CHAPTER 311: CHAPTER 267: THE GU BOOK

"Gu Book," Mr. Mo finished his tea, passed the empty cup to Lan Tian, who took it and refilled the cup before handing it back to him.

"My old comrade-in-arms said when he was in the Southwest during the Anti-Japanese War, he came across a group of Japanese soldiers slaughtering a small Miao Village. He wiped them out on a whim. To thank him for saving their lives, the villagers wanted to give the chief’s daughter to him as his wife. It almost scared him to death, and he firmly refused. Do you know why? Because his own wife was also in his troop, haha, it cracked me up, you have no idea, he was so henpecked." Even now, Mr. Mo found it hilarious to recall.

"After his refusal, the Miao Village gave him a treasure that had been passed down for who knows how many years. He thought it was some precious treasure, but it turned out to be an old and tattered book that probably wasn’t worth any money, so he accepted it. When he was leaving, the village chief told him it was a Gu Book. He should study it well and pass it on to his son, and from his son to his grandson."

Your comrade was truly bold, daring to accept something given by the Miao people. If they had any ill intentions, he wouldn’t even know how he died.

"Gu Book?" Lan Tian picked up the book to take another look, examining it from beginning to end but still couldn’t understand it.

"I’ve heard that the Miao people value their Gu Technique highly. Poisons like gu wood are like an extra life to them—they rarely teach it to outsiders. It’s said that they carry both child and mother poisons on their bodies to control others at will. My guess is that those Japanese soldiers weren’t in the village long before they were poisoned with gu, which didn’t allow them to live for much longer. Their end was quite miserable."

What Lan Tian didn’t say was that the Miao villagers were very hostile towards outsiders, but they were clear on debts of gratitude. They probably didn’t kill his comrades because they helped wipe out the Japanese soldiers. Since they couldn’t fail to repay the debt but the villagers themselves likely couldn’t understand the book, that’s why the village chief was willing to part with it. After all, there was no loss—a book they couldn’t understand, tossed aside and forgotten. Who would care?

Lan Tian’s thoughts took a turn, guessing at Old Mo’s intentions.

"So, you’re hoping to find a way to heal Grandpa Ji Feng from this book."

That was indeed Mr. Mo’s plan, but who knew he wouldn’t recognize the characters in the book; he was counting his chickens before they hatched, thinking the girl knew the characters when, in fact, she didn’t. A miscalculation.

"No need to search anymore, even if you find it, it’ll be useless. The gu in Ji Feng’s body and his father’s body are not the same; common methods won’t break it." Seeing Mr. Mo’s disappointed look, Lan Tian spoke up to comfort him.

"What do you mean?" Upon hearing this, Mr. Mo’s expression grew more solemn. "Girl, clarify what you mean by ’common methods won’t break it.’"

Lan Tian was not ready to reveal her identity as a cultivator. The situation of Old Mo was different from Grandma Sun and the others. If she ever conflicted with the country, Grandma Sun and the others would undoubtedly side with her.

Mo Junhua would rush to cover for her before anyone could find out, wishing the whole world would turn a blind eye to her, so not to inadvertently cause her trouble and draw unwanted attention.

For Old Mo, it was different; he was too loyal and righteous. Knowing she had extraordinary powers, if one of his comrades came begging to Old Mo for her help... Lan Tian didn’t want to put human nature’s goodness to the test. She preferred their current relationship.

Lan Tian carefully crafted her words, lying effortlessly, "The gu insect on Ji Feng’s body, I took it back for my Master to examine, and he said, the gu has gained spiritual power, so common methods won’t work. Last time, I was just lucky to extract the gu from Ji Feng when the mother poison was weak. Master said, it could be because the person who placed the gu was injured, leading to this situation."

Lan Tian stopped there, not straying from truth. The person who used the spiritual poison had a rough contract with it; if the master was injured, their control over the spiritual poison would weaken, allowing Lan Tian to lure out the child poison.

The message had already been revealed, and how Mr. Mo and the rest chose to act was not Lan Tian’s concern. That she could share the message was out of consideration for Ji Feng; she would not involve herself in the mundane world’s cycles of power and struggle.

"I’m going to make a phone call. You keep reading." Mr. Mo understood the hidden meaning in Lan Tian’s words and hurried to the study next door.

Before even finishing a cup of tea, Mr. Mo was back, pouring himself another and sipping slowly, lost in thought.

"Girl, come with me tomorrow to take a look." It’s better for everyone to be at ease after seeing things early on.

"Alright."

...

Mr. Mo returned home, Wu Hongfei and his three disciples were coming over for dinner, it would be fun with more people around.

Lan Tian was curled up on the couch watching TV, engrossed in a mythological drama depicting an epic battle between gods and demons. Mo Junhua sat with Lan Tian, casually feeding her fruit.

In the afternoon, having enjoyed feeding her fruit, Mo Junhua had taken a liking to this pastime, skewering a piece of fruit and bringing it to Lan Tian’s mouth, which she took in and chewed slowly, cheeks puffing out like a little squirrel nibbling away, so cute that Mo Junhua couldn’t help but tousle her hair.

"Do you like it?" Mo Junhua glanced at the screen, not quite understanding the plot as the immortals would be one place one moment and then fighting with radiant energy the next, all glowing in bright colors, though the old immortal in the show did have the air of a true Immortal.

"It’s okay." Lan Tian continued to watch with enjoyment, not forgetting to casually reply in her free time.

When Wu Hongfei arrived, he went upstairs to see Mr. Mo, while Wu Zongyu and Bai Qingqing made themselves comfortable in the living room. As soon as they arrived, they saw Mo Junhua feeding Lan Tian with a toothpick, while her eyes stayed glued to the drama on TV.

Such a grown person, perfectly capable of using her hands, still needed to be fed, when even a three-year-old child knows to feed themselves.

Bai Qingqing disapproved of Mo Junhua’s behavior, finding no sense of manhood in a grown man who revolves around a woman all day – what future could he have? And Lan Tian too, unabashedly enjoying the attention, showing off their affection in public without the slightest reservation, without the proper demureness expected of a girl, completely tarnishing Mr. Mo’s reputation.

Despite Bai Qingqing’s disapproval of the two, she did not show it on her face. With elders at home, it was not her place to meddle. Of course, others’ affairs had nothing to do with her, and she wouldn’t bother; if things were too much to bear, she’d just look away. The more inappropriate actions Lan Tian committed, the sooner she would wear out the last of Mr. Mo’s familial affection. Once that’s gone, there would be no place for Lan Tian in this home.

That said, Bai Qingqing’s gaze would inadvertently drift towards Lan Tian and Mo Junhua, a flicker of envy in her eyes that she herself hadn’t noticed, her peripheral vision catching a glimpse of Wu Zongyu. How wonderful it would be if Zongyu treated her the same way – she wouldn’t care about the judgmental stares of outsiders.

After Wu Kun and Sun Hai sat down, they exchanged faint smiles with Lan Tian and then quietly watched the TV.