Chapter 9
Qi Jiao was furious, but he didn’t dare vent it at Wu Xiaojiu-his hatred was eating him up inside.
All he could do was pull the Old Butler over, point a finger at Bo Suihan’s nose, and quietly say, “Three minutes. I want all his information!”
The Old Butler frowned, then nodded solemnly.
The young master’s enemy was his enemy as well.
This Bo Suihan was standing in the young master’s way and had even taken Wu Xiaojiu away. He had to be removed!
“But your mother is still in the hospital, Xiaojiu.”
Qi Jiao made one last attempt.
Just then, someone waved a phone screen in front of him. Wu Xiaojiu gave him an apologetic smile.
“Mom’s condition has stabilized a bit. I’ll go with him to the Su Family first, and then I’ll return to the hospital to meet you.”
At this point, anything else he said would be pointless.
Qi Jiao could only bite his lower lip and nod.
This gesture looked out of place on his tough face, and the Old Butler wiped the sweat from his own forehead in sympathy.
Wu Xiaojiu and Bo Suihan rode through town on a noisy electric scooter with a faulty horn, drawing attention wherever they went.
They finally stopped in front of the Su Family’s building.
As honored guests among honored guests, Su Zhishi naturally got word early and was already waiting downstairs.
Seeing the two of them arrive together, she hurried over and hugged Wu Xiaojiu.
Su Zhishi was always very affectionate with people she trusted, and even as the Su Family’s future leader, she was no exception.
She called out to him, treating him like her dearest treasure, the scent of her perfume wafting over Wu Xiaojiu until he smelled sweet, too.
Wu Xiaojiu blushed and gently pushed her away.
Only then did Su Zhishi notice that both of them were completely soaked.
She grinned and exclaimed, “How did you two get so drenched? Did something happen today? Hurry upstairs and change your clothes, or you’ll catch a cold.”
Bo Suihan stepped forward to enter, but when he saw his shirt still dripping, he shook his head, and-right in front of the two-took it off.
He twisted it as if wringing a towel, and water poured out like a faucet.
Wu Xiaojiu didn’t have as much strength, but he still squeezed the hem of his own shirt until it stopped dripping.
Only then did the two of them, still slightly damp, go inside together.
After just one day, their relationship seemed to have improved.
Su Zhishi was a little surprised.
When the two emerged after changing clothes, she laughed, poked Wu Xiaojiu on the nose, and teased, “Did you two add each other on WeChat behind my back? Yesterday you acted like you’d never get along, and today you’re walking in the rain together!”
Wu Xiaojiu scratched his head awkwardly, then lowered his gaze, eyelashes drooping, and glanced at Bo Suihan’s pants pocket, bulging with a feature phone.
He thought to himself,
I’d like to, but I just can’t. This feature phone doesn’t support it.
Bo Suihan’s face was noticeably redder than Wu Xiaojiu’s. Long Aotian (his nickname) was still a little shy about certain things.
He subtly covered his pocket and shifted the topic. “Didn’t your grandfather ask us to go to the study? Things are urgent-we should hurry.”
But in Su Zhishi’s eyes, it only made them look more suspicious, as if they were hiding something.
She put her hands on her hips and pinched the soft flesh at Wu Xiaojiu’s waist.
Wu Xiaojiu squirmed away, yelping, “So you really are talking behind my back! Why didn’t you add me? Am I not your good friend too?”
Bo Suihan’s face turned even redder.
Wu Xiaojiu knew that Long Aotian, the alpha among alphas, the man among men, the elite among elites, would never admit to using a feature phone in front of a girl.
She quickly helped him hide it, pushing Su Zhishi all the way upstairs.
There wasn’t much on the second floor: apart from an open-air barbecue room and a few rooms for cards and entertainment, the best, sunniest, and largest space was reserved for just one thing.
It was the Su Family old master’s study.
As soon as they entered, what greeted them wasn’t the smell of books, but the scent of ink.
Looking around, they saw bookshelves stacked layer upon layer, filling this hundred-square-meter room to the brim.
Right at the center of those shelves, a desk-clearly made from Golden Phoebe Wood-immediately caught the eye.
“How about it, beautiful, right? This Golden Phoebe Wood cost a tremendous effort. Back then, the old master hadn’t made his fortune yet, and didn’t have much money, but he took a liking to this piece of Golden Phoebe Wood and spent all his savings just to buy it.”
Su Zhishi walked over but didn’t dare sit on the Golden Phoebe Wood chair.
The old master treated that thing almost like a treasure.
He wouldn’t let anyone sit on it; when it wasn’t being maintained, he wouldn’t even allow it to be touched.
Bo Suihan looked at the piece, pondering for a second, then clasped his hands behind his back and paced around the study.
The study wasn’t exactly large or small.
It was the size of an ordinary person’s whole home, but for the wealthy, it was just a corner of a study.
The decoration was extremely luxurious-it was obvious the owner had put a lot of thought into it. The main highlight was the antique cabinet behind the Golden Phoebe Wood desk.
The cabinet, clearly a Jiajing-period carving, was carved with dragons and tigers, painted with phoenixes entwined with dragons.
Such specifications were fit for an emperor or prince, or at least for the emperor’s most trusted ministers.
On top of the cabinet sat various antique jade pieces, the least valuable pieces worth about ¥1–1.8 million each.
Su Zhishi introduced everything to them with great enthusiasm.
But the more Bo Suihan looked, the darker his expression grew.
At last, unable to take it anymore, he raised his hand to interrupt.
“Your grandfather was set up. This trap lasted over ten years-he fell into every single pit.”
Wu Xiaojiu was dazzled by the introduction, his fists gradually tightening.
The thought ‘damn’ resurfaced in his mind.
His determination to become rich only grew stronger.
Su Zhishi was the first to react. As soon as she heard Bo Suihan speak, she fell silent.
By the time he finished, her face was already twisted into a frown.
“Forget everything else-just look at what’s carved and hanging on this Golden Phoebe Wood. Aren’t those cicadas?”
She turned to look closely.
Sure enough!
Su Zhishi frowned, then shook her head.
“What does that prove?”
“It means it was taken from a tomb. You probably don’t know this, but some tomb owners were exceptionally noble in life-unprecedented, never to be repeated. Even those buried with them were people of extremely high status.”
As Bo Suihan spoke, he reached out and touched one of the cicadas.
The chair was densely covered in cicadas, all carved facing upward, each with half its body hollowed out.
“Cicadas are usually placed in the mouths of the dead, meaning their true energy isn’t lost. With so many cicadas, can you guess how many dead are buried inside?”
At that, even Wu Xiaojiu, who’d been daydreaming about wealth, was stunned.
The room fell silent.
A cold wind swept through.
Wu Xiaojiu felt his legs trembling.
But Bo Suihan continued:
“Do you realize this room has been arranged to resemble a tomb?”