Only a handful of people would understand what Peng Zijie was talking about. Even in his own family, the only ones who knew about it was him and Peng Da.
Peng Zixian was presumably unaware of her own condition. He wasn’t prepared to tell anyone else about this. After all, Peng Zixian was known to many as the young mistress of the mighty Peng family. No doubt, if this information fell into the wrong hands, the public would soon know about this.
He thought that Gu Xiqiao would be shocked but to his astonishment, she merely responded to this with a plain smile.
“Mr. Peng, I do sympathize with Miss Peng’s less than ideal mental health. However, this has become a convenient excuse for her to hurt others and get away with it scot-free.” Gu Xiqiao said as she spun her phone in her hand. Looking up, she observed Peng Zijie’s eyes grow duller by the second.
Hearing her say that, Peng Zijie’s eyes widened. “You knew about this?!”
His voice turned sharp all of a sudden.
“Well, more or less,” Gu Xiqiao nodded. “It was hard not to notice.”
She sighed, thinking about her encounter with Peng Zixian. Unfortunate people were a dime a dozen in this world and most of them bore no ill will even after going through terrible ordeals. What set Peng Zixian apart from these people? Was it really necessary for her to harm others just because she drew the short end of a stick?
Peng Zijie’s voice grew hoarse. “Zixian’s life the past few years have been rough. She has been through a lot of suffering already, could you please forgive her this time?”
“Her life? Rough?” Gu Xiqiao snorted. “Mr. Peng, do you know what your sister did last night? Yes! She’s your sister and of course you’ll be on her side! What about Xiao Yun? Do you still remember how you treated those people seven years ago?!”
Peng Zixian had her brother, so she could bully Xiao Yun, who had no one? If Gu Xiqiao hadn’t been there yesterday night, she didn’t dare to imagine what Xiao Yun would have had to suffer through?
Seven years ago, those men were put through living hell! Hints of bloodlust appeared in Peng Zijie’s eyes the moment memories from back then returned to his mind.
“Good, looks like you do remember that incident.” Gu Xiqiao tapped on an email on her phone. “However, I bet you didn’t know what Miss Peng did before that. Mr. Peng, please check the email that you received.”
Peng Zijie’s phone rang. He looked down to discover a new email from a stranger. In an instant, he understood that it was something Gu Xiqiao had sent him.
This was a detailed account of Peng Zixian’s crimes. Apart from Xiao Yun, his little sister had used a multitude of methods to eliminate seven innocent girls, one of which, was once her assistant. The reason: staring at Tang Qingqiu for one second too long.
Peng Zijie was left speechless. He stood there in silence, frozen like a statue.
He was completely oblivious to all this.
“Two days. I give you two days’ time Mr. Peng. Get Peng Zixian to admit her crimes. Alternatively, you can put her behind bars yourself. I want you to think about this long and hard.” Gu Xiqiao tucked her phone away and returned to the studio.
It took Peng Zijie a while to regain his senses. After his brief exchange with Gu Xiqiao, his body had become stiff, like a corpse. Although the sunlight wasn’t very intense, he was slightly feverish. Why did things turn out like this? Was the person in that email really his beloved little sister?
***
Xiao Yun was in the middle of filming a scene when Gu Xiqiao returned to the set. The director was staring enthusiastically at her, without ordering her to repeat her scenes as he did before today.
Everyone was given some time to rest after filming of that scene ended. Seeing Gu Xiqiao nearby, he waved at her. His heart was trembling in fear; he knew perfectly well why it was a bad idea to mess with a stranger in the Imperial Capital. The way he treated others was well-planned. Never would he ever expect that he would screw up today.
In his defence, who would’ve known that this young girl, dressed in t-shirt and jeans was such a powerful figure? With a beaming smile, he greeted her.
“So you’ve returned, Miss Gu?”
“Yeah. I’ve one thing to tell you, director.” Gu Xiqiao scrolled through her phone. “You’re gonna have to find a new female second lead for this web drama of yours.”
A new female secondary character? The director was stunned. Did that mean she wanted to kick Peng ZIxian off the cast?
Fear swelled up in his eyes.
