As soon as you enter the main door of the church, you will be greeted by a white marble statue.

The sculpture depicts a female angel with a peaceful complexion, her wings slightly spread behind her, and a washbasin-like thing in her hand.

The statue is flanked on either side by a high arched door, which is the entrance to the nave.

"What are they doing?"

Su Ruixi noticed that when the guests passed by the angel statue, they would stop, reach out and dip their hands in the water in the basin, and draw a cross on their chest.

"The basin should be filled with holy water."

Xiang Jingwen also visited the church several times with his father when he was a child, and knew that holy water was usually placed at the entrance of the church.

"Oh."

Su Ruixi nodded lightly, walked to the holy water basin, and just wanted to reach out to dip it in the holy water in the basin.

But I saw that the water was faintly yellowish-brown, and there was a little foam floating on the top layer, and there was a puddle at the bottom of the basin that looked like limescale.

Su Ruixi frowned with some disgust, and turned her head to look at Xiang Jingwen.

"What's going on? Isn't holy water supposed to be clean? ”

Xiang Jingwen also shook his head with a puzzled expression, "If you don't want to dip in holy water, don't dip it, after all, we are not Christians." ”

Su Ruixi withdrew his hand and walked in with Xiang Jingwen through the arch on the right.

Two rows of mahogany seats stretch along the central axis of the cross for a full one or two hundred meters, and at the end of the view is a solemn altar.

The high windows on both sides are all inlaid with stained glass, and it is dusk, and the setting sun shines through the west windows, giving the illusion of bathing in the holy light of heaven.

The high dome is painted with exquisite murals on biblical themes, and the magnificent scenes and detailed expressions of the characters are known at a glance to be the work of the master.

Su Ruixi pulled Xiang Jingwen to find a middle position and sit down, which was not only convenient to observe, but also not easy to find.

As the guests entered one after another, a choir in red robes came to the side of the altar.

A middle-aged male conductor in a suit walked to the front of the stage, bowed deeply to the audience, turned to face the choir, and waved the baton in his hand.

A beautiful and pure harmony immediately echoed and swirled in the church:

……

Praise be to the name of Jesus, for the Lord rejoices in saving sinners.

Forgive me all my sins freely, and cleanse my filthy heart.

……

Xiang Jingwen closed her eyes and listened quietly, while Su Ruixi looked around, and in a corner behind the altar, her eyes keenly caught Xiang Xiaotian's figure.

He was talking to a priest with a serious expression, and the priest nodded his head from time to time.

After singing the song, the choir withdrew from the altar, and by this time all the guests had arrived.

Taiwanese artist Tsai Kang-kang stepped onto the altar with vigorous steps.

"Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, and our dear parishioners! Good evening, everyone! Thank you very much for participating in the charity auction hosted by the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore! I am Cai Kangkang, and I am very honored to be the host of this love auction, so that I can witness it with my own eyes and participate in this love activity with my own hands......"

"The work now on auction is an oil painting by the French painter Rouen with the lost lamb as the background, called "Angels and Lambs". The oil painting is 46 centimeters wide and 60 centimeters high, and the year of creation is 1897. ”

The current owner of this painting is Mr. Xiang Xiaotian, the principal of St. Peter's School of Communication, and he will now dedicate this treasured work to his collection for free. The proceeds from the auction will be donated in full to the Charity Fund of the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore. ”

The crowd burst into applause.

Xiang Xiaotian stood up from the front row, turned around and bowed slightly to the crowd behind him.

"Now the auction has officially begun, the reserve price is 10 million yuan, and the price will be increased by 5 million yuan each time, please actively raise your cards."

In the introduction of the host Cai Kangkang, two staff members carefully carried the frame to the front of the stage and placed the oil painting on the easel that had been set up in advance.

The painting depicts a female angel in a white gown holding a lamb in her arms, standing barefoot by a stream at the edge of the forest. The angel had a sweet face and a serene countenance, as if he was about to return to the right path with this lost lamb.

As soon as he saw this oil painting, there was a burst of whispering in the crowd, and Su Ruixi hurriedly listened.

"Isn't this the painting that was stolen from the Louvre three years ago? How did you get here? ”

"Could it be that there is some secret connection between Xiang Xiaotian and that group of thieves?"

"No matter what you do, wouldn't the stolen famous paintings be more collectible, and the Mona Lisa became famous after it was stolen."

……

"When, when, when."

Suddenly, three heavy bells rang in the church.

The audience, who was still whispering just now, suddenly stopped talking as if swallowing charcoal.

Su Ruixi looked back strangely, and found that the gaze of the audience behind her had also become a little dull.

“？” What the hell is going on?

Xiang Jingwen on his side also seemed to have noticed this, gently tugged Su Ruixi's arm, and said in a low voice: "How do you feel that these people have suddenly become weird, like ...... was hypnotized as well. ”

Hypnotized?

But why didn't he and Xiang Jingwen have it?

Su Ruixi was deep in thought, and suddenly her eyes lit up. Oh, by the way, only himself and Xiang Jingwen didn't dip in that holy water just now, there must be something strange in that holy water.

And the three bells just now seem to be the trigger switch for hypnosis.

The crowd slowly began to come alive again, but it was clear that no one was questioning the origin of the painting anymore.

Everyone looked eager to take the picture into their pockets.

Soon, someone in the crowd held up a sign.

"10 million."

"Okay, Mr. 56 bid 10 million, is there a higher one, is there a higher one?" Cai Kangkang shouted excitedly.

"20 million."

"Lady No. 88 bid 20 million, 20 million, is it higher, is it higher?

"30 million."

……

With a "ding", the auction hammer was slammed down, and finally the "Angel and the Lamb" was sold for 100 million yuan.

Su Ruixi noticed Xiang Xiaotian get up from his seat, walk along the corridor on the right, through the altar, and turn into an arch at the back.

What is he going to do?

Su Ruixi leaned close to Xiang Jingwen's ear and whispered, "I'll go to the bathroom and I'll be back soon." ”

Xiang Jingwen nodded, not suspecting anything.

Su Ruixi left her seat and tried to hide her body in the shadow of the stone pillars in the hallway.

Quickly passing through the altar, Su Ruixi turned into the arch that Xiang Xiaotian had just entered.

Behind the arch is a long gallery flanked by several closed rooms.

Su Ruixi tried her best to suppress the footsteps of her walking, and listened with bated breath.

"Is the Russian side in touch? As soon as today's auction is over, we will be able to buy Black Widow in large quantities. ”

Xiang Xiaotian's faint voice reached Su Ruixi's ears through the door panel of the sacristy room.