"Ai..."
Old Man Lu sighed deeply, truly unsure where to begin.
"There is something I have kept hidden in my heart for many years, something I have been unwilling to speak of. Today, I wish to tell you, my young couple."
Upon hearing this, Leng Ruo Li's lips curved into a faint smile.
"Grandpa Lu, please speak slowly. The Prince and I are both listening."
"Actually, I am the true Valley Master of Guigu, Lu Zongran. The current Valley Master of Guigu is a fake; he is my enemy."
As Lu Zongran spoke, the Leng King and his consort were instantly shocked. Subsequently, they exchanged a look.
Although neither of them spoke, their thoughts were aligned.
They had not expected that what Jun Mo Han had said was true; the current Guigu Valley Master was indeed problematic.
At this moment, Lu Zongran slowly began to recount the past.
"Twenty-two years ago, my daughter and I were in the mountains gathering herbs. On our way back to Guigu, we encountered a man lying unconscious on the road. When we approached the man, we were immediately startled. Half of his face was disfigured. Originally, I did not want to bother with him, but my daughter, with her kind heart, felt pity for the man. Thus, she pleaded with me to save him. Later, unable to refuse her, I carried the man back to the valley to treat him."
Lu Zongran took a breath and continued.
"At that time, I intended to use divination to cast a hexagram for the man. However, because I had previously helped others with divination and revealed too much of the heavenly secrets, my divination skills suffered a backlash, and I was unable to determine the man's fate. As a result, after the man recovered, he refused to leave Guigu. He also harbored feelings for my daughter. When my daughter rejected him, he became resentful and secretly incited the disciples in our valley to cause trouble, asking them to teach him medical skills."
"However, it is strange. This man truly had a talent for medicine. After only studying medicine for a few months, his understanding of medical principles surpassed that of my daughter and my disappointing disciples. Seeing his eagerness to learn, I lowered my guard and did not press him to leave. But… but…"
As Old Man Lu reached this point, his eyes suddenly turned red, with a hint of tears welling up.
"But one day, that beast, taking advantage of my absence from the valley, brought a group of people and poisoned my disciples to death. He also… he defiled and killed my daughter. I was enraged and fought with that beast on the spot…"
"Later, I was forced by him to jump off a cliff. I did not die, managing to escape with my life. From then on, I drowned my sorrows in wine, lived incognito. That beast also seized my Guigu, disguised himself to look like me, and became the Valley Master of Guigu, practicing medicine and deceiving people. As for me, due to my longing for my daughter, I took in an orphan girl who bore some resemblance to my daughter and kept her as my granddaughter. I then took her and wandered the world, even jumping off cliffs…"
Old Man Lu, choking back sobs, recounted his past to the Leng King and his consort.
Upon hearing this, the Leng King and his consort felt a deep sadness. They had never imagined that Old Man Lu carried such a tragic story.
They did not know how to comfort Old Man Lu.
"Grandpa Lu, please don't be too upset. We, as a couple, will help you deal with that beast…"
Before Leng Ruo Li could finish speaking, Old Man Lu raised his hand to interrupt her.
"I have come to you today not only to find that beast and exact revenge, but to expose his true face and prevent him from harming others."
Hearing this, the Leng King and his consort nodded in agreement.
The fake Guigu Valley Master had indeed been using Guigu's reputation to practice medicine and deceive people. Even Jun Mo Han had been poisoned by him for over a decade. The Chu family of Jiang City had their entire clan wiped out because of a piece of warm jade, all at the hands of this fake Guigu Valley Master.
The hands of this fake Guigu Valley Master were stained with blood, his sins were heinous, and they would not let him go.
After Old Man Lu finished recounting his past to Leng Ruo Li and Jun Mo Han, he returned to his courtyard to drink alone.
Meanwhile, the Leng King and his consort.
After Old Man Lu left, they came to the Wangfu's garden, chatting and strolling.
As they walked onto a small bridge by the artificial lake, they happened to see the Chu siblings passing by on a garden path.
Seeing them, Leng Ruo Li was reminded of the warm jade matter. Thus, she immediately called out to Chu Miaoling and Chu Ming Xuan.
"Miaoling, Ming Xuan, come here for a moment. We have something to tell you."
Leng Ruo Li called out to them with a smile.
Upon hearing Leng Ruo Li's call, the Chu siblings hurried over.
"Consort, what is it you need us for?"
Chu Ming Xuan laughed heartily, revealing a row of pearly white teeth. Although there was a hint of fatigue in his brows, his smile was genuine.
"I have something to tell you, my siblings. Let's go sit in that pavilion over there and talk."
Leng Ruo Li pointed to the pavilion on the small island in the center of the artificial lake.
"Alright! We will do as the Consort wishes."
The Chu siblings nodded.
Subsequently, the four of them slowly made their way to the pavilion in the center of the lake island and sat down.
Xing'er and Ling'er behind them quickly brought tea and some refreshments.
However, Chu Ming Xuan became impatient shortly after sitting down.
"Consort, please just say what you need to say. We still need to go back to the courtyard to move some medicinal herbs to the new clinic later. Time is of the essence."
"Alright, I will only take up about the time it takes an incense stick to burn," Leng Ruo Li promised.
Then, the Chu siblings looked at her with anticipation.
"We have found your Chu family's warm jade," Leng Ruo Li declared.
Upon hearing this, Chu Miaoling and Chu Ming Xuan's expressions instantly froze.
"Consort, is what you just said true? Did we hear correctly? You have found our Chu family's warm jade."
Chu Ming Xuan asked two questions in disbelief.
"It is true. The warm jade is currently in my possession."
As Leng Ruo Li spoke, she took out the warm jade she had picked up on the rooftop the night before last from her sleeve pocket and placed it in Chu Ming Xuan's hand.
Chu Ming Xuan picked up the warm jade in his hand and examined it closely. His heart was filled with mixed emotions, unsure whether to be happy or to cry.
"Sister, please verify if this warm jade is indeed the real warm jade."
Chu Ming Xuan, with red eyes, handed the warm jade in his hand to Chu Miaoling.
Chu Miaoling took the warm jade. Instead of examining it as closely as Chu Ming Xuan, she directly took a fine silver hairpin from her hair and forcefully pricked her finger, causing her blood to flow out.
As a result, a silver-white thread-like energy was soon drawn to the spot where Chu Miaoling's finger was pricked. In a short while, after absorbing the energy, the small wound healed at a visible rate.
The Leng King, his consort, and Chu Ming Xuan, who were watching, were all stunned by this sight.
Chu Miaoling waited until the small wound on her hand had completely healed before she slowly said, "Your Highness, Consort, little brother, this warm jade is truly the treasure of our Chu family."