chsdbacks Chapter 124 The Calm Before the Storm
Chapter 124 The Calm Before the Storm
The stench of blood hadn't yet dissipated from the hotel in the southwest when Nie Lingfeng had already taken Chen Duo onto the high-speed train bound for East China.
The intelligence Xu Si sent was very detailed. The Wang family's headquarters were in a remote mountain village in a province in East China, known to the outside world as "Wang Family Village," but in reality, it was the ancestral home where the Wang family had operated for hundreds of years. Most of the villagers were surnamed Wang, and even those who weren't surnamed Wang had intricate connections with the Wang family. That place was the Wang family's foundation, but also... a den of dragons and tigers.
"This trip might be very dangerous." On the high-speed train, Nie Lingfeng said to Chen Duo, who was sitting by the window. "The Wang family has been operating for hundreds of years, and there are countless traps, formations, and experts in their ancestral land. Moreover, this time we killed Wang Bing and Wang Xiao, and destroyed their stronghold in the southwest. The Wang family must have received the news and will make full preparations."
Chen Duo turned her head, her emerald green eyes looking at him quietly: "Are you scared?"
"I'm not afraid," Nie Lingfeng smiled. "But I'm worried about you. If a fight breaks out, I might not be able to protect you. So, if things get complicated, you should leave first and go to Longhu Mountain to find the Old Celestial Master. He promised to protect you."
Chen Duo shook her head: "I'm not leaving. I'll help you."
"you……"
"I have Gu poison," Chen Duo interrupted him, her voice soft but firm. "Although only a small part of it remains in my heart, if controlled properly, it can kill. Moreover, I've practiced the martial arts you taught me, and now... I can fight."
Seeing her serious expression, Nie Lingfeng's heart softened, and he reached out to ruffle her hair. "Okay, then you'll stay close to me. But promise me, if I think you're in danger and tell you to leave, you must leave."
Chen Duo thought for a moment and nodded: "Mm."
The high-speed train sped along, the scenery outside the window rushing past. Chen Duo looked out the window for a while, then suddenly turned her head and asked softly:
"Can we...go shopping first?"
Nie Lingfeng was taken aback: "Going shopping?"
"Hmm." Chen Duo lowered her head, her fingers unconsciously clutching the hem of her clothes. "Last time... we didn't finish shopping. You said you'd take me to eat something delicious and buy me new clothes, look..."
She paused, as if recalling what Nie Lingfeng had said: "Watch...a movie."
Nie Lingfeng looked at her profile with her head down, at her slightly trembling eyelashes, and at her fingertips that were a little pale from nervousness. A strange, indescribable feeling of bitterness welled up in his heart.
This girl was raised in a cage from a young age, treated like a tool. She never saw sunlight, smelled flowers, went shopping, or watched a movie. Now that she finally has the chance to live like a normal person, the first thing she wants to do is... go shopping.
"Okay," he heard himself say, his voice soft but firm. "Let's go shopping first, eat something delicious, buy new clothes, and see a movie. Then...we'll go to the Wang family's house."
Chen Duo raised her head, her eyes brightened, and the corners of her mouth curved slightly.
"Um."
Meanwhile, thousands of miles away in East China, in Wangjia Village.
It was late at night, but the ancestral hall was brightly lit.
The Wang Family Ancestral Hall is large and old, with blue bricks and gray tiles, flying eaves and brackets, exuding a sense of vicissitude and solemnity accumulated over hundreds of years. In the center of the hall are enshrined the ancestral tablets of the Wang family, densely packed together, dating back to the Ming Dynasty. The constant burning of incense and the swirling smoke further enhance the solemn atmosphere of the entire hall.
At this moment, the ancestral hall was filled with people.
They were all core members of the Wang family, including elderly clan elders with white hair, pillars of the family in their prime, and a few young direct descendants. Everyone had their heads down, not daring to breathe, and the air was so heavy it seemed like it would drip water.
Wang Ai sat in the main seat, his face ashen, his knuckles white from gripping the dragon-headed cane. Kneeling on the ground before him was a man in black, covered in blood and barely breathing—it was Ying Yi, who had escaped from the southwest.
"...When I arrived, Lord Ghost Hand and Lord Blood Blade had already...had died in the line of duty. Young Master Wang Xiao...also..." Shadow One's voice was hoarse and intermittent, "Nie Lingfeng...he alone killed twenty-three of our core members and knocked out twenty-seven peripheral personnel. The Southwest stronghold...was completely wiped out."
"puff!"
Wang Ai suddenly coughed up a mouthful of blood, staining his chest red. He swayed and almost fell off the chair, but was caught by the clansmen beside him.
