“Gu Yuanzhou, you can’t possibly think that I’m the only one with dirty secrets, do you?”


    Hearing this, Gu Yuanzhou immediately questioned me, nervousness clearly seeping through his words.


    “Only my wife knows this secret! How long do you think you can hide it?”


    “Nonsense! There are so many people who know about this! Everyone in the Song family, don’t they know your secret?”


    “Did Song Shixiong tell you?”


    “I don’t want to talk to you anymore! You better cancel the reveal of that diary, or everyone will suffer! There’s a saying that even a rabbit, when cornered, will bite. Don’t push me!”


    My tone was equally firm, attempting to intimidate Gu Yuanzhou.


    However, after hearing my words, Gu Yuanzhou responded with a cold chuckle.


    “I’ve never been threatened by anyone. You’d better leave Qingmu Mountain immediately, or you will regret what you’ve done today for the rest of your life.”


    “Oh, I’m so scared!”


    After saying this, I let the call drop. Although my tone was tough, I still felt a chill run down my spine.<div>


    Wenya was still searching for a vehicle around the mountain road, unable to find anything…


    She came over to ask me,


    “Did youe to an agreement with Gu Yuanzhou?”


    “No! He just threatened me not to go up the mountain!”


    “Ah, what should we do?”


    “Ignore him! Let’s go up the mountain first!”


    “There’s no car!”


    “Then let’s take the trail!”


    The mountain track was more challenging than I imagined. After nearly forty minutes of winding uphill with Wenya, we finally made it to an ancient temple.


    This temple nestled among the green hills, surrounded by lush trees, carried an air of elegance and tranquility, reminiscent of a ce where hermits would cultivate in istion.


    From afar, the sound of a wooden fish being struck and the faint chanting of scriptures echoed.


    “Umm, what ce is this? Are we supposed to go here?”


    Wenya asked, wiping her sweat. I nodded,


    “Gu Yuanzhou’s aunt lives here! She’s a nun. I heard from Song Shixiong that Gu Yuanzhou was raised by his aunt since childhood.”


    Wenya nodded,


    “Alright. It seems this reckless brat needs someone to discipline him.”


    I shared her sentiment, hoping that Gu Yuanzhou’s aunt could rein him in.


    ording to the information Song Shixiong provided, Gu Yuanzhou’s aunt was named Gu Xin. I had never met her and didn’t know what she looked like.<div>


    So, we went to find the head of the temple. After asking around, we found Gu Xin in the back meditation hall.


    To my surprise, Gu Xin wasn’t tonsured. Her lifestyle didn’t differ from that of an ordinary person.


    Though frugal, she followed the Buddhist practices just like any other nun, maintaining a diet of vegetarian meals and reciting scriptures religiously.


    “Auntie Gu, hello!”<div>


    Gu Xin paused from turning her prayer beads and stared at me for a long time.


    “Who are you?”


    Apparently, she didn’t recognize me.


    “I’m Song Xiaoyun… I want to talk to you about Gu Yuanzhou!”


    When Gu Xin heard my name, there was a sh of panic in her eyes. She shot up to her feet, took a few steps back, and wedged herself against the door frame.


    “What’s your rtion to Song Shixiong?”


    I paused for a moment, noticing that she seemed to be afraid of Song Shixiong.


    In order to calm her down, I responded hastily.


    “I don’t have any rtion with him. We just share the same surname.”


    Gu Xin took another look at me, seemingly reassured,


    “Youngdies, I’ve been a nun for quite a while now. Although I do have a nephew, we haven’t been in contact for many years!”


    However, when I walked in, I noticed several pots of newly bought osmanthus flowers in the courtyard…


    The room, though humble, was fitted with air conditioning, and on the desky boxes of high-end ginseng supplements.<div>


    Such expensive items could not have been bought by a nun,


    Obviously, Gu Yuanzhou must visit frequently.


    I understood the situation immediately.


    However, I didn’t press her further and just engaged her in small talk.


    We talked about everything, from the lotus pond in front of the temple, to the wild peacocks in the forest, and on to the topic of spiritual cultivation and reincarnation.


    Gu Xin was very forting in our conversation.


    But the moment I mentioned Gu Yuanzhou, she mmed up as if facing a mortal enemy.


    I wasn’t too concerned, but Wenya, with her impatient nature, couldn’t stand it.


    “I must say, master, we came up the mountain today to seek your help, specifically because of your unruly, inhumane nephew. He’s rampaging through the vige at the mountain’s foot. He killed his own wife and child, and now he’s not sparing anyone else, biting around like a mad dog. You, as Buddhists, talk about hell, he has done such wicked things, reciting scriptures won’t help!”


    Upon hearing her words, Gu Xin just continued turning her prayer beads…


    She began muttering incantations and closed her eyes, still appearing reluctant to meddle in worldly affairs.


    Meanwhile, my phone kept ringing. The screen was lighting up constantly with Gu Yuanzhou’s number.


    It seemed he was very wary of me finding Gu Xin on the mountain.<div>


    It was as if he was afraid that I might uncover a secret about Gu Xin that should have remained hidden.


    He called more than a dozen times. I showed no intention of answering.


    Then he started texting me.


    “Listen, you’d better cancel your trip right now, or I will not let you go!”


    I saw the text but didn’t reply.


    However, Wenya, after seeing his message, grew even more furious.


    Finally, she started ranting at Gu Xin.


    “Forget it, forget it, I don’t think pleading with her will do any good. Why don’t I just get a knife and head over to Gu Yuanzhou’s house and stab him? That would be the end of it. Everyone has only one life. At most, we can trade ours for his. If there’s no knife, I can bring a stick of dynamite to hispany. The more we can blow up, the better!”


    Wenya was just venting her anger. However, on hearing her words, Gu Xin opened her eyes wide with rm,


    “Uneptable! Uneptable! How can there be such murderous intent in a realm of purity as told by Buddha? Amitabha! My sins, my sins!”


    Wenya retorted, “Even Buddha won’t save us. You see your wicked nephew causing harm and don’t stop him. So much for your ‘Land of Purity.’”


    Gu Xin put down her prayer beads, folded her hands together, and finally sighed,


    “This silly boy, how could he keep me in the dark about all the wrong things he’s done?”<div>


    After a long while, she turned to Wenya.


    “Is what you said earlier true? Are his wife and child really gone?”


    “Auntie… ah, master, I cannot lie to you! If you don’t believe me, you can look up the Golden Bay arson case online!”


    Gu Xin’s eyes held a mncholy sadness. She shook her head,


    “I have no ess to the inte here. Nuns are oblivious to worldly matters! The dead… was it the girl surnamed Song?”


    “Yes… It was Song Shixiong’s niece who died!”


    Upon hearing this, Gu Xin’s eyes filled with tears. Her voice turned husky.


    “My sins, my sins. These are all my sins! He had promised me that he would let go of the past. Why can’t he let go? This silly boy, he wouldn’t say a word when he came here!”


    It appeared that Gu Xin knew very little.


    Why did she keep mentioning her sins?


    Could the Golden Bay arson case have something to do with her?