Chapter 386: An Old Friend Returns

Seeing her expression, I immediately knew I had guessed correctly. I sighed inwardly, thinking: after all the twists and turns, here we are.

I had actually realized this earlier; the surname Huo wasn't that common, but at the time I always thought Old Mrs. Huo's daughter would take her father's surname. That is, Old Mrs. Huo became the female head only because there happened to be no male candidate in this generation. The next head of the Huo family should have been a man. I never expected the Huo family to be a matrilineal clan.

Just now, when she said her daughter suddenly disappeared while participating in an archaeological expedition, I immediately thought of Third Uncle's Xisha expedition. At the same time, a situation struck me: Old Mrs. Huo's surname is Huo, and among those who disappeared in Xisha, there was a woman named Huo Ling, the daughter of a high-ranking official. Plus, the leader of the Guangxi archaeological team back then was Chen Wenjin. All these clues pointed to one conclusion.

In any other setting, I might have just thought it was a coincidence, but amid this tangled web of relationships, I suddenly realized something was off. I didn't expect that when I asked, it turned out exactly as I had imagined.

Old Madam Huo suddenly getting involved in this matter seemed unexpected, but it was actually inevitable, though she might not be as deeply entangled as I am.

So that means Huo Ling, like my Third Uncle, is also a descendant of the Old Nine Gates. Add Xie Lianhuan, and that makes three. What exactly was the composition of that Xisha archaeological team? Then my thoughts started to wander even more. I realized it wasn't just Huo Ling; Chen Wenjin also seemed to share the same surname as Chenpi A'si. Is Chenpi A'si surnamed Chen, or is he called Chenpi for some other reason? (Honestly, thinking of his appearance, he did look a bit like aged dried tangerine peel.) But he probably wasn't that old decades ago. Chenpi A'si must have some connection to the Chen surname.

Chen Wenjin, Chenpi A'si.

Huo Ling, Old Mrs. Huo.

Wu Sansheng, Wu Laogou.

Xie Lianhuan, Master Xie Jiu.

Is this a coincidence? Xie Lianhuan and Third Uncle have a deep relationship; they were closely connected long before everything started. It's not strange that they both ended up on the same archaeological team. But Huo Ling—I always thought she was an outsider in this whole affair. That even she is a descendant of the Old Nine Gates—can that be a coincidence? If she were a descendant of a southern grave robber or a northern mountain walker, maybe it could be explained, because in archaeology, one usually needs some family background to get into the field back then. But to be a direct descendant of the same Old Nine Gates clan—

There's a problem. Definitely a problem.

I suddenly remembered that Poker-face wasn't exactly a pushover either. Ten people on a team, five with mysterious backgrounds. It seemed the remaining ones, Li Si and the others, weren't all that simple either. "Third Uncle" told me back then that this team was supposedly formed by chance—clearly that wasn't the truth.

Several possibilities flashed through my mind. First, maybe the archaeological research institute back then was actually a joint-stock venture of the Old Nine Gates, essentially their own business. Second, perhaps the descendants of these people all chose archaeology as a career and, because of the regional factor in Changsha, ended up together. Or third, most likely, due to "some project," these powerful underground families were using archaeology as a cover for official criminal activities.

My mind raced. Once a big piece of the puzzle fell into place, the next step felt uncertain. I scratched my head, not wanting the joy of sudden enlightenment to fade so quickly, but then the old lady asked me, "How do you know all this?"

I shook my head: "My grandfather rarely talks about your past. As for how I know these things, I'm really at a loss. Ma'am, I think it's fate that the two of us have met today. How about we talk somewhere more private? I need to tell you something related to your daughter."

The old lady's eyes suddenly flickered. She looked at me incredulously. "What did you say?"

I said earnestly, "I think we should sit down and have a good chat. It might take a while."

The old lady's face turned cold. "Kid, don't talk nonsense. I can take other jokes, but if you're joking about this, I'll make sure you never leave this door."

I didn't have the energy to play word games with her. Thinking we weren't in some period drama, I said, "Let's skip the nonsense. Once I'm done, I reckon you'll be the one tying me down if I try to leave."

