"My uncle wants to see me?"
Zhuang Rui was stunned for a moment. In his memory, although his uncles all loved him very much, none of them had ever visited him except during holidays. Occasionally, when they did see him, it was when Ouyang Zhenwu and others went to Zhuang Rui's courtyard to visit Ouyang Wan.
"Yes, the old man instructed that you should visit him when you have time after you get home. It seems this matter has something to do with my uncle, but I'm not entirely sure. Let's go, I still want to know what's going on..."
Ouyang Jun was also very curious about this matter. He had quite a few cousins, and he had never seen these old men nervous about any of them. Even when Ouyang Lei was promoted to lieutenant general, he was never mentioned being personally summoned by his father, Ouyang Zhenshan.
"I'm free now. Why don't you call your uncle and ask if he has time?"
I heard that the museum's paperwork is done. Even if Ouyang Zhenwu doesn't contact him, Zhuang Rui still needs to go to his uncle for the business license. Moreover, after hearing what Ouyang Jun said earlier, Zhuang Rui guessed something was amiss. It must be related to his behavior abroad.
Ouyang Jun nodded, took out his phone and dialed a number. Ouyang Zhenwu's secretary answered the phone and hung up after a few words. Before Zhuang Rui and Ouyang Jun even reached the car, the phone rang again, saying that they would have lunch together and that Ouyang Jun should wait at a restaurant first.
"Haha, seeing my dad is harder than seeing a national leader..."
Zhuang Rui laughed, but Ouyang Jun was already used to it. When had that old man ever treated home as a home? He always treated it as an office.
Ouyang Jun was already used to spending time with his father like this, and he was also very familiar with that restaurant. He took Zhuang Rui to a private room in a restaurant that wasn't very big, but was decorated very elegantly. He ordered a pot of tea and some snacks, and chatted with Zhuang Rui.
The two waited for about an hour. At 12:15, the door to the private room was pushed open, and Ouyang Zhenwu walked in, while his secretary remained outside.
"Uncle..."
Upon seeing Ouyang Zhenwu, Zhuang Rui immediately stood up and respectfully greeted him. Of all his uncles, this one was the one who doted on him the most.
"Hehe, Xiao Rui, have a seat. Have you ordered yet?"
At this moment, Ouyang Zhenwu looked like a kind old man. After Zhuang Rui sat down, he continued, "I have a meeting this afternoon and can't drink. Xiao Jun, have a drink with your brother..."
"Dad, if I drive drunk again, will you come pick me up?"
Ouyang Jun was very dissatisfied with his father's attitude. He didn't think he had ever seen his father speak to him so kindly in his entire life.
"Can't you take a taxi? When have you ever stopped drinking, except at your grandpa's?"
Ouyang Zhenwu glared at his son with displeasure, while Ouyang Jun immediately shrank back and fell silent when he heard the old man mentioned. Even the boldest person has something to fear.
Perhaps this place is frequented by leaders, because the waiters usually won't come into the room without being called, and the dishes can be served from inside the room without having to go out and call them.
Zhuang Rui walked to the door, picked up the walkie-talkie hanging on the wall, and said, "You can serve the food now..."
"Uncle, you're so busy with work, how come you have time to have dinner with us?"
Zhuang Rui stared at a file folder next to Ouyang Zhenwu, and his words sounded somewhat insincere.
"How could I be so busy with countless affairs? That's more like a description of your uncle..."
Looking at Zhuang Rui's expression, Ouyang Zhenwu laughed and said, "Little Rui, you want to ask what's inside here that's the real thing, right?"
"Hehe, Uncle, is it for the paperwork for my museum? I really have to thank you for this, otherwise I don't know when my museum would be able to open..."
When Ouyang Zhenwu made his point clear, Zhuang Rui scratched his head and laughed.
"You little rascal, don't thank me. This was asked of you by your uncle. You've got some serious connections, haven't you..."
Ouyang Zhenwu smiled and handed the file bag to Zhuang Rui; this matter really had little to do with him.
