20 years of the Republic of China

Chapter 799 Bloodline Awakening

Inside the guest room, the wall clock ticked away, and the table lamp cast a warm yellow light, illuminating the room's decor and furnishings: the heating, the spring bed, the down comforters...

Clean, comfortable, peaceful and quiet.

As the saying goes, at this very moment, the more chaotic things are in Fengtian City, the more leisurely the South Railway Concession is.

However, all the turmoil was in my heart.

Hu Xiaoyan sat sideways on the armchair by the window, her elbows resting on the windowsill, looking down at Naniwa-dori Street in front of the hotel.

Her face was reflected in the glass window, looking worried and frowning—it was almost dawn, and Jiang Lianheng still hadn't returned.

The sound of running water came from the bathroom.

A moment later, the door slowly opened.

Jiang Ya changed into a white nightgown, holding a towel in her hand, and shuffling over in slippers, saying listlessly, "Mom, I'm done washing up."

Hearing the noise, Hu Xiaoyan turned around, nodded to her, and said, "You go to sleep first, I'll wait for your dad to come back."

Jiang Ya remained silent, walked to the bedside and sat down. Suddenly, she sighed, as if she had something to say, but she just lowered her head and hesitated several times.

Hu Xiaoyan noticed something was wrong with her daughter and asked, "What's wrong?"

Jiang Ya shook her head and muttered softly, "It's nothing. I was just thinking that if I had reacted faster just now... my great-aunt wouldn't have run away. It's all my fault."

Hu Xiaoyan looked at her daughter, thought carefully for a moment, and instead of offering words of comfort, asked, "And then?"

"And then?" Jiang Ya was taken aback, unsure how to answer, and said blankly, "There's no 'and then'."

"You know there's no future, so why bother saying all this?"

"But this is all my fault. It's all my fault for not holding my great-aunt back."

Hu Xiaoyan said softly, "No one blames you. Nobody wants to encounter this situation, but it has already happened. You have to learn to accept it and not overthink it."

Jiang Ya refused to believe it and still felt somewhat guilty, so she lowered her head and muttered to herself, "I still think this is my fault."

Hu Xiaoyan sighed and patiently explained, "If you insist on thinking that way, then can I also say that this whole thing is your father's fault? If we had stayed home and not come out, nothing might have happened. But at a time like this, can you say that coming to the concession for refuge is wrong?"

Jiang Ya seemed to understand something and couldn't help but argue for her father, "My dad didn't know this would happen."

"That's right. No one can predict the future. If our family had that ability, your father would have become the president long ago."

"That's what they say, but..."

“There are no ‘buts’,” Hu Xiaoyan suddenly interrupted. “What’s done is done, and you have to accept it as soon as possible. Nothing else can be changed.”

Upon hearing this, Jiang Ya sullenly fell silent.

Worried that she would blame herself too much, Hu Xiaoyan couldn't help but remind her again: "Jiang Ya, you're not a child anymore. Let me tell you something today, something your grandfather once told me—never waste your energy on things that are in the past. It's not only useless, but it will also make you more and more cowardly!"

"Okay, I get it now."

Jiang Ya nodded, silently keeping those words in mind.

However, while everyone can talk about principles, putting them into practice is not easy.

Whether Jiang Ya, being so young, can put these principles into practice remains to be seen, but one thing is certain: in just a few short hours tonight, her soul has been greatly shaken, and everything she once knew in her life is now completely unrecognizable.

So-called growth is mostly a kind of sudden realization.

It's not something that's built up over years of mundane life; mental maturity often comes from a single event, completed in a single moment.

A premeditated act of using someone else to commit murder can instantly expose a rebellious youth to the treacherous nature of the martial arts world, and through ruthlessness, he can gradually rise to become the leader of the martial arts community.

In comparison, the turn of events that Jiang Ya encountered tonight seemed far too simple and straightforward.

Listening to her mother's words, she suddenly remembered something.

"Mom, where's Sixth Master?" Jiang Ya immediately became worried. "The city is so chaotic right now, and Sixth Master has trouble walking. What will happen to him? Shouldn't we bring him over as well?"

Hu Xiaoyan said in a low voice, "Don't worry, your Sixth Master is very safe now. Very few people know where he lives."

That's true.

Sixth Master has lived in seclusion for over a decade, long since withdrawn from the martial world and no longer concerned with the affairs of Fengtian.

The actions of the Jiang family over the years cannot really be attributed to him. Moreover, with the new generation replacing the old, the title of Sixth Master has long been severed from the Jiang family.

Moreover, since Sixth Master lived in seclusion in the east of the city, far from the bustling city center, even if there were vagrants robbing people, they would mostly wander around the Xiaoxiguan area and would not want to bother that remote area in the east of the city.

