Others are easy to fool, but that bastard Yan Zhen is in a bit of trouble. An Xin subconsciously looked at him and sure enough, she saw him looking at her with great interest.
"Uh...hehe...what are you looking at? Is there dust on my face?" An Xin's smile froze.
"Miss, were you possessed just now? I don't understand what you're saying... What is flammable material?" Dewdrop stared wide-eyed at An Xin. The room was filled with smoke just now, and it suddenly disappeared. Does Miss know witchcraft?!
An Xin's lips twitched. Sure enough, she heard it!
Xu Ruolan also stepped forward worriedly and touched An Xin's forehead, saying, "Could it be that you have a fever? Why are you talking nonsense all of a sudden?"
An Xin chuckled dryly, "I was a bit dizzy from the smoke just now, and my daughter doesn't remember what she said, hehe...hehe..."
Xu Ruolan said worriedly, "Let me do it. I haven't cooked for so many years, I'm probably a bit rusty. Dewdrop, help Miss out."
The dewdrop immediately stepped forward.
An Xin isn't that delicate. Besides, this body used to know how to cook, but now that she's rusty, it just goes to explain why her skills are so bad.
However, for now, I'll play the delicate card.
After saying that, An Xin rubbed her forehead and let Lu Zhu help her out.
The burrowing rat appeared out of nowhere and was whispering something to Yan Zhen. Yan Zhen glanced at An Xin calmly, then raised the corner of her lips and asked, "Are you feeling better?"
An Xin touched her forehead and said delicately, "It seems...not good."
He shook his folding fan and said with a smile, "Your health is more important. I'll remember this meal; there's no rush to pay it back."
An Xin gave him a look that said, "You can go die now."
He casually took out a bead and handed it to her. An Xin glanced at it but didn't reach for it: "What is this?"
He said, "The Dust-Avoiding Pearl."
An Xin raised an eyebrow: "A priceless dust-repelling bead? If it's just for me to see, there's no need." The dust-repelling bead… one of the three most powerful beads in ancient Chinese history. "Dust-repelling" means: "When placed on ash, the dust will disperse outwards, hence the name." Records of the dust-repelling bead can be found in the *Later Tang History*, but it was later lost. Although An Xin's face remained calm, her heart was in turmoil, and her fingers even trembled uncontrollably.
If she could even catch a glimpse of something like this, then her transmigration wouldn't have been in vain!
"Here, take this." Yan Zhen said with a smile. "I have important business to attend to and I'm afraid I can't delay. You can keep this as a keepsake."
An Xin was unusually stunned, staring at him as if she were dumbfounded.
He smiled slightly, placed the bead in her hand, then raised his hand, patted her head, and turned to leave.
Chen Zhuo's expression changed drastically. Had the Right Prime Minister also been affected by the smoke?! That was a priceless dust-repelling pearl! And he just gave it to that woman like that?!
To please his favorite concubine, the King of Qi once offered five cities in exchange for the Dust-Avoiding Pearl, but the Right Chancellor refused. Enraged, the King of Qi launched a military campaign against Qi. The Right Chancellor sent troops to meet the attack, and they marched all the way to the city gates of Qi. The King of Qi was so frightened that he surrendered to Dayi and became a vassal state.
In other words, the adult casually gave that woman five cities!
An Youwei, his hands covered in mud, looked timidly at Yan Zhen. Yan Zhen paused, her gaze shifting to An Youwei. After a long silence, she asked, "Where's the wine?"
An Youwei hurriedly brought out a jar, but the jar was covered in mud, so he couldn't really hand it to him.
The burrowing rat, quite perceptive, stepped forward to take it, and Yan Zhen then slightly raised the corners of her lips and slowly walked away.
---Aside---
This chapter is a bit short, I'll add more tomorrow~
☆, Chapter Twenty-Eight is missing.
An Xin stared at the dust-repelling bead in her palm. The bead was the size of a longan, with a watery luster and a slightly cool feel to the touch. It wasn't until the dewdrop's joyful sound reached her that An Xin suddenly came back to her senses.
