When Qin Shi arrived at Xunlan Teahouse, Fu Hong had just asked the waiter to wash a plate of wild raspberries for her and was eating them.
"Is it already possible to pick wild berries this season?" Qin Shi asked in surprise.
Fu Hong thought for a moment and answered him with Xing Zhaozhao's words from before: "There are always some magical places in the mountains where you can find some magical things."
Qin Shi walked over, picked one, and tasted it: "Hmm, not bad, quite sweet. When did you go to the mountains? How come I didn't know?"
Fu Hong laughed and said, "At my age, I can only climb a small hill, not venture deep into the mountains."
"Where did these come from?" Qin Shi asked.
“Miss Xing, who sold you that wooden box before, sent it over; you also got a share.” Fu Hong said, handing him the other share that Xing Zhaozhao had left behind.
Qin Shi smiled and took it: "She came? When?"
“You just left before you arrived. Unfortunately, you missed it,” Fu Hong said.
"That's quite unfortunate," Qin Shi said, tossing the small gift Xing Zhaozhao had given him, and asked, "Is this the good stuff you were talking about?"
Fu Hong shook her head and mysteriously took out the incense that Xing Zhaozhao had sold her: "Don't you like incense too? Look at this, isn't it top-quality?"
"Oh?" Qin Shi reached out and took it with interest, then sniffed it, his expression immediately changing. He involuntarily clenched his fist: "Where did you get this fragrance from?"
Seeing Qin Shi's agitated state, Fu Hong was momentarily puzzled: "Miss Xing said it was made by her friend, what's wrong? Is there something wrong with it?"
"This is impossible..." Qin Shi's fingers traced the familiar, vigorous regular script on the label affixed to the incense jar, and his eyes quickly welled up with tears.
His grandmother's favorite fragrance could only be blended by his grandfather, and it was even made in his grandfather's handwriting...
Qin Shi suddenly looked up at Fu Hong, his eyes bloodshot: "Where did she just go?"
Fu Hong pointed: "In the direction you just came from..."
Qin Shi immediately chased after her, ignoring Fu Hong's repeated calls from behind: "You just came from there. Since you didn't run into her, she must have already gone far away."
After searching around, I naturally couldn't find it, so I had to return dejectedly.
Fu Hong quickly went to greet her and asked with concern, "Why are you so agitated? Is there something wrong with this incense?"
"Hmm." Qin Shi nodded and responded softly. This incense not only had a problem, but a very serious one.
"Should I just destroy all this incense?" Fu Hong asked worriedly, looking at the incense sticks.
Qin Shi panicked upon hearing this and gathered all the incense sticks into his arms: "How can that be?"
Fu Hong looked at him, somewhat speechless: "Didn't you say there was something wrong with these incense sticks?"
“That’s not what I was talking about,” Qin Shi said.
"What's the problem?" Fu Hong asked.
Qin Shi refused to say anything.
Fu Hong immediately decided not to press the matter further: "Alright then, I'll ask Miss Xing what happened next time she comes."
Qin Shi suddenly looked up at Fu Hong: "Will she come again?"
Fu Hong nodded: "I ordered other types of incense from her, and I've already paid the deposit."
"When you see her again, remember to let me know," Qin Shi said hurriedly.
"I understand," Fu Hong replied, looking at him with confusion, and asked, "Didn't you buy your wooden box from her? If you don't have her contact information, what about the auction house?"
Qin Shi shook his head helplessly: "It was all her who contacted us. I had to wait a long time to get in touch with her before I could see her."
Fu Hong stroked her chin thoughtfully and said, "Looking at it this way, she really is quite mysterious. Not only does she not have any way to contact her, but she also insists on paying in cash. It's as if she's completely out of touch with modern society."
As Qin Shi listened, a strange light flashed in his eyes as he looked at the label on the incense jar in his arms, where the ink had not faded at all.
The car, carrying Xing Zhaozhao and the two men in black, drove into an upscale residential area and stopped in front of a villa.
After getting out of the car, the two men in black led Xing Zhaozhao straight to the villa and knocked on the door.
The door opened quickly.
Xing Zhaozhao was stunned for a moment when she saw the woman standing in the doorway, dressed in a somber gray outfit and looking far too old.
This... isn't this Xia? She remembered that she should be about the same age as Qin Shi, so why does she look so much older than Qin Shi?
