SWNOVELS Chapter 144
Chapter 144
The Art Collective was a haven for painters of every stripe and its influence in the
art world was profound. Its power was not to be underestimated.
That's why when Fanny spoke, it was with a force that could crush opposition
with ease.
The other members turned their gazes toward Lorna. Among the crowd were
fresh-faced graduates, with academic zeal, and those seasoned by years in the
art scene, but mostly, they exuded goodwill.
dewy
Only one man, a somewhat known artist who went by the pen name Teagan,
lifted his chin with a sneer, “Fanny’s been bustling about here, and you, a painter
who's come into fame overnight, think you're more precious than her?”
Cordelia’'s brow furrowed at his harsh words. As she was about to retort, Lorna
stopped her and replied, “Let it be. We're all colleagues here, and we'll need to
learn from each other in the future. Helping out is no problem.”
Lorna's generosity stood in stark contrast to Fanny's and Teagan’s aggressive
demeanor.
Cordelia paused, shooting Lorna a puzzled look but remained silent, following in
her wake.
Fanny led the way into a nearby meeting room, with Lorna at her side. As soon
as they entered, Fanny began distributing the day's tasks.
The exhibition was a showcase of Superiority Country culture for international
guests and would run for several days. With so much to do, Fanny delegated
tasks, and one by one, the members went off to work.
Finally, Fanny turned to Lorna, pointing to a box beside her, “Lorna, take this box
to Room 103. There's a sink there, clean those frames inside so they're spotless
for the display.”
It was the most grueling job—physically taxing and dirty.
Lorna's eyebrows knitted together in frustration. She was well into her forties,
and there were younger members with more energy, yet she was singled out, a
clear act of targeting.
When Fanny noticed Lorna's hesitation, she smiled thinly, “I'm the president.
Everyone follows my orders. What's wrong, you don’t want to do it? Or are you
looking down upon our humble Greenmeadow Art Collective now?”
Lorna took a deep breath, visibly upset, but she held back, “Fine, I'll do it.”
She attempted to lift the heavy box and found, to her dismay, that she couldn't.
“It's heavy, isn't it?” Fanny said with a smirk. “Take care with it; those paintings
are delicate.”
She leaned forward in her chair, her expression growing menacing. “Lorna, you
always scoffed at the race for recognition and reward. Well, now I'll show you the
importance of being president of the Collective. B. Aster may have praised you,
and you may have had your moment of fame, but here in Greenmeadow, as long
as I'm president, I can suppress you as I see fit. B. Aster has left, here, my word
is law, and no one will help you!”
Lorna turned to look at her, a deep gaze that said more than words.
Fanny's face twisted with malice, “Get to work, so you can report back when
you're done.”
As Lorna bent down to try lifting the box again, Cordelia stepped beside her and
effortlessly hoisted it up, “Mom, I'll help you.”
Seeing how easily Cordelia managed, Lorna didn't stop her. They left Fanny's
office and made their way to Room 103 Inside, Cordelia set the box down, and
Lorna asked, “Lia, are you tired?”
Cordelia shook her head, the weight was nothing to her, but she wondered,
“What's next?”
Lorna sighed, “Nothing much. These paintings were cleaned before they were
sent over. She's just making an excuse to give me a hard time.”
Chupler 144
Chapter 144
The Art Collective was a haven for painters of every stripe and its influence in the
art world was profound. Its power was not to be underestimated.
That's why when Fanny spoke, it was with a force that could crush opposition
with ease.
The other members turned their gazes toward Lorna. Among the crowd were
fresh-faced graduates, still dewy with academic zeal, and those seasoned by
years in the art scene, but mostly, they exuded goodwill.
Only one man, a somewhat known artist who went by the pen name Teagan,
lifted his chin with a sneer. “Fanny's been bustling about here, and you, a painter
who's come into fame overnight, think you're more precious than her?”
Cordelia’s brow furrowed at his harsh words. As she was about to retort, Lorna
stopped her and replied, “Let it be. We're all colleagues here, and we'll need to
learn from each other in the future. Helping out is no problem.”
Lorna's generosity stood in stark contrast to Fanny's and Teagan's aggressive
demeanor.
Cordelia paused, shooting Lorna a puzzled look but remained silent, following in
her wake.
Fanny led the way into a nearby meeting room, with Lorna at her side. As soon
as they entered, Fanny began. distributing the day's tasks.
The exhibition was a showcase of Superiority Country culture for international
guests and would run for several days. With so much to do, Fanny delegated
tasks, and one by one, the members went off to work.
Finally, Fanny turned to Lomna, pointing to a box beside her, “Lorna, take this
box to Room 103. There's a sink there; clean those frames inside so they're
spotless for the display.”
It was the most grueling job—physically taxing and dirty.
