Chapter 107: A Tale From Twenty Years Ago

Looking at the bleeding cuts on my back, Tie Ningxiang frowned. I offered a bitter smile and let my coat drop, hesitating for a long time before giving a two-word answer: "Saving someone."

"Saving someone? You ran out in the dead of night to save someone and came back covered in knife wounds? Gao Jian, your lies are getting worse and worse." Sitting on the hospital bed, Tie Ningxiang was very close to me.

Breathing in the faint fragrance drifting past my nose, I stared at my hands in silence.

"Still not going to tell me the truth? I just don't understand why you refuse to tell me. Say it. I can keep your secret, and I can share the burden!" Tie Ningxiang's eyes were sincere. She looked beautiful when she was serious.

Unfortunately, I was in no mood to appreciate it right now. I shook my head woodenly. "You just need to be careful yourself. Lu Xing wants to kill you, and he isn't an ordinary person."

I alone bore my own unspoken difficulties. From the moment I became an Underworld Live Show Streamer, there was no longer anyone who could help me. I could only walk this path alone until I couldn't hold on any longer, and then, just like Xia Chi, vanish completely without a single trace.

Seeing me in this state, Tie Ningxiang's anger vanished. She stood up and straightened her police uniform. "I won't ask about your affairs anymore. I mainly came to tell you that Jiang Fei was successfully rescued this morning. You've been cleared of the kidnapping suspicion, so rest here and recover in peace."

She stopped when she reached the door. "Gao Jian, I'm not trying to pry into everything; I just want to lend you a hand. Come to the precinct when you have time. There's surveillance footage from this morning showing you bringing Jiang Fei back to the city. I've already confiscated the video files."

She left without looking back. As her footsteps faded down the hall, I breathed a sigh of relief. Forcing a smile, I said to Yi Yi, "Your aunt is really hard to deal with."

"Serves you right. Auntie is just worried about you." Yi Yi placed her backpack at the foot of the bed and sat in the spot Tie Ningxiang had just vacated. "But I'm also really curious about what you did last night. Did you take the last Route 14 Bus again?"

Yi Yi stared at me with wide, watery eyes, her face full of curiosity. She looked just like a little kid pestering a family member for a bedtime story.

"How could I? Ever since I met you, I don't think I'll ever ride the Route 14 Bus again in my lifetime."

"Hey, what do you mean by that?!"

"Ugh, my head hurts so much. I'm going to sleep. Remember to close the door when you leave. I won't see you out. Bye!" Turning over, I wrapped myself in the blanket and pulled it over my head.

"Hey, you haven't told me yet!" Yi Yi muttered angrily for a moment before finally shouldering her backpack. "Forget it. Get some good rest."

The sound of the door closing echoed through the room. I poked my head out from under the blanket. "I might not be able to handle your aunt, but dealing with you is a piece of cake."

After running around all night, I was indeed exhausted. Once they left, I sat cross-legged and entered a meditative state, silently reciting the Profound Truth Mental Method to empty my mind. I cultivated while alleviating my physical fatigue.

After circulating my energy through several Major Heavenly Cycles, it was already noon before I knew it.

Clarity returned to my eyes, and the exhaustion deep within my bones was swept away. As for the knife wounds, those wouldn't heal in just a few short hours.

I got dressed and packed my things. Even though pain radiated from every part of my body, as long as my life wasn't in danger, I would ignore it for now. My time was extremely tight.

Returning to Ting Tang Road, I downed two mouthfuls of Child Immortal Wine. My five internal organs harmonized, and a surge of warmth flowed through my entire body.

Stretching lazily, I tucked the pendant I'd acquired from the black magician into my pocket and called Secretary Zhang. "Please inform Director Huang that I've made a breakthrough regarding the matter he entrusted to me."

Half an hour later, an Audi A8 pulled up to the shop's entrance and delivered me to the Ganding Pharmaceuticals Headquarters building.

"Mr. Gao, Director Huang is waiting for you in his office on the eleventh floor," Secretary Zhang greeted me at the door, personally escorting me upstairs. "Right this way, please."

Upon entering Huang Boyuan's office, I noticed the atmosphere inside was noticeably off. Aside from Huang Boyuan, there was someone else present.

"It's you?" Sitting on a sofa carved from century-old pear wood was a handsome, imposing young Daoist. Dressed in luxurious brocade robes, his every gesture exuded the demeanor of a great master.

