About twenty minutes later, Xiao Ran and the others arrived at the entrance of the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
But they did not immediately enter the museum to visit. Instead, they stood in the square in front of the museum and admired the statue of Washington standing here.
This is a statue of Washington on horseback commanding battle. Among all similar statues, it is an outstanding one and is worth admiring.
In addition to this statue of Washington, there are several other statues in front of the museum.
These include the famous Rocky statue and the 72 stone steps in front of the museum, which were the scenes where Stallone conducted special running training when filming the "Rocky" series of movies.
As the "Rocky" series of movies became popular around the world, the scene in front of the Philadelphia Museum of Art has become well-known to everyone.
In the blink of an eye, Xiao Ran and the others had finished admiring the Washington statue.
Afterwards, they planned to take a look at the Rocky statue not far away, and then enter the museum to visit.
At this moment, two white boys in their teens or 20s suddenly walked over.
Seeing this situation, the two security team members guarding the perimeter immediately stopped the two guys with unknown intentions.
The two guys tried to force their way over, but they couldn't even take advantage of the tough security guards.
Helpless, they could only stand seven or eight meters away and scream at the top of their lungs.
"Sean, many people on the Internet say that you came to Philadelphia to look for treasures, is that true?"
"If that's the case, we advise you to leave Philadelphia and don't ask for trouble!"
"The treasures here belong to Philadelphians, and the land here belongs to Philadelphians, not you gringo and robber."
Xiao Ran couldn't help but sneer, and then turned to look at the two guys.
The other people present at the scene all looked over with bright eyes, obviously enjoying the excitement and not taking it too seriously.
The next moment, Xiao Ran suddenly said disdainfully:
"Ignore whether we came to Philadelphia to explore treasures or not, there is no need to tell idiots like you!"
"If there really are hidden treasures in Philadelphia, I would be happy to find them and make them my own!"
"As for whether I am a robber or not, it's not up to idiots like you to decide!"
"The real robber in this land is not me. The Indians know this best!"
“The colonial treasures I discovered in Boston are the best illustration!”
"ah!"
The two idiots exclaimed and froze on the spot.
They were so angry that their eyes burst into flames, and they stared at Xiao Ran with their eyes widened.
Xiao Ran was too lazy to deal with this idiot anymore and walked towards the Rocky statue.
At this moment, several people suddenly walked out of the museum gate above and walked quickly along the stairs.
The visitors were none other than Timothy, the director of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and others.
Seeing that it was them, Xiao Ran immediately gave up the idea of visiting the Rocky statue and took Elaine and the others to greet it.
In a moment, the two sides had met in the middle of the steps.
After a few greetings, Timothy couldn’t wait to ask:
"Sean, now can we tell you the real purpose of coming to Philadelphia?"
"Did you discover some treasure in Philadelphia, or know what treasure is hidden here, so you came here?"
Xiao Ran looked at this old friend, then glanced at some other people, and then said with a smile:
"Timothy, the real purpose of our coming to Philadelphia needs to be kept strictly confidential."
"I can tell you the answer, but only to you, and you have to promise not to leak the secret."
"Unless I can be sure that you will not leak secrets or that we establish a cooperative relationship."
"ah!"
Several senior executives of the Philadelphia Museum of Art exclaimed in unison.
While exclaiming, they became more curious about the real purpose of Xiao Ran's trip.
"What on earth are you doing here? Are you acting?"
"Since you are so careful, I can also promise that I will keep it strictly confidential."
Timothy said curiously, his eyes shining.
Xiao Ran nodded and then continued:
"Okay, Timothy, let's go into the museum and talk about this!"
"I have been admiring the top-notch artworks collected in your museum, such as Van Gogh's paintings, Rodin's sculptures, etc., and I have long wanted to see them!"
"And your collection of top-notch Chinese antiques makes me salivate even more!"
Hearing this, Timothy couldn't help but rolled his eyes angrily.
"You greedy guy, it seems you are eyeing the top-notch Chinese antiques collected in our museum."
"If you can come up with a bargaining chip that makes us excited, we can actually offer some of it to trade with you!"
"Wow! This is what I want to hear most. I believe we will have the opportunity to cooperate again."
Xiao Ran smiled and nodded.
After chatting for a while, the group of them climbed up the stairs and walked towards the museum gate above.
The two white boys who came to protest stood in the biting cold wind like two idiots, watching Xiao Ran and the others walk into the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
About ten minutes later, in an exhibition hall on the first floor of the museum.
As soon as he entered the exhibition hall, Timothy pulled Xiao Ran aside and asked impatiently:
"Sean, can you tell me now the real purpose of your coming to Philadelphia?"
"I really want to know what is going on that is so mysterious?"
