Chapter 9 The Tortured Character

  Qian Yuhui and Qian Suxue, the two sisters, felt that Long Bao's behavior had greatly humiliated them, making their mental state even more unbalanced. They immediately went to Xue Guowei's home, where he was resting in bed, and added fuel to the fire, telling him about their grievances. As someone who had experienced many things in life, Xue knew their mindset and understood that these complaints were a sign that the two sisters, who were originally quite tolerant, now hated Long Bao with a passion!

  Xue Zong tried to persuade them, but Qian Suxue was convinced that Xue Zong was just making excuses for Long Bao. She spoke in a commanding tone: "Vice Chairman Xue, you must take charge and cannot continue to indulge this ignorant fool! I propose that we resolutely remove him from his position as CEO and hire a more capable person to be the new CEO of the group, not allowing him to interfere with the group's business operations! And that person, Duan Pingchun, should be fired immediately!"

  Listening to Qian Suxue's nonsense, Xue Zong could only smile wryly and didn't respond.

  Xue asked Kangding Village by phone about what happened today and called Longbo half an hour later.

  This phone call was actually what Longbiao had been waiting for. He was still the same, speaking respectfully to Director Xue on the phone, sincerely accepting his warnings and opinions, and expressing that he would definitely take the lead in his future work, using Qian Lao, Director Xue, and Director Jin as role models to improve his working methods.

  But he hung up the phone and became anxious, frowning and smoking, feeling suffocated in his heart. He simply brought Leopard to the lawn in front of the headquarters building and sat down with a dog.

  At this time, the moon was already high in the sky, with countless stars twinkling like diamonds against the dark blue vault of heaven. The vault of heaven was not just a simple cosmic background, but seemed to stretch out endlessly into the distance, with an unfathomable depth that made one's eyes feel tiny. The outline of the moon was very clear, except for some fuzziness at the curved edge in the middle, but it was still possible to make out the shadows on the surface of the bright planet, which looked like stubborn stains on a golden mirror. This was a natural phenomenon. Without a telescope, all the stars were just tiny points of light to the naked eye, with what seemed like fine lines of light radiating out from around each point...

  Longwang thought that these stars were all in the infinitely distant region, emitting their own thin light lines in solitude. The longer the light line was, the farther away this infinite distance was.

  The more Long Bao thinks about the current situation, the more he feels a sense of desolate sorrow towards the scenery in front of him: aren't people's hearts as isolated and distant from each other as the stars in the sky? In this world, which heart is not selfishly emitting its own light?

  ……

  The leopard can't stand even a slight unusual or changing sound, as soon as there is something different it will immediately perk up its ears and turn its head to stare at the place where the sound came from. A gust of wind blew past and rustled the tree behind it, causing the leopard to quickly turn its head to check what it was.

  Long Bao found the leopard's enthusiasm a bit amusing, so he stroked its head with his hand and combed it back and forth several times. The leopard also quickly extended its tongue to lick Long Bao's hand in return. Long Bao dodged its wet and passionate tongue, wrapped his arms around the leopard's neck, and fell backwards onto the lawn, where he hugged the leopard in his arms and started playing with it.

  The leopard didn't know how long it had been since he last frolicked with Longbiao, and now that he could relive old times, he couldn't help but let out a joyful, long howl from the depths of his throat: "Aoooouuuu!"

  Long Bao and the leopard had long established a kind of spiritual connection, he sensed its emotions from the leopard's form and cries. Suddenly, his heart surged with a thousand emotions: Leopard, my leopard! In this world, you are my only relative, but you are already ten years old, how much longer can you live? Will you also leave me?...

  Jing'er followed her grandfather's instructions and took a three-month leave from school to study Taoist mysticism at home. Three days ago, when Jing'er's grandfather was teaching her about Taoist knowledge, the old man suddenly stood up, his face changed drastically, he supported himself with one hand on the desk, and made a strange gesture with the other hand, his facial muscles convulsed violently, his eyes seemed to be bursting into flames, his two eyeballs bulged out terrifyingly, his mouth was wide open, but his tongue was strangely retracted and blocked in the depths of his oral cavity, his snow-white beard fluttered without wind!

  Jing'er was startled, suddenly remembering what her grandfather had entrusted to her. She quickly calmed down and followed the steps her grandfather had taught her. She took out the prepared holy water and burned the talisman that her grandfather had placed on the table earlier. Then she put the ashes into the water, took a mouthful of the water, and sprayed it onto his face. Finally, she poured the remaining water from the top of his head down to the Baihui acupoint.

  A black paper slip stuck to the old man's white-haired head, looking exceptionally strange. Jing'er seemed to feel that the ghostly death god was standing in this study, and Grandfather's primordial spirit was engaged in a fierce battle with the death god. She even felt that her own primordial spirit had left her body, joining the fight without hesitation, using all her strength to help Grandfather resist the evil death god!

