Chapter 240

As soon as Gu Yun finished speaking, the Bing Lian beside her shook violently. Gu Yun gently patted the scabbard, and it finally calmed down again.

Su Qing was still earnestly brewing the tea in his hands and asked casually, "And the second thing?"

Gu Yun hesitated for a moment before saying frankly, "I want to take a look at the Su family clan emblem."

Su Qing's hand holding the teapot paused. He looked up and asked, "Why are you so interested in the clan emblem?"

Gu Yun hadn't thought of how to answer for a moment, but she didn't want to lie, so she lowered her head slightly. After she remained silent for a long time, Su Qing suddenly asked, "Do you want to use it to go back?"

Gu Yun looked up as if struck by lightning, her clear eyes fixed on the old man before her. How did he know she wanted to rely on the Bagua Disk to go back?

Su Qing smiled indifferently, "The Su family has a legend passed down for a thousand years, but only the Clan Leader can know it. Ling is the next Clan Leader, so he knows it too, but he has never believed it."

Gu Yun pressed, "What legend?"

"Have you noticed that there are almost no women in the Su family?"

The topic Su Qing suddenly shifted made Gu Yun pause for a moment. Thinking back, it did seem to be the case. Almost everyone they traveled with was male, and even upon arriving at the ancestral residence, the women she saw were all aunts or grand-aunts; she really hadn't seen any daughters of the Su family.

Su Qing shook his head gently, his words full of helplessness, "Ever since the incident with Bing Lian and Chi Xue over a thousand years ago, the Su family has almost never given birth to daughters. Even if they managed to have one, she would easily die young; almost none reached adulthood. And the men of the Su family mostly die on the battlefield. Perhaps this is the punishment for the Su family."

How could this be? Gu Yun frowned slightly, but she hadn't forgotten that Su Qing hadn't finished telling her what the legend was. "Does this have to do with the legend?"

"The legend says that one day, the clan emblem will bring a person to the Su family. She will break all the seals and end the punishment heaven has placed on the Su family." Su Qing's eyes, full of wisdom and hope, remained fixed on her. Gu Yun knew without guessing that he was talking about her. So, the reason she had inexplicably come to this place was indeed because of the power of the Bagua Disk.

Gu Yun was somewhat angry. By what right did it bring her to this place without her consent to break these so-called seals for their Su family?

Gu Yun's expression suddenly turned very cold. Su Qing sighed softly, picked up the tea in front of her that was gradually cooling, poured it into the grass beside them, and poured her another cup of hot tea before saying calmly, "You are the person brought by the clan emblem. If you want to go back through it, I will also find a way to help you get your wish."

"I—" Su Qing saying this actually surprised Gu Yun. In truth, she didn't really want to go back; she just wanted to clear up the truth of the matter.

Su Qing lowered his voice and replied with a faint smile, "He is here. Think it through, then come find me again."

Gu Yun wanted to say something else, but the courtyard door had already been pushed open. Su Ling's tall figure appeared outside. Seeing the two of them sitting opposite each other, sipping tea and chatting, looking like they were having a pleasant conversation, Su Ling snorted, "How come I didn't know you two were so close?" It had made him search for a long time, thinking she had gone missing.

It hadn't been long since they last saw each other, yet he was this anxious. Su Qing waved his hand and said, "Alright, take her away."

Su Ling grabbed Gu Yun's hand and said excitedly, "I'll take you to a place."

Gu Yun glanced at Su Qing opposite her, but Su Qing had already turned his gaze toward the distant peaks and was no longer looking at them.

"Then we'll be going first." Gu Yun nodded politely to Su Qing before leaving with Su Ling.

As the two walked further and further away, Su Qing sighed low. If that girl still wanted to leave in the end, what would Ling do?

Su Ling pulled Gu Yun and ran wildly all the way, not saying where they were going. Along the way, she only heard the sound of rushing water getting louder and louder. By the time Gu Yun was running until she was almost exhausted, Su Ling finally stopped. Just as Gu Yun was about to curse him for being crazy and running her half to death, Su Ling suddenly pointed ahead, signaling her to look. Gu Yun turned back to look and was immediately captivated by the beautiful scenery before her.

They were located on a solitary peak. In front of them was a lush, layered expanse of green peaks. A large waterfall, at least a hundred meters high, poured down from between the verdant mountain peaks. The rushing water crashed against the mountain rocks, stirring up countless tiny water droplets. It was currently sunset, and against the backdrop of the rosy clouds, mist swirled and a fine rain filled the air. The setting sun's afterglow dyed the mist, and from a distance, it looked like a beautiful landscape painting—majestic and vast, yet not lacking in enchanting scenery! Gu Yun couldn't help but exclaim, "So beautiful!"

Su Ling smiled, "Watching the sunset here is the most beautiful." He had guessed she would definitely like it.

Only after he mentioned it did Gu Yun notice the sun was sinking bit by bit below the mountains. No wonder he had been in such a rush just now; he was afraid they wouldn't make it in time to see the sunset. Gu Yun coughed lightly and replied awkwardly, "I was talking about the waterfall." She had been so captivated by the majestic waterfall and the sea of green that she really hadn't noticed the sunset.

"You like the waterfall?"

Gu Yun nodded; it was truly too beautiful.

