novelA Million Times for You (62)
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Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
"I've once dreamed of our previous lifetime. In the dream, I was stuck in a haze and the road ahead seemed to be endless. I continued walking forward, and soon, the haze began to dissipate. I then stopped by a river to take a break, and all of a sudden, a head popped up from the surface of the water, which seemed to belong to a young teenager. Her features were pronounced and youthful. In fact, she looked exactly like you. Her hair was extremely long, and she was smiling at me while calling me 'Brother Qin. ' I reached a hand out to you, and you jumped up from the river to hug me, asking me where I had gone. You said that you had been waiting for me to show up for a really long time. Shortly after, I woke up, and I thought it was just a bizarre dream. In hindsight, it was a flashback from our previous lifetime. I must have loved you to bits back then too. An Xiaoning, you're really lucky to be able to gain my love for both of your lifetimes."
"I'm really lucky? Are you not lucky too? Did I not treat you wholeheartedly? You were the one who let me down. The fact that I didn't visit you on your deathbed in our previous lives just goes to show that you must've done something to break my heart. Otherwise, would I have been so heartless? Seems like you're no different from your past life."
"I won't give you up no matter what in this lifetime."
"Please don't, Mr. Jin. May you be so kind and benevolent as to spare me from your affection, " she said relentlessly.
"..."
After the corpse was cremated, they stored the remaining ashes into an urn. However, the jade piece was still intact despite the huge fire.
Fan Shixin brought the jade piece to them and said, "This piece of jade was inside his stomach."
It was a small piece of jade, about the size of a thumb. The sparkling and translucent jade had already been stained with blood and lost its emerald color.
Fan Shixin put a red thread through the pendant.
He picked up the thread and allowed the pendant to dangle lightly in mid-air. Staring at the piece of jade, Jin Qingyan said, "It's already extraordinary for a piece of jade to be able to keep his entire body from decomposing. They always say that jades of premium quality are spiritual. I reckon this piece must be godly."
"Young Sir, you must keep such a priceless item with you properly."
"I don't need you to remind me. I'll definitely keep such a meaningful item with me at all times. I shall wear it on my neck."
"I saw Ms. An smiling... when she left just now, " Fan Shixin said with a chuckle.
Jin Qingyan rubbed the jade piece with his fingers and remained quiet.
——
Madam Xu made it a point to ask Madam Jin and Madam Lin out for a mahjong session.
The mahjong parlor was within the vicinity of their homes and was an upscale venue where average citizens would not be permitted entry.
Madam Xu decided that it would be great to catch up with her bosom friends since she was bored at home.
They booked a private room in the parlor and decided to invite another friend, who was also a wealthy lady, to fill in as the fourth player, which was needed for the game to begin.
"It's such an honor to be able to play a game of mahjong with the in-laws of the royal family, " the wealthy lady remarked, smiling.
Madam Jin shot her a glance and said, "Hush, we've been friends and mahjong mates for so many years. You don't have to be so formal. As parents, don't we all just want the best for our children and see them happy?"
"Yes, yes. I haven't seen you guys in a long while. I heard that your goddaughter, An Xiaoning, is particularly accurate with her fortune-telling and predictions. Get her to read my fortune someday too, " said the wealthy lady.
"It's not up to me and Sis Mei to decide, " Madam Jin answered.
"Ms. An previously acknowledged a new mentor who was extremely skilled. However, she was very advanced in her years and had already passed on. Before I found Baizhi, I was so sure that Ms. An was my daughter because they both share the exact same birthdate. Look how coincidental that is, " said Madam Xu, who concealed her hidden agenda seamlessly.
"What a coincidence for them to be born on the exact same day, month, and year. How about their birth timings? Were they close to each other too?" the wealthy lady asked.
"I don't know." Madam Xu chuckled and asked, "Madam Jin, what was Xiaoning's birth timing?"
"No idea. She wouldn't tell us about these things, " Madam Jin said truthfully.
Madam Xu was rather disappointed and did not know if Madam Jin was just keeping it from her on purpose.
"I heard Ms. An is an orphan. Perhaps she doesn't know it herself either."
"We never know. She's a fortune-teller and knows the importance of birth characters. Even if she knew her exact birth timing, she probably wouldn't tell us, " said Madam Lin.
"Has Ms. An never thought of finding her biological parents? Isn't she curious about them at all?" the wealthy lady questioned curiously.
"She seems to be really nonchalant about it. I've never heard her talk about her biological parents before."
The wealthy lady took a puff of her cigarette, which she held in between her fingers, and asked, "Madam Xu, how did you manage to find your daughter?"
"As I mentioned, I found her based on the directions given by Ms. An's mentor. My daughter had been through so much hardship throughout all these years. It saddens me to think about it."
"Yeah, your daughter is your flesh and blood. It's great that you've reunited with her again after having been separated from her for so many years, " said Madam Lin, who was picking her mahjong tiles slowly.
Madam Xu did not probe further and continued with the game.
After the mahjong session ended, she headed back to the Xu family mansion.
Xu Baizhi was waiting for her at home. Upon sight of her arrival, she immediately rushed forward and asked, "Mother, how did it go?"
Shaking her head, Madam Xu answered, "I didn't get to find out anything at all. I wonder if they really don't know or if they're just keeping it from me on purpose."
"We'll never know. An Xiaoning has always been stringent and tight-lipped with her birth characters and timing. I've asked around. Even those highly-skilled fortune-tellers and clairvoyants can only tell her birth characters and not the exact timing, " said Xu Baizhi, who was stuck in a spot.
"What do we do, then? Well, the organization wouldn't have tasked you with this mission if it were really that easy."
"Let me think of something else." Xu Baizhi returned to her room and sat down on the chair to brainstorm for a better solution.
The quick-witted Xu Baizhi soon thought of another idea.
She zoomed out of the door and headed straight to a hypnotist's clinic, beaming with joy and excitement.
"Doctor, may I ask if it's possible to make someone divulge a secret she usually wouldn't via hypnosis?" Xu Baizhi asked, staring at the hypnotist intensely, hoping to hear a "yes" from him.
The hypnotist sneered, "You must've watched too much television. It's impossible to force someone to divulge a secret against their will by hypnotizing them. You cannot control someone's mind and consciousness using hypnosis. People usually only get hypnotized under consent or during the initial stages of the sleep cycle. You can only induce hypnosis within someone who's not resistant to influence. A hypnotist has his ethical boundaries too. We won't force the subject to divulge a secret against their wishes using hypnosis."
"Does that mean hypnosis can be induced in someone who's in light sleep?" Xu Baizhi asked inquisitively.
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