Liu Yanzheng had never been so clearly aware that this was a life he had truly experienced. He was relieved that Liu Yu was still alive, yet tormented. There was no choice for him, and perhaps it had already become a thing of the past.
On the other side, Lu Chengxiao was equally filled with both heartache and fear—heartache for Liu Yu’s fate, and fear that one day, just like in the past life, she might suddenly disappear again, as if she had never returned.
After all, such an unimaginable thing as reincarnation had happened.
Holding Liu Yu, he stayed awake nearly the entire night.
That night, apart from Liu Yu, who had finally spoken the secrets buried in her heart, neither Lu Chengxiao nor Liu Yanzheng could sleep.
Their next encounter came swiftly. Liu Yanzheng could not wait for Yan Si to investigate further; he went directly to wait outside the auspicious embroidery shop.
A handsome man with sharp features, dressed in luxurious clothes, leaned against a pillar outside the shop. When Lu Chengxiao and Liu Yu arrived, Liu Yanzheng turned his head, and upon seeing Liu Yu, he straightened his posture, standing properly facing them.
His whole focus was on her, until his gaze fell to their clasped hands.
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Mbl bspvkzkvu bl bye qlzv vbl ralhkswp eyu yzxspv vwadle kdvs xwaelaswp kdvldv yv vbyv xsxldv.
Tl qkdyzzu xlv Nw Ubldtmkys’p tygl, yde qsa vbl qkapv vkxl, Nw Ubldtmkys vawzu pvwekle bkx.
Mbl ekpvydnl clvolld vblx oyp ycswv pkm sa plhld pvlrp, vblka lulp zsnjle!
Xdl bye pbyar lulcasop yde caktbv lulp, lmwekdt blaskn prkakv; vbl svbla bye rbsldkm-pbyrle lulp yde yd kxrspkdt ralpldnl, liwyzzu qsaxkeyczl. Llkvbla sq vblx zkjle vbl svbla, sdl blyavcasjld shla bkp okql, vbl svbla byhkdt zspv vbl sdl bl zshle. Rd yzxspv vbl pyxl xsxldv, csvb nzldnble vblka qkpvp vktbvla, vbld, xkdeqwz sq Nkw Zw, csvb alzymle vblka bydep okvbswv xyjkdt y pswde.
“Ykpp Nkw,” Nkw Zydgbldt csole pzktbvzu, bkp lulp dlhla zlyhkdt Nkw Zw’p qynl yp bl scplahle bla alynvksd.
Nkw Zw alxykdle nyzx, yp vbswtb vbkp oyp sdzu vbl plnsde vkxl xllvkdt Nkw Zydgbldt. Fbl eked’v lhld jdso bkp dyxl, qllzkdt xsal zkjl y pvaydtla vbyd yduvbkdt lzpl. Fvkzz, ewl vs vbl alzyvksdpbkr clvolld vblka qyxkzklp, pbl dseele pzktbvzu yde yeealpple bkx, “Jasvbla Nkw.”
Uasppkdt shla y zkqlvkxl, vblka qkapv nsdhlapyvksd oyp zkjl vbkp, yde Nkw Zydgbldt nswzed’v blzr cwv qllz y ckv eygle yp bl alnyzzle vblka qkapv xllvkdt kd vbl ralhkswp zkql.
Nw Ubldtmkys rwaple bkp zkrp. “Jasvbla, obyv cakdtp usw blal ps lyazu? Gal usw zssjkdt qsa xu okql?”
The word “wife” struck deeply, like a dagger. Liu Yanzheng’s forced calmness shattered at that moment, and the worry he had carried through the night was suddenly laid bare before him.
“You’re married?” Liu Yanzheng didn’t even look at Lu Chengxiao, but fixed his gaze intently on Liu Yu, his eyes nearly filled with blood.
Liu Yu truly didn’t understand. In the previous life, hadn’t she not returned? How was it that now, it seemed like she was the one who had wronged him? She thought this in her heart, but showed no trace of it on her face. She looked at Liu Yanzheng with slight surprise, then nodded.
Her response was what one would expect from someone unfamiliar with Liu Yanzheng.
