Guo Weixin tossed me an envelope stamped with a postal mark—a letter sent from Hubei last March. Upon opening it, the contents inside shocked me, and at the end was the signature of my grandfather, Long Youshui.
While waiting for me to read the letter, Guo Weixin opened a hidden compartment behind him.
I glanced up and was stunned to see Zhou Liangliang inside. After learning about Guo Furong’s fate, Zhou Liangliang had apparently come to Fenglingdu seeking revenge. But he had been subdued by the head of the Guo family and locked in the compartment, suffering who knows what kind of torment.
Guo Weixin said, “I’ve had this kid locked up for half a month. He seems to know you—why don’t you explain to him what’s really going on?”
Though Zhou Liangliang couldn’t move, his eyes burned with fury as he glared at Guo Weixin. Half-starved and sleep-deprived, he had grown so thin I barely recognized him, his appearance pitiful.
The letter from my grandfather, Long Youshui, informed Guo Weixin that he was nearing death and was uneasy about passing his legacy to his grandson, Xiao Qi. He hoped Guo Weixin would look after me and, as a final request, asked him to gift me the five treasured worms of the Insect Clan.
From the letter’s contents, it was unmistakably my grandfather’s handwriting, with no signs of forgery. In it, he also shared his thoughts with Guo Weixin, urging him to quickly decipher the secrets of the bronze jar.
The letter contained several intimate secrets about my mother—details only our family would know—to prove its authenticity and to show that Guo Weixin was on my side when we eventually met.
Guo Weixin said, “Now do you understand why the Guo family’s five treasured worms ended up with you? It was out of respect for Long Youshui—no, actually, for Ye Guyi—that I sent them to you.”
I never imagined the five worms I had consumed were originally sent to my grandfather by Guo Weixin before making their way to me.
My hands trembled. “Then who killed my grandfather?”
Guo Weixin replied, “Have you ever seen a wandering beggar with a Silver Armored Corpse?”
I nodded. “Yes.”
Guo Weixin said, “It was him. It was him. This is a rather unsavory chapter of the Guo family’s past, but I’ll tell you, Xiao Qi. Because you’re the heir of the Ghost Sect, perhaps you can help me settle this matter.”
I was convinced by Guo Weixin’s words and nodded.
He glanced at Xie Xiaoyu behind me. I assured him she wouldn’t speak. Guo Weixin continued, “Like in every cliché TV drama, whenever an old patriarch passes and a new one is to be appointed, conflict arises. Even the great Kangxi Emperor suffered over succession. When the previous Guo patriarch died, a new one had to be chosen. At the time, my elder cousin and I were the top candidates. But things turned sour between us. With the Insect Clan’s support, I became the new patriarch, while he left the Guo family with the Silver Armored Corpse, never to return. He was my elder cousin by a year, the son of Guo Tianjie—his name was Guo Jue.”
I asked, “From what I know, the Silver Armored Corpse is the key counterbalance between the Hua and Guo families. If the beggar took it, wouldn’t you be in trouble?”
Guo Weixin answered, “Let me finish. I gave your grandfather the five worms on one condition—that the Ghost Sect help me retrieve the Silver Armored Corpse. I also hoped you’d become a Five Elements Insect Master and uncover the treasure left by Guo Tianjie. Unfortunately, Insect Lao Si got to it first. Your grandfather agreed, but he didn’t expect Guo Jue to plant the Hundred Yin curse on you. After confronting Guo Jue, your grandfather was fatally wounded and passed days later.”
Recalling those days, I understood why my grandfather had told me not to seek revenge—it was because of this. If Guo Jue could control the Silver Armored Corpse, he was no ordinary man.
I nodded. “Is all of this true?”
Guo Weixin sighed. “For years, I’ve tried to use insect magic to heal, not harm, and to prevent the Guo family from profiting through dark means. But slowly, dissent grew within the family. Even the Insect Clan, once my supporters, wavered. Now, I’m practically powerless, stripped of authority.”
I never imagined such infighting could happen even in a powerful clan like the Guo family.
Turning to Zhou Liangliang, I asked, “Then what about Guo Furong?”
