Wuxia: Starting Off With 60 Years of Inner Strength

The girl was clearly educated. Despite her urgency, she spoke with perfect clarity.

She laid out the full story of what had happened to her family, explaining everything from beginning to end.

After Li Tianxin finished listening, his brow furrowed.

”That auntie of yours is a terrible person.”

Mingyue glanced at him and said softly,

”She is at fault, that’s true. But there’s no telling what will happen with my uncle. To make her cling to that one sliver of hope, betting her life and my little brother’s on it... it really is asking too much of her.”

Jiang Ran raised an eyebrow. ’Is this girl genuinely considerate, or is she just hopelessly naive?’

He tapped his fingers on the table a couple of times and said softly,

”Since they demanded the item be delivered within three months, they must have given you a location, right?”

”Yes.”

Mingyue nodded.

”Less than twenty li from here is Fierce Tiger Mountain. On the mountain, there’s a place called Tiger Leaping Gorge.

”They’re waiting there...”

”Twenty li... That’s not too far.”

Jiang Ran glanced at the sun and suddenly smiled.

”Miss Mingyue, do you know how to paint?”

”A little...”

Mingyue nodded slightly.

”Good.”

Jiang Ran stood up and glanced at Li Tianxin.

”Go prepare a brush, ink, paper, and an inkstone.”

Li Tianxin’s brow twitched, but he reluctantly agreed.

Jiang Ran, in turn, glanced at Mingyue.

”Come with me.”

”Okay.”

Mingyue nodded repeatedly. She had finally found a glimmer of hope, and she wasn’t going to give up, no matter what came next.

Jiang Ran led her into the inn, back to the table where he had been sitting earlier.

”Eat first.”

He gestured toward the food on the table.

Mingyue hesitated for a moment before nodding. She carefully picked up a steamed bun and began to eat it in small bites.

Jiang Ran, meanwhile, was staring at the prompt that had appeared before him, lost in thought.

[Proxy Mission: Rescue Mingyue’s father.]

[Accept?]

This prompt had appeared the moment Mingyue had begged Jiang Ran to save her father.

After glancing at it, Jiang Ran asked,

”What’s your father’s name?”

”My father is Liu Wenshan.”

Mingyue quickly put down her bun and answered formally.

Jiang Ran waved his hand, motioning for her to continue eating. When he looked back at the prompt, it had changed.

[Proxy Mission: Rescue Liu Wenshan.]

’...So it updates the mission details using information I gather externally?’

Jiang Ran’s expression was strange. ’What if this Liu Wenshan is already dead?’

It was a three-month deadline, and not much time had passed yet.

But if the kidnappers only wanted the item, they could have killed Liu Wenshan already. It wasn’t like Mingyue and her family would know.

They could just wait for the item to be delivered, snatch it, and leave. Or they could kill everyone and take it then.

Unless... they had some reservations.

At this thought, another question surfaced in Jiang Ran’s mind.

”Why would your uncle have that item?”

She had explained the general situation, but many of the details were still missing.

Mingyue put down her chopsticks and answered dutifully,

”I heard that the item was something my mother brought with her when she married.

”My mother... she wasn’t the daughter of a wealthy, influential family. She came from a martial arts clan.

”So the item is likely related to the martial world.

”That’s probably why my uncle took it with him...”

”I see.”

Jiang Ran nodded. That explained a few things.

Perhaps the kidnappers’ initial goal in going to the Liu family wasn’t to find the item there at all.

Ransacking the place was just them being thorough.

The real key was kidnapping Mingyue’s father to force her uncle to hand over the item.

And the reason they didn’t go after her uncle directly was likely because they feared him...

Thinking of this, Jiang Ran couldn’t help but ask,

”What’s your uncle’s surname?”

”Ye.”

Mingyue answered without a moment’s hesitation.

”When my mother was alive, she told me his name once. He’s called... Ye Konggu.”

”What did you say his name was?”

Jiang Ran’s head snapped up, his eyes fixed on Mingyue.

Mingyue hadn’t expected such a reaction and flinched back instinctively. Seeing that his expression was one of shock, not anger, she relaxed slightly.

After a moment’s hesitation, she asked softly,

”Sir, do you happen to know my uncle?”

”...”

Jiang Ran let out a soft breath, unsure of where to even begin.

’Ye Konggu... Patriarch of the Red Maple Ye family. Ye Jingshuang’s father.’

’In other words, this girl is Ye Jingshuang’s cousin?’

’Then could the people who went to her home be the same ones who escaped from the Heartless Ghost Mansion?’

Jiang Ran had his suspicions about the Red Maple Ye family affair before.

’Why would that group insist on challenging the Red Maple Ye family when they themselves were in such dire straits?’

’With the Ghost Mansion’s master watching them like a hawk, such a move offered them nothing but disadvantages.’

’That’s why Jiang Ran had suspected the Red Maple Ye family possessed something that they absolutely had to obtain.’

’Could these two incidents... be related?’

’But their methods don’t match up.’

’Whether it was Dao Zhen or Zhang Dongxuan, they were ruthless. They never left survivors, especially not anyone who had seen their faces. They would have slaughtered everyone.’

’If it had been them, Mingyue would have been dead long ago.’

Jiang Ran mulled it over. After a moment, he looked at Mingyue, who was watching him intently, and said softly,

”I’ve heard the name... but we’ve never met.”

”Oh.”

Mingyue nodded, looking a little disappointed.

’If he was an acquaintance of her uncle’s, things might have gone more smoothly,’ she thought.

Still, things were already much better than she could have hoped. At the very least, the man before her was a good person, willing to give her a meal.

Just as she was thinking this, Li Tianxin walked back into the inn, carrying a brush, ink, paper, and an inkstone.

He set them on the table, but before he could sit down, Jiang Ran spoke.

”Go out again for me...”

Li Tianxin instantly became furious.

”Are you ordering me around like a servant?”

”Of course not.”

Jiang Ran gave him a puzzled look.

”Aren’t we friends?”

”...Friends?”

Li Tianxin froze.

Jiang Ran nodded earnestly.

”Is it such a chore to do a little favor for a friend?”

”I... I’m not.”

Li Tianxin shook his head, suddenly feeling as if he had terribly wronged Jiang Ran.

Jiang Ran sighed.

”Never mind, then. If you don’t want to, just forget it. I thought we were friends... I guess you don’t see it that way.”

”...What do you need me to do?”

Li Tianxin asked through gritted teeth.

Jiang Ran grinned. He was just about to speak when he suddenly heard footsteps at the door.

He turned to see the flashy woman who had left in disgrace earlier. She was now returning to the inn’s entrance with a group of people in tow and spotted Jiang Ran at his table immediately.

She immediately pointed a finger.

”That’s him!!!”

Seeing this, Jiang Ran smiled at Li Tianxin.

”They got here a little faster than I expected. Saves you a trip, though.”