"I thought Anmei told you, but I didn't expect you to eavesdrop?" Jiang Yumin glared at Jun Yilin. "She's only been back for three years, and a year and a half has already passed. If she doesn't find you in three years and you're not willing to pour your heart's blood into the Linglong Stone, she will vanish into thin air."
Jun Yilin was very surprised; he had no idea there was such a thing!
"Are you planning to tell me when the time is almost here? Even Dark Enchantress knows?" Jun Yilin asked through gritted teeth.
Jiang Yumian nodded awkwardly.
"Bang!" Jun Yilin slammed his hand on the table, causing tea to spill from his face.
"Fine! You're something else!" Jun Yilin laughed in anger.
Jiang Yumin squatted on the ground, burying her face in her hands, and said sadly, "You and she have a lifetime ahead of you, I'm only begging for one year." Tears welled up again.
Jun Yilin stopped speaking.
a long time.
"We need to find her quickly," Jun Yilin said.
Jiang Yumin sobbed, "I know, I will do my best to find it."
After Jiang Yumin left, Jun Yilin changed into casual clothes and also went out. He had some things to discuss with Anmei in person.
On the street, a handsome young man in a purple robe walked by. His tall and straight figure, dashing features, and jade-like face attracted the attention of passersby.
Rich Pawnshop.
The young man in purple entered the pawnshop, took out a jade pendant, and handed it to the clerk. The clerk took a closer look and realized it was a Nine Dragons Pendant! Startled, he hurriedly said, "Please wait in the inner room, sir. I will go and fetch the owner."
Jun Yilin didn't stand on ceremony and entered the inner hall with practiced ease.
Since ascending the throne, Jun Yilin has never returned to this place where he and Lin Zijin lived together for several years! This time when he returned, everything had changed. All the original staff had been replaced, but the furnishings in the house were still the same as before, without any change.
Anmei pushed open the door and entered, showing no surprise when she saw it was him.
"You've finally arrived." Anmei lifted the hem of her robe and sat down casually.
Jun Yilin was drinking Lu'an tea, the lid gently tapping the teacup as steam rose. He took a sip and said, "So you knew I would come looking for you?"
“I don’t know what your purpose is in coming here, but I’ll only tell you one thing: she lives here, and if she doesn’t want to go with you, no one can force her!” Dark Enchantress’s eyes were firm.
Jun Yilin's hand trembled slightly, spilling scalding tea onto his hand, but he was completely unaware: "She's right here! That's great!"
"Let me see her!" Jun Yilin said.
“Now is not the time. She has just calmed down. If she is willing to stay here, we can still keep up with her news. If you force her to leave again this time, where will we find her next time?” Anmei refused.
Jun Yilin was saddened.
"I just want to know why she left. I really want to ask her in person. She was perfectly fine the day before," Jun Yilin said, puzzled.
Anmei frowned and thought for a moment before asking, "Did you mention the name Lin Zijing in front of her?"
Jun Yilin's eyes widened: "She said she was back, and I thought she had regained her memory, so—could it be because of this?"
Anmei glared at him: "Both of you are so stupid! She hated Jiang Yumin for treating her as someone else's substitute, which is why she fell out with him. No matter how much we pleaded, she refused to believe that she was Lin Zijing. Now look what's happened, you two have ruined everything. I don't know how you'll coax her into giving you the Linglong Stone. When blood is shed, both of you have to be willing!"
Jun Yilin also knew that things had reached a stalemate, and the two of them stared at each other, unable to come up with a solution.
Finally, at Jun Yilin's insistence, Anmei agreed to let him secretly glance at Yao Biluo.
Jun Yilin hid behind a tree, quietly watching Yao Bile busy in the study. She was carefully organizing books, and when she came across one she liked, she would sit down and read it attentively, letting out a knowing smile.
Looking at her petite figure, Jun Yilin felt his eyes sting.
"Let's go!" Dark Enchantress reminded him.
Jun Yilin nodded and walked away with Anmei.
"You should go back first. This matter can't be rushed. Let's think of a solution together." Anmei comforted Jun Yilin, noticing his unwell expression.
Jun Yilin had no choice but to agree.
Yao Biluo has been busy organizing her manuscript these past few days, putting all her worries behind her.
