Chapter 118 - 97: Liu Wenshan (3)
"Just curious."
Jiang Ran said with a smile,
"But what I’m more curious about is why you’ve been pretending to be unconscious all this time, unwilling to wake up."
Liu Wenshan fell silent once again.
Jiang Ran wasn’t in a hurry. He just waited quietly.
But after nearly the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Liu Wenshan still hadn’t spoken.
Jiang Ran was finally starting to lose his patience and had no choice but to say,
"You should know that you have no other choice."
"...Regarding the Jiaowei zither having once been with the Ye family, in all the world, besides myself, only Tong Wanli knew."
Liu Wenshan’s voice was deep and heavy.
Each word rumbled like distant thunder, stirring the heart.
Jiang Ran’s gaze, however, was far calmer than one might have expected.
Liu Wenshan glanced at him.
"You... suspected it all along?"
"His investigation was too detailed."
Jiang Ran said in a low voice,
"From the moment Ye Jingshuang sought him out to the point where he had investigated everything, only a few short days had passed.
"The people he sent to investigate, no matter how incredibly skilled, couldn’t have been that efficient.
"So, it was then that I began to suspect... he was colluding with those people."
Not only that, but during the battle at Tiger Leaping Gorge.
Ghost Thirteen, the little old man, and Tong Wanli had engaged in a fierce battle.
That final move, no matter how you looked at it, had been premeditated for a long time.
The little old man and Tong Wanli’s goal was to team up and kill Ghost Thirteen.
Although Ghost Thirteen wasn’t skilled enough to warrant them joining forces.
But what if it was all for show?
It was to make Ye Jingshuang believe that the little old man and Tong Wanli were absolutely not on the same side.
With Ghost Thirteen thrown into the mix, the situation would appear exceptionally tense and dangerous.
But Ghost Thirteen was a loose end, which is why they wanted to eliminate him.
Otherwise, from Tong Wanli’s perspective and position at Ye Jingshuang’s side, he really had no reason to go after Ghost Thirteen.
This was what first made Jiang Ran suspicious of Tong Wanli.
Everything he’d just mentioned came after that.
Liu Wenshan was silent for a moment before he said,
"My life is not worth mourning. When Ning’er passed away all those years ago, I wanted to follow her.
"If I weren’t so worried about Mingyue, why would I have clung to this wretched life?
"But no matter what, the Jiaowei zither cannot be allowed to fall into their hands.
"Young Hero Jiang, you are a capable man. I have a matter I’d like to trouble you with."
"Go on."
"I want to entrust Mingyue and Jingshuang to you."
"???"
Jiang Ran was stunned. "What are you talking about?"
Liu Wenshan then said softly,
"I can see that Jingshuang... but never mind, it’s not my place to speak on that.
"Although Mingyue is still young, she has reached the age of marriage.
"I dare not trouble you too much, Young Hero. I only hope that you can find a good husband for her, so she won’t have to toil her whole life and suffer abuse."
Hearing this, Jiang Ran finally breathed a sigh of relief.
’So I was overthinking it... I really thought he was going to betroth Mingyue to me.’
’Turns out he just wants me to find her a good family.’
Liu Wenshan continued,
"I haven’t kept her dowry at home, for fear that her aunt would get greedy.
"Young Hero, remember this: thirty li west of the Red Maple Ye family residence, there is a Sun family Manor.
"The third house from the eastern end of the village is empty.
"In the eastern wing, there’s a hidden door in the bookshelf. Opening it leads to a secret chamber.
"The Jiaowei zither and Mingyue’s dowry are both inside... Ye Konggu and I prepared them together.
"Young Hero, once you find a good husband for Mingyue, you can divide the dowry inside into three portions.
"One for Mingyue, one for Jingshuang, and one for Jingxue.
"Finally... the Jiaowei zither is a gift for you, Young Hero."
[Reward Received: Clue to the Jiaowei Zither!]
As Liu Wenshan’s voice fell, Jiang Ran received a system notification.
Jiang Ran cursed inwardly. ’So this is how I get the reward, huh?’
’Strictly speaking, this is actually quite reasonable.’
’Save Liu Wenshan, and I get the clue to the Jiaowei zither.’
’If Liu Wenshan dies, the reward is gone for good.’
’But the question is, what role does the system even play in all of this?’
’Is it just handing out quests?’
’And after completing this quest, I only got one day of life.’
’Looked at from any angle, this ghostwriting quest is a total rip-off.’
But after grumbling to himself for a moment, Jiang Ran put it out of his mind.
After all, there were still apprehension quests... As for the ghostwriting quests, they were like mosquitoes’ legs—not much, but still meat.
"Young Hero Jiang?"
Liu Wenshan called out again.
Jiang Ran glanced at him and smiled faintly.
"When it comes to marrying off a daughter, isn’t it better to handle it yourself rather than let someone else do it?
"Even if you choose with the utmost care, you’d still worry you’ve entrusted her to the wrong person.
"If you let someone else choose for you, how could you be at peace with it?"
Liu Wenshan nodded at his words.
"Young Hero, your words speak directly to my heart.
"It’s just a pity... time waits for no man.
"Now that I’ve explained everything, please, Young Hero, take Jingshuang and Mingyue and leave under the cover of night.
"The farther you go, the better!"
But Jiang Ran shook his head.
"We really can’t leave just yet."
"Why not?"
"There are people to kill and things to be done. How can we just up and leave?"
Jiang Ran said with a smile,
"How about you and I cooperate and put on another good show?"
"Like the one you and Jingshuang put on?"
Liu Wenshan glanced at Jiang Ran.
"Are you confident?"
"I am."
Jiang Ran nodded. "As long as you trust me."
Liu Wenshan closed his eyes, only slowly opening them a long moment later.
"Will this plan keep Mingyue and Jingshuang safe from harm?"
Jiang Ran nodded solemnly.
"It will."
Liu Wenshan let out a breath.
"Young Hero Jiang, just give me your instructions."
"In that case... first, go back to sleep for another two days."
As he spoke, Jiang Ran took a small medicine pouch from his robes.
"To deceive everyone, you can take this.
"Even a master physician won’t be able to figure out why you’re unconscious.
"And when it’s time for you to wake up, I’ll come find you again..."