Just two days ago, Ouyang Zhenwu received a call from his elder brother, who asked him to look into the approval process for a private museum at the museum department. After Ouyang Zhenwu retrieved the documents, he realized that it was Zhuang Rui's.
Ouyang Zhenwu was still a little confused. What big thing had Zhuang Rui done that made his elder brother call to inquire about it personally? You know, at Ouyang Zhenshan's level, whatever he did would attract a lot of attention.
Those who are interested know about the relationship between Zhuang Rui and Ouyang Jun. Ouyang Zhenshan's open instruction to handle the matter so openly is bound to attract attention.
"Wait, I need to take this call..."
Just as Zhuang Rui was about to speak, Ouyang Zhenwu's phone rang. He had three cell phones, two of which were in the hands of his secretary, and only this one was in Ouyang Zhenwu's possession. The only people who could call him were his closest relatives or his superiors.
"Big brother, why are you calling? Xiao Rui, I'm with him, what's wrong..."
After receiving the call, Ouyang Zhenwu kept nodding, which puzzled Zhuang Rui and Ouyang Jun. At this moment, a waiter knocked on the door, but Ouyang Jun turned him away and told them to wait a few minutes before serving the food.
The phone call lasted quite a while; four or five minutes later, Ouyang Zhenwu finally hung up and said to Ouyang Jun with a smile, "Alright, call the food..."
"Uncle, what does this have to do with me?"
Zhuang Rui heard Ouyang Zhenwu mention his name earlier, so he asked a question.
"Yes, that's why my brother called. He's been quite busy these past few days, otherwise he would have met with you..."
Only after receiving Ouyang Zhenshan's call did Ouyang Zhenwu understand what was going on.
It turns out that just as Zhuang Rui released that video, some radicals in France made some inappropriate remarks, leading to a tense situation in Sino-French relations.
In the video, Zhuang Rui said that France refused to face its mistakes after the war, unlike Germany, which was honest. Although this was just the opinion of an ordinary person, it was a real slap in the face to France.
Many media outlets in France also reported on this incident. In addition, some French companies that were making money in China were very dissatisfied with the government's actions and used this incident to stir up trouble, forcing certain people to issue a public apology, which made China feel very proud.
The trigger for all of this was merely the auction scandal that Zhuang Rui had spread just a few days ago. Even the newly appointed leader praised Zhuang Rui after watching the video, which is why Ouyang Zhenshan personally called Ouyang Zhenwu to expedite the approval of Zhuang Rui's museum.
After hearing Ouyang Zhenwu's explanation, Zhuang Rui finally understood what was going on. He hadn't expected that his unintentional words would actually do something for the country. It seemed that his trip hadn't been in vain; he had gained quite a bit of benefit.
As they were talking, the waiter knocked on the door and brought the food. Ouyang Zhenwu stopped talking and waited for the waiter to leave. Then, Ouyang Zhenwu looked at Zhuang Rui and said, "Xiao Rui, as a private museum with 'Guo' (national) in its name, this is the first one in the country. My idea is to properly publicize the fact that you bought Chinese cultural relics abroad. It's also a form of patriotic education..."
"What? Promote me?"
Zhuang Rui was taken aback for a moment upon hearing this, then waved his hands repeatedly, saying, "Uncle, promoting the museum is fine, but promoting me is out of the question. Besides, personally, I don't agree with private individuals going out to bid for and bring back Chinese cultural relics that have been lost. Instead, we should use other methods to demand the return of these relics..."
Zhuang Rui thought that Ouyang Zhenwu was unaware of the foreign speculators who were hyping up Chinese cultural relics, so he quickly explained the whole story in detail.
"I know about what you're saying. The ministry has set up a special office to recover lost cultural relics, but the results haven't been very good. What you said makes sense. I'll think about it some more..."