Guo Weixin explained, “After Guo Jue took the Silver Armored Corpse, I feared the Hua family would strike, so I needed to cultivate another corpse. Furong met the requirements to become a Fragrant Corpse—she volunteered, to keep the Guo family on the right path.”
Zhou Liangliang clearly didn’t believe him, his eyes bulging with rage as if he wanted to tear Guo Weixin apart. If what Guo Weixin said was true, then Guo Furong’s sacrifice was voluntary—her life’s purpose fulfilled, save for the love she left behind.
Guo Weixin patted Zhou Liangliang’s shoulder. “Enough. You can’t kill me. Have some egg noodles and go home. Live your life—marry, have children.”
Though freed, Zhou Liangliang was too weak to fight properly. Still, he lunged at Guo Weixin, only to collapse on the floor.
I helped him up. “If this was Furong’s own choice, Liangliang, why add more suffering? This is fate—the will of heaven.”
Zhou Liangliang bit his lip until it bled, weeping in agony.
Love for a woman can drive a man to madness.
As I steadied him, I saw murder still in his eyes. “Even if you want to kill someone, at least eat first. Right now, you couldn’t even beat a dog.”
Glancing at Guo Weixin, I added, “No offense—I meant our Little Rascal.”
Zhou Liangliang sobbed against my shoulder.
Guo Qiqi returned with eggs and noodles, her eyes welling with tears at the sight of Zhou Liangliang’s grief. Silently, she turned away to cook.
Soon, steaming bowls of noodles with eggs were served, vinegar on the side. Zhou Liangliang devoured two bowls and seven eggs, regaining some strength.
I told him, “You ate his food—can you still kill him? At least wait until the noodles digest.”
Zhou Liangliang pushed open the door, greeted by a blizzard. Standing in the doorway, he growled, “I swear, old man, I’ll kill you.” Then he vanished into the snow.
“At least he has something to live for now,” Guo Weixin murmured.
I ate my noodles—Guo Qiqi was a good cook. The vinegar made it extra savory. Little Rascal finished his bowl and barked excitedly.
Guo Weixin chuckled. “Good dog. Smart, spirited. If Hua Chongyang saw him, he’d turn him into hotpot.”
He knew Hua Chongyang well—that old monster had once tried to buy Little Rascal for the same purpose, but I’d refused.
After resting overnight at the Guo residence, Guo Weixin asked me to write down the numbers from the North Thai parchment—perhaps they held the key to the bronze jar’s mystery.
29-34-110-78.
Guo Qiqi’s eyes lit up. “29 is copper—the 29th element in the periodic table.”
I realized then how useful chemistry could be. The periodic table, discovered by Mendeleev over a century ago, was likely known to Ye Guyi.
34 and 110 referred to latitude and longitude—Fenglingdu’s coordinates. But what about 78?
Guo Qiqi mused, “If the first numbers have meaning, so must the last.”
“Obviously,” I retorted, earning a sharp pinch from her.
Guo Weixin, more knowledgeable, suggested that according to the *Hetu* and the Eight Trigrams, 7 and 8 could symbolize metal (gold).
Thus, the parchment’s message likely meant: The secret of the bronze (29) jar lies on a metal (78) mountain in Fenglingdu (34, 110).
In *The Essentials of Geography*, mountains were classified by shape into five elements—gold, wood, water, fire, earth. A gold mountain was cylindrical, its peak tapering sharply.
“But Fenglingdu has many mountains. How do we find the right one?” I asked.
Guo Weixin frowned. “Let me think on it overnight.”
That night, I lay in bed, reflecting on my grandfather’s letter. The beggar, Guo Jue, had crossed paths with me multiple times—yet he was the one who’d cursed me. He’d even tried to recruit me against Hua Chongyang. If not for Xie Xiaoyu guarding me, I’d have been dead long ago.
If Hua Chongyang could counter the Silver Armored Corpse, perhaps I could learn from him.
Outside, snow fell silently. Tomorrow, amidst Fenglingdu’s white expanse, we’d search for that golden mountain.
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