Chapter 463: He is only suitable for explosion
Translator: 549690339
Feng Ming and Zhu Zan stayed in Su Mansion for two days.
Qi Yan showed them around and introduced them to everyone in the mansion. To their surprise, considering the status of Gu Ling and Su Liang, the mansion seemed to have almost no servants. Even an elder on the small Xingluo Island had several servants tending to them. The servants on Xingluo Island were all captured from the outside and their status on the island was equivalent to slaves. They even saw Gu Ling and Su Liang cooking in the kitchen and Gu Ling teaching martial arts to two little disciples.
During this time, the two learned a shocking fact that left them speechless: Su Liang was actually the granddaughter of Mo Yan, the island master of Xingluo Island. She was his only living relative and descendant in the world!
It was Su Liang who told them this. She said that He Wei had discovered this long ago but deliberately concealed it from Mo Yan. By now, Sheng Yue should have already informed Mo Yan about this matter.
At that time, Feng Ming said, “The He Family is doomed.”
Su Liang smiled, “I hope so.”
Two days later, Su Liang met with Feng Ming alone.
Feng Ming knew it was time for him to leave.
“When you go back, tell Mo Yan and Sheng Yue that you searched for someone all the way to the north, but you never found any information. You also fell ill and were delayed. Zhu Zan separated from you during this time and decided not to return to the island.” Su Liang said, “Don’t make the story too complicated, or it will arouse suspicion.”
Feng Ming nodded seriously, “I understand, Master.”
“I believe you are smart enough to handle it,” Su Liang smiled. “However, if Mo Yan or Sheng Yue suspect you and want to kill you, you can tell them that you have pledged loyalty to me to save your life. I believe this would be valuable to them.”
Feng Ming was moved, “Thank you, Master! I will be extremely careful not to fail your trust!” He knew that if he exposed himself as Su Liang’s subordinate, he would be used as a hostage to threaten Su Liang. Su Liang’s suggestion showed that she would try to save him under such circumstances. Up to now, he hadn’t done much for Su Liang, yet he already felt cared for and valued. He had many interactions with Qi Yan and knew that Qi Yan and his brothers had all followed Su Liang in the past. In Qi Yan’s words – if you work hard, there will be unexpected surprises.
Even Su Liang’s decision not to force Zhu Zan to return to the island and not to drive him away but to let him stay in the mansion showed her acceptance of those who pledged loyalty to her.
“I trust you,” Su Liang said. “If you return to the island and pass the test, just continue to follow Sheng Yue. You don’t need to investigate anything deliberately. Any suspicion could be discovered by him. You just need to see what he does, and we will have a chance to contact you later.”
“Yes,” Feng Ming nodded. He knew that he was a pawn ready to be used, and his future role would depend on the development of the situation. This required him to have a strong ability to adapt. He had confidence in himself, but not too much. Su Liang’s affirmation and trust in him inspired him greatly. For the first time, he truly believed that he could achieve great things.
On the same day, Feng Ming bid farewell to Su Liang and Zhu Zan, left Su Mansion secretly, and headed south at the fastest speed to return to Xingluo Island. Su Liang gave him some self-defense medicines but told him to throw them all away before going to the island and not to bring any suspicious items back.
The weather was good that day, and Yan Shiba was helped by Su Liang to come out and bask in the sun.
The snow house outside Yuanming Pavilion was slowly melting. To prevent snow from falling and hitting people, Gu Ling decided to dismantle the snow house.
The children were also interested in this task and moved the knocked-down snow blocks to one side under Gu Ling’s guidance.
Yan Shiba waved vigorously at Gu Xiaonuan on Gu Ling’s back, but she was stretching out her little hand to touch the snow house and didn’t notice.
Yan Shiba sat down in the pavilion and took the hand warmer from Su Liang, tossing it onto the table. “It’s not that cold. Are you treating me like a delicate woman?”
Su Liang shook her head, “It doesn’t matter whether I care about you or not, you’ll always complain. Why don’t you try going to heaven?”
Upon hearing this, Yan Shiba laughed, “Heh, I’d like to go to heaven, but I can’t! If I can ever go there, I’ll definitely take you with me to fly!”
Then Yan Shiba asked about Feng Ming. She had held a deep hatred for Sheng Yue, who had imprisoned her for a long time and created a substitute for her. Therefore, she had always been concerned about the progress of dealing with Xingluo Island. Weng Ran had once been almost harmed by the people of Xingluo Island along with Feng Ming, so she held the same attitude as Yan Shiba on this matter and would promptly inform Yan Shiba of any news she learned.
“Girl, it’s not that I don’t trust your judgment on people. For example, you saw potential in me, which was a good judgment.” Yan Shiba said seriously.
Su Liang rolled her eyes, letting Yan Shiba draw her own conclusion.
“However,” Yan Shiba frowned, “have you ever thought that even if Feng Ming is not sent by Sheng Yue, once he returns to Xingluo Island and meets Sheng Yue again, he may become Sheng Yue’s man and deceive you? You can’t trust the information he provides so easily!”
