Chapter 191: Wandering Soul

“They were the ones to pick a fight first. Since they posted the announcement to cut ties with you, why are they still acting like your elders?”

Old Lady Su watched as Su Wan returned the gift, her kind and gentle expression tinged with sorrow. “Wanwan, do you want to sever ties with your grandmother?”

“No.” Su Wan didn’t know how to explain to Old Lady Su that she wasn’t a descendant of the Su family, so she couldn’t accept anything from her.

But her true identity was a secret, one that couldn’t be revealed for now, or it would bring a lot of trouble.

Old Lady Su was an insightful person. Seeing Su Wan’s hesitation and her apparent difficulty in finding the right words, she understood that Su Wan was in a difficult position.

She tightened her grip on the cane, suspecting that Su Wan might have discovered her true origins and was worried that she wasn’t of Su family blood, which was why she refused to accept anything from her.

“Wanwan, you don’t need to overthink. In your grandmother’s heart, you will always be my granddaughter.”

Old Lady Su’s smile carried a sense of loneliness and sorrow.

No one wished more than she did that Su Wan was her legitimate granddaughter. But as time passed, she also felt relieved that Su Wan wasn’t. Having a father like Su Jihong, who was reckless and unreliable, would have been too much of a misfortune for Su Wan.

“When I agreed to the Empress Dowager’s request to propose to the Qi family, I thought if not the Su family, it would just be another family. At that time, I was desperate to find a marriage match for Hong’er, and the Empress Dowager had promised hereditary privileges that couldn’t be revoked. I was practically enchanted, bringing her into the household.”

Old Lady Su’s smile was filled with bitterness. She had sincerely hoped that Su Jihong and Qi Min could live a good life together. It wasn’t until Su Jihong found a servant to give to Qi Min, and when she died and was carried out of Qi Min’s room, that Old Lady Su learned of the incident. That’s when she knew this family was doomed sooner or later.

All these years, Old Lady Su had lived in guilt. If she hadn’t proposed marriage back then, perhaps Qi Min wouldn’t have faced such a fate.

Wouldn’t she have lived longer as well?

Old Lady Su couldn’t bear to tell Su Wan these thoughts, so she vaguely said, “I understand if you know about your origins, and even if you don’t acknowledge me as your grandmother, I can accept that.”

Su Wan hadn’t expected that there was a hidden story behind Qi Min’s marriage into the Su family, or that the Empress Dowager had even been involved.

From Old Lady Su’s words, Su Wan could confirm that she had long known Su Wan wasn’t Su Jihong’s daughter. However, she was unaware that Su Wan was actually Ji Xuan’s daughter. Su Wan could sense from her guilt that there might be other hidden truths as well.

“You don’t need to feel guilty. Given the situation at that time, with the Empress Dowager intent on interfering, she wouldn’t have stopped until she achieved her goal.”

Though Su Jihong was far from decent, at least Old Lady Su had been genuinely kind to them.

“If you accept the gift, I’ll be at ease,” Old Lady Su said, her eyes reddening with unshed tears. “Wanwan, if you really don’t want to keep the gift, then donate it to the temple and use it to build a golden statue for the Buddha.”

Su Wan found this solution appropriate. “Let’s go to the temple later and donate these things, asking for blessings for your health.”

Old Lady Su smiled and didn’t say anything more.

When the carriage stopped at the foot of the mountain, Su Wan helped Old Lady Su up the mountain to Guo Temple.

The young monk, upon hearing that Old Lady Su intended to donate money for incense, immediately invited them to a guest room and went to ask the abbot to personally receive them.

A layer of sorrow settled over Old Lady Su’s heart. She felt that this might be her last connection with Su Wan, and whether they would meet again in the future was uncertain.

Her heart sank.

At that moment, the abbot arrived.

Su Wan immediately noticed that Master Huiren was following behind the abbot.

His eyes were deep, incredibly deep, black without a trace of extra light. It wasn’t the compassionate gaze of a monk but more like the sharp edge of a blade, capable of piercing through the surface and striking directly at one’s soul.

It was as if he could see right through her.

That gaze made Su Wan very uncomfortable, just like the time she encountered Master Huiren at the Su residence. His eyes seemed to penetrate her, as if he could see through her and thought her body was inhabited by a wandering soul or ghost.

He performed a Buddhist greeting and said to Su Wan, “Benefactor, this humble monk has something to give you. Please follow me.”

Sensing that Su Wan might hesitate, he added, “It is something you left here a long time ago. The time has come, and this humble monk will return it to its rightful owner.”

The last two words were emphasized heavily by Huiren, though Su Wan couldn’t tell if it was her imagination or intentional on his part.