be changed to a pseudonym before obtaining your consent."

"Mr. B, Mr. D, Mr. F or Mr. G, whatever you want to call me," said Anna.

"But I don't think it's important to use a pseudonym during the interview. Please—"

She complained in her tone.

"This isn't an interview with some special forces soldier who beheaded a terrorist!"

The young woman in the wheelchair sits gracefully.

She frowned slightly, looked straight at you, and complained with a part-request and part-command tone, which was hard for others to refuse, especially for a middle-aged man.

pity.

Officer Dan's eyes wandered away again.

"Just think of this as an interview with a special forces soldier who beheaded a terrorist. If you agree, continue. If you refuse, I will stop the interview now."

Dan Minming stared at the little sparrow standing on the telephone pole outside the window and said lightly.

"Ms. Elena, let's just call him Mr. G during this conversation. He probably doesn't want to be involved in anything related to me anymore. This is his own opinion."

Anna turned her head away.

Officer Dan also withdrew his hand.

"It's not a matter of confidentiality, but I have to defer to his opinion so far."

The interviewee, Brother Hao, put an end to this minor dispute between Oil Painting magazine and local officials.

Elliot looked at his young lady.

The young woman's silence was a little strange, perhaps because the hidden meaning in Hao Ge's words was too strange.

obedience?

Coming from the mouth of the man who claims to be the underground godfather of the art market, this word naturally carries with it a puzzling weirdness.

"Mr. G - meeting him is the meeting I have been looking forward to most in these years. He is interesting, very interesting, and I have always wanted to make friends with him. I once wrote him a check as a bargaining chip to make friends with him." There was a hint of reminiscence in the middle-aged man's tone.

"There are no special requirements, the main thing is to make friends."

"First it was $100 million, then $300 million. But Mr. G rejected them all."

Elliot turned his head in surprise and met the equally surprised look of the white lady who was in charge of the Schönbrunn Palace office next to him.

300 million US dollars.

Elliot often participates in some large-scale business, but that is Elena's family's money, not Elliot's money. 300 million US dollars, with the secretary's daily high income, is enough for her to earn for ten years.

Schönbrunn Office receives high-net-worth clients, but $300 million is no small sum. $300 million can buy you a lunch with Warren Buffett or ten basic Ferrari sports cars.

The mysterious Mr. G, however, remained unmoved.

Miss Elena also looked calm and unmoved.

"No wonder it has to be kept secret. I guess the other party must be a big shot as well." She raised her head and looked at Dan Minming who was counting sparrows next to her.

"Big shot? It depends on how you interpret it. The reason I wrote the check was because I felt that I saw a shadow of my past self in him. So I wanted to play a game."

"He refused."

"He said he didn't want my money. Publicly, he didn't want to have any contact with me. Privately, he said my money wasn't clean money. Even if I could launder the money, it wasn't really clean."

Everyone in the office turned their eyes to the young woman sitting at the desk.

Without him.

Mr. G's answer was exactly the same as what Miss Elena said just now.

Officer Lian Dan's gaze drifted over again.

In order not to worry her father, Koko did not tell him about Hao Ge’s phone call that night, and he didn’t know about this incident.

That boy can actually be as stylish as this rich young lady?
Officer Dan found a new topic to gossip about with his daughter.

"A very clear thought. I like him." Anna agreed.

"Oh, that's right, Mr. G also likes the Elena family." Brother Hao said softly: "Do you know what's so funny about this matter--"

"You are completely different people, but you actually said exactly the same things in certain situations."

"Mr. G, so far, can be called a truly noble man. But the Elena family...it is not."

(End of this chapter)