Chapter 38: The Jade-Faced Judge of Hell

The comments section below the stream was ablaze with lively chatter.

[How many tombs has this beautiful woman visited to have such sharp eyes!]

[Lol, I bet the streamer quit being a tomb raider and now does livestreams. Amazing! The local cultural relics bureau probably can’t appraise as fast as she can!]

[Her eyes are truly unrivaled. There’s never been a single treasure she’s misidentified.]

Finally, a comment appeared from an officially verified police account: [Please hand it over immediately! The sunken silver from Zhang Xianzhong at the bottom of the river that this streamer appraised previously was authentic. With the help of local villagers, those involved have already been arrested!]

As soon as this comment appeared, the chat exploded with gifts. The number of viewers in the livestream soared to seventy thousand!

Even Zhong Huayan found this hard to believe—her luck lately had been outrageously good!

“I’ll go hand it over right now. Thank you, teacher.”

“Yes, as long as you turn it in on your own, there’s no problem. If you’re caught with it—even if you claim ignorance—there’s no escaping punishment. None of these artifacts have the patina of heirlooms, any expert can see that. Things this ancient just don’t survive so intact unless they’re from a familiar site.”

After giving her final warning, she closed the video connection with the previous guest and brought in the next.

This time, it was a young woman. She dragged out several boxes from beneath her sofa, her voice betraying her nervousness.

“Teacher, do I need to turn these in too?”

Inside the boxes were many vividly painted bowls, with red characters stamped on their bases.

“There’s no need. These are civilian kilns, late Qing dynasty polychrome ware. As for price, each one is worth about two thousand to fifty thousand.”

“Oh, then... would you be interested in buying them?” the girl asked honestly.

Zhong Huayan nodded, “Of course. These pieces are all in excellent condition. When did your family acquire them?”

“My great-grandfather bought them, I think. They’ve been around for ages. I want to sell them to start a business. I asked around, but everyone offered less than your price.”

Her words were forthright.

“Your great-grandfather? He must have been a government official, or he couldn’t have kept these. These are fine civilian wares, the price is more than fair. I’ll message you privately—add me on WeChat.”

Zhong Huayan had appraised nearly a hundred items that day, but the sword from the beginning left the deepest impression.

After ending the stream, she saw her earnings had reached nearly ten thousand—a record high. She’d gained a hundred thousand new followers.

Her livestream clip featuring the inscribed sword of a Shang or Zhou dynasty king shot straight to the trending list!

She turned, beaming, only to meet the man’s gaze.

Fu Yanyan felt shaken to his core. He’d always known Huayan was knowledgeable, talented, and a shrewd businesswoman, but he’d never imagined she excelled in so many specialized fields.

A sense of inferiority crept into his heart...

He sat at his desk, behind him a famous Italian landmark, the afternoon light streaming in after the rain. His hands, elegant as jade, gripped a pen with such intensity that veins stood out, making him appear both alluring and distant.

“You still haven’t accepted my friend request.”

She suddenly realized and unlocked her phone—she’d nearly forgotten.

Lately, she liked teasing him, adopting the commanding air she had as the former chairwoman of the Zhong family.

“I haven’t accepted; so what? Why are you so demanding?”

The words nearly undid him.

Uncertainty flashed in his heart, leaving him at a loss.

The man, usually so aloof and untouchable, now had eyes tinged with red.

After two hours of streaming, her throat was parched; she went to pour herself a glass of water. Just as she stood, he reflexively rose too, his long legs crossing the room in a few strides to catch her hand.

“Huayan, I won’t ask for more. Just stay by my side.”

She raised her hand, and he immediately bent down, pressing his face into her palm.

“If you want to touch me, or even hit me, I don’t mind. Just, please, don’t leave me.”

He was like a puppy, seeking approval from its master.

As she caressed his face, she couldn’t reconcile this man—once aloof, imposing, untouchable, a figure who seemed above all earthly matters—with the one now utterly subdued in her hands.

Perhaps, he had surrendered long ago.

She’d always thought it was the deference of a younger brother to his elder sister.

But in his eyes, she was always the savior, the dazzling sun in the sky, the most unique soul in the world.

“Fu Yanyan, I’m just getting a glass of water. I never meant to leave you. And I’ve already accepted your friend request.”

A fleeting light sparked in his previously dim eyes.

He nuzzled her hand with his face, overjoyed.

“You can order me around. I’ll fetch you water. I’ll do anything for you.”

Zhong Huayan felt a strange sense of unreality. She tried to restrain herself, but for a woman starved of love and once betrayed, this unwavering devotion was deeply moving.

“So, you need to be even more obedient. If you ever lie to me, betray me, or keep secrets from me, I’ll leave you. I can live just fine on my own. I don’t need a man who can’t comfort me, even if we were childhood sweethearts.”

At first, Zhong Huayan hadn’t trusted him completely; some of his past actions had shown that Fu Yanyan was obsessive and ruthless.

“Don’t worry, Huayan. I’ve said it before: I’ll love you forever.”

“I don’t need love. I just need you to protect me—the way I once protected you.”

His eyes narrowed, seductive without meaning to be. Even bent over to speak with her, he radiated gravity and depth.

It was impossible to tell whether her words pleased him or not.

It was precisely this depth that stifled her. If it were straightforward business negotiations, she could handle it. But faced with someone so inscrutable, she instinctively felt fear.

Fu Yanyan was, by nature, a master of concealment and calculation.

“Here, Huayan. Drink some water.”

As she sipped, she thought to herself—Fu Yanyan hadn’t always been like this.

As a child, he was quiet but upright. She was always the one with wild ideas; he would carry them out and then worry about her getting punished.

Even in school, she was the tough one. If anyone bullied him, she’d march over and give them a slap.

But not Fu Yanyan—he was soft-hearted and kind, never cried or laughed much.

When he finally got his hands on some pocket money, he’d buy snacks for his dormmates and not use any for himself.

He’d give his meal money to beggars he met on the street.

If he saw an old woman who’d fallen, he’d patiently help her up.

Whenever they walked together, people asking for directions always approached him—he looked so upright and proper, a clean and polite child, never raising his voice.

By contrast, she was rebellious—walking around with her hair dyed in all colors, manicured nails, even wearing high heels for school runs...

So when did this gentle little Buddha, Fu Yanyan, turn into the ruthless, jade-faced demon he was now?

She’d long known how cruel he could be in business.

She’d heard stories from his driver about how he dealt with those who insulted him...

And she had seen it herself—how he cradled her lifeless body, murmuring with a mad, feverish devotion...