Chapter 566: Shared Fate Gu
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Before Old man w.a.n.g knew what had happened, he saw his wife walk out of the house.
He hurriedly went forward and asked, “What’s wrong? I heard that Qin Huai vomited blood and fainted? Hasn’t his body recovered?”
No wonder Old man w.a.n.g asked this. Previously, when Qin Huai came to Hu Family Village, he had a short lifespan.
And it was the kind that could not be cured.
Later on, All Yu must have given him something from an immortal to nourish his body. After so many years, this child looked healthy.
“If his body is still damaged, we have to make plans for All Yu.” In Old man w.a.n.g’s heart, Qin Huai was just an existence that he had to accept because of his love for Ah Yu.
Ah Yu was the priority. If Qin Huai really couldn’t take it anymore, he would cancel the marriage while he was still alive. He could not make Ah Yu a widow.
Old Madam w.a.n.g rolled her eyes at him. “It’s still too early to say this. Come with me first. 1 have something to ask you.”
Old Madam w.a.n.g called out to Liu Shi and asked her to take a look at Qin Huai’s condition first. Then, she sent All Yu to the small kitchen and asked her to keep an eye on the medicine. Only then did she bring Old man w.a.n.g to a remote courtyard and walk in.
“What’s wrong? Is this matter very troublesome?” Seeing Old Madam w.a.n.g like this, Old man w.a.n.g realized that the matter might be even more serious than he had imagined.
“Do you still remember what happened to my Eldest Sister back then?” Old Madam w.a.n.g frowned. At the mention of the words Elder Sister, she felt a faint pain in her heart.
“You mean Princess Wanru who married into the Northern Barbarians’ tribe?” Old man w.a.n.g did not have a deep impression of his wife’s former sisters. He only vaguely remembered a t.i.tle.
Old Madam w.a.n.g: “Yes, back then, before Eldest Sister got married, she also vomited blood like this. Later on, she completely fainted and did not wake up until she got married. At that time, didn’t you ask me why I suddenly looked for you? It was because of Eldest Sister’s coma.”
Old Madam w.a.n.g’s words brought Old man w.a.n.g’s memories back to more than 30 years ago. At that time, Old man w.a.n.g was still a graceful Young Master. Of course, he was also a famous jade carving master who was invited to Wanning City by the Emperor at that time.
At that time, Old man w.a.n.g was still the Master w.a.n.g everyone spoke of. Even the famous King of Carving could not compare to his reputation.
At that time, the young Old man w.a.n.g had accepted the Emperor’s order to make a large jade ornament. On the surface, it was the dowry of a Princess, but in fact, the late Emperor had deliberately used it to show the might of the Emperor to intimidate the Northern Barbarians.
Therefore, they had to ask the best jade carving master to take charge.
The venue he used to do the carving was a property in the western suburbs donated by Duke Yong Manor. Coincidentally, Old Madam w.a.n.g, who was also Princess Yong Chang, had returned from a trip and settled down in the western suburbs.
Just like many elegant Young Masters at that time, Old man w.a.n.g fell for Princess Yong Chang the moment he saw her.
However, the others were all reserved. They either went home to ask their elders to propose marriage or wrote a few poems for Princess Yong Chang.
Only Old man w.a.n.g was different.
He gave Princess Yong Chang a set of jade carvings and said to her openly, “In the future, our children will definitely look as beautiful and cute as these jade pieces.”
Then, Old man w.a.n.g was beaten up and had to lie in bed for an entire month. If not for the fact that he still had to carve jade for the royal family, he might have been beaten to death on the spot.
After being beaten up, Old man w.a.n.g’s love for Princess Yong Chang actually became even stronger.
He realized that Princess Yong Chang did not like such straightforward expressions. After finally recovering from his injuries, he secretly ran to Princess Yong Chang’s residence and carved her carriage. It was the most exquisite carving under Princess Yong Chang’s possessions. Everyone who saw it slapped the table and praised it.
However, because the carriage was unstable after being carved, Princess Yong Chang fell out of the carriage.
Old man w.a.n.g was beaten up again, and he was hung up and beaten up by Princess Yong Chang.
This time, he lay down for an entire five months. All the jade carvings were completed on the bed.
On the day he recovered, Old man w.a.n.g told himself that he would try one last time.
When he found out that Princess Yong Chang had gone to Duke Yong Manor and that he was also invited, he followed her to the banquet.
During the banquet, he heard someone treat Princess Yong Chang as a joke and say that she did not know the immensity of heaven and earth. She actually quarreled with her biological mother and even caused a scene in the former Imperial Treasure Hall. She became the joke of the entire Wanning City.
