After a sleepless night, I walked out of the warehouse the next morning. Seeing the rising sun, I stretched and let out a breath.
Finally, nothing else went wrong that night.
I took out my phone and called Yan Yuhe.
"Miss Yan, is Uncle Yan by your side?" I asked.
After a moment, Yan Yuhe's voice came from the other end: "Mm… he's by my side."
"Please let him listen to the phone."
There was silence on the line. After a few more seconds, Yan Yuhe said with a hint of crying, "Mr. Xiang… my dad can't take your call right now…"
I immediately sensed something was wrong and asked, "What happened to Uncle Yan?"
"He… he…"
Yan Yuhe stammered for a long time without saying anything coherent. Then she started crying, her choked sobs making it impossible to understand what she wanted to say. Finally, I heard someone nearby and told her to hand the phone to them.
A doctor answered. From him, I learned that Yan Hongguang was in the ICU ward.
When I heard this news, I was stunned.
From the doctor, I learned that Yan Hongguang had been in a car accident some time ago and suffered severe head trauma. It was uncertain whether he would survive.
After all the trouble I went through to bring the White Dragon Jade Horse back to Guangbei, this happened. I was incredibly frustrated.
If something happened to Yan Hongguang, wouldn't my father's matter come to a dead end?
I became agitated and lit a cigarette.
Fatty came up to me and asked what was wrong.
I looked at him, sighed, and told him about Yan Hongguang.
"What? Old Man Yan was in a car accident? What a coincidence?" Fatty said, "Mr. Xiang, isn't this like casting a net on a threshing ground, only to catch nothing?"
I said, "This matter is a bit strange. Let's meet with Yan Yuhe first to discuss it."
At a time when the Guanggu Association was selecting its president, Yan Hongguang had a car accident. This couldn't help but make one's mind wander.
And the group of people who came last night, were they really sent by Zhao Wei?
If they were sent by Zhao Wei, then who was pulling the strings behind Zhao Wei's actions?
My head was spinning. What was all this?
What a damn Guanggu Association. I had no interest in it now. All I wanted was to learn about my father from Yan Hongguang and then return to Guangling.
I wanted nothing to do with the affairs in Guangbei.
At noon, we met Yan Yuhe. She was extremely haggard, completely unrecognizable from her previous self. She had thick dark circles under her eyes, bloodshot eyes, and dry, cracked lips.
Honestly, if she hadn't been sitting in front of me, I would have thought she should have been in the ICU.
"Miss Yan, what exactly happened?" I asked.
She held a cup of tea with both hands, came back to her senses, and looked at me pitifully. After taking a sip of the tea, she slowly said, "The day after you left, my second brother was detained. My father took money to redeem him, but on the way back, the car's brakes failed, and the entire vehicle rolled into a ravine… By the time I got to the hospital, my father was already… already…"
At this point, she choked up. I sympathetically handed her a tissue, "Miss Yan, don't be too sad. Uncle Yan will surely be fine."
"Thank you…"
Seeing her like this, my heart sank.
Now it seemed that bringing the White Dragon Jade Horse back to Guangbei was in vain.
Still unwilling to give up, I asked, "When I left, did Uncle Yan tell you anything?"
She nodded, as if she had found a lifeline, and stared at me.
I was taken aback and said to Fatty beside me, "You and Brother Song wait for me outside the private room."
Fatty stood up, and he and Song Bing left the room.
When it was just Yan Yuhe and me in the room, I said, "Miss Yan, please tell me."
She took a deep breath, stabilized her emotions, and said, "When my father went to redeem my second brother, before he left, he told me that if anything happened to him, I must find you. Only you can help the Yan family."
"Find me? Help the Yan family? What do you mean?" I was confused.
Yan Yuhe sighed and said, "Mr. Xiang, do you remember the Water Moon Guanyin?"
If she hadn't mentioned it, I would have completely forgotten.
I nodded.
"The theft of the Water Moon Guanyin is a matter of great importance. All the blame is now pointed at the Yan family. Some say that our Yan family stole it ourselves, while others say that the Yan family never really had the Water Moon Guanyin, and it was all just a show…"
As she spoke, she took a newspaper from her bag and handed it to me.
I took it and glanced at it. Good heavens, it was filled with reports about the Yan family and the Water Moon Guanyin.
I don't have the habit of reading newspapers, so I had no idea about this matter.
"Does Uncle Yan mean for me to find the Water Moon Guanyin?" I tried to ask.
Yan Yuhe nodded, "As long as the Water Moon Guanyin is found, all this unfavorable public opinion towards the Yan family will disappear…"
"But what's the point of that?" I said, "Now Uncle Yan, he's…"
I originally wanted to say "half dead," but I thought it was inappropriate, so I said, "Now that Uncle Yan is in the ICU, even if this public opinion is quelled…"
Before I could finish, Yan Yuhe said, "No matter what happens to my father afterwards, if the Yan family collapses, he will not rest in peace."
"Miss Yan, what exactly do you want me to do to help your Yan family?"
This woman's words were clearly loaded. She had been beating around the bush for so long.
"Mr. Xiang, I hope that while you help the Yan family find the Water Moon Guanyin, you will also ensure that my father continues in his position as president of the Guanggu Association," Yan Yuhe said seriously.
"Uncle Yan, he's not…"
"He hasn't passed away yet, and he can still be the president."
I looked thoughtfully at Yan Yuhe, roughly understanding what she meant.
As long as Yan Hongguang remained president, the Yan family would still hold sway in Guangbei.
Even if Yan Hongguang didn't wake up, the Yan family's status would remain unchanged.
But wasn't this woman being a bit too wishful thinking?
The Yan family and I were, to put it bluntly, just acquaintances met by chance. Why would she think I would help her?
Or was she trying to gain my sympathy?
Besides, I wasn't the Monkey King. Why did she think I could handle all these matters for her?
The only reason I helped the Yan family find the White Dragon Jade Horse was to learn about my father's past.
Now that Yan Hongguang's fate was uncertain, did I still have a reason to continue this busy work?
It's not that I was cold-blooded, but the Yan family and I had no deep connection from beginning to end. At most, it could be considered a mutual transaction.
"Mr. Xiang…" Yan Yuhe took a deep breath and looked at me, "I know it's asking a lot for you to do so much for the Yan family, but now only you can help the Yan family…"
"Miss Yan, it's not that I don't want to help, it's that I don't know how to help."
A complex look flashed in Yan Yuhe's eyes, and she sighed, "Mr. Xiang, as long as you are willing to help the Yan family through this difficult time, I will give you my father's handwritten notes."
Just as I was about to ask why I would need the notes, she continued, "They contain the information you want to know… including everything about your father, it's all clearly written inside."
I was suddenly stunned, almost jumping out of my chair!