  Jing Er's grandfather pinched his fingers in a special gesture, exerting all his might to protect something inside his body from being driven out by this sudden change. He slowly returned the seven souls and six spirits to their original positions, sat back on the stool, took a long deep breath, and calmly comforted Jing Er, who was tense with worry, saying that he had just been choked by a mouthful of phlegm.

  Jing'er didn't dare to relax, she guarded her grandfather's bedside. That night, Grandfather slept very soundly and the situation didn't happen again. The next day also passed without incident, but disaster struck after that night. Grandfather became completely paralyzed and could only lie in bed, his limbs able to move slowly but his whole body was weak and unable to stand up. This paralysis wasn't a stroke, it seemed more like some kind of sudden onset osteoporosis or muscle failure where the body lost its normal contraction and relaxation ability.

  Grandpa Jìng felt a sharp pain all over his body, and although he was clear-headed, speaking became very difficult. The old man firmly refused to go to the hospital, but after Jìng's persuasion, he finally agreed to let a local famous Chinese doctor come to diagnose him. However, even the doctor couldn't say for sure what was wrong, and in the end, he vaguely said that Grandpa Jìng had suffered from an old-age stroke.

  Because Shi Wei and Du Ci could only start work in January 2004, the two of them had been accompanying the depressed and listless Qiu Ya in Suzhou all this time. After learning that Jing Er's grandfather was ill, they came to Jing Er's home together.

  Always the one who gets into trouble is Shi Wei. This guy actually has been thinking about the deaths of De Lao and Qian Lao, Jin Zong and others, and has already had some faith in this curse possibly being real. Especially after seeing Shu Zi Ye Ye's illness, he thought of the experience of that white-bearded old man in Shan Cheng, and suspected that this matter might have something to do with Long Bao's inexplicable curse.

  These days, he has been tirelessly logging onto those fortune-telling websites and consulting street vendors who claim to have the ability to predict one's fate. However, there is no evidence to support this. The more he does this, the more he wants to find proof, to come up with a clever solution to unravel this mystery, to get to the bottom of it. Otherwise, he really will be driven mad by this cursed enigma and won't be able to sleep at night, or so he thinks.

  He misses Long Bao, he misses the leopard, and of course, more often than not, he's drooling while thinking about this ***heartless guy who unexpectedly rose to fame in the business world, becoming China's most renowned new star. As Long Bao's most trusted brother, how could he just play a supporting role? Besides, he really wants to help Long Bao uncover the true face of that cursed person.

  There is no doubt that this is the most meaningful thing he can do for Longbiao.

  Shi Wei decided to go straight to the point and openly ask Jing Er's grandfather and Jing Er herself about the deep-seated curse, its entire cause and effect. Last night, he called Hai Tao who was far away in Shandong Province, and forcibly fed him a conclusion: that this world is full of unsolved mysteries, and this curse can be considered as an individual phenomenon that may exist.

  The next day at noon, Shi Wei suddenly appeared in Jing Er's grandfather's bedroom. Jing Er was feeding porridge to her grandfather by the bed. Shi Wei immediately said with great respect: "Grandfather Su, are you feeling a bit better today?"

  Grandpa Jing leaned against the bed and slowly swallowed a mouthful of porridge, then slowly said: "Xiao Shi, have you eaten yet?"

  Shi Wei hastily said: "Thank you, Grandfather Su, for your concern, I've already eaten."

  "Have you eaten enough? Where's Xiaodu?" Grandfather Jinger asked slowly.

  Shi Wei hastily said in an exaggerated tone: "I'm full, I'm full. I eat faster than them, they're still savoring their food!" Then, with a flattering smile, he said: "Hehe, Master Su, Jing'er will serve you dinner, and I'll help you with leg massage, or your muscles will atrophy from lack of exercise, hehe."

  He said, without caring whether Jing Er's grandfather agreed or not, he started massaging the old man's thighs through the thin quilt. This massage scared Shi Wei: My god, how can an 80-year-old's legs be like this? Soft and soft, no elasticity, no hardness at all, just skin and bones!

  Never thought that Jing Er's grandfather's expression changed greatly, as if he was enduring some kind of pain. Jing Er panicked and quickly opened Shi Wei's hand, saying: "Shi Wei, let go quickly, Grandfather's body can't be touched!"

  Shi Wei hastily withdrew his hand and apologized in a flurry, but then looked at Jing Er with a puzzled expression: "Can't touch? What's going on?"

  Jing'er ignored Shi Wei and looked at Grandfather with a pained expression, asking: "Grandpa, is it serious?"

  Grandfather Jing took a few deep breaths, finally relaxing his tightly furrowed brow and said with difficulty: "Nothing, girl, tell Xiao Shi!"

  Jing'er was furious at Shi Wei's carelessness and said after a moment, "Wait, let me finish feeding Grandfather first!" Jing'er carefully fed Grandfather the porridge, then gently wiped his mouth with a warm towel, and combed his hair and beard. Only then did she turn to Shi Wei and say, "Grandfather has a rare illness. Since last night, he's become extremely sensitive to pain - any touch hurts him. It's as if his nerve endings are super sensitive. Look at what you just did to him!"