Even so, Hu Xiaoyan didn't know for sure whether Sixth Master was safe and sound. She said this on purpose just to put Jiang Ya at ease.

"Boom boom boom!"

A knock suddenly sounded at the door. Zhang Zhengdong walked into the guest room carrying a thermos and said in a low voice, "Sister-in-law, the hot water is here."

"Put it here!" Hu Xiaoyan pointed to the table in front of her, then asked, "Your brother isn't back yet?"

“No,” Zhang Zhengdong walked to the table, put down the thermos, and said, “Sister-in-law, you should go to sleep first. I’ll tell you when my brother comes back.”

Hu Xiaoyan waved her hand, looking slightly anxious, and said, "I'm not too sleepy yet, let's wait for him a little longer!"

"That's fine. I'll just sit outside. Call me anytime if you need anything."

Zhang Zhengdong poured his sister-in-law a cup of hot tea, then turned to leave. He couldn't help but glance at Jiang Ya, only to see his niece sitting on the edge of the bed, propping herself up with her hands, looking down at her toes, and not responding in a sullen manner. He scratched his head, a little disappointed, and walked out of the room.

"Click—"

As the door closed, Hu Xiaoyan couldn't help but ask, "Jiang Ya, why aren't you talking to your Uncle Dong?"

Jiang Ya refused to look up, swinging her legs, but asked, "Mom, will Uncle Dong be alright?"

"Huh? What could possibly be wrong with him?"

Perhaps because she was used to seeing fighting and killing, or perhaps because she often assigned tasks to Dongfeng, Hu Xiaoyan was preoccupied with Jiang Lianheng and didn't react for a moment.

Jiang Ya's eyes widened, and she couldn't help but blurt out, "He just now—"

As she spoke, she suddenly lowered her voice and cautiously reminded him, "He just killed someone, right in front of so many people! What if he gets arrested and executed? Why isn't he running away?"

Hu Xiaoyan was stunned for a moment, but then said, "You saw what happened when your father went to the provincial prison to pick you up last time. Our family knows people in the government. Don't worry, your Uncle Dong won't be arrested, much less executed."

"Mom, how can that be the same?" Jiang Ya argued. "I was wronged back then, they should have let me out in the first place!"

"Who told you that just because you were wronged, the authorities should release you?"

"Huh?" "Who told you that people locked up in prison are necessarily guilty, while those walking on the street are necessarily innocent?"

"This……"

Jiang Ya was already in junior high school. She knew that wealthy families enjoyed many conveniences and even privileges, but she had never truly experienced how outrageous these privileges could be. So she said in a serious tone, "Mom, last time I just went to the march with my classmates, but Uncle Dong killed people, killed people!"

Hu Xiaoyan nodded and said calmly, "I know, don't worry, your Uncle Dong will be fine."

Jiang Ya was taken aback and gradually realized that her father's power might be far greater than she had imagined.

"Mom, what exactly does our family do?"

"Didn't I tell you? Your dad sells insurance."

"So what my classmates said is true?"

"What did your classmate say?" Hu Xiaoyan suddenly became alert.

Jiang Ya recalled in detail: "They didn't dare to say it to my face. I overheard it. They said that the Jiang family's fire and water insurance was actually protection money. Any business that didn't buy insurance from the Jiang family would definitely have something happen to it after a while. It would either catch fire, be robbed, or have no customers. Anyone who dared to go to that shop would be beaten up on the street."

There are no impervious walls in the world.

What you need to know, you'll have to know sooner or later.

Hearing this, Hu Xiaoyan neither admitted nor denied it. Especially after the turmoil of tonight, she was even more conflicted about whether or not to tell her daughter Jiang Ya the true face of the Jiang family.

Perhaps it's time for us to have an open and honest talk.

Seeing that her mother hadn't responded for a long time, Jiang Ya gradually came to the answer in her heart. Suddenly, she asked, "Mom, Uncle Dong, could it be... that this isn't the first time he's killed someone?"

"clear!"

"what?"

"Make it clear, or make it clear, that you are not allowed to say the word 'kill' in front of outsiders. This is a rule of the sect."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Ya was speechless, as if waking from a dream.

Back home, she would often hear Uncle Dong telling her mother that "it's all cleared up." Looking back now, she realized that it referred to the lives of countless people!
"Then...then what about my dad?" Jiang Ya was deeply shocked and immediately asked, "Did he kill...did he also wipe out people?"

Hu Xiaoyan hesitated for a moment, then shook her head and said, "No, your father doesn't have one."

"real or fake?"

"real."

