CHAPTER 177: CHAPTER 177: BEWITCHED IN THE DARK

Looking at Gu Ningyue’s icy expression, Mr. Chen laughed heartily, "I never said you’d need it, I said... never mind, you’ll find out in the future."

Although Gu Ningyue didn’t understand what Mr. Chen meant, as long as she wasn’t the one being cursed, it didn’t matter.

"Tell me, how did you get the Blood Jade?" Mr. Chen extended his hand and scalded the cup with hot tea. Somehow, the black grime inside disappeared without a trace under the scalding tea.

Whether it was a special effect of the tea or Mr. Chen’s doing was unknown.

Gu Ningyue looked at Mr. Chen and said, "I made a deal with Lin Ruixian, and then he gave me the Blood Jade."

Mr. Chen placed the cup back into the box, closed the wooden box, and placed it under the table again: "Haven’t you ever wondered why he changed so much and handed the Blood Jade to you so easily?"

Gu Ningyue thought about it and was indeed puzzled: "He and I, we are old acquaintances. I once saved him."

Mr. Chen took a sip of his tea: "Do you mean in a previous life?"

Gu Ningyue looked sharply at Mr. Chen: "So, Mr. Chen, you knew all along that I..."

Mr. Chen chuckled: "I was just joking, no need to take it seriously."

Gu Ningyue: "..."

Your look doesn’t seem like you’re joking.

Moreover, she was certain that Mr. Chen knew something about her identity.

From the first time he laid eyes on her, Mr. Chen seemed to know something.

Why does Mr. Chen refuse to break through this thin veil?

Gu Ningyue thought for a moment and couldn’t hold back her curiosity: "Mr. Chen, what do you really know about me? Why not just say it? After all, besides you, there’s already one Lin Ruixian who knows who I am. So stop hiding, it’s making me uncomfortable."

Mr. Chen smiled, a child after all, unable to hold their composure.

"Who you are doesn’t matter, what matters is your decisions."

Again, this answer, Gu Ningyue asked: "So, Mr. Chen, do you think my current choice is the right one?"

She had chosen Lin Ruixian over Ling Tianyou.

For the sake of this Blood Jade, to avoid becoming a lunatic, she had to do so.

But if it weren’t for these things, she would rather be with Ling Tianyou.

Mr. Chen looked into Gu Ningyue’s eyes and said calmly: "Every choice is right at a certain moment, but whether the outcome of that choice will make you happy or if you’ll regret it, that’s something unknown."

Gu Ningyue sighed, that was as good as not saying anything.

"Alright, forget I asked..."

Mr. Chen laughed heartily, his voice full of energy: "Fine, considering how pitiful you are, I’ll give you a hint!"

Gu Ningyue’s eyes brightened up instantly, "Please, go ahead."

"Let me ask you." Mr. Chen said: "Before this, Lin Ruixian probably didn’t have any suspicions about you, right? In your interactions, did you feel anything was off?"

Gu Ningyue carefully recalled, "Except for saying I resemble someone he used to know, there’s really nothing strange. Our interactions have been okay."

Even resembling the person he mentioned was all part of her plan and didn’t affect her original scheme.

Mr. Chen continued: "Exactly, then you should think about it, when did he start suspecting you, and why would he give you the Blood Jade? As this old man knows, that lad is quite capable! He used this ability on you and only after using it did he give you the Blood Jade, isn’t that right?"

With that said, Gu Ningyue was now one hundred percent sure that Mr. Chen knew she wasn’t Gu Ningyue.

"Yes," Gu Ningyue’s voice lowered: "He knows who I am now. But, does that matter?"

Mr. Chen shook his head with his teacup in hand, "Not enlightened! Do you think a normal person would suddenly explore another’s identity and suspect something as mystical as she’s not her? Even if it happened right in front of them, they might not believe it."

Gu Ningyue froze, indeed! No wonder she always felt something was strange.

How could a normal person think that another soul resided within her body? Just like Mr. Chen said, even if this happened right in front of them, they might not believe it.

"Are you saying, someone guided Lin Ruixian?"

Mr. Chen leisurely took a sip of his tea: "Not too dumb, it seems."

Gu Ningyue recalled the several times she went to find Lin Ruixian, only to find him not in the shop.

Besides his sister’s matter, it was today when he came looking for her that Lin Ruixian returned to the Lin Family.

Most importantly, did he go to the hospital with Lin Ziyue and the others?

At the time, his expression was a bit unnatural, could it be, did someone say something to him?

Gu Ningyue couldn’t help it, Grandpa Li’s face surfaced in her mind.

"I’m going to the hospital!" Gu Ningyue’s fingers trembled slightly. She stood up and said to Mr. Chen: "Mr. Chen, I’ll leave now and come visit you another day."

Mr. Chen didn’t stop her, waved his hand and let her leave: "By the way, don’t take off the pendant around your neck..."

Gu Ningyue nodded, "Thank you, Mr. Chen."

Leaving Mr. Chen’s villa, Gu Ningyue drove straight to the hospital.

She hurriedly ran up the stairs and pushed open the door to the ward. The elderly man surnamed Li was sitting with his back to her, reading a newspaper.

Gu Ningyue panted heavily, her heart pounding like a drum.

Luckily, the old man was still there.

The old man heard the commotion, turned his head, and said to Gu Ningyue: "Ah, young lady, you’ve come."

Gu Ningyue closed the door and entered. Her voice lost its usual warmth but carried a hint of coldness: "I thought you had already left."

The old man sat up, looking at Gu Ningyue as if she were a different person: "This old man isn’t leaving the hospital anytime soon, have a seat! Today’s weather sure is sweltering..."

The old man kept talking incessantly, just like usual, with nothing out of the ordinary.

However, Gu Ningyue fixated on him, in no mood to exchange pleasantries.

After a long while, Gu Ningyue took a deep breath and looked at him, "Grandpa Li, you’ve met my friend? Is that so?"

The old man’s voice halted, then he smiled warmly: "What friend? Did the young lady send a friend over?"

Gu Ningyue now despised these intentionally dumb act plotlines, "Grandpa Li, I came today, but I definitely want an answer. So, when did it start?"

If she guessed correctly, this old man had known some things for a while.

And yet he told nothing to her, but informed Lin Ruixian instead.

Behind this, there must be something she was unaware of.

She began to inexplicably feel agitated.

From when did she become someone kept in the dark, deceived by an illusion?