Chapter 169: Snow Mountain Jadeite

Su Ruo and the others quickly arrived at the Ice Cellar; Si Yannian didn't know what he said to the steward, but the steward only glanced at Su Ruo and them, then let them in.

At the moment the heavy door of the underground cold storage opened, Su Ruo and the others instantly felt a bone-chilling cold.

At this time, the scorching summer heat and the freezing chill inside the cold storage formed a stark contrast, practically a world of ice and fire.

The steward gave each of Su Ruo and the others a military overcoat to wear.

But even so, after Su Ruo and the others went inside, they were still shivering from the cold.

The only good news was that the Snake Gu inside Madam's body finally settled down and fell into a sleep.

Si Yannian then brought cotton pants, cotton shoes, hats, blankets, and a hand warmer for Su Ruo and the others to keep warm; with these, Su Ruo and the others were finally not so cold.

Because the night was too long, they chatted, and Su Ruo then learned that Guan Yue was actually an orphan.

She had been abandoned by her parents since childhood and raised by her master; because her master was a Daoist, Guan Yue had followed him to travel everywhere since she was young, they had no fixed abode, often spending time in the mountains.

Later, Guan Yue's master felt that his disciple shouldn't live a solitary life like him, but should have more contact with the outside world; coincidentally, the state had reopened the College Entrance Exam, so he encouraged Guan Yue to take it.

Although these years Guan Yue had traveled with her master, her master never gave up on her studies, which enabled Guan Yue to enter university and see the outside world.

Si Yannian also shared some funny stories from his childhood; although it was cold, the atmosphere among them was still fairly harmonious.

Su Ruo and the others stayed in the cold storage like that, enduring the whole night until dawn, before they came out.

Since the Snake Gu only flares up at night and naturally recedes by day, this also gave Su Ruo and the others a chance to catch their breath.

But if they could never find a way to eradicate the Snake Gu, Su Ruo and Madam would have to spend every night in the Ice Cellar; in the short term it would be fine, but over time their bodies surely couldn't endure it.

Su Ruo felt some worry; her own body was unlike ordinary people's, so she wasn't afraid, but she worried that Madam couldn't withstand it—Madam's body was inherently weak, and over time this would surely let cold invade her system and leave a lasting illness.

Their current behavior was undoubtedly drinking poison to quench thirst, and besides this, there was simply no better solution.

Guan Yue advised, "Don't worry too much; I'll study it further when I go back—maybe there will be another solution."

Su Ruo nodded, and no matter what, she would remember Guan Yue's favor today and would surely find a way to repay it.

Si Yannian first sent Guan Yue back to school, then sent Su Ruo and the others back to the Small Courtyard.

After Madam woke up, she seemed to have completely forgotten what had happened the previous night, knowing nothing about prior events.

Su Ruo also tried asking Madam a few questions about Guihua, but Madam only replied with a naive, innocent smile; after several attempts, Su Ruo gave up.

Su Ruo spent her days in the Small Courtyard and nights accompanying Madam to the Ice Cellar; this routine continued for three days, after which Guan Yue came to find Su Ruo, excitedly saying she had found a way to suppress the Snake Gu.

Guan Yue feared Su Ruo wouldn't understand, so she took out an ancient text, pointed to the complicated characters, and said to Su Ruo:

It is recorded here that on the peak of the Snow Mountain, a kind of jadeite is produced; this jadeite forms over a thousand years and is also called ice jade by the world, belonging to the utmost yin and cold thing in the world.

If we can obtain it, perhaps it can suppress the Snake Gu inside your Madam's body.

Su Ruo looked gratefully at Guan Yue; as long as she could save Madam, even if there was only a one-in-ten-thousand chance, she would try.

Si Yannian immediately said, "I'll have someone inquire about it right away."

Si Yannian was gone for several hours, and when he returned, his complexion was not good.

Su Ruo had long known that ice jade was rare, so even if Si Yannian couldn't find it, she could understand.

But Si Yannian said, "This ice jade should be in Song Jingyu's possession."

According to the information Si Yannian received, Song Jingyu had once accidentally obtained a piece of ice jade while carrying out a mission on the Snow Mountain; later someone had offered a high price to buy it, but Song Jingyu refused to sell.

If it weren't unavoidable, Si Yannian wouldn't want Su Ruo to have too much involvement with Song Jingyu, because Song Jingyu's work was too dangerous, and his sister being with him might suffer collateral damage.

Su Ruo's eyes lit up; if Song Jingyu had ice jade, she thought she could borrow it for use, worst case she could give Song Jingyu some extra money as compensation.

Su Ruo immediately found the note Song Jingyu had left when he departed, and placed a call.

The phone rang three times before someone answered; Su Ruo explained the situation to the caller, then hung up.

Su Ruo thought Song Jingyu would come looking for her, but she didn't expect his action to be so swift.

Su Ruo heard a knock at the door, went to open the gate, and saw Song Jingyu leaning against the wall in the afterglow of the setting sun.

At that moment, golden sunlight poured over Song Jingyu's body, making his already handsome and upright appearance even more dazzling; inexplicably, Su Ruo's heartbeat quickened a little.

Song Jingyu looked exhausted, as if he hadn't slept well for days; he leaned wearily against the wall, which added a touch of roguishness to his demeanor.

Upon seeing Su Ruo, Song Jingyu directly tossed her a bag; Su Ruo opened it and found inside exactly the ice jade she had wanted.

Su Ruo hadn't expected that Song Jingyu would ask nothing and simply hand over such a precious item so easily.

Just as Su Ruo was about to thank him, Song Jingyu said, "This is your thanks for healing my leg."

When Su Ruo tried to speak again, Song Jingyu had already walked away.

Su Ruo hurriedly shouted after his back, "I'll return it to you after I'm done using it."

But Song Jingyu didn't care at all, waving his hand at her; obviously he didn't place this piece of jade worth a fortune in his heart.

Song Jingyu got into the green car parked at Xiangzi Kou, and someone immediately teased him, "Boss, is that young lady your sister-in-law? For something so important, you didn't need to come yourself—just give us a word."

Song Jingyu shot a glance at that person, who then dared not say anything.

The car started, and even Song Jingyu's lips curled slightly; he himself wasn't sure, but although he had finished his mission and had gone three days without sleep, upon hearing Su Ruo's message he insisted on delivering it himself, as if just to see her once.

After Su Ruo saw Song Jingyu off, she immediately took the ice jade inside, placed it on Madam, and carefully observed Madam's condition.

As the sky gradually darkened and night fell, Madam showed no abnormality; Su Ruo couldn't help but let out a great sigh of relief—this ice jade really worked.

Having settled Madam's affair, the stone weighing on Su Ruo's heart finally fell to the ground, but she still hadn't given up searching for Guihua; however, after Guihua fled, she seemed to have vanished from the world, leaving no trace.

At the same time, Su Ruo also faced her final exams; because she had to go take them, she could only temporarily entrust Madam's care to Si Yannian.

Without any surprise, from the moment Su Ruo stepped through the school gate, she encountered mockery and ridicule from those around her.

These people, who had once envied her for being able to become Yan Jiu's disciple, now belittled her all the more, wishing they could rush forward and kick her a few times.

Someone couldn't help but remark sarcastically, "Missing so many classes, yet you dare to take the exam—do you really think you're a genius? Who knows what ridiculous score you'll get when the grades come out."

Immediately someone echoed, "Just as we thought she'd be amazing, she's not even been expelled yet—if I were her, I'd have long since crawled into a crack in the ground; how can she still have the face to appear here?"