Chapter 18: Yanran is My Daughter

This shout startled her, and she quickly turned around with her flashlight, only to see two women in white, their faces colorless, with white eyes. The mark on their foreheads resembled a third eye, emitting a strange red glow. They held white lanterns in their hands, and she noticed that the ground was covered with white mist as if it had appeared out of nowhere.
These two people are Chen Yanran and Zhou Shan, the guides they encountered at the Qingshan Museum.
“Who are you? Stop pretending to be so mysterious here. This is my Chen family's territory; I am the eldest daughter-in-law of the Chen family, and I have a portion of the property rights here.” In an instant, she felt like her head was about to explode, her voice trembling slightly, with a hint of stubbornness in her shout, as if the louder she yelled, the more momentum she would gain.
```htmlThe two women remained silent, staring quietly, making Cao Xiuyun feel anxious. Upon realizing this, she felt a chill throughout her body; the temperature here was too low.
“Y-you... who are you? Are you human or ghosts? This is my stuff; you have no right to interfere with me.” Cao Xiuyun was starting to feel scared, her voice trembling as she spoke, unsure if it was from the cold or fright.```
At this moment, the blue wooden coffin opened with a strange sound. Cao Xiuyun instantly felt her hair stand on end. She turned her head mechanically and saw the coffin lid open automatically, and then a woman dressed in blue fine robes floated out.
```htmlThis person looks about seventy percent like Chen Yanran, which made her momentarily stunned, and she suddenly started to feel afraid, as if she had discovered something terrifying.
Her nails dug into her flesh without her realizing it as she stared intently at this woman. Although she was indeed stunningly beautiful, in this situation and environment, she couldn't connect this woman with being human at all.```
She is the Nine Yin Goddess. The moment she opened her eyes, they turned completely green, emitting a green light. Then, tree roots shot out, and in an instant, Cao Xiuyun was bound by her hands and feet and dragged into the tomb chamber.
“Yanran is my daughter. You, as her foster mother, dare to harm my daughter for mere money. A thousand deaths would not be enough to vent my anger.” The Nine Yin Empress spoke, her tone revealing deep fury.
“Impossible, Yanran is my child, how could she possibly be yours?” Cao Xiuyun still couldn't believe it, her mind was somewhat chaotic.
At that moment, a scene from the delivery room appeared in her mind, where she saw Chen Jialuo holding a stick of incense beside her, lighting it while the nurses began to help her give birth.
After Chen Kun was born, the nurse made the baby cry and placed him aside.
At that moment, Chen Jialuo came over holding a baby, placed him beside Cao Xiuyun, then gracefully left, taking half a stick of incense with him.
At this moment, the nurse gently picked up the baby and walked over to Cao Xiuyun, saying, “Congratulations, Mrs. Chen, you have a son and a daughter, a perfect pair.”
Cao Xiuyun glanced at her daughter, the infant Chen Yanran, and weakly nodded before falling asleep.
The scene ends here, and Cao Xiuyun awakens, finally remembering that she had tested multiple times and confirmed that she was only pregnant with one child; she actually forgot about it.
"The fragrance, is there something wrong with it? Chen Yanran isn’t my daughter?" Cao Xiuyun exclaimed in agitation.
```html“She is the daughter of me and Chen Jialuo; you will have to pay the price for what you've done.” The Nine Yin Mother said, as the roots wrapped around Cao Yunxiu's entire body.
She was no longer able to speak because the roots were too tight; she could only make gurgling sounds. One of the guides walked over, the bronze and white lantern swaying around Cao Yunxiu, then they inserted their hand into her chest and directly pulled out her soul.```
```htmlTwo guides on the left and right lead Cao Xiuyun's soul away, and the white mist on the ground also retreats from the tomb chamber as the bronze door closes automatically.
Cao Xiuyun's body is dragged into the green wooden coffin, and the Nine Yin Goddess floats back into the coffin as the lid begins to close slowly.```
At this moment, Chen Jie was in his bedroom, holding a jade pendant and kneeling on the floor while murmuring towards the window: "Xiuyun, don’t blame me. This is all your own doing. Nine Yin Goddess, I have done what you instructed all those years ago; please do not come to find me again."
He kept kneeling by the bed, murmuring until he was too tired to continue, then he left to sleep in the guest room. He no longer dared to sleep in his own bedroom, fearing that Cao Xiuyun would come back to find him.
