Chapter 118: The Man Who Killed His Wife

"It's similar to the blood-red ominous talisman you showed me before, but much more wicked," Blind Liu said. He explained the background in one breath before finally remembering to ask, "Where did you find this? We gathered several cultivators back then and turned the school upside down, but we never found a trace of it."

"It was stuck to the thirteenth step of the Xinhu High School teaching building. That extra step only seems to appear when specific conditions are met."

Blind Liu nodded, half-understanding, then suddenly asked, "What were you doing at Xinhu High School anyway? That place is a forbidden zone in the Jianghu Twin Cities. It's a Yin den where wandering ghosts and wild spirits make their home."

"The daughter of the Blues Bar's owner had her soul snatched by a Little Ghost and got lost in the school. I went to save her." I didn't mention the Underworld Live Show, merely using Sakurako as a convenient shield.

"You'd better mind your own business in the future. The Profound Truth Dao Method emphasizes purity and inaction. Don't tell me you don't understand the value of playing it safe?" Blind Liu was a good man, just a bit naggy sometimes.

I quickly nodded and picked up the Paulownia Mulberry Talisman from the table. "Old Liu, what should we do with this thing?"

I had inadvertently picked up a hot potato. With its dubious effects and shady origins, I didn't dare use it recklessly.

Blind Liu pondered for a moment. "Activating the Paulownia Mulberry Talisman requires specific incantations. Only those who have cultivated the Tongsang Art and mastered the Dream Creation Secret Method can unleash its true power. For now, it's just a decoration in your hands. I have three suggestions for you—top, middle, and bottom. Consider them carefully before you choose."

"The bottom plan is to personally return the talisman to Xiao Zhuang Taoist Temple. You'd form a good karmic tie, and they might even offer you some compensation. Aren't you dead set on cultivating the Dao? The temple houses three thousand Daoist scriptures; they'd let you take your pick."

I rolled my eyes and firmly shook my head. As an Underworld Live Show Streamer, the last thing I lacked was authentic Daoist texts. Besides, trading an Upper Vehicle Talisman for them was an obvious ripoff.

"The middle plan is to keep the talisman yourself and spend the rest of your life searching for the Tongsang Secret Art. If you're lucky enough to unleash even thirty or forty percent of its power, you could walk completely unopposed—at least within Jiangcheng."

It was a tempting offer. But if I did that, I would be offending two major sects at the same time: Xiao Zhuang Taoist Temple and Profound Truth Dao.

"Old Liu, what about the top plan?"

Blind Liu picked up the pen on my desk, tore a piece of paper from Sakurako's notebook, and scribbled down two lines.

I was shocked when I read them. I never expected him to suggest something like this. My eyes slowly lit up. "Old Liu, is this actually feasible?"

Blind Liu asked for my lighter and burned the page to ash. "The choice is entirely yours. Just pretend I was never here today."

He glanced back at the Paulownia Mulberry Talisman on the table and left me with one last instruction before walking out the door. "No matter who asks, do not tell them you called me. I have never seen this talisman, nor do I know where it is."

Blind Liu pushed the door open and left. The only ones remaining in the small shop were me and Bai Qi, who had snuck back in at some point.

"Old blind man, I consider myself in your debt for this one."

The talisman carried a heavy aura of Yin energy, so I couldn't keep it on my person. I was just agonizing over where to hide it when the shop door was pushed open again. Assuming Blind Liu had returned, I went to greet him—only to find a woman around thirty years old stepping inside.

I casually slipped the Paulownia Mulberry Talisman into Sakurako's notebook and studied the stranger.

Her skin was impeccably maintained, and she dressed with high fashion. Her looks were genuinely stunning—an aggressive beauty accompanied by the natural aura of a wealthy corporate executive. She effortlessly captured men's gazes and took their hearts captive.

"Is there anything you need?" Though surprised by her beauty, I didn't lose my composure. When it came to seductive charm, she was practically a grade-schooler compared to Onitsuka Ayaka.

The woman ignored me, taking her time to browse the messy array of unmentionable toys hanging on the wall.

"Sorry about that. I've been quite busy lately and haven't brought in any new stock. These are all from a week or two ago. I can give you a discount if you want anything." I put Sakurako's notebook into a drawer, watching the woman pace around the room.

