Mistakenly Connected to the Jade Flower Branch

Chapter 329 Burning Down the House

When Luo An and Nian Yao arrived at Xuanzhi Mountain, it was just dawn. He used the faint morning light to make out the two characters "Zi Gui" on the lintel, his expression somewhat dazed.

As the sky grew brighter, the two characters "Zi Gui" became clearer, and Luo An finally pushed open the door and went inside.

The furnishings in the house were just as Nianyao had described: there were tables, screens, a zither, and books.

Luo An stood in front of the screen, silently recited the poem twice, ran his fingers over each word, and finally squatted down, his fingertips resting on the word "寻" (xún), remaining motionless for a long time.

Nianyao then walked over from the door, squatted down next to him, and carefully asked, "Is there something wrong with this poem?"

Luo An said, "This is a poem about Penglai Island. The title of the poem is 'Penglai'. The last four lines of the original poem are: 'Although I am ashamed of not having the bones of an immortal, I can still cultivate the heart of the Dao. The ancients made a big mistake, searching in vain in the sea.' This has been changed here."

Nianyao pointed to the words on the screen: "It means 'though ashamed' should be changed to 'ashamed,' 'finally able' should be changed to 'unable,' 'ancient people' should be changed to 'later people,' and 'empty towards' should be changed to 'not towards'?"

Luo An said, "Yes."

A thought flashed through Nianyao's mind: "Is this Father's handwriting? What is he trying to tell you?"

Luo An suddenly stood up, his voice filled with indignation: "Who knows him!"

Luo An walked to the guqin, raised his hand as if to pluck the strings, but withdrew his hand just before touching the instrument and walked towards the desk.

He glanced at the writing implements on the desk, then flipped through all the books on the bookshelf, and without turning his head, said, "Come here."

Nianyao subconsciously looked around: "Did you call me?"

Luo An said with a hint of impatience, "There's no one else here but you."

There are other people around—outside the window, on the roof, and in the courtyard! The emperor values ​​his sister highly, and many reclusive masters guard the mausoleum.

Nianyao walked over while inwardly grumbling, "What's the problem here?"

Luo An said, "Put the book away and take it back with you."

Nianyao silently gathered the books from the bookshelf and hugged them to her chest: "Okay."

Luo An said, "Wait for me outside for a while."

Whenever Luo An was down, Nian Yao would inexplicably become very timid. She walked to the door, then hesitated, worried, and asked, "Wait for me if you need anything?"

Luo An remained silent, walked over, and closed the door.

Nianyao stepped on the door and shut it: "Call me if you need anything."

Luo An said with a stern face, "I'm fine."

Nianyao insisted, "I'll be right at the door. Call me if you need anything!"

Luo An couldn't refuse, but his tone softened: "I know."

Nianyao then let go, and Luo An immediately closed the door. A door separated the two, as if separating two worlds. Nianyao stood outside the door, staring blankly at the two characters "Zigui" with her head slightly tilted back.

A loud crash rang in her ears, as if something had been smashed. Something hit the door, causing it to shake slightly. Nianyao was startled, and the book in her hand fell to the ground.

Nianyao didn't bother picking up the books; she placed her hand against the door but didn't have the courage to push it open. She pressed her ear against the door and listened intently, hearing a continuous cracking sound.

Luo An was smashing things inside, but what could be making such a loud noise? And what could be taking so long to smash?

He promised that all those things belonged to his father, so does he expect him to smash them all?

The room finally quieted down. Nianyao straightened up, took a deep breath, and saw the door open. She quickly took a step back.

Luo An stepped out, closed the door behind him, bent down to pick up the books scattered on the ground, and said as if nothing had happened, "Let's go."

The door was too small, and Luo An closed it too quickly, so Nian Yao couldn't see what was inside the room.

The mimosa tree had lost all its leaves, its bare branches resembling withered arms. Luo An stood beneath the tree, holding up a domino and peering upwards through its small hole.

The first rays of winter sunlight pierced through the small hole, forming long, thin beams of light that, like golden swords, stabbed into Luo An's eyes.

Luo An beckoned to Nian Yao and handed her the dominoes. Nian Yao looked up through the dominoes but saw nothing but sunlight.

Nianyao pointed to the tree trunk and said, "I was sitting there looking at the tree with three branches. I was sitting on the bottom branch, leaning against the middle and top branches. It was very stable."

Luo An handed her the hidden sword: "Go and take another look."

Nianyao sat on a tree branch and held up the dominoes. But no matter how she changed her angle, all she could see was sunlight; the dragons and women seemed like illusions.

Nianyao looked down at Luo An, somewhat dejected, and said, "I really saw it last time. I fell from the tree because I saw it. It hurt for days, it was so painful."

Luo An saw Nian Yao's aggrieved expression: "Come down quickly, don't..."

Before she could even utter a word after falling, she was interrupted by a crisp snapping sound. The three-pronged branch fell steadily, carrying Nianyao, who was sitting firmly on it.

Luo An rushed over but only managed to grab Nian Yao's sash. Nian Yao lay sprawled on the tree branch, tears streaming down her face from the pain.

Luo An helped Nian Yao up: "How are you? Are you alright?"

Nianyao touched the back of her head and said in a tearful voice, "A big bump has swelled up?"

Luo An reached out to touch it as well, saying repeatedly, "It's not swollen, it's not swollen. Let's go, I'll carry you down."

Nianyao was about to agree when she looked down at the stone Bagua circle on her foot and remembered that she was in front of her mother's grave: "Doesn't my mother protect me?"

Once he fell flat on his face, and once he lay sprawled on his back. He fell twice in the same place, and even managed to do some fancy moves.

Luo An looked up at the tree: "It's three zhang tall. If a normal person fell down, they would either break an arm or a leg or have their head smashed open."

Nianyao was very accommodating, shaking her hands and kicking her legs, then putting her hands together in prayer: "Thank you, Mother, for blessing your daughter-in-law."

Luo An couldn't help but flick her forehead: "You, if you have nothing else to do, just walk by yourself."

Nianyao clutched her forehead and yelled, "Hey, I hurt the back of my head when I fell, and you flicked my forehead too. So your injuries have to be symmetrical, right?"

Luo An couldn't help but chuckle, his tone noticeably more relaxed: "Let's go."

Nianyao secretly breathed a sigh of relief, thinking to herself: It's really not easy to make you happy.

Nianyao followed Luo An through the front hall and down the steps, the smell of smoke growing stronger. Nianyao stopped and looked around, seeing thick smoke billowing from one of the rooms.

Nianyao was shocked and grabbed Luo An, saying, "It's on fire!"

Luo An remained calm: "Mm."

Nianyao said, "It's Zigui, Zigui is on fire."

Luo An remained calm, pulling Nian Yao along as they continued walking down the street: "I burned it."

Nianyao almost tumbled down the steps: "What did you say?"

Luo An said, word by word, "I burned the coffin."

Nianyao stared at him blankly, as if she hadn't understood.

Luo An said, "The person is dead, what's the point of keeping anything?"

“That’s right!” Xu Sheng walked up with the conch shell: “Master Luo, since everything has been burned, why not just dig up a grave?”

Luo An tightened his grip on Nian Yao's hand: "You can dig up your mother's grave if you want, without telling me."

As Luo An was about to walk past Xu Sheng down the aisle, he saw Xu Nuo standing in front of him, holding a mirror with a back inlaid with colorful gemstones facing him.