"Bing'er... Bing'er..." he murmured to himself, his eyes unfocused, as if he had aged ten years in an instant.
Wang Bing was his precious son, his carefully groomed successor. Though incompetent and arrogant, he was his only legitimate grandson, the future hope of the Wang family. But now, that hope had been destroyed twice by Nie Lingfeng…
The first time was at the Luo Tian Grand Ceremony, where his martial arts were crippled. The second time is now, when he was turned to ashes by Chen Duo's Gu poison.
"Nie Lingfeng... Chen Duo..." Wang Ai gritted her teeth, each word seemingly squeezed out from between them, "I will make you... pay for your crimes in blood!"
"Patriarch!" A clan elder with gray hair stepped forward, his voice trembling. "Should we...should we ask the company to handle this? Nie Lingfeng killed so many of our people, the company can't just sit idly by, can it?"
Wang Ai suddenly turned her head, her sinister gaze piercing the clan elder like a knife:
"The company? Do you really think that without the company's tacit approval, Nie Lingfeng and Chen Duo alone could have quietly taken down our stronghold in the Southwest? Killed Ghost Hand and Blood Blade, and allowed Shadow One to escape alive and report back?"
He paused, his voice growing colder: "Whether the company was involved, we can't confirm right now. But the company was definitely the one cleaning up the mess. In the southwest, our people had just died when the company's people arrived, rescuing the survivors and disposing of the dead. What is this? This is cleaning up their mess! This is telling the whole world that the company knew about this, and... tacitly approved it!"
Upon hearing this, all the elders in the ancestral hall panicked.
"Then... what should we do?"
"The company has tacitly approved it, so aren't we...?"
"Nie Lingfeng's next target will definitely be our Wangjia Village! We..."
"Shut up!"
An aged but powerful voice interrupted the discussion.
The First Elder, who had been sitting in the first seat to Wang Ai's left and had been resting with his eyes closed, slowly opened them. He looked older than Wang Ai, with a face full of wrinkles and thinning hair, but his eyes were as sharp as an eagle's and as deep as an abyss.
"The Wang family has stood for hundreds of years; what storms haven't we weathered?" The First Elder spoke slowly, his voice not loud, but each word struck like a hammer blow to everyone's hearts. "A mere child has terrified you all?"
Everyone lowered their heads, not daring to speak.
The Grand Elder looked at Wang Ai, his eyes calm: "Brother Ai, I know you're sad. But being sad won't help. What we need to do now is deal with it."
He paused, then slowly said, "Pass on my orders: First, activate the village's protective array—the Divine Paint Array. I will personally oversee the array's core. Second, immediately recall all direct descendants who are training or handling affairs outside the village. Third, send all direct descendants under the age of eighteen out of Wangjia Village overnight, dispersing them to various hidden locations, where they must remain anonymous and not reveal their identities without my order."
With each statement he made, the atmosphere in the ancestral hall grew more solemn.
This is... preparing for the worst.
"Elder!" an elder couldn't help but exclaim, "This...this is a family division! The Wang family has existed for hundreds of years..."
"Dividing the family is better than annihilating it." The First Elder interrupted him, his eyes cold. "If Nie Lingfeng can really break through the Divine Array and reach the ancestral shrine, it means that our Wang family... has run out of luck. Leaving a seed behind means at least the incense will continue, and there will be a chance to rise again in the future."
He looked at Wang Ai: "Ai-di, what do you think?"
Wang Ai remained silent for a long time before slowly nodding, her voice hoarse:
"Then... we'll do as my brother says."
He had to admit that the Grand Elder's arrangement was the safest. Even if they failed, the Wang family line wouldn't end. Those children sent away were the future of the Wang family, their hope for revenge.
"Did you all hear that?" The elder scanned the crowd. "Go and do it. Before dawn, I want to see everyone who should leave Wangjia Village gone. Those who should stay, go to your respective posts."
"yes!"
The group bowed and hurriedly left.
Only Wang Ai and the Grand Elder remained in the ancestral hall.
"Big brother," Wang Ai looked at the Grand Elder, her eyes filled with complex emotions, "can we... win?"
The elder did not answer, but slowly rose, walked to the entrance of the ancestral hall, looked at the pitch-black night outside, and slowly said:
"Whether we win or lose, we'll only know after the fight. But the Wang family's centuries-old foundation isn't something a mere child can easily shake. If he dares to come..."
He paused, a cold glint flashing in his eyes:
"Let him never return."
A thousand miles away, in a bustling city in East China.
Nie Lingfeng was accompanying Chen Duo as they "sweeped through" the commercial street.