"What beautiful beads, Miss! Look, everything around us has become clear and clean!"
An Xin's gaze swept over the surroundings. The dust had all settled, the air was clear, like the sky after rain, with the warmth of dawn and flowers.
An Youwei exclaimed in surprise, "Xin'er, this gift is too valuable, we can't accept it!"
Xu Ruolan also said worriedly, "I think that young master is no ordinary person. Xin'er, we are a poor family, so we should not get too involved with them." After all, the Ling family incident had just happened not long ago, and she was already exhausted.
An Xin paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "I know, Mom. I'll return it to him later."
Xu Ruolan was relieved and exclaimed, "I have never seen such a handsome man in my entire life. How could such a person exist in a small county like Yi'an?"
Dewdrop blinked excitedly and said, "This servant has never seen such a beautiful person before! Even more handsome than the Grand Tutor!"
After he finished speaking, everyone fell into a somber silence.
An Xin seemed not to have taken it to heart. Dewdrop looked timidly at An Xin's indifferent expression, feeling uneasy. She blurted out, "Miss must be angry with me."
An Xin held the beads, her heart filled with turmoil.
She had heard her father tell stories about the Dust-Avoiding Pearl since she was a child. In order to find the Dust-Avoiding Pearl, she joined the archaeology club and often went out to dig for treasure with others, but she never gave up her dream of finding the Dust-Avoiding Pearl. When this day suddenly came, she really felt like she was in a dream.
An Xin stroked the dust-avoiding bead, then belatedly asked, "What did Yan Zhen say?"
Dewdrop looked dumbfounded and said, "Young master said that you should keep this bead as a keepsake for the young lady."
An Xin's lips twitched. Sure enough, you can't expect anything good to come out of a dog's mouth. However, the Dust-Avoiding Pearl was no ordinary object. She should carefully put it away and return it to him another day. One careless move might bring about her death!
At that moment, she suddenly doubted Yan Zhen's motives for giving her the beads. Of course, she decided to leave such a brain-taxing question for later and simply stop thinking about it.
****
These past few days, the villagers have been looking at An Xin with rather strange eyes. Dewdrop looked around and then whispered, "Miss, it seems like everyone is looking at us."
An Xin said lazily, "They have eyes on other people's bodies, so they can look at whomever they want."
Just then, a pitiful scream rang out. An Xin stopped and looked up. She saw a shirtless man not far away viciously beating a woman. The woman was rolling around on the ground, covered in blood.
The villagers mostly watched from a distance, not daring to approach.
An Xin narrowed her eyes. Domestic violence?
Dewdrop tugged at An Xin's sleeve and said, "It's Uncle Chen. Uncle Chen is a heavy drinker, and when he's drunk, he beats Auntie. Nobody in the village dares to stop him..."
"Is no one in charge?" Alcohol abuse and violence are the most despicable things. Unfortunately, the laws in ancient times were not perfect, and domestic violence was not protected at all. Even if there was some protection, it was only in name. After all, men were superior to women, and women's status was pitifully low.
"Uncle Chen will admit his mistake after he sobers up, and the village chief won't be able to say anything." Dewdrop's expression was full of sympathy for Aunt Chen. Aunt Chen had been beaten constantly since she married into the family, and after all these years, Uncle Chen hadn't improved at all.
An Xin pursed her lips into a cool smile and was about to step forward to stop them, but someone made the first move.
"Stop!" Wang Yihe grabbed Chen Guangzhi, staging a scene of a hero saving a damsel in distress. It wasn't that Wang Yihe wanted to help, but he just happened to be passing by and saw An Xin there. On a whim, he staged this scene, and sure enough, An Xin looked at him.
Upon seeing Wang Yihe, Chen Guangzhi sobered up considerably. Sun Lüping, seeing her savior, instantly clung to him like a drowning person grasping at a straw, grabbing Wang Yihe's trouser leg and wailing pitifully, "Help...save me..."
