Chapter 234: If I Do Not Enter Hell, Who Will?

The old Taoist priest instantly grew anxious, pulling the items into his arms.

"Oh, heavens forbid! What 'heavenly retribution' this or that. As the saying goes, 'If I do not enter hell, who will?' Besides, we have such great fate between us; I shall make an exception and help you this once."

A flash of a smile vanished from the depths of Su Yan's eyes.

Ma Chulong and his sister no longer knew what to say; this old fraud was also a greedy old miser.

The old Taoist casually pulled a peace talisman from his waist and tossed it to Su Yan.

"Give this to your man. Although it cannot turn his misfortune into prosperity, it can protect him at critical moments. As for the rest, one can truly only leave it to the will of Heaven."

Su Yan immediately picked up the peace talisman.

Ma Chulong and Ma Chulan both craned their necks to watch. They had been able to draw such talismans since they were three years old; it didn't look special in the slightest.

"No returns or exchanges on peace talismans!" the old Taoist immediately added, further confirming his essence as a swindler.

Su Yan, however, was unperturbed. She tucked the talisman away and turned to look at the siblings.

"Do you want a reading?"

The siblings' heads shook like rattles.

Knowing what they were thinking, Su Yan did not force them. "Master, I have one last question."

At this moment, the old Taoist was pulling out the gold bars from earlier, testing their authenticity with his teeth.

Seeing that they had not left yet, he immediately resumed his air of immortal elegance.

"Girl, why do you have so many questions?"

"Can you calculate the circumstances surrounding my mother's life?" Su Yan did not hold much hope; she simply wanted to try.

The old Taoist stared at her for two seconds, then narrowed his eyes, pinching his fingers together as he muttered to himself.

Ma Chulong and his sister waited listlessly for him to finish his "performance."

"Eh?" The old Taoist suddenly let out a sound of confusion, and his posture became much more upright.

Su Yan's expression grew increasingly serious.

After several dozen seconds, the old Taoist opened his eyes again, and the look in his eyes toward Su Yan became somewhat complex.

"Girl, listen to my advice: you should let go of the past."

Such an answer was well within the siblings' expectations. Ma Chulan snorted directly, "I think it's just that you can't calculate it, right?"

The repeatedly questioned old Taoist lost his composure. "You young people! Do you really think you're invincible just because you have a little skill? Saying I can't calculate it? There is nothing in this world that the Divine Calculator cannot figure out! This girl's mother has been dead for over ten years, and she still wants to seek justice for the dead? She doesn't even look at how she's fighting them? Going back is just seeking death!"

This forceful outburst left Ma Chulong and Ma Chulan stunned at the same time.

This old fraud actually got it right?!!

Su Yan was not surprised by the old Taoist's abilities. She pressed further, "Can you calculate my mother's identity?"

The old Taoist gathered his breath. "I cannot. And don't bother investigating; you'll only end up harming others and yourself. Why bother?"

"If I cannot even clarify the cause of my own mother's death, then I am unworthy of being her daughter," Su Yan said, increasing her volume.

At this moment, the way the old Taoist looked at Su Yan was no different from looking at moths flying into a flame.

"Looking back at the high city, the dawn river falls; the pavilion window presses against the ripples. The narcissus wishes to ascend upon the carp; a night of hibiscus, how many red tears."

Listening to the poem recited from the old Taoist's mouth, Su Yan's gaze grew deeper. She wanted to continue asking for clarity, but the old Taoist slowly closed his eyes, clearly unwilling to say more.

"Thank you, Master."

After thanking him, she signaled for Ma Chulong and his sister to leave together.

"Su Yan, what was that old Taoist all about? Do you know him?"

After the three had walked a long distance, Ma Chulong took the initiative to ask.

Su Yan was no naive girl inexperienced in the ways of the world. At first, they all thought the old Taoist was a fraud, but thinking about it calmly now, how could Su Yan fail to distinguish a swindler?

Therefore, there was only one possibility: she knew the old Taoist.

"Yes." As expected, Su Yan gave an affirmative answer. "The talisman that preserved my father's breath in the warehouse earlier was given by this Master."

That single sentence left the two of them completely stunned, unable to believe it.

"Really?"

If it hadn't been for that talisman back then, Su Jianguo would definitely have died in that warehouse.

Su Yan nodded.

"He's really not a fraud? But he looks so worldly and materialistic, not like a good person at all." Ma Chulan still found it hard to accept.

Su Yan had no way to answer. Being materialistic didn't mean anything; she liked money just as much.

"Ah! If he's not a fraud, then what he said about you becoming a widow just now, wouldn't that mean..."

The word "mean" got stuck in Ma Chulan's throat, and her gaze toward Su Yan shook violently.

The first person the siblings thought of was Gu Yang.

So, Gu Yang would die!

Su Yan's expression gradually turned cold. "I will not let that happen!"

"Right, right. Didn't he give you the peace talisman? Hurry and give the peace talisman to Brother Gu."

The peace talisman that had been looked down upon just minutes ago was now a treasure in Ma Chulan's eyes.

Su Yan was indeed thinking the same thing. Although she and Gu Yang had already canceled their engagement, the only person she had such ties with was him.

"Su Yan, don't worry too much. At worst, we'll just be more careful to protect Brother Gu in the future." Ma Chulan was a girl and felt that Su Yan's thoughts should be similar to hers.

Su Yan remained noncommittal.

"Then what did that poem the old Taoist recited at the end mean?" Ma Chulong thought more deeply; the best way to avoid disaster was not defense, but proactive resolution.

Since they could be certain the old Taoist was not a fraud, then every word he spoke should have meaning, including that final poem.

However, he had no research into poetry whatsoever. In the past, whenever his family's academy held such classes, he almost never attended, feeling that such flowery poetry was no different from what they learned as exorcists.

Ma Chulan's expression was similar to his; she clearly didn't know either.

Su Yan explained, "That was 'Dawn Farewell at the Bridge' by the Tang Dynasty poet Li Shangyin. 'Looking back at the high city, the dawn river falls; the pavilion window presses against the ripples. The narcissus wishes to ascend upon the carp; a night of hibiscus, how many red tears.'"

Listening to her recite the full poem, the siblings couldn't help but sigh inwardly. They were inferior to others in exorcism, and even in knowledge. Even after she repeated it, they still didn't understand what it actually meant.

"It is a poem about parting with a lover. It means: looking back at the high city walls, the Milky Way has gradually dimmed and is setting in the west. Beneath the window of the long pavilion, the canal water ripples in layers of light waves. The traveler departing far away is like a narcissus wishing to ascend upon a brocade carp; and the red tears shed in a single night by a beauty as lovely as a hibiscus—who can know how many there are?"

Su Yan's explanation left the siblings mesmerized, but afterward, they all showed expressions of confusion.

"What does this have to do with your mother?"

(End of Chapter)