Chen Duo is interested in everything. She'll queue up to buy milk tea, go into ice cream shops to try it, play claw machines, and spend ages choosing hair clips and hair ties from stalls.
Nie Lingfeng was very patient. He accompanied her to queue, helped her try different flavors, and even helped her play the claw machine—although they didn't win a single one. He also helped her pick out hair clips—in the end, they bought three: one black, one white, and one with a small bow.
"Here, take this." Chen Duo pinned the white hair clip to Nie Lingfeng's hair—his hair was half gray and half white, and the white hair clip didn't look out of place at all.
Nie Lingfeng touched the hair clip and smiled, "Does it look good?"
"It looks good." Chen Duo nodded, very seriously.
Then, she pulled Nie Lingfeng into a women's clothing store.
"This one," she said, pointing to a light green dress, "is pretty."
"Give it a try," Nie Lingfeng said.
Chen Duo took the dress into the fitting room and came out a few minutes later. Nie Lingfeng's eyes lit up.
The dress fit her perfectly; the light green color made her skin appear even whiter, and the waist was cinched just right. The hem reached her knees, revealing her slender calves. She let her hair down, fastened it with a hair clip adorned with a bow, and stood in front of the mirror, awkwardly tugging at the hem of her dress.
"Does it look good?" she asked softly, as if confirming.
"It's beautiful," Nie Lingfeng said sincerely. "It's especially beautiful."
Chen Duo looked at herself in the mirror for a long time, and then smiled very softly.
That was the most obvious smile Nie Lingfeng had ever seen from her since he met her. Although it was still faint, her eyes curved into crescents, and the curve of her lips was clearly visible.
Like the first melting of ice and snow, like the first bloom of spring flowers.
Nie Lingfeng's heart softened. He walked over and ruffled her hair: "Buy it."
"Okay." Chen Duo nodded, looked at herself in the mirror, then turned to the sales assistant and said, "This one."
"Okay, miss, I'll pay here." The sales assistant said with a smile.
After leaving the women's clothing store, Chen Duo set her sights on the movie theater next door.
"Movies..." She looked at the colorful images on the poster, her eyes full of curiosity.
"Which one do you want to see?" Nie Lingfeng asked.
Chen Duo looked at it for a long time, then pointed to a poster for an animated film—it featured an adorable panda.
"this."
"Okay, this is it."
The two bought tickets, popcorn, and cola, and went into the theater. The movie was a family-friendly animated film with a simple plot and lots of jokes; the whole theater was filled with children's laughter.
Chen Duo watched intently. Clutching her popcorn bucket, her eyes were glued to the screen. When she saw something funny, she would laugh out loud—though softly, she was definitely laughing. When she saw something touching, she would furrow her brow slightly and steal a glance at Nie Lingfeng, as if to make sure he was watching too.
Nie Lingfeng looked at her profile, at her eyes illuminated by the screen's light and shadow, and felt a sense of calm.
If only time could stop at this moment.
There was no pursuit, no hatred, no life-or-death struggle.
That's all. I just accompanied her shopping, buying clothes, watching movies, and watching her laugh.
But he knew it was impossible.
The movie ended at 9 p.m.
As the two walked out of the movie theater, Chen Duo was still clutching the panda plush toy—the one Nie Lingfeng had finally managed to catch in the mall's arcade. She held the toy in one arm and tugged at Nie Lingfeng's sleeve with the other, her eyes sparkling and a faint smile playing on her lips.
"Are you happy?" Nie Lingfeng asked.
"Mmm." Chen Duo nodded, very firmly.
"Well," Nie Lingfeng looked at her, his voice soft, "tomorrow, we'll go to Wangjia Village. It might be very dangerous, people might die. Are you... afraid?"
Chen Duo thought for a moment, then shook her head:
"Don't be afraid. You're here."
Nie Lingfeng smiled and ruffled her hair.
"Okay, then tomorrow, we'll go... and settle things once and for all."
As night deepens, the city lights shine brightly.
In a secluded monitoring room, several people in plainclothes were watching the images on the screen.
The scene shows Nie Lingfeng and Chen Duo shopping, watching a movie, and eating ice cream.
"The target's emotions are stable, Chen Duo is in good condition, and there are no abnormal fluctuations in the Gu poison." A person reported into the headset.
"Continue monitoring, maintain distance, and don't expose yourself," Zhao Dong's calm voice came through the earpiece. "Once they enter Wangjia Village... you don't need to follow them anymore. That's their battlefield."
"clear."
In the surveillance footage, Nie Lingfeng pulled Chen Duo away and disappeared into the night.
Storm is coming.
The eye of the storm is slowly moving.
I walked steadily, step by step, toward that place called Wangjia Village.