In the gallery.
Xiao Ran looked back at Frank and the others, then smiled and said:
"Director Frank, Director Scott, the operation is going very smoothly. McCann and Miles are both under control."
"Communication restrictions can now be lifted, but we still need to be careful about calls and messages coming out of this neighborhood."
Hearing this, both Frank and Scott rolled their eyes angrily.
It was obviously you who proposed the communication control, but now you act like we did it. How damn cunning!
Although they were secretly complaining, these two guys still nodded.
"Okay, Sean, I will notify my subordinates to lift the communication control."
Scott nodded and said.
Immediately afterwards, Timothy suddenly walked up to McCann, gritted his back teeth and said:
"McCann, although our friendship is not deep, we can still be considered friends."
"What I didn't expect was that you would actually loot our museum, twice in a row."
"Not only that, you also killed those two museum employees. Isn't this too cruel?"
"Now that you've been arrested, it's best to tell the truth. Where are the antiques and artworks you looted and to whom were they sold?"
Before she finished speaking, Peggy couldn't wait to continue:
"And where are the 13 top-notch antique artworks that were stolen from our Gardner Museum in 1990?"
"Your father was the deputy director of the museum at the time. Was he also involved in the robbery of the century? Was he hiding behind the scenes?"
Listening to these questions, McCann's expression immediately changed and returned to normal in the blink of an eye.
He looked at Peggy and the others, then sneered and said:
"This is naked slander, slander and defamation of my personal reputation. I will take you all to court, especially you, Sean."
"You say I'm an art thief? That I looted the Gardner Museum and the Philadelphia Museum of Art? Do you have any evidence?"
"If you can't produce evidence to prove it, then wait for the defendant and compensation. I will make you pay the due price for this stupid behavior."
Following his words, Frank and Peggy all looked at Xiao Ran.
In the eyes of these guys, there is a bit of worry.
Catch the traitor in bed, catch the thief and take the stolen goods!
If Xiao Ran couldn't produce strong evidence, he would be in big trouble.
Not only would McCann and Miles be released, but everyone on the scene would be in trouble!
Looking at the dying McCann, Xiao Ran laughed softly.
"McCann, stop struggling pointlessly. I won't do anything I'm not sure about!"
"Since you want evidence, then I will give you the evidence. I believe it can shut your mouth and convince you."
After saying that, he turned to look at David, two senior Philadelphia lawyers, and Timothy.
"Gentlemen, next I will perform a very interesting magic for you. I believe it will bring you some surprises!"
"I will take videos of the entire process. In order to avoid some adverse consequences, I will not explain some things."
"Please keep your eyes open and prepare to witness the miracle!"
After saying that, he nodded slightly towards Marvin.
Marvin understood immediately, then turned and walked out of the gallery.
Looking at Frank and Peggy, they were all curious and confused as to what Xiao Ran was playing.
McCann stared at Xiao Ran, his eyes full of worry, but also doubtful.
In a moment, Marvin had returned to the gallery.
At this time, he already had a small aluminum alloy box in his hand.
What is in this box, no one knows.
When he came closer, he handed the box directly to Xiao Ran.
After taking the box, Xiao Ran immediately smiled and said:
"Gentlemen, please come with me. I will perform a magic trick for everyone. It is very exciting."
"McCann, come here too and take a good look at your masterpiece."
With that said, he carried the box and walked into the gallery.
Peggy and Timothy looked at each other and followed immediately.
As for McCann, he was held hostage by several FBI agents and homicide detectives, and had to follow him.
In a moment, Xiao Ran came to the Cubist painting with a bit of Braque style that he had seen before and stopped.
In fact, this is a painting by McCann, and an average one at that.
Seeing Xiao Ran stop in front of this painting, McCann immediately started to tremble, his eyes filled with fear.
He looked at Xiao Ran as if he had seen a ghost, his eyes full of fear.
But he still forced himself to remain calm, and with a hint of luck in mind, he used all his strength to stabilize his body.
When Peggy and the others came over, Xiao Ran immediately pointed at the Cubist oil painting and said:
"Take a look at this Cubist oil painting and see what you can find."
Following his words, Peggy and Timothy both looked at the oil painting.
In a moment, two museum curators and several art appraisal experts saw something.
"This is a Cubist painting, but the artist's skill is average. It seems to be imitating the style of the master Braque, but it is far from it."
"Yes, in this Cubist painting, you can not only see the shadow of Braque, but also a little bit of the art master Cézanne."
The two curators spoke one after another and gave their opinions.
Xiao Ran smiled and nodded, then continued:
"Everyone has a very good eye. This is an imitation of Braque during the Cubism period of Cézanne, but the level is very different."
"If I guess correctly, this should be your work, right? Mr. McCann, you are an amateur painter, right?"
Although he really didn't want to admit it, McCann could only nod helplessly.
"Yes, this is indeed my work, and it is indeed an imitation of Braque's painting style. Unfortunately, I am far from the master."
"But what does that mean? This is my painting. Can it also be your so-called evidence?"
Looking at this tough-tongued guy, Xiao Ran laughed again.
"Yes, McCann, although this is your painting, it is also the evidence I am looking for."
"Here, I can make a bet with you"
“If I make a mistake, I’m willing to pay $100 million for this worthless painting.”
