Chapter 647

Grandfather's words hit me like a blow to the head.

From the moment I discovered Uncle had ulterior motives, I have always assumed he wanted to usurp power; Grandfather, being old, could no longer keep him in check.

Now it seems that is not the case.

Ginger is still spicy when old.

From start to finish, the only one who was factored into the scheme is Jin Wuya.

This is a game of chess between Grandfather and Uncle; Grandfather wants to send me away, first so he can let loose and contend with Uncle, and second…… he is preparing to act on Jin Wuya.

He fears that I have developed feelings for Jin Wuya and wants to protect Jin Wuya's life.

I turned and went to the study, having researched Jin Wuya all night, brought out the draft, pointed at Jin Wuya's handwriting on it, and questioned Grandfather: "So, is this Tomb-suppressing Beast scheme used by Uncle to calculate against Jin Wuya, or are you, Grandfather, secretly fanning the flames?"

Grandfather had already followed my steps and walked in the door.

He clasped his hands above the dragon-headed cane, narrowed his eyes full of wrinkles yet still clear, and retorted at me: "Shi Rou, he's just a devious craftsman; from childhood to now, what kind of spectacle have you not seen? What are you doing now? Coming to question me for his sake?"

Grandfather's single sentence directly suppressed the anger filling my heart.

I began to reexamine the whole matter.

Uncle harbors ulterior motives; Grandfather needs to break the situation, and breaking it inevitably requires someone to sacrifice. From Grandfather's perspective, he is not wrong.

As the one in power, he ought to be decisive in killing.

He has raised me this way since childhood, and I have lived up to it.

I ask myself, if today the one descending into the tomb were not Jin Wuya but any other devious craftsman, would I still be so recklessly questioning Grandfather?

No, absolutely not.

Only because he is Jin Wuya.

Unbeknownst to me, his standing in my heart has actually become this high?

Grandfather paced in, with warriors guarding the entire courtyard outside, not even a fly could enter.

But I did not see Shi Yin.

No need to ask; Shi Yin should be at the ancestral tomb right now.

He is the main force opposing Uncle.

Grandfather sat in the grand tutor's chair and said, "Shi Rou, sit."

I still clutched those few sheets of draft paper; sitting in the chair at the lower right, I felt utterly disoriented.

Grandfather asked, "Shi Rou, do you really like him?"

"I don't know." I gripped the draft papers, almost crushing them, "From the start being kept in the dark, to last night when he realized he had been schemed against, from beginning to end he never hesitated to stand by my side, including today's actions; he doesn't know he is marching to his death generously, I merely feel……"

"What do you feel? That it's unfair to him?" Grandfather said coldly, "Shi Rou, you are the heir of the Shi Family; the one who stands by your side must be strong enough, not someone who needs you to speak up for him at critical moments—do I still need to teach you this principle?"

My eyes reddened, but I sincerely said, "Grandfather, I was wrong."

The entire Shi Family stood behind me.

Every member of the Shi Family who supports me is watching my every move.

I cannot let their hearts grow cold over a man.

I can only apologize to Jin Wuya.

Seeing my sincere apology, Grandfather's tone finally softened; he said, "Shi Rou, you are outstanding; in my eyes, no one can replace you. If I could live a few more years, I would not have driven you to this point……"

My heart gave a jolt; I threw down the draft papers, walked to Grandfather's front, half-kneeled at his leg, and said, "Grandfather, may you stay healthy and strong; you will surely live to a hundred."

Grandfather sighed, raised his right hand to pat my head, and said, "When I was young, to steady my footing, my hands were also stained with much Karma; someone like me living to nearly eighty is already heaven's extraordinary grace—how could I ask for more?"

"The reason your uncle dares to meddle with the ancestral tomb now is that he secretly asked a master to calculate my longevity; the master declared I would not survive this year."

I seized Grandfather's hand and shook my head: "Where did this master come from? Nonsense!"

"Shi Rou, Grandfather is old; there will come a day when he dies." Grandfather said earnestly, "Therefore, in his remaining time, he must, to the best of his ability, help clear the path ahead for you. Do you understand his intention?"

I nodded directly.

I understand.

Grandfather allowed Uncle to stir things up, so that he could lawfully execute Uncle on the spot.

Jin Wuya was originally the most crucial link in this scheme.

He cannot avoid it.

Grandfather continued, "That boy Jin Wuya is indeed not bad, but there are many outstanding youths in this world; not every one deserves my granddaughter. If Jin Wuya wants to stand by your side legitimately, he must prove himself to me."

"If he dies in the tomb today, it's no pity; if he manages to come out alive, I will surely look upon him differently."

This is both a scheme and a test.

Everything now depends on Jin Wuya himself.

Although I feel sad and deeply guilty in my heart, what Grandfather said is also not wrong.

The man of Shi Rou must withstand the test.

I no longer ponder whether Jin Wuya can come out; even if I later need to rescue him, I must first understand the whole story.

Thinking this, I asked, "Grandfather, what secret exactly lies beneath our family's ancestral tomb? Is it related to the secret of the Mount-moving Strongmen lineage?"

"This goes back to your great-grandfather's generation." Grandfather said, "The Mount-moving Strongmen lineage originated from the army's Digging Hills Battalion; that is to say, we once served the officialdom, and our Shi Family was once an official household."

Later it gradually grew powerful, and with the turbulent times, the Mount-moving Strongmen lineage broke away from officialdom; since every member under its command possessed extraordinary talents, how could the talented be willing to remain subordinate forever? Fragmentation was inevitable.

Our Shi Family belongs to the Red Armor Army; we were originally its core main force. After we broke away to go it alone, our momentum was who knows how many times stronger than the White Armor and Black Armor.

But the early bird gets shot; after just a few years, the Red Armor Army suffered Heavy Damage, having dug a tomb that should not have been disturbed, nearly wiping out the entire army. Your great-grandfather led the barely surviving twenty-odd officers out of that ancient tomb, after many twists finally settled in Lingnan, and by then the surviving officers numbered fewer than ten.

I asked, "Back then, which tomb exactly did my great-grandfather steal? Have you gone back to look since?"

"How could we possibly turn back to court death?" Grandfather said, "This is also why, after the Shi Family settled in Lingnan, they ordered the entire Red Armor Army to wash their hands in a golden basin and forbid them from entering tombs."

So the Shi Family's first household rule came about this way.

I still wasn't resigned, pressing on: "Grandfather, do you even not know where that tomb is?"

Grandfather shook his head: "Back then, the twenty-odd Red Armor Army seniors who escaped from the tomb have all long since been buried in the earth; I don't know whether others secretly told the tomb's secret to later generations, but your Great-Grandfather never uttered a word about it."

I furrowed my brows, thought it over carefully, and asked: "Back then, how did your Great-Grandfather and his companions escape from the tomb, and how did they eventually make their way to Lingnan? Do you know?"