Chapter 20

Chapter 20

"020"

The massive stone door weighed over a thousand jin, and Lu Ao could swear he caught a whiff of Xiao Lancui's signature ink scent.

Xiao Lancui was an avid reader and calligrapher, always carrying a faint trace of ink about him.

Lu Ao's courage wavered.

From the moment he took his own life to the moment he woke in a stranger's body, he'd gone an eternity without seeing Xiao Lancui.

So very, very long.

He missed Xiao Lancui so desperately that he feared this was nothing but a dream—a beautiful dream he'd conjured up.

Lu Ao stood motionless for an hour before he finally worked up the nerve to open the tomb chamber, and only then did he remember the arrow wound in his chest.

He looked down. At the left collarbone, a small circle of blood had bloomed through his white coat. Injuries like this were nothing new to him, but he looked too disheveled and filthy for Xiao Lancui to see him like this.

Not that Xiao Lancui had ever cared about such things.

When Xiao Lancui first came to the cold palace to teach him to read and write, Lu Ao couldn't recall how long it had been since he'd last bathed—his clothes reeked of stale sweat even in winter—yet Xiao Lancui merely stroked his head and said with a smile, "Let me first teach you how to keep yourself clean."

The ferocity drained out of Lu Ao at the memory. He headed first to another tomb chamber—a bathing room.

After sealing himself in the tomb, he didn't die right away. He refused to allow anyone the chance to desecrate their mausoleum, so he lived within the tomb for six months, making sure every trap and mechanism was flawless before he willingly took his own life.

The tomb had all the amenities of daily life.

Lu Ao bathed, changed clothes, cleaned his wound, and put on a fresh set of simple home attire before finally returning to the tomb chamber.

This chamber was an exact replica of Xiao Lancui's bedroom. On the writing desk lay the book Xiao Lancui had been reading that morning, an unfinished ink-wash painting of a bamboo grove, and beside those, a seal carved from purple sandalwood.

Hundreds of years had passed, yet the sandalwood seal gleamed as if it had been carved yesterday, still carrying a faint, elegant fragrance.

And the person lying on the bed was just as unchanged.

Lu Ao's Adam's apple bobbed as he strode to the bedside. Two bodies lay side by side on the bed—his own on the outside. Lu Ao grabbed his own corpse and tossed it to the floor, his gaze lingering tenderly on the body on the inside.

The other one was Xiao Lancui.

Protected by a luminous pearl that preserved the body from decay for ten thousand years, Xiao Lancui looked like he was simply in a deep, ordinary sleep.

Still looking like he was in his early twenties, he wore the pale moon-white robe he favored, an orchid-shaped jade pendant that stayed warm in winter and cool in summer at his waist, with a soft indigo silk tassel. His ink-black hair was gathered into a simple bun, held by a translucent white jade hairpin. With dark hair, fair skin, and a clear, lustrous complexion, his lips were naturally rosy, thin, and moist—as if he were still breathing.

Lu Ao leaned in, mesmerized, stopping just a hair's breadth from those thin lips.

The lips he had kissed countless times in dreams—he still couldn't bear to defile them.

He wanted to kiss, to embrace, but in the year since Xiao Lancui left him, he had suppressed his longing day and night.

Even though Xiao Lancui would never wake again and could never stop him.

In his eyes, even dead, Xiao Lancui was that untouchable, lofty snow-capped peak—no one could desecrate him, not even Lu Ao himself.

Lu Ao sat on the edge of the bed, turned sideways. Carefully, he took Xiao Lancui's left hand—icy cold—and lowered his head to gently kiss the chilled fingertips. This was the only liberty he allowed himself.

"Teacher, it's me. I didn't die."

Having spent the past two days outside watching that impostor, Lu Ao had quickly learned about the world he'd landed in.

A new era, over four hundred years after the Dali Dynasty.

He'd somehow awakened centuries later in a stranger's body. He figured it was a gift from heaven.

A chance to kill that impostor with his own hands.

After kissing his fingertips, Lu Ao pressed Xiao Lancui's left hand to his cheek. The sleeve slipped back, revealing Xiao Lancui's slender wrist and the string of deep green jade beads, with the golden bead among them shimmering brilliantly in the candlelight.

"Teacher, wait for me just a few more days." He gripped Xiao Lancui's hand, gazing at that sleeping face, not wanting to look away, and said with a soft smile, "Once I kill that impostor, I'll come right back and stay with you."

He looked at Xiao Lancui for a long while before he could bear to let go of his hand, placing it back where it had been. He then leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss to Xiao Lancui's forehead before finally forcing himself to leave.

