The sights were all unfamiliar.
For a moment, Lin Xingwan even felt as though she had time-traveled.
Otherwise, why would everything be decorated in such an ancient, elegant style?
Then, a man sitting in a wheelchair appeared in Lin Xingwan's line of sight.
The man's features were indescribably exquisite, and there was even a hint of heroism in his brows. It was just a pity that his complexion was too pale, giving the impression that he could collapse at any moment.
But even so, his features combined together created a breathtaking beauty.
It was like Liu Yifei, who stood at a divine level in the entertainment industry. If her features were examined separately, none would stand out particularly, but when combined, she was an irreplaceable existence!
Although this was the first time Lin Xingwan had seen such a delicate and handsome man, she recognized him at a glance.
"Duan, Duan Muxing?" Lin Xingwan spoke weakly, her throat throbbing with pain. The terrifying scene from last night replayed in her mind.
After Xue Manting and the others had left, she had been chatting with the man wearing the ghost mask. She wanted to stall for time, waiting for Zhou Jinbai to rescue her. However, the man had also seen through her intentions. After failing to get any information about the owner of the necklace, he had decided to kill her.
The man pressed the knife against her neck, inching closer.
If she spoke, she would die. If she didn't speak, she would die even faster. Lin Xingwan could clearly feel the sharp blade cutting her skin.
"My neck." Lin Xingwan instinctively reached for her neck. It was already bandaged, but it still hurt to the touch.
"Don't worry, the wound isn't deep, and I've applied ointment. It should heal in about a week. However, the scar from this wound will take a few months to recover." Duan Muxing replied coldly. After speaking, he continued to feed Lin Xingwan medicine.
Lin Xingwan didn't know whether to take it or not, looking at Duan Muxing with great hesitation.
"It seems you're more obedient when you're asleep. Should I knock you out again?"
Although Duan Muxing's words were spoken as if he were chatting with Lin Xingwan, they were filled with a strong sense of threat.
Lin Xingwan opened her mouth with a hint of grievance and drank the medicine.
"Your plan failed last night." Duan Muxing's tone was very light, making it impossible to discern his emotions.
Lin Xingwan lowered her gaze in dejection, her eyelashes casting a shadow on her eyelids.
The last time she had met Duan Muxing, he had shown her a stack of documents that included a photo of Yuan Qisheng and several pieces of jewelry he was holding.
Duan Muxing had told her that those pieces of jewelry belonged to her mother.
If she had the ability, she should retrieve them from Yuan Qisheng.
Lin Xingwan knew that Yuan Qisheng must know something about her mother.
That was why she had attended the King of Gambling's night.
But who could have imagined that while she intended to extract information from Yuan Qisheng, he would try to take her life?
"Thank you for saving me." Lin Xingwan spoke with difficulty. "I will find the real culprit and avenge my mother."
As soon as Lin Xingwan finished speaking, her head throbbed with pain again.
This time, Lin Xingwan did not faint.
Numerous unfamiliar scenes appeared in her mind.
"Xingwan, my good daughter, you must avenge your mother. It was this vicious woman who stole everything that belonged to Mother. Mother is like this because of her."
"Mother only hopes that you can live a good life, as an ordinary person. But Mother cannot live on. Xingwan, you won't blame Mother for not being able to watch you grow up, will you?"
"Good daughter, don't be afraid. When you open your eyes again, you won't be afraid of Mother anymore."
Her mother's words echoed in her mind.
Lin Xingwan also remembered her mother lying in a bathtub full of blood, smiling eerily.
She remembered everything. Her mother had repeatedly wanted to die with her, yet had stopped herself at the last moment.
So, what she had dreamed of was all true.
She was afraid of her mother and didn't even dare to be with her.
Later, her mother had hypnotized her memories and fabricated countless beautiful recollections for her.
Her mother had died on the day she woke up from hypnosis, the day... she had most wanted to see her mother.
Lin Xingwan finally understood the relieved and content look in her mother's eyes when she died in front of her. Her daughter could finally live an ordinary life with the memory of having a loving mother.
Tears streamed down Lin Xingwan's cheeks as she hoarsely whispered the word "Mom."
Duan Muxing looked at Lin Xingwan, who was in immense pain on the bed. He felt a pang of guilt for unilaterally restoring her memories.
Perhaps it was due to shared suffering, but he thought of his deceased parents.
