TCOR CH36

Chapter 36: Healing is Poison

Yu Xiaoshan’s art exhibition was called “Love and Pain”, and the opening day was a big event. Many industry leaders came, including Liang Zai.

He was accompanied by a group of bodyguards and personally escorted by Yu Xiaoshan, which was quite an extraordinary treatment. I looked behind him and didn’t see Pei Huanchen’s figure, so I knew he hadn’t come with him this time.

“Are you looking for Huanchen? Liang Zai asked directly, glancing at my sneaky behaviour.

I didn’t expect him to remember me or know me, and I was a little embarrassed for a moment: ‘How is he… how is he these days? I haven’t seen him for a long time.

He’s been sulking with me, arguing that he wants to go back to school,’ Liang Zai said, turning to Yu Xiaoshan with a face full of helplessness, ‘these kids nowadays are really hard to discipline, if they don’t get their way they won’t eat or drink, it’s a headache.

I’ve only heard about truancy, but rarely about liking school. This is really rare. Yu Xiaoshan is mean to others, but he is still polite to Liang Zai, and even his smile is a little nicer.

It’s really amazing. Of Liang’s two sons, he sees one as an enemy and wants to skin him and take his bones, while he respects the other and treats him like a benefactor.

I’m not at home most of the time either, so maybe he finds it boring at home. Liang looked at me again and suggested, “Why don’t you go and visit Huanchen? He’ll be very happy to see you.” Having said that, he and Yu Xiaoshan walked on.

This time, as a staff member, I only had to patrol the venue and didn’t have to go around promoting macaroons, so I was much more relaxed. When I saw them leaving, I chose a route opposite theirs and followed the crowd.

I entered a labyrinth of light and shadow filled with red lines.

The maze is made of mirrors and LED lights. When you enter it, you feel like you have entered a strange world full of red lines. Not only are these red lines densely packed throughout the space, but they also wriggle and intertwine like living things, making your scalp tingle after a long look.

Unconsciously, the crowd was dispersed by the maze and I became a person slowly wandering between the red lines. Whenever I reached a dead end, the mirror in front of me displayed a line of English subtitles – You died (you have died).

Like a horror game, it made people feel strange and uncomfortable.

I don’t know if I’m particularly unlucky or if this maze and I just don’t get on, because after a long time of walking back and forth I still couldn’t find the exit. As I walked, I became increasingly impatient. Suddenly the sky in front of me cleared up and I found myself in a semicircular atrium.

I took a quick look at the maze and knew that there was an egg-shaped object somewhere in the maze, but not everyone could find it.

In the centre of the maze is a huge transparent screen covered in red lines, dividing the circular space in half. Only when someone on both sides accidentally enters the maze at the same time and places their hand on the relevant mechanism will the red lines on the transparent screen disappear, revealing another line of English subtitles – You recovered (you have recovered).

This seems more like the correct solution to the maze than an escape.

After surveying the surroundings, I slowly walked towards the transparent screen. The other side was indistinct, and there seemed to be a figure swaying there as well.

With my five fingers pressed against the indicated position on the transparent screen, the red line on the screen seemed to have suddenly been fatally attacked, and it wriggled frantically for a moment. After a moment, however, the wriggling stopped and the stiff red line gradually turned to white powder and disappeared from the screen like snowflakes.

The words ‘You have recovered’ hung above me, and with a strange sense of accomplishment I looked over at my ‘partner’ and saw Shen Wunian on the other side through the hazy transparent screen.

His fingers were pressed together through the screen and he looked up at the subtitles above, oblivious to me.

I thought he was entertaining guests, but I didn’t expect him to be here, playing with the interactive installation.

I didn’t say a word; he was looking at the subtitles, so I looked at him.

He was very concentrated. The two words, with a dozen letters, were just enough to glance at, but he looked at them for a long time. After a while, as if the words were engraved in his heart, he looked away, and when his eyes turned, they unexpectedly met mine.

‘Zhong… Ai?’ He called out my name in disbelief. For a moment, I thought he was wondering if I was a real person or a virtual image generated by the device.

It is me,’ I said, smiling, and stepped forward so he could have a closer look. “What a coincidence, running into each other like this.”

He lifted a finger through the screen and traced the outline of my face. “Yes, what a coincidence,” he said.