Compared to him, I—having just snuck out of the hospital with unhealed injuries—looked far inferior. It felt as though I should have just shouted, "Your package has arrived, please sign for it," and scurried away in disgrace.

The young Daoist cast a faint glance at me, a trace of surprise flashing through his eyes. "To think we would meet again. It seems destined that your dog should be mine."

To speak of outright robbery with such calm composure... Regardless of his cultivation level, this young Daoist's sheer shamelessness was definitely at the level of a Pre-Heaven Stage almighty.

"Never mind. Now that this matter is settled, I'll have to trouble Brother Huang a lot more. I won't intrude any further." The young Daoist didn't give me a chance to speak at all. With a smile on his face, he left as if there were no one else in the room.

Secretary Zhang bowed and nodded obsequiously as he saw him out. I closed the door and finally stepped further into the office.

'What kind of status does that Daoist have? To casually call Huang Boyuan "Brother Huang" with every breath?'

Who was Huang Boyuan? The executive director of Ganding Pharmaceuticals, the top boss of Jiangcheng's second-largest financial group. If he stomped his foot, half of Jiangcheng would quake. Yet that young Daoist actually addressed Huang Boyuan as an equal. Just how terrifying was his background?

After seeing the young Daoist off, Huang Boyuan's complexion didn't look too good either. "Forgive the spectacle. I heard there's been a major breakthrough regarding my son's death. What did you discover?"

Huang Boyuan clearly wanted to change the subject, and I wasn't about to invite a snub by prying into the young Daoist's identity.

I sat down by the desk, took out the Double-Faced Buddha Pendant, and cut straight to the chase.

"Have you ever seen a similar pendant before, Director Huang?"

Huang Boyuan took the Double-Faced Buddha Pendant and examined it for a long time. His expression gradually darkened. "Where did you get this thing?"

"A few days ago, I was investigating Jiang Shihan at the hospital when someone interfered for no reason. In the end, to cover up their secrets, the other party even manipulated Jiang Shihan's mind, forcing her to jump off the building to her death."

"Without proof, don't speak nonsense." Ever since seeing the Two-Faced Buddha, Huang Boyuan had been in a highly tense state. This was a far cry from the strategic business tycoon I remembered.

"Whether you believe it or not, I'm only stating the facts. The pendant in your hand was obtained from the killer who forced Jiang Shihan to commit suicide." I deliberately paused here to observe Huang Boyuan's expression, but this old fox didn't show a single flaw.

"What about the killer? Where is he now?"

"I'm alive, so that obviously means he's dead." Revealing the hideous knife wounds on my body, I continued, "But don't celebrate too early. The other party might be a massive organization, and they won't stop until they achieve their goals. Last time, they killed your son and ended your family line. This time, they killed your daughter-in-law and destroyed the evidence. Next time, who knows who will be next."

"Are you threatening me?" Huang Boyuan placed the pendant on the desk, though his eyes still drifted toward it intentionally or otherwise.

"It's not a threat. I just want to uncover the truth. Based on the files you gave me, I initially thought Jiangjin Real Estate was the prime suspect. However, due to an unexpected accident, Jiangjin Real Estate has been cleared of suspicion. So now, I need you to provide me with new suspects." I spoke very plainly. This old fox was hiding something from me. This clearly wasn't his first time seeing the Double-Faced Buddha Pendant, and he definitely understood what the pendant represented.

My gaze was aggressive. Huang Boyuan pondered for a long time before finally bringing up an old matter.

"On the surface, I'm the executive director of Ganding Pharmaceuticals. It looks glamorous, but in reality, I suffer in silence."

"Over twenty years ago, when I first arrived in Jiangcheng, I had no one to rely on. I only brought a few secret formulas passed down from my ancestors. I worked myself half to death every day selling traditional medicine just to make a living. However, even though those days were exhausting, living together as a family of three was fulfilling and happy."

"Later, my second daughter was born. The child suffered from congenital heart disease, and the doctors asserted that she wouldn't live past fifteen. To save her life, I had no choice but to sell our ancestral home. But misfortune seemed to haunt me; shortly after giving birth to our second daughter, my wife fell severely ill."

"At the time, driven into a corner, I prepared to sell off the secret formulas handed down by my ancestors. But right then, I met a benefactor."

"After all these years, I can no longer remember his face. I only remember that he was neither a monk nor a Daoist, and he wore a Double-Faced Buddha Head Pendant..."