If it weren't for that enemy, their lives would have been completely different.
Duan Muxing reached out to comfort Lin Xingwan, but his hand froze in mid-air.
He couldn't help her with anything. Some hardships could only be endured alone.
That would mean a rebirth, a path to a higher level of strength.
Lin Xingwan fainted from the pain again. When she woke up, it was already evening.
She opened her eyes and looked at Duan Muxing, who was sitting by her bed, without any surprise.
"Duan Muxing, you know who that enemy is, don't you?" Lin Xingwan asked. Although in her memories, her mother had shown her a photo of that woman, she couldn't recall what the woman looked like at all.
She could only vaguely remember a general outline!
"Yes." Duan Muxing did not deceive Lin Xingwan. "But what you should be most concerned about right now is not the identity of the enemy, but Zhou Jinbai's physical condition. If nothing unexpected happens, he has already been forcibly taken back by the Dongfang family."
Lin Xingwan's expression became one of extreme shock at Duan Muxing's words. She quickly asked, "Why was he taken back?"
Duan Muxing chuckled. "Because of you. Zhou Jinbai violated the Dongfang family's most taboo rule: fratricide. Although Jia Yansong and Jia Yankang are not members of the Dongfang family, they are still Zhou Jinbai's half-brothers. The Dongfang family absolutely cannot tolerate fratricide."
"What will happen?" Lin Xingwan didn't understand the rules and regulations of wealthy families, but her intuition told her that this was a serious matter.
"At best, he'll be crippled; at worst, he'll die. It depends on how tough Zhou Jinbai's fate is, and whether he can withstand the punishment. However, after this incident, whether he can continue to bear the title of 'Dongfang Junze' is uncertain."
"No, I have to go find Zhou Jinbai." Lin Xingwan now had only one thought: no matter what, she wouldn't let Zhou Jinbai accept the punishment.
This matter was because of her. If there was to be punishment, it should be hers.
Lin Xingwan borrowed Duan Muxing's phone to call Liu Mengqin. Ten minutes later, a helicopter landed on the peak of the snow mountain.
As soon as Lin Xingwan stepped out, she saw Liu Mengqin and Xue Manting rushing down from the helicopter and running towards her.
Especially when they saw the bandage around Lin Xingwan's neck, they became extremely anxious.
"Xingwan, what on earth happened? Do you know how worried you made us by disappearing for these two days and two nights?" Liu Mengqin even started to cry as she spoke.
As for Xue Manting, her usually arrogant and proud face was now filled with guilt. "I'm sorry, Xingwan. It's all my fault. If only I hadn't worn that necklace. What happened that night? Are you injured anywhere else besides your neck?"
"We can't talk about this now. I need to go find Jinbai quickly." Lin Xingwan said.
Xue Manting and Liu Mengqin nodded, and the three of them boarded the helicopter.
The helicopter quickly took off, while Duan Muxing simply sat in the observation room, watching the helicopter disappear into the night sky.
Love, what a strange thing it is.
What does it feel like to like someone?
After boarding the helicopter, Lin Xingwan realized that Su Moyao, Jia Yanzhen, and Bai Xiao were also on board.
Su Moyao's expression was calm. Jia Yanzhen, upon seeing Lin Xingwan, seemed to have something to say but hesitated.
Finally, Jia Yanzhen could only console her, "Zhou Jinbai is tough. Don't worry, he won't die."
"What are you doing here?" Because of the actions of Meng Chuzheng and others, Lin Xingwan didn't have a good impression of Jia Yanzhen.
"Of course, I'm here to see how Zhou Jinbai is tortured. After all, he's been my number one enemy all these years." Jia Yanzhen said indifferently. Of course, he would never admit that the reason he followed was because he was worried about Zhou Jinbai.
Furthermore, Jia Yanzhen would never let anyone know his true thoughts.
Even if it meant being overly solicitous, he would keep it well hidden.
"Then you can get off now." Lin Xingwan found Jia Yanzhen's face extremely annoying.
However, it was indeed strange. Jia Yanzhen seemed to be the most normal among Jia Huaixu's three children.
Although he didn't look like Meng Chuzheng and Jia Huaixu at all, he was still better than the disfigured brothers Jia Yansong and Jia Yankang.
"I said I wanted to see Zhou Jinbai tortured. If I get off now, won't that be embarrassing? Besides, this helicopter is also mine."
