Chapter 35: Roman Columns

  The delegation's dinner was held at the Four Seasons Hotel in Jiangning District.

  Beyond five-star treatment, it means not only attentive service and delicious food, but also decoration design that perfectly suits the host.

  The deep red carpet came from Turkey, the velvet drapes from France, and on the walls hung exquisite works of art from before the Renaissance, decorations brought by team members from their own treasuries, now placed in the hotel lobby.

  Even Chen Yi, who was born into a noble family, had never attended such a high-profile banquet. He stood there like many of the other gentlemen who had just entered, clicking his tongue and wondering, "What on earth is the Vatican trying to do?"

  "Spread the word." Han Jie tapped her small feet, happily spinning around on the ground, letting her skirt fly up, just like her mood at this moment.

  "I hope it's just that," Chen Yi said, slowly walking inside.

  Unconsciously, keeping secrets seems to make people more calm and composed.

  Most of the people attending the dinner party were middle-aged and elderly, even if there were occasionally young people present, they usually had an elder accompanying them. Chen Yi took a look around and apart from a few gentlemen he recognized but didn't know, it seemed like there was no one he needed to greet.

  He sat down at the edge, speaking in a low voice with Han Jie, while observing others.

  The foreign handsome guy appeared with another retired handsome guy, who was wearing a formal priest's black robe, holding the Bible, and pretending to be serious. They spoke intimately with the crowd in the center of the hall, sometimes in Chinese, but mostly in a mumbling foreign language.

  They talked for almost 20 minutes. At this time, the main guests of the banquet had all arrived. The foreign handsome guy showed a relaxed expression and saw him walking towards this side.

  "Mr. Chen Yi, Miss Han Jie." Stanick was as polite as ever and asked, "Anyone you know?"

  "I don't know him." Chen Yi was not intimidated and remained calm. At 18 years old, regardless of how powerful the Chen family was, it wasn't his turn to recognize anyone.

  Stanik smiled and said to Chen Yi and Han Jie, "I'll take you two on a tour. There are many artworks in the hotel that can't be seen normally."

  "From Italy? What a laborious journey!" Chen Yi praised, presumably the foreigner didn't catch the sarcasm.

  Stanik's eyes looked at Han Jie, smiling: "It's the Vatican. We are preparing to hold a series of art exhibitions in Asian cities, and Jiangning is the first stop. Believe me, many of these artworks will be shown to the public for the first time, and they are important ones. Many scholars have heard about it and are willing to come specially."

  Art exhibitions are a standard high-end route. Moreover, unlike collections in safes, publicly displayed artworks have extremely high insurance costs, which can reach one-tenth of the artwork's valuation, and with the Vatican's nearly thousand-year history, the insured amount is likely to be staggering, enough to bankrupt an ordinary collector.

  The church is indeed rich and luxurious!

  Chen Yi pressed down his astonishment and quietly followed Stanik, listening to him explain the artworks in the delicate transparent glass frames. In the entire world, only the Vatican Museums can rival the British Museum in London and the Louvre in Paris. They basically relied on the benefits of their previous rule and later wealth to accumulate the largest treasure trove in human history. If they hadn't hidden so many rare cultural relics and art treasures underground, the prices of ordinary artworks on the market would have fallen to a level that anyone could afford, and those so-called modern artists would probably have ended up selling their labor - the value of priceless treasures worth tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of dollars, classified by warehouse.

  Compared with others, Han Jie's thoughts are much simpler. Listening to the explanations and looking at the real objects, she felt even more relaxed and admiring.

  Early European art is somewhat easier to understand, although the church's collection, especially those on display, are relatively monotonous, but those household names still shine throughout.

  Michelangelo, Raphael, Da Vinci, Angelico, Caravaggio... These people occasionally have one or two works of art that can shock the world, not to mention many ancient Roman and Greek sculptures, tombstones and inscriptions...

  Now, the few hundred works on display in the hotel may be just a tiny fraction of the Vatican's collection, but they are absolutely top-notch exhibits, perhaps, as the foreign curator said, the highest-level exhibition held in Asia.

  Han Jie had received a good aesthetic education and was savoring the experience. Chen Yi, on the other hand, soon became bored, although he came from a similar aristocratic background, his parents never thought that artistic refinement would be beneficial for him, so in his eyes, which lacked appreciation, all these art pieces seemed like a prolonged historical sales pitch - they did have some value, but aside from the impulse to constantly appreciate, their worth was still up for debate.

