"Okay, then come with me."
Freya waved to Eisen and walked out.
Eisen thought Freya was going to take him to the studio, but Freya took Eisen to a corridor instead.
Outside this corridor is a lush green garden. Stone pillars imitating those of ancient Roman temples serve as the main beams to support the ceiling, making it look quite majestic.
Eisen had never been here before. He saw that there were various plants planted in the garden, including flowers, medicinal herbs, and some shrubs, but they did not appear abrupt as a whole, but looked very harmonious.
The ground was covered with soft grass, and there were some tables and chairs in the pavilion not far away for people to enjoy the cool air.
"This garden should have been designed by a professional landscaper." Eisen thought.
There is a separate room at the end of the corridor.
The size of this room is actually bigger than the hall. It is an exhibition hall that Freya set aside for displaying her works.
Freya pushed open the door of the showroom, and Eisen smelled a unique fragrance as soon as he moved his nose.
This smell is not as elegant as jasmine, nor as fresh as lemon, but it has a light woody scent with a hint of sweetness.
The smell makes people feel peaceful and refreshed as if their whole body has been washed.
Aisen couldn't help but stand there and sniff a few more times. Freya, who was watching from the side, said,
"This is the smell of lavender. I have a lot of it in my garden. It's a pity that it's not the lavender blooming season yet, otherwise you would see a large area of blue and purple flowers."
Aisen touched his smooth head in embarrassment. He had no knowledge of these flowers and plants, and it would be embarrassing to comment on them rashly, so he said honestly,
"Mm, it smells very nice."
"Indeed, I like it too. The lavender in my home comes from Provence, France. I bought it from a merchant. It is the most famous lavender producing area in the world. It is said that the suburbs there are all lavender fields. I have always wanted to go and see it..."①
Freya showed a hint of expectation in her eyes, but she thought of the meaning behind the language of lavender. If she said those words, it would inevitably be misunderstood, so she stopped what she was going to say.
Eisen didn't notice Freya's pause, he was just wondering why there was the scent of lavender in the showroom.
Seeing the thoughtful look on Eisen's face, Freya guessed what Eisen was thinking and explained,
"The scent of lavender helps repel insects, and it is said that lavender can also repel unclean things, so I will burn lavender incense in the showroom for a long time."
"I see. I understand."
After that, Aisen followed Freya into the exhibition hall.
The oil paintings in the exhibition hall are not hung on the wall as usual, but each one is placed on an easel individually, so that visitors can walk up to the painting and appreciate her paintings up close without having to keep looking up.
The rectangular exhibition hall is lined with rows of neatly arranged oil paintings, and at the end of the exhibition hall is a small stage built of wooden boards with three steps, on which are three wooden frames.
There were twenty-four chairs placed in front of the small stage, six in a row, with a path left between three chairs for people to walk on.
Aisen was stunned for a moment, then pointed towards the small stage and asked,
"What's that over there?"
Freya looked in the direction Aisen pointed and replied,
"It's for auction. Every month people from the auction house come here to bid. I don't want my paintings to be auctioned together with other things. So this is a special column opened by the auction house for me. This exhibition hall was also funded and built by the auction house."
Eisen suddenly realized that Freya was not as simple as she seemed, and he had always underestimated Freya.
He originally thought that Freya was just a stupid woman who was tricked into bed by Eisen after a brief flirtation at a party. But after seeing everything today, the image of Freya in his mind became unfathomable.
When Eisen thought of this, he looked at Freya's face, but found that what he saw was only superficial, and he could not see through Freya.
Freya felt Eisen's gaze and shook her brown hair disapprovingly. She thought of something interesting and said,
“Want to know how much my most expensive painting sold for at auction?”
Eisen didn't expect Freya to ask such a question, so he guessed a number at random.
"Five hundred gold marks?"
Freya shook her head and raised her right hand to make a four gesture towards Eisen.
Aisen's eyes widened and he said doubtfully,
"Four thousand gold marks? So expensive?"
Freya tilted her head and looked at the surprised Eisen with a triumphant smile on her face.
"Forty thousand, and each of my works can be auctioned for more than two thousand gold marks."
Eisen didn't expect that the female baron in front of him was worth more than some barons and marquises. For a moment, he even felt that as long as he was with Freya, he could live a luxurious life, so why would he open a butcher shop
But judging from her daily life, Freya doesn't look like someone who owns such a large fortune, so where did her money go
Thinking of this, Eisen had a little doubt, but Freya smiled and said,
"But... I donated most of it. I kept some for my daily expenses, donated some to the Holy Light Society, and most of it to the Arkham Welfare Home outside the city."③
Hearing this, Eisen felt that his behavior was vastly different from that of the female baron in front of him.
For the sake of money, they put aside their morals and dignity at all costs and do everything they can to make a profit.
But when Freya had a stable income and could have lived a good life, she chose to donate.
This made Eisen feel ashamed, and he even gave up the idea of spending the night at Freya's place because he had low self-esteem and felt he was unworthy.
The inferiority complex made Eisen, who had always been confident, lower his head. Freya noticed Eisen's emotions and cleverly took Eisen's hand to an oil painting.
"You want to hear my inspiration for painting? Then let's start with my early works."
Freya cleverly shifted the topic to Eisen's previous question, which allowed Eisen to focus on listening to her explanation.
"This painting in front of me is an imitation of the shipwreck of Master Vernet in 1772. This is my first work."
Although this is a copied painting, it still captures the spirit of the painting: a sense of contradiction.
Eisen noticed that Freya's paintings all reflected strong contrasts, and expressed and emphasized the conflicts through the design of the picture structure.