Chapter 119: Zhou Ting

On the day the news spread,

Uncle Fu stepped forward to erect a cenotaph for Zhou Huai in the suburban cemetery.

He was not buried in the Zhou Family's exclusive cemetery.

Instead, he was quietly buried right next to his mother's gravestone.

…

When Ye Xi received the news, her mind went completely blank.

Disregarding her family's attempts to stop her, she rushed out of the house like a madwoman and drove to the suburban cemetery.

When she saw that cold gravestone, her eyes were filled with utter disbelief.

On the gravestone was a photograph of Zhou Huai.

The young man sat in a wheelchair, a faint, ethereal smile on his face, his gaze gentle.

Yet that face quickly blurred in Ye Xi's vision.

"No…"

"This is not real…"

She muttered to herself, stepping forward pace by pace, and reached out her hand, wanting to touch that photograph.

What her fingertips felt was the icy texture of the stone tablet.

"Brother Zhou Huai!"

A piercing, heartbreaking cry echoed out.

The young girl could no longer hold herself up; her body collapsed limply in front of the gravestone, her hands clutching the cold stone tightly as if trying to melt herself into it.

"How could this happen??"

"Why did this happen???"

She cried until her voice was hoarse, her tears breaking like a breached dike, quickly soaking the front of her clothes.

She knelt there before the gravestone, calling out over and over again the name that would never answer her again.

From early morning until dusk.

Until finally, she cried herself into a faint, only to be carried away with heartache by the hurriedly arriving Ye family members.

Returning to the Ye family residence.

After waking up, Ye Xi did not say a single word.

She locked herself in her room, refusing to eat or drink.

No matter how Ye Zhentian outside the door tried to persuade or plead with her, she gave no response whatsoever.

Full three days passed.

On the morning of the fourth day, the door creaked open.

When Ye Zhentian saw his daughter walking out of the room, his heart violently twitched.

The young girl before him had sheared off her waist-length hair, now sporting a neat and crisp short haircut.

Those eyes that were once clear and lively were now like stagnant water, devoid of even a shred of radiance.

All that remained was a heart-palpitating indifference.

And numbness.

"Xier…" Ye Zhentian's voice was hoarse.

Ye Xi did not look at him, simply speaking calmly.

"I am hungry."

From that day on, Ye Xi seemed like a completely different person.

She no longer acted spoiled or laughed.

She poured all her time into frantic dungeon leveling.

A seed named revenge had quietly taken root in her heart, beginning to grow wildly.

…

In front of Zhou Huai's cenotaph.

That afternoon after Ye Xi left, it welcomed another visitor.

Dressed in a black windbreaker, Zhou Feng appeared quietly before the gravestone all alone.

He looked at the familiar smiling face on the gravestone with a completely expressionless face.

Neither joy nor sorrow could be seen.

Only the fists hanging by his sides loosened and tightened, tightened and loosened again, betraying the turbulence within his heart.

He stood there quietly, gazing at that photograph for a very, very long time.

A gust of wind blew by, stirring up a few fallen leaves.

Zhou Feng finally moved.

He raised his hand and gently brushed away the dust clinging to the gravestone, his movements tender.

A barely audible sigh dissipated in the wind.

"Foolish child…"

His voice was hoarse and dry.

"Clearly… I sent people to fetch you back…"

"Why is it that you simply refuse to leave with me?"

No one answered him.

Answering him was only the bleak sound of the wind in the cemetery.

Until the sky gradually darkened and night was about to swallow the last shred of light.

Zhou Feng slowly turned around and left with heavy steps.

…

The Zhou Family's old residence.

In the backyard pavilion, the lights were brightly lit.

The old patriarch of the Zhou Family, Zhou Ting, was sitting at a stone table leisurely sipping a cup of fresh tea.

This was his habit of many years.

After dinner, he always liked to sit here alone for a while to enjoy a moment of peace.

A burst of footsteps drawing near shattered this tranquility.

Zhou Feng walked in expressionlessly and stopped outside the pavilion.

"Something the matter?"

Zhou Ting didn't even raise his head; he leisurely took a sip of tea and asked indifferently.