  At this time, Du Ciqiu and Ya had both come in. Shi Wei exclaimed strangely, without any restraint: "What place can't be touched? Now Su Ye is lying on the bed, isn't he also being touched by the bedding and quilt? Is it painful?"

  Grandpa Jing'er forced a smile and said slowly: "Pain will become numb, the longer it lasts, the less painful it becomes."

  Shi Wei maintained his astonished expression and said, "Didn't we come here yesterday in good condition? How did it become like this overnight? Jing Er, what's going on?"

  "Grandpa said it started after 11pm, and at first, it didn't hurt that much, but later on, the pain got worse and worse."

  Shi Wei hastily said: "Why don't you quickly go and ask a doctor? Or hurry up and go to the hospital! Let's take a look at what's going on!"

  Jing Er's grandfather forced a smile, closed his eyes and then opened them again. Shi Wei became more anxious: "Su Ye Ye, with the advancement of medical technology now, even cancer can be cured in many cases! You must not lose hope! Jing Er, go prepare immediately, I'll call for an ambulance from the rescue center right away!"

  Jing'er hastily turned her inquiring gaze to Grandfather, seeking his permission. However, Grandfather slightly shook his head and said: "Girl... medicine can't cure a fatal disease... there's no cure for a terminal illness!"

  Shi Wei wanted to persuade, but was stopped by Jing Er with tears in her eyes, indicating that Grandfather's will could not be disobeyed. Hai Tao had no choice but to anxiously rub his hands back and forth, sighing for a long time before finally gathering the courage to say: "Grandfather Su, just tell us one true thing, is your illness really related to Long Bao? A few years ago, I saw that old man from Mountain City who had told Long Bao's fortune, he was also bedridden and paralyzed. I also heard from Zhou Jing that one of Jiao Rong Sen's subordinates had told Long Bao's fortune and became a madman, sent to a mental hospital. Now you're like this too, is it because you also told Long Bao's fortune? And why did both De Grandfather and Qian Grandfather pass away recently? And last time Long Bao came to your house, why did you say that no one could bear the title of 'Grandfather' for him? What's the reason behind this? Is it related to Long Bao? Is it because of that curse? Is the curse real?"

  Shi Wei let out all the doubts in his heart and then took a deep breath, saying: "These questions have been tormenting me for a long time. Su Ye, Jing Er, please explain it to me. To be honest, Long Lao Liu is now hiding from us, and without him, life is really unbearable. I think we're suffering, but he might be suffering even more. This kind of life is really unbearable. If you don't tell me the whole story, I won't care anymore. I'll go find him immediately and pester him to death, see if he dares to hide from us again. Besides, Su Ye, that guy is now a billionaire. I'll order him to invite the most famous doctors in the world to come and treat you right away. You don't have to worry about your health anymore, just relax."

  Autumn Yajing was startled by Shi Wei's bold and presumptuous words, but then felt that these words were all spoken to their hearts. They didn't dare to breathe loudly, only staring at Jing'er's grandfather with tension. Jing'er's grandfather fell silent, his previously bright eyes now dull and dim. He slowly closed his eyes, and two turbid old tears rolled down his cheeks.

  Time passed minute by minute, seemingly an hour had passed, yet only a few minutes. Jing Er's grandfather twitched his thin, slightly white eyebrows a few times before opening his eyes and said with great difficulty: "You can call him now... If he can't get away, then... there's no need to come!"

  Jing Er's grandfather's words were like an imperial edict to Shi Wei, and he immediately dialed Zhou Jing's phone number.

  Zhou Gong and Shi Wei had a good relationship, and they would occasionally chat on the phone. During one of these conversations, Shi Wei learned from Zhou Gong that Long Bao was about to make some major personnel adjustments within the group. He thought it sounded exciting and wanted to investigate further, but then remembered something important and said: "Wait, let's not talk about this now. I have something urgent to discuss with you, Zhou Gong! Can you get Chairman Long on the phone right away? I have a very important matter to discuss with him!"

  Zhou Gong was startled, Long Bao had repeatedly instructed these bodyguards and the office not to transfer unnecessary calls to him. Everyone knew that among those unnecessary people, Shi Wei was probably the first one. Zhou Gong immediately refused: "Shi Wei, don't get me into trouble! Just now I was risking danger to talk to you, and you actually dare to ask him to answer the phone? No way!"

  Zhou Jing hung up the phone abruptly. Shi Wei immediately called back: "Damn, Zhou Jing, what kind of friend are you? Hanging up on me? That's not very righteous! I treated you like my best brother!"

  Zhou Qing had no choice but to explain: "It's not that I don't want to help you, it's just that this matter really can't be helped! Otherwise, you can call the headquarters' switchboard yourself and ask them to transfer the call!"