Lin Zijin has so many books! Classics, Histories, Philosophers, Collections, *Tiangong Kaiwu*, *Shui Jing Zhu*, *Compendium of Materia Medica*, *The Classic of Poisons*, *Sun Tzu's Art of War*, *Strategies of the Warring States*, and various martial arts manuals…
The sheer breadth and variety of the content left Yao Bilu speechless! To her astonishment, there were even erotic illustrations! Yao Bilu recalled how she had blushed and her heart had raced when she first saw the book while organizing things, and how she had thrown it away as if it were a hot potato, and she burst out laughing.
"What are you laughing at? Tell me and I'll have a laugh too!" Anmei passed by and saw Yao Biluo secretly laughing, so she couldn't help but ask.
Feeling guilty, Yao Biluo blushed and stammered, "N-nothing?"
Anmei found it even stranger. He looked around the room and saw that all the other books were neatly placed on the bookshelves or desks, but one book was lying on the floor, which seemed very out of place.
Dark Charm carefully examined the book cover, then laughed, "Oh! I saw that one! What do you think? Isn't it nice? We used to discuss it together all the time!"
When Yao Biluo saw his gaze fall on the book on the ground, she was already incredibly embarrassed. Hearing his words, her face turned as red as a ripe apple. She covered her face with her hands and ran out.
"Hahahaha..." A hearty laugh came from behind.
Yao Biluo wished she could disappear into a crack in the ground. That Dark Enchantress was too wicked!
Yao Biluo sat on the edge of the bed, her face still flushed. She kept the door tightly closed, and her strong heartbeat could still be heard.
This Lin Zijing, how come she reads all kinds of books!
There were several books that Yao Biluo had asked Prefect Yao to find before, but because they were unique copies, they had never been found. Now they were in Lin Zijing's collection of books, and Yao Biluo was eager to see them. But strangely, even though they were books she had never read before, the contents still felt very familiar.
Not only are the contents of the book very familiar, but even the annotations in the book are very familiar!
The annotation in "The Art of Diplomacy" reads: "The art of diplomacy and maneuvering is already thoroughly mastered. The ambition I had in my youth to serve the country and share the emperor's burdens now seems like nothing but a joke!"
The commentary in the Shennong Materia Medica states: "Everyone believes that this classic is a panacea for saving lives and healing the sick. In my opinion, its application of turning rotten herbs into miraculous ones far surpasses that of the Poison Classic. This shows that even seemingly respectable things, or people, can be extremely dangerous!"
The commentary on Sun Tzu's *The Art of War* states that Sun Tzu, in his entire life, could only glean thirty-six stratagems. But I believe that in actual combat, how can one be bound by these thirty-six stratagems? The world is inherently ever-changing; one must adapt to the circumstances and respond accordingly!
The commentary in the Inner Canon states: "After practicing this canon for a long time, it is indeed like being enlightened by nectar. The Ren and Du meridians are already unblocked, but there are some minor deficiencies. If the Lingyun Zong internal energy cultivation method is incorporated into it, the two will complement each other, and the internal energy will be more freely controlled!"
The commentary in the Zuo Zhuan states: "Those who commit many unrighteous acts will surely perish; you should wait and see." I disagree. If I merely stand by and wait, will Jun Yifeng reap the bitter fruit of his actions? One year? Or thirty years? Since I cannot rely on unreliable waiting, I must take matters into my own hands.
...
In her sleep, Lin Zijin's annotations came crashing down on her like mountains, making it hard for her to breathe.
Each time she saw a comment, she would casually read out the next sentence, and the mountain would disappear. However, the mountains kept multiplying, and Yao Biluo couldn't keep up. She was about to be crushed by the mountains...
"Ah!" Yao Biluo cried out in surprise, waking up.
Gasping for breath, Yao Biluo was still shaken by the terrifying scene before her eyes.
Yao Biluo felt that she had taken the process too seriously and gone astray, but a bolder idea came to her mind—could it be that she really was Lin Zijing?
Yao Biluo was startled by her own sudden thought, but if it wasn't for this reason, how could she explain her familiarity with everything about Lin Zijin?
The house he lived in, the books he read, the notes he left behind, and the people he loved...
The deeper you delve into his life, the more it feels like sinking into a deep pool.
Yao Biluo slowly sank into it, unable to extricate herself...
