Bai Yun remembered that when he was at school, he had seen many of Cézanne's works and presentations. When Bai Yun first saw Cézanne's works, he was enchanted by the colours in his paintings. When he stood in the land where Cézanne had lived, he realised that it was the colourful and pure landscape that had given Cézanne his unique artistic talent. It is only now that Bai Yun realises that there is an indescribable poetic feeling in Cézanne's paintings, and that it is the relaxation and poetry of Provence.
Richard took Bai Yun on a tour of Cézanne's home, which is located on a spacious and beautiful boulevard, and then they sat for a while in Les Deux Garcons, the most luxurious café on the street, which was also a regular haunt of Cézanne.
What excited Bai Yun was when they visited Cézanne's studio, the last studio of Cézanne in Aix, where there were statues of Cupid and fruit plasters on the tables, leftover oil paints and brushes from Cézanne's past paintings, and Cézanne's once worn hat and coat hanging among the clothes.
White Cloud looked out through the open curtains at Mount St. Victoire, a place where Cézanne had visited many times to sketch and paint. When she turned to look for Richard, she suddenly bumped into him, who had come behind her at some point. She was so close to him, he looked into Bai Yun's watery eyes, his breathing seemed to quicken, Bai Yun's face was getting redder and redder. Maybe, in a few minutes, Cézanne will come back to this room and continue painting, and we ... should leave here as soon as possible."
Bai Yun found herself enjoying travelling with Richard more and more. She was fascinated by the city where Cézanne had lived, but after visiting so many places where Cézanne had lived and painted, Bai Yun's heart could not be calmed down any more. So they drove to Arles.
Despite being tired all day, Bai Yun's excitement had not yet subsided. She said to Richard, "When are we going to get to Arles?" As if there was no need for them to be polite, Bai Yun asked boldly.
With his hand on the steering wheel, Richard turned his head to look at Bai Yun and said, "Why are you always thinking about Al?"
Bai Yun winked and said to Richard in a mysterious manner, "Don't you know? It's also a sacred place for art. It's where Van Gogh lived and created."
Richard smiled and said, "So you're more interested in Van Gogh than Cézanne?"
Bai Yun thought for a moment and said, "I admire both artists, but their styles are different and there is no way to compare them. But I think Cézanne's work seems to be more sedate, while Van Gogh's is full of passion."
Richard said, "Stability is sometimes more easily associated with elegance, whereas passion is perhaps more easily associated with madness."
Bai Yun thought for a moment and said, "Van Gogh was really kind of crazy, did you know he once cut off his ear?"
Richard said, "Do you know why he cut off his ear?"
Bai Yun said, "I read in a book that Van Gogh and Gauguin went together on a sunny day to see two girls who were close to him. After a pleasant conversation, Van Gogh fell in love with one of the girls. So he asked the girl, "What kind of gift should I give you, Miss? The girl he liked, who was much younger than him and a joker, took Van Gogh by the left ear and said: 'I'll take this. And then she laughed. After his friend left, Van Gogh thought about it, picked up a sharp fruit knife and cut off his ear with a chomp. He carefully wrapped the ear in a small handkerchief that the girl had just given him and gave it to his neighbour. The girl was only joking, but when she unwrapped the handkerchief and saw the bloody human ear, she fainted. From then on, she was afraid to go out with Van Gogh again."
Richard said, "You make it sound so vivid, isn't it true that too much madness scares away the love that should have been there?"
Bai Yun said, "I think it was the girl who didn't know how to appreciate it. If any man takes my words so seriously, doesn't that mean he really means me?"
Richard thought about what Bai Yun said for a moment and then said, "Ho ho, you seem to think differently, but if more people understood Van Gogh's madness the way you do, it's unlikely that his paintings wouldn't have sold while he was alive."