  No matter how Shi Wei said, Zhou Qing just wouldn't agree. In the end, Shi Wei had no choice but to call the Li Heng Group headquarters' switchboard and ask to be transferred to Long Bao. The operator asked who was calling, and Shi Wei replied that he was Shi Wei, an old classmate of Long Bao's. The operator immediately politely transferred the call to the office, where someone answered politely saying that Chairman Long was out on a business trip and not at headquarters, and if there were any matters, please leave a message.

  Shi Wei suddenly became furious, and called Zhou Qing again, scolding him loudly: "Zhou Qing, tell your Chairman Long that Grandfather Su has something to discuss with him! Damn it, what's he being so arrogant about? I'm fed up!"

  Zhou Jing thought for a long time, and had no choice but to go find his superior Kang Dingzhuang to report everything. Kang Dingzhuang didn't dare to delay and immediately went to the office to find Long Bao.

  Long Bao was particularly irritable today, with a headache and no appetite. This wasn't the main issue, but what really bothered him was that rumors about his birth story and curses were spreading like wildfire within the group. Many employees whispered behind his back that he was a jinx, not only would being close to him bring bad luck, but it would also affect the entire company's fortune, possibly leading to bankruptcy. Some even said that to ensure safety, one had to stay at least three feet away from him, and some claimed that it was best to hide as soon as he appeared. Various absurd rumors began circulating in private, which would inevitably have a terrible impact. If left unchecked, the reputation he had worked hard to build would be ruined, causing panic among employees and potentially leading to the collapse of the group's morale.

  What can we do?

  ……

  Kang Dingzhuang's report disrupted Long Bao's thoughts. After getting Long Bao's consent, Kang Dingzhuang dialed the phone number of Jing'er's house on the speakerphone. The call connected, and it happened to be Jing'er who answered. Jing'er said politely that Grandpa was not feeling well and hoped Long Bao could visit him in his spare time. Just as she was speaking, Shi Wei snatched the phone away from her. Shi Wei started scolding loudly: "Chairman Long, President Long, I know you're listening on the side. Let me tell you, you have to come, whether you want to or not. It's best if you take a plane and arrive immediately..."

  Long Bao fell silent, guessing that Jing Er's grandfather must have something extremely important to say to him. But he suddenly felt a bad premonition rising from the bottom of his heart! This feeling was just like when his maternal and paternal grandfathers passed away, a faintly melancholic, helpless emptiness and sorrow.

  He was weighing and hesitating between going and not going.

  Jing'er's voice is still so soft and beautiful, Shi Wei's duck-like voice is still so unique. Although I haven't heard Qiu Ya speak, she must also be there. If I go, I'll have to face those indescribable emotions - the brotherly friendship and the love of Jing'er and Qiu Ya for him, all of which are unbearable and unwilling to confront again. But Jing'er's grandfather is ill, can't I just go?

  He repeatedly wrote "go" and "don't go" on the paper with his pen, repeatedly writing, constantly smoking, frowning, his heart was squeezed by the fluctuating chest cavity, but he was struggling fiercely.

  Long Wan turned around and gazed at the portrait of Qian Lao behind him, muttering to himself: "Grandfather Gan, if there were no curses, everything would be so easy to do. But what should I do? Is it that facing everything without hesitation is a brave warrior, while escaping with good intentions is a coward?"

  Two hours later, Long Bao walked out of the house and secretly took Kang Dingzhuang Kang Tie to the airport, arriving in Shanghai overnight and renting a car to rush to Wuxi.

  The sweltering heat has gradually dissipated, especially after the rain today. At night, the temperature drops by a few degrees, feeling cool and refreshing, completely different from the dry heat of Guangdong.

  A taxi speeding down the highway was like a flashing sword, cutting through the dark night. The driver rolled down the window and looked up at the pale moon hanging in the sky. The surrounding clouds seemed to be blown by the wind outside the car, like ink droplets falling into clear water, spreading out irregularly, or like cotton balls stained with black spots, drifting away quietly.

  Cars kept speeding past, and cars from the opposite direction kept coming, in this night these cars all became monsters with big headlights staring at them. The headlights of the oncoming cars were shining brightly with a dazzling white light on the road surface. The cars that overtook and passed by would flash their red taillights into view from time to time. Outside the highway, however, was the dark countryside where lights occasionally flickered. The difference between day and night was so great that everything in front of me seemed incredibly strange.

  At a small stone bridge hundreds of meters away, Long Bao stopped the taxi and wanted to get off and walk over.

  Long Bao walked up to the stone bridge and stopped, from here he could clearly see Jing Er's house, even saw the lights on inside, this light seemed very peaceful. Long Bao knew that under this light there was Jing Er who had a romantic past with him, there was Qiu Ya who had a crush on him, there was the mysterious wise old man Jing Er's grandfather, and there was Shi Wei who could talk to him about anything...

