BDSMST -Chapter 163 The Old Marquis’s Buried Past

Gu Yan stepped out of the study. The night wind hit his face, sharp and biting. The small sandalwood box in his hands felt as heavy as a thousand pounds. He did not immediately deal with the two captives in the trap, instead returning to the bedroom he shared with Jiang Suisui.

The candlelight was still burning. Jiang Suisui was awake, sitting under the lamp reading a medical book, seemingly waiting for him. When she saw him enter, she immediately set the book aside and came over.

“What happened? Did you find out anything?” She saw the serious expression on his face and asked with concern.

Gu Yan placed the sandalwood box on the table and then sat beside her on the bed. He did not withhold anything, telling her everything he had heard from his father: the title of “Thousand-Mechanism Computation Element,” the feud with Jingyun Hall, and the long-buried story of love and betrayal.

Jiang Suisui listened quietly, equally shocked. Like Gu Yan, she had never imagined that the gentle, kind old marquis—so devoted to tending flowers and carving wood—had such a legendary and tragic past.

She finally understood the faint, persistent melancholy in the old marquis’s eyes. She also understood why he had never praised Gu Yan’s career or military achievements, instead often warning him to know when to advance and when to retreat. He had once stood at the pinnacle of fame and fortune, only to be battered and scarred by the very currents of that peak.

“So this is what they are looking for?” Jiang Suisui opened the sandalwood box and looked at the mysterious parchment scroll and the unusual key inside.

“Yes.” Gu Yan nodded. “Jingyun Hall is convinced that this fragment is the key to finding the legendary ‘Thousand-Mechanism Map.’ And the booklet records detailed information about the tokens of past Jingyun Hall masters, marking their legitimacy. Without it, a new hall master cannot be recognized or obeyed.”

“No wonder they have been pursuing it relentlessly for twenty years.” Jiang Suisui picked up the brass key and examined it closely. Its design was extremely intricate; the top was a rotating gear disk covered with densely carved symbols, far beyond the craftsmanship of this era. “This key… really can open every lock in the world?”

“I don’t know,” Gu Yan shook his head. “But my father said he once used it to open the main burial chamber of a former imperial tomb. It seems likely to be true.”

Jiang Suisui inhaled sharply. A key capable of opening imperial tombs, a map connected to treasures of the world, and a booklet symbolizing the legitimacy of a powerful assassin organization—any one of these falling into the wrong hands could unleash chaos in the Jianghu. And now, all three lay quietly before her.

“What are you going to do with them?” Jiang Suisui asked, referring to the two captives in the trap.

Gu Yan’s eyes grew cold. “Jingyun Hall is ruthless. Rooting out enemies completely is their rule. Those who came this time are only the vanguard. If we let them go, or handle them carelessly, we will invite even more dangerous and troublesome enemies.”

Jiang Suisui understood. Facing such foes, any softness would be irresponsible toward their family.

“I’m just worried about your father…” Jiang Suisui said, concern in her voice. “Having this past revealed again must be very painful for him.”

“I know.” Gu Yan’s voice deepened. “That’s why this matter must be completely resolved by me. He must not be troubled by it any longer.”

The decision made, Gu Yan stood and picked up the sandalwood box.

“You go rest first. I’ll handle the follow-up.” he said to Jiang Suisui.

“I’ll go with you.” She stood as well. “This affects our entire family. I am not just someone who hides behind you.”

Gu Yan looked into her determined eyes and did not refuse. He nodded, took her hand, and together they left the room.

In the courtyard of Jingxin Garden, the torches still burned brightly. The two black-clad men trapped in the net had given up struggling. Seeing Gu Yan and Jiang Suisui approach together, a hint of despair appeared in their eyes.

Gu Yan approached the trap, looking down at them from above.

“Who is your current hall master?” Gu Yan asked coldly.

The two men exchanged a glance and remained silent. Jingyun Hall’s rules were clear: betray the hall master, and you die.

“Not going to tell me, huh?” Gu Yan sneered. He pulled the thin booklet from his pocket and flipped to a page. “Let me guess. Twenty years ago, after the old hall master died, three people were eligible to inherit the hall master’s position: Left Protector ‘Ghost Hand’ Zhang Cheng, Right Protector ‘Phantom’ Lin Qi, and the last disciple Chen Jing. Zhang Cheng and Lin Qi both died in the purge. That means the current hall master must be him—Chen Jing, nickname ‘Wind-Chasing Sword,’ skilled in poisons, ruthless, and narrow-minded.”

With each word Gu Yan spoke, the color drained further from the faces of the two men in the trap. They had never imagined that this man knew the inner workings of their hall so well.

“Seems I guessed right.” Gu Yan closed the booklet and looked down at them. “You may go.”

“What?” Both men froze, unable to believe their ears. They had thought they were doomed.

“Go back and tell Chen Jing.” Gu Yan opened the sandalwood box just enough for them to see inside, then quickly closed it. “Tell him the things he wants are with me. The feud between Jingyun Hall and my father belongs to the previous generation—I have no interest in pursuing it. But if he sends people again to harass my family, next time it won’t just be hanging them in a trap.”

He paused, his tone growing deadly. “I will personally lead my troops to visit Jingyun Hall. Tell him, my father has retired—but the Zhenbei Marquis Estate has not. I, Gu Yan, am far more difficult to deal with than my father ever was.”

The aura of iron-blooded ruthlessness, honed through mountains of corpses and rivers of blood on the battlefield, washed over the two black-clad men, leaving them nearly breathless. They had no doubt: whatever this man said, he could back it up with action.

“Release them,” Gu Yan ordered his guards.

The guards cut the nets, dragging the two men out of the trap. They stretched their numb limbs and looked at Gu Yan with a complex mixture of fear and awe.

“One more thing.” Gu Yan tossed the booklet of hall tokens at their feet. “Take this back to your hall master. Tell him, twenty years ago my father could take from Jingyun Hall what he wanted. Twenty years later, I, Gu Yan, can take his head just as easily.”

It was an unambiguous, naked threat.

The two men picked up the booklet, bowed deeply to Gu Yan, then vanished into the night in a blur.

Jiang Suisui stepped beside Gu Yan, concern in her voice. “You’re letting them go like that—are you sure it’s safe?”

“There’s a problem.” Gu Yan watched the direction they disappeared, speaking slowly. “Chen Jing will never simply give up. What I did was force him to focus all his attention on me, instead of bothering my father.”

He turned to Jiang Suisui, explaining: “It’s a strategic move. I showed him the contents openly, and returned the token booklet. In order to secure his position and get that fragment, he will do everything he can to confront me. This allows us to step out from the shadows into the open—the initiative is in our hands.”

Jiang Suisui understood. Rather than passively guarding against attacks of unknown timing, it was better to draw the snake out of its hole.

“And next…” she asked.

“Next,” Gu Yan’s eyes flashed coldly, “we prepare a net large enough to catch him when he walks right into it.”

He took Jiang Suisui’s hand and headed back to their bedroom. “Let’s go. Get some sleep. No matter how big a problem, it can wait until dawn.”

After a night of upheaval, the old marquis’s long-buried past finally had a direction toward closure. At the same time, a new, massive threat from the Jianghu had officially emerged, now standing squarely before Gu Yan and Jiang Suisui.