Chapter 16: Gu Yan, You Really Are Something

Gu Yan picked up her teacup, using the act of drinking tea to mask her expression as her brain raced.

"I went to see a doctor," she lied without changing her expression. "A friend recommended a very skilled traditional Chinese medicine doctor, said to be exceptional at regulating one's constitution."

As she spoke, she gently rubbed her temples, putting on a display of frailty and exhaustion.

Yang Bing didn't know whether to believe her or not. "Oh, and what did they find?"

Gu Yan immediately perked up, sat up straight, and began counting off on her fingers: "Deficiency of cold in the spleen and stomach, insufficient Qi and blood, stagnation of liver Qi..."

Before she could finish, Yang Bing was already filled with heartache, having completely forgotten about interrogating her for staying out all night.

"So serious? What did the doctor say? How should it be treated?"

Gu Yan rubbed her nose. "It's not that serious, I just need to recuperate slowly."

Yang Bing frowned slightly, still uneasy. "There's an old traditional Chinese medicine doctor on your grandfather's side, I heard his ancestors were imperial physicians in the palace. Should I have him come over to take a look at you?"

"There's no need... I've already invited that Dr. Zhou to stay at home for a while, Zhong Bo has already taken people to get her settled."

Yang Bing mused, "That works too, then let her handle the treatment for now."

"Mm-hmm." Gu Yan took the opportunity to lean on her mother's shoulder and act spoiled.

Standing to the side, Gu Lin witnessed this smooth, flowing performance and couldn't help but snort.

He received a sharp look from his mother.

After Yang Bing finished admonishing Gu Yan and rose to go to the kitchen to personally instruct the servants to prepare a lunch suitable for Gu Yan's constitution, the living room was temporarily left with only the siblings.

Gu Lin immediately plopped down onto the sofa. "My legs are sore from standing."

Little Princess Gu held the tea her mother had brewed, sipping it slowly, ignoring him.

Gu Lin rubbed his aching legs, his eyes fixed on Gu Yan, as if he wanted to stare a hole through her.

"What are you looking at?"

"What do you think?"

Gu Yan felt completely uncomfortable under his gaze, so she set down her teacup and took the initiative. "I'm warning you, Gu Lin, not a single word about last night is to be told to Mom, Dad, or Big Brother."

She narrowed her eyes. "Otherwise, I'll tell them about how you insisted on dragging me street racing and ended up making me throw up."

Gu Lin: "..."

He hadn't even said anything yet.

"And," Gu Yan didn't give him a chance to speak, continuing rapidly, "you aren't allowed to ask about Shen Yanhui, or ask any related questions."

"Otherwise, I'll spill the beans about how you secretly took that Lu Yanshao imitation Dad treasures and pawned it for sports car parts!"

Gu Lin: "............"

He looked at his younger sister before him, who wore a "I'm super fierce" expression but whose earlobes were actually bright red.

A breath caught in his chest. "Gu Yan, you really are something."

——

Shen Yanhui stood before the floor-to-ceiling window, his back straight, head bowed as he adjusted his cufflinks.

Chang Su approached quietly. "The Third Young Master has already entered the Ancestral Hall. The Old Master... didn't ask much, only said for you to go back for tea when you have time."

"Mm." Shen Yanhui responded, his gaze unmoved.

The Ancestral Hall was the most respectable form of punishment, and the Old Master's silence was the most explicit form of acquiescence.

The rules of the Shen Family had long since been rewritten by him.

"Regarding Boss Han, the land transfer is proceeding smoothly. He conceded three points of profit for our next shipping collaboration," Chang Su continued.

"Note it down. Press for five points in the next negotiation."

"Yes." Chang Su replied in a low voice, then added, "Young Master Zhou is urging you."

Zhou Wei had just returned from Myanmar after playing with jade and insisted on having his brothers help him look at the jade. He specifically instructed Shen Yanhui that he must attend.

The top floor of Danyuetai, east side private banquet hall.

This place was not open to the public and had excellent privacy; it was a private room Zhou Wei kept specifically for his brothers.

When Shen Yanhui pushed the door open and entered, Zhou Wei was standing by a long table, holding a high-intensity flashlight, carefully examining several uncarved raw stones on a velvet cloth.

Sheng Ze was lazily leaning back in an antelope-skin sofa to the side, a glass of wine between his fingers, looking on with interest.

There were two other old friends of similar family background sitting idly and whispering in the hall. Seeing Shen Yanhui enter, they both stopped talking and nodded.