Su Liang nodded, “You’re much more cautious than before. We’ve thought about this, but Feng Ming is a smart man. He knows that working with Sheng Yue won’t end well, and he’ll make the smart choice.”
Yan Shiba snorted lightly, “So, you believe in human nature, Sister Liang.”
Su Liang nodded, “Otherwise, I would have killed you long ago.”
Yan Shiba playfully punched Su Liang, “Thank you!”
Ji Xiaoshu flew across the lake and landed steadily outside the pavilion. He rushed in and placed a cloth-wrapped package on the table, containing two grilled sweet potatoes with charred skins and a sweet, steaming aroma.
They were grilled by Gu Ling, who had taken them out just when they were ready.
“Master’s wife, Aunt Yan, eat them while they’re hot! I’m going back to snatch my master’s share!” Ji Xiaoshu handed them two wooden spoons and then happily flew back the way he came.
Knocking open the crispy skin, the sweet potato split in half, revealing its soft interior.
Yan Shiba followed Su Liang’s example, scooping a bit of the sweet potato with the wooden spoon, and nodded involuntarily, “Delicious.”
After finishing her own portion, Yan Shiba ate half of Su Liang’s as well, sighing comfortably, “You all know how to enjoy life.” Then she mentioned Cheng Yun again, “I wonder if Little Brother Yun has started eating meat yet. If he starts eating meat, he shouldn’t refuse me, right?”
“Stop daydreaming during the day.” Su Liang always poured cold water on Yan Shiba concerning this matter because she felt that Yan Shiba and Cheng Yun were not suitable and had no chance. It wasn’t that she wanted to stop Yan Shiba from pursuing Cheng Yun, but she was worried that if Yan Shiba was rejected, she wouldn’t be able to accept it and would do something she shouldn’t.
“Humph! We’ll see!” In fact, Yan Shiba had subtly been affected by Su Liang’s attitude. Although she still occasionally mentioned Cheng Yun, she wasn’t as confident as before. This was a good thing since there was no guarantee; she could pursue him but had to accept the possibility that Cheng Yun wouldn’t like her.
A few days later, under the arrangements of Ji Yuebai, Bai Yang and Ji Yue Xuan officially got married. The marriage of the former Yin Country princess and Qian Country Imperial Concubine caused quite a stir in the capital city. After all, in everyone’s eyes, Ji Yue Xuan was the emperor Duanmu Chen’s only woman.
Duanmu Chen didn’t publicly announce that he and Ji Yue Xuan had never been a real couple. He had already done enough for Ji Yue Xuan and Bai Yang. Some things don’t need to be explained, as wise people will know the truth, and those who want to spread gossip will only concoct new rumors after your explanation. As for the inevitable rumors, they didn’t affect Duanmu Chen, who lived in the Imperial Palace. If Bai Yang and Ji Yue Xuan were affected, they would have to digest it themselves.
Su Liang was still studying the improved truth-telling drug with her two masters. The main goal was to avoid the drug’s side effect of killing people quickly after ingestion, but they all hit a bottleneck and made no new breakthroughs.
As for who would go to meet Mo Yan on the first day of March, as previously discussed by Su Liang and Gu Ling, and what to do with the child at that time, it hadn’t been decided yet. There was still some time, and if there were no other changes in between, it would still be possible to set off in early February to attend the appointment.
By the end of the first month of the year, Yan Shiba was already moving freely and didn’t need anyone to help her. Su Liang said that she could start exercising slowly, which would be good for her recovery. So, Yan Shiba exercised with the children every day and took the opportunity to play with Gu Xiaonuan, saying that it was a good way to work out.
Yan Shiba’s temperament had become much gentler than before, but her personality still had traces of the past. She was very unrestrained and quickly became friends with the children.
Especially Ji Xiaoshu, who knew that Yan Shiba used to be an assassin leader and was quite interested in her. Ji Xiaoshu liked to hear Yan Shiba talk about her “glorious history.”
Yan Shiba liked children and was always careful around them. She didn’t talk about bloody and violent things, fearing that it would have a bad influence on them or lead them astray. When she looked back on her past, she realized that she had made many mistakes. Sometimes, she did have a choice, but no one had taught her what was right or good before meeting Su Liang.
Yan Shiba still mentioned Cheng Yun often, and everyone in the mansion, even the children, knew that she admired him.
On this particular day, the weather was nice, and Yan Shiba was competing in a swordsmanship match with Ji Xiaoshu and Zhengzheng. It was a two-on-one fight.
Both Ji Xiaoshu and Zhengzheng were talented disciples of Gu Ling and had already practiced the Cold Moon Sword Technique quite well. Yan Shiba was not as strong as before, and she restrained herself during the fight. She became distracted by Gu Xiaonuan’s laughter and was poked in the leg by Ji Xiaoshu’s wooden sword.
“Ah, I’m dead!” Yan Shiba threw away her wooden sword, fell to the ground, and closed her eyes.
Ji Xiaoshu quickly rushed over and shook Yan Shiba’s head, “Aunt Yan, don’t die! My master is making Sweet and Sour Ribs for lunch! If you die, you won’t be able to eat them!”