“Well, it means… I stammered, finding it particularly difficult to speak in these situations, “it means we are meant to be together.”

He just looked at me and didn’t say anything.

There was an awkward silence, and I wasn’t very confident already, so when he did this, I became even more nervous and lowered my voice: “…isn’t it?

At this point, the subtitles showed that time had just run out, and the red line rose again from below. It looked like it was going to swallow us up, and the person on the other side barely spoke: ‘Yes. As soon as the words were out, the overwhelming red line swallowed him up.

At that answer, a smile could not be suppressed from the corner of my mouth. Just as I was about to say something else, I heard voices behind me, and the others had also found their way here.

I’ll go first, see you outside! I called to Shen Wunian at the other end.

Once out of the atrium, I quickly found the exit to the labyrinth. Further ahead was a corridor of decorative paintings on the theme of Redvein Syndrome.

Compared to the interesting and large installations, these paintings are relatively inconspicuous and not many people look at them. When I arrived, there was only one person there – Fang Xu.

I could tell that he had taken special care of himself today, with his over-long fringe combed up, his beard shaved off, and the white Tang suit he was wearing even more exquisite and heavy.

He was standing in front of one of the dark red decorative paintings, so engrossed in it that he didn’t notice my arrival.

Mr Fang… I took the initiative to greet him.

He turned to look at me, and I noticed that his eyes were red, as if he had just cried.

Zhong Ai, is there something the teacher wants? He turned away and wiped his eyes with his sleeve.

‘No, no, I just saw you here a moment ago and came over to say hello. I was afraid he would be embarrassed, so I looked away from him and concentrated on the decorative paintings on the wall. Did Teacher Yu paint these pictures himself?

Judging by the texture, they must be oil paintings.

Fang Xu said, ‘I finished them with the teacher, but the sketches were actually left behind by the younger apprentice back then. I thought it was a pity to leave them there, so after asking the teacher’s opinion, the two of us slowly completed the painting together over the years.

As the son of an artist, Yu Luo had high expectations from an early age. He picked up a paintbrush when he could barely hold a pair of chopsticks, and began learning oil painting techniques from a master at the age of seven. However, he did not like painting. Painting was something that Yu Xiaoshan had forced on him, not something that came naturally in his life.

My teacher was always strict with his students, and he was not allowed to have any hobbies other than painting, let alone give it up. My student rarely expressed what he really liked until he met Liang Weiren…’ Fang Xu’s voice gradually trembled with hatred, “Why was it Redvein Syndrome, and why was it Liang Weiren?”

After listening to him, I bent down and took another look at the introduction of the exhibit. It did indeed list the names of the three people, which I had not noticed before.

‘These paintings…’

I wanted to discuss them with him, but suddenly, for some reason, there was a commotion at the entrance to the exhibition hall.

I stood up and looked at Fang Xu. Without saying a word, we both walked quickly towards the door.

Perhaps Fang Xu’s provocation had worked, Liang Weiren had indeed come. However, he hadn’t come alone, but with seven or eight bodyguards who were so aggressive that they bumped into Liang Zai at the door as he was leaving, and had a conflict with him.

Don’t think I don’t know who’s been funding this old devil behind the scenes all these years! Liang Weiren glared at Liang Zai and gritted his teeth, “I’ve turned a blind eye, but you really think you’re something, daring to step on my head?”

A closer look revealed that his face was not entirely free of the signs of time. Aside from the frosty white sideburns, there were a few thin lines at the corners of his eyes. He looked very poor and tired.

What’s wrong? Has Mr Yu offended you in any way, brother? Liang Wei put his hands in his pockets and looked at his half-brother as if he were a stranger.

No, maybe he was even less than a stranger. At least Liang Wei had not shown such obvious disgust when he first met me.

Fine, pretend to be ignorant when you know exactly what’s going on, is that it? Liang Wei sneered, raised his hand and snapped his fingers, giving the order: ‘Tear this place apart and get everyone out!

The bodyguards obeyed, leaving only one at his side as the others scattered. Screams and the sound of things being smashed came from all over the exhibition hall. Many of the guests at the door were frightened by the show of force and didn’t need to be chased away, so they fled outside in a hurry.

No! Fang Xu rushed up and stood in front of one of the exhibits.