Hu Xiaoyan's gaze darted away, and a feeling of repentance suddenly welled up in her heart. It was a complex emotion that she had never felt when facing gods and Buddhas.

She suddenly felt a little sorry for her daughter, but didn't know how to express it, so she said firmly, "Jiang Ya, just remember this: no matter what your father did in the past, he always did it for the good of the family. Just like when your Uncle Dong fired the gun tonight, it was to save you. He had no choice but to do it. There's nothing we can do. Who made us born into this world? If you don't eat people, others will eat you."

"A Madman's Diary?"

"what?"

"A novel that is very famous at school; everyone has heard of it."

Hu Xiaoyan shook her head, looking slightly ashamed, and said, "Mom has never been to school, so I don't know what you're talking about. But I know this world better than any of those teachers. I've suffered more cold looks and hardships than they know any words. You should study hard, but don't become a bookworm."

"Well, I see."

Jiang Ya responded, then suddenly looked up, a hint of unfamiliarity in her eyes, and asked, "Mom, can I see your gun?"

"No way!" Hu Xiaoyan flatly refused her daughter's request. "That's a toy gun. How can I let you play with it like that?"

"Oh, I just want to see!" Jiang Ya got up and walked over, shaking her mother's arm twice. "Just take the bullet out and let me see it, okay?"

What do you need a gun for?

"If I have a gun, people will be afraid of me. Otherwise, like just now, that guy shot at me, and I couldn't beat him. I screamed for help, but no one paid any attention to me. In the end, Uncle Dong had to shoot and take care of that guy before others knew to be afraid!"

Hu Xiaoyan still refused to agree, and quickly covered her pocket with her hand, saying, "No, you don't need these things. I'm already at ease with your Uncle Dong by your side."

Unexpectedly, Jiang Ya asked, "Mom, can Uncle Dong protect me for the rest of my life?"

Hu Xiaoyan was taken aback and was speechless at her daughter's question.

She naturally understood that no one can protect anyone for a lifetime, but what mother in the world would want her daughter to wield weapons?
Jiang Ya raised her chin, suddenly revealing a heroic spirit, and said, "Mom, it's better to rely on yourself than on others. You're the one who told me that. How come you're telling me to rely on Uncle Dong now? I don't want to rely on anyone. When my fourth uncle comes back, I'll have him teach me how to shoot!"

Hu Xiaoyan was speechless. Considering her family's situation, she realized she couldn't raise her children like ordinary people. So she took out the Snake Brand pistol from her pocket, unloaded the bullets one by one, and handed the empty gun to her daughter.

Jiang Ya took the pistol. It looked small and delicate, but it felt heavy in her hand. She couldn't help but ask curiously, "This gun doesn't look very big, but it's quite heavy."

"This is already the lightest one, and it doesn't even have any filling yet!"

"The core, the bullet is the core..."

Jiang Ya muttered to herself, quickly memorizing the slang term for spring.

He weighed the pistol in his hand, then suddenly turned to the side, raised the muzzle with one arm, aimed at the opposite wall, and then swept it across the street outside the window, making two "bang" sounds to himself, just like a tomboy.

The girl's figure was reflected in the glass window, her dashing figure revealing a hint of her true nature—she was indeed the daughter of Jiang Lianheng and Hu Xiaoyan. In particular, the slightly infatuated and wicked smile in her eyes reminded people of Jiang Lianheng's youth.

"Mom, how do I look?"

"I think you'd better calm down and put it down right now!"

Hu Xiaoyan quickly waved her hand, signaling Jiang Ya to put down the pistol, and then said, "Also, stay away from the window if you don't have to. The lights are still on in this room. Haven't you seen that I usually sit inside the window and just look down at an angle?"

"Why? This building is three stories high. Do you think someone could shoot me from outside?" Jiang Ya seemed skeptical.

Hu Xiaoyan said, "You can't be too careful. Your father and I have these habits, which were taught to us by your grandfather. We have decades of experience. We may never need to use them, but if we do, they might save our lives."

"Mom, what did my grandpa do?"

"Your grandfather... well, that's a long story, I can't explain it to you in a short time."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Ya moved a chair over and sat upright in front of her mother, saying, "It's alright. You don't have to do the accounts today, and I don't have to do my homework. We can stay in this hotel all day. Go ahead and tell me. I want to hear about my grandfather, why my sixth uncle can't come home, and..."

Jiang Ya's gaze fell on her mother's empty skirt, and she continued, "And your legs, what happened to them? You've never told me anything about it."

"That happened more than twenty years ago, why bring it up again?"

"I want to hear it, Mom, please tell me!"

"Alright!" Hu Xiaoyan had no choice but to nod, and said thoughtfully, "But, where should we begin..."

(End of this chapter)