  This bridge is still the same, the river water is still flowing, the sound of the water is still gurgling, Longbiao remembers that he once jumped into the river and swam in it. He also clearly remembers that Qiuya wanted to jump into the river too, and more importantly, on this very bridge, Jing'er hugged him tightly in her soft chest and said: "Longbiao, this bridge is like the Naihe Bridge, if you continue to flee forward out of fear in your heart, we won't stop you, but you will be walking towards a cursed hell, and you will never be able to turn back in this life; if you turn back and face the curse with everyone together, then you can return to being human! You can't escape!"

  At that time, Grandpa De was still alive, and Qian Lao was also still alive. At that time, I was still a fugitive. At that time, Grandpa had not yet gotten ***, Jiao Rongsen had not formally attacked the Li Heng Group... In the blink of an eye, half a year had passed. The bridge is still this bridge, the water is still this river water, but everything has already changed.

  Everything has changed!

  Everything has changed! Everything has changed in a way that is so cruel, so cold-blooded, so poisonous and so unwilling to accept this fact.

  ……

  Kang Dingzhuang and Kang Tie looked at Long Bao, who was standing there with a dejected expression for over an hour. Kang Dingzhuang glanced at his watch and then walked forward, speaking in a soft voice: "Chairman Long, would you like to smoke a cigarette?"

  Long Bao suddenly woke up from his contemplation and shook his head, saying: "No need, let's go."

  In the dead of night, the dogs raised by farmers always barked incessantly at passersby, fearing that these nocturnal travelers would invade their master's home. From the stone bridge to Jing'er's house was less than 300 meters away, but Longbiao walked with extraordinary difficulty, as if every step was a thought, every step was a test of determination and willpower. When standing in front of Jing'er's courtyard gate, Longbiao almost couldn't bear it and was about to give up, he nearly turned around and left!

  Long Bao closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and then turned his head to look back at the road behind him. He raised his head again to gaze out at the endless, dark, and quiet night sky. The wheel of the moon still hung listlessly in the black clouds, and suddenly, a feeling rose up from the deepest, most secret place in Long Bao's heart.

  His heart was torn into black silk-like fragments by a strange and inexplicable power, floating lonely and unsupported in the vast, dark, and endless night sky.

  Jing'er is keeping watch beside Grandpa's bed, while Qiu Ya and Du Ci, Shi Wei are watching TV.

  Grandpa Jing suddenly coughed painfully and slowly said to Jing'er: "Girl, he's just outside the door... go call him in!"

  Jing'er was shocked, her heart racing out of control, her face suddenly pale, and she stuttered in disbelief: "R...really? Grandpa..."

  Jing'er's grandfather showed a hint of a smile and blinked twice. Jing'er hastily stood up, then sat back down, before standing up again to pat her chest, her face flushing red with heat. She quickly smoothed out her hair with her hand, turned around and walked towards the door, took two steps and stopped, turning her head back to say to her grandfather: "Grandfather, I'll go call him in!"

  After finishing speaking, he lowered his head and escaped to the outside of the door. Once outside, he subconsciously slowed down his footsteps and made an effort to speak in a calm tone to Haitao and Shiwei who were watching TV: "That... Longbiao has already arrived, you two mustn't speak for now, okay?"

  Qiu Ya suddenly stood up, her whole body trembling, and she quickly covered her mouth with her hand, as if trying to control some emotion that was about to burst out. Du Ji hurriedly hugged her, but Qiu Ya struggled free and ran upstairs. Meanwhile, Shi Wei's expression on his face suddenly became very strange, like a peculiar monkey, and he nodded heavily at Jing Er.

  Jing'er lit up the lanterns in the courtyard, then took a deep breath and walked steadily to the front gate. Through the iron bars, she had already seen the three Long Bao standing on the other side of the door. She quickly lowered her eyes and opened the door with her hand, not daring to raise her head for fear of meeting Long Bao's gaze. However, her unavoidable line of sight still fell on Long Bao's broad chest, making her heart seem like it was going to jump out of her throat. Her face flushed bright red, she wanted to greet Long Bao, but somehow the words just wouldn't come out. Instead, her legs stiffened and she could only stand there, frozen in place.

  Long Bao didn't speak either, he looked at Jing Er with an extremely contradictory gaze. Although Jing Er was backlit by the lamp light, making it impossible for him to see her facial expression clearly, he distinctly felt Jing Er's emotional reaction at this moment. Long Bao seemed to have heard a kind of turbulent and anxious cry in his heart - Jing Er!

  Kang Ding Zhuang stood behind Long Bao and observed the dramatic encounter, couldn't help but secretly laugh, after a few seconds he took the initiative to say: "Jing Er, how did you know we came? Are you clairvoyant? And here to open the door for us?"

  Jing'er suddenly woke up, hastily lifted her head, and quickly glanced at Long Biao's face before lowering her head again, softly saying: "Kang Gege, no, it was Grandfather who told me you were coming. You, you can come in."

  Long Biao felt extremely dry in his lips and tongue, and he couldn't help but make a swallowing motion. His throat made a gulping sound, and he resisted the urge to look at Jing Er as she walked towards the house. Jing Er hastily followed up, stuttering: "Long Long... Shi Wei Qiu Ya Du Ci are all here... in the house."