"Yanhui, you've come just in time!" Zhou Wei didn't look up, only beckoned, his tone filled with excitement. "New items from the old mines in Northern Myanmar, help me judge them."

Shen Yanhui handed his coat to a waiter, his expression indifferent.

"Just these?" He stood still by the table.

"Don't underestimate them." Zhou Wei picked up a palm-sized piece with a tight, grayish-white rind and brought it closer. "Look at this Pine Flower, this Python Belt! I dare say, it's guaranteed to have Ice Variety Floating Flower inside!"

Shen Yanhui took it and weighed it in his palm. He didn't use the flashlight, only borrowed the overhead light to look.

His fingers were long and clean, and holding the rough raw stone gave him a unique aesthetic appeal.

A moment later, he placed the stone back on the velvet. "The quality is passable, but the color doesn't go deep, and the cotton will be more prominent than you think."

Zhou Wei was taken aback, then picked up the flashlight to look closely, muttering, "That can't be... this appearance..."

Sheng Ze laughed from the sofa. "There, Third Young Master Zhou, just admit defeat. If Yanhui says the cotton is heavy, it's ninety percent likely to be full of cotton wool when cut."

Another friend also leaned in and laughed, "Young Master Zhou, looks like you've paid your tuition fees again?"

Zhou Wei was unconvinced and handed over another piece. "Then what about this one? This one should definitely have good color, right?"

This time, Shen Yanhui looked at it for a few moments longer, held the flashlight close, and observed the light halo.

He put down the flashlight and lightly tapped the densest part of the Pine Flower with his fingertip. "Here, the color root, but it doesn't go deeper than two or three millimeters, and the base is likely to be grayish."

Zhou Wei was skeptical, but in his heart, he already believed it seven or eight parts.

"The material itself isn't bad." Shen Yanhui took a hot towel offered by a waiter to wipe his hands. "It's enough to make some small ornaments."

"Only you could call something worth seven figures 'small ornaments'." Sheng Ze smiled.

Shen Yanhui sat down lazily on the single sofa, his gaze sweeping over the long table with indifference.

He passed over the Black Wusha and the Yellow Salt Sand.

His gaze stopped on an inconspicuous raw stone, the size of a fist, with a dark yellowish-brown rind covered in fine, dense wrinkles.

"That one," he said, lifting his chin.

Zhou Wei looked in the direction of his gaze and raised an eyebrow: "This one? It's very ordinary; I almost forgot about it."

Although he said that, he still picked it up and handed it over.

Shen Yanhui took it.

The stone felt warm and smooth in his hand, the rind was aged and weathered, and deep within the wrinkles, a tiny, almost invisible trace of green Pine Flower was revealed.

He did not use a flashlight.

He simply held it up to the overhead light and slowly rotated the stone.

"How much did you pay for it?" he asked.

Zhou Wei stated a number, which was not high. "Why, is there something special about it?"

Shen Yanhui did not answer. He rubbed his fingertips over the rough rind, feeling the direction of that faint, elusive Pine Flower.

"This piece," he finally spoke, his tone flat, "sell it to me. Have Chang Su transfer the money to your account."

Zhou Wei and Sheng Ze exchanged a look.

"What, are you going to 'borrow flowers to offer to Buddha' again, to give to your little rose?"

Shen Yanhui did not deny it.

He lowered his head and continued to fiddle with the raw stone.

The coarse, gritty rind made his fingers appear even colder, whiter, and more slender.

He imagined what it would look like once cut: translucent as ice, with a vibrant, lively splash of sunny green. If carved into a pendant, it would hang against her slender, fragile neck.

Ice-green pressed against snow-white skin.

It would certainly be a perfect match.

Zhou Wei clicked his tongue, a playful smile on his face: "I heard someone played the hero to save the beauty last night, and today you're rushing to give her a stone."

"That little girl from the Gu Family is very delicate. Don't scare her with this routine of yours."

Shen Yanhui finally gave him a look.

"I won't," he said with a firm tone.

With that lawless temper of hers, which was practically enough to poke a hole in the sky, could she be scared by this?

"What about the old man?" Zhou Wei raised an eyebrow.

"Does it need an explanation?" Shen Yanhui countered, his eyes calm and still.

Zhou Wei laughed in spite of himself and shook his head.

That was right; when Shen Yanhui did things, he didn't need to explain himself to anyone.