Chapter Four: A Portrait of Someone Who Does Not Exist

“Afraid I will paint someone else?” Silence. “Afraid you will mistake a grave for a stage.” Before hanging up, Gu gave him one name: Su Tang. Publicly, Su Tang was an entertainment host with ten million followers and a talent for asking celebrities about their romances. But her account from seven years ago contained only one silent video. A younger Su stood outside the Lan City Museum, her lips moving while the audio remained blank. Qi Xia touched the phone. Half a second of erased sound escaped the speaker. “...they are painting the city underground...” The phone went black. Lin decided to paint her. At eight that evening he went live under a single-line title: A Portrait of a Reporter Who Does Not Exist.