Chapter 1142 - The Puzzle of Truth
Chapter 1142: The Puzzle of Truth
When Chen Zuan and Cheng Qiuqiao heard what Xiang Xiuxi had said, they looked at each other helplessly. If that baby was Brother Shu, his life had been very rough. He had been abandoned as his mother had been chased and killed.
This was hard to understand. They had thought that Lu Shu was here to uncover his own history. But from the look of things, it was not at all simple.
Lu Shu thought about it and asked, “Were the gourd and the swaddling cloth originally in the box as well?”
“Yes,” said Xiang Xiuxi. “There was also a piece of paper with ‘Lu Shu’ written on it. That was the baby’s name. Other than that, there was nothing else. The gourd was rather exquisite, but it was a pity that there was a crack. It was as if someone had damaged it. There was a black pendant around the baby’s neck, but strangely, it could not be removed. I don’t know what material the string was made out of, but it could not be cut through… I don’t know which idiot stole the gourd and swaddling cloth in the middle of the night.”
As Xiang Xiuxi spoke, she grew more angry. “Those belonged… to the baby. Who stole things from the baby? They are not human!”
The more Li Dian listened to this, the more awkward he became. His face was burning red!
Lu Shu silently pondered. The information that Xiang Xiuxi had provided corroborated with that of Li Dian’s. The gourd had been cracked before, but healed by itself after the dawn of the magically rich era.
He thought about it. The crack in the gourd was probably because of a battle. The black pendant around his neck was more important. Others could not steal it even if they wanted to.
To Li Dian, who stole even the swaddling cloth of a baby, Lu Shu believed that he would have tried to take the pendant, but he had not…
Suddenly, Lu Shu thought about a related question. “What about the box?”
If even the swaddling cloth was a treasure, would the box that contained a baby be a treasure as well?
“I sold it,” said Xiang Xiuxi. “A wandering antique collector saw it. It fetched a decent price. A few hundred dollars.”
Lu Shu calmly looked at Xiang Xiuxi. She had sold it for a few hundred dollars?
No, a few hundred dollars in the nineties was not bad. Who had taken the box?
It would be very difficult to find this person, but Lu Shu had no regrets. He only wanted to know the truth.
“Until when did you take care of the baby?” Lu Shu asked, “Did you continue to take care of the child, or…”
“At first, I had wanted to take care of him until he became an adult. But he was very sickly. I didn’t think that I would be able to support him.” Xiang Xiuxi said, “Back then, I was a virgin. Suddenly taking in a child would not be appropriate. What if I cannot marry? Furthermore, with my salary, it was barely enough to take care of myself…”
Lu Shu looked at Xiang Xiuxi’s physique. She was living a rather good life…
Lu Shu curiously asked, “How long did you take care of the child until you gave him away? Where did you send him to?”
“I didn’t take note of the exact time. The baby was far too weak. One night, I was carrying him while watching television when he suddenly stopped breathing. He had no heartbeat either.” Xiang Xiuxi said, “I panicked. But before I could think of what to do, he was fine again. I thought that this could not go on. I did not have the money to treat him. It would be best to give him away. I didn’t give him to anyone. I left him at the door of an orphanage.”
Lu Shu nodded his head. So that was what had happened. After taking care of him for a few months, she had sent him to the orphanage for various reasons.
Everything had made sense up till this point. The puzzle in Lu Shu’s heart became more complete.
“Thank you,” said Lu Shu earnestly.
Xiang Xiuxi smiled and waved her hand. “You only asked a few questions. There’s nothing to thank me for.”
“I still have to be grateful.” Lu Shu smiled. Then, he turned and left.
Lu Xiaoyu thought about it. Then, she took out piles of cash and four gold bars from her space ring. She placed them in front of Xiang Xiuxi. “Thank you.”
There were people observing this in the temporary houses. When they saw this, they exploded. When they came to take a look, they had thought that there were grand motives behind this. But they did not think much of this. They had just come to observe.
When thousands of cash and gold bars appeared, everyone was shocked.
The rich had found their own escape path. Those in the temporary houses were ordinary families. Thus, when they saw this, they could not help but be shocked.
Chen Zuan and Cheng Qiuqiao glared at the people around them. They took out their credentials. “We are from the Heavenly Network. Do not think about taking this money. If not, you know what the consequences are.”
Xiang Xiuxi was dumbfounded. Suddenly, she realized something. “Was that young man the baby I took care of back then?”
Only this explanation made sense. If not, why would she be presented with so much money for answering a few questions?
Chen Zuan laughed cheerily. “He is the Ninth Heavenly King of the Heavenly Network. How good would it have been if you had not sent him away?”
Lu Xiaoyu glanced at Chen Zuan. “What nonsense are you spouting? Even if she had only taken care of him for a few months, it is worthy of gratitude.”
Furthermore, if Xiang Xiuxi had not sent Lu Shu to the orphanage, Lu Xiaoyu would not have met Lu Shu…
Lu Xiaoyu gave Xiang Xiuxi 500 thousand dollars. 250 thousand dollars was gratitude for taking care of Lu Xiaoyu, while the other 250 thousand dollars and the gold bars were for sending Lu Shu to the orphanage…
When the onlookers heard what Chen Zuan had said, they were dumbfounded. The experts in the realm of cultivation were like celebrities. The Ninth Heavenly King, Lu Shu, was extremely famous. The elimination of the Collection of Gods, the marriage in Europe, and the dragon at the Tiger’s Back fortress had spread very quickly.
Everyone looked at Xiang Xiuxi. So the Ninth Heavenly King was an orphan who had been taken care of by this lady…
Wait. If that young man was Lu Shu, the Ninth Heavenly King, then the young girl who had been willing to present so much money and gold as thanks was probably Lu Xiaoyu, the fabled Eleventh Heavenly King…
Even the members of the Heavenly Network had not realized that the civilians were more interested in them than celebrities.
Xiang Xiuxi stood there blankly. Suddenly, she started to wipe her tears. “Please don’t blame me. If I could support myself, I would not have sent him away. This world is very cruel. It is good enough that I can live. I don’t want the money. Please take it.”
Lu Xiaoyu sighed and said, “No one will blame you. This is our gratitude. Without you, he might have died on the first day. You are a kind person.”
With that, Lu Xiaoyu, Chen Zuan, and the rest walked away. Yes, the world was very cruel. It was because of this cruelty that Lu Xiaoyu admired the courage Xiang Xiuxi possessed to take care of Lu Shu