  Long Bao didn't hear, Jing Er quickly ran to the front and pulled open the silk window door, shouting into the house: "Long Bao is here."

  Long Bao felt like every step he took was a heavy blow to his heart, as if it was being pounded by a massive club, causing his heart to tremble and quiver uncontrollably. He held his breath, his entire body numb, his mind a complete blank, as he walked into the room. As soon as he entered, he instinctively scanned the space with a glance.

  Shi Wei's face was all smiles, his famous small eyes narrowed with excitement and friendliness as he said: "Lao Liu, haha, you're here, I've been waiting for you!"

  Long Bao didn't see Qiu Ya, but saw Du Ci standing on the stairs, pointing upstairs with her hand. Yes, Qiu Ya had gone up at this moment... Jing Er was still by his side... Long Bao suddenly felt that his heart was being brutally torn apart by several opposing forces, and along with that strange pounding, a bizarre synergy was formed, as if this house was like a stone mortar, and the heart was thrown in to be ground and stirred to death by this synergy!

  Long Bao clenched his teeth and just nodded at them, then turned around to ask Jing'er: "Where's Old Su? Where is your grandfather? I'll go now."

  As soon as Long Biao saw Jing Er's grandfather lying in bed, he was shocked: Is this still the mysterious old man with white hair and a youthful face? How can it be so different from what I remembered? His eyes were dull, his face was yellow, and his appearance was withered. His eyebrows were slightly furrowed, and everything below his chest was covered by the quilt, revealing only a stiff outline. His pale hands lay outside the quilt, his fingers weakly flexing. When he saw Long Biao arrive, the muscles on his face seemed to be trying to assemble a smile, and his lips moved slightly, but all that could be heard was a faint voice: "Child, you've come..."

  Long Bao remembers that eight years ago, Uncle Qi was lying in bed and still talked to himself. Long Bao remembers that more than two months ago, Old Qian was lying in bed and could still speak and laugh openly. Long Bao remembers that more than three months ago, Grandpa De was sleeping in bed just like this, yes, just like this.

  Long Bao remembered that eight months ago, De Lao, Qian Lao and Su Lao were all in high spirits, but what about after eight months?

  Life is burning in the midst of life, and life is burning in time!

  Can eight months of time burn life into this state?

  Can life's burning flame withstand the test of time?

  Is life just being crushed by the wheel of time in the process of burning?

  Is the burning of life the existence of vitality, but is the state of vitality, the existence of life's burning so fragile and difficult to maintain?

  Why does time have to be so ruthless to life?

  Is it time that is heartless, or is it life itself that is burning out?

  ……

  Long Bao gazed at Old Man Jing with infinite sorrow, and in the old man's forced smile, he strongly felt the vitality of life ebbing away from him bit by bit. He even saw the flame that burned life within the old man weakening and dimming a little at a time. His throat was blocked so tightly that it was hard to swallow, completely unable to swallow down. The blockage was so strong that it forced tears out of his eyes, making him cry uncontrollably!

  He finally called out as tears rolled down his eyes: "Su... Lao...... Are you okay?"

  Grandpa Jing's laborious smile said in a very low voice: "Child... sit..."

  Long Bao was about to take the old man's hand that was placed outside the quilt, but Jing'er hastily stopped him and told him about his grandfather's strange illness. Long Bao had not expected such a strange disease existed in this world, so he paused for a moment before saying to Jing'er: "The pharmaceutical company has many medical experts, I'll consult them immediately, they must know how to treat this disease."

  After finishing speaking, he was about to dial the phone, but Jing'er's grandfather spoke out to stop him: "Child, this is my fate, no need... I have counted, I have counted."

  After Jing'er calmed down, Grandfather Jing asked Long Bao to tell him about the situation after taking over Li Heng. Long Bao frankly told him about Jiao Siwei's affairs, his mid-to-long-term plans for the group, and the major personnel reforms that were about to take place soon. He also briefly mentioned some of the current contradictions and resistance to reform within the group.

  Grandfather Jing closed his eyes and fell into deep thought, only to open them again after a long while, fixing his dim and expressionless gaze on Long Bao's face. He said with a sigh of relief: "Alright, alright, child. As long as you remember that you're responsible for Old Man Qian, that's all that matters. Being afraid of this and that, being hesitant and timid, will get you nowhere. And also..."

  He suddenly started coughing painfully, his mouth agape, his face contorted in extreme agony, his throat gurgling loudly. Jing hurriedly handed him a tissue and he finally managed to spit out a large wad of thick phlegm. Strangely enough, afterwards his expression relaxed, and his speech became clearer: "Child, don't think too much about trivial things, thinking too much will make you lose sight of the essence of things, being overly cautious will give you excuses for your own mistakes."

  He nodded heavily with a serious expression.