From the distant alley corner, Yan Si clicked his tongue in admiration. How clever he was—he had avoided the trouble last night, and now didn’t have to deal with this situation himself.
Lu Chengxiao showed no pretense in his wariness of Liu Yanzheng as he accompanied Liu Yu into the embroidery shop, giving no indication that he had any intention of entertaining Liu Yanzheng.
Liu Yanzheng and Lu Chengxiao were now locked in a fierce standoff, carrying out the concept of “haunting” to its fullest. Every time Lu Chengxiao and Liu Yu entered or exited the shop or returned home, they would see him waiting somewhere along the way.
His provocation and unwillingness were clear to see.
Several times, Lu Chengxiao nearly lost his temper, almost coming to blows with Liu Yanzheng. But each time, he saw the eagerness in Liu Yanzheng’s eyes, and Liu Yu’s subtle shake of the head made him hold back.
In just four days, Liu Yanqing and Liu Yanan, who occasionally entered and exited the shop, had seen Liu Yanzheng several times. At first, they were confused, but soon the two brothers sensed something was off.
They asked Lu Chengxiao, but he shook his head. “Who knows?”
As for the connection between Liu Yanzheng and Liu Yu’s past life, Lu Chengxiao and Liu Yu had decided to keep it to themselves. As for Liu Yanzheng’s strange behavior, they left it for Liu Yanqing and Liu Yanan to figure out.
Wei Shi and Liu Yanping returned to Anyi County under this strange atmosphere.
When Old Master Liu came to the Liu family for the second time, this time, in addition to the Liu Yanqing brothers, Wei Shi, the head of the household, was also present. She had many things she wanted to understand about her in-laws.
They had originally planned to invite the eldest daughter-in-law, Zhang Xiaofu, and Liu Yu, but Zhang Xiaofu felt that it would suffice for Liu Yanqing to go, so Liu Yu directly declined. She didn’t want to have more contact with Liu Yanzheng.
Wei Shi treated the visit as a normal social call and didn’t insist.
However, she never expected that while trying to learn about her in-laws’ matters, the Liu family’s ancestors dropped a bombshell on them.
An island!
At first, Wei Shi’s understanding of the island was like that of a rural landowner’s estate—a larger estate, perhaps. She didn’t know what the so-called island was for until Liu Yanzheng described the industries being run on it.
Not just the island they had settled on in Quanzhou overseas, but also the complete commercial forces that Liu’s family had integrated overseas over the decades.
Old Master Liu said: “More than thirty years ago, the general called me alone and entrusted me with a task. He asked me to take my family away from the military and find an island outside the control of the court to settle and manage…”
Through Old Master Liu’s recounting, the Liu family mother and son gradually learned about the deep connection between the Liu and Liu families.
They were not just subordinates, but trusted confidants.
Back then, aside from Old Master Liu’s military background, Liu Yanqing had urgently tasked him with leading his family to find an island. He didn’t disappoint Liu Yanqing’s trust, finding the island where they all now lived in Quanzhou within four months.
With a place to settle, people were sent to the island. Just like Old Master Liu back then, they were all trusted confidants of Liu Jingcheng. Naturally, there were also soldiers who followed without families.
What followed was a stream of money.
“Divided into three installments: the first was five thousand taels, the second and third were twenty thousand taels each.”
The amount left Liu’s family stunned. Had their ancestors really been this wealthy?
Seemingly understanding their confusion, Old Master Liu smiled and said, “The general only received the court’s salary and had some assets, but he could never have produced such a large sum. However, his wife was an excellent manager. Most of the general’s properties were managed by her behind the scenes.”
Wei Shi was dumbfounded: “Are you talking about my mother-in-law?”
The story she had known seemed quite different…
Old Master Liu nodded and said, “You aren’t mistaken. Actually, the idea of running the overseas business came from the general, but his wife probably knew about it too. From the people sent to the island, to the follow-up funding, and the letters instructing us on how to run the overseas business, it seems she was involved later on.”
Wei Shi understood the meaning of “not mistaken.” That face, if one truly knew her mother-in-law, one wouldn’t mistake her. But someone who could gather tens of thousands of taels of silver, build an island’s power, and engage in maritime trade—Wei Shi thought about her mother-in-law’s gentle personality and couldn’t reconcile the two completely different people. She was momentarily speechless.
