The moment the call was connected, an excited voice came through, "Mr. Nan, that's great! Finally, I can reach you!"
Nan Xiao asked in a deep voice, "Did you encounter obstacles on your end?"
"Yes, we were intercepted in a mountain hollow. Just thirty minutes ago, the interceptors suddenly withdrew for no apparent reason... Mr. Nan, I have successfully located your position. We will reach you in twenty-five minutes."
Nan Xiao hung up and shared the good news with everyone.
The fight outside lasted less than ten minutes before it died down.
Nan Xiao stood in a hidden spot, warily observing the situation outside.
Yet, after a full ten minutes, no one attempted to breach the castle where they were concealed.
Nan Xiao had considered many possibilities, but never once did he imagine that the people from before were here to rescue him.
"Beep, beep..." Nan Xiao's phone rang.
Soon after, Nan Xiao and his subordinates boarded the car that had come to pick them up.
The next day.
A certain estate in Country Y.
Nan Xiao met the woman his elder brother had loved the most in legend – Luan Qian.
Upon seeing her for the first time, Nan Xiao was slightly taken aback, as this woman bore a striking resemblance, seven to eight parts alike, to Ling Yun, the mother of Lan Yuxi, an acquaintance of his.
However, despite the resemblance, her temperament was entirely different from Ling Yun's. The former was as gentle as water, while the latter possessed an unyielding spirit.
After taking a seat, Luan Qian spoke faintly, "I didn't expect that even after your elder brother has been gone for ten years, your Nan family is still 'remembering' me."
Nan Xiao detected the sarcasm in her words but did not reply. Instead, he gazed intently at a photo frame placed on the mantelpiece.
At first glance, there was a spark in his eyes, but after a while, his gaze darkened.
Luan Qian followed his line of sight.
After a long pause, she gave a bitter laugh, "Your elder brother told me he would grow old with me, but he broke his promise. I can only use my computer to synthesize a photo of him one year older each year and place it there, to grow old with me."
Nan Xiao withdrew his gaze and glanced at her indifferently.
Though he showed no particular expression, Luan Qian's nerves tensed after that one look.
"If it's possible, give me ten days. After I finish writing this book, I will take my own life."
Luan Qian spoke these words with great calmness.
Nan Xiao looked at her suspiciously, "What do you mean? Why would you take your own life?"
Luan Qian blinked, "Aren't you here to kill me?"
"Why would I kill you?"
Luan Qian's shoulders visibly slumped. "Your mother hated me to the bone. She was always hunting me until I went abroad, only then did I get a few days of peace. I thought you were sent by your mother."
"Why does your mother hate you?"
"Because I look like an enemy of hers. You should know better than I do who this enemy is."
Nan Xiao's hands, resting by his sides, tightened slightly. He certainly knew who his mother's enemy was.
But he couldn't believe that his mother would resort to murder simply because someone resembled that person.
The mother Luan Qian spoke of was unfamiliar, as was the mother Qi Hongping mentioned. Were they lying, or was his mother truly such a person?
"Do you know Qi Hongping?" Nan Xiao's mind was in disarray. He didn't want to hear any more about his mother, so he forcefully changed the subject.
"No, but I've heard of her. She was a woman your mother forced upon your elder brother. However, your elder brother only touched her once, and that was because your mother drugged him. But she was luckier than me. She conceived your elder brother's child in one go, while my child was brutally aborted by your mother."
The things he least wanted to hear were the very things he was hearing!
Nan Xiao frowned irritably.
"Have you seen Qi Hongping's child?"
"No, but I heard it was a boy. That child should be around eighteen or nineteen years old now?"
As Luan Qian said this, she instinctively placed a hand on her abdomen, her eyes filled with sorrow.
Nan Xiao knew she was longing for her lost child.
"You are twenty years younger than your elder brother. You should be thirty this year. Are you married?"
Perhaps because she knew Nan Xiao wasn't there to kill her, Luan Qian's voice softened.
With her guard down, she was as gentle as water.
Seeing her like this, Nan Xiao finally understood why his elder brother had loved her so dearly.
"I'm not married. Did my elder brother mention me to you?"
He missed his elder brother terribly, but no one dared mention him in front of him. Hearing Luan Qian say so, Nan Xiao couldn't help but ask.
Luan Qian nodded. "He talked about you the most to me. Every time you achieved merit and received an award, he would happily have a few drinks."
Nan Xiao's eyes welled up slightly. He didn't stay any longer, leaving a check behind before departing.
Upon returning to Kyoto, Nan Xiao went straight to the company without even having time to rest.
As soon as he landed, he received a call from his secretary saying a Mr. Luo Shiyi was looking for him.
He could dismiss others who looked for him, but not this one. He was Xi Bao's closest junior disciple, so if he was looking for him, it must be related to Xi Bao.
As soon as he entered the reception room, Nan Xiao anxiously asked, "Shiyi, did Xi, Lan Yuxi, get into trouble?"
Luo Shiyi was leisurely sipping coffee in the reception room. Hearing his question, he let out a displeased scoff.
"What are you talking about! How can you curse someone like that! My senior sister is doing just fine!"
Seeing that Lan Yuxi was alright, Nan Xiao let out a sigh of relief.
Luo Shiyi sized him up and then took out a business card from his pocket and handed it to him. "From now on, I am my senior sister's special assistant and the vice president of blue-xi Pharmaceuticals. If anything comes up in the future, you can contact me."
Nan Xiao's gaze flickered.
Xi Bao was going to keep her promise and no longer appear before him.
This was what he wanted, so why did his heart ache so much?
Luo Shiyi put down his coffee cup with a loud "snap."
"Mr. Nan, I have something important to discuss with you today."
Nan Xiao irritably tugged at his tie. "Go ahead."
Luo Shiyi crossed his arms, his expression serious. "We, blue-xi Pharmaceuticals, have our eyes on your land in the western suburbs. Name your price; we'll pay in full."
Nan Xiao's brow furrowed as he looked at him. He hadn't paid much attention when Luo Shiyi said he was the vice president of blue-xi Pharmaceuticals, but when he arrogantly spoke of buying his land in the western suburbs, he finally realized.
"Isn't there a state-owned old pharmaceutical factory in the western suburbs? Is your senior sister planning to build another one next to it?"
He had also been eyeing that old, almost defunct factory, waiting for it to close down so he could incorporate it into his domain and then make plans.
"My senior sister bought that factory, but the plant is a bit small and needs expansion. At the same time, she wants to build the largest research institute in Huaguo. The thousand or so mu of land you have should be barely enough."
"Your senior sister is quite the mover and shaker. The academy has only just begun to take shape, and now she's building a pharmaceutical factory. Can she handle it all?"