Recalling her father's dislike for Jiang Ci, Shan Lian suddenly felt that Jiang Ci was the cause of all this. She felt resentful, but her father and grandfather had really done so many bad things, so Shan Lian felt that she shouldn't hate Jiang Ci.
Dan Lian was distraught for several days. Thinking that Jiang Ci would pass through F country with the group, she kept pacing around, wanting to find out the truth.
Upon hearing Jiang Ci's blunt words, Shan Lian was completely stunned.
Upon closer reflection, Jiang Ci had indeed never taken the initiative to approach her. On the contrary, it was she who, whether out of admiration for strength or because she thought Jiang Ci was an extremely charming and attractive person, always unconsciously drew closer to her.
Thinking of this, large tears welled up in Shan Lian's eyes. "So all of this is my fault?"
Seeing that she was still crying, Jiang Ci sighed softly, took out a handkerchief from her pocket, and wiped away her tears.
Jiang Ci's movements were very gentle; she wiped her face with a soft handkerchief, like a gentle caress from an elder woman.
“I never said it was your fault. If you really want to get to the bottom of this, the result will only make you more miserable.”
Jiang Ci stuffed a handkerchief into her hand, "Do you know why I keep sending you out of the country?"
Shan Lian kept her head down and didn't say anything.
“You have not done anything wrong, but there is no doubt that you have benefited from the bad things your grandfather and father did.”
"Flowers nurtured by malice bloom purely; this is the complexity of humanity. Since you were unaware of it from the beginning, then never come into contact with it."
Shan Lian retorted, "Do you expect me to watch my grandfather and father get arrested like this?"
"What can you do?" Jiang Ci retorted. "Do you think you can resist a country on your own?"
"You feel heartbroken because they are your family, but have you ever thought about the lives of the children of those who have been ruined by your family?"
Shan Lian was slightly taken aback.
Jiang Ci remained calm. "Do you know Huang Zheyue, who lives in my house? His father discovered a jade seal that could be called a national treasure and couldn't wait to send it back to the country. He was targeted by your maternal grandfather and hunted down by your father."
"He knew he was going to die, so he left a suicide note in which his only request to the person who read it was to take care of his only son."
"Two of his colleagues also died. Their families were squeezed out of Beijing by your father and your maternal grandfather and sent to the Northwest to suffer hardships they shouldn't have had to endure. They didn't even know why their loved ones died."
Danlian's chin trembled, and tears welled up in her eyes.
She wanted to say no, but her throat felt like it was glued shut with the strongest adhesive in the world, and she couldn't utter a word.
She was at a loss, "What about me... what... what should I do?"
Jiang Ci looked at her, sighed, and said in a somewhat ethereal voice, "How would I know?"
How could Jiang Ci possibly plan her path?
"Think about it carefully."
Jiang Ci patted her shoulder, "Go back soon. You don't know anyone abroad, so don't let anything happen to you."
Jiang Ci turned and went back to the embassy.
Shan Lian lowered her head and saw the handkerchief in her hand.
Tears started falling again.
She called Jiang Ci a heartless person.
They're clearly adversaries, so why are you being so nice to her and trying to guide her?
Dan Lian clenched her handkerchief, wiped away her tears, and turned to run away.
People run too fast and lose their footing. One of them stepped on a stone and fell flat on his face.
The brass-colored pocket watch around his neck flew out, fell to the ground with a thud, and broke open.
Dan Lian hurriedly got up to pick it up, only to find that the glass of the pocket watch was broken. The side that should have contained her mother's photo was gone, leaving only a withered piece of paper that looked like it had been stored for an unknown amount of time.
Shan Lian stared at the paper, stunned.
With trembling hands, she took the paper out from the gap between the pocket watch and her mother's photograph.
I dared not open it forcefully.
Although the handwriting was messy, Shan Lian could recognize it as her mother's handwriting from the books her mother had read and the words her mother had written beside her.
'I simply can't believe that my lover, Guo Zhen, has been doing that kind of thing with my father all along!'
He used to work for my father, and I always thought he was just helping my father collect debts... But I never imagined... Guo Zhen, how... how could you kill someone?
If I hadn't overheard his conversation with my father, I would never have known what they were doing in secret. I would never have known that my father would take a life for a mere inanimate object!
God, what am I supposed to do...? What about the child in my womb? If he finds out his father took another child's father's life, how will he face the world...?
Dan Lian's hands trembled as tears streamed down her face.
In a short time, Shan Lian understood many things.
She had always believed that her mother had died while giving birth to her, but it seemed that wasn't the case...
Perhaps her mother found out about Guo Zhen's affair with her maternal grandfather, which made it unbearable for her, causing her to have a miscarriage and pass away after giving birth to her.
Shan Lian clutched the piece of paper tightly, unable to suppress her sobs.
...
Before Jiang Ci left F country, Shan Lian found her again.
In just three days, Shan Lian seemed to have lost all her energy and spirit, becoming silent and quiet.
Jiang Ci looked at her and frowned slightly.
Shan Lian took out the pocket watch and opened it.
Jiang Ci noticed that the glass of the pocket watch had been shattered.
Shan Lian took out her mother's photo and then took out the letter from the crevice.
“You’re right, my father and grandfather did a lot of wrong things.”
As Shan Lian unfolded the paper, she said in a hoarse voice, "There's nothing I can do about what they did and the consequences they caused. The only thing I can do is give this to you."
Her eyes were lifeless, and she spoke like a puppet, devoid of vitality.
Jiang Ci didn't say anything, took the paper, quickly glanced at it, and put it down.
She sighed inwardly, and after a long while, she said, "Actually, there is one thing you can do."
Dan Lian's gaze fell on her, empty as if one could see right through her.
That is an endless void.
“Your maternal grandfather moved all those cultural relics, and he won’t tell anyone who asks him.”
"You artists all say that all things have a spirit. Shouldn't things that have been privately possessed be released from their dark cages?"
Jiang Ci said, "It's like a vicious person who suddenly realizes his sins, enters a Buddhist monastery, chants Buddhist scriptures, and hopes that the deceased and the living can be redeemed."
Redemption was achieved...
Dan Lian's eyes darted around, landing on Jiang Ci's face. She asked blankly, "Can I still save others?"
"If you want."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