Seeing this, I couldn’t leave him alone, so I also rushed up and stood in front of another exhibit.

“Let’s talk about this…

That scene and those words took me back in time. Back then, whenever my husband’s first wife brought someone to catch him cheating, Tony would tell us to block the door in the same way.

What’s going on here? Have you any respect for the law? Today we have invited some guests to cut the ribbon, and they are more or less respectable people. When they see Liang Weiren behaving so rudely, they will not believe it.

At this point, Xu Meiqing came up from behind, and her expression of eternal composure cracked, and she angrily said, “Please leave, or I’ll call the police!

Liang Weiren pulled a chair from somewhere and sat down, ignoring the accusations of the crowd. He looked as if he would not rest until he had ruined the exhibition.

“Brother, you’re over 50, do you have to be so reckless? Liang gave a cold look and winked at the bodyguard next to him.

The other person took the order, twisted his neck and led a group of brothers downstairs. A scuffle broke out, and a good exhibition became a scene of group fighting among the bodyguards.

‘Ah!’ Fang Xu watched as the tall man, who was actually a loser with negative combat power, was only lightly pushed and fell backwards, and the acrylic exhibits behind him suddenly scattered all over the floor.

Mr Fang!

Although I wanted to help him, the situation here was not optimistic. Perhaps because I looked more vulnerable, a black bodyguard targeted me and walked towards me. Seeing that the other party had already raised his fist, I instinctively raised my hand to block it. Before I could feel the pain, someone grabbed my neck and pulled me aside.

Shen Wunian took my place and kicked the bodyguard cleanly in the stomach. The man was sent flying, even exaggerating a bit by sliding a short distance on the slippery floor.

Go hide somewhere,’ Shen Wunian said, taking off his glasses and speaking to me as he untied his tie and wrapped it around his hand, tightening it.

‘Oh, good… good!’ I looked around and finally decided to hide behind a wall not far away.

It was only when I got there that I realised Ni Shan was hiding there too. She held her head and crouched beside two rubbish bins, muttering to herself: “Don’t see me, don’t see me! I’m just an artist, a lowly Party B, and nobody told me this job would be life-threatening!”

I reached out and waved in front of her face, “Shan, are you OK?

She shivered, her face went white, and when she looked up and saw it was me, she immediately grabbed my arm and said, ‘You scared the hell out of me, Little Ai! Who are all these people? Why are they being so unreasonable and breaking things as soon as they come in?

Don’t worry, Meiqing has already called the police, they’ll be here soon. While I was talking to her, I didn’t forget to pay attention to the situation over at Shen Wunian.

The bodyguards were dressed similarly and were fighting in disarray. They might be professionals, but they were particularly ruthless, as if they had a deep grudge against each other.

In this environment, Shen Wunian’s every move seemed extraordinarily exciting. But what I didn’t expect was that he was actually quite at ease with the situation.

I saw him suddenly grab the neck of a bodyguard who was smashing the exhibits from behind and smash his temple with a blow from his necktie-clad hand, instantly stunning him. The way he did it made him look like an experienced fighter.

The bodyguard choked and struggled to breathe, grabbing Shen Wunian’s arm and trying to pull it free.

As the two men struggled, I suddenly caught a glimpse in the corner of someone picking up something from the floor and rushing towards Shen Wunian.

Shen Wunian’s back was turned and he was caught by the person in front of him, so he didn’t have time to defend himself.

Watch out!

It turns out that in such emergencies, people are incapable of making a sound. I was in such a hurry that my brain could only process the strongest command – to make my legs run.

Since childhood, my sprinting speed has always been considered average – not too fast, but not too slow either. Like my personality, I have always been unspectacular and unremarkable.

I never thought I could run this fast, and it seemed like a moment before I was behind Shen Wunian.

He was holding a piece of acrylic that had fallen from the exhibition. He froze when he saw me, and it seemed he had used some force, because it still hurt when it hit my head.

I saw black and fell to the side with inertia. Sticky liquid was running down my head, and I could hear Ni Shan’s urgent shout, which seemed to carry an echo: ‘Little Ai!

A heavy body fell at my feet. I looked over through my blurred vision and saw the bodyguard who had been strangled by Shen Wunian earlier. The other had already been completely strangled unconscious.

I looked up and caught a glimpse of their eyes. The coldness in Shen Wunian’s eyes made me shudder.

