Chapter 39 Facing Huo Xiangu, the mute pretends to have amnesia
The darkness in the auction hall lasted only three seconds before emergency lights illuminated one after another along the wiring in the corners of the walls. In the warm yellow glow, the guests were still huddled under the tables, whispering amongst themselves. A crooked mahogany chair leg hooked onto the bottom of a broken celadon cup, and the air was filled with the chaotic smell of sandalwood mixed with dust. Zhang Qiling had already stood in front of Hei Xiazi, his black and gold ancient sword held diagonally in his palm. The scabbard grazed the ground almost silently, only the taut arc of his knuckles betraying his pre-existing tension.
Hei Xiazi took a half-step back, supporting Zhang Qiling's arm. His fingertips touched something cool—the temperature of Zhang Qiling's shirt cuff, like he had just touched a bronze artifact from a tomb. "Dumb, something's wrong?" He lowered his voice, his other hand quietly covering Zhang Qiling's wrist. His pulse was fast and erratic, the instinctive alertness of the Zhang family bloodline to unfamiliar presence.
Zhang Qiling didn't speak, but glanced at the front row—Jude Kao's seat was empty, with his neatly ironed white suit draped over the back of the chair, and the footprints of several bodyguards extending out along the side door, leaving not even a corner of the suit behind.
"That old fox really got away cleanly." Fatty Wang kicked the empty chair next to him, and before he could even raise his voice, Xie Yuchen tugged at his clothes. Xie Yuchen pointed to the gray cloth fibers on the threshold of the side door: "It didn't leave on its own, it was led away by someone—this cloth is the material of the gray shirts that the Huo family guards often wear."
No sooner had the words been spoken than soft footsteps came from the direction of the lobby. Five people dressed in gray cloth shirts walked over. The one in the lead was an elderly man in his sixties, with his back straight and his hands tucked into his indigo sleeves. His tone carried the respectful manner typical of a servant of the Huo family: "Mr. Zhang, my fairy maiden is waiting in the car outside. She says she has something to say about the 'Ancient Building Blueprints' and would like to invite you to come in and talk for a bit."
Zhang Qiling stopped in his tracks. Hei Xiazi immediately moved closer to him and gently nudged his arm with his elbow—he knew what Zhang Qiling was thinking. Ever since he lost his memory, the people from the Nine Gates had been using "Zhang family history" as bait. Huo Xiangu's visit at this time was probably not for any good reason.
"What does Fairy Huo want with you, young man?" Wu Xie took a step forward, his hand unconsciously tightening its grip on his backpack strap. "Can't we say it here?"
The old man smiled, took out a folded piece of kraft paper from his pocket, and handed it over with his hand still pressed against his clothes, his posture extremely humble: "The fairy said it is half a drawing of the Yangshi Lei. She saw that the pattern on it resembled the style of the Zhang Family Ancient Building, and thought that Mr. Zhang might be able to see some clues - maybe it can help you remember some things from the past."
Upon hearing the words "Yangshi Lei," Zhang Qiling's fingertips twitched almost imperceptibly. Hei Xiazi knew perfectly well that Huo Xiangu had precisely targeted his weakness of "searching for the source of his amnesia"—everyone in the Nine Gates knew that the clues to the Zhang Family Ancient Building were hidden in Yangshi Lei, and using this as bait was the easiest way to lure him in.
“The fairy also said,” the old man added, his tone softening, “that if you really don’t want to go, that’s fine too. But apart from Mr. Zhang, I’m afraid no one else can tell the difference between the real and fake mechanisms on this blueprint.”
Zhang Qiling looked up at Hei Xiazi, and the moment their eyes met, Hei Xiazi understood—he wanted to test the validity of the blueprints, and even more so, he wanted to see what Huo Xiangu was really planning. "I'll go with you," Zhang Qiling finally said, his voice carrying a hint of bewilderment from just encountering "old things," which perfectly matched the Huo family's perception of his "amnesia."