As the person in charge of culture, Ouyang Zhenwu was well aware of what Zhuang Rui was talking about. Although this matter could be used as a form of patriotic education, the pros and cons were hard to say. Not only would it lead to speculation on Chinese artworks, but it was also very likely to cause domestic tomb raiding and smuggling activities to run rampant again.
"Hey, Uncle, we don't need to publicize that, but my museum needs some publicity. This time I can bring back several hundred pieces of Ming and Qing dynasty imperial porcelain from abroad. That'll be a great opportunity to promote it..."
When Zhuang Rui heard that Ouyang Zhenwu wanted to reconsider, he immediately became anxious. If the museum became famous, more people would come to visit. Although he didn't really care about making a profit, he couldn't keep losing money, could he?
"Huh? Hundreds of items? What's going on?"
Ouyang Zhenwu was unaware of Zhuang Rui's exchange of collections with Ezkena, so he asked about it.
Zhuang Rui recounted the whole story in detail, and then explained that he should be able to exchange a batch of collections with the Guimet Museum in the near future, so in terms of both quantity and quality, his museum absolutely deserves to be called a "national" museum.
"Good, well done!"
After listening to Zhuang Rui's words, Ouyang Zhenwu slammed his hand on the table. Although Zhuang Rui had also given up Picasso's works in the process of this exchange, from the perspective of Chinese people's feelings, they naturally valued the cultural relics that had been lost from China more.
"Xiao Rui, I've made the decision. After your museum opens, we'll produce a special feature that details how those collections returned to the motherland. As for whether you want to make an appearance, that's up to you then..."
Ouyang Zhenwu's words reassured Zhuang Rui. His purpose was to promote the museum, and as for himself, he should keep a low profile. Huangfu Yun could handle this matter.
Chapter 671 Things
After leaving the restaurant, Zhuang Rui returned to the courtyard house. Ouyang Si Shao naturally did not accompany him. He had finally managed to get leave from his wife, and by now he was nowhere to be found.
It's already late April, and the garden is full of blooming flowers, filling the air with their fragrance. The lotus flowers in the pond are especially beautiful. Hao Long found some tadpoles somewhere and threw them into the pond. He believes that in a while, the yard will be filled with the croaking of frogs.
There's no place like home. After returning home, Zhuang Rui realized that although his courtyard house wasn't as spacious as Ezkena's castle, it was undoubtedly more lively.
Ouyang Wan, Zhang Ma, Li Sao, and others were building flower beds in the courtyard, while the white lion was chasing butterflies that flew into the garden. Upon seeing Zhuang Rui, it immediately ran over and affectionately rubbed its big head against him.
"It's time to find a wife for the white lion..."
Most Tibetan Mastiffs can mate when they are a little over one year old. However, White Lion is nourished by Zhuang Rui's spiritual energy every day, and its bone development and growth are far superior to those of ordinary Tibetan Mastiffs. Seeing that he will be getting married soon, he can't let White Lion remain a bachelor forever.
However, last time I took White Lion to Pengcheng Mastiff Garden, there were so many female mastiffs, but White Lion didn't like any of them. It seems that I will have to make a trip to Tibet in the future to see if I can find a female mastiff with a pure bloodline. Of course, White Lion has to like her too.
After chatting with his mother for a few minutes in the yard, Zhuang Rui returned to the backyard.
He had refrained from taking anything out of the file bag the whole way, but now that he was seated, Zhuang Rui opened the bag and pulled out a stack of documents.
For someone at Ouyang Zhenwu's level, handling such matters is incredibly easy. Not only are the approval procedures completed, but even the business license required for opening a business is also provided.
Although there are now more than 300 private museums of all sizes in China, the approval process for museums is still quite strict. If Zhuang Rui were to go through the proper procedures, it would probably take him at least six months to obtain these items.
Feeling somewhat excited, Zhuang Rui took out his phone and dialed Huangfu Yun, who was probably in France at the moment.
"What? It's done?"
