Chapter 6 Chapter Four

Chief Bezu Fache looks like a raging bull.His broad shoulders were thrown back, and his chin thrust heavily toward his chest.His jet-black hair was neatly combed back, and it was shiny. The V-shaped hair tip like the prow of a battleship was separated from the protruding forehead, which looked more like an arrow.His black eyes seemed to scorch the ground in front of him as he walked forward.The fire that spewed out of his eyes was clear and transparent, and that kind of clarity made people feel that he had an unambiguous seriousness in everything he did. Langdon followed the director down the famous staircase and into the main hall hidden deep beneath the pyramid.As they descended, they passed between two armed judicial police officers with machine guns.The message was clear: no one could get in or get out tonight without Director Fache's permission.Once below ground level, Langdon battled against the onslaught of panic.Fache's presence was not at all welcome.At the moment the Louvre itself seems to have the air of a tomb.Like a movie theater passage in the dark, the stairs are illuminated by responsive footlights every step of the way.Langdon could hear his own footsteps echoing on the glass overhead.Looking up, he could see the mist with a little light from the fountain dispersing outside the transparent roof.

"Do you approve of this?" Fache asked, pointing his broad chin upward. Langdon sighed. He was too tired to act. "Your pyramids are magnificent." Fache grunted, then said, "A scar on the face of Paris." Offended one.As a guest, Langdon felt that his host was not a good person to please.He wondered if Fache knew that, at the express request of President Mitterrand, the pyramid consisted of exactly 666 pieces of glass.This strange requirement has been a hot topic for those who like to study conspiracies.They say 666 happens to be Satan's code. Langdon decided not to mention the matter.

They continued to walk down and came to the main hall underground, where a large space gradually emerged from the shadows.The Louvre's new 70,000-square-foot hall is built fifty-seven feet below ground level, like a large cavern that stretches forward indefinitely.The subterranean hall is constructed of warm ocher marble to harmonize with the honey-coloured stone of the Louvre facade above.This underground hall is full of people from morning till night.Not so tonight, the hall was empty and pitch black, and the whole hall was shrouded in a cold, tomb-like atmosphere. "Where are the regular security guards at the museum?" Langdon asked.

"Quarantine," Fache replied, sounding as if he thought Langdon doubted the honesty of his men.Apparently, someone who shouldn't have been in came in tonight.All the guards of the Louvre were questioned in the Sully Room.My men have taken over security at the Louvre tonight. Langdon nodded and followed Fache quickly. "How much do you know about Jacques Saunière?" asked the director. "Actually, not at all, we've never met." Fache looked very surprised. "Your first meeting was tonight?" "Yes. We were scheduled to meet at the reception at the American Convention in Paris after my presentation, but he never showed up." Fache scribbled some words in his little notebook.They move on.That's when Langdon saw the lesser-known pyramid in the Louvre—the Inverted Pyramid.It is a huge inverted skylight hanging like a stalactite on the mezzanine floor.Fache led Langdon up a flight of stairs to the opening of the arched tunnel.Above the hole is written the word Denon in capital letters.Denon Hall is the most important of the three main areas of the Louvre.

"Who offered to meet tonight? You, or him?" Fache asked suddenly. This question seems a bit strange. "Mr. Saunière," Langdon replied as he entered the cave. "His secretary got in touch with me by e-mail a few weeks ago. She said the curator heard that I was coming to Paris to give a lecture this month and wanted to discuss something with me while I was in Paris." "Discuss what?" "I don't know. Art, I think. We have common interests." Fache was dubious. "You don't know what you're going to talk about and write when you meet?"

Langdon did not know.He was a little curious at the time, but felt that it was inappropriate to ask too much detail.It is well known that the revered Jacques Saunière enjoyed a reclusive life and rarely promised to meet people.Langdon could not be more grateful to him for the opportunity to meet. "Mr. Langdon, could you at least guess what our victim wanted to discuss with you the night he was killed? It might help us." This straightforward question made Langdon uncomfortable. "I can't imagine. I didn't ask. I am honored that he contacted me. I admire Mr. Saunière's work. I use his articles for my class."

Fache wrote this down in his notebook. The two were just halfway through the tunnel leading to Denon Hall.Langdon saw a pair of upward escalators at the end, but neither moved. "You shared his interests?" Fache asked. "Yes. I actually spent a lot of time last year writing the first draft of a book that covers Mr. Saunière's main areas of expertise. I look forward to digging into his brain." Fache glanced up. "Sorry, I didn't understand." This idiom obviously did not convey a clear meaning. "I look forward to learning from him on that front."