Zhou Feng was silent for a moment, then raised his head, his voice devoid of any emotion.

"Zhou Huai is dead."

Zhou Ting softly let out an "Mn."

"I know."

Zhou Feng's eyes stared straight at his own father.

"Did you send people to kill him?"

Hearing this, Zhou Ting finally put down the teacup in his hand.

He slowly raised his head, a flash of playful light flickering within his cloudy old eyes.

He looked at his son and answered with a question instead of replying.

"What?"

"Could it be that you want to avenge him?"

Zhou Feng's heart clenched fiercely.

A chill surged straight from the soles of his feet to his crown.

He instantly snapped to his senses, hurriedly lowering his head to deeply bury all of his emotions.

He squeezed two words out from between his teeth.

"I wouldn't dare."

Inside the pavilion, silence fell once again.

There was only the sound of Zhou Ting leisurely drinking his tea.

After a long while, he spoke again, his voice as flat as if he were discussing some trivial matter.

"If he had honestly stayed in that courtyard and acted as a well-behaved cripple, naturally I wouldn't have made a move against him."

"Yet of all things, he should not have run out and ruined Lu Qi and Ye Xi's good deeds."

"Because of the incident Lu Qi caused during the National Examination, the Liu family is already somewhat dissatisfied with us."

"I certainly don't want another Zhou Huai popping out to continue disrupting our relationship with the Liu family."

Zhou Ting paused, picked up his teacup, and gently blew on the floating tea leaves.

He added faintly.

"His mother wouldn't do."

"He is even less acceptable."

"Do you… understand?"

Zhou Feng lowered his head even further.

He clenched his fists so tightly that his nails dug deep into his palms, yet he felt no pain whatsoever.

"Understood."

"Hehe…"

Zhou Ting suddenly chuckled.

He put down the teacup, looked at this son of his, and a meaningful look appeared on his face.

"However, I have changed my mind now."

"No matter what, Zhou Huai is still my own biological grandson; in the end, I shouldn't be too ruthless."

Hearing this, Zhou Feng let out a silent sneer in his heart.

The person is already dead, turned to ashes.

What use is it for you to say you've changed your mind now?

However, Zhou Ting's next words struck Zhou Feng like a thunderbolt, freezing his entire body in place.

"Zhou Huai is not dead."

Zhou Feng snapped his head up, his eyes widening.

Thinking he was hallucinating.

Seeing his shocked appearance, the smile on Zhou Ting's face grew even thicker.

He leaned back against his chair and let out a hearty laugh.

"Hahaha… Not only is this brat not dead, but he actually counter-killed all the people I sent to assassinate him."

"He hid deeply enough… truly hid deeply enough…"

"It seems there are secrets on him that none of us know about."

"Furthermore, he even knows how to fake his death to escape, making all of you think he's dead so as to shake off our sight…"

"This Heart-Nature, these methods, completely exceed my expectations…"

Zhou Ting's laughter echoed in the silent night.

His gaze fell back onto Zhou Feng, becoming sharp.

"Your task now is to find him for me."

A flash of joy flickered across Zhou Feng's eyes.

Then, analyzing calmly, he said, "Father, Zhou Huai likely wouldn't leave behind that old butler Uncle Fu."

"As long as we send people to secretly monitor Uncle Fu, perhaps… there will be results soon."

But Zhou Ting shook his head and picked up his teacup.

"It is useless."

"This morning, I already sent people to monitor him."

"As a result, the person sent to follow vanished mysteriously not long after trailing him out."

"Not even a trace was left behind."

Zhou Feng felt a chill in his heart.

Zhou Ting took a sip of tea and continued.

"However, I believe he should still be in Donghai City."

"Mobilize all of the Zhou Family's intelligence networks in Donghai City and find him for me."

"Remember to do it in secret without alerting anyone, especially the Liu family."

"Bring him back to see me."

Zhou Ting paused and continued:

"As long as he is willing to come back."

"In the future, I will consider cultivating him properly."

Hearing this, Zhou Feng immediately bowed and answered resolutely.

"Yes! Father!"