CHAPTER 295: CHAPTER 288: WHY DIDN’T YOU JUST FALL TO YOUR DEATH?

The journey through the Minister Mansion revealed ornate carvings, flourishing floral arrangements, all exuding opulence and luxury. However, upon reaching Jin Garden, the scene changed drastically, presenting a bleak and desolate sight.

After passing through the weed-infested courtyard, pushing open the web-covered wooden door, a strong smell of dust hit the senses, mixed with a woody scent and mildew, slightly choking.

Yun Ran pulled out a silk scarf to cover her mouth and nose, inspecting the room for potential hidden mechanisms. After about the time it takes to burn a stick of incense, she finally found the entrance to a secret chamber behind a mural.

The secret chamber was dimly lit, so Yun Ran took out a Luminous Pearl to illuminate it.

Seeing the full view of the secret chamber, Yun Ran sighed. Rather than calling it a secret chamber, it was more like a study.

Several rows of bookshelves were neatly arranged, filled with books on each tier. Beside them stood a set of rosewood tables and chairs, with a pot of flowers long since wilted on the table.

Yun Ran wandered among the bookshelves, casually picking up and flipping through the books, which covered a wide range of fields. Classics, philosophy, astrology, tactics, geography, poetry, medicine, alchemy, and even biographies of famous individuals and music lyrics.

These books were sealed away for years, with pages having turned yellow.

Among the many scrolls, Yun Ran found a book with a blank cover page. Opening it, she discovered it was a journal filled with graceful handwriting, where the name Lin Qianqiu appeared frequently.

Yun Ran carefully read a few pages and discovered it was a journal recording the series of meetings, acquaintance, and love between Bai Ruoxi and Lin Qianqiu.

She decisively pocketed the journal.

Later, she found some scrolls in a hidden section of the cabinet, all containing portraits of a young Lin Qianqiu, Bai Ruoxi’s self-portrait, and some individuals Yun Ran did not recognize.

Yun Ran picked out the ones of Lin Qianqiu and tossed them aside, then took out a sack woven from Heavenly Silkworm Silk and packed all the remaining scrolls into it.

In addition, Yun Ran also pocketed an ancient, unremarkable wooden hairpin.

The sound of hurried footsteps approached, and Lin Qianqiu strode into the secret chamber, "Lin Wanyue, you’ve arrived and yet you haven’t first paid respects to your grandmother? Such impropriety..."

The unfinished words were replaced by an exclamation as Lin Qianqiu suddenly slipped on something, landing squarely on his backside.

Embarrassed and angry, Lin Qianqiu looked around for what had tripped him, only to find a portrait of his youthful self. His expression paused slightly, and his eyes reflected complex emotions.

Yun Ran cast a cool glance at him, "You’ve committed so many sins that even the ground can’t take it anymore. Why didn’t it just kill you?"

Lin Qianqiu’s face, initially reddened with embarrassment from slipping, then quickly turned livid. He angrily glared at Yun Ran and cursed, "You insolent girl! Scoundrel! Did you throw these paintings on the floor?"

Yun Ran lazily cast her eyes at the paintings in his hand, "True, I shouldn’t have thrown them on the ground. I should have burned them instead."

"You!"

Lin Qianqiu was so furious he almost spat blood, his face alternating between shades of green and white as if smoke was drifting from his head.

Remembering the purpose of his visit, he managed to suppress the raging fury at his heart, putting on the demeanor of a benevolent father.

"Ahem! Are you doing well lately? Has King Qin been bullying you?"

Yun Ran looked at him with a gaze as if scrutinizing an idiot, "What’s wrong? Did the door damage your brain just now or did a donkey kick you while walking? Shall I replace it with a pig’s brain for you?"

Lin Qianqiu: "..."

This insolent girl! She’s such a curse, isn’t she?

"Insolent girl! Is this the attitude you should have when speaking to your father?"

Yun Ran glanced at Lin Qianqiu, who was blowing his beard in anger, coldly curling her lips into a smile, her cool voice carrying a hint of indifference, "You better not talk to me about attitude, because otherwise, I’ll struggle not to send you down to meet your father."

Lin Qianqiu: "?!!"

Did that insolent girl say that?!

Was she threatening him?!

She even wants to commit patricide?!

This abominable child devoid of all filial piety! How did he give birth to such a scourge!

Lin Qianqiu was so furious that his nose almost twisted, taking several deep breaths to barely quell the overwhelming rage burning inside.

"You are ultimately my daughter, and though you are thoughtless, as your father, I cannot ignore you."

"When you were married, I initially prepared a medical clinic as your dowry, but due to the steward’s oversight, the clinic was missed in the gift list. So now I intend to make up for it by giving it to you."

"Despite marrying into the royal family, times have changed and King Qin is no longer the King Qin of old, with your former glory fading. Your life is probably difficult now, isn’t it?"

"As your father, I can’t bear to see you suffer. Besides the medical clinic, I’ve also added a cosmetics shop to your gifts."

After Lin Qianqiu finished speaking, he raised his chin slightly, arrogantly looking at Yun Ran, as if to say: Be moved, be thankful, hurry up and thank your father for his generosity.