Imperial Treasure

Chapter 653 - 423: Resolving Doubts

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As I’ve mentioned before, the Su Family is a noble house known for their poetry and literature, residing in an ancestral estate handed down by their forefathers. It’s a grand courtyard home that rivals the size of Duke Zheng’s Mansion; naturally, it is also a piece of Capital City’s cultural heritage—the Siheyuan.

In front of the gate stand two stone lions, and poems hang from the pillars; the plaque reads ’Su Mansion,’ exuding the scholarly aura of the place, yet also not without the solemn and weighty presence of officialdom.

It’s inevitable that ancestors of the Su Family held high official ranks.

Studying wasn’t just about passing on the family legacy; those who excelled in their studies would enter the imperial court...

Standing quietly at the grand gate, waiting yet occasionally scanning the surroundings, Su Ziyi resembled one of those noble scholars from many years past—only lacking the brocade clothes to compose poetry and paint.

Of course, he was merely waiting for someone right now.

Sui Yi’s car pulled up at the space in front of the gate. Around it were courtyard homes intermingled with a wide avenue at the center, which on ordinary days would be an area dense with mansions of high-ranking officials near the Forbidden City, arguably one of the prime feng shui spots outside The Forbidden City...

With just a few glances, Sui Yi saw through the feng shui layout of the place and parked in an open spot.

On the side of the street was an empty lot, now turned into a parking lot, saving the frontage of these estate homes from the discord of ancient customs. Of course, the Su Family had a garage as well, located on the side of their Siheyuan. Unaware of this, Sui Yi simply parked there; it was quite close to the Su Mansion anyway.

Su Ziyi already saw Sui Yi approaching and ran over, wearing his sneakers.

"You arrived quickly, I thought it would take you a while longer," he said.

So you’ve already been waiting for a while? Sui Yi, feeling that his high school friend indeed exuded the gentle breeze of flawless character, smiled and replied, "Not much traffic, so it was fast."

Su Ziyi laughed heartily, leading Sui Yi towards the gate...

Luckily, there weren’t two sect members standing at the gate, or it really would feel like traveling back in time...

Once inside, Sui Yi thought that Duke Zheng’s Mansion had perhaps been too extensively modified, for this—that in front of his eyes—was a truly authentic grand Siheyuan...

Previously, Sui Yi heard from Su Ziyi that the Su Family’s old estate was the inheritance of his grandfather’s main branch, with three children below him; one was Su Zimu’s father, the eldest, followed by Su Ziyi’s father, the second son, and then a daughter who had married off early...

The eldest son’s family lived with Old Master Su. As for Su Ziyi’s parents, they had both died in a car accident when he was young. Since his mother had been the only child of Old Master Han from the Han Family, Su Ziyi had spent his three high school years living there... He only returned to Capital City during his university period. His future inheritance would also come from the Han Family’s estate, an unspoken understanding between the two families.

Naturally, the Su Family would not withhold what should be given, after all, Su Ziyi wasn’t the eldest grandson, and considering that the Han Family had no other heirs, Old Master Su would not have allowed it otherwise.

Entering the gate, Sui Yi quickly saw Old Master Su, since the Su family members were either at school or out... What he saw now was a grandfather and grandson duo engrossed in a game of chess.

It turned out that Su Zimu hadn’t gone to school.

As Sui Yi entered, Su Zimu put down his chess piece and laughed, "A distinguished guest has arrived; I won’t play against grandfather anymore."

"You brat, you’re just unable to win against me, always making excuses! Come on, Sui Yi, take a look here, she’s about to lose..."

Old Master Su really liked Sui Yi, and contrary to formalities, didn’t bother with the usual polite greetings for guests, treating him with a casual and close manner instead...

Being very easy-going himself, Sui Yi stepped forward and glanced at the chessboard—it was Go.

"Not yet," he said.

Eh? Su Zimu’s delicate eyebrows rose; she stood up, making way and gesturing gracefully with her hand, "Then, Sui Yi, would you please turn this game around for me?"

"Sui Yi, don’t help her..." Su Ziyi betrayed his sister, with whom he’d been inseparably close since childhood, in a minute, "She has to make us crab roe with fresh mushrooms if she loses..."

Crab roe with fresh mushrooms is a famous dish from the Manchu Han Imperial Feast.

Naturally, it was delicious.

Upon hearing this, Su Zimu cast a playful look at Su Ziyi, "Now I see that besides love overriding friendship, there’s also love conquering sibling loyalty."

With that, she teasingly included Sui Yi in the jibe. Such phrases certainly didn’t belong to the refined style of the Su family. Su Ziyi blushed and awkwardly argued, "Sister, your words are improper; you don’t want Grandfather to catch you and make you copy books..."

Unperturbed, Su Zimu retorted, "I was talking about talent and beauty; it’s your thoughts that are impure, Ziyi—you should be the one copying books..."

Old Master Su laughed heartily, looking at his granddaughter appreciatively, it seemed that even his proud and defiant grandchild recognized Sui Yi’s blend of talents and charm.

Sui Yi finally got a real sense of the authentic atmosphere within the Su family—where talent and sentiment were both cherished.

A very comforting environment.

Smiling subtly, Sui Yi simply asked, "Crab roe with fresh mushrooms?"

The old master nodded, "If you win, we might miss out on that crab roe with fresh mushrooms."

Sui Yi tilted his head slightly, and with a slender finger, positioned a white stone on the board.

Old Master Su watched Sui Yi, then placed his own piece.

Another white piece was played, followed by a black, and then another white...

That was the third move.

Old Master Su’s hand, holding a black piece, paused for a while, then to Su Ziyi’s astonishment, he placed it back into the bowl.

