NOVEL NEXT Chapter 629: Aftermath
Shadow Tongues. This was a skill which allowed the hunter to curse a person. Their skills were varied; while some used blood, some used hair and dolls. It was really hard to detect these hunters from the common people, and unless they went to the council and got themselves registered, no one would be able to find out that a person had awakened.
In the past, the council did have a lot of trouble due to the Shadow Tongue hunters refusing to register, and ever since then, the regulations have tightened a lot to make sure that no awakened hunter would be left unregistered. However, there were always some sly ones who would somehow manage to escape the registration. And given that Ye Jinglan might have awakened before the registration laws became stricter, there was always a very good chance that he might have escaped registering.
Dong Geming placed the list of evidence that she had collected in front of Luo Qingling. She said to her, "I believe that Ye Jinglan knew that he had awakened a set of abilities that were supposed to be registered and controlled. He must have wanted to use his skills without being detected, which was why he left the village a day before the registration happened."
"He then returned home after a few days. I went to the village where his grandfather lived; according to the villagers, Ye Jinglan lived there for four to five days, but he returned home after the registration team went to his maternal village."
Dong Geming pursed her lips before stating in a calm voice, "I am almost certain that the mer was well aware of his skills and abilities, which was why he tried his best to keep them hidden lest he be caught and apprehended for the things that happened in the village. The villagers are not that clear about hunters and their skills, which is why they cannot understand such things, but Ye Jinglan stayed in the orphanage for a long time in the city; surely, he knows more about hunters and their abilities."
Luo Qingling nodded. She picked up the information and started reading the statements of the villagers. She said to Dong Geming, "Ask Director Han to arrange for an ability examination for Ye Jinglan; make sure that the mer doesn't find out what kind of test it is or else he will become wary and things will become difficult."
As Luo Qingling spoke, she turned and looked at the picture of the young girl who was smiling brightly at her. Her eyes softened as she recalled the words that Luo Huian had said to her husbands when she was talking to that little child. Though Luo Qingling didn't know what had happened for Luo Huian to talk about their childhood, she was quite happy when she heard her sister say that she wanted to get close to her but couldn't.
But at the same time, Luo Qingling felt a pang of heartache. Especially when she thought about how Luo Huian always got into trouble because she wanted someone to show up and prove that they cared. The thought alone was enough to make her heart twitch with a hint of pain.
If she had known that Luo Huian was suffering in silence like this, she would have never thrown caution to the wind and tried to get close to her little sister. However, under the coaxing and brainwashing of her father, she came to believe that Luo Huian disliked her. Never did she think that Luo Huian, that fool, was trying to attract her attention by acting like a fool.
Luo Qingling sighed. She had made mistakes big enough to make her feel guilty all her life. But fortunately, they still had time. She could still make it up to Luo Huian.
Luo Qingling dropped her hand from the photo frame and turned to look at Dong Geming. She said to her, "Go and deal with that mer. I don't want him jumping around for long, like a cockroach that cannot be killed."
"I understand."
On the other hand, in the farmhouse, Luo Huian had no idea that Luo Qingling had already decided to make a move. She was currently watching the news with great relish. Her fingers kept reaching for the butter popcorn in the bucket that was sitting next to her. Seeing her being so careless, even when her reputation was getting dragged through the mud, Fan Meilin was furious.
He snatched the bucket of popcorn from Luo Huian and snapped at her, "What are you doing? Can't you see that your reputation and name are about to be shredded into bits?"
He couldn't believe that even after getting scolded so fiercely, the woman still had the mood to eat. Was she not worried about how she would be treated once she went back home? These people who were scolding Luo Huian looked really unreasonable; Fan Meilin was certain that they would definitely tear her apart if they were to see Luo Huian.
The more he thought about it, the more worried Fan Meilin became. He said to her, "Look at how they are scolding you. I am afraid that they will definitely not leave you alone if they catch you returning to the city."
When Fan Meilin thought about how his wife was getting scolded as if she had committed a sin, Fan Meilin felt really stifled. Clearly, Luo Huian was only trying to do something good. But how come things suddenly got out of control like this?
He stared at his wife, waiting for her to say something, but when she stayed quiet, he glared at her and said to her, "Say something!"
"What do you want to say?" Luo Huian sighed as she leaned back on the couch and stared at the mer who was eyeing her angrily. "It's not my fault that things have become like this—I said they would become troublesome, didn't I? Who were the ones who said that I was being too harsh and cruel, hah?"
As soon as she finished speaking, Fan Meilin and the rest of the mers turned really uncomfortable. Especially Qi Yongrui; his wife had indeed told him that he shouldn't keep Nan Zhi without getting written permission from Ye Jinglan but he was way too worried about Nan Zhi and Nan Wu that he didn't even think about the consequences and rushed to make a decision.
Now look at this; he had caused a mess for his wife. What was he supposed to do now?
"Huian, I—"
"There is no need to apologise." Luo Huian rolled her eyes and stopped the mer from speaking, for she knew what he was going to say. She sighed and turned her attention to the television. With her head tilted to one side, "Though the story he came up with is really good. There are a lot of loopholes, and we have enough evidence to prove that Ye Jinglan is not what he is—so we will be fine. For the time being, just ignore him and continue paying attention to the kids. The most important thing is that Nan Zhi gets better."
As for the rest of the things, she would take care of them.
Luo Huian got to her feet and glanced at the mer who was still speaking on the screen, and chuckled. She was going to make him pay back for all the insults that he had hurled at her. He better be prepared.
Though Luo Huian told him not to worry about it, Qi Yongrui couldn't help but feel guilty. He turned to look at Fan Meilin and said to him, "What should we do now?"
"What can we do?" Fan Meilin felt a bit stifled as well. He couldn't understand how something good turned into something evil. They clearly wanted to help the two kids; how come they were suddenly being treated as villains?
Fan Meilin turned to look at the screen in front of him and pursed his lips with a hint of anger in his eyes. He said to Qi Yongrui, "If I had known that this mer was so shameless, then I would have definitely not given him a good face the last time I saw him." After speaking, he turned on his feet and walked away. He needed to run on the treadmill or else he would lose his mind and rush to deal with Ye Jinglan on his own.
Since his wife was not eager to deal with Ye Jinglan, what else could he do other than stay quiet and wait for her to make a move?
The emperor was not anxious; why should he, the eunuch, be worried about anything?
Fan Meilin : "..." What eunuch? He was a healthy mer! What kind of nonsensical things was he even thinking about?
While Fan Meilin was lost in his own thoughts, Qi Yongrui was wracked with his own worries. He was the one who decided to help Nan Zhi, but in the end, he ended up causing trouble for his wife.
"Uncle Yongrui."