"Brother!" Wu Xie cried out anxiously, reaching out to stop him, but Xie Yuchen held him back. Xie Yuchen shook his head at him and whispered, "Huo Xiangu wouldn't dare touch Brother. Let's follow in our car and keep an eye on things from the outside."
The Huo family didn't stop Hei Xiazi, but led them into a black sedan. The windows were tinted dark, blurring the street scene outside into a blur of light and shadow. The car was so quiet that only the faint sound of the air conditioner could be heard. Zhang Qiling leaned back in his seat, his eyes closed, his long eyelashes casting pale shadows beneath them, as if he were "trying hard to remember" something. Hei Xiazi quietly draped his coat over Zhang Qiling's shoulders, and when his fingertips touched the skin on the back of his neck, he could still feel a thin layer of sweat—the result of his bloodline fluctuations not yet calming down after handling the fake Ghost Seal.
“Something’s not right with these blueprints,” Zhang Qiling suddenly said, his voice so soft that only Hei Xiazi could hear it. “The patterns are too regular. The blueprints for the mechanisms of the Zhang Family Ancient Building wouldn’t be drawn so ‘cleanly.’”
Hei Xiazi grasped his hand, his fingertips brushing against the thin calluses on his palm—the result of years of handling knives and antiques: "Then let's accompany her and see what she wants to do with these blueprints."
The car stopped in front of an old courtyard house. Two red lanterns hung at the entrance, their tassels dangling from the doorposts. The intricate carvings of intertwined branches on the doorposts had faded with age, and the walls were covered in deep green ivy. Following the old man inside, they entered. The old locust tree in the courtyard was so dense that its branches and leaves blocked out the moonlight, leaving only a warm yellow light shining from the windows of the main house. Huo Xiangu sat in a grand chair, holding a cup of hot tea. The lid tapped softly against the rim of the cup. Seeing them enter, she slowly put down the cup and stood up, her attitude more polite than when they last visited the New Moon Hotel: "Mr. Zhang, you've arrived. Please sit down. This is freshly brewed Longjing tea, still warm."
Zhang Qiling didn't stand on ceremony and found a pear wood chair to sit down. Hei Xiazi sat next to him, his hand on his knee, his knuckles discreetly resting on the gun handle at his waist—a precaution against a sudden change of heart from the Huo family. Huo Xiangu waved her hand, signaling a servant to bring tea to the two of them, before taking out a sandalwood box from a drawer: "Mr. Zhang, I know you've been searching for your past. This half of the Yangshi Lei blueprint was something I recently acquired from an antique dealer. Take a look, see if it helps you remember anything?"
The wooden box was opened, revealing a yellowed blueprint with intricate lines and several blurred characters for "mechanism" marked in vermilion. At first glance, it resembled the style of the Yangshi Lei family.
Zhang Qiling leaned closer to take a look, then suddenly frowned, slowly standing up while supporting himself on the table, his face paling even more. Hei Xiazi quickly supported his shoulder, and when he touched Zhang Qiling's forehead, it was surprisingly hot: "Dumb boy, is your head hurting again?"
"Hmm..." Zhang Qiling's voice softened, with a hint of dazedness as if "memories were being triggered," "Seeing this blueprint, my mind is a mess, and I feel heavy all over."
Huo Xiangu's eyes brightened, clearly believing him—she had heard from the old members of the Nine Gates that Zhang Qiling's bloodline was sensitive to the Zhang family's old belongings, and this seemed like a sign that his "memory was about to return." "Mr. Zhang, don't be anxious," she said warmly, reaching out to pat Zhang Qiling's arm, but Hei Xiazi subtly blocked her—he used the act of handing him warm water to naturally create distance between them, "Let's talk slowly. The Zhang family's ancient building holds the Zhang family's secrets. If you want to find them, my Huo family can provide manpower and supplies—as long as I can go with you to see what's inside."
Hei Xiazi picked up his teacup, hiding a smile from his lips with his fingertips: "Fairy, look at the young man's face. If we keep talking, he might not be able to hold on. His health can't withstand prolonged contact with old things. Why don't we talk in detail another day when he's feeling better?"
