It was a very exquisite necklace. The pendant was a slowly blooming cherry blossom, shining a beautiful silver luster under the car lights.
“There's a pinhole camera in the middle of the flower. Whenever you meet Lu Qianzhou or Third Master Lu in the future, wear it,” he said. In this way, once Lu Qianzhou and the others made any moves, they could see it in real time and use it as evidence.
Yan Xia took it and replied, “I understand.”
She knew exactly what Shangguan Yao was up to. On the surface, he said he wanted to cooperate with her to find out the causes of Cheng Hua and Cheng Yanxi's deaths. In fact, he couldn't let go of Wang Keding's death. He clearly wanted to seek justice for his father but was reluctant to say it out. So he attributed his actions to a policeman's responsibility. After all, it was a long - standing knot in his heart.
Now, each of them was acting for their own interests. Shangguan Yao was no longer the Shangguan Yao he used to be. Trusting him blindly would be underestimating him.
Shangguan Yao finally parked the car. Only then did Yan Xia notice that the villa beside them was actually the old Cheng family mansion. After Cheng Hua was imprisoned back then, it was taken away by the bank, and Cheng Hua never intended to redeem it later.
“Why did you bring me here?” Yan Xia looked at the familiar mansion, filled with mixed emotions.
“Fang Jiangyi redeemed this mansion for you. He's really generous. Maybe you didn't know this when you were abroad, but he has really paid a lot for you in these three years,” Shangguan Yao said, suddenly sneering. “Compared to him, what I did for you back then was truly insignificant.”
So cutting losses in time and giving up early was the wisest choice.
Moreover, what Shangguan Yao liked was the pure and intelligent Lu Sheng, not the scheming and worried Cheng Yanxia he met later.
But Yan Xia didn't think so. “The depth of one's love for another can't be judged by how much they give. And I've always thought that it was actually me who didn't deserve you.”
Shangguan Yao was stunned. If he had heard this back then, he didn't know how happy he would have been. But now, these words in his ears were just another way of rejection.
He forced a laugh. “You really flatter me by saying so.”
Yan Xia pushed open the car door. “I'll go back first. I'll visit Third Master Lu in a couple of days.”
Shangguan Yao watched her back all the time. After she entered the courtyard gate, there was still a cobblestone path inside. Her back suddenly looked so lonely under the street lights.
“Cheng Yanxia,” he suddenly called out to stop her.
Yan Xia stopped and looked back at him. Shangguan Yao's eyes were full of emotion.
“I hope you can think clearly about what you're doing by coming back this time. You're not here to play house. Seeing how you got along with Lu Qianzhou today made me feel that you two were just like kids throwing a tantrum. You should remember your identities. It's a fact that Lu Qianzhou committed crimes, and it's also a fact that he hurt you out of his own selfish desires,” he said.
In other words, don't forget that he's your enemy.
Yan Xia herself was a bit dazed. Now Lu Qianzhou had become more of a rascal than before, and he always said that he hadn't hurt Cheng Hua and Cheng Yanxi.
She always thought that a person like Lu Qianzhou didn't need to lie at all.
“I've said that the purpose of my coming back is to find out whether he did it and the feud between him and my father. You don't need to remind me again and again. At present, I don't need to treat him as an enemy yet,” she said, then strode towards the mansion.
The room was always brightly lit at night. When Yan Xia came back, Fang Jiangyi and Lan Mengfan were still waiting for her. Seeing that she finally returned, Fang Jiangyi let out a sigh of relief. Being taken away by Lu Qianzhou right after she came back was definitely not a good thing for her.
He didn't ask her what had happened immediately. Instead, he just silently told the kitchen, “Heat up the food. Let's prepare for dinner.”
Yan Xia walked to the sofa tiredly, hugged Lan Mengfan, and slumped there, motionless.
Lan Mengfan raised her head and said to Fang Jiangyi, “Dad, Mom is tired.”
Fang Jiangyi replied, “It's okay. She'll rest after dinner.”
He wanted to ask her what had happened when she met Lu Qianzhou today, but he never did. He knew that he had no position or identity to ask. If he got too involved, he would only push her further away.
Yan Xia had a deep sleep. It rained the next day. She left Lan Mengfan at home and asked Fang Jiangyi for the addresses of her sister and father's graves. She had left in a hurry back then, and it was Fang Jiangyi who found the cemetery. She had never left New Zealand in these years, so she didn't even have a chance to pay her respects.
Now that she was back, she finally had to go and see them.
Fang Jiangyi was at the company when he told her the addresses.
“Do you want me to go with you?” he asked.
Yan Xia refused. “No, I can go by myself. Let me have a chat with them alone.”
Yan Xia bought a bunch of lilies, her sister's favorite flowers, and then drove to the cemetery by herself. When choosing the cemetery back then, Yan Xia had said that Cheng Yanxi liked quietness the most, so she asked Fang Jiangyi to find a quiet and remote cemetery to bury them.
The place he chose was really remote. She drove on the viaduct towards the cemetery. From afar, she saw a layer of mist floating among the high - rise buildings in the distance, as if it was drizzling.
The journey was long, and she remained silent all the way.
After arriving at the destination, she carried the lilies and walked straight towards the avenue on the mountain.
She originally thought that after such a long time, time and distance would block her grief. But unexpectedly, when she came here now, she still felt sad.
She climbed up a certain distance and found the tombstones of Cheng Yanxia and Cheng Hua among a small row of tombstones. The two tombstones were next to each other. But she never looked at Cheng Hua's tombstone. She just stared at the black - and - white photo on Cheng Yanxi's tombstone.
She stood there for a long time and finally squatted down to place the lilies in front of Cheng Yanxi's tomb.
It was very quiet around. In the early spring, new leaves were budding, and there was a touch of green on the branches. The distant mountains and nearby scenery were all shrouded in the light gray mist, full of the deep charm of spring.
Yan Xia smiled at the tombstone. “Sister, I'm back.”
In the photo on the tombstone, Cheng Yanxi's appearance was forever frozen at that moment, smiling gently at her. From now on, 29 - year - old Cheng Yanxi would lie here in eternal sleep.
Yan Xia originally had a lot to say, but when she got here, she didn't know what to say. There was more guilt. She wanted to say sorry and ask for her forgiveness, but she knew that she no longer had the chance. Now, saying anything was in vain.
“Sorry...”
She condensed all her guilt at that time into this simple “sorry,” afraid that if she said too much, she would cry. She just talked about her current life and her future plans.
Finally, she couldn't go on anymore and then turned her gaze to Cheng Hua's tombstone.
She originally thought that she would have the opportunity to lead him to turn over a new leaf, but in the end, she didn't.
“Actually, I didn't really want to come and see you. It's just that you're buried with my sister,” Yan Xia lowered her eyes. “Even now, I still don't know how many evils you've committed before. Is your death a kind of retribution?”