Chapter 139: Blood Is Colder Than Water

Outside the door.
Yu Hang and the others were also very quiet.
At that time... Yu Hang had the feeling that no matter what he did, he could never truly grasp the other person.
Because when he reached out to grab the shadow that flitted beneath his feet... what he caught...
Was merely the faint twilight of a desolate dusk.

***

Three days after the news of Yan Qingwu's departure spread at a terrifying speed and eventually cooled down among the high school students.
Sui Yi's life returned to peace.
A peace as calm as an autumnal pool of water, without a single ripple.
Waking up early, going to school, coming home from school, eating meals, reading books at night... and sleeping after finishing her reading.
Three days passed just like that. Under Sui Yi's watchful eye, after ensuring everything was in order, Ye Xiuling drove her mother to the provincial capital.
Since the distance was not too far—only a two-hour drive—Sui Yi was not too worried.
With the elderly woman gone and Aunt Wang returning to the village, the house seemed rather desolate. Apart from Aunt Zhang, who came back and forth every day to help Sui Yi look after the sprawling villa and courtyard, there was no one else.
Sui Yi's days were truly exceptionally peaceful, and she was rapidly enriching herself.
A month later.
That stack of books, numerous enough to fill an entire bookshelf, had been completely devoured by her down to the last page. In Mingyue Residential Compound, a rumor was everywhere: there was a wealthy, beautiful young lady who carried two or three heavy books back and forth every day.
She also frequently purchased expensive rare books, occasionally trading with some of the other homeowners in the compound...
However, she still rarely interacted with others.
Detached and plain as water, not at all like a girl of her age.
Naturally, her reputation as a top student had also spread far and wide throughout Mingyue Residential Compound.
Of course, if she did not seek out others, others would eventually be unable to help themselves and seek her out.
Take Old Tang, for instance.
On this Saturday.
A phone call came in, straight to the point without any pleasantries.
"Sui Yi, you ungrateful little wretch, your grandfather here is worked to the bone, and yet for over a month you haven't even made a single phone call... You've broken my heart..."
After rambling on and complaining for quite a while, Sui Yi, sitting on the sofa, waited until the voice grew softer before picking up her cell phone, which she had pushed slightly further away on the glass table.
☕ "Grandfather, I happened to come across something recently... Are the characteristics of the Tang Dynasty Qingyun Inkstone..."
"Hm? Yes... That's right..."
Easily diverted, Old Tang enthusiastically began discussing topics related to Tang Dynasty inkstones with Sui Yi. A moment later, Old Tang belatedly came to his senses and humuffed, "You're changing the subject again... You clearly promised to help me out before, girl. By now, you probably don't even know which day the Cultural and Antique Convention starts, do you?"
The Cultural and Antique Convention?
Recalling a few things, Sui Yi tapped a few keys on her keyboard, scrolled the webpage down, looked at the news above, and asked indifferently, "Tomorrow. I remember."
"As long as you remember... My shop hasn't been open lately because I've been busy with this matter. It's finally starting tomorrow, but tomorrow will also be the busiest day. Since you haven't been involved beforehand, it might be hard for you to step in now, but it doesn't matter. Just come over tomorrow to make an appearance, broaden your horizons, meet some people, have fun, and look around. That will be enough."
Old Tang's tone improved a bit, and after giving a few words of advice, he finally brought up some things to watch out for at the Cultural and Antique Convention.
Of course, the most important thing was...
"I know you've been pulling strings with people from the Education Bureau lately, contacting schools to prepare for studying in the provincial capital and settling your grandmother there. You must be short on cash right now, and you'll probably make a move tomorrow... I don't object, but remember not to be hasty or reckless... If you're really short on money, I'm still here for you!"

***

Hearing this, Sui Yi curved her lips softly. "Alright."
After hanging up the phone, Old Tang on the other end sighed, made a few sentimental sounds, and then smiled. "Birds grow up and eventually have to fly..."
Standing beside him, Li Jingyan looked somewhat dazed upon hearing this.
To fly, you say?
Where to...

