Chapter 43: Chu Xi: Ningbao is here!
"Shut up!" The henchman crudely gagged her.
"Boss, this woman is too old, and we aren't desperate enough to take just anyone anyway. Since the little fairy asked for a video, why don't we just dump her at the red-light district? Mark her price as free; those old men wouldn't mind having some fun."
The boss's eyes lit up. "Turns out you have a brain after all! I'll leave this to you. Take two of the boys!"
"Got it, got it! We'll make sure the little fairy is satisfied!"
Chu Wanning truly had no idea things would escalate to this extent, but when she received the video, they had explained it to her, terrified that if they didn't tell the truth, the beatings would continue. Still, she was extremely satisfied!
Nothing compares to trying to steal a chicken only to end up losing the rice used as bait.
Upon receiving the video, she forwarded it directly to Qiu Tian.
Let them tear each other apart first!
Right at that moment, Chu Wanning abruptly stood up from Lu Siyan's embrace.
"Ayan, have you checked my bedroom?"
Chuyang heard this and immediately replied, "All the bedrooms have been checked!"
Receiving this answer didn't dampen Chu Wanning's determination. "Let's go check it again!"
She grabbed Lu Siyan's hand and bolted upstairs.
When she was little, she often played checkers with her mother. Later on, after a year of traveling, she returned to find that her bedroom floor had been transformed into a checkerboard.
The switch wasn't on the wall; it was on the floor.
It was just that the villa already had high ceilings, so no one would ever pay attention if there truly was a mezzanine.
Wasn't the space directly beneath her room positioned right above the living room?
Or perhaps there was another mechanism entirely, but she wouldn't know unless she saw it with her own eyes.
"Ningbao, you must remember this diagram, understand?"
"This is the treasure your mother is giving you."
"Did you remember it?"
Her mother's past words echoed continuously in her mind.
Arriving at the bedroom door, Chu Wanning came to a halt. "Ayan and I will go inside. Call out if you need anything."
"Understood!"
The Chu family's secrets could only be known by someone as close as Lu Siyan.
Her anxiety grew more intense, and her hand on the doorknob was trembling.
Because she felt that her mother was right inside.
Lu Siyan placed his hand over hers, guiding her to turn the doorknob together.
They stepped into her room.
After her mother went missing, this house had been snatched away by Qiu Yuanyuan.
She skillfully stood on the floor checkerboard, and when she stepped on the final tile, a crack in the floor indeed began to slowly open—about a square meter in size.
"Mom? Mom?" Chu Wanning stepped forward eagerly, calling out.
"Wanwan, I'll go down with you in a moment." Lu Siyan opened the door and grabbed a flashlight just in case, realizing that even his wife wasn't familiar with what lay below.
Lu Siyan pulled Chu Wanning into his arms, wrapping his arm around her waist as they descended.
The further down they went, the darker it became, making the flashlight essential.
"Ayan, this definitely leads to a secret room, but how on earth would Fang Hongyu know about a place like this?" Chu Wanning had already regained her composure.
"Keep going. Perhaps only your mother can give you the answers."
The two of them walked down what felt like four flights of stairs before finally seeing light.
"A combination lock!"
"Let me!"
Chu Wanning skillfully entered a string of numbers. Click! The door opened automatically.
Upon stepping inside, the two of them were genuinely startled.
The room, roughly over one hundred square meters, was stocked with meticulously preserved precious medicinal herbs, numerous out-of-print medical texts, and a whole cabinet of porcelain bottles in various sizes.
Chu Wanning pointed at them. "These must have been given to Mom by my maternal grandmother!"
"Mm, keep going! There should be more than just these things, and Fang Hongyu definitely didn't know about this place, otherwise these items wouldn't have survived until now," Lu Siyan analyzed, his arm still circled around her waist.
Chu Wanning nodded in agreement.
"Another door!" Chu Wanning entered the passcode again, but an error message appeared.
She inspected it closely and realized there was no way to force this lock open; doing so would trigger a self-destruct mechanism.
This bore all the hallmarks of her grandfather's handiwork. At that moment, Chu Wanning actually longed to see this lovable and wise old man once more.
Yet, if the previous code was incorrect, what could the password be?
Her delicate brows furrowed in deep thought.
A moment later.
"I know it!"
Sure enough, this time the door opened!
The area behind this door was larger, estimated at over three hundred square meters.
Antiques, calligraphy, paintings, gold, silver, and jewels—it rivaled an ancient emperor's private treasury!
"Ayan, these must belong to my grandfather!"
"But what about Mom? We still haven't found Mom!"
A wave of fear gripped Chu Wanning's heart!
Because there were no more doors in this room!
"Don't panic. Go look over by your grandmother's things to see if there are any medicines; if Mom is here, she might need them. I'll search around." Chu Wanning concurred, hurriedly grabbing a random chest and running off.
Lu Siyan knew she needed a distraction right then, so he deliberately sent her away so he could conduct the search himself.
After Chu Wanning left, his movements were swift. He pressed or turned every item displayed on the surface, ultimately locking his focus on an inconspicuous chest.
Someone who had never witnessed true wealth would have lost their mind upon seeing so many treasures, but Lu Siyan didn't care about these things at all, allowing him to remain completely clear-headed.
Thus, he walked over to the corner shelving unit, crouched down, and opened that chest.
After a short wait, the entire shelving unit began to move.
"Wanwan, I found it!" Lu Siyan called out.
Chu Wanning paused, the medicinal herbs in her hand, grabbed the Taiyi Divine Needles, and ran toward Lu Siyan.
A pungent odor drifted over, and both Chu Wanning and Lu Siyan sensed that something was amiss.
At that moment, every step Chu Wanning took felt as heavy as lead. A profound and complex emotion stirred within her, as if she had never truly been Leng Ning, but had always been Chu Wanning, and the person inside was the very first relative she had ever truly known.
Right now, that person seemed to be in bad shape, and for the first time, she admitted she was scared!
"Hubby!" Chu Wanning choked out, her gaze fixed unwaveringly on the doorway.
"Don't be afraid. I'm here. Let's go in!"
Lu Siyan tightened his grip on her hand and walked inside.
This space was about the size of the first room, featuring only an empty bed and a few scattered medicine bottles on the floor, their mixed odors stinging the nose.
Yet Chu Wanning still recognized that the withered, gaunt woman on the bed was none other than her mother, Chu Xi, who had been missing for several years.
Tears had long since begun to stream uncontrollably down her cheeks.
On the bed, the woman finally let out a sigh of relief.
She knew that if this door opened, it must mean her daughter had come!
Sure enough, her daughter Ningbao was here!
"Mom!" Chu Wanning opened her mouth to shout, but because she was weeping, no sound came out.
Lu Siyan spotted an identical door. "Wanwan, open it first so we can take Mom up!"
This place was hardly suitable for a reunion.
Chu Wanning brushed away her tears, walked up to the door, entered the password from the first door, and it unlocked!
"I'll carry Mom up! You check where the exit leads!" Lu Siyan said softly.
Chu Xi knew how wretched her physical condition was and instinctively shook her head in refusal.
Although she didn't know who this young man before her was, his attire and bearing clearly marked him as far from ordinary. How could she possibly trouble him?
Wait, what did he just call her? Mom?
How could he call her Mom?
Neither Chu Wanning nor Lu Siyan noticed what Chu Xi was thinking at that moment; their sole focus was on getting her away from this place as quickly as possible.