Wang Yi frowned, while Chen Guangzhi slurred, "You slut, how dare you beg another man! I'll beat you to death!"
An Xin raised an eyebrow and looked at the woman. Although she was dressed as a married woman, she looked young. If it weren't for the fact that she was covered in blood and looked extremely disheveled, she could even be described as quite beautiful.
Fueled by alcohol, Chen Guangzhi was about to rush forward when Wang Yihe coldly said, "Second Uncle Chen, do you disregard me or my father?!"
Chen Guangzhi immediately fell silent, only burping as he glared at Sun Lüping before turning and staggering away.
An Xin glanced at the courtyard Chen Guangzhi had entered. The courtyard was full of small roses, blooming in clusters, which was quite beautiful. It seemed that Sun Lüping was a thoughtful woman, but her fate was full of hardships, and she had married a drunkard.
An Xin said calmly, "Let's go." She had promised Jin Qiao that she would help her with the handicrafts.
Just as she turned around, she heard Wang Yihe speak: "Xin'er."
An Xin stopped in her tracks and asked calmly, "What is it?"
Wang Yihe smiled gently and said, "I'm going to the capital tomorrow. Is there anything you like? I'll bring it back for you."
An Xin raised an eyebrow and said expressionlessly, "No."
Wang Yihe's face suddenly stiffened.
Dewdrop glanced at Wang Yihe's face and was secretly alarmed. Miss must be heartbroken. After all, Miss and Wang Yihe used to have a very good relationship, but ever since Miss was "abandoned," Young Master Yihe has treated Miss like a stranger...
With a "bang," Chen Guangzhi, who had just entered the courtyard, pushed open the door and staggered out again. Judging from his appearance, he had changed into clean clothes. An Xin glanced at Sun Lüping casually and saw her tremble and shrink to one side, not moving.
Chen Guangzhi did not linger, but staggered away while carrying the wine jar.
Dewdrop pouted and said, "Uncle Chen is going to drink again, isn't he? Auntie is covered in injuries, and he doesn't even care!"
An Xin pursed her lips and said, "Dewdrop, go and call the doctor to bandage your second aunt."
The dewdrop immediately and happily agreed.
An Xin turned and walked away. Wang Yihe watched An Xin's retreating figure and suddenly felt a sense of loss.
---Aside---
Sorry, ladies, I've been too busy these past few days and haven't updated as much. I'll make up for it later, group chat. This chapter is a lot of setup, it'll definitely be useful later. Also, if you haven't added it to your bookshelf yet, please do so as soon as possible. Please add it to your collections, love you all~
Chapter Twenty-Nine: Another Case
An Xin was slightly taken aback when she heard the news: Chen Guangzhi was dead!?
Dewdrop seemed terrified, stammering, "Miss, Uncle Chen got drunk and fell into the wine vat and drowned. Auntie was so frightened she fainted!"
An Xin put down what she was holding and asked as she walked out, "Has the body been brought over?"
Dewdrop hurriedly followed, both surprised and frightened, and said, "Not yet! I heard that when Uncle Chen died, members of the Feng family were present, and they didn't allow the body to be moved!"
An Xin lowered her eyes slightly. The Feng family?
Where is the body now?
"I heard that in the gambling den in the county, they said that Uncle Chen went to the gambling den after drinking. There is a huge wine vat in the courtyard of the gambling den. Customers can drink the wine in the vat as much as they want by paying a certain amount of silver."
"Where is Second Aunt?"
"My second aunt has already gone to claim the body. This matter has alarmed Lord Wang. Everyone says that my second uncle drowned in the wine vat while drunk. Lord Wang also believes so, but the Feng family won't allow the body to be moved no matter what they say."
An Xin's face darkened. If the Feng family said that, then they must have discovered that Uncle Chen's death was not an accident! Could this be another murder case?!
In fact, as soon as she heard that Uncle Chen had drowned, she instinctively rushed outside. She always had a strange intuition about death, and she trusted her intuition!
The Lucky Casino was packed with people.