Lorna's eyebrows knitted together in frustration. She was well into her forties,
and there were younger members with more energy, yet she was singled out, a
clear act of targeting.
When Fanny noticed Lorna's hesitation, she smiled thinly, “I'm the president.
Everyone follows my orders. What's wrong, you don’t want to do it? Or are you
looking down upon our humble Greenmeadow Art Collective now?”
Lorna took a deep breath, visibly upset, but she held back, “Fine, I'll do it.”
She attempted to lift the heavy box and found, to her dismay, that she couldn't.
“It's heavy, isn't it?” Fanny said with a smirk. “Take care with it; those paintings
are delicate.”
She leaned forward in her chair, her expression growing menacing, “Lorna, you
always scoffed at the race for recognition and reward. Well, now I'll show you the
importance of being president of the Collective. B. Aster may have praised you,
and you may have had your moment of fame, but here in Greenmeadow, as long
as I'm president, I can suppress you as I see fit. B. Aster has left; here, my word
is law, and no one will help you!”
Lorna turned to look at her, a deep gaze that said more than words.
Fanny's face twisted with malice, “Get to work, so you can report back when
you're done.”
As Lorna bent down to try lifting the box again, Cordelia stepped beside her and
effortlessly hoisted it up, “Mom, I'll help you.”
Seeing how easily Cordelia managed, Lorna didn't stop her. They left Fanny's
office and made their way to Room 103. Inside, Cordelia set the box down, and
Lorna asked, “Lia, are you tired?”
Cordelia shook her head, the weight was nothing to her, but she wondered,
“What's next?”
Lorna sighed, “Nothing much. These paintings were cleaned before they were
sent over. She's just making an excuse to give me a hard time.”
12101
Chapter 144
As they opened the box to take the paintings out, they planned to rotate them
during the several days of the exhibition.
After removing a few frames, Lorna suddenly gasped, “Oh no...!"
Cordelia hurried to look and saw a long tear marring the painting Lorna held—a
clean slash right through the middle.
Lorna steadied herself, laying the painting on the table. Cordelia frowned deeply
at the sight.
It was an ancient and precious painting drawn by an artist who had passed away.
Lorna inspected the painting closely, then relaxed, “It's a reproduction.”
Cordelia blinked, “Reproductions in the exhibition?”
Lorna pointed to the signature. “The original is in the Ontoky Museum,
untouchable. But they wanted to share its beauty internationally, so high-quality
reproductions like this are made, always clearly marked. This one i very lifelike.”
As they spoke, the door burst open. Fanny stormed in with Teagan in tow. Upon
seeing the painting, she exclaimed, “Lorna, what have you done?”
Her shout drew the Collective's members into the room, all asking, “What
happened?”
When they saw the ruined “Thousand Mile River”, they were stunned, “How could
this happen?”
is
“This reproduction is a masterpiece! It could sell for millions! How could it get
damaged? This is so careless!”
“The main thing is, we were supposed to display this tomorrow. What do we do
now?”
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As they all fretted, the discussion
: p
didn’t go the way Fanny had hoped.
She shot Teagan a look, and he
quickly steered the conversation,
« , : :
Lorna, what's the meaning of this? I
)
know you resent Fanny, but you can't
: VE ”
take it out on the painting!” The
content is on Novelxo.org! Read
the latest chapter there!
With that, all eyes turned to Lorna.
She frowned and defended herself, “It wasn't me. When I took out this painting, it
was already damaged!”
“How could that be?” Fanny gasped in feigned surprise. “We all checked these
paintings together when they arrived this morning. There was no issue!”
Her gaze sharpened on Lorna, “And since they were boxed up this morning,
you're the only one who's touched them. I know you hate me, Lorna, but how
could you do such a thing? You're responsible for this!”
Lorna's voice quivered with concern. “What are you going to do?”
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Fanny spoke up with an air of finality.
u« , .
You're going to compensate for the
value of that painting—around five
million—and return it to its rightful
’ c
owner. But that's the least of your
. , ,
worries. You've delayed tomorrow's
FIs ) . : »
exhibition, and that's a major issue!
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Read the latest chapter there!
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Teagan chimed in, her voice laced
. . . “ )
with disappointment, “We've already
announced that a replica of this
painting would be unveiled at
) Pv)
tomorrow's show, and now it's gone.
This will bring shame upon the entire
Greenmeadow Art Association! Miss,
Fanny, her actions are inexcusable!
Someone like her, no matter how
skilled at painting, lacks integrity. In
So PD
my opinion, such a person doesn't
deserve to paint. We, as a community
of artists, should stand together and
boycott her, make her put down her
” :
brushes forever!” The content is on
Novelxo.org! Read the latest
chapter there!
Put down her brushes... Lorna clenched her fists, realizing this was Fanny's true
intention.
Fanny curled her lips into a smirk, poised to make Lorna an outcast in the art
world.
But just then-