"I'm not here to buy anything." Only after she finished looking at everything did she step up to me. "Are you Gao Jian?"

I was a bit taken aback. Since when had I become a celebrity? Just any random big shot could call out my name now.

"That's right."

"A few days ago, did Secretary Zhang from Qian Ding Pharmaceutical Company come here?"

I frowned at her words. "You never visit the Hall of Three Treasures for nothing. Since you already know, why bother asking?"

The woman's lips curled up slightly. Without sitting down, she propped up her chin with one hand and evaluated me. "Did Huang Boyuan hire you to investigate the cause of his precious son's death?"

"What exactly are you trying to ask? Let's skip beating around the bush and get straight to the point." This woman dared to address the director of Qian Ding Pharmaceutical Company by his full name and knew so many of Huang Boyuan's secrets. Could she be a mistress he kept on the side? But her temperament didn't seem to fit that sort of woman. I was full of doubts, yet I couldn't just ask her outright.

"How much did he pay you?"

"Sorry, but our line of work requires tight lips. I don't disclose any information about my other clients."

"'Your line of work'?" A trace of disdain flashed in the woman's eyes. She placed her leather handbag on the table, then, as if worried the dirty surface might stain it, she immediately picked it back up. "I definitely know Huang Boyuan better than you do. Relax. I'm not here to buy trade secrets. I just want to hire you to investigate something for me."

"Investigate what?"

"Twenty years ago, your 'Director Huang' was just a lowly porter dealing in Chinese medicine. Back then, the one who suffered through hardship and wandered aimlessly by his side wasn't the current Mrs. Huang, but an art teacher named Wanjun." This woman even knew about Huang Boyuan's affairs from twenty years ago. I grew even more certain that her relationship with him was far from ordinary.

"I did hear Director Huang mention that. He dragged his entire family to Jiangcheng to try to make a living, and it wasn't easy. Later, both his wife and his second daughter fell severely ill at the same time. That period was the hardest time of his life."

"Huang Boyuan actually told you all that?" The woman was somewhat surprised. "That's right, he really had it hard back then. In the end, he even sold off his ancestral medical prescriptions. But that alone is not enough for me to forgive him."

"Listening to your tone, could you be one of Director Huang's relatives from back then?"

"My name is Huang Lan. I'm Huang Boyuan's eldest daughter. I've been living abroad and only recently returned."

Since this involved the Huang Family's internal affairs, I didn't dare interject casually. I let the woman continue speaking.

"Over twenty years ago, my mother and my sister, who was only a few months old, fell gravely ill at the same time. But our family had already sold the ancestral home, and the money we scraped together was only enough to save one of them."

These details didn't deviate much from what Huang Boyuan had told me, but I patiently listened to her finish.

"He went out every single day to borrow money and try to sell his prescriptions. Three days before my mother's surgery, he claimed he'd contacted a pharmaceutical merchant from the south and that they had already agreed on a price."

"Do you know how I felt back then? It was like a drowning person catching their final straw. I was naive enough to believe that as long as we weathered that disaster, everything would be okay."

"Huang Boyuan was gone for three whole days. During that time, he didn't call back even once."

"The tragedy struck on the second day he was away. I went out in the morning to scavenge cabbage leaves from the market, but when I came back, I found my mother dead. My sister was wailing loudly, and my mother was collapsed on the floor. Not far from her was a shattered porcelain bowl, its bitter Chinese medicine spilled all over the ground."

Even though twenty years had passed, Huang Lan's memory remained as fresh as ever. It was clear that the scene was deeply engraved in her mind, becoming a nightmare she simply couldn't shake.

"My condolences." I looked at Huang Lan. To think that this exceptionally elegant, stylishly beautiful woman before me had actually survived on rotten cabbage leaves from a market and endured such a tragic childhood.

Huang Lan ignored me, continuing to speak as if to herself. "I was only six or seven at the time. I had no idea what was wrong with my mother. It wasn't until Huang Boyuan came back that he personally told me she had committed suicide."

It was a tragic story. I thought that was the end of it, but to my surprise, Huang Lan's tone suddenly shifted.

"I trusted him so much. I respected him and relied on him... but I never imagined that Huang Boyuan, that absolute animal, had lied to me for a full twenty years!"