Chapter 8 layers of gray

London, January 1874 The building was as gray as the road below it and the sky above it, looking as elusive as a cloud, as if it might disappear at any moment.The unremarkable gray stone walls make it blend in with the surrounding buildings, barely distinguishable only by the dim sign on the door.Even the headmistress inside was dressed in dark gray. However, the man in the gray suit looks very abrupt here. The cut of his suit was too stylish, and the tip of his cane, which he held in plain gloves, was too polished. He gave his name, but the headmistress immediately forgot and was ashamed to ask again.Later, when he signed the necessary documents, his signature was completely illegible, and the dossier was lost within weeks of being filed.

He made some peculiar descriptions of what he was looking for.The headmistress was a little confused, but after some questioning and clarification, she brought him three children: two boys and one girl.The men asked to be interviewed individually, and the headmistress reluctantly agreed. The first boy was sent away after only talking to him for a few minutes.As he passed the corridor, the other two children looked at him for a hint, but he just shook his head. The girl's interview took a long time, but then she was also sent away, frowning suspiciously when she left. Then another boy was brought into the room to talk to the man in gray.He was asked to sit in a chair across from a table while the man stood aside.

This child didn't fidget like the first boy, he sat patiently and quietly, his gray-green eyes looked at the man and everything in the room intelligently, full of vigilance without showing any signs.His dark hair was not neatly cut, as if a hairdresser hadn't paid enough attention to his work, but it was clearly combed.His clothes were rather old but not torn, except that the trousers were a little too short, perhaps blue or brown or green, but faded beyond recognition. how long have you been hereThe man quietly looked at the boy's shabby clothes for a while before asking. For a long time.said the boy.

How old are you? Turns nine by May. You don't look that old. I'm not lying. I don't mean to accuse you of lying. The man in gray stared at the boy speechlessly for a while. The boy looked back at him. I think you should be literate, right?the man asked. The boy nods. I like reading books, the boy said: There are not many books here, I have read them all. very good. Without warning, the man threw the cane at the boy.The boy easily caught it with one hand without flinching, and only narrowed his eyes in confusion, scanning the cane and the man back and forth. The man nodded in satisfaction, took back his cane, took out a handkerchief from his pocket, and wiped off the boy's palm prints.

Well, the man said: Come and learn art from me.I promise you have plenty of books to read, I'll make the necessary arrangements, and then we'll be on our way. Do I have a choice? do you want to stay here The boy thought for a moment. In no mood.He said. That's right. You don't want to know my name?the boy asked. Names are a far less important thing than people make them out to be, says the man in the gray suit: Neither this institution nor your biological parents have given you a label to identify you that has any meaning or value to me.If you feel the need for a name, you can always pick one up for yourself.As for now, it's not necessary.

The boy was called to pack a few of his personal belongings.The man in the gray suit signed the papers and gave the headmistress some answers she didn't understand, but she didn't object to the adoption. When the boy was ready, the man in gray took him away from the gray stone building and never came back.