At half past midnight, in the park west of the Chen family's courtyard, there are many strange plants that seem to come from nowhere. Some of the leaves and flowers even emit faint purple and light blue light at night.
Some flowers curl up inside their leaves during the day, making it difficult to see the buds unless you get close, but at night, they bloom into vibrant flowers, with their stamens emitting a faint glow.
These lights are especially noticeable at night, making the park feel like a dreamy garden.
Near the wall, there is a lake with clear water, but it is extremely deep, and the bottom cannot be seen at all. In the middle of the pond, there is a small island with a pavilion built on it, with the words "Wuxin Pavilion" engraved on the plaque.
Next to this pavilion, there is a large tree similar to a willow, with its lower half submerged in water. Its branches dip into the water, swaying with the waves. If you look at it long enough, it feels as if the moonlit beauty is waving at you.
What is most strange is that there is no bridge leading to the Wuxin Pavilion, and it's unclear what the purpose of such a construction could be.
Although Zhou Shan has been to the Chen family's residence many times, it is still his first time seeing this; in his eyes, this dreamy garden reveals an air of oddity and irrationality.
Chen Jialuo brought the three children to the lakeside, holding a yellow paper boat in his hand and said, "Kun'er, you sit in the Wuxin Pavilion. No matter what you see or hear, you mustn't step out of the pavilion, otherwise no one can save you, do you understand?"
“Got it.” Chen Kun nodded, looking at the lake water. The surface sometimes churned, giving the impression that something was below. But now, no matter how reluctant he was, he had to go.
Chen Jialuo nodded, placed the paper boat on the lake's surface, formed a seal with one hand, and murmured incantations.
Zhou Shan, along with Chen Yanran and Chen Kun, were curious and did not understand what Chen Jialuo was trying to do; what was the purpose of this small paper boat?
Chen Jialuo quickly recited a few phrases, then pointed at the paper boat and loudly shouted "Command." Suddenly, the paper boat erupted with white smoke, and soon the smoke dissipated, revealing a three-meter-long paper boat in front of him.
Seeing such a magical scene, the three of them were astonished. Zhou Shan and Chen Yanran had expressions of sheer excitement; it was their first time witnessing magic.
On the other hand, Chen Kun's eyes widened in disbelief. He felt that this was unscientific, and his first thought was, "Could Grandpa also do magic tricks?"
“What are you still standing there for? Go up!” Chen Jialuo shouted, slapping his head.
“No, Grandpa, this is just a paper boat!” Chen Kun exclaimed, startled. He looked at Chen Jialuo's expression, swallowed nervously, and said, “Grandpa, you... you’re not joking, right?”
"Stop talking nonsense."
Chen Jialuo directly pushed him up, and Chen Kun let out a startled cry. However, when he stepped onto the paper boat, he did feel the texture of the paper, but the boat only swayed slightly; unexpectedly, it was very stable.
This felt incredible to him. Chen Jialuo pointed at the Wuxin Pavilion and lightly said, "Go."
Before long, the paper boat automatically began to drift toward the Wuxin Pavilion. Chen Yanran and Zhou Shan watched intently, both curious and wondering when the boat would sink.
Chen Kun felt that this paper boat was really fine, so he stood up with curiosity, looking around the paper boat.
At that moment, something gently bumped against the bottom of the boat, and Chen Kun clearly felt a sensation of something colliding under his feet. The paper boat rocked slightly, but not much.
“Ah! Grandpa, something has hit the bottom of the boat!” Chen Kun shouted, immediately crouching down and gripping the railing tightly.
“Don't worry about it, as soon as the boat reaches the path, run into the Wuxin Pavilion,” Chen Jialuo said expressionlessly, as if he had already anticipated that such an event would occur.
Chen Kun's fingers tightly gripped the ship's railing, a look of anxiety on his face as he anxiously watched the water's surface on both sides. His breathing became heavy and short, and without realizing it, sweat had already streamed down his body, leaving wet marks where he held the railing.
```htmlEven immersing in the lake water didn't get him wet; it was just a little hand sweat that did the trick. But no one saw this, and Chen Kun was so tense that he wouldn’t have noticed it anyway.
The small boat slowly drifted towards the island, and at this moment, mist appeared on the lake surface, but the mist only reached half a meter above the water. Meanwhile, distinct sounds of water could be heard from the lake.```
Just like a large fish surfacing, gently stirring the water and creating a sound.