Ye Cheng

After graduating, Ye Ping directly rejected the clerical jobs offered by several large companies and went to work in an office in city B in a Middle Eastern country. The reason was that the work in this office was relatively easy and the wages were not low. Even in her spare time, You can also use the channel of this office to pick up some individual customers and help them find sources of goods in the country. The service fee will naturally not be low.Anyway, in Ye Ping's mind, the so-called bright future is far less important than making money in time.

His son Ye Li still lives at Ye Cheng's side, and he has hired a nanny, a young woman from N province, in her early forties, who can work very quickly. She also has a son who is now in elementary school. Ye Ping usually goes to work, and Ye Cheng When I go to class, the house is looked after by this nanny.

Ye Cheng didn't know when that fellow named Zhong Wanli began to enter his sister's life, although judging from the current situation, Ye Ping was very suspicious of treating her as a coolie.She has to take care of the children herself, so she doesn't have time to travel to other places. Sometimes she needs to see the goods for an interview after contacting the manufacturer. She often asks Zhong Wanli to go.

Zhong Wanli did not study in City B. After graduation, for some reason, he learned to play Bei Piao, but before he found a job, he started working for Ye Ping, and the business was negotiated. Yes, after the payment was recovered, the two of them would split the money, with Ye Ping taking the big part and Zhong Wanli taking the small part.

Ye Cheng didn't say much about this fellow coming and going to his home frequently. After all, Ye Ping was born out of wedlock, so it would be best if she could find a man to settle down with her as soon as possible.Because of this child, Ye Ping hadn't been back in these years. Every time Ye Cheng went back, she would carry the child and send him to the station with wet eyes.

After Ye Cheng went back, he told his grandmother and uncles and aunts that Ye Ping was fine outside, but she was too busy with work. This girl was like a desperate Saburo, making money so hard that she didn't have time to go home. After a while, he would definitely Bring people back to them.

Luo Yueling didn't believe it, and asked Ye Cheng many times behind Cai Jinzhi and Qian Shouwan's back, what happened to Ye Ping's girl, maybe something happened outside?In the end, Ye Cheng had no choice but to ask Ye Ping to make a phone call to the village by herself, saying that she was very busy and would not be able to take over a lot of work after returning home. Everyone gradually believed her words as if they were true.

Aunt Ye Qiulan found another man, a junior high school teacher in their town. His wife died many years ago, and his son also graduated from college and found a job outside. He rarely goes back.Ye Qiulan still set up a stall in the vegetable market to sell tofu, and worked from dawn to dusk all day long, no matter how anyone persuaded her, it was useless, her man followed him to work from dawn to dusk.

When talking about this teacher to Ye Cheng, Ye Qiulan complained full of complaints, saying that she had been working for decades, why she suddenly became delicate at this moment, he was a good teacher, and followed her from morning to night, I was not used to it at the beginning, and fell asleep lying on the podium during the invigilation, and was made a joke by his students.

Ye Cheng knew that his aunt was talking ironically, so he just sat and listened with a smile on his face.Ye Qiulan said that Tan Xiaosong was looking for a girlfriend, and that girl was nice, she was from the countryside, she came to their house last time and helped with the work, Tan Xiaosong had also been to the other party's house, and the parents there were also satisfied with him, both of them liked it, This relative has been recognized, and Ye Cheng will definitely come back this year's eleventh party.

Ye Cheng went back and told Ye Ping that Ye Ping would not be able to avoid Tan Xiaosong's wedding no matter what. She had lived at her aunt's house for many years. To her, her aunt was like a real mother, and her cousin was like a relative Same as brother.

In the summer of this year, Ye Cheng received a call from old man Wu asking him to go to City C. The specific reason for this was that old man Wu didn't say anything, and Ye Cheng didn't know, but he had some bad thoughts in his heart. .By the time Ye Cheng arrived at City C, old man Wu had already been admitted to the hospital.The old man who is less than eighty this year does not look very old, but his life has indeed come to an end.