Huo Xiangu didn't agree immediately. Her eyes swept over Zhang Qiling's face and then over Hei Xiazi's protective posture before she slowly nodded: "Alright, your health is the most important thing." She took out a white porcelain bottle from the drawer and handed it over, her fingers still pinching the bottom of the bottle: "This contains calming medicine. Mr. Zhang, please take it first. Once you feel better, I'll have someone contact you again—at that time, we can discuss the blueprints in detail."
Zhang Qiling took the porcelain bottle, and just as his fingertips touched the bottle, he heard a servant's hushed voice from outside the door: "...I've already told them over there, and Mr. Zhang did react to the blueprints..." He didn't hear the last part clearly, but it instantly put Hei Xiazi on alert—who was "over there"? It was obvious even to a fool that they were after Gui Xi and Gu Lou.
He immediately stood up and took Zhang Qiling's arm, saying, "Fairy, I'm really sorry, young man needs to go back and rest in this condition. We'll take our leave now."
Huo Xiangu wanted to stay, and had just opened her mouth to say "I won't sit any longer," when Hei Xiazi interrupted her: "No, he's prone to problems when his bloodline is unstable, and delaying it would be worse. We'll contact you when he's fully recovered."
Having said all that, Huo Xiangu had no reason to stop them any longer. As the old man saw them to the door, Hei Xiazi caught a glimpse of a black sedan with its headlights off parked at the street corner. The car's emblem was exactly the same as the one he had seen outside the Crescent Moon Hotel during the day, the one that appeared to be one of Jude Kao's men.
As soon as the two stepped out of the courtyard, they saw Jie Yuchen's car parked at the alley entrance. Fatty Wang stuck his head out and shouted, "Get in the car! There was a car following you the whole time, it's really weird!"
Hei Xiazi helped Zhang Qiling into the back seat, and the car immediately started, speeding out of the alley. In the rearview mirror, the black sedan had indeed followed, but after turning two corners, it was left behind by Wang Pangzi and disappeared from sight.
Inside the carriage, Zhang Qiling leaned back in his seat, rubbing his temples; his earlier "weakness" was nowhere to be seen. Hei Xiazi handed him a bottle of warm water, smiling as he asked, "You acted quite convincingly just now. You even knew to use the table for support to get up, as if you were afraid that Aunt Huo wouldn't believe you."
Zhang Qiling took the water, took a sip, and a faint smile appeared in his eyes: "She believes in this." He paused, took out the half of the Yangshi Lei blueprint from his pocket, and traced it with his fingertip. "The mechanism markings on this blueprint are reversed. It was deliberately drawn wrong—anyone who looks for the Ancient Tower according to this blueprint is sure to fall into the trap."
Hei Xiazi leaned closer and touched the lines on the drawing with his fingertips: "Huo Xiangu didn't see it?"
“She only wants what’s inside the ancient building, she wouldn’t bother to look closely at the mechanisms.” Zhang Qiling folded the blueprints and put them into Hei Xiazi’s coat pocket. “The ‘over there’ that servant outside the door mentioned just now is most likely one of Jude Kao’s people. She probably wants to use me to lure Jude Kao into a false clue first.”
The car drove into the night, the streetlights casting streaks of light across the windows. Hei Xiazi pulled his coat closer to Zhang Qiling and ruffled his hair: "What do we do next? Huo Xiangu will definitely come looking for us again."
Zhang Qiling leaned closer to Hei Xiazi, their shoulders touching, and said in a voice as soft as if it were melting into the wind: "Wait. If she can't get the real clues, she'll come to me again sooner or later—then I can follow her and find out about Jude Kao's background."
Hei Xiazi laughed, gripped his hand tightly, and interlocked his fingertips with his knuckles: "Alright, then we'll wait. No matter what tricks she plays, I'll stand by you."
Zhang Qiling didn't speak, but quietly tightened his grip on Hei Xiazi's hand.
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