“But we upload as we film the episodes for this web drama. Miss Peng had already appeared in previous scenes before. What about the discussions they are going to have on Weibo…” The director was slightly worried. It was no easy task, trying to switch out an actress halfway through a project. Worse still, Peng Zixian was a pretty popular celebrity, with a fairly large fanbase. There were many positive comments about her performance; his entire cast would sink into darkness if he was to remove her from the drama so abruptly.
Apart from that, he also feared a reprisal from her big brother. He didn’t seem like a regular man.
“Well, the more controversial you are, the more popular you’ll get. Don’t worry about this. Considering that fact that Xiao Yun’s in your cast, I wouldn’t want her career to fail, would I?”
The director sighed in relief upon hearing that. “Fine, I will make the necessary adjustments after this. Do you have anything else to say, Miss Gu?”
“Nope.” This incident was now successfully dealt with; Gu Xiqiao no longer had a reason to stay here any longer.
Her phone that was in her pocket rang twice. She picked it up to find that it was Jiang Shuxuan calling.
“Hello? Brother Jiang?” She bid Xiao Yun farewell before leaving the studio.
Jiang Shuxuan had just returned home. Xixi made a series of complaints the moment he stepped through the front door, one being that it hadn’t been fed for an entire day now. “Where are you?”
“I’m at the studio. I’m coming back immediately.” Gu Xiqiao rubbed her nose when she heard Jiang Shuxuan’s unamused voice. She remembered placing Xixi and Haha’s food next to their beds before she left.
“I assume you didn’t drive there. I’m picking you up.” Jiang Shuxuan had just finished feeding his pets when that pink little car in the garage popped onto his mind.
There were two traditional streets not far away from A University. Gu Xiqiao had heard about them before but never had the chance to visit said places.
It wasn’t too far away. The streets were sparsely occupied when Gu Xiqiao arrived there.
“Beauty Qiao, what are you planning to buy?” asked the system who flew circles around her body. Gu Xiqiao stole it a glance when she shoo-ed it away. “You go play on your own, I’m gonna go do some shopping. Brother Jiang’s coming in a jiffy.”
To be honest, traditional streets like these appeared more or less the same no matter which part of China you were in. Gu Xiqiao scanned the place for a while before discovering some subtle differences. Apart from this place being slightly more crowded than the traditional street back in N City, the things here were also… pricier.
[Ding! Daily Mission activated: Help your target, Hua Youlin out of his predicament!]
[Mission completion reward: 50 points!]
[Ding! Random Mission activated: Help your target, Hua Youlin inherit his family assets!]
[Mission completion reward: 800 points!]
Gu Xiqiao was standing in front of a mini stall, holding a celadon wine cup when the system’s voice echoed through her mind. The mission came so suddenly that it surprised her. The stall owner, seeing her stare so intently at one of his merchandise started promoting his items. “Ah, you got a good eye, missy! This is a celadon wine cup dating back to the Northern Song Dynasty. It’s worth hundreds of thousands of yuan in the market. If you’d like, I can sell it to you for a fingertip’s worth of that value!”
What he meant by a “fingertip’s worth” was about ten thousand yuan.
An elderly gentleman’s voice came suddenly from behind her back. “Young lady, you seem pretty youthful. I guess you’re our students at A University. Don’t be fooled by this peddler. This thing’s nothing but a piece of garbage. It’s worth nothing on the market.”
A bewildered look appeared on the stallowner’s face the moment he heard someone else expose his trickery. However, that look faded away the moment he recognized the old man’s face. “Professor Gu.”
Professor Gu was a renowned archaeology professor working in A University. He frequented these streets in search of rare items that made an appearance once in a blue moon. In fact, the street peddlers here were already well-acquainted with the old professor. Once in a while, they would let the professor appraise any unusual goods they unintentionally bought.
“Thanks, Professor Gu.” Gu Xiqiao put down the wine cup. In actuality, there was no intention to buy the wine cup in the first place. She merely picked it up randomly.
Despite his old age, there was still the twinkle of youth in Professor Gu’s eyes. He glanced at Gu Xiqiao. Somehow, her face seemed familiar. Though, he couldn’t recall where exactly he had met her before. And so, he opened his mouth. “Are you majoring in archaeology at A University?”
