“Thank you for your kindness. I’ll come over to visit you tomorrow morning and I hope to get some useful information from you.” I tried to sound calm and firm without letting personal feelings interfere with the conversation I was about to have with lan. After hanging up, an unknown feeling arose in my heart.
Ethan Grayson. This name bore a heavy weight in my heart. It made me want to run away from him, yet I was inexplicably drawn to him.
However, I knew that this wasn’t the right time to pursue personal relationships like this.
I needed to first solve the riddle ahead of me, find the missing art gallery, and uncover the secrets behind it.
This was no longer just related to my father’s assets, but also an endless pursuit of art and truth for me.
I had arrived on time at the Grayson residence the morning of the following day. lan was already waiting for me in his study. There was a faint smile on his face as his deep eyes shone with wisdom.
The study was filled with the woody scent of books. There were a few old paintings on the wall, exhibiting the Grayson’s rich cultural heritage.
“Ms. Wiley, you’re here.” lan’s voice was gentle yet firm. He gestured for me to take a seat.
I didn’t expect us to meet in such unique circumstances, all because his attitude toward me had changed drastically.
I remembered how unpleasantly we parted the last time we met after we argued. I didn’t expect us to be able to sit together in the same space so cordially.
“I know you’re here to look for me because of the art gallery.”
I nodded. There was no small talk. We went straight to business.
“Yes. I believe you must know something. What is the relation between Jack and that art gallery?”
He may be my father, but it was difficult for me, especially right now to have anything good to say about him.
lan sighed and seemed to be reminiscing about the past.
“Jack was once a true lover of the arts and was one of a few businessmen that could think
ahead. He started that art gallery as not just a platform to display artistic masterpieces, but it was also a miniature version of his ideal world.
“He wished for more people to be able to get in touch with real art through that art gallery and to
understand the beauty of art in anet
better way. However, the artistic world was always filled with complications and conflicts.
“In your father’s pursuit of art, he was unavoidably pulled into some war for profit. Then, that art gallery had disappeared, but it was not something that had happened all of a sudden, but was a combined effort due to many forces fighting each other.”
I was drawn to lan’s words. Shock and doubt filled my heart.
Jack was no saint to me and was more of someone who could give it all just for gains, but I had least expected him to once be a true artist.
Sadly, my understanding of him was way too little. The impression he gave me was exceptionally ridiculous as well.
“Where’s the art gallery now, then? Why has no one known of it anymore for all these years?”
lan was silent for a while before he grabbed a yellowed photo album and started flipping through it.
“There are some pictures in this photo album that consist of your father and a few important people at that time, which also encapsulated a lot of precious moments between him and that art gallery.
“In one of the pictures was an address written at the back of it. It was an address location in a small town. That’s all I know regarding the last whereabouts of that art gallery.”
I took over the photo album and read the words behind that picture carefully. A strong desire arose in my heart. It was as if I had uncovered a long, hidden secret.