Chapter 1962 — A Late-Night Visit, Part Two

"It's no use — I can't catch him. A Grand Cherokee can run that fast? Has he lost his mind?" The young man frowned, baffled. Just what sort of person was this? It was no sports car, only an SUV, and yet he had pushed it to three hundred — truly beyond belief.

"Brother... if we let that man race on our family's behalf... at the Hidden-House Summit coming up soon, might our family not stand to gain far more?" What occupied the youth's mind was not how a Grand Cherokee could run so fast; he was thinking further ahead.

"Right! If we put this man in the race, perhaps we'd win..." The young man's eyes lit up.

"But we don't know who he is. In a little while, have someone pull the surveillance footage from the toll gates and trace the car's owner!" The youth mused a moment, then said, "Let's establish his identity first. If he can be brought into partnership, all the better. If he's tied to our rivals, then our family will have an opponent at this summit..."

"Agreed!" The young man nodded.

Wei Zhao had no notion that his driving had already drawn covetous eyes. He only kept tearing down the road toward Songjiang City.

Watching the blurred scenery beyond the window, Sun Jingyan found it almost unbelievable. This was far too fast, wasn't it? Yet she felt no fear at all. Was it because the one driving was Wei Zhao?

"How can you drive this fast?" Sun Jingyan asked, curious.

"This isn't a proper sports car — otherwise I could go faster still," Wei Zhao said. "There's nothing strange about it. I can fly a plane too, you know. Have you ever seen a plane race?"

"Planes can race?" Sun Jingyan realized that the Wei Zhao she knew was only the tip of the iceberg. Beyond being a cultivator, he seemed to know any number of things she had no grasp of — medicine, for one...

"Heh. I'll take you up for a race someday, and then you'll understand," Wei Zhao said mildly.

A drive that should have taken two hours took Wei Zhao less than one. It was past seven in the evening when the car rolled through the gates of Songjiang Engineering University, and it was stopped at the entrance to the faculty residences. Wei Zhao was neither a student there nor a teacher, so rather than waste words with the guard, he simply parked in a space outside the residential compound and walked with Sun Jingyan to the home of Elder Liu Weishan.

He pressed the doorbell, and after a moment an old man's voice came through: "Who is it?"

"Good evening, Elder Liu. I'm Wei Zhao. Elder Guan Xuemin sent me..." Wei Zhao said respectfully.

"Oh? Little Yi, is it? Please, come in!" The electronic gate buzzed open, and Wei Zhao led Sun Jingyan inside and up the stairs without trouble. Liu Weishan had already opened his door and stood waiting for him.

"Elder Liu, I'm truly sorry to trouble you so late," Wei Zhao said, a little apologetic.

"Haha, don't say that. This old man has nothing to do from morning to night. My son and his wife have settled abroad, my godson and goddaughter aren't close by, and every day I'm bored to death — I just want something to occupy me!" Liu Weishan, retired and at home, really was as he said: once supper was over each evening, there was nothing left to do.

"Then I won't stand on ceremony." Wei Zhao came in and said to Liu Weishan, "My name is Wei Zhao, and this is my friend Sun Jingyan. I've come because I have a favor to ask of you, Elder Liu."

"Old Guan told me. You're looking for pure yellow jade, is that right? I've already asked friends of mine in the jade trade to make inquiries for you, but there's no word yet. Rest assured, the moment I hear anything I'll tell old Guan at once — you needn't have come in person."

"Elder Liu, I've come this time... because there's another matter as well." So saying, Wei Zhao handed Sun Jingyan's jade pendant to Liu Weishan and said, "Elder Liu, take a look at this pendant..."

"Oh? Pure yellow jade?" Liu Weishan recognized at a glance that the pendant in Wei Zhao's hand was pure yellow jade. Surprised, he said, "You've already found pure yellow jade?"

"Found it we have — but this pendant is the only token Sun Jingyan's parents left her..." Here, despite himself, Wei Zhao looked a little awkward.

"I understand!" Liu Weishan smiled faintly. "Then what do you intend to do with this pendant?"

"Elder Liu, look closely at the surface of the pendant..." Wei Zhao said.

"Look closely?" Liu Weishan picked the pendant up and examined it under the living-room light. The very next moment he exclaimed in astonishment, "This pendant is pieced together? A single piece of jade that was cut apart and then joined back together..."

"Elder Liu, you saw it too?" Wei Zhao nodded.

"The joinery is masterful — without a careful look, you'd never tell," Liu Weishan said. "Little Yi, what is the meaning of showing me this pendant..."

"Elder Liu, could you cut this pendant open again — ideally without damaging it? I suspect something is hidden inside. And if there turns out to be nothing, it would be best if it could be pieced back together," Wei Zhao said.

"Hm, that's no problem at all!" Liu Weishan nodded without a moment's thought — clearly this sort of work posed no difficulty for him.

Wei Zhao and Sun Jingyan were both delighted at his words. They had not expected such an intricate piece of craftsmanship to be no trouble at all in Liu Weishan's eyes.

"Old man, what are you doing? Guests have come to the house, and you're still standing in the doorway?" As she spoke, a kindly-faced old woman came over — plainly Liu Weishan's wife.

"Now? If it's any trouble, it doesn't have to be tonight — tomorrow would do..." Wei Zhao said.

"No trouble at all. I'm idle anyway," Liu Weishan said with a wave of his hand. "I've been wanting something to do."

Seeing Liu Weishan insist, Wei Zhao said no more. Perhaps the old man truly could not sit still; judging by his vigorous air, his health was excellent, and Wei Zhao was not worried that working at night would overtax him.

In the study, Liu Weishan seated himself deftly at the workbench, placed the pendant beneath the microscope, and began studying the grain upon its surface. Wei Zhao and Sun Jingyan did not dare disturb him; they sat quietly on the sofa nearby and waited.

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