“No,” Gu Xiqiao was momentarily taken aback. Then, responded with a smile. “I’m just a little curious about this cup.”
It wasn’t uncommon to find young people interested in picking antique items nowadays. Professor Gu gave her a friendly reminder. “It’s fine and all if you’re just buying a trinket or two but never get fooled by these peddlers, young lady.”
The professor was naturally protective of A University’s students.
Gu Xiqiao thanked the professor and with a wave of farewell, she left the stall.
“Missy? What about this wine cup?” The stall owner was still adamant about selling his merchandise.
“Thanks but no thanks,” replied Gu Xiqiao with a smile.
On the clear board in front of her, a red arrow was displayed. It was pointing in the direction of a back alley located ahead of her. She found her target after turning two corners.
The old street parallel to the two traditional streets was considered to be off the beaten track. Despite this, there was a surprisingly large crowd gathered there.
Gu Xiqiao knew her mission target was standing in that crowd. Still, she stopped a distance away, trying to eavesdrop on their commotion.
“Of all the time, why are you being soft-hearted now?!”
“This is a sin! They’re a happy family! Sigh.”
“Old Chen’s family are honest folks! Just look at how earnest the kid looks! You can’t blame me for hesitating. Sigh, I really do pity Old Chen.”
“Why isn’t the ambulance here yet!”
These were probably his neighbors. Gu Xiqiao was able to make out roughly what had happened. In the middle of the crowd were three people. Lying on the ground was an old man. Sitting beside him was a younger man and next to that man, a boy whose lips were pursed—he was her target, Hua Youlin.
There were still silver needles protruding from the old man’s body.
The old man must’ve collapsed while walking outside with his son. That was when Hua Youlin stepped into the picture. The son looked anxious. However, seeing how genuine the boy looked somehow made him decide to let him treat his father. Who would’ve thought that his father would stop breathing after being stabbed with a couple of needles.
Hua Youlin was trapped by surrounding onlookers. Many thought that he would attempt to run away but the truth couldn’t be further than that.
“Uncle, isn’t the old man’s face a little too rosy for a dead man? Although his chest isn’t rising and falling, he doesn’t seem like he’s in great danger. Look, he wouldn’t be staying around here if he’s a murderer would he? Maybe he’s really trying to treat the old gramps?” Gu Xiqiao intervened to defend Hua Youlin.
Gu Xiqiao’s assurance seems to have worked fairly effectively in crowd control. It was a testament of how privileged attractive people were in this world.
Hua Youlin paused suddenly. He stole a glance at Gu Xiqiao’s cold, distant face. Still, her eyes were warm; there was trust in her eyes. He remained stunned for a moment before he kneeled down beside the old man.
With no better alternatives, the old man’s son left it entirely to Hua Youlin to treat his father.
Slowly, he removed the silver needles from the old man’s body. He then shifted his focus over to some other meridian points on his body.
Gu Xiqiao noticed instantly that the points he chose were all dead points.
Immediately, she was reminded of that trick Hua Jingya had used to resuscitate seemingly dead people. However, Hua Jingya’s technique was much more brutish, completely the opposite of how refined this boy’s technique was.
Life slowly returned to the old man as his rib cage moved up and down at a consistent rate. Much to the relief of everyone around him, he opened his eyes and coughed twice. His son stared at Hua Youlin in disbelief. “I’m sorry! I’m terribly sorry! I don’t know how to thank you for saving my father!”
Well, the easiest way for one to express gratitude was through cold hard cash. And so, the old man’s son fished some banknotes out of his pocket.
To his amazement, Hua Youlin stood up and without taking the money, he left without a word more.
[Ding! Congratulations on completing the mission! The system rewards you 50 points!]
Gu Xiqiao tailed Hua Youlin stealthily. She rubbed her chin as she observed his every action. He seemed to be around the age of eleven, perhaps twelve. The clothes he wore were tattered and they were slightly soiled. In contrast, his body was surprisingly clean, albeit appearing slightly malnourished.
Hua Youlin stopped and spun around to look directly at Gu Xiqiao. He stared at her with his ink-dark eyes, as if asking her why she was following him.