  "Besides, as for Jiao Siwei, it's better to let bygones be bygones, why continue the hatred?"

  This is exactly what Long Bao thought, and he immediately picked up the conversation: "I agree with her conditions, just to dissolve this hatred. Now it seems that she is still more cooperative with my work."

  Grandpa Jing's face revealed a hint of bitter smile: "I'm afraid it won't be that simple!"

  "This world has never had simple things, I have long been mentally prepared."

  Jing Er's grandfather frowned and didn't respond, but after a long time, he opened his mouth to ask Long Bao to call Jiao Siwei, hoping that Jiao Siwei could come to Wuxi. Unexpectedly, when Jiao Siwei received the phone call, she actually said that she would definitely arrive tomorrow.

  Suddenly, Old Man Jing summoned everyone to his room. Long Bao looked at the scene as if the old man was about to deliver his last words. His heart suddenly lost its vitality like a sponge drained of water, beating dryly and stuffily. He once again felt that helpless sorrow, looking at the mysterious old man with tears in his eyes.

  The old man's face was no longer dry and withered, he even asked Jing'er to bring him a cup of freshly brewed tea. He sipped it slowly, carefully savoring it, as if it were ambrosia. After finishing the first cup, he asked for another one, but this time he drained it in one gulp. Then he said: "Alright, I'll just drink these two cups, and then have a third cup after a nap... This is good tea!"

  The old man looked around at the group of children: "I still have two months to turn eighty, and in a flash, eighty years of wind and rain have passed. How many things have I experienced? How many people have I seen? But how many things are worth remembering for a lifetime? And how many people are worth remembering? At my age, what can I still remember?"

  "When I was young, like you, I always liked to calculate gains and losses, and got scolded by my master many times. Later on, I thought that all gains and losses were empty, but now I finally understand that gains and losses are not empty, what's important is not the gains and losses themselves, but the understanding of them."

  "So, you should also be more open-minded. Don't take gains and losses too seriously. As the saying goes, 'A broad mind is like a wide-open space.' I have been studying the secrets of the mysterious school for over 60 years. I believe that a person's gains and losses are all part of their fate. One should learn to know one's fate but not be resigned to it. One should believe that fate can be changed, just like one's own gains and losses."

  "Su Lao, according to the Xuanmen theory, every person's fate is different and closely related to their birth date and the era they live in. However, my ancestors' birth dates and eras are all different, so why does our family's fate seem predetermined? Not only that, but it also affects others. You say fate can be changed, but my family has been carrying this curse for over a thousand years, with sixty-four generations recorded in our genealogy. Our ancestors have tried every means to change their fate, but all ended in vain. Why can't we change our fate?"

  "What is fate, anyway?! If it's predetermined by heaven, then I ask you, what is heaven? Why would heaven bother to arrange the fates of tens of billions of people from ancient times to the present? Doesn't it have anything better to do? And another thing, Su Lao, I remember a note in my family's genealogy about curses that says 'offended heaven, no prayer can help'. Even if our ancestors had offended heaven, why wouldn't it give us Dragons a chance to atone for our sins?"

  Long Bao swept a glance over everyone, the sour and hot feeling forced his tears to swirl in his eye sockets, for a moment he felt that he had to bear too many things, it seemed that he had been growing up in endless torture since birth, the days were so bitter, and what was even harder to bear was that due to the curse's existence, he was forced to not have even the most precious emotions.

  "Since heaven is so bored and insists on tormenting my family, since heaven wants to bring misfortune to everyone emotionally connected to me, then fine. I won't get married, have children, engage in romance, make friends, or acknowledge relatives. I'll let the curse end with me, right here, right now, in front of all of you. I'm not your friend, nor am I your lover. I've always been just that strange person from Bear Mountain, and I have no relationship with any of you..."

  ……

  The silence in the room is terrifying.

  Grandfather Jing suddenly burst out laughing, his face very calm: "This illness of mine is just like the curse of the little dragon, mysterious and strange, coming and going in a strange way. At first, I felt an invisible force tearing my body apart, then I was completely powerless and could only lie down. Later, I had severe pain all over my body and couldn't speak. After that, I could speak again, and now I'm not feeling any pain at all. Not only that, but my whole body has lost all sensation of pain, numbness, heat, cold... it's as if I've completely lost all perception. ...Isn't it strange? But it's precisely in this state that I truly feel like I've finally approached the vast world, and truly caught a glimpse of the face of heaven and the essence of fate!"

  "The old man's smile on his face was mysteriously strange: 'Child, what is fate? Fate is gain and loss. Once you understand the concept of gain and loss, you will know what fate is; fate is also living. If you comprehend the meaning of living, you will be clear about fate. All gains and losses are within the realm of living. The gains and losses in life become your fate. You must understand that all gains and losses are hardships for life while it's alive, torturing the living life. Without hardship and torture, you won't be able to grow up.'"