Stepping over his own corpse, he went to another burial chamber, grabbed a few jade pendants, and left.

All three jade pendants were carefully chosen burial treasures. After the appraiser at Zhengu Auction House finished examining them, he discreetly sized up Lu Ao before going to contact his boss.

Zhou Sizhe hurried over. By then, Lu Ao was in the VIP lounge, enjoying tea and refreshments.

Lu Ao hadn't eaten in days, and a plate of fruit and pastries along with a pot of Biluochun tea were polished off completely.

Zhou Sizhe noted that despite the young man's age, his attire was—stage costume? Or hanfu? Either way, it was ancient-style clothing, yet his bearing was that of someone accustomed to power. Having dealt in antiques for years, Zhou Sizhe had met countless important figures, but rarely anyone with such presence.

Especially someone so young.

Suddenly, he thought of Xiao Lancui. People like this—he'd never encountered them before, yet recently he'd met two.

Zhou Sizhe straightened his clothes and strode in quickly. Even though this man was at least twenty years his junior, Zhou Sizhe still extended his hand first in a low posture of greeting. "Hello, I'm Zhou Sizhe, owner of Zhengu Auction House."

Lu Ao didn't return the handshake, only looking at him coldly. "Name your price."

Zhou Sizhe recovered smoothly, withdrawing his hand. There was a sofa nearby, but he didn't sit, asking with a smile, "Forgive me, but may I ask about the provenance of those three jades?" He explained, "These three pieces are more precious than anything in a museum. We wouldn't dare accept them without understanding their background."

Lu Ao was terse. "Family heirlooms."

Zhou Sizhe opened his mouth to speak, but Lu Ao continued, "I have many more jades of this quality."

Zhou Sizhe swallowed his words. Lu Ao hadn't taken back the three jades—they were still with the appraiser. Zhou Sizhe had gone to see them before coming, and even one would shake the antique world. Three of them, and the key point—

This young man was casually disposing of them.

Zhou Sizhe had no doubt the man had even finer antiques at home.

He held up three fingers. "Thirty million for the three. Would that work for you?"

Zhou Sizhe's voice betrayed his uncertainty. For top-tier jade like this, the price was practically a steal. He feared offering too low and losing any room to negotiate.

Thirty million was his lowball—his true mental ceiling was triple that.

To his surprise, Lu Ao said, "How much cash can you produce right now?"

Zhou Sizhe was puzzled. Did he want a cash transaction? Could the goods really not be from legitimate channels? He mulled it over, but his love for those three jades was overwhelming, so he said with a smile, "Large cash withdrawals require advance notice. To be honest, if you need it right now, the most I can pull is two million."

"Bring me two million in cash first," Lu Ao said. "I'll return in a few days for the rest."

A wave of immense elation washed over Zhou Sizhe. Even if Lu Ao was strange, he couldn't refuse this heaven-sent temptation. Even if it was a trap, he'd take those three jades today no matter what!

Zhou Sizhe quickly said, "Please wait a moment—I'll withdraw the money immediately." He started toward the door, then stopped and turned back, smiling with full service attentiveness, "Shall I bring you a change of clothes as well?"

Lu Ao was pleased with Zhou Sizhe's ability to read the room and nodded in agreement.

Zhou Sizhe checked out Lu Ao's build, smiled, and left. As soon as he was outside, he instructed Sun Qinian, "Watch him—don't let him get away!"

Sun Qinian nodded. He grabbed a cup of coffee and headed to the lounge, knocking politely. "Hey, brought you some coffee."

Lu Ao didn't even glance at him. As Sun Qinian was about to leave after delivering the coffee, Lu Ao caught a glimpse of his face out of the corner of his eye and immediately spoke. "Stop."

Sun Qinian froze, turned around with a smile, and asked, "Is there anything else you need, sir?"

It was that face—

Sun Qinian, Xiao Lancui's head guard.

Lu Ao asked flatly, "What's your name?"

Sun Qinian replied, "Sun Qinian—Sun like descendant, Qi like begin, Nian like year."

Lu Ao's murderous intent flared in an instant.

A razor-sharp blade had already slid out of his sleeve into his palm, ready to slice Sun Qinian's throat open—but then he thought better of it and tucked the knife away.

Not worth it.

This nobody Sun Qinian wasn't worthy of being buried with Xiao Lancui.

Sun Qinian had no clue he'd just dodged death in the span of two seconds. When Lu Ao stayed silent, he hesitated before asking, "Is there anything else?"

Lu Ao waved him off. Sun Qinian blinked, thrown off by the old-fashioned gesture, then quietly slipped out after a beat and took his post outside the door.