The kid’s eyes were dark and pure.
The two locked gazes for quite a while before Hua Youlin caved in. “Thank you.”
The crowd from before were totally dominating the situation; they had already pushed him past the point of fighting back. He had given up defending himself and if not for her, he would once again be shunned by the entire world.
“So you can speak after all.” Gu Xiqiao continued rubbing her chin. “Why don’t you tell me your name?”
“Hua Youlin,” he patiently pronounced every syllable very clearly.
“Hua Youlin,” repeated Gu Xiqiao. This time, the system had come flying back. It floated beside Hua Youlin for a while before announcing, “Beauty Qiao, this kid’s impression of you is 85% in the positive! What did you do to get this score so high?”
‘Nothing much really.’ Gu Xiqiao stared at the clear board on which Hua Youlin’s information was displayed.
An orphan who was chased out of his home by his own relatives.
When Jiang Shuxuan arrived, he discovered that it wasn’t Gu Xiqiao alone who was waiting for him. Standing beside her was a young boy. “Who’s this?”
Gu Xiqiao smiled back at him. “Brother Jiang, let’s go grab some lunch first.”
Since it was lunchtime, Jiang Shuxuan did not turn down her suggestion. However, he did spare the kid a slightly longer than average stare.
Gu Xiqiao patted Hua Youlin’s head and pointed toward Jiang Shuxuan. “Call him big bro.”
Hua Youlin looked up at Jiang Shuxuan before he shrank silently into Gu Xiqiao’s side.
Sigh, what an unlovable brat.
Surprisingly, Jiang Shuxuan wasn’t bothered by him one bit. He drove over to a restaurant that was located on the edge of A University. This place served traditional Chinese food and the menu was written on bamboo slips. For the sake of authenticity, even the words printed on the bamboo menu were in traditional Chinese.
They wanted to let Hua Youlin order some dishes himself but they suddenly remembered that it was likely he wouldn’t understand traditional Chinese. And so, Gu Xiqiao started reading out the menu to him verbatim.
Hua Youlin stared down at the table before picking up the menu just after Gu Xiqiao read the second menu item. He proceeded to order two dishes on his own.
“You know how to read these words?” Gu Xiqiao was surprised.
Hua Youlin nodded.
After the meal, while Hua Youlin was at the restroom, Gu Xiqiao took the opportunity to ask Jiang Shuxuan, “Brother Jiang, would you mind if I brought him back home with us?”
Jiang Shuxuan looked up at her. “Yes I would.”
“…?” Gu Xiqiao wasn’t prepared to hear such an answer from him; she thought he would agree right away. “Why?”
Jiang Shuxuan contemplated his answer. Well, just for that kid, she sat in the backseat when the front passenger seat was her favorite spot. Also, during their meal, she moved all the way to the other side of the table just to sit with him. And now she wanted to bring him home?
Hell to the no!
Looking up, he was trapped by Gu Xiqiao’s eyes which were filled with anticipation. This was the decisive hit that dealt the final blow. “Fine, we’ll bring him home.”
“Then you should give him an ID card. He’s still an unregistered person.” Without a personal ID nor a household registration, you were considered an unregistered individual in China. After they were done with lunch, Gu Xiqiao wanted to bring Hua Youlin clothes shopping. This of course, made Jiang Shuxuan look at the kid with more resentment in his eyes.
Clothes shopping? For a snot-nosed brat whom she had just met?! As if bringing him home wasn’t enough?
However, seeing how excited Gu Xiqiao was, he had no choice but to take blow after blow in silence. He stopped his car wherever the girl ordered him too.
For some reason, Hua Youlin felt a wave of cold air creeping behind him. He reached around to touch his back.
“What’s the matter?” Gu Xiqiao glanced at him.
Hua Youlin shook his head, thinking that it must’ve been his imagination.
Gu Xiqiao and Hua Youlin waited for Jiang Shuxuan outside the massive shopping mall. The car park must’ve been packed to the brim; it was five minutes and he was still nowhere to be found. He was probably still cruising around, looking for an empty spot.
Then, someone she was not waiting for had arrived before Jiang Shuxuan.