This is a strange old man. He never talks about his life. No one in the alley knows his past. They only know that more than thirty years ago, this man came to them alone with a cloth bag on his back. In this alley, I bought a house with money, and opened a shoe repair shop since then. It has been open for decades, and I never left it until my death.

In the past few years, old man Wu has grown older, and Ye Cheng also proposed to let him live with him in city B, although he knew very well in his heart that old man Wu never planned to leave his shoe repair shop.He said that after wandering for most of his life, he finally settled down in the alley. After decades of peaceful life, he never wanted to change places.When people get old, they can't stand moving, and they don't have the strength to take root in other places.

The will has been written, and it has been authenticated by someone. According to the law, Ye Cheng and Old Man Wu are not related, and the inheritance is not considered an inheritance, but a gift.Old man Wu gave the old house to Ye Cheng, and told him that he and Lu Mingyuan wanted to leave the house to him, but Lu Mingyuan hadn't contacted him for several years, and his identity information was unclear, so he gave it to Ye Cheng first. Cheng, wait for Lu Mingyuan to come back another day, if he is not doing well, tell Ye Cheng to remember to give him half of the house.

Ye Cheng stayed with Old Man Wu in the hospital for a few days, his eyes were rare and clear on this day, he asked Ye Cheng: "Is there any news about Lu Mingyuan?"

"I heard that he is still abroad. He is very good. His father is very rich." Now Ye Cheng is no longer as closed as he was in high school. In recent years, Lu Zhennan's business has grown bigger and bigger, and he has also attended some Ye Cheng saw magazines and newspapers by accident, and searched for some relevant information on the Internet. He knew that Lu Mingyuan was sent abroad and never came back.

"Hehe, that kid..." Old man Wu sighed, the smile on his face became wider, and then gradually, he lost his breath.

Ye Cheng took the old man's withered palm, and tears fell on it one by one.He knew that no matter what aspect, Lu Mingyuan had always been more in tune with the old man's temperament than himself. In addition, Lu Mingyuan was helpless when he was a child. The old man once wanted to adopt him, but Lu Mingyuan didn't agree. Instead, he followed him home. In the first grade, Lu Mingyuan set up a shoe repair stall in the town.

The old man never talked about his life until his death. No one knew what he did when he was young, only that he was old man Wu, a shoemaker in the old alley. It was even unclear whether this Wu was his real name. I know, because he made up his household registration during a census. The name on the household registration book is Wu Cheng'an, which looks a bit like an alias.

Old man Wu's savings are not too much. He spent some money during the hospitalization period, and after the funeral, it will basically be gone. According to old man Wu, death is like a lamp being extinguished, and the ashes are scattered in the soil. up.But Ye Cheng couldn't see it after all. He had saved some money over the years. Ye Ping had grown up and was able to earn money. He no longer needed his brother to spend money. Some came out to buy a cemetery for old man Wu.

If there are ghosts in this world, Ye Cheng wonders if old man Wu will be angry because of his self-assertion. He planted two evergreen trees behind the tomb, where mountains and rivers accompany the soil, and the soil is relatively soft. Well, old man Wu has lived here for decades, no matter how much he doesn't like it, he will gradually take root.

I went home to attend Tan Xiaosong's wedding in autumn. The bride was a handsome black and thin girl with big eyes and looked very energetic. Standing with Tan Xiaosong, everyone said they were a good match.Ye Ping also went back. Naturally, she didn't dare to bring her son home at this juncture. She was worried that Tan Xiaosong's marriage would be disturbed, so she left Ye Li in City B to be looked after by a nanny on weekdays, and let Zhong Wanli go to Ye Li. Cheng's family lives, please help me to watch.

Three days later, Ye Cheng and Ye Ping got off the plane in City B. As soon as they passed the exit, they saw Zhong Wanli waiting outside with a maroon baby sling around his stomach, and Ye Li was looking around in his arms.Seeing her son, Ye Ping walked over in three or two steps, hugged the baby's round head, and kissed fiercely, while Zhong Wanli looked down with a smile.Ye Cheng knew that his sister's good deeds were not far away.