Su Zimu’s eyes curved in amusement; "A game not yet decided cannot be abandoned, it wouldn’t be proper for Grandfather to concede like this," she teased.

She mocked Old Master Su with her words, yet also cast an admiring glance at Sui Yi—impressed by his excellent chess skills.

Old Master Su shook his head, aware that his granddaughter had seen through the game while his grandson had not. Yet he didn’t give guidance, simply stating, "The way forward is completely blocked; this old man’s mind is limited and certainly cannot fathom a move to turn the game around. So, better to admit defeat. Sui Yi, your chess skills are impressive! How many years have you studied it?"

This old man lacked some of the stubborn pedantry common among the elderly, instead demonstrating an openness and no grudge against Sui Yi for showing him up. He gave Sui Yi a thumbs up, full of praise.

Studied for how many years? Sui Yi thought that he barely knew a few rules of Go... He hadn’t really played much, mostly, his mental arithmetic was much faster than others, and his strategic thinking wider.

"A few years," Sui Yi said softly. "A few years?" The old master expressed mild surprise but didn’t pry further, "You must know how to play Chinese chess then."

With such strategic capabilities, it would be surprising if he didn’t know Chinese chess.

"Agreed."

"Well then, let’s play a game of chess..."

Su Ziyi became a bit anxious, "Grandfather, Sui Yi is here because..."

Su Zimu reminded helplessly, "He’s got something for you..."

"No matter, we can talk while playing... By the way, have you not gone to make the crab roe and fresh mushroom dish yet?"

"I have won..."

"The matter of winning or losing cannot be left to someone else... If you want to rely on others, then you are violating the rules of our Su Family, and you will have to transcribe books... If you don’t rely on others, then it means you have lost, so go make the crab roe and fresh mushroom dish!"

To rely or not to rely, that is the question...

The mischievousness of the Old Codger was evident, and Su Zimu held his forehead.

Su Zimu went to cook, dragging Su Ziyi with him, the latter protesting that he couldn’t be of any help...

"If you can’t wash dishes, you can help me by pouring water"

"...."

Sister, this kind of retaliation is too mean! Su Ziyi sighed.

——————

The chessboard was set, and true enough, they talked while playing, with the elder speaking up first, "You are young yet display maturity beyond your years, with exceptional abilities. I shouldn’t need to worry about you, but this matter is indeed very dangerous, and you should take great care to look out for yourself."

"A gentleman can certainly look out for himself, but not everyone who does so is necessarily a gentleman."

"Is it that girl with the surname Pu?"

"Right... She has aided me a few times."

A gentleman does not stand under a collapsing wall, but if a friend stands under one, and you don’t step forward to lend a hand, can you still call yourself a gentleman?

The old master tugged at the corners of his white beard, "Then I really can’t advise you about anything... nor can I say much more, it’s all down to what you can ask me now."

"What involvement did Liu Qian, Li Yu, and others have before they were eliminated?"

Involvement, elimination.

Old Master Su’s movements in playing chess hesitated, "You actually know about this?"

Just one night, did Yi Chilian tell her something?

"Not at all, otherwise I wouldn’t resort to asking you."

"Just one step away... Could that girl with the surname Pu really know something? I had thought she was unrelated..."

Sui Yi didn’t ask further, only waiting for Old Master Su to fall deep into thought, after a long while, the elder made his chess move, "Army!"

Sui Yi moved her pawn.

Old Master looked at her once, and a cannon flew across, capturing the pawn outright.

Sui Yi frowned.

"Do you understand now?"

"Yes."

"Army" plus "cannon" is military weaponry.

It was indeed a matter of national importance.

"This matter has far-reaching implications; those who died were more or less involved. Their deaths are inconsequential; what’s more important are the forces behind them. In this case, there will be a higher number of casualties... Before the greater issues of the state, any individual is insignificant."

Meaning if Sui Yi continued to meddle, she could very easily touch the sensitive nerves of those in power.

In silence, Sui Yi played a few moves, and the elder thought she would no longer bring up the matter, but then she abruptly asked, "So that night, was someone using the fund accounts to launder the black money of the arms trafficking organization?"

This time, Old Master Su was genuinely astonished, "You must have been told about this by Yi Chilian, no doubt. It seems you and he do share a very close relationship."

A lovely and virtuous lady is a suitable match for a gentleman and all that, he wasn’t surprised, but he felt even more that Yi Chilian regarded Sui Yi as a peer to divulge such dangerous information to her.

If he truly wished to woo the girl, he should have kept her as protected as possible.

"He mentioned black money to me, and I originally just thought someone was using charity as a pretext to transfer funds..."

This time Old Master Su grew more curious, "Then whom do you suspect is behind this? Or perhaps, who else might be involved?"

The girl was extraordinary, and he wanted to know how much further she could investigate...

"Behind the scenes?" Sui Yi shook her head, "I don’t know, but there must be Duke Zheng’s Mansion involved."

"Are you talking about someone behind the scenes or someone that needs to be eliminated from behind the scenes?"

Sui Yi thought for a moment and replied, "Half-behind the scenes."

"Li Yu and Liu Qian have an extraordinary connection with Duke Zheng’s Mansion, otherwise it would not have been so easy to set a trap for Pu Qinghan. Without internal support, he wouldn’t have been so overconfident, and, to launder money, one must use fund accounts—other than Duke Zheng’s Mansion, the others don’t have the capacity to do so much..."

Pausing, Sui Yi looked down, "Moreover, the Rongwei Armor was not part of the plan." Old Master Su’s expression carried a hint of regret, "Now I understand why Yi Chilian dared to involve you; it’s because you are not afraid of such trouble..."

"Not really," Sui Yi said with a solemn expression, "trouble is still trouble" (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for it at Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)