A car stopped at the intersection and from it emerged a woman whose hair was in a complete mess. Like a mad hag, she looked around for a while before noticing Gu Xiqiao who was standing by the mall’s entrance. Her eyes lit up before she came running over to Gu Xiqiao.
Gu Xiqiao’s eyes narrowed. She recognized that the woman was none other than Peng Zixian. Instinctively, she pushed Hua Youlin behind her back.
With tears rolling down her cheeks and snot dripping from her nose, she begged Gu Xiqiao for forgiveness. “Miss Gu, please forgive me! I know I have wronged you and I won’t do it again, I swear! What I did wasn’t intentional! I really mean it! I’m just 25, I don’t wanna spend the rest of my life behind bars! Please, I swear that I will be a better person from now on, please let me off…”
She cried desperately, so desperately that she was on her knees halfway through her stuttering.
There were a lot of people walking around the mall and every single passerby stopped in their tracks to observe the dramatic scene that was unfolding.
Naturally, they thought that Peng Zixian was the victim since she was on her knees. Unconsciously, they all sympathized with her. From what she was saying, it was most likely a brutal war between two women. Still, how much hatred do you have to harbor toward someone to send them to jail?
Peng Zixian’s cries intensified when she heard the onlookers whisper amongst themselves. Disgustingly, tears and snot were dribbling down her chin. Although this sight of her was downright embarrassing, she had successfully gained the support of the people around her.
Jiang Shuxuan had just parked his car and before he could rendezvous with Gu Xiqiao, he was greeted with this very scene. His footsteps paused for a moment and his brows became furrowed. He planned to march right over but then a voice near his ear stopped him. “Jiang, is zat the person Qingqiu spoke of?”
He instantly recognized who it was from how badly he butchered the Chinese language.
Turning around, he came face-to-face with a man whose facial features were distinct. He wore a pair of dark sunglasses and he had a chiseled face. His nose bridge was high, like that of a Westerner’s. He looked like he came straight out of a weekly fashion magazine. “Nothing seems out of ze ordinary with dis young lady.” Well, except for how attractive she appeared.
Murong Feiye took off his sunglasses, revealing his deep set eyes and his fiery gaze. “Although dat woman’s got an ugly crying face, she still seems pitiful, no? Jiang?”
Jiang Shuxuan glanced at him for a split-second before marching forwards.
“Ay! How long has it been since we last met! Aren’t ya supposed to welcome your old friend? Where’s the enthusiasm?!” Bewildered at being given the cold shoulder, Murong Feiye glared at him. Though he had long grown used to being treated like this by his friend. Silently, he stood there, staring at the scene from afar.
Sensing someone approaching, Peng Zixian looked up to discover a pretty face looking down at her. His thin lips were pursed and his facial expression was cold, unamused. Standing by her side, the man seemed even more dazzling when the blinding rays of sunlight shot past his shoulders.
“Let her go.” Two words pierced the air.
Peng Zixian failed to react in time to that order. She felt a pain in her fingers and autonomously, her grip on Gu Xiqiao’s wrist loosened up.
Gu Xiqiao’s wrist was thin and frail. Peng Zixian used all her might when she clamped down on her wrist. Due to how fair Gu Xiqiao’s skin was, the redness where Peng Zixian’s hand once had become all the more noticeable.
Jiang Shuxuan couldn’t bear to look at it. He pulled a pure white handkerchief out of his pocket and used it to dab Gu Xiqiao’s wrist clean.
Finally, Peng Zixian was able to come up with another reaction. She reached out and pulled the corner of Gu Xiqiao’s clothes. “Miss Gu, please forgive me will you? Please, I won’t do it ever again! Mister, I beg you, please help me persuade Miss Gu! She wants to send me to prison! She wants me dead!”
Her eyes, which were fixed on the ground, were filled with malice. No one should be so heartless as to turn her down, right?
If her own brother thought that she was a toxic person, what about this man? Would he think the same of Gu Xiqiao too?
Perhaps.
Jiang Shuxuan rubbed his fingers gentle across Gu Xiqiao’s reddened wrist. Hearing her voice, he turned around and glared mercilessly at Peng Zixian. “You deserve this.”