People have joys and sorrows, and the moon has its ups and downs. When Ye Cheng read these two sentences in high school, he thought they were catchy. After many years, he gradually realized some of them.Lan Mu said that they would go abroad to get married after Ye Cheng graduated, Ye Cheng agreed, this man is very nice, and they get along well.

On the eve of graduation, Ye Cheng and a powerful classmate in his class co-organized an art exhibition, and got the support of several teachers in the school, making it look good.In the past few years, under the guidance of an old professor, Ye Cheng started to get in touch with ink painting, but his skills are not yet mature. In this exhibition, most of them are oil paintings that he has accumulated over the years and he is quite satisfied with.

"Ye Cheng, someone offered 50 yuan for your pair of "Old Lane", can you sell it?" When Ye Cheng was talking to several G-mei professors who came to join him, one of his classmates came over and asked.

Although Ye Cheng and a classmate named Tie Qiang organized the art exhibition this time, another classmate named Chen Zihou was responsible for the planning and other work.Of course, he won't let him work in vain. He also gets a commission for the works sold in this exhibition.In addition, Ye Cheng and Tie Qiang were recognized by many professors in the department. This time they also introduced some of their friends. Make good use of it, and it can play a big role at critical times.

"That pair is not for sale." "Old Lane" is Ye Cheng's only personal work. He has already told Chen Zihou about it before, but now he came to ask again. In front of the professor, Ye Cheng also Not much to say, but to reiterate my position.

Chen Zihou greeted the professor with a smile, and then took Ye Cheng aside and said softly: "The other party said that the price can be increased, maybe it can be doubled, you can think about it again, can you draw good works in the future? I think that person is rich, if you raise the price for him, after this exhibition, it will be enough to buy a house in City B."

"With "Old Lane", I will never be able to draw a second one." Buying a house in City B is the dream of almost every Beijing drifter, but if it comes at the price of this painting, Ye Cheng thinks it's better to forget it Well, old man Wu has passed away, and he doesn't want to sell this painting at all.

"Otherwise, you can tell him yourself." Maybe Ye Cheng would not be able to refuse when faced with the sincerity of the client. If this painting is sold, Lin Zihou's commission will not be less.

"Ok."

Lin Zihou said that the customer was waiting for news by the wall where "Old Alley" was hung, and Ye Cheng knew where the painting was hanging, so he asked him to greet other people and went there alone.

The work called "Old Alley" was drawn by Ye Cheng when he took Ye Li to visit old man Wu. Among all his works, the evaluation is not the highest, but he has also been praised by several professors. It was well received. After this work, a professor from Ye Cheng’s oil painting department introduced him to Professor Han from the Chinese Painting Department. This professor Han was getting old and planned to accept a close student before retiring, but after searching for many years, he couldn’t find it. No suitable candidate was found.

In terms of traditional Chinese painting, Ye Cheng really has no foundation at all, he has never even used a brush, but after seeing a few of his works, Professor Han decided to take him first.It took Ye Cheng a year to start from scratch, and gradually gained the other party's approval. In July last year, Professor Han officially retired.

When Ye Cheng was not busy with schoolwork, he would often visit his home. Usually they didn't talk much, and took out paper, pen and ink to either draw or write.When he was teaching painting, Ye Cheng watched carefully and experienced how every time he moved the brush, how to properly express the draft he had made on the thin rice paper.When Ye Cheng was drawing, the professor would usually not speak out to give pointers. After he finished drawing, he would give some comments and suggestions. Sometimes he couldn't explain clearly, so he demonstrated with his own hands.

As far as Ye Cheng himself is concerned, learning Chinese painting is not more economical than learning oil painting at present, not because the current Chinese painting market is so sluggish, but because the market is too chaotic.In this society where the economy has developed to a certain level, packaging and hype have gradually entered the art festival. Many painters with mediocre strength, with the help of this information society, seem to promote themselves as first-class masters.

