Zhang Chen, after all, is a thoughtful person and doesn’t want to get involved in the Shen family’s messy affairs.
Zhang Chen arrived at the front gate of the academy, looking at Shen Ling and Zhang Gaoqiu, who came hand in hand. At this moment, Shen Ling wore a red dress, gazing at Zhang Gaoqiu with a face full of admiration.
Behind the two, Jiang Nan also walked side by side with Shen Qiu, the two showed close postures, quietly conversing.
From afar, Zhang Chen glanced at the Shen family group, secretly feeling that the peace before him might not last long. When the Shen family mansion collapses, many affairs and many people will face the biggest upheavals in their lives.
The group walked one after another towards the direction of the Exquisite Tower, with Zhang Chen trailing distantly behind them. When they reached the front door, Zhang Gaoqiu and Jiang Nan entered the house, leaving Shen Qiu and Shen Ling, the brother and sister, standing silently at the doorway.
At that moment, Zhang Chen passed by the two, when Shen Ling suddenly opened her mouth to mock: "It’s a good thing my eyes weren’t blind, I recognized who is the True Dragon, and didn’t marry you, a mere mortal."
Zhang Chen paused his steps, turned his head to look at Shen Ling, not knowing why she attacked him out of nowhere.
"You fall far short of Zhang Gaoqiu, how dare you dream of marrying me? You two are utterly incomparable." Shen Ling pointed her slender finger at Zhang Chen’s head and said.
"Oh?" Zhang Chen heard this, glanced at Shen Ling flatly, showing a trace of pity in his eyes, yet did not argue with her, turning to enter the Treasure Tower. Who would argue with someone who’s about to face family destruction?
"What kind of attitude is this? I’m speaking to you, can’t you hear?" Seeing Zhang Chen’s indifferent attitude, Shen Ling couldn’t hold back, and scolded at Zhang Chen’s back.
Unfortunately, Zhang Chen paid no attention to Shen Ling’s words, his figure disappearing at the door, prompting Shen Ling to curse loudly: "Just a poor boy, why so smug?"
Inside the building
Zhang Gaoqiu was still as popular as ever, always the center of attention as if all stars surround the moon.
"The more pleased he is now, the worse he’ll fall when he’s exposed!" Tushan Qing, looking at Zhang Gaoqiu shining like a star in the distance, whispered with bitterness near Zhang Chen’s ear: "Let me tell you, that guy never obtained the mysterious item that allows one to enter the Spiritual World."
As he spoke, Tushan Qing cautiously watched Zhang Chen’s expression, seeming to want to discern something.
Lately, he’s been pondering it over, thinking that only Zhang Chen in the Exquisite Tower stands a chance to obtain that mysterious item.
Forget everything else, just seeing those colossal stakes on Zhang Chen, the earth-shattering phenomena of those stakes, what formidable fortune must that be?
Aside from Zhang Chen’s immense luck, Tushan Qing couldn’t think of anyone fit to wield such Creation.
As for Zhang Gaoqiu?
It’s not that he looks down on Zhang Gaoqiu, but that guy doesn’t even match him, let alone enjoy such boundless fortune?
At this moment, Zhang Chen looked expressionless at the lines on the mural: "How do you know Zhang Gaoqiu didn’t obtain that mysterious item?"
He certainly knew Tushan Qing could use his skill to check on the stakes, but to avoid arousing Tushan Qing’s suspicion, he had to cooperate with Tushan Qing and asked.
Tushan Qing couldn’t discern anything from Zhang Chen’s face, softly replying: "I naturally have means."
Zhang Chen ignored Tushan Qing, contemplating how to seal more oddities. As noon came, the two walked out of the Exquisite Tower, coincidentally encountering Zhang Gaoqiu also leaving.
Zhang Gaoqiu looked at the two with arrogance, hands behind his back, walking out of the building. When he noticed the girl outside in red, holding chicken soup, his expression changed, some urgency in his voice: "Didn’t I tell you not to come?"
"I worry you’re not eating well, comprehending the mysterious consumes Essence, Qi, and Spirit, you must replenish your nutrition." Shen Ling felt a bit wronged.
Zhang Gaoqiu grabbed Shen Ling’s sleeve and quickly headed into the distance, soon disappearing from everyone’s view.
Once they went far, Tushan Qing clicked his tongue and said: "What a good show this is."
"Mind your own business!" Zhang Chen ignored Tushan Qing’s words, heading towards the pavilion nearby to eat.
When reaching a secluded area, Zhang Chen indeed saw Zhang Gaoqiu and Shen Ling again, though at this moment, Shen Ling looked somewhat dejected, unsure about the chicken soup she held. Zhang Gaoqiu appeared to scold Shen Ling, and upon seeing Zhang Chen and Tushan Qing approaching, he immediately stopped talking, then tried to leave without even glancing at Shen Ling.
"Big brother Zhang, your chicken soup..." Shen Ling called out as she saw Zhang Gaoqiu about to leave.
Zhang Gaoqiu paused his steps, looked back at Shen Ling: "If you make chicken soup again, come here to wait for me. I’m at the academy to study, not for enjoyment. Your daily delivery of chicken soup, how could our classmates view me? Wouldn’t it ruin my reputation?"
Shen Ling heard this and lowered her head with grievance, tightly holding the chicken soup box: "Big brother Zhang, I understand. I’ll come here to wait for you in the future."