Upon hearing Zhuang Rui's words, Huangfu Yun was so surprised he almost bit his tongue off. He had returned to China some time ago with the intention of opening a sword museum, but he was hampered by insufficient funds and the approval process. Huangfu Yun knew all too well how difficult it was to get a museum approved.
Huangfu Yun had suffered greatly from the bureaucratic style of some departments in China, and he simply couldn't believe that Zhuang Rui could have approved the procedures in just a few days.
"Yes, the paperwork and business license are all done, Brother Huangfu. I'll fax you a copy later, and you can talk to the Guimet Museum about exchanging collections tomorrow..."
It wasn't that Zhuang Rui was impatient, but rather that the museum's location was already readily available. With just a few minor modifications and the installation of some anti-theft measures, it could open for business. To be honest, the time it would take to order those exhibition stands and display cases would probably be longer than the time it would take to renovate the museum.
"Brother, don't make fun of me. Counterfeit goods won't work overseas..."
Huangfu Yun hadn't really believed that the museum's paperwork could be approved so quickly, and now that Zhuang Rui said that even the business license had been obtained, he was even more certain that Zhuang Rui's paperwork was not legitimate.
Although he had been abroad for seven or eight years, Huangfuyun was still very familiar with companies like Asia International Global Document Forgery Group in China. As long as you have money, they can even forge love letters from Clinton to Sister Furong for you.
"Hey, Brother Huangfu, it's really all done. The video from the auction a while ago was seen by some people, and they gave me some leeway. Would I lie to you about this?"
When Zhuang Rui heard that Huangfu Yun didn't believe him, he had to explain a few things to him, but he didn't mention his own connections.
"Damn, buddy, I've been begging and pleading to open a sword museum, but I can't get it done. And you..."
After hearing Zhuang Rui's words, Huangfu Yun believed him. Fortunately, Zhuang Rui did not mention that his uncle was the leader in charge of this area, otherwise Huangfu Yun would definitely have accused him of abusing his power for personal gain.
"It's not too late to open a sword museum later when you have a bigger collection. Let's get this exchange of collections settled first..."
Zhuang Rui laughed when he heard this. In this day and age, having money is not as good as having power. Of course, it is indeed as difficult as climbing to heaven for those who have neither money nor power to get things done. If Huangfu Yun were to follow the American system and formally apply for approval, it would not be impossible for it to be delayed for three to five years.
"Also, those items I wrote to you, and the artifacts the Frey family donated to the Guimet Museum and the Louvre, you must exchange them. In addition, Huangfu Yun, you might as well mention the donation of items to my museum by Mr. Ezkener of England..."
Zhuang Rui shifted the topic to the exchange of collections with the Guimet Museum. Although Britain and France have always been on good terms, they still have many differences of opinion on certain matters.
Zhuang Rui wanted Huangfu Yun to convey the following meaning: if a private individual in Britain can donate so many cultural relics, it would be unreasonable for a French museum to be stingy.
Moreover, for Picasso, who had always lived in Paris, France was like his second home, and the French people had a very high level of recognition for Picasso. The Guimet Museum's desire for the collection in Zhuang Rui's hands should be far greater than that for Ezkena, which could be used to negotiate the price.
"Hehe, brother, don't worry. The Guimet Museum has over 30,000 Chinese artifacts, but only about a thousand are on display. I'll have a good talk with them..."
Huangfu Yun laughed on the other end of the phone. If Zhuang Rui could get so many "donations" from Ezkena, it would be incredibly embarrassing for him if he couldn't pull out a few hundred Chinese antiques from the Guimet Museum. ...
"I'm so happy today, I'm really happy today..."
After hanging up Huangfuyun's call, Zhuang Rui felt a huge weight lifted off his shoulders and sang as he arrived at the Central Court.
"Zhuang Rui, why are you so happy? Is it because I've been staying with your sister-in-law these past few days, and you've been enjoying your time on your own?"
As soon as Zhuang Rui entered the Intermediate People's Court, he saw Qin Xuanbing glaring at him angrily, with Xu the big star standing next to her, secretly laughing.