Chapter 815 - 815: A Flower

Zhen Jinghan didn't scrutinize the face of the person lying on the ground, but walked to his right side and examined his index finger carefully.

Xiao Feng and Zhao Guo'an leaned in for a closer look and found that the person's index finger was clearly shortened, a fact visible from the nail.

The two exchanged glances, their hearts reaching the same judgment.

The one who was hit should undoubtedly be Wang Tiezhu.

If it weren't for that, Zhen Jinghan wouldn't have immediately checked the right index finger.

And indeed, that was the truth.

...

Zhen Jinghan looked at the shortened index finger, and waves of memories surged from her mind.

That segment of the finger was lost fighting off a vicious dog to protect her.

I remember that despite being injured, he was the one comforting me.

"Are you alright?" Zhao Guo'an asked gently.

Zhen Jinghan shook her head, her gaze fixed on Wang Tiezhu, whose coarse skin and sparse hair bore no resemblance to the older brother next door she once remembered, not even close to being the same person.

However, reality lay bare before her, too coincidental to be mere happenstance.

In a daze, Zhen Jinghan seemed to see the familiar wheat field of her memory.

The boy ran along the countryside path, occasionally turning his head to check, waiting for her to catch up.

According to memory, he should wait until I was too tired to run, sit by the ridge to rest, and then come to my side, rub my head, magically producing candy or a bottle of soda.

But this time, the boy didn't stop along the way, running all the way to the end of the path before he came to a halt.

Then, he waved, a radiant smile on his face, as if bidding her farewell.

It was a long time before Zhen Jinghan regained her senses, frowning, "What did he go through to become like this?"

"Don't think too much. Some things... ultimately have no answers." Zhao Guo'an said wistfully.

Xiao Feng glanced at Wang Tiezhu lying on the ground, life gone, his mind roughly piecing together the backstory.

People like Wang Tiezhu are bound to hold a low status in society, and with his baldness, there's likely some sense of inferiority.

This isn't unfounded speculation, as he's always wearing a hat whenever he appears, which speaks volumes.

Unable to integrate into society, met with obstacles everywhere, he would subconsciously yearn for better times.

And Zhen Jinghan is the untouchable sanctuary in his heart, whoever dares offend it—he'd kill them.

Of course, this is only a reasonable deduction.

As for the specific details, perhaps as Zhao Guo'an said, some things never have answers.

"By the way, there was a strangely dressed guy who appeared just recently." Zhao Guo'an suddenly remarked.

Having said that, without waiting for Xiao Feng to ask, he recounted the recent events in detail.

Zhen Jinghan took off her coat and covered Wang Tiezhu's face with it, then came over to add more information.

"The Daoist attire, with a flower tucked by his sideburns—he doesn't look like a legitimate person by any means." Xiao Feng mused.

Aspergillus oryzae, holding a folding fan in his right hand, gently tapped his left palm with it, asked solemnly, "Can you describe specifically what kind of flower it was?"

Zhao Guo'an couldn't help but be taken aback, not understanding why he was so concerned about the flower.

Could it be that the flower, like the tattoo on Zheng Wei's nape, represents a certain faction?

Striving to recall for a moment, Zhao Guo'an tried to describe, "The flower, on the surface, appeared to be made of silver, and its shape somewhat resembles..."

"A lotus." Zhen Jinghan said.

"Yes, yes, it's a lotus." Zhao Guo'an nodded in agreement.

Zhen Jinghan furrowed her brows, recalling, and continued, "That lotus wasn't quite the same as usual.

I couldn't get close to it at the time, and didn't see it for long, but I could roughly assess that the pistil of the flower was quite intricate.

Furthermore, in the center of the pistil, two tendrils extended, just right to droop down at the corners of the eyes."

Aspergillus oryzae paused for a moment after listening, then asked, "Do you have paper?"

"Yes." Zhen Jinghan nodded, walked to the back row of the car, opened the door, and took out her bag, unzipped it, and handed over a pack of tissues.

Xiao Feng then said, "Pull it from a distance, be mindful of the wind direction, don't let it smoke us out."

"..." Aspergillus oryzae.

Did I ever say I was going to relieve myself?

Miffed for a while, Aspergillus oryzae said, "I was talking about white paper to write on."

"I don't have any." Zhen Jinghan shook her head.

Aspergillus oryzae thought for a bit, then calmly stepped past the railing, lightly tapped the fan, prompting a sharp dart to appear at the top.

With the dart as a pen, he began to sketch on the ground.

About five minutes later, Aspergillus oryzae called out, "Come and see if this is the flower you saw."

Zhen Jinghan and Zhao Guo'an stepped forward, Xiao Feng followed as well.

Just as the three were about to cross the railing, a gust of wind suddenly blew, scattering Aspergillus oryzae's work of five minutes into the air.

Crucially, once the artwork was blown away, the wind quickly subsided.

Like a storm, it came swiftly, and went swiftly.

"..." Aspergillus oryzae.

Just my luck.

Feeling vexed, Aspergillus oryzae began sketching again.

To prevent further accidents, Aspergillus oryzae specifically instructed, letting Xiao Feng and the others watch closely from the side.

As the drawing on the ground slowly took shape, a flash of surprise passed simultaneously through Zhao Guo'an and Zhen Jinghan's eyes.

The two exchanged looks, nodded at each other, and said in unison, "This is the flower."

Aspergillus oryzae stood up, holding a fan with one hand, and the other behind his back, casually speaking, "After so many years, I never thought I'd see this flower again."

"Alright, stop posing, hurry up and tell us what this flower means." Xiao Feng said impatiently.

"..." Aspergillus oryzae.

Do we have to ruin the atmosphere like this?

But for survival, he had to yield, "Alright boss, I'll start now."

He coughed twice, cleared his throat, and began in a rhythmic tone, "This flower is called Righteousness-Protecting Flower, mentioned in the book 'Yong Zheng Swordsmen'.

Legend has it that in the Warring States period, there was a ruler in the Song State named Yan, who was brutal and unruly, an utter tyrant, and was exceedingly fond of beauty.

One day, Yan went out to play and saw a mulberry-picking girl who was exceptionally beautiful, lust struck him, and he ordered a tall platform to be built near the girl's mulberry picking site, named Cyan Spirit Platform, watching her from afar whenever he had spare time.

He later found out the girl was already married, as the wife of Han Feng named Xi.

Unwilling to give up, the King of Song ordered Han Feng's capture and murdered him, intending to take Xi for himself.

Xi was defiant and upon learning of her husband's murder, she jumped off Cyan Spirit Platform to her death.

Later, guards found a note on Xi requesting to be buried alongside her husband Han Feng."

Hearing this, Zhen Jinghan asked, "The King of Song didn't agree, did he?"

Aspergillus oryzae nodded, giving a positive answer, "If he had agreed, he wouldn't be called brutal and tyrannical."