Chen Xiaoxia was also taken aback when she saw Xing Zhaozhao. In that young face, she vaguely saw the shadow of her mother when she was young. Her thin body trembled slightly, but she quickly restrained herself and bowed to let her in, saying, "Come in."
The two men in black pushed Xing Zhaozhao through the door.
"Come with me." Chen Xiaoxia glanced at Xing Zhaozhao and walked straight into the house.
Xing Zhaozhao hesitated for a moment, then followed.
Chen Xiaoxia pushed open a door to a room: "Mom, Miss Xing has arrived."
He then looked at Xing Zhaozhao and said, "Please come in, Miss Xing."
Xing Zhaozhao went inside and was surprised to find that not only Lin Wan was there, but Gao Mingzhi was also there.
As soon as Gao Mingzhi saw Xing Zhaozhao, he jumped up: "It really is you." He knew it. How could two people who look exactly alike suddenly appear in this world? They are the same person.
"You?" Xing Zhaozhao frowned when she saw Gao Mingzhi, then quickly looked away in disgust. She turned to Lin Wan and asked, "It really is you. I wonder why Old Madam Lin suddenly summoned me here in this way?"
Lin Wan looked at Xing Zhaozhao and smiled like a kind old lady.
"Sit down," she said, gesturing to the chair beside her.
Xing Zhaozhao stood still.
Lin Wan didn't mind and smiled, saying, "Of course, it's fine if you prefer to stand and talk to me."
Xing Zhaozhao immediately took off her basket and sat down: "What's the matter?"
"It's nothing, I was just a little curious about you. I never expected that a young and vibrant girl like you would fall for an old man who's about to die," Lin Wan said with a smile.
Xing Zhaozhao's face darkened: "I don't understand what you're saying."
Lin Wan pointed at Gao Mingzhi beside her: "Everyone saw it with their own eyes, so don't try to deny it. I'd heard that Gao Mingcheng had a young mistress, but I never expected it to be you."
Seeing that Lin Wan was convinced, Xing Zhaozhao simply accepted it. She crossed her legs and said, "So what? He's not just any old man; he's a renowned and ruthless general. I like him, so what?"
Lin Wan smiled and shook her head, saying, "Nothing, I'm just a little curious. He hasn't come back to Lanyuan to see you in a long time. Aren't you worried at all?"
“We’ve already broken up, what he’s like now is none of my business,” Xing Zhaozhao said.
Lin Wan was taken aback: "You've already broken up? So fast? Why? Didn't you like each other?"
“The age gap is too big, there’s a generation gap, no matter how much you like someone, it will wear you down, is that not okay?” Xing Zhaozhao asked.
"..." Lin Wan didn't know what to say for a moment, and after a long silence she said, "You young people are really fickle."
"If these are all the questions you wanted to ask, and there's nothing else, I'll be leaving now," Xing Zhaozhao said, getting up to get up.
Lin Wan quickly reached out to stop her: "Do you know he's in trouble?"
Xing Zhaozhao's heart tightened, but she pretended to be nonchalant: "Oh? Is he dead?"
Lin Wan: "..."
Lin Wan's lips twitched as she looked at Xing Zhaozhao: "You've been with him for a while now, aren't you going to think about your own future?"
As she spoke, she pointed to Xing Zhaozhao's unfashionable clothes.
Xing Zhaozhao glanced down at her clothes, feigning confusion: "I don't understand what you mean?"
Lin Wan simply laid it all out on her: "After all, he's a tough, ruthless general with a lot of money. He could make you look beautiful every day and live a good life. Don't you think it's a pity to give that up?"
Xing Zhaozhao's eyes flashed, she curled her lips and said, "No matter how wealthy he is, he will only leave it to his son when he dies, it will not be my turn."
Lin Wan smiled and said, "Now that you've broken up with him, it's naturally not your turn. But if you cling to him tightly and become his rightful wife, then you'll have your turn, won't you?"
She has always been rightfully in the right.
Xing Zhaozhao couldn't help but grumble inwardly, but said with great regret, "But we've already broken up."
Lin Wan smiled dismissively, "What does it matter? He's unconscious now, and we don't know when he'll wake up, or maybe he'll never wake up. As long as you're sure of him, that's all that matters."
Xing Zhaozhao: "..." This old man is so vicious.
Seeing that Xing Zhaozhao seemed to be hesitating, Lin Wan decided to press the issue further: "Do you know why Gao Mingcheng took a liking to you?"
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