Xiao Ran didn't sell it any more, and then explained in a low voice.
"I can tell you very clearly, Timothy, that I did not come to Philadelphia for any treasure."
“Previously in Boston, after we concluded our exploration of colonial treasures, we reached a cooperation agreement with the Gardner Museum.”
"The content of this cooperation agreement is very simple. It is to help the Gardner Museum find the top-notch artworks that were looted 30 years ago."
"After careful investigation and a large amount of information, we finally found something."
"We have initially determined that the two art thieves who robbed the Gardner Museum are most likely hiding somewhere in Philadelphia."
"The top-notch artworks that were robbed are very likely still in the hands of two art thieves due to their high sensitivity, and are also hidden in Philadelphia..."
Before he finished speaking, Timothy exclaimed in surprise.
"What? Did I hear it correctly? The two art thieves who looted the Gardner Museum are actually hiding in Philadelphia?"
"Those priceless top-notch works of art are also hidden in Philadelphia? How is this possible?"
Looking at this old friend whose eyes almost popped out, Xiao Ran smiled and nodded.
"You heard it right, Timothy, this possibility exists, and it is very high!"
"Otherwise, I wouldn't have brought anyone to Philadelphia."
"As you said before, now is not a good time to visit Philadelphia."
Upon hearing this exact answer, Timothy's face suddenly turned red, and his whole body was filled with excitement.
"Sean, who are these two art thieves and where are they hiding?"
Xiao Ran smiled and shook his head, but did not answer the question.
Just kidding, how can I tell you the names of those two art thieves!
In that case, wouldn't my brother's hard work be in vain, making wedding clothes for others?
Xiao Ran didn't have much expectations as to whether Timothy could keep it strictly confidential!
What I can do is to solve this unsolved case of the century and find those top-notch works of art before he leaks the secret!
In that case, even if Timothy leaks the secret, it won't be a big deal!
Seeing his appearance, Timothy realized instantly.
If you ask questions you shouldn’t ask, you will naturally get no answers!
After thinking for a moment, the guy suddenly changed the subject.
"Sean, since you are here to find those two art thieves and those top-notch artworks, I think we may have the possibility of cooperation."
"To tell you the truth, in the summer of 1998 and the autumn of 2005, our museum also had theft cases, and several valuable works of art were stolen."
"These works of art were not on public display. They were stolen by two staff members during an inventory count."
"Because the art is not on public display, the two thefts were not made public, but were investigated secretly by the Philadelphia police and the FBI..."
This time it was Xiao Ran's turn to be surprised!
"Ah! Is there such a thing?"
With an exclamation, he couldn't help but froze on the spot.
After a moment, he woke up and asked:
"What was the result of the investigation? Did the police and FBI catch those two staff members and recover those pieces of art?"
Timothy shook his head helplessly and said with a wry smile:
"The FBI immediately targeted the residence of the two staff members and found them. However, they were late and only found two bodies."
"As for those pieces of art, they disappeared and never appeared again."
"Ten or twenty years later, the FBI has never found the mastermind behind these two art thefts, nor has it found the artworks."
"No one is paying attention to these two art theft cases now. The FBI has stopped pursuing them a long time ago!"
"I just heard you say that the two art thieves who looted the Gardner Museum are hiding in Philadelphia. I just remembered these two cases."
"Do you think it's possible that these two art thieves were responsible for the two art thefts in our museum?"
With Timothy's introduction, Xiao Ran's eyes became brighter and brighter, like searchlights!
For him, this is definitely an unexpected gain!
After Timothy finished his introduction, he thought for a moment, then nodded and said:
"It is really possible that the two art thefts in your museum were the work of these two art thieves!"
"Guys like them can't take any time off. Sometimes they will take action again because they like it, or even to show off their skills and a sense of accomplishment."
"What's more, they have lived in Philadelphia for a long time, and their first choice is the artwork in your museum."
"From these aspects, we do have the possibility of cooperation..."
Hearing this, Timothy didn't hesitate at all.
"In this case, Sean, let's talk about the terms of cooperation?"
Xiao Ran smiled and shook his head.
"There is no rush about cooperation. We can talk slowly. There is plenty of time!"
"What I want to do most right now is enjoy the top-notch artworks displayed in your museum and have a great time!"
"Not only me, but tens of thousands of fans in my live broadcast room are also waiting to appreciate these top-notch works of art!"
Timothy paused, then smiled and nodded.
"Okay, let's appreciate those works of art first, and then talk about cooperation."
"I'm taking you on a tour. I hope you can spend a pleasant afternoon here."
With that said, he made a gesture of invitation, and then led Xiao Ran towards Yi Lian and the others.
One of Picasso's masterpieces, "Three Musicians"