Lu Ao knew Sun Qinian was out there. He didn't give a damn—he wasn't going to break his word, and he didn't even want the rest of the money.

In a few days, he'd kill that impostor. He wouldn't need the money anymore.

Thinking back to that silhouette yesterday that looked so much like Xiao Lancui, Lu Ao's dark eyes narrowed coldly.

Killing was a pain in this era. He'd already failed twice. Next time, he'd need a bulletproof, airtight plan.

To wipe out that impostor for good.

Meanwhile, the "impostor" Xiao Lancui picked up his laptop with the new screen and headed to class.

Lu Siye and Fu Chen were both no-shows, and Huo Shenan obviously couldn't make it either.

Xiao Lancui checked the school forum and found the info in no time. Huo Shenan was okay—he'd woken up this morning.

Another thing Xiao Lancui liked about this new era was how transparent and widespread information was—getting useful intel was a breeze.

Back in Dali, he'd spent five years building a spy network that functioned like a modern intelligence agency to gather intel on enemies.

As for Xiao Anfeng, he hadn't shown up to school either. Last night, despite Xiao Liqin saying he'd be home late, he never came back—another whole night out with zero contact.

At breakfast, Xiao Jingli and Xiao Liqin both had huge dark circles they couldn't hide, making them look even more like brothers.

By now, things had completely gone off the rails from the original story.

Xiao Lancui had picked up some new knowledge and was in a good mood. That afternoon after class, he went to the convenience store in the second cafeteria and asked Zhao Lan point-blank, "Hey boss, did the Matcha Milk Pudding Ice Bread come in yet?"

Zhao Lan was way calmer today. She looked at Xiao Lancui, and the idea she'd been turning over for two days finally clicked. There was no way Xiao Lancui knew her, so why not get on his good side? That'd make it easier to get updates on Xiao Anfeng—and maybe even get a few words in with him!

Zhao Lan smiled and said, "Ordered it—it'll be here tomorrow morning. You coming by then? I'll set one aside for you."

Xiao Lancui smiled. "I'll be there."

He didn't eat at the cafeteria. The driver picked him up and brought him back to the Xiao house.

The second he walked in, he heard crying.

"I know you've never liked me or Anfeng. Fine, we'll leave right now—we won't stick around to annoy you! You can live happily ever after with your precious son Xiao Lancui!"

Xie Jingfang was crying.

Xiao Lancui's eyes flickered. He swapped his shoes and hurried in.

There were three people in the living room.

Xiao Jingli sat in the main seat, Xie Jingfang stood by the armchair on the other side, and Xiao Anfeng was holding Xie Jingfang.

Xiao Anfeng's face was pale as he desperately tried to calm Xie Jingfang. "Mom, this is all my fault. Don't be mad at Dad."

Xiao Jingli had zero intention of letting Xiao Anfeng leave. Having not seen him in days, he stared at him with almost greedy intensity.

But aside from Xiao Lancui, who knew about his dirty thoughts, the other two just figured Xiao Jingli was furious. Xiao Jingli asked again, "What exactly did you do? Why didn't you come home last night either?"

Xiao Anfeng couldn't exactly explain.

He hadn't come home last night because he'd... hooked up with Lu Siye.

Last night, he'd caught up to Lu Siye in the elevator. He'd planned to flirt a little and then head home, but Lu Siye went crazy, slamming him against the elevator and kissing him like his life depended on it.

He'd wanted to resist, but his legs turned to jelly. Plus, Lu Siye was a damn good kisser, and before he knew it, they were in a hotel bed...

This morning, when he left the hotel, he was bleeding a bit down there. He felt sore and, worried his family would notice something was off, booked another hotel to rest for the day before heading home in the afternoon.

He hadn't expected Xiao Jingli to be home. The second he walked in, he got called into the living room for an interrogation.

Xiao Anfeng was racking his brain for a believable excuse when he spotted Xiao Lancui walking in. A lightbulb went off, and he quickly said, "I was at the hospital."

Before Xiao Jingli could dig deeper, he added, "A classmate of mine got into a car accident. Dad, you probably know him—Huo Shenan."

Hearing that Xiao Anfeng had been at the hospital, Xiao Jingli's expression relaxed a lot. He asked, "Was the accident your fault? You stayed at the hospital to look after him for two days."

Xiao Anfeng's voice dropped. "Not my fault. Our family's fault." He paused, then looked at Xiao Lancui. "It was Third Brother who caused the accident."

Xiao Lancui's eyelids twitched. Well, that was unexpected.