Old man w.a.n.g flipped the table on the spot and fought with that group of people. His legs were broken and his clothes were torn. He stumbled and cursed as he walked to the small courtyard at the side. He happened to meet Princess Yong Chang, whose clothes were also a little messy.
The two of them looked at each other in silence. Princess Yong Chang asked, “If I’m no longer a Princess and give up this t.i.tle, are you still willing to marry me?”
Old man w.a.n.g said without thinking, “Anyone can be Princess Yong Chang.
The person 1 like is Zhang Yao Guang!”
Yao Guang was the name Old Madam w.a.n.g had given herself. It was the seventh star of the Big Dipper. The tip of the star pointed people to their destination, indicating that she wanted to control her fate.
Just like that, Old man w.a.n.g brought Old Madam w.a.n.g away and no longer cared about the matters in Wanning City.
However, because of this, Old man w.a.n.g lost his position as a jade carving master and became the number one suspect in kidnapping Princess Yong Chang.
In order to avoid all kinds of pursuits and searches, the two of them, who were originally living a good life, lived in an increasingly sorry state. Old Madam w.a.n.g also gradually grasped the wisdom of surviving among the commoners.
Later on, they bought a house in a rural village and settled down. They also had children.
Because of the custom of the betrothal partner becoming a concubine, in order not to let Old Madam w.a.n.g suffer, Old man w.a.n.g specially found another family for Old Madam w.a.n.g to use as her family. It was the family of Chuanfu’s wife, Madam Zhang.
The head of the Zhang Family had accidentally gone there and was saved by Old Madam w.a.n.g and the others. Not only did he acknowledge Old Madam w.a.n.g as his G.o.ddaughter, but he even put her name on his dead daughter. With that, Old Madam w.a.n.g gained an ident.i.ty.
Later on, they fled all the way to that place.
Before escaping to the wilderness, Old man w.a.n.g did not let Old Madam w.a.n.g suffer much. He took care of the children and did all kinds of household ch.o.r.es, he also taught a few students who liked to carve. The current King of Carving was one of his students.
The King of Carving was originally a vagrant child who was adopted by Old man w.a.n.g and named w.a.n.g Zhuo. Later on, he became famous and according to Old man w.a.n.g’s instructions, he changed his name so that his master’s name would not be exposed.
Old Madam w.a.n.g never mentioned the riches she had in Wanning City, and Old man w.a.n.g never asked. The two of them maintained a tacit understanding.
And now, after more than 30 years, Old Madam w.a.n.g finally told Old man w.a.n.g about the events back then.
“At Duke Yong Manor, 1 heard a dirty thing about the royal family.” At that time, 1 felt extremely disgusted. Now, I can speak about it casually.
Actually, the matter was very simple. It was just that Princess Yong Chang’s eldest sister had been poisoned with a kind of Gu called the Shared Fate Gu.
The Shared Fate Gu was planted by the Emperor at that time. He originally wanted to plant the Gu on Princess Yong Chang to connect his life with Princess Yong Chang.
In the end, a freak combination of factors happened, and the Gu was implanted in her Eldest Sister instead.
“Once the Shared Fate Gu is planted, the two people will live and die together. They usually won’t sense it until one person’s life is in danger,” Old Madam w.a.n.g said coldly. “My eldest sister isn’t innocent either. She knew that it was the Shared Fate Gu, but she still swallowed it herself. It was just to avoid the fate of marriage so that 1 could replace her.”
At the mention of this past, Old man w.a.n.g vaguely remembered that his wife’s eldest sister was not conferred the t.i.tle of Princess Ru. It was only after they had already left Wanning City that he heard that Princess Ru had been conferred a t.i.tle and sent to the Northern Barbarians.
From then on, news of the Emperor’s crazy actions gradually spread throughout Great Chang.
“Is there a solution to the Shared Fate Gu?” Old man w.a.n.g asked.
“It’s a combination of a Gu worm and witchcraft. Once a Gu worm is planted, it will fuse with the flesh and blood of the entire body and disappear without a trace. There won’t be any reaction unless it appears at the critical moment of life and death. There’s no solution at all.” Old Madam w.a.n.g shook her head. “Therefore, if an accident happens to either side, the other party can’t survive.”
Old man w.a.n.g gasped. “Then the Emperor back then—”
He had sent someone who he knew would live and die with him out of Great Chang. Did he want to die?!
“There’s no need to mention the past. But now, you have to use the connections you had from before.” Old Madam w.a.n.g’s face was cold. “Investigate who the person connected to Qin Huai is..”