Die!

The bodyguard holding the stick swung his arm again, but Shen Wunian easily dodged it. Holding the end of the stick, he struck the bodyguard in the face with great speed and accuracy. The bodyguard retreated in pain, and Shen Wunian took advantage of the situation to chase after him, kicking him in the shin, forcing him to stagger and kneel. Then he bent his knees and punched his opponent’s chin hard. After a series of combos, the bodyguard fell to the ground in pain, and his ‘weapon’ fell to the side. Shen Wunian didn’t let him go.

You die first. He put a knee to the bodyguard’s chest to keep him from getting up, then pulled up the other man’s shirt and punched him again and again in the face with a blank expression.

I watched in horror, afraid that he would actually kill the man.

Shen, Shen Wunian! Warm blood rushed into my eyes, making me feel uncomfortable. I struggled to sit up and tried to appeal to his reason.

His tie was soaked in blood and his cheeks were splashed with bright red. Shen Wunian’s chest was heaving violently, completely immersed in the violent release of his emotions, blocking out all sounds around him.

This madman was someone I had never seen before, so strange that it was as if another personality was taking over his body. This personality was bloodthirsty, violent and cruel, a true madman, just like… just like Shen Yao.

Shen Wunian! But he, Shen Wunian, was not mad. He was certainly not as mad as Shen Yao. They were different.

I don’t know if my shouting had any effect, but Shen Wunian’s fist froze in the air, and for the first time he hesitated.

And just as I continued to shout at him, the old voice of Yu Xiaoshan suddenly came from above: ‘Stop!

The exhibition hall had been converted from an old factory building, and apart from the mirror labyrinth, no other area was covered. If you looked up, you could see the towering factory roof and the metal walkway connecting the left and right sides.

Yu Xiaoshan had climbed onto the footbridge at some point, leaned his hands on the railing, looked down at Liang Weiren in the exhibition hall, smiled and said, ‘I knew you would come. After twenty years, it’s time to settle our accounts.

Liang Wei-ren looked at him, got up from his chair, leaned over and whispered a few words to the bodyguard next to him, who then told everyone to stop.

As soon as he stopped, Liang’s men stopped as well. For a moment, no one on the field moved or spoke, and everyone looked up at Yu Xiao-shan in the upper reaches, waiting to see how he would end this grudge.

Where are Yu Luo’s ashes? Yu Xiao-shan’s voice echoed in the exhibition hall.

Liang Weiren took a few steps towards the bridge and spat out two words with his head tilted: ‘I ate it.’

His expression was natural, his tone was smiling, and it was even easier than saying that he had eaten a bowl of noodles.

Yu Xiaoshan’s body froze and he stared at the other person with bloodshot eyes. But soon he started laughing, laughing louder and louder, more and more crazy.

“I knew it, I knew you would never let Yu Luo go even if you died! My poor child, he was tortured to death by you like this, my only child, my perfect creation…’

Liang Weiren’s expression changed: ‘Don’t pretend to love him. Who sent him to me in the first place? If I’m the murderer who caused his death, then you’re accomplices. We are equally guilty. He glanced to the side and coldly said to Fang Xu, who was leaning against the corner of the wall with her arm covered, “Am I right, informant?

Fang Xu’s face suddenly turned pale, as if she had been hit hard: ‘You…me…’

Liang Weiren was not satisfied and added, “Do you think I don’t know what you’re thinking about Yu Luo? Stop pretending to be innocent, it’s disgusting.

In Fang Xu’s story, the way Liang Weiren found out about Yu Luo’s identity as Redvein was always ambiguous and vague. Now, after hearing Liang Weiren’s words, I couldn’t help but have a terrible suspicion – Fang Xu had betrayed Liang Weiren.

This seemingly honest and simple-minded man who always called me ‘Junior Brother’ was the cause of all of Yu Luo’s suffering.

I couldn’t help but tremble, and then I felt someone lean over and put a robe on me.

I was startled and looked over to see that it was Shen Wunian who had come over to me.

Press down,’ he said, and from somewhere he pulled out a pack of tissues, pulling out a dozen sheets at a time and handing them to me, telling me to press them against the wound to stop the bleeding.

I obediently pressed them down and tried to force a smile: I’m fine, don’t worry.

