Chapter 643

After all, the situation is not yet clear.

"Having lived here for a few years, these past two years I've increasingly regretted building this place so large," Chen Lao and Gu Lao lamented.

He was not in a wheelchair today, but was leaning on a cane.

He did not walk fast, yet he began to pant after walking for perhaps not long at all.

Being with Gu Lao, he looked more than ten years older than Gu Lao.

In fact, Chen Lao is several years younger than Gu Lao.

Gu Lao felt a soreness in his heart; in his memories, little Chen was still a handsome young man, charging about all day long. The memories felt as if they were from yesterday. During video calls, he hadn't felt it as strongly, but seeing him in person now truly made one sigh with emotion.

They were all old now.

"It's not so bad; it's just that few people live here, so it appears large. The scenery here is truly quite good," Gu Lao chatted with Chen Lao.

Shu Xia, meanwhile, was observing her surroundings unobtrusively.

When they first met Chen Lao, Gu Lao had only introduced her as an employee on his team.

Therefore, no one was paying much attention to her now, which allowed her to observe the surroundings carefully instead.

After entering the villa, one could see the scene inside.

Various collectibles were hung and displayed everywhere.

Although Chen Lao did not hire many servants, he had installed a security system and there were security guards present.

The people in the county were relatively simple and honest, and no one dared to come over to cause trouble.

It was evident that Chen Lao was very fond of collecting.

Shu Xia happened to spot an inconspicuous ornament.

It was just a small porcelain ornament in the shape of a phoenix.

It was not of modern craftsmanship.

Because the villa was large and had many items, it was very easy to overlook.

"It's just a small ornament; if you like it, you can take it," Chen Lao said with a smile upon seeing Shu Xia's gaze.

The small ornament was not worth much; while it might be a bit shabby as a gift for a junior upon a first meeting, if it was something the junior liked, then it was worth more than its price.

Gu Lao immediately looked toward the ornament, then looked at Shu Xia with an inquiring gaze.

Shu Xia smiled and said thank you to Chen Lao, then declined, "This is an old object and very expensive; I cannot accept it."

Then she gave a subtle nod toward Gu Lao.

The problem indeed lay with this small ornament.

A small ornament that was very easily overlooked.

"Where did you buy this?" Gu Lao asked Chen Lao.

Just as Chen Lao was about to say something, he heard Gu Lao's question and answered with a smile: "When I went abroad more than two years ago to bid on that painting, a friend gave it to me. I felt a connection to it at the time and felt embarrassed to refuse, so I accepted it."

"A friend? Do I know them?" Gu Lao asked again.

Chen Lao didn't think much of it, "You probably don't know him. I only knew him for a few days; we hit it off quite well at the time and bid on quite a few things together at that auction. We lost contact after returning to the country."

"So that's how it is. Then this porcelain must have been his deliberate doing—he specifically approached you just to give it to you," Gu Lao narrowed his eyes, his expression gradually turning grave.

Chen Lao was momentarily stunned, "What? Deliberate? This ornament shouldn't be worth much; why go to such lengths to give it to me?"

As soon as the question left his lips, he suddenly realized something.

His expression changed abruptly, "Does Brother Gu mean that there is a problem with this ornament? Could it be... could it be that the things that have happened to our family these past two years are all related to it?"

"It seems... it really was after returning from abroad that things started happening in the family one after another. We've looked for so many people to come and take a look, and none of them could see anything. How did Brother Gu see it?"

Gu Lao shook his head with a grave expression, "It wasn't me who saw it; it was Xia Xia who saw it. She is the disciple Zhong Jiejie has raised since childhood."

The mention of Zhong Jiejie.

Made Chen Lao's eyes widen more and more.