She looked at me, unable to figure out what my angle was. After a moment's thought, she immediately signaled for me to follow her. So I followed her out of the room, all the way to the backyard. I didn't know where we were going. The old lady shot me a glare. "This way!"

Fatty and Poker-face were still hanging out in the yard. Fatty was idly observing something that looked like orchids. I felt it wasn't quite appropriate, so I said to the old lady, "My two friends also know about these things. Can they come in too? They can fill in some details."

The old lady clearly didn't have the mind to quibble over details, so she nodded. I whistled to Fatty, then followed the old lady into the living room. The living room was very large, a typical siheyuan living room. It hadn't been renovated much; the furnishings were old and looked a bit plain. But anyone in the know would realize that such a courtyard house in Beijing these days was worth a fortune—especially one with history. The house must have been renovated before, otherwise it wouldn't be so sturdy. But the renovations were done in an antique style, which cost a fortune and also indicated the house had a background. I even saw some carved beams and painted rafters on the lintel, which looked a bit like the Forbidden City. Fatty kept exclaiming in admiration.

Anyway, to cut a long story short, I was only slightly surprised. Without time to flatter, once I sat down, I immediately divulged everything I had experienced, telling the whole story.

Because some of the early details weren't related to the Huo family, the old lady was a bit impatient but held it in. I talked for a full hour. I left out only the part about Huo Ling turning into a banshee. I told her everything, and it was quite abbreviated. After listening, the old lady showed no reaction, just a gloomy expression. I had expected her to be very agitated, but surprisingly, she remained calm.

Maybe she was shocked into numbness, I thought. So I said on my own, "Ma'am, I originally planned to keep these matters as much as possible from spreading, because I don't know what's really going on. But seeing you like this reminded me of my Third Uncle. Even though I don't know who he really is, I know his pain is real. So I couldn't bear to hide this from you. Your daughter is likely no longer alive. In Guangxi, she was killed."

The old lady didn't speak. She frowned at me.

"I believe the one who returned from Guangxi was not your daughter. The reason you felt something off about her was that she was disguised by someone else. And when you talked to her, the feeling you got that there was another person in her room was because she herself was the one hiding in the room," I blurted out my conclusion. "The person who came back from Guangxi kept herself locked in her room. She was already an adult. As long as she avoided any intimate contact or lengthy conversations with you, you wouldn't have a chance to recognize her," I said.

"Wait!" Fatty spoke up from the side. "Holy crap, are you saying that Huo Ling from the Xisha expedition is fake? She's not Huo Ling?"

I nodded, thinking that she certainly wasn't the only one. I didn't know how many people in the Xisha team were from the Guangxi Zhangjia Lou project; even Wenjin could be fake. Damn, it was a scheme within a scheme.

"Why do that?" Fatty asked in surprise. "What was the goal?"

"Clearly, there were two forces playing games. One force used this method to insert their people into the other force," I said.

Third Uncle back then was really lucky. What he and Xie Lianhuan boarded was truly a pirate ship.

But Old Mrs. Huo didn't pay attention to me. Her expression was very strange. She only took a sip of tea, paused, and then asked me, "In all the things you just described, there's been a person with a qilin tattoo by your side the whole time. Where is that person now?"

I was stunned. I thought, aren't you worried about your daughter? Why suddenly ask about this? I didn't react for a moment.

Fatty, being his cheeky self, cut in and immediately patted Poker-face, saying, "Something this good, of course I keep it with me. Isn't this him? What, beautiful, want to call him for some fun?"

I immediately scowled at Fatty, telling him to mind the occasion.

Unexpectedly, as soon as the old lady heard this, she seemed startled. She immediately looked up at Poker-face, stood up, and walked straight over to him.

"Is this him?"

We nodded. Watching the old lady's expression, I suddenly felt uneasy, afraid she might blurt out something like "Son, I've missed you so much."

Old Madam Huo was trembling all over. She said to Poker-face, "Let me see your hand." She grabbed his hand and, after just one look, stepped back several paces, her face ashen.

I thought to myself, not good—could there be some other grievance between them? Unexpectedly, the old woman fell to her knees, and even Huo Xiuxiu, who had been attending her all along, knelt down without understanding why.