He did not seem to hear me, his eyes flicking past me to the emotionally charged Yu Xiaoshan.

Don’t you dare sling mud at others! I will expose your crimes to the world, what you’ve done to my son! Yu Xiaoshan raised his right hand and pressed the remote control in his hand.

As soon as you enter the entrance of the exhibition hall, there is a huge electronic screen. Originally it was playing a video about Redvein Syndrome, but now the screen has changed and is replaced by a thin young man lying on a hospital bed full of tubes.

Perhaps to facilitate the rescue, the young man’s clothes are open, revealing a pale, bony chest covered in bruises, some of which look like pinches and others like bites. The machine emits a shrill beep, and the doctors gathered around shake their heads regretfully, indicating that there is nothing they can do. The videographer was choking and his hands were shaking uncontrollably. But Yu Xiaoshan, with his black hair, threw himself down beside the hospital bed, screaming Yu Luo’s name and crying uncontrollably.

Pointing to Yu Luo on the screen with his walking stick, Yu Xiaoshan said, “Although my son has Redvein Syndrome, he never wanted to hurt you, but you abused him and tortured him until his body was covered with scars. He couldn’t take it anymore and killed himself by jumping into the sea, but you didn’t even let his ashes go! Haven’t you always wanted to know what he said before he died? This is what he wanted to say, and this body is what he wants to tell you!

Liang Weiren’s eyes fixed on Yu Luo on the screen, and disbelief gradually crept onto his face.

‘Where is his… his Redvein Syndrome?

Redvein Syndrome is diagnosed based on the presence of marble-like patterns on the chest, but Yu Luo’s chest was free of such patterns.

Instead, there were only marks made by human hands that were too painful to look at.

“His Redvein Syndrome had already healed before he committed suicide. He knew you loved him, but he chose to die anyway. Do you know why?” Fang Xu staggered to his feet and cackled, “Because your love made him sick!”

Yu Luo’s Redvein Syndrome had indeed been cured. I covered my injured head, shocked and sad inside. But unlike Fang Xu, I didn’t think that Yu Luo had committed suicide because Liang Weiren had made him sick. Maybe… he was just too desperate.

He had always tried to prove his love for Liang Weiren. If the other person hated him, he could still tell himself that there was still a chance, that it was all karma. But when he discovered that Liang Weiren loved him, and that she continued to hurt him despite her love, he could no longer convince himself to wait. The only way to end this endless suffering was to end his life.

I love him? I love him?! Liang Weiren seemed to hear the funniest joke in the world, “You think you can fool me by showing me a fake video? Don’t even dream of it! I don’t love him at all!”

He didn’t believe a word of the video, picked up a long piece of acrylic from the floor and smashed it against the electronic screen.

He smashed the screen, making a big hole, and the screen flickered, but it still didn’t stop.

You really are hateful and pathetic,’ Yu Xiaoshan shook his head and ignored him.

Everyone, thank you for coming today to see my final exhibition. All the exhibits here have been painstakingly created over the past twenty years…’ He opened his arms wide and his loud voice echoed throughout the room, ‘My children are not criminals, let alone demons. There is no cure for Redvein Syndrome. The cure is poison, a poison that sends people to hell!

Liang Weiren has spared no effort over the years to oppress me and my disciples, to make us shut up and forget the hatred and pretend that nothing has happened. How could I let him have his way? I want the whole world to know how he caused Yu Luo’s death, and I want him to pay for his crimes with his blood! He said this, maintaining the position of his outstretched arms before turning his back.

All rights are born in extreme events. This is the last exhibition I want to present. I hope that after my death, society will pay attention to the plight of people suffering from Redvein Syndrome, and that Liang Weiren will be punished as he deserves.

Before I could react to what Yu Xiaoshan meant when he said ‘I hope that after I die’, my eyes were covered by a large hand.

Don’t look,’ Shen Wunian said, and seconds later, amidst the shocked cries of the crowd, I heard the thud of a body hitting the ground.

Pop,’ the sound of a bone breaking and a life slipping away.

My forehead throbbed. Realising what had happened, I grabbed Shen Wunian’s hand and shook, even pausing to catch my breath.

The sirens were approaching. This art exhibition called “Love and Pain” lasted only one day, and it ended abruptly with the death of Yu Xiaoshan.