Chapter 78: LSD. A delightful bandit, quite intriguing.

However, after contemplating the sticker on the coffee table for a long while, He Guan ultimately declined the proposal.

The doctor upstairs was aligned with Lou Yingjie. Approaching him recklessly wasn't wise. If Lou Yingjie were to find out, it would spell trouble for He Guan.

After much thought, He Guan decided to contact Chi Yu.

Before Chi Yu's arrival, the family doctor from upstairs came knocking on He Guan's door.

As if he knew He Guan was home, he knocked thrice, paused, and repeated – persistent and rhythmical.

Soon after, He Guan's phone rang.

Sitting on the couch in a dim room, only the blue glow from his phone illuminated his contemplative face.

The call was from the family doctor.

He was perplexed.

Why show his hand now?

By seeking him out so brazenly, wasn't the family doctor openly signaling his allegiance to Lou Junshuo?

This seemed unrelated to Lou Yingjie, who had always maintained a somewhat strained family relationship to counterbalance the four siblings.

What did Lou Junduo possess that even the patriarch eagerly pursued, prompting him to hastily check on He Guan's condition?

He Guan felt the sticker on his hand, his suspicions deepening.

The knocking persisted.

A more timid soul might've been frightened into hiding in the closet, but clearly, He Guan wasn't one of them.

He sat on the sofa for half an hour without a sip of water.

As for the one knocking, let him continue. If asked about it tomorrow, He Guan would claim he was feigning sleep. It seemed absurd to receive a mysterious sticker and have a doctor show up at the doorstep immediately afterward.

To the rhythm of the knocking, He Guan searched online for rumors about the Lou family.

Such family secrets on the web were but vague shadows and whispers.

After searching for some time, He Guan clicked on an inconspicuous local forum link.

It took him a while to understand that within this forum, various families were ranked based on their influence and power.

Although the specifics of how the data was derived remained a mystery, the Lou family was indeed ranked at the top. When He Guan searched the forum for posts, only the family referred to as "the top dog" seemed to be discussing four children.

Only the Lou family had four kids, so it was clear the "top dog" moniker was pointing to them.

The forum was quiet, with many thread titles cryptic, filled with slang and codes. Using his intuition, He Guan guessed a few and hastily noted them on his phone.

Without logging in, he could only view the thread titles and the first three comments. To see more, he had to sign in.

Clicking the login page, He Guan tried using Lou Dongzang's personal email and birth date.

...It worked.

Lou Dongzang probably didn't frequent such forums. This password... must have been assigned after a standard registration, left unchanged since he never used it.

This account was just a simple alias, no real-name verification required. The forum was a mix of fact and fiction, predominantly rife with false information.

He Guan located a post from three months ago.

[The one from the top dog's house... is gone?]

Which "one" were they referring to?

Comment: Who said so?

Comment: It's probably fake. Don't believe it. I saw him today.

Comment: Who? Wei?

Post #4: "3L, maybe it's best if you remain silent. I'm not sure the forum is the right place for someone of your intellect."

Post #7: "That's impossible. I saw him die with my own eyes."

Post #2: "No, he wasn't taken to the west side of the city. He's probably at the hospital."

Post #2: "Even if he went to the west side, it was worth it. He lived a long life, and his children have all turned out well."

There were occasional typos in this thread. He Guan spent a long time deciphering, concluding that they were discussing a woman.

He Guan zoomed into the western part of the map, spotting two significant landmarks.

The crematorium and... the cemetery.

"What does 'Wei' mean? Is it a pseudonym for someone?"

He Guan put down his phone, jotting down all the clues from before till now on his memo pad. Ensuring no one was knocking at the door, he finally rose from the couch and retreated to his room for sleep.

"Opening the door wouldn't really matter. At worst, it'd just be another mentally taxing conversation."

But He Guan was preoccupied, and the visitor's intentions were unclear. Better not to answer.

After brushing his teeth, he sent a message to Chi Yu before drifting into deep sleep.

*

The next morning, He Guan met with Chi Yu. After bidding her farewell, he returned to Zang Dong Yuan to find some books to piece together the events.

Uncle Yue, seeing his return, wanted to prepare a lavish meal. He Guan declined, suggesting he relax and enjoy the sun outside – a simple meal would suffice.

He wasn't in the mood to eat anyway.

Uncle Yue understood and settled into a lounge chair in the courtyard.

In the study, Ning Zhi He's voice echoed.

"He Guan, are you taking me for a fool? Skipping classes and now questioning me about past events. Have you collaborated with the government on some historical project to promote our family heritage? Include me!"

While browsing through books, He Guan responded casually, "Not at all. I wish there was. I've barely left the house these days, only coming out today to visit Zang Dong Yuan."

Ning Zhi He: "... Did I say something wrong?"

He Guan: "Yes, you did. Unless you tell me about the Lou family's past to make up for it."

Ning Zhi He: "You're always one step ahead."

As He Guan continued his research, he stumbled upon something interesting.

He found the Lou family's genealogy.

Meanwhile, Ning Zhi He's explanatory voice resonated in the room.

Back when Lou Yingjie was young, there was another family that rivaled the Lou family - the Wei family. The Wei family had a young mistress named Xianyue, known as Wei Xianyue.

He Guan deduced that this was the 'Wei' mentioned in that post.

It would correspond to the vacant spot next to Lou Yingjie on the family tree.

