Chapter 205: The Metal Detector Goes Off, Could It Be a Gold Mine?

Lu Shijing nodded. "Alright."

’So I’m visiting my own grave. It’s not the first time, anyway.’

The three of them then got into the car, each lost in their own thoughts.

Gu Shengsheng hadn’t finished her morning dim sum, so she’d packed the leftovers in small containers and put them in her bag. Now, sitting in the car, she and Grandma were eating them.

Lu Shijing frowned. "Aren’t those supposed to be offerings for the deceased? You should leave them for him and eat a little less."

’After all, they were offerings for *him*. If he didn’t stick up for himself now, who would?’

Grandma and Shengsheng exchanged a glance and decided not to explain.

Grandma said bluntly, "If you want some, just say so. Here, have a bite."

"It’s fine. My grandson won’t mind stuff like this. He was always stone-faced and sour, couldn’t say a nice word to save his life. He doesn’t need to eat."

Lu Shijing: "..."

He was speechless.

’I’d been hoping for more opportunities to spend time with Shengsheng, but now it seems I’m just here for Grandma’s amusement.’

’Don’t be fooled by Grandma’s casual act in private; she’s never been very proper in formal settings either.’

’Now that she knows I’m here to visit my own grave, I wonder if she’ll laugh at me about this for the rest of my life...’

Lu Shijing braced himself.

He tried to ignore Grandma sitting in the middle and looked at Gu Shengsheng.

He asked, "Shengsheng, did you sleep well last night?"

"Thanks to you, it was fine." ’It really *was* thanks to him,’ she thought. ’I was up all night reading his file.’

’If his Ryan persona wasn’t so reclusive, his cover would’ve been blown ages ago!’

Even Shang Jinhao, once the richest man in Huaxia, had never met him, so how could anyone else know who he was? The more Gu Shengsheng investigated, the more she felt there was something extraordinary about this man.

’A man like that was not someone she should be involved with for long.’

Gu Shengsheng was already thinking about the divorce papers.

After all, their marriage had just been to ward off ill fortune. Now that he was back, and her family supported her living her own life, a divorce... shouldn’t be too difficult.

She mulled over her plans.

Before she knew it, the car had arrived at a forest. The paths from here were winding and remote, so they had to walk the rest of the way to their destination.

The three of them got out of the car. It was Gu Shengsheng’s first time here, but Grandma had visited many times.

She led them forward, holding onto Shengsheng’s arm. "Back when Shi Jing first passed away, I came here to cry every single day."

"After all, his grandfather and I raised him ourselves. We were never very good to him when he was a child, always treating him as the family heir we were grooming."

"I thought I’d never have a chance to make it up to him, so I was filled with regret. I regretted that he rarely came home for dinner, regretted that he worked himself to exhaustion."

"Grandma, it’s alright. It’s all in the past. Things will get better for everyone."

As Gu Shengsheng said this, she glanced at Lu Shijing.

Lu Shijing also nodded. "Your grandson didn’t see it as a hardship. What if he simply loved his work? When you’re doing something you’re passionate about, it never feels tiring."

The old woman wiped away her tears. "You’re right. He was doing just fine on his own, never caring about anyone else."

Hearing this, Gu Shengsheng understood.

’Grandma probably didn’t just figure out that Lu Shijing was alive recently... She must have known for a very long time.’

So, her heartbreak and grief were probably only from when she first learned of his disappearance.

Her ability to be so optimistic and cheerful later on must have been because she knew something was up.

She remembered Jin Ran saying before that Grandma Lu was a formidable woman. Gu Shengsheng now suspected her own selection as a daughter-in-law hadn’t been random, either.

All signs indicated that everyone in the Lu Family had their own agenda. The seemingly easygoing Grandma Lu, in fact, had her own profound schemes.

But she was certain that Grandma and Linnin were both very, very good people.

As she was thinking this, Grandma suddenly clutched her stomach. "Oh no, oh no! My stomach hurts! I have to find a bathroom."

She had to create an opportunity for these two!

Gu Shengsheng said, "You’re not feeling well, and these paths are all cobblestone. I’ll go with you."

"No need. I might be in there for half an hour."

Gu Shengsheng: "..."

Grandma added, "I’m constipated. I need to hurry on ahead."

"Gotta go, gotta go! I know the Tomb Guardian here." And with that, she vanished.

Ever since that time in Rui City when she saw the 70-year-old Qin Guocheng running as if on wings while carrying Qin Shou on his back, Gu Shengsheng was no longer easily surprised.

’So Grandma acting like this... was normal, too. The elderly these days were quite robust.’

After Grandma had gone, Gu Shengsheng looked at Lu Shijing. "Mr. Ryan, are you sure there’s nothing you want to tell me?"

"Nothing, Miss Gu." He thought for a moment before shaking his head firmly.

Then Gu Shengsheng asked, "Mr. Ryan, as a rising star in the business world, you must have heard of him. What is your opinion of Lu Shijing?"

’Evaluate himself? He was an expert at that.’

He said, "From what I know, Mr. Lu was a very capable man. And he wasn’t in love with anyone. He was always alone, and there were certainly no romantic scandals."

Gu Shengsheng shot him a look. "You seem to know everything, don’t you? For someone with no connection to him, you’re surprisingly well-informed about my husband’s romantic history."

"Well, there were rumors everywhere about him and Jin Ran having an ’unusual’ relationship, but that’s all nonsense. You have to believe me, Mr. Lu’s taste in people is perfectly normal."

"If he were alive, I’m sure he would want to be with you."

Gu Shengsheng listened to him, sneering inwardly.

Her inner frustration was mounting.

’It seemed Lu Shijing truly had no intention of coming clean.’

They had been through so much together, forging what felt like a life-and-death bond. Lu Shijing knew everything about her, yet she still knew nothing about him. And even now, he had no intention of revealing a single thing.

Gu Shengsheng’s resolve hardened.

As the two of them neared the edge of the forest, a monkey appeared out of nowhere and charged toward Gu Shengsheng. The monkey looked terrified, running wildly! It looked like it might attack someone!

Just as Lu Shijing moved to pull Gu Shengsheng into his arms for protection, she pulled a collapsible metal baton from her own bag and tossed the bag aside into the grass.

She swung and struck the monkey with precision.

The monkey, struck in the stomach, immediately turned and fled, disappearing into the woods. It then ran right up to the Tomb Guardian, crying pitifully.

The old Tomb Guardian glared at Mrs. Lu Sr. "Why is your granddaughter-in-law so ferocious?"

"Weren’t we supposed to be playing matchmaker for your grandson and his wife? Look how you’ve wronged my precious baby! You old hag!"

Mrs. Lu Sr., peering through a pair of binoculars, shot back, "That grandson of mine didn’t even get to hug his wife! Your stupid monkey is useless—too weak! And you have the nerve to say my granddaughter-in-law is too fierce!"

The two old folks bickered back and forth, neither willing to back down.

"..."

***

Gu Shengsheng had acted on instinct, but watching the monkey flee, she realized it must be someone’s pet.

It posed no real danger, so she didn’t give it a second thought.

Then, Lu Shijing’s gaze fell on the bag she’d tossed on the ground. "What’s that device in your bag? It’s making a noise."

Gu Shengsheng pulled the small device from her bag. "This is my metal detector."