☆、Sixteen、Identity
As dawn broke, rosy clouds already painted the sky.
It was almost autumn, and the morning air was already quite cool. A gust of wind blew by, and a few wisps of wind seeped in through the slightly ajar window. Yao Biluo sneezed, finally snapping out of her thoughts.
She hurriedly got up, washed, and dressed, then went to find Anmei. She had a bellyful of questions she wanted to answer, and Anmei was undoubtedly the most suitable person to help her.
Anmei was eating breakfast with a bowl of congee and a few side dishes.
Seeing Yao Biluo panting heavily, Anmei was slightly surprised, but still asked first, "Have you had breakfast? Want to come together?"
Yao Biluo herself had no appetite, but she couldn't force others not to eat breakfast, so she suppressed her excitement, nodded, and sat down to eat with them.
Anmei served her some porridge. Yao Bilu thanked her and then drank it absentmindedly. The small blue-and-white porcelain spoon stirred the porridge, and each swirl was just like Yao Bilu's mood at that moment.
Anmei seemed to be watching casually, but she quickened her eating pace. After a few mouthfuls of porridge, Anmei wiped her mouth with a handkerchief, reached out and took the porridge that Yao Biluo had stirred in her hand, and placed it on the table.
"The weather's nice today, let's go for a walk," Dark Charm suggested.
Yao Biluo nodded absentmindedly and followed Anmei out the door.
The air is freshest in the early morning, and the wind is most untamed in the early morning.
The two strolled along the deserted streets in the early morning. An Mei remained silent, waiting for Yao Biluo to speak. He had already noticed Yao Biluo's hesitation, and thus he was slightly guessing what she was about to say.
"He—I mean Lin Zijin, what kind of person is he?" Yao Biluo asked anxiously.
Anmei raised an eyebrow, secretly concealing her surprise: "You've been organizing his manuscripts these past few days. What kind of person do you think he is?"
Yao Biluo shook her head and said, "From the annotations in those books and his notes, I can sense that he is a person of great wisdom, intelligent and decisive, courageous and resourceful, possessing both the ambition of a man and the meticulousness of a woman. Such a near-perfect person, I don't know how to view him!"
Anmei suppressed the urge to laugh. "OP, even a peddler selling melons couldn't be more shameless!"
Anmei, feigning profundity, briefly recounted Lin Zijin's life story, leaving Yao Bilu dumbfounded. This was too bizarre!
"I—I mean, how could you think I am him?" Yao Biluo said hesitantly, voicing all the questions that had been nagging at her for some time, with a hint of unease in her voice.
Anmei thought carefully about how to get Yao Biluo to accept it. Perhaps this was a good opportunity to resolve her inner conflict. If she could, all her hard work over the past few days would not have been in vain.
"Well, I think you should know that you're wearing a Linglong stone around your neck, right?" Anmei asked cautiously after a long pause.
Yao Biluo nodded and reached out to pull out the stone hidden behind her collar. "Is this it? How did you know? Jiang Yumin said it was the late empress's keepsake. The late empress? Wait—this is his?" Yao Biluo suddenly realized.
Anmei nodded and said, "That's right! This is the token of the Dark Night Tower, a treasure of the immortals—the Nine-Turn Exquisite Stone!"
"Once this exquisite stone recognizes its owner, it cannot be removed unless the owner is willing to do so! If it is to be passed down, the inheritor must perform a blood sacrifice!" Dark Enchantress gently reminded him.
Sure enough, Yao Biluo's face gradually turned pale upon hearing this.
"But why did this happen to me? Why?" Yao Biluo asked, but in her heart she understood the answer more and more.
She recalled her first encounter with Jiang Yumin, when he simply said, "Don't you recognize me?" His eyes were dreamy and his tone was soft, which made Yao Biluo fall deeply in love.
At that time, he gently hooked his hand under the exquisite stone on his collar, his face full of relief and joy. However, he was too intoxicated at the time and actually thought that such affection was for himself.
But now that things have come to this, can we still blame them for mistaking someone for someone else? Even she herself doesn't know who she really is anymore! Yao Biluo thought in confusion.
"I'm seventeen years old this year, and I've lived in the Yao family for seventeen years," Yao Biluo said quietly. Anmei listened attentively, though she didn't know the meaning behind her words.