His hand gently wrapped around Gu Yun's waist, pulling her into his embrace. Su Ling whispered in her ear with a smile, "Then when we are old, we will build a small wooden house here, so you can watch the waterfall and the sunset every day."

Amidst the rushing sound of water, the deep male voice rang out gently in her ear. Gu Yun stiffened all over, "When we are old..." Could she and he grow old together?

Gu Yun's body was so stiff that even Su Ling felt something was wrong. He turned her around, his dark eyes fixed on Gu Yun's clear ones, and asked in a deep voice, "You don't want to grow old with me?"

The man before her, who was usually so proud and domineering, now looked at her with eyes full of undisguised panic, and the hand around her waist was actually trembling slightly. Qing had said she couldn't let go of Lou Xiyan, so what about her? Could she let go of Su Ling?

The scene of him lying on the deck covered in blood suddenly flashed through her mind. Even thinking about it now, her heart still ached. She cared about this man; she had long since been unable to let him go. Since that was the case, why persist in struggling over whether to leave or stay? Her heart suddenly became clear at this moment.

Gu Yun raised a brilliant smile. She met Su Ling's embrace, hugged his waist tightly, and replied firmly, "I want to grow old with you!" Her heart couldn't let him go, and she didn't want to let him go either!

This time it was Su Ling's turn to be stunned. Looking down at the woman who was actively burrowing into his arms for the first time, Su Ling asked with some concern, "What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing, just let me hold you like this for a while." After confirming her own heart, she really felt very relieved!

Su Ling smiled with understanding, "So you prefer to take the initiative to hold me." No wonder she was always unhappy when he held her.

Her body stiffened once again. Releasing her hands, Gu Yun looked up and glared fiercely at Su Ling.

Su Ling looked baffled. Gu Yun sighed helplessly; fine, Su Ling would never know what she was thinking!

Since she had decided to stay, Gu Yun didn't intend to lie to him anymore. Pulling his hand, Gu Yun said frankly, "I went to find the Clan Leader just now because I wanted to find a way to help Chi Xue and Bing Lian. He told me the legend of your Su family."

"I heard that legend a long time ago. It's been passed down for over a thousand years and I've never seen the clan emblem bring anyone. It's probably just a story made up by our ancestors to comfort their descendants." After he came of age, the Clan Leader had told him about that rumor, but he had never taken it seriously.

"What if it's not a story?" Gu Yun looked at Su Ling and said earnestly, "I am the person brought by the clan emblem."

"What?" Su Ling still had a look of disbelief.

Gu Yun guessed he wouldn't believe it easily and sighed softly, "All along, you must have been curious. The rumored Qing Mo was a refined lady proficient in all the arts, so why am I a rough woman who loves to wield swords and practice military drills? That's because—I am not Qing Mo."

"You are not Qing Mo? Then why do you have the character 'Mo' on your body?" It wasn't that he hadn't doubted her identity, but he had indeed verified it himself; there really was a "Mo" character on her chest.

Remembering his rude behavior last time, Gu Yun's face turned a bit red, "This body is Qing Mo's, but I am not her. I was originally called Gu Yun, a criminal police officer—what you call a constable here. I was investigating a case at the time, and the Bagua Disk happened to be one of the pieces of evidence. I was just holding it and playing with it when I inexplicably fainted. When I woke up, I was in this body, lying on your bed."

Su Ling had been listening to her words earnestly. After a long time, he asked, "You mean to say that Qing Mo died on the way to Qiongyue, and you are actually a soul inhabiting a corpse?"

A soul inhabiting a corpse? It sounded too terrifying, but in theory, that was indeed what it was. Gu Yun smiled bitterly, "You can understand it that way."

After hearing Gu Yun's words, Su Ling's expression suddenly darkened. The hand around Gu Yun's waist tightened, and he said in a cold voice, "You were so interested in the clan emblem because you wanted to leave?"

"I was at first." Before Gu Yun could finish, she felt pain in her waist again and hurriedly continued, "But just now someone said they wanted to help me build a wooden house by the waterfall, so I changed my mind, because I want to grow old with him in that wooden house."

Su Ling snorted, "Really?"

"Really!" Gu Yun immediately promised.

Finally, the hand around her waist loosened. Gu Yun secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Su Ling's chuckling voice rang in her ear, "You are too easily satisfied."

"Su Ling, you're asking for a beating!"

On top of the solitary peak, the two adults chased and laughed like children.

That evening, Gu Yun and Su Ling appeared before Su Qing again. Seeing their hands still clasped together, Su Qing smiled, "Have you decided?"

Gu Yun nodded and smiled, "Yes, I don't want to go back, but I want to help Bing Lian and Chi Xue. What should I do?"

"The day before the sacrifice is the day of extreme Yin, and the Su family mausoleum is the place of extreme Yin. Tomorrow night at the hour of the Rat, you and Ling bring Bing Lian and Chi Xue to the mausoleum to wait for me." She had finally stayed after all. Su Qing breathed a sigh of relief.

"Alright." Those two children were truly too pitiful; hopefully, this time they could really help them!

The next night, Gu Yun and Su Ling arrived at the Su family mausoleum very early. Although it was called a mausoleum, it was actually a mountain cave.

(End of chapter)