"I see. Which aspect?" Langdon hesitated, uncertain how to express it exactly. "The manuscript is primarily about the iconography of goddess worship—a concept of femininity and the art and symbolism associated with it. Fache ran a plump hand through his hair. "Saunière is very learned in this field?" "No one is more learned than him." "I see." Langdon didn't think Fache understood at all.Jacques Saunière is considered to be the world's first expert on the iconography of femininity.Not only did Saunière love cultural relics related to fertility, goddess sects, witchcraft and saints, but he also helped the Louvre collect a large number of goddess artworks from all over the world - from the ancient temple of Delphi to the priestess of La Bliss axes, gold Mercury wands, hundreds of T-shaped utensils decorated with small rings like standing cherubs, to ancient Greek fork bells used to exorcise ghosts and gods, and a lot of descriptions The statuette of Horus being fed by the goddess Isis is simply unbelievable.

"Perhaps Jacques Saunière has heard of your manuscript?" Fache said. "He wants to meet you and help you with your book." " Langdon shook his head. "In fact, no one knows about my manuscript. It's only a draft, and I've never seen it except for my editorial office." Fache fell silent. Langdon did not say why he did not show the manuscript to anyone.The title of the 300-page draft was preliminarily determined to be The Lost Symbol of the Holy Maiden.It proposes an unconventional interpretation of conventional religious semiotics that is sure to be controversial.As they approached the stationary escalator, Langdon stopped.He realized that Fache was no longer with him.Turning and looking back, Langdon saw Fache standing by the elevator a few yards away.

"We took the elevator, and I'm sure you know it's a long walk to the Grand Gallery," Fache said as the elevator doors opened. Although Langdon knew that taking the elevator to Denon Hall would be much faster than climbing two flights of stairs, he stood still. "What's the matter?" Fache seemed impatient as he pressed the door to prevent it from closing. Langdon took a breath and glanced expectantly at the leaky escalator above.everything is fine.He lied to himself and walked slowly back to the elevator.As a child, Langdon nearly died there when he fell into a deep, abandoned well, where he was rescued after treading water in the cramped space for hours.Since then, he has been terrified of enclosed spaces such as elevators, subways, and squash courts.Elevators are extremely safe machines.Langdon told himself this over and over again, but he didn't believe it was safe at all.It's a little metal box suspended in a closed tube!He held his breath and stepped into the elevator.As the elevator closed, he felt a shudder in his heart, a shudder he had felt before.

