Chapter 15

Riding the elevator down to the underground parking lot, two bodyguards loaded the items into the trunk. Ye Chunxi approached and noticed there was someone sitting in the back seat of the car. Ling Qiao had been keeping an eye on the distant movements, and upon seeing Ye Chunxi beside Jin Yuchuan, her gaze immediately fixed. The lighting in the parking lot was dim, making it difficult to clearly see the young woman’s face.

“Master Jin,” Ling Qiao said as he got out of the car, his eyes locking onto Ye Chunxi, “Is this your sister?”

Hearing this, Ye Chunxi turned her head. A face of breathtaking beauty came into Ling Qiao’s view. Those watery doe-like eyes seemed as if they were veiled by a gentle apricot blossom rain. Ling Qiao’s breath caught. He hadn’t expected Master Jin to have picked up such a stunningly beautiful sister.

Jin Yuchuan didn’t notice Ling Qiao’s unusual reaction but looked toward Ye Chunxi instead. “I need to return to the company. Let Ling Qiao escort you back first.”

Recently, many had been digging into Ye Chunxi’s background. He had already arranged for the traces to be covered up, but unforeseen risks remained. With Ling Qiao as her escort, he felt more at ease.

Ye Chunxi sized up Ling Qiao—a simple shirt, with muscles subtly visible beneath, radiating strength. He must be a bodyguard. She nodded and took her seat in the back.

Outside the car, they spoke quietly, their words indistinct. Jin Yuchuan got into another vehicle, while Ling Qiao returned to the front passenger seat. Once out of the hospital, the two cars parted ways, heading in different directions.

Through the rearview mirror, Ling Qiao studied the young girl in the back seat. No matter how many times he looked, her beauty never failed to astonish him. A luminary in traditional Chinese medicine, yet so stunningly graceful. How had Master Jin come across her?

Curious about their relationship, Ling Qiao wanted to know more. But since Jin Yuchuan refused to elaborate, he turned to Ye Chunxi.

“Miss Ye, how do you know Master Jin is your brother?”

This was the most glaring and melodramatic gap in the whole story.

Ye Chunxi looked down at her tablet and replied casually, “Maybe it’s the connection of bloodline.”

After waking up, she only recognized Jin Yuchuan.

Ling Qiao twitched at the corner of his mouth. Bloodline? Master Jin’s parents had long passed away—what bloodline? He must be out of his mind to ask such a question to someone with amnesia.

***

Thirty minutes later, the car stopped in front of a building halfway up the mountain. Ye Chunxi finally looked up and gathered her belongings before stepping out. Standing still, her brows twitched sharply as she took in the vast estate before her. This was... ridiculously extravagant!

The golden-plated sign above the gate read “Deer Garden.”

Passing through the gate, following white walls and green tiles, a massive man-made lake and exquisitely crafted pavilions and waterside terraces came into view, resembling a classical Chinese garden. A fine misty rain coated the scene in a layer of haze.

Ling Qiao was also deeply impressed the first time he had come here.

“I wonder what Master Jin is thinking, buying such a grand garden yet rarely visiting. It’s such a waste.”

Ye Chunxi agreed silently.

At the same time, she realized Ling Qiao wasn’t just a bodyguard. If he were, he wouldn’t be complaining about his boss so openly in front of her.

Before they reached the garden, an elderly man over fifty appeared, holding an oil-paper umbrella.

“Young Master Ling,” he greeted Ling Qiao, then looked kindly at Ye Chunxi.

The old man intentionally extended the umbrella toward Ye Chunxi and instructed someone behind to hand it over.

“Miss Ye, my surname is Kong. I am the steward of this Deer Garden. The young master has already instructed me to take you to your quarters.”

The girl stood at the foot of the steps, her gaze resting on the distant mountain scenery. Long eyelashes were dotted with raindrops; rain dripped from the tips of her hair. She turned back, accepted the oil-paper umbrella, and smiled softly. “Thank you, Uncle Kong.”

The steward’s eyes crinkled with a smile. “You’re welcome, Miss Ye.”

At the garden’s center lay a vast artificial lake, with a narrow plank bridge spanning it. Steward Kong led them across the bridge to a building on the opposite shore—the Water Pavilion.

Ling Qiao clicked his tongue repeatedly. “I can only live in a side room, yet Master Jin actually lets you live alone in an entire courtyard.”

After all these years of loyalty, he still couldn’t compare to a sister Master Jin had picked up!

Ye Chunxi had no idea what he was thinking or what his relationship with Jin Yuchuan was. Looking at the Water Pavilion in front of her, she found it reasonable.

Inside, the antique-style architecture blended perfectly with modern technology, creating no sense of discord.

Steward Kong stood just inside the doorway, maintaining a respectful distance.

“Miss Ye, you should settle in first. If you need anything, just contact me.” He took out his phone. “This is my number.”

Ye Chunxi saved his contact and said goodbye.

Turning back, she found Ling Qiao sitting by the window in a rattan chair, casually crossing one leg over the other, rocking back and forth leisurely. Above hung a string of vintage wind chimes, tinkling softly.

The bodyguards left after putting down the luggage, leaving only the two of them inside.

***

Ling Qiao’s manner was overly casual, showing no sense of propriety in someone else’s home.

Ye Chunxi frowned. “What’s your relationship with my brother?”

Ling Qiao blurted out, “Brothers.”

Brothers who had been through life and death together.

Recalling how Ling Qiao addressed Jin Yuchuan earlier, Ye Chunxi naturally assumed they were brothers in the chivalrous, sworn sense.

The first floor was the living room. Ye Chunxi paid him no more attention and headed upstairs to the bedroom.

She had few belongings; the room was already prepared by the servants.

Ye Chunxi set down her backpack and glanced out the window.

The rain had lessened; the drizzle was so fine and light that it made no sound.

The distant mountains were shrouded in mist, quiet and serene.

Pulling her gaze back, Ye Chunxi looked at the desktop computer on the table and felt a surge of interest.

After watching a cartoon for two minutes, she felt it was a waste.

She exited, randomly tapped a few keys on the keyboard. With a “beep,” the screen went black.

Before she could react, the computer flickered, displaying a jumble of colorful characters—like gibberish.

She stared for a while, then suddenly remembered something and opened her phone’s notes app.

There was only one entry, a chaotic string of characters.

These characters were the only thing she remembered after waking up.

Ye Chunxi had studied their meaning before but to no avail.

Now, looking at the gibberish, she pursed her lips.

For some reason, she felt she could understand them.

With a try-it-out mindset, two minutes later she figured out how to use the characters.

They were a username and password.

As if awakened, a faint tingling electric current surged deep in her brain.

Ignoring the prickling pain, she typed a single character on the keyboard—X.

The screen changed, and Ye Chunxi’s mind cleared, as if a veil had been lifted.

Before she could delve deeper, a line of text appeared on the screen.

“Boss, you finally remembered your password!!”

Two excited emojis followed.

Ye Chunxi’s brow lifted slightly.

Boss?

The person on the other end knew her?

Despite her amnesia, Ye Chunxi dared not be certain, and replied simply: “Mm.”