Chapter 225: 223: Returning to Gan Mansion, the Hidden Secret of Heilong Mountain

A wave of regret welled up in her heart; that was the first gift Ye Lei had bought for her, containing a piece of his heart. To lose it like this, the sense of loss was indescribable.

Looking at this star fruit wood hairpin with a very similar design in her hand, Liu Sisi thought for a moment and finally decided to grit her teeth and buy it.

She carefully wrapped it up and put it close to her body. Let it replace the lost hairpin then.

After leaving, Liu Sisi went to the Gan family again.

As soon as Gan Miaoruo saw her, she immediately pouted her lips! Stomping her foot angrily, she pulled unwillingly on Liu Sisi’s sleeve.

“Teacher! You are all words and no action, always disappearing and never seen opening the door of your bookstore!”

Gan Miaoruo’s pouted mouth could hang 24 oil bottles!

“Ruo Ruo, I’m sorry! Something really happened at my home, I am very sorry indeed.”

“You tell me, what exactly happened in your family? If you can convince me the Miss, perhaps I might actually consider forgiving you.” Gan Miaoruo assumed a young adult-like posture with her hands on her hips, tilting her head towards her.

The smile disappeared from Liu Sisi’s face!

“It was… we encountered bandits on Heilong Mountain.”

Family shame should not be spread! Naturally, Liu Sisi would not tell the story of Di Ruoning hiring assassins to kill people.

The always silent Old Madam Gan, who was sitting nearby, was also surprised!

“What did you say? The bandits on Heilong Mountain? Is this true?”

Liu Sisi hurriedly turned her head to bow: “I wouldn’t dare deceive the Old Madam, in the middle…” Liu Sisi looked at Gan Miaoruo, hesitated to continue speaking: “In between, some things happened, but in the end, my husband and I fell off the cliff. Perhaps it was the mercy of the heavens or the Goddess of Mercy showing her divine presence. At the most crucial moment, several Grandmasters from the Zen temple saved us, so we managed to escape the disaster.”

“Oh? There was actually such a thing?”

Old Madam Gan straightened up and looked back at Gan Miaoruo who was beside her: “Ruo Ruo, didn’t you receive several excellent pieces of Su embroidery a few days ago? You said you wanted to share a few with the teacher. Hurry up and bring them out for the teacher to look at.”

Gan Miaoruo was listening intently and didn’t want to leave at all.

“For such small matters, I can just ask the maids to do it! I…”

“Hm? Ruo Ruo -”

Old Madam Gan spoke in a deep voice.

“I’ll go, I’ll go, hmph!” Gan Miaoruo was also angry, stomping her foot and turning around before trotting out of the living room.

“This child… It’s all because I spoiled her.” The Old Madam shook her head.

Liu Sisi pursed her lips: “Ruo Ruo is just candid and lovely, and especially considerate and caring. How could she be considered spoiled?”

“You are right in saying that! This child is especially caring, she’s simply my little happy fruit!”

Old Madam Gan laughed heartily, as Liu Sisi’s words touched her heartstrings.

To others, Gan Miaoruo might appear arrogant and willful, but to the Old Madam’s eyes, she was simply naive and candid! These were all virtues, where would they allow others to casually point fingers and criticize?

She laughed for a while before she finally stopped, “You just said that something happened, what exactly happened?”

Liu Sisi also covered her lips with laughter, not hesitating to tell her about what happened that day.

Of course, she concealed the fact that Di Ruoning hired a hitman to kill someone and did not mention it.

“No wonder you haven’t been seen for so long. But that young man from the Di Family is quite impressive! If he could fight the bandits to a draw, it shows that his martial arts are truly extraordinary.”

Old Madam kept praising: “What’s even rarer is that in such a situation, he didn’t leave you behind. This deep affection is truly invaluable, truly invaluable! I hope your husband cherishes and treasures it!”

“Old Madam is right, it is a blessing in three lives for Sisi to have her husband risking his life to save her. It was so indescribably touching to Sisi, also…” Liu Sisi blushed with embarrassment, some of the boudoir whispers she could not help but share with others.

Old Madam laughed for a long time before she resumed her conversation, “Speaking of the bandits on Black Dragon Mountain, I do know some things.”

She then repeated the past story that the constables had told.

At the end, she added, “Actually, the bandits on Black Dragon Mountain are not far from the Goddess of Mercy’s temple. The temple is located halfway up South Mountain, while the bandits’ stronghold is on the summit of North Mountain. However, they have coexisted for many years on the vast Black Dragon Mountain. If it was really the bandits who attacked you, it’s truly incredible that you could come down alive from the mountain.”

“How so?” Liu Sisi was a bit confused.

Until she left Gan Mansion for a long time, Liu Sisi couldn’t recover from Old Madam’s words.

“The so-called bandits of Black Dragon Mountain can be traced back to the former Crown Prince if you look carefully. Back then, this mountain wasn’t called by its present name; it was called Huifeng Mountain. The name comes from the winding mountain peaks. Thirty years ago, the former Crown Prince failed in his bid for power, faked his death, and fled all the way to Huifeng Mountain. He was saved by the Mountain King at the time and met the current Emperor who was pursuing him.”

“No one knows what was discussed during that meeting. However, since then, the former Crown Prince has never appeared before the public again. On the contrary, the bandits on Huifeng Mountain have become a force to be reckoned with, and the mountain has been renamed Black Dragon Mountain, continuing until today.”

“To be honest, the bandits on Black Dragon Mountain are unlike those from other mountain strongholds who specialize in robbery! They seldom take action, and when they do, it’s usually a fight to the death. These are imperial secrets, and people without a certain position will never know about them. I came to know about this matter as a result of an opportunity.”

“That’s why I said, you two being able to come down alive from Black Dragon Mountain is a tremendous stroke of luck…”

Liu Sisi looked back at the fading Gan Mansion, feeling dizzy in her head.

Suddenly, she had a feeling of being trapped in thick fog, unable to see anything no matter how hard she tried.

Why would the bandits on Black Dragon Mountain, with such a powerful background, target her?

She was just an ordinary peasant woman!

When she returned to the bookstore, Liu Sisi posted a job recruitment notice. It was an act of helplessness. The bookstore had to spend 10 taels of silver per month while the door was closed, and she couldn’t take care of it recently. So hiring a small worker to take care of the bookstore was the only solution for the time being.

She also made a detour to the Ready-made Clothes Shop and bought a set of autumn clothes for each of them.

The temperature difference between morning and evening here is particularly large, making people sweat at noon, and it starts to cool down as the sun goes down. By midnight, they must be wrapped in thick blankets to sleep.

“Shopkeeper, how much silver in total for these sets of ready-made clothes?”

The shopkeeper recognized Liu Sisi at a glance.

“It turns out to be the old customer. I remember that the young wife visited our shop several months ago. Which ones did the young wife choose?”

Liu Sisi also smiled, and they were really destined!

“Shopkeeper, we are old customers after all, these are the 500 copper coins per set of clothes, as you can see, the collar and cuffs are embroidered with exquisite flowers, which is really not easy. If you want four sets, I’ll give you the lowest discount, a total of 1,800 copper coins.”