"If I find strong evidence, I believe you know what outcome you will face."
Before he finished speaking, the scene immediately exploded!
"Ah! A bet of 100 million dollars, just for such an ordinary painting? Isn't it crazy?"
"Wow! Sean is so confident. There seems to be a shocking secret behind this painting."
Everyone exclaimed, everyone was excited.
Looking at McCann again, his face was as pale as paper, and his eyes were full of despair and fear.
Fortunately, he still held on to the last glimmer of hope, so he didn't collapse to the ground.
He didn't give any response, he just stared at Xiao Ran, wishing he could pounce on him and bite him to death.
Xiao Ran looked at this guy, then reached out and opened the box.
The box contained some bottles, cans, a few pairs of gloves, and other gadgets. It looked more like a medicine box.
Xiao Ran looked at the contents of the box, then put on a pair of plastic gloves, and then started to work.
He took out an unlabeled bottle from the box, and then a piece of white cotton.
Then he unscrewed the bottle and poured the liquid inside gently onto the cotton cloth.
While doing these actions, he was also explaining.
"Gentlemen, what this bottle contains is a magic potion, or reagent, that I prepared myself."
"This magic potion has a slightly pungent smell, but is not toxic. You don't have to worry about safety issues."
"As for the formula of this magic potion, it needs to be kept strictly confidential. I cannot disclose it to the public."
Hearing this, everyone nodded and watched Xiao Ran's every move curiously.
At this moment, there was just a plop, and the guy McCann suddenly collapsed on the ground.
At this time, the only glimmer of hope and luck in his eyes had completely disappeared.
This guy slumped on the ground in despair, muttering to himself.
"Didn't you say that no one knows this lost technology? Why does Sean, a damn bastard, know this? How is this possible?"
Following his words, everyone turned their heads and looked over.
Seeing his appearance, everyone still didn't understand.
Obviously, Xiao Ran has grasped his fatal weakness, and no one can save him!
Looking at Xiao Ran again, he took the cotton cloth dipped in reagent and began to wipe it gently on the Cubist painting.
With his movements, the oil paint on the surface of the oil painting was directly wiped off by him like a layer of dust, revealing the next layer of oil paint.
Seeing this scene, Peggy and Timothy were all stunned on the spot.
Especially the two museum curators and several appraisal experts, their eyes were so wide that they almost flew out.
Xiao Ran didn't stop for a moment, and continued to wipe the oil paint on the surface of the painting, but his movements were very gentle and careful.
In just a moment, a layer of something like varnish suddenly appeared on the canvas.
Under that layer of varnish, there was actually another oil painting, and it was also a Cubist painting.
As soon as the hidden Cubist painting appeared, the scene exploded.
"Oh my God! There is actually another Cubist oil painting hidden under McCann's Cubist painting."
"Whose painting is this? Is it a stolen top-notch piece of art?"
"Wow! This is incredible, definitely magic like I've never seen before!"
"Sean, what is going on? Can you explain it? It's so amazing."
Everyone exclaimed and scratched their heads and ears curiously.
Xiao Ran smiled softly and then explained the reason.
"What you are seeing now is a magical method of forging and hiding paintings. This method comes from China in the early last century."
"In China at the beginning of the last century, there were only a few people who knew this technique. I don't know where McCann learned this technique."
"The principle of this technique is not complicated. It is to brush a layer of something similar to varnish on the original painting to cover it up."
"After this layer of varnish dries, you can paint on top of this layer of varnish, completely hiding the original painting without causing any damage."
"Whenever you want to restore the original painting, you only need to wipe the surface of the painting with a special liquid, and it can be completely restored bit by bit."
Not surprisingly, everyone was completely shocked by his words.
"Oh my God! There is such a way to forge and hide paintings. It's incredible!"
"Who can discover a painting hidden in this way? It's perfect!"
The exclamations sounded again, one after another.
Xiao Ran smiled softly and continued:
"To put it bluntly, this technique is actually not difficult. What is difficult is the preparation of special pigments and varnishes, as well as the potions used to restore the paintings."
"As for what this hidden painting is and which art master it is, I believe McCann knows better than anyone else."
Before he finished speaking, everyone turned to look at McCann who was slumped on the ground.
The next moment, Frank suddenly said:
"McCann, since your secret has been exposed, let's do it. There is no need to carry it to death!"
"Whose work is this Cubist oil painting that you have hidden? Is it a stolen art?"
McCann did not respond immediately, but stared at the Cubist oil painting in despair.
After a moment, he nodded in frustration and said:
"Yes, this is indeed a piece of stolen art. It is the masterpiece of the master Georges Braque, "Olive Trees near Estac""
As he gave the name of the painting, the scene suddenly became excited again.
"Oh God! It turned out to be Georges Braque's "Olive Trees near the Estac". Isn't this one of the top works of art stolen from the Museum of Modern Art in Paris in 2010?"
"Didn't those five priceless top-notch works of art have been burned a long time ago? How come they are here? Are those five paintings all here?"
While exclaiming, Peggy and Timothy were almost crazy with excitement.
Not only that, these guys also have greed shining in their eyes.
They know better than anyone the value of the five paintings stolen from the Museum of Modern Art in Paris in 2010!
"Olive trees near Estac"