***

For some people, Nanxun was vast enough to live in for a lifetime.
For Sui Yi, everywhere was the same.
It merely depended on the circumstances.
Right now, she needed to go to the provincial capital.
No matter from which perspective, she had to go to the provincial capital.
Late at night, Sui Yi stood on the balcony, exchanging a few words with the deputy director of the Education Bureau before hanging up. Clutching her phone, she looked out at the distant town where lights wound like a river of water-dragons.
Just as she was about to put away her phone and return to her room.
Gong Jiu's call came in.
Her first sentence was: "Sui Yi, did you just call me a moment ago?"
"No."
"How could you not... I clearly received it, don't be shy..."
In the provincial capital, inside a luxuriously decorated office, a short-haired, spirited young lady sat with her legs apart across a coffee table.
Opposite her, Feng Sha and the others, who were in the middle of handling matters, all wore speechless expressions.
Well, Ninth Miss, it seemed like you were the one who called her just now.
As for Sui Yi's failure to contact her for over a month, Gong Jiu was naturally depressed enough to want to scratch the walls, but who was Gong Jiu? Would she lower her pride and take the initiative to cozy up?
Therefore...
Sui Yi silently stared at this fellow telling bald-faced lies for a moment before gently saying, "If there's nothing the matter, naturally I wouldn't disturb you."
"Who says there's nothing the matter!" Gong Jiu's expression softened slightly. With a single glance from her, Feng Sha and the others understood, leaving the room one by one and pulling the door shut.
Only then did Gong Jiu lower her voice and say mournfully, "The funeral matters in your ancestral village all settled? No trouble coming after you, right?"
"No." Sui Yi thought of Wang Pu and Ye Luanjun, whom she had spared, and thought to herself, at least not yet.
"Really no trouble?" Gong Jiu confirmed once more.
Sui Yi felt that this girl's words had a hidden meaning, so she remained quiet.
True to form, the other party could not hold back, and a deep voice came through from the other end.
"The flower-sprite and the others were around before, so I didn't say anything. Sui Yi... I saw it back then."
"Saw what..." Sui Yi leaned against the railing, her palm lightly stroking the banister, her voice slightly low and magnetic.
"That jade bi."
"And then?"
"The person on the jade bi... seemed to be you..."
Sui Yi's movements paused. She narrowed her eyes, watching a cargo ship in the distance sail across the river.
A long, fish-scale wake trailed behind it on the water's surface...
She had not expected that there would be a second person who saw the jade bi.
Since there was a second, would there be a third?
Sui Yi did not speak.
She was waiting for Gong Jiu to elaborate. After all, Gong Jiu was the one who brought up the topic; since she raised it, she must have some purpose.
After a long while, Gong Jiu lowered her voice further and continued, "It looked like... your ancestor."
"......" For a moment, Sui Yi did not know how to respond.
"You couldn't possibly have thought that was you! Haha! That woman was far more attractive than you... That temperament, that appearance, that ethereal air, just like a goddess. Now I finally understand why that bastard A-Guna holds that so-called Sovereign in such high regard. Damn it, if there really were such a Sovereign, I'd be happy to worship her too~~..."
Pausing for a moment, Gong Jiu even covered her mouth and laughed, "An expressionless wooden face like yours definitely doesn't have that kind of ethereal charm..."
"It was just a piece of stone!" Where did any ethereal charm come from! Sui Yi felt somewhat depressed.
"That was jade! Not stone!"
"From a standpoint of physical mineralogy, jade is also stone."
"......."
A poor student and a top student shared no common language. Gong Jiu quickly realized this, so she changed to a brisk tone and said, "Anyway, I feel that you, fellow, are definitely connected to that ancient tomb. Maybe you really are the true descendant of the tomb's owner. In that case, us taking those items shouldn't incur any curses, right? Anyway, burn some incense tonight and pray to your ancestors... so I can go sell that pearl tomorrow."
As expected, there was a purpose.
Sui Yi smiled faintly. "Alright, I'm hanging up then..."
"Don't, wait, I still have business."
Gong Jiu suddenly called out to Sui Yi again, and then said something that greatly surprised Sui Yi.
"That little companion of yours has already returned to the provincial capital, hasn't she?"
"Qingwu?"
"Oh-ho, look at the way you address her... so affectionate... and using her given name too..."
"I call you by your given name too."
Gong Jiu, Qingwu—aren't they the same? Sui Yi tilted her head.
"....Damn it! You're bullying me again." Gong Jiu was irritated.
Sui Yi: "..."
After a good while, Gong Jiu, who had rolled back and forth on the sofa a few times, finally spoke in a serious tone: "That Yan girl you saw earlier—when her period comes, she suffers agonizing pain, which is related to her constitution. Ever since birth, she has possessed an extreme yin constitution with fragile meridians, making her unable to practice martial arts. I heard that even childbearing might be an issue in the future. Anyway, she's a rather pitiful child, clearly a bloodline of immense intelligence and brilliance... Both the Yan and Tang families dote on her greatly, but for years there's been nothing they could do. Half a year ago, she almost died when her yin-cold affliction flared up... All the doctors said she wouldn't survive. Later, the old master of the Tang family somehow managed to find some sort of expert who said that to suppress the yin-cold affliction, one must find a place strongly matching with yang-dragon cloud energy to restrain it. Not only must the feng shui be harmonious, but it also had to align with human destiny..."
"I suppose the place that charlatan divined was Nanxun. Later on, she came to Nanxun. Coincidentally, Nanxun is also the ancestral homeland of the Tang family. The Yan and Tang families let her come to Nanxun, leaving her life and death entirely up to the will of heaven... Later on, she really did improve a bit. The state you saw her in before can be considered a relatively good condition~~ Everyone among us thinks this whole affair is quite spooky..."
It was rare for Gong Jiu to waste so much breath explaining a matter in such detail; it seemed she truly had a deep impression of this incident.
Sui Yi had not expected Yan Qingwu's physical condition to be so severe. As for the theory of a feng shui treasure land, it was not without reason. After all, a place capable of concealing such a temple palace could naturally not be devoid of good feng shui.
"Since a feng shui land like Nanxun could treat her condition, why did she return?"
At Sui Yi's question, Gong Jiu reined in her tone slightly and gave a light sigh. "A child like that, even if she is doted on by some, there are bound to be others willing to cast her aside. Besides, a place like Nanxun could only alleviate the affliction, not cure it completely. When the Yan family placed her in Nanxun, they already harbored the intention of abandoning her from the very beginning... Exile, do you understand the meaning of that?"
"Sui Yi, among great families, blood is colder than water."
Sui Yi remained silent. Exile, was it?