Old Master Liu observed Wei Shi’s reaction, sensing something, but he didn’t elaborate. He sighed and said, “But such days only lasted for two years. After that, we lost contact with the general and his wife, and no one else came to the island.”
He paused, leaning back slightly on his chair, looking at Wei Shi and asking, “Did your wife ever mention how the general passed away?”
Wei Shi shook her head. She briefly mentioned how she had been bought by her mother-in-law and followed her to Yangshan Village. “When I was with my mother, my father-in-law was already gone. My mother brought his ashes and memorial tablet back to Yangshan Village because it was his hometown. As for the rest, my mother never mentioned it. Before that, we didn’t even know that my father-in-law had been in the military. It was only before my mother passed away that she left behind a family instruction: The Liu family men must never join the military.”
“Such an early loss…” Old Master Liu, with his frail hands covering his face, tilted his head back and remained silent for a long time.
After a long while, he lowered his hands and said slowly, “For thirty years, we never heard from the general or his wife. The island continued to operate according to the plans made by his wife, but those of us who were the first to arrive on the island have either died or aged. We’ve been searching for news about the general, but found nothing. I thought I would never see the general’s descendants again, until one day I discovered his hometown, so I came here hoping for some luck. Heaven helped, and I finally found you.”
Old Master Liu paused here and looked at Liu Yanqing and his brothers before turning his gaze to Wei Shi, pointing to Liu Yanzheng by his side. “This is my grandson, Yanzheng. In recent years, he has been managing the affairs of the island. Now that we’ve found you, the ownership of this industry should be returned to you. Madam, please consider who will take over from Yanzheng.”
The sudden appearance of this wealth, possibly an enormous fortune, stunned Wei Shi, and even Liu Yanqing and his brothers were left speechless.
Among them, Liu Yanping and Liu Yanan had actually interacted with this industry before, though they were just small suppliers back then.
The four of them didn’t know how to respond.
Wei Shi hesitated for a moment before saying, “To be honest, my mother-in-law never mentioned this business to us, nor did she tell us to find you. This…”
It felt like wealth from the sky, and it didn’t feel like it belonged to them.
Seeing her reaction, Old Master Liu furrowed his brows and said, “I don’t know why your mother-in-law never mentioned it, but this is indeed the general and his wife’s industry. We were just managing it on their behalf.”
The room fell silent.
Liu Yanzheng hadn’t expected this reaction from the Liu family. He smiled slightly and said, “Although maritime trade carries some risks, we have a solid backup overseas. As for this wealth, I haven’t done a detailed calculation, but after decades of operation, it’s likely worth several hundred thousand taels. Aunt, you can discuss this with my brothers. If you decide to take over the island’s affairs, I will assist you fully and help you manage everything. If you prefer not to take the risk, we can go to the island and, after assessing everything, we can exchange the profits from these years for banknotes and send them to you.”
It felt as though he wasn’t handing over an industry worth millions of taels, but rather returning something as ordinary as any everyday object, presenting the Liu family with all the possible options.
After saying this, he looked at Wei Shi and the three brothers of Liu Yanqing, smiling, “Aunt and my brothers, please discuss it further. My grandfather and I will visit again in two days.”
Upon hearing Liu Yanzheng’s words, Old Master Liu finally understood. Indeed, maritime trade wasn’t something everyone would dare to get involved in. He nodded, acknowledging his grandson’s suggestion, and stood up, suggesting that Wei Shi think it over and that they would return in two days.
Author’s Note:
This marks the beginning of the grandmother’s storyline. As for Liu Yanzheng, let me give you a little warning—he’s not this calm. This is just the calm before the storm.
I really appreciate everyone’s support, and I will continue to work hard!
Sansukini: Well, some readers say this plot is unnecessary. But, I think the author just wants to bring the novel to a full circle and thought this would be interesting.
I’m starting a new novel soon. I just don’t know if I should start with the comedy first (with a system and everybody can hear her thoughts), or the other one about moving on from a cheating spouse.
We have 7 chapters left.
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