  The old man's eyes flickered with a mysterious and profound light: "Gains and losses are not predetermined by heaven, don't take what is predetermined by heaven as true. Your life is still very long, but you only need to see clearly your own gains and losses, see clearly your own life. When one dies, all will be empty, when people die, there will be nothing left, all gains and losses will also become empty. The heavens let us live just to experience the taste of gains and losses in this world, but it's not easy for us to come to this world and take a walk. It should be for the meaning and value of 'gains' and 'losses' in this walk."

  Grandfather Jing's mysterious gaze enveloped Long Bao: "Little Dragon, your curse is your heart knot, this is something that others cannot solve. Little Dragon, the curse is one of the most difficult and inexplicable mysteries of heaven, have you ever had such a feeling: the more you care about the curse, the greater the counterattack power of the curse will be, and the harm it brings will also be greater?"

  Long Bao was stunned by the old man's words!

  The old man said, "Child, perhaps the answer to what the heavens are is in your curse. You can think about it slowly later. Do what you should do, and put the curse aside for now."

  Grandfather Jing felt that something was wrong with himself, he saw everyone's lips moving, the mouth shape should be a response, but he couldn't hear any sound at all. He felt his soul starting to leave his body, and his eyes closed uncontrollably. He no longer insisted on using his willpower to protect his spirit, and slowly said: "My time has come... If I fall asleep later... you don't need to call me... If I haven't left yet, I'll wake up at noon tomorrow... If it's past 5 pm and I still haven't woken up, then I've already gone..."

  Chang Cheng, Liao Ye and others would rather believe that a comet hit the Earth, or that there are Martians on Mars and aliens in the universe, than believe that Long Bao is the chairman of the board and president of a listed company in Hong Kong. They cannot imagine how this shabby rural guy managed to evade capture and avoid the law in just over a year, and also inherited a huge legacy from an elderly man with no blood relation to him, which was beyond their imagination.

  Both of them are considered enemies who framed Longbiao, which is no longer a secret. Longbiao is now not what he used to be, and they can't help but fear him.

  He often deliberately tried to forget everything that had happened, and if possible, he would rather have none of it happen at all. Love begets love, but hate also begets hate, so he became more and more displeased with Liao Ye.

  Liao Ye indeed entered the Chang Cheng's company as he wished after graduation, and after Chang Cheng was appointed by his father as the planning department manager, he served as Chang Cheng's special assistant, with a monthly salary of 4,000 yuan, easy work, and several hundred thousand yuan in savings in his pocket. However, he couldn't feel at ease in his heart.

  Liao Ye felt even more resentful and indignant towards heaven after learning about Long Bao's strange encounter. He hated the heavens for not bestowing such good fortune upon him instead. From Chang Cheng's behavior, he could already see that there was a possibility of being kicked out at any time.

  That's right, Long Bao had sworn brotherhood with him, but now he has already made an enemy of Chang Cheng. With his current power and influence, if Long Bao were to take revenge on them, then this nobody would definitely become a scapegoat, he is nothing more than one of Chang Cheng's lackeys, either the Chang family or Long Bao can get rid of him at any time.

  Liao Ye felt that the safest thing at present was to think of a way to get some money and leave as soon as possible, the earlier the better.

  It's almost impossible to get money from the Chang family, Liao Ye thought of the conversation he had overheard between Wen Li and Jing Er before, a conversation he hadn't told Chang Cheng about. He felt that the Longbiao family's genealogy might be a very valuable antique, and now the antique market was booming. If they could get their hands on it, who knows, maybe this would be a blessing from heaven!

  He believed that things must still be buried in that place.

  Two days ago, Chang Cheng's uncle asked Liao Ye to write a document. After Liao Ye finished writing it and presented it, he didn't expect that the document did not meet Chang Cheng's uncle's expectations. Chang Cheng's uncle scolded Liao Ye severely without being polite. When Chang Cheng found out, he also blamed Liao Ye for not putting his heart into writing it. Liao Ye felt a lump of gloom and anger in his heart, so he hid in the bathroom to smoke for half an hour before making up his mind.

  He hastily revised the materials, and after he felt that they should be able to pass, he asked for a five-day leave with an anxious and worried tone, using his father's hospitalization as an excuse.

  Liao Ye immediately went to the street to buy a metal detector that can detect two meters of soil depth, and also bought a specialized mountaineering backpack to put the metal detector in it, preparing all the necessary tools for night mountain exploration.

  He decided to take a risk and make the most of his five-day holiday, going to Shancheng, Tianlei Township, Xiongshan, to get to the bottom of Longbiao's ancestral home, the exact location where Longbiao buried the ancient family tree in the vegetable field!

  As the saying goes, the bold will die from overeating, while the timid will starve to death. This is the logic of this world, as seen in the rise of the Chang family, which was tainted by one dirty deal after another!

  And he Liao Ye, this time just went to do a thief. The purpose of the thief is to raise the first pot of gold for future entrepreneurship. Grandpa Deng once said: No matter black cat or white cat, the one who catches the mouse is a good cat.

  This is indeed a famous saying!