Zhang Gaoqiu’s expression eased slightly, he sat on a nearby step, impatiently drinking the chicken soup.
"Scumbag."
Zhang Chen listened to Zhang Gaoqiu’s words, cursed silently, and then distanced himself from Tushan Qing and left.
After the family finished their meal, they returned to the pavilion to continue their enlightenment, but Zhang Chen gained nothing.
By evening, Zhang Chen returned home, added oil to the Soul-Forming Lamp, and began meditation to recover his Essence, Qi, and Spirit.
The next afternoon, Zhang Chen indeed did not see the girl in red, while Zhang Gaoqiu went out and did not receive chicken soup from Shen Ling, which made him secretly relieved.
Meanwhile, Zhang Chen and Tushan Qing arrived at the dining pavilion to find Zhang Gaoqiu and Shen Ling sipping chicken soup from afar.
"It seems like Shen Ling is pregnant," said Tushan Qing, observing the two drinking chicken soup from a distance, turning to Zhang Chen.
Zhang Chen nodded, knowing this affair long ago.
"Truly a pitiful person," Tushan Qing continued, "Entrusting oneself to the wrong person, so tragic."
"We all choose our paths," replied Zhang Chen.
"Have you noticed, Jinling City has become tense these days? They say many bloodied people have fled from outside the city, supposedly relatives of the Shen Family’s outer branches," remarked Tushan Qing.
"Yellow Heaven Dao has begun its moves," Zhang Chen said.
"It has indeed started! You should visit the Shen Family, check the changes in their Qi Mechanism, and see if you uncover anything," Tushan Qing advised Zhang Chen. "Inspecting from the inside reveals more flaws than from outside. If we infiltrate earlier, we’ll gain more advantage."
Listening to this, Zhang Chen neither agreed nor opposed.
Just in the afternoon when school was out, as Zhang Chen exited the academy gates, he saw a familiar figure leading a carriage at the gate. Upon seeing Zhang Chen exit, the figure hurriedly approached and bowed, "Greetings, Young Master."
It was Lai Changrong, the Shen Family’s chief steward.
Curious why Lai Changrong was there, Zhang Chen realized it wasn’t his concern, nodded in acknowledgment, and intended to pass him by, when Lai Changrong promptly called out, "Young Master, please wait, Madam requests your presence."
Zhang Chen paused upon hearing these words, turned to Lai Changrong, pondered briefly, stepped onto the carriage, and saw Lai Changrong drive it swiftly towards the Shen Family estate.
The carriage raced forward, arriving at the Shen Family estate. Descending, Zhang Chen noted the dim sky, the estate aglow with numerous patrol guards, an indescribable sense of oppression welled within him.
"Follow me," Lai Changrong instructed Zhang Chen.
Traversing through halls, Zhang Chen noticed the pervasive scent of herbs in the Shen Family, its tang hit his forehead.
"Interesting," Zhang Chen mused silently.
Conversing, they eventually arrived at the courtyard where Madam Shen resided. Lai Changrong gestured for Zhang Chen to enter alone, his silhouette ghostly as he retreated silently.
This night, Madam Shen’s dwelling was unusually quiet, where Madam Shen sat beside a lamp, lost in thought.
"Grandson presents salutations to Madam," Zhang Chen respectfully bowed.
Hearing Zhang Chen’s words, Madam Shen returned to awareness, smiling at Zhang Chen, "You’ve arrived, come sit. Since you moved out, there wasn’t a word from you, I couldn’t find you, so I had someone wait at the academy entrance."
"It’s my fault, please forgive me, Madam," replied Zhang Chen.
Madam Shen gestured Zhang Chen to approach, grasped his arm, studied his face in the dull lamp light, then finally said, "I’m summoning you here to entrust you with something. There are still some Eight-Treasure Heart-lock Pills from the Shen Family; I’m leaving them for you to use."
Madam Shen released Zhang Chen’s arm, turned to fetch a box from the cabinet and handed it to him, "Inside are the pill formula and thirty Eight-Treasure Heart-lock Pills belonging to the Shen Family."
"Madam, what do you mean by this?" Zhang Chen was startled looking at the box, "I cannot accept this!"
"Our Shen Family lost the items your mother left behind, might never retrieve them, these pills’ formula is compensation. Unfortunately, a great fire burned countless shops’ deeds, even melted gold and silver; otherwise, I might have given you something to establish yourself in Jinling City, to marry, and bear children," Madam Shen sighed, "Processing these formalities takes no less than half a year, apologies for the inconvenience."
Looking at the pill formula, then at Madam Shen’s expression, Zhang Chen seemed to understand; she feared the Shen Family’s looming disaster, perceiving the inevitable crisis, thus handled her affairs in advance.
Else, why would she hand the core Shen Family inheritance to an outsider like himself?
Zhang Chen gazed at Madam Shen, while she looked at him, her voice gentle, "Take it! This is what the Shen Family owes you. The formula for Eight-Treasure Heart-lock Pill was excavated from an Ancient Great Tomb, always been the Shen Family’s Secret Treasure, could prolong one’s soul from dispersing, providing a lifeline in crucial moments. This formula assures prosperity for your lineage, though not equal to your mother’s Secret Treasure, it’s the maximum the Shen Family can offer now."
Upon hearing this, Zhang Chen slowly stored the pills away, Madam Shen revealed a satisfied smile, "If you lose contact, don’t visit the Shen Family again."