Chapter 194 - 123: Closing the Door
The whole reason he had come to Qianliu Manor was to help Ye Jingshuang.
He hadn’t expected Qi Cheng to be acquainted with Ding Feng. This was clearly an unexpected windfall.
A fortune had just fallen into his lap, and Jiang Ran had no intention of simply letting it go.
He grabbed Ding Feng by the scruff of his neck and hauled him back like a chick.
Ding Feng was furious.
"You— How dare you! Let me go!
"Th-this is improper! Utterly improper!"
Annoyed by his squawking, Jiang Ran hit his muting acupoint and tossed him to the ground.
Qi Gong quickly had his men take custody of Ding Feng, not wanting to trouble Jiang Ran any further.
Ding Feng glared around, huffing in anger, but was unable to utter a single word.
Qi Gong then renewed his invitation for Jiang Ran and his companions to enter Qianliu Manor.
Although Qi Cheng had never told Qi Gong what he had done, how could Qi Gong possibly not know?
He led Jiang Ran’s group all the way to a courtyard deep within the manor.
"He put everything he took from Red Maple Manor here. The courtyard has most of the large pieces, but there’s a lot inside the house as well..."
Opening the courtyard gate, they all stepped inside.
Sure enough, the courtyard was filled with items, mostly antique wooden furniture and sculptures of gold and silver.
Ye Jingshuang’s gaze swept over each item, and her eyes unexpectedly began to redden.
"What is it?"
Jiang Ran noticed the shift in her mood and asked in a low voice.
Ye Jingshuang reached out to touch a jade pillar to the side. Two rows of scratches ran up its surface.
She pointed to one of the columns of marks.
"This one was mine... That one was my sister’s."
Jiang Ran was stunned for a moment before he realized what they were: height marks for the two sisters.
’The Red Maple Ye family truly was grand and influential,’ he thought with a sigh.
’To just casually carve up such a fine jade pillar...’
But even as he thought this, he understood that for Ye Jingshuang, these marks held a completely different meaning.
The person who had once carefully carved those lines to celebrate them growing taller was no longer here.
As they walked, Ye Jingshuang would occasionally tell Jiang Ran what certain items were and where they had come from.
However, there were not many things she had a true memory of.
And there were even more items from her memory that she couldn’t find in the courtyard.
Upon asking Qi Gong, she learned that Qianliu Manor wasn’t the only one who had looted Red Maple Manor.
Many others had come to take a piece of the pie.
Like Luo Zhenxie, for example... he had benefited quite a bit.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been in cahoots with the young manor master.
After a quick look at the items outside, they opened the doors to the house. The rooms within were filled with mostly exquisite and precious objects.
There were silks and satins, pearls and agates, and all sorts of valuable ornaments.
Ye Jingshuang did not linger on these items, only taking a pair of jade pendants.
Then, she looked toward two large chests not far away.
They were filled with books and secret manuals.
With a furrowed brow, Ye Jingshuang took them out one by one to inspect them. After a moment, she pulled out a scroll and handed it to Jiang Ran.
Jiang Ran glanced down. Written on the cover were three words: Celestial Nine Steps!
"This is..."
Jiang Ran’s expression changed.
"I never got a chance to check the Ye family’s secret chamber. But seeing this manual here means the chamber has already been breached.
"And it wasn’t those other people who did it. It was Qianliu Manor."
Ye Jingshuang gently shook her head, unsure where the sudden rush of feelings in her heart was coming from.
Back when Red Maple Manor was in its prime, they had friends everywhere, and good people were all around.
But after disaster struck, not only did these people not consider avenging Red Maple Manor, they seemed to wish they could dig up its very foundations until nothing was left.
Jiang Ran gently patted her shoulder.
"Let’s keep looking. The ultimate techniques of the Ye family can’t be allowed to be scattered and lost."
"Mm."
Ye Jingshuang nodded and began searching with Jiang Ran.
These items had obviously only just arrived; Qi Cheng hadn’t even had time to sort and categorize them.
Let alone practice any of the techniques.
A short while later, they had sorted out a large pile of martial arts manuals.
All of them were from the Ye family’s legacy.
Ye Jingshuang took inventory of them one by one, finally shaking her head softly.
"We’re still missing the ’Maple Leaf Thirteen Swords’...
"I suppose someone else must have taken it."
That would be very difficult to find...
Qianliu Manor had the advantage, arriving at Red Maple Manor first, yet someone still managed to steal this Swordsmanship from right under their noses.
That person certainly wouldn’t be lingering near Red Maple Manor now.
Instead, they’d be in seclusion somewhere, practicing the sword.
The only way to find them would be if they used this Swordsmanship to make a name for themselves in the martial world. Otherwise, finding them in the vast sea of people would be nearly impossible.
Fortunately, Ye Jingshuang was able to see the bigger picture.
"Brother Jiang, don’t you worry about it either.
"I’m not actually stingy about a single Swordsmanship technique. If the person who took it masters it and is willing to uphold justice in the martial world, then that would be a good thing.
"You could even say it was a gift to them, and what would be the harm in that?
"My only worry is that they will use this Swordsmanship to commit evil and harm others.
"If that’s truly the case, then no matter if I have to chase them to the ends of the earth, I will find them and cripple their martial arts."
"Alright."
Jiang Ran nodded. "If we ever hear rumors of someone using the ’Maple Leaf Thirteen Swords’ to kill innocents, I’ll go with you."
"Okay."
Ye Jingshuang nodded and stood up. She had Qi Gong fetch a cloth wrapper, then gathered all the manuals, bundled them up, and slung the pack onto her back.
"It’s too much trouble to move the rest of these things back and forth. Besides, I won’t be staying at Red Maple Manor. If these items were left there, they would inevitably be coveted by others. It’s better to just leave them here."