In other words, even if they were to get off, it would be Lin Xingwan and the others who would get off first.
Lin Xingwan ignored Jia Yanzhen. Su Moyao, who had been silent all along, spoke up. "How did you get out of the villa where the descendants of the Duan family live?"
Yesterday, after they had rescued Xue Manting and Yun Qingqing, the clues to Lin Xingwan's whereabouts had been lost.
It was likely that whoever took Lin Xingwan was a highly skilled individual. They had even offered a reward of fifty billion yuan to find Lin Xingwan, but none of those forces had succeeded.
Su Moyao had been thinking that Lin Xingwan might have been harmed. Who would have thought that she would emerge from the villa of the Duan family's descendants?
The descendants of the Duan family do not help the rich; they do not help heroes, unless they want something in return!
This made Su Moyao wonder about the relationship between Lin Xingwan and the Duan family's descendants.
"Because Duan Muxing saved me. If he hadn't arrived in time, I would already be dead. After I was rescued, I was unconscious until I woke up not long ago."
Lin Xingwan explained simply, adhering to the principle of "the less said, the better." She didn't want anyone to know about the deal between her and Duan Muxing.
The helicopter flew for more than an hour before landing at a castle on an island.
This was also the first time Lin Xingwan had seen the full picture of the Dongfang family.
Looking down from the air, the surroundings were dark seawater, and a magnificent castle covered the entire island.
Even at night, the castle exuded an unreal, picturesque beauty. If it were daytime, it was hard to imagine.
"This is where the Dongfang family lives. Isn't it too beautiful?" Liu Mengqin leaned against the window, gazing at it entranced. For her, a castle built with such wealth and historical significance was something she had never seen, even on television.
"The Dongfang family has lived on this island, covering over a million square meters, for generations. Every inch of land and every stone is a symbol of an ancient and powerful family. Even the flowerpots are inlaid with jade."
Xue Manting explained, leaving Liu Mengqin stunned.
Having the opportunity to come here tonight was enough for her to brag about for a lifetime.
As for Lin Xingwan, she was in no mood to listen to any introductions about the Dongfang family's castle. As soon as the helicopter landed, she quickly headed in a certain direction.
Meanwhile, in the ancestral hall of the Dongfang family, which was specially set aside for worshipping ancestral tokens.
Although the exterior was European in style, the interior was decorated in an ancient and solemn Chinese style.
Eight white-haired elders sat in eight grand chairs, their stern gazes fixed on Zhou Jinbai, who stood in the center.
These elders were full of vigor and possessed extraordinary auras. In their youth, they must have all been outstanding individuals.
Zhou Bingwen supported the old lady as they stood to the side. Opposite them were Meng Chuzheng, Jia Huaixu, and the brothers Jia Yankang and Jia Yansong, whose hands were wrapped in thick bandages and who looked haggard.
"No matter what, our brothers' hands cannot have been injured in vain. Today, you elders of the Dongfang family must give us an explanation."
Jia Yansong glared fiercely at Zhou Jinbai. First, his hand was broken, and then he had licked so many toilets. He would make Zhou Jinbai pay a hundredfold.
"Jinbai, is what they say true? You actually did such a rebellious thing for a woman?"
An elder sitting in the center, whose benevolence was mixed with authority, was the longest-lived person in the Dongfang family. He was the previous generation's Dongfang Junze, named Zhou Tianqiong.
He advocated for a magnanimous household and was now one hundred and thirty-four years old.
He was only summoned when a major incident occurred in the Dongfang family.
Originally, this matter could have been managed by other elders, but as soon as Zhou Tianqiong heard that it involved Zhou Jinbai, he rushed over despite feeling unwell.
Zhou Jinbai was an exceptionally talented successor that the Dongfang family had encountered in centuries. Zhou Tianqiong did not want such a promising young man to be ruined.
"Rebellious? Heh? I regret it now. I regret not killing these two beasts." Zhou Jinbai was like a furious beast at this moment. His face was filled with fierce majesty, his scarlet eyes were sinister and cold, and the slightly upturned lips were filled with cruelty, making it impossible for anyone to meet his gaze.
If he killed them, no one would interfere with his search for Lin Xingwan!
He hadn't received any news of this woman for such a long time, and the anxious and irritable mood was driving him mad.