Yan Shiba laughed without opening her eyes, “Ribs are good, I like them, so I’d better stay alive to eat the Sweet and Sour Ribs! Cough, cough, cough… Xiaoshu, stop shaking me, I’m going to be shaken silly.”
Zhengzheng shook her head: So childish!
Yan Shiba was pulled up by Ji Xiaoshu and saw Qi Yan and a thin young man not far away.
“Uncle Qi!” Zhengzheng greeted Qi Yan.
Ji Xiaoshu looked at the man beside Qi Yan and then tugged Yan Shiba, “Aunt Yan, look who that is!”
Yan Shiba glanced at him and shook her head, “I don’t know.”
“It seems like it’s not true love.” Ji Xiaoshu smirked, “No matter what my master looks like, my master wife will definitely recognize him!”
Yan Shiba’s face stiffened. She looked again at the young man standing beside Qi Yan, who was waving and smiling at them. She couldn’t help but widen her eyes, “Little Brother Yun?”
Zhengzheng had already run over to greet Uncle Cheng Yun.
It’s no wonder Yan Shiba didn’t recognize him. Cheng Yun was wearing a wig and had disguised himself, so he didn’t look at all like the beautiful little monk who Yan Shiba remembered. However, upon closer inspection, his physique and temperament still had traces of his former self.
“Little Brother Yun!” Yan Shiba also rushed over.
Cheng Yun heard the familiar yet strange voice and recognized Yan Shiba. He frowned slightly and considered going straight to the Yuanming Pavilion to find Su Liang to protect him, given Yan Shiba’s blatant “harassment” in the past. However, he saw Zhengzheng running over and thought it would be rude to leave.
Qi Yan had already gone in to report to Su Liang.
By the time Yan Shiba ran up to Cheng Yun and was about to lean in to get a closer look at him, Su Liang had just come out of the Yuanming Pavilion and stopped her.
“Little Brother Yun, you didn’t forget about me, did you? You saved my life!” Yan Shiba smiled happily at Cheng Yun. After all, she had been thinking about him for years, and it was exciting to see him again after surviving her ordeal.
Cheng Yun leaned down to hug Zhengzheng and didn’t look at Yan Shiba, but he politely responded to her words, “I remember, Miss Yan…But there’s no need to bring up the matter of saving you again. It was Su Liang who truly saved you back then.”
“You can talk more later,” Su Liang said, “Cheng Yun came back for an important matter.”
Cheng Yun quickly followed Su Liang into the Yuanming Pavilion, and Yan Shiba also went in, “My body has almost recovered, and I can help with important matters, so I want to listen too.”
As soon as Weng Ran came to send medicine to Yan Shiba, she entered the room and saw Cheng Yun without his wig. She was surprised and greeted him with a smile, “You’re back.”
Cheng Yun nodded, “Yes.”
“Sister Yan, drink your medicine.” Weng Ran put the steaming medicine in front of Yan Shiba.
Yan Shiba hugged Weng Ran and asked her to sit beside her, “Little Ranran, sit down quickly. I’ll drink it when it’s cooler. Little Brother Yun is going to talk about important matters.”
Cheng Yun tried his best to ignore Yan Shiba’s intense gaze and only looked at Su Liang when speaking.
“A gift from Mo Yan?” Su Liang looked surprised.
“There’s a head, which Elder Qiu said was He Wei’s.” Cheng Yun said, “The rest are just some ancient books and treasures.”
Qi Yan had already ordered someone to carry the boxes over.
Cheng Yun quickly pointed at the box containing the head, “It’s not suitable to open that one in front of the children.”
After checking the books and the treasures, Su Liang found the books useful, but the treasures weren’t particularly interesting. They didn’t lack such things, and the children were used to seeing them.
“This is the letter from Mo Yan to you.” Cheng Yun took out the letter and handed it to Su Liang, still sealed.
Su Liang took it, sat down, and opened it to read.
In the letter, Mo Yan said that when his daughter, Mo Gui Xin, left Xingluo Island, she wanted to live in the outside world. He didn’t want to force her to stay, so he decided to accompany her, not because he didn’t care about her. Mo Yan was deceived by He Wei, believing that Mo Gui Xin had died from illness long ago, leaving no children behind. That’s why he didn’t know about the existence of his granddaughter, Su Liang, for all these years.
In the letter, Mo Yan sincerely apologized to Su Liang, saying that if he had known about her, he would have taken good care of her and protected her without allowing her to suffer any grievances. There would have been no conflicts between them.
He Wei was beheaded, and the He Family members were executed. Mo Yan hoped that Su Liang could forgive him for his previous mistakes due to misunderstandings. He hoped that the grandfather and granddaughter could sit together and talk about the future.
“As for the matters between me and Gu Ling, everything is negotiable. I believe that with our combined strength, we can succeed in anything. I’m looking forward to meeting you on the first day of the third month. I can’t wait to hug Little Nuannuan, who must be the most adorable child in the world.”
After reading the letter, Gu Ling came over and took it to read it himself.
After finishing quickly, Gu Ling’s eyes were slightly cold, “Hugging Nuannuan? Keep dreaming. He’s only fit for explosions.”
