Ringing sounds continued to echo, intermittent and faint.
It was like a very old melody.
Someone passing by heard the chimes and paused, tilting their head in curiosity.
For some reason, it evoked a sense of timelessness, a feeling of not knowing what year it was.
It was even more captivating than the most moving of zither melodies.
It was as if the bells could carry their sound far, far away.
The person who had stopped to listen was startled by a cool breeze. Shaking their head, they muttered, "Where did that strange thought come from?"
"Hurry, hurry, it's so late. I need to get home to my wife. Otherwise, by morning, I won't be able to do anything!"
The pedestrian, having regained their senses, quickly departed.
In the silent night, only the intermittent ringing lasted for half an hour.
Finally, under the cloak of night, the ringing stopped, and then a voice was heard, "It should be enough."
"Are you sure there's no mistake?" another voice asked.
"No. At this hour, he's already asleep. There can be no mistake."
"If he's not asleep right now, then wouldn't that mean..."
"Old Master Qin's sleep schedule has hardly changed in recent years."
The tone was filled with confidence and foresight, as if everything was developing exactly as they had envisioned.
However.
At this moment, in the rock garden of the Qin mansion.
A slightly hunched figure paced back and forth incessantly.
Patrolling guards passed by again and again, encountering Old Master Qin five, six, seven, or even eight times.
Old Master Qin scratched his head and mumbled to himself, "Why can't I sleep? Is something wrong with my body again? It shouldn't be. Young Miss Shu's medical skills are flawless. So what's wrong with me? Will I go bald? Will I... Huh? Young Miss Shu?"
Young Miss Shu...
For a moment, Old Master Qin froze.
Whether he could sleep or whether he would go bald were no longer the crucial issues.
The patrolling guards dared not approach Old Master Qin.
They found him somewhat frightening, especially now.
Not only was he not sleeping, but he was also harming himself.
The guards exchanged glances. One of them secretly stayed behind, hiding not far away, and closely watched Old Master Qin's every move. Sweat beaded on his forehead as he waited for the critical moment to rush forward and stop Old Master Qin from harming himself further.
Alas!
They had heard that as people age, they overthink and can easily go down the wrong path.
The guards wore solemn expressions.
Perhaps it was the dim light, the oppressive clouds, or the stifling air that made breathing difficult, but they too seemed to be falling into despair.
They patrolled day after day, with no thieves to test their skills.
Depression.
...
Dawn broke.
Yun Shu opened the door after washing up.
She found Yun Changfeng squatting outside the door.
Yun Changfeng held a book and was reading.
He looked earnest and studious.
Except...
He was holding the book upside down.
And there was a stone bench nearby, so why was he squatting instead of sitting?
Yun Shu asked, "Father, what are you doing?"
Yun Changfeng looked up.
Yun Shu was startled. It had only been one night, but Yun Changfeng had stubble, his dark circles were almost as bad as a panda's, and his eyes were a little red.
"Shu'er, Father has thought it over. Forget what I told you yesterday. This concerns you and the Night King, and it also involves Xiao Jing and the others. Although Father was angry, he shouldn't have been so harsh. If you and the children are sad, Father will be sad too. Alas, as for Old Master Qin... I won't bother with him, I won't stoop to his level!" Yun Changfeng tried to stand up.
He could squat for a whole day and night without any problem before.
But as he stood up, he suddenly felt a little dizzy.
As one gets older, the body truly deteriorates!
But it was nothing serious.
Yun Shu helped Yun Changfeng, first assisting him to sit down. She was somewhat surprised. Yesterday he had been so stern, vowing to never associate with Zhan Tianye and the others again, yet today he had completely changed his mind first thing in the morning.
It truly surprised her.
She understood very well that he was worried about her and couldn't bear to see her wronged.
Having a father who always thought of her would be the envy of many in this era.
"Why did Father suddenly change his mind?" Yun Shu asked gently.
Seeing that Yun Shu wasn't blaming him and was even smiling at him, Yun Changfeng sighed deeply, "Father was truly confused with anger. I'm glad you don't resent Father!"
"It's been a long time since we had breakfast together. Father, let's have breakfast together later." As Yun Shu spoke, she took out a bottle of medicine from her purse. "Father, take two pills first to replenish your qi and blood."
Yun Changfeng was so moved he was in tears. "You are indeed my daughter. I'm glad you don't resent your father!"
Then, he began to chuckle foolishly. "I worried all night, afraid you'd think I was too cold-hearted and cruel. Although this matter is quite unusual, I still forced you. Father is old now, his mind really isn't as good as it used to be."
"If it were me, I would have made the same choice as Father. Father's words were very right, this matter is very unusual. If my guess is correct, someone used some methods on Old Master Qin, making him unable to distinguish reality from dreams." Yun Shu chose her words carefully and described the situation she suspected.
Yun Changfeng's face became grave. "Can you be sure?"
"I've sent Jing Heng to the Night King's mansion. Once the Night King visits the Qin mansion and sees Old Master Qin, my guess will be confirmed," Yun Shu said in a deep voice.
Yun Changfeng nodded.
...
In front of the palace gates.
Jiang Luoxi emerged and boarded a carriage waiting at the palace entrance.
The carriage then moved at a brisk pace.
At this hour, there were many carriages on the road. Quite a few people were rushing to the imperial court for the morning assembly.
Therefore, amidst such a large number of carriages, no one paid much attention to Jiang Luoxi's carriage.
Soon.
The carriage arrived at the Qin mansion.
The gates of the Qin mansion were closed tightly.
The coachman stepped forward and knocked a few times.
The next moment, someone opened the gate.
The gatekeeper looked at the person knocking. "Who are you? What do you want?"
The coachman pointed to the carriage behind him and said, "Apologies for the intrusion. My young lady wishes to see Old Master Qin. Please help us inform him."
The gatekeeper followed the coachman's gesture and looked at the carriage.
He remembered the Old Master's instructions, and seeing an unfamiliar face, he said, "The Old Master is not receiving visitors today. If it's not urgent, please come back another day."
"Wait! Our young lady was here yesterday. The Old Master met our young lady yesterday. Today, our young lady truly has urgent business to see Old Master Qin." The coachman quickly reached out to stop the gatekeeper from closing the door.
Seeing this, the gatekeeper frowned. "You were here yesterday?"
Yesterday, it was that Miss Jiang who had come to see the Old Master.
Could it be that Miss Jiang again?
Why come today if she was here yesterday?
Jiang Luoxi jumped down from the carriage and gracefully walked to the gate. She said to the gatekeeper in a gentle voice, "I believe Old Master Qin would wish to see me now."
Looking at Jiang Luoxi's confident demeanor, the gatekeeper was momentarily dazzled by her self-assurance.