Chapter 627: The Secret About the Past (245)
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
An Xiaoning handed her a pack of traditional herbal medicine and said, “Mother, this is meant for nouris.h.i.+ng my body. The physician said that I’m anemic. Instruct the kitchen helpers to brew me a single serving every day, which is to be split into two doses, once in the morning and once at night. Each serving will have to be soaked for two hours before brewing.”
Mrs. Gu took the pack of medicine from her and said, “Alright, I’ll inform the head cook. Have a chat with Madam Xu first.”
An Xiaoning nodded and took a seat. Crossing one leg over another naturally, she asked calmly, “Madam Xu, are you here again to talk to me about your daughter?”
“Yes, it’s about altering her fate. I only just found out that Bai Zhi entered the Autumn Palace after seeking the help of an elderly lady who could read fortunes. However, she refused to render us any more help when we went to consult her again. We tried to seek help from other fortune-tellers, but to no avail. I thought of you and decided to ask if you can see if her fate can be altered again,” said Madam Xu.
“Tell me her birth characters.”
“She shares the same birth date as you.”
“What’s her exact birth timing?”
Madam Xu revealed the timing, after which An Xiaoning asked, “Before I answer your question, may I ask you something, Madam Xu?”
“Go ahead.”
“You mentioned earlier that the elderly lady in Beijia Bay could exactly pinpoint your daughter’s whereabouts. Is that true?”
Madam Xu nodded and answered, “Absolutely. Otherwise, how could her father and I have possibly found her in this big, big world? Perhaps we wouldn’t have been able to reunite with her even until we’re dead.”
“What happens to Xu Youran now that your biological daughter has returned?”
“We’ve already severed all ties with her. In hindsight, we’ve really let you down for everything Youran had done to you in the past,” said Madam Xu, feeling a little guilty.
“It’s alright. Although it’s already in the past, I’m not one to forgive and forget. It’s in me to exact revenge where it’s due. Since you guys are no longer related to her, that just makes it easier for me to deal with her in the future,” An Xiaoning said bluntly with raised brows.
She seemed to have blurted her answer without hesitation. Ma.s.saging her right shoulder with her left hand, An Xiaoning explained, “Your daughter was born with a blessed life, although she was born on an inauspicious day, just like me. But that doesn’t mean that her life would be full of hards.h.i.+p. Hers was initially rather smooth sailing. However, her fate has taken a turn for the worse ever since it was altered.”
“Xiaoning, tell me quick, can you restore her fate to its original path?”
“To be honest, I can’t.”
Madam Xu’s hopes were instantly diminished. “You can’t either?”
“Yes, I can’t. I don’t think any fortune-teller would be willing to risk losing their own life in order to help someone else alter their fate.”
“You mean… it’s possible to change her fate but no one’s willing to do it?”
“That’s exactly right. People like me treasure their lives dearly. The lives of fortune-tellers are just as valuable as your daughter’s, Madam Xu. So, there’s no way I can help,” said An Xiaoning, taking the cup of coffee from Mrs. Gu’s hands.
“Am I really supposed to just watch her walk onto a path to h.e.l.l?” Madam Xu remarked with a look of dejection.
Madam Xu then stood up and got down on her knees in front of An Xiaoning.
“Madam Xu, what are you doing?” An Xiaoning questioned in astonishment as she put her cup down and helped Madam Xu up together with Mrs. Gu.
“She was abducted when she was an infant. We only just found her again after thirty years. Ms. An, please think of another solution. As long as you’re willing to help alter her fate, I’m willing to become your slave,” Madam Xu pleaded.
“It’s not that I don’t want to help your daughter. Neither do I need you to be my slave. It’s just, there’s too huge of a price to pay for altering her fate. Madam Xu, I understand that you want the best for your daughter and you’d like to make things up to her, but you can’t put me in a spot either. I think you should seek help from the elderly lady at Beijia Bay. She’s older and probably more experienced than I am. There should be more hope in that.”
The upset Madam Xu rose from her seat, looking completely exhausted and worn out. Clearly, she had been extremely worried about the matter.
“Okay.”
After she left, Mrs. Gu remarked, “This Madam Xu has really gone all out for her child.”
An Xiaoning picked up her cup of coffee and took a few sips before saying, “Her biological daughter is no ordinary person…”
“Is she a psychic like you?”
“No. Neither Military Commander Xu nor Madam Xu is psychic, there’s no way their daughter would be. What I mean is, this Xu Baizhi could very likely become a greater troublemaker than Xu Youran. If it was within my means to alter her fate, I would definitely do it even without Madam Xu’s request, so as to avoid letting her harm others. However, I’m incapable of doing so. I’m not willing to risk losing my life in order to save her,” An Xiaoning explained.
“Yes, your health is of the utmost importance. There’s no need to make such a big sacrifice for her. Besides, she’s not an acquaintance of yours, neither does she have any feud with you. Even if she’s a troublemaker, she probably wouldn’t harm you,” said Mrs. Gu.
“Mother, you never know what could happen in this world. But I heard Madam Xu mention this elderly lady in Beijia Bay. She seems to be very experienced and skilled in fortune-telling. Seems like there are masters of the trade everywhere.”
“…”
——
When Tuoba Gucheng brought Lin s.h.i.+s.h.i.+ and Tuoba Danxue home, he instructed both of them to board a separate car while he rode in another one alone.
The bodyguard sitting in the driver’s seat handed him a yellow doc.u.ment envelope when they were about to set off. “Your Highness, this is all the information we’ve found after investigating.”
Tuoba Gucheng reached to grab the envelope and opened it to begin browsing through the pages of content, which were stapled together.
All of the information pertained to An Xiaoning.
It was rather detailed and precise.
After perusing the doc.u.ments, he did not seem to find anything about her that was related to the Autumn Palace.
Included were various details about her love life and marriage as well.
The last time she got a divorce was on the 24th of July.
Tuoba Gucheng recalled that that happened to be the same date Mu Ning had taken a day off.
It turns out she took a day off… to get a divorce.
The reason for her divorce was not stated, however, which was to the puzzlement of Tuoba Gucheng.
Having been through a total of three divorces, how could she possibly still believe in marriage?
“Didn’t you find out why she divorced Jin Qingyan?”
The driver immediately answered, “Your Highness, we couldn’t find any information about that, though I did come across some comments and discussions regarding their divorce online. When she announced her divorce, there were several netizens who commented that An Xiaoning must have fallen for another man. That’s why…”
Tuoba Gucheng raised his brows in surprise and asked, “Is that so?”
“Yes, but I can’t find any data related to her name online now. Seems like someone had spent a hefty sum to remove and block all information related to the keyword on the internet.”
“That’s really something a wealthy person would do…” said Tuoba Gucheng, stroking the ring on his finger as a particular line on the doc.u.ment caught his attention.
“An Xiaoning is a straightforward and brave person. Not only does she have a mind of her own and is decisive, but she also strikes the iron while it’s hot. A few years ago, she invested in a low-production film and ama.s.sed hundreds of millions from box office sales…”
What kind of woman would have such drive and motivation? What kind of woman was she to be so capricious? What exactly made her decide to go undercover as a bodyguard in the Autumn Palace who had to be at the beck and call of her employer?
Tuoba Gucheng was as curious as a cat, filled with questions.