Ning Zhi He pondered for a moment and said, "When the two families got married, it was quite a match - both were of equal social standing. I'm not sure what happened later, but I heard there were some issues on the bride's side, and they kept pressuring her to get a divorce."

He Guan asked, "When did this happen?"

Ning Zhi He replied, "How would I know? What little I do know, I overheard when my grandpa was drunk. It's essentially hearsay; just treat it as a fun story."

He Guan: "What happened next?"

Ning Zhi He: "I haven't heard anything since..."

He Guan: "Does your family visit the Lou house often?"

Ning Zhi He: "Us? We're hardly worthy. We don't even receive invitations."

He Guan: "That strict?"

Ning Zhi He: "It's the Lou family we're talking about. You've underestimated your wife's background."

He Guan: "You're right. I'll ask around."

Ning Zhi He: "Really? Use me and discard me just like that? You're such a..."

He Guan hung up before he could finish his audacious remark.

He skimmed through the pages, passing by names that seemed unrelated to the present, continuing forward.

The dialing tone echoed in the silence.

It took a while before someone on the other end answered, "Hello?"

He Guan: "Jin Jue."

Jin Jue cleared his throat, sounding as though he'd just run a distance, "What is it? I just came out of the practice room. Speak up if you have something."

He Guan: "How many times have you been to the Lou's since you arrived in Huaiyin?"

Jin Jue, standing on a rooftop feeling the breeze and watching the traffic below, recalled, "About four times."

He Guan: "How far apart were these visits? Have you met the Lou family's matriarch?"

Jin Jue: "You mean the elderly lady? I think so... I met her once when I accompanied my father to present a New Year gift."

He Guan: "This past January?"

Jin Jue, perplexed, remarked, "What's all this about? Have you recovered from your illness and now find yourself with too much free time? Playing truant now that you're the boss?"

He Guan remembered that Yan Xu had put him on sick leave. He feigned a couple of coughs and said, "It's nothing serious, just feeling unwell and reading. Came across the family genealogy."

Jin Jue: "Ah, that. We have one in our house too, mainly for show. To truly understand it, one would have to visit the ancestral hall."

He Guan, pausing momentarily: "Understood, thank you."

Jin Jue: "Alright then, I'm hanging up."

In the afternoon, He Guan made a trip to the Lou family's main residence, but Lou Yingjie was absent.

He wandered aimlessly in the garden.

What seemed aimless actually led him, almost inadvertently, towards the direction of the ancestral hall.

Pressed for time, his strides were broad and while he appeared nonchalant, he quickly reached his destination, standing before the numerous memorial tablets.

The lighting in the ancestral hall was dim, and after a while, He Guan noticed an unnamed tablet.

Sequentially, it belonged to Lou Yingjie's generation.

As he was about to touch it, a cough from behind caught his attention.

He Guan turned around: "Lawyer Rong."

Lawyer Rong smiled cordially and inquired, "Mr. He, what brings you here?"

He Guan: "This place is vast, and I haven't been here much. I lost my way and ended up here. Lawyer Rong, why is this memorial tablet blank?"

Lawyer Rong: "You have sharp eyes. Perhaps someone who worked here misplaced it? Why did you come today? The staff told me you were here, so I hurried over to find you."

He Guan: "I came looking for my father. He's not here, so I've been wandering around."

Lawyer Rong: "The senior Mr. Lou has gone traveling. He might be away for a while."

He Guan, puzzled, asked, "He went traveling? All by himself?"

Lawyer Rong: "I'm not certain, he didn't inform me. Let's head to the main hall. The ancestral hall is chilly and isn't a place for prolonged stays."

He Guan: "Alright."

As they approached the main residence, He Guan excused himself, citing other commitments.

He waited outside for the car Chi Yu had arranged. His departure was swift, leaving Lawyer Rong with nothing but a fleeting glimpse of his car.

As Lawyer Rong was about to re-enter the house, his phone rang from within his pocket.

He answered, his tone perfectly amiable, "Young Master Sun."

The voice on the other end inquired briefly about the old man's health before concluding, "Grandfather will be able to attend today, right?"

Lawyer Rong's tone was neither warm nor cold. He briefly raised an eyebrow, replying, "Of course, he will be there. You have my assurance."

The line was promptly disconnected on the other end.

*

By evening, the results of the sticker's analysis were released.

Chi Yu was changing clothes in the bathroom, while He Guan stood outside perusing the lab report.

Apart from the essential painkiller compounds, there was a notably high concentration of another substance on the side of the sticker not intended for skin contact.

LSD。

A narcotic.

A mere 15mg could plunge someone into rapid emotional hallucinations. It's odorless, the most intangible and hardest to detect substance.

The amount of LSD on this single sticker even exceeded 2g.

Chi Yu emerged in her evening gown, stepping in her heels and gathering her hair, asking He Guan, "Is the zipper done?"

He Guan helped her feed a wire through her necklace from behind, inquiring as he did so, "How should we handle the information?"

Chi Yu let down her hair, grabbed the data, and fed it into a paper shredder.

He Guan remarked, "Aren't we bringing any other items aboard? I've seen them conceal knives on their thighs in TV shows..."

Chi Yu replied, "Don't rely too much on TV. If we can't pass the boarding check, we'll snatch what we need on the ship."

He Guan chuckled, "Officer, you sound like quite the bandit..."

Chi Yu remained non-committal.

He Guan continued, "I like it."

Chi Yu responded with a playful grin.