  Just as he was thinking about this and that, the foreign handsome guy brought them to another area, where all the exhibits were from ancient Rome, with various three-dimensional historical artifacts filled with a natural transformation of flavors hitting them in the face.

  Stanick spoke with professional decorum, using oratorical grammar: "God tells us that everything humanity has acquired comes from..."

  Suddenly a commotion arose beside the largest Roman column placed right in front.

  Chen Yi and Han Jie couldn't help but look over, interrupting the foreign coach's explanation.

  The two foreigners were making a noise. They were arguing with some foreigner about something.

  Foreigners are all fat, with a red nose and double chin, looking very friendly. The foreigners wearing the sponsor's clothes are not good, thin lips, high nose bridge, muscular like an old European knight, must have been handsome in their early years.

  As a man, Chen Yi sympathized with the foreigners even though he couldn't understand their language. Unconsciously, he walked up to them, with Han Jie closely following behind him.

  Stanik had no choice but to follow, and quietly introduced: "The one on the right is Alphons, a Swiss. The other two are probably guests. They're speaking German."

  The Vatican has a very small resident population, basically maintaining within a thousand people. Therefore, including the guards of the church and the envoys going out, they all like neutral Switzerland.

  Chen Yi didn't understand and had to ask: "Can the host have a big argument with the guest?"

  "If it concerns the honor of the Holy See," Stanik explained, pausing for a moment before continuing. "These two German gentlemen accuse this Roman column of being a fake. You know that the Samnite column is an heirloom from previous popes and Alphonsus is defending the honor of the Holy See."

  Ten years after Apollo landed on the moon, the church finally recognized that the moon is a satellite of the earth. Chen Yi couldn't see their honor and what does it have to do with counterfeiting something that belongs to science?

  He shrugged and decided to continue watching. Many people made the same decision, these gentlemen and ladies who were previously immersed in a quiet and incomprehensible aesthetic ocean, at this moment their behavior was no different from that of the common people they despised.

  The dinner party was on a large scale, but the number of invitees was not many. Everyone stood loosely in the small hall, pretending to appreciate the artwork while enjoying the debate among the foreigners - three people performed relatively calmly, except that their voices were slightly louder than normal conversation, and overall they were reasonable.

  But also, precisely because it's about reason, the appreciation is much worse. The situation in front of us is equivalent to Inner Mongolian wild donkeys discussing the quality of grass with Texas longhorns, not to mention Chen Yi who can't understand, countless so-called high-society gentlemen are staring blankly.

  Of course, more than half of people prefer watching something that moves and makes sounds over dull sculptures and paintings.

  Just as the foreigners and Westerners were about to lose their argument, a gigantic figure emerged from behind the Roman columns.

  "Professor Lang!"

  Chen Yi involuntarily cried out.

  "Oh, Chen Yi. Seeing you reminds me of Tang Linze's vase." Professor Lang's face was as wide as a Roman column, with thick flesh that seemed to be its replica. He still remembered Chen Yi's name and smiled friendly.

  "Are you here alone?"

  Professor Lang shook his head in embarrassment, nodded and said: "It just so happens that two German friends are coming over, let's take a look at the art of the Vatican together, I didn't expect everyone to be so serious."

  He nodded towards Stanick as he spoke. That distinctive attire was unmistakable - anyone could tell he was a man of the church.

  The foreigner flashed a charming smile and immediately advised, "Professor, Alphons is a priest who adheres to his principles. Perhaps you can persuade your friend..."

  "Karl is also a man of principle." Professor Lang's round face was completely unyielding.

  The foreign handsome guy had no choice but to shut up and say nothing.

  "How could there be a dispute?" Han Jie's voice was crisp and clear.

  Professor Lang looked at Stanik and said in a low voice, "It's also our fault. Two old men have been in China for several days, and we're used to others not understanding German. When we saw this Samoan column, we started discussing it. Who knew that Swiss man could understand it? He was born speaking four languages."

  He said with a smile, Chen Yi's curiosity was piqued, and his hand secretly reached into the hidden pocket of his pants to pull out a perception scroll.

  ……