Chinese painting is still in an era of old and new. Some people insist on keeping the old and some advocate innovation. The previous standards of appreciation are gradually being broken, and it is difficult to establish new standards. Someone made a miniature painting the size of a business card, and then shouted a gimmick, claiming that the unit price per square foot of his work has surpassed many famous modern painters, and even ushered in the era of square inches.

There are also some people who take selfies and buy themselves, use auction houses to raise prices for themselves, promote themselves, or let galleries act as trustees to increase their worth. It is not surprising that such things have long been common in this society. If you get punctured, you may not be ruined. Modern people are usually more tolerant in this regard.

Ye Cheng doesn't like to spend too much time and energy on these things, so this time he also asked others to help manage the art exhibition. The price of his oil paintings is stable now, which is enough to support himself, and the rest, he There is not too much to care about.

The oil painting market is relatively stable. After all, in addition to the domestic market, there is also a large international market. Although there are some hypes, overall, it is not too outrageous.Therefore, Ye Cheng's income is still relatively stable, and his works will not be completely submerged by this exaggerated era. Of course, there are some people who have a soft spot for his works, although there are not many people now.

This pair of "Old Lane" has already been asked by many people. Some people want to buy it back for collection, and some people are sure that it will increase in price.After all, Ye Cheng is Professor Han's closed disciple. Although Professor Han is a painter of traditional Chinese painting, this does not affect some people in the industry who are optimistic about Ye Cheng. Prices may increase over the next year.

These days, many people look at art from the perspective of investment, which is not surprising. The real estate market is becoming saturated, coal mine owners are going to transform, and there is nowhere to go for a lot of money. The so-called spring.

When Ye Cheng walked to the front of "Old Alley", he saw a man standing in front of the painting facing the wall, sticking very close, as if he was observing the lines on the canvas.This man is tall and strong, with short hair and very stylish. He is wearing a black T-shirt and overalls. You can see from the part of his neck that is exposed from the back. His skin is relatively dark, and he looks a bit like a soldier. Yes, to be honest, people who come to the art exhibition rarely see this type of people.

"Hello."

Ye Cheng greeted him aloud, and then thought about what reason he would use later to refuse to sell the painting.The man paused, then stood up straight. After a while, he finally turned his head around slowly. He smiled at Ye Cheng and said, "Long time no see, Ye Cheng."

"Lu Mingyuan." Even though the man in front of him was fully opened, and there were not many traces of the boy in the past on his facial features, Ye Cheng still recognized that this man was Lu Mingyuan.

"Well, I just came back yesterday, and I heard that you have an art exhibition here." Lu Mingyuan stood in front of that pair of "Old Lane", smiling generously and calmly at Ye Cheng, no longer the youthfulness of his childhood, the two sides In contrast, Ye Cheng also thoroughly understood what is right and wrong.

"Oh." Ye Cheng also forced a smile, and then he was speechless.

"Go out and talk?"

Lu Mingyuan pointed in the direction of the balcony, Ye Cheng nodded, and the two walked out one after the other. The venue for the art exhibition was rented, and there was a large balcony. There were a few groups of people standing in twos and threes on the balcony.Lu Mingyuan leaned against the railing, took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, took one in his mouth, and handed the pack to Ye Cheng. Ye Cheng shook his head and said that he had quit.

"How have you been these two years?" Lu Mingyuan lit a cigarette, took a deep breath, and then focused his attention on Ye Cheng.

"It's pretty good." Thinking about Ye Cheng's life in the past few years, although he didn't take the college entrance examination, he has successfully embarked on the road of painting.

"Do you have any friends?" Lu Mingyuan asked again.

"They're almost married." Ye Cheng said with a smile, but he didn't look at Lu Mingyuan's expression.

"Why are you in such a hurry? You're only 26 years old." Lu Mingyuan's voice was low, as if it came from far away.

"He's already thirty." Ye Cheng didn't intend to hide anything about him and Lan Mu.

"Oh, so it's older than you." Lu Mingyuan probably smoked a few more puffs of cigarettes, and then said after a while: "I heard that Lu Zhennan did something wrong at school. You didn't take the college entrance examination, so I thought you It must have been difficult, but I didn't expect you to have such a good life."