Two floors.ten seconds. As the elevator moved, Fache said, "You and Monsieur Saunière, have you never spoken? Never written? Have you ever sent mail to each other or anything?" Another weird question.Langdon shook his head. "No. Never." Fache lifted his head, as if to take the fact to heart.He said nothing, staring at the chrome steel door in front of him. During the ascent, Langdon tried to focus on other things, afraid to think about the four walls around him.The smooth elevator door could reveal a figure, and from the reflected image, Langdon saw the chief's tie clip—a silver cross inlaid with thirteen black onyx.Langdon felt some inexplicable surprise.This symbol is called the jeweled cross - a cross with thirteen precious stones - and is the Christian ideogram of Jesus and his twelve disciples.Langdon hadn't expected the French police chief to be so open about his religion.Moreover, this is France, and Christianity is not such a religion that you have to believe in from birth. "It's the jeweled cross," Fache said suddenly. Startled, Langdon glanced up, and in his reflection could see Fache's eyes fixed on him. The elevator paused and stopped.The door opened. Langdon stepped out of the elevator quickly and into the hallway.He longed to enjoy the expansive spaces beneath the famously high ceilings of the Louvre galleries.However, the small space he stepped into just now was not at all what he wanted. Langdon froze, then stopped suddenly. Fache glanced at him. "Mr. Langdon, I don't think you've ever been in the Louvre when it's not open." I don't think I've been here.Langdon thought, trying not to lose his composure. The Grand Galleries of the Louvre are usually brilliantly lit, but tonight it was startlingly dark.There is no soft light pouring down from above tonight, only a faint red light seems to be emitted from the baseboard, here and there, shining intermittently on the floor. Langdon stared blankly down the gloomy corridor, realizing he should have expected this.Almost all major galleries are illuminated at night with this durable light.The location of these lights is very clever, all in a low place, not dazzling, which is conducive to the staff walking through the corridor at night, and also keeps these paintings in a relatively dark place, slowing down the speed of fading due to strong light.Tonight the place was almost oppressive, with long shadows outside, and the high vaulted ceiling seemed to night to be a hollow hollow. "This way," Fache said.He turned sharply to the right and walked into a series of interconnected galleries. Langdon followed, his eyesight slowly adjusting to the darkness.The huge oil paintings around him became clear and concrete. They seemed to be photos developed in a huge dark room and displayed in front of him... Wherever he walked in the room, their eyes followed.He could smell the pungent smell of desiccant and desiccant that are often found in museums.Dehumidifiers have a slight carbon smell.Carbon is an industrial product, a dehumidifier used to filter coal to remove the corrosive effects of carbon dioxide exhaled by tourists.Visible from the security cameras mounted high up on the walls, the message to visitors is clear: We're watching you, don't touch anything. "Really?" Langdon asked, pointing at the camera. Fache shook his head, "Of course not." Langdon wasn't surprised at all.It is too expensive to implement video surveillance in such a large art museum, and it is difficult to implement, and the effect is not good.To monitor these several hectares of galleries, the entire Louvre requires hundreds of technicians responsible for information transmission alone.Most large museums now use a precaution called "closed protection."Don't try to keep thieves from coming in, but keep them from getting out.Closures are activated after closing.If a trespasser takes a piece of art, self-sealing exits seal off the gallery, even before the police arrive, keeping the thief behind the bars. The sound echoed in the marble corridor above.The noise seemed to be coming from a small room in the shelter on the right front.There was a beam of light pouring down the corridor. "The curator's office," said the director. As Fache and Fache approached the den, looking down a low, short corridor, Langdon could see Saunière's sumptuous study—furniture in warm woods, paintings by old masters, and a huge An antique writing desk, on which stands a two-foot-tall model of a warrior in full body armor.Several police officers were busy in the room, and one of them was typing something into his laptop while sitting at Saunière's desk.Apparently, the curator's private office has become the temporary headquarters of the Central Judicial Police tonight. "Gentlemen," Fache called out in French.People turned to him. "Don't bother us for any reason, do you hear me?" Everyone in the office nodded in understanding. Langdon had hung a "Do Not Disturb" sign written in French on the door of the hotel many times, so he roughly understood the director's "Do Not Disturb" just now.Under no circumstances should Fache and Langdon be disturbed. Leaving the gang of policemen behind, Fache led Langdon down the dark corridor.Thirty yards away appeared the entrance to the Grand Gallery of the Louvre.The Grand Gallery is the most popular place in the Louvre - like a long corridor without end.The gallery houses some of the Louvre's most valuable Italian masterpieces.Langdon discovered that this was where Saunière's body lay.The parquet floors in the grand gallery are unmistakably present in the Polaroid snapshots. As they approached, Langdon saw that the entrance was blocked by a massive steel fence.The steel fence looks like a defensive tool used by people in medieval castles to keep robbers out. "Closed for protection," Fache said as he approached the fence. Even in the dark, the blockade looked like it could hold off a tank.Once outside, Langdon peered through the steel bars into the dark, cavernous Great Gallery. "You go ahead, Mr. Langdon," Fache said. "Should I go in? Where?" Langdon turned around. Fache pointed to the floor at the base of the steel fence. Langdon looked down.In the dark he saw nothing.The blockade fence was raised two feet, and there was an inconvenient gap below it. "The security of the Louvre is not allowed to enter this area yet, and my technical police have just finished investigating here," Fache said. "Climb in from underneath." Langdon stared at the narrow gap under his feet, and then looked up at the huge iron fence.Is he kidding?The iron fence was like a guillotine, always waiting to crush the intruder. Fache muttered something in French and looked at his watch again.Then he got down on his knees, shifted his fat body and scrambled under the fence, stood up, and looked back at Langdon through the fence. Langdon sighed.He put his palms flat on the smooth parquet floor, stretched himself on his stomach, and moved forward with all his might.As he climbed under the fence, the back of his Harris Gurney jacket was scraped by the bottom of the fence and the back of his head hit the iron fence. Very gentle, Robert, he thought.He reached out to touch it, and finally moved himself in.Standing up, Langdon realized that the night would not be short.