Chapter 287

Page Ninety-Seven Overcast Skies

“No, she wouldn’t do that.”

Pacing back and forth in front of the ICU door, the senior sister denied my mother’s speculation. She firmly stated, “The altar will definitely be left for Xiao Kai. Even if things have come to this, she has her own bottom line.”

I don’t think the altar is important.

If smashing the altar could retain Grandma, Mother, and Cherry Sauce’s tomorrow, I would undoubtedly smash it to pieces without hesitation.

Well, like something called a “Crown Position” thing.

My mother fell silent for a moment.

Then she asked, “…Without the altar? What else can she do?”

The senior sister raised her index finger to her lips and whispered, “We can’t tell you yet… If it were you, you should understand, right?”

I understood what the senior sister meant.

Once Master’s final trump card was revealed, Heavenly Path would detect it and lose its effect, just like my mother’s true identity.

“That old man* is really annoying until the end.”

My mother scratched the back of her head and then turned to look at Mother.

“I’m sorry, Xiao Wei. You’ve heard everything. For this period… I might not have time to accompany you.”

She herself didn’t have much time left, yet now she had to prepare for Grandma’s surgery… This was too unfair to Mother.

Even though she was reluctant, Mother packed away her capriciousness and nodded obediently.

“I’ll wait for you. I know the gravity of the situation.”

Her eyes were red when she said this.

I stepped forward, took hold of Mother’s hand, and then said to my mother, “Take the jewel back… There must be some useful things inside, right?”

“Huh? It’s not just junk! Big Brother speaks so bluntly!” My mother tapped my forehead sarcastically.

She continued, “But indeed, it can be used. I’ll use the jewel to send you home, and after that, I’ll go help at the research institute.”

“I entrust Grandma’s matter to you.”

I said this, and Mother patted her chest as a guarantee.

“It’s all on me!”

Lin Hua stood on Mother’s other side.

“It seems like you two will have to stay up all night.”

The senior sister affirmed, “Yes, regardless of whether the former principal is willing to let the senior sister handle the kidney transplant surgery, we need to be ready to perform it at any time.”

“Hopefully, we get a response by tomorrow… Senior Sister, may I ask, what is the success rate of this surgery?”

Everyone looked at the senior sister. Actually, everyone was concerned about this, but only I naively asked.

“…Xiao Kai, you sure know how to ask tricky questions.”

The senior sister sighed while crossing her arms, then raised her eyebrows and replied, “It’s hard to make guarantees with surgeries, but Director Ke’s reply is…”

She held up three fingers.

“Only thirty percent?”

“Yes, the danger isn’t in the surgery itself, but rather the postoperative reaction… Because this stage of the ritual is difficult to achieve any significant effect, we can only ensure the surgery transitions as safely as possible, and then it depends on Yue Hua’s adaptation.”

That means, even if Brother Zhu donates a healthy kidney and the surgery is quite successful, there’s still a large element of fate involved.

“But I guarantee that the success rate of the surgery performed by the doctors at this hospital will be even lower.”

“Don’t be so pessimistic.”

Mother waved her finger and said, “Since we already have thirty percent, with me, it’s practically a thousand percent success rate, right?”

Although I knew she was trying to lighten the mood, I couldn’t help but comment.

“A thousand percent? How did you calculate that?”

—

“The success rate is Sanpa San Dou Da!”

—

Even with the convenient spatial jewel, we got home close to eleven. Xiao Lei, who had just returned from work, had already finished bathing.

After dropping me, Lin Hua, and Mother off at home, Mother went straight to the research institute. Through today’s lecture, she successfully connected with the senior sister and achieved her magical energy freedom, using it without hesitation.

However, she didn’t take Youzi with her, as the simple-minded Dumb Lynx couldn’t help with ritual development and was left at home to become Little Qinglan’s plaything.

But sometimes, she would transform into human form to exact revenge.

“I never expected Empress Huangfu’s condition to be this serious… The Huangfu family is in trouble, isn’t it? That Huangfu Zhen doesn’t have the capacity to take over as the head of the family.”

Little Qinglan, who was hugging Youzi, spoke her mind based on what she had learned from Cherry Sauce.

But saying such out-of-place remarks naturally drew a hit on the head from Lin Hua.

“How bold are you? To say such things right in front of me, your daughter? Where is your mother unfit to take over as the head of the family?”

In response, Little Qinglan escalated, “I’m telling the truth! No one in the current Huangfu family can replace Empress Huangfu, not even your mother! If Grandma passes away relying on her prestige, the Huangfu family will suffer a huge blow! It wouldn’t be strange for their assets to shrink! Not to mention, if someone else takes over the position of the principal of Bìyáng Girls’ School, can they still attract the daughters of wealthy and powerful families?”

“…Of course they can!”

Lin Hua’s voice lacked confidence. Without the support of merchants and powerful figures, Bìyáng Girls’ School would eventually become an ordinary high school, and it might even abolish the tradition of separate schooling for boys and girls under pressure from public opinion.

Now wasn’t the time to discuss these matters.

I intervened, “Okay, okay, stop arguing! Little Qinglan, everyone is in a bad mood, so don’t talk about this.”

I looked at the living room sofa.

Cherry Sauce was chatting with Mother.

“Mom, you’re reluctant to let Qian Xia leave, aren’t you?”

“Of course I am. You guys also mentioned before that her condition isn’t optimistic, right? At this crucial moment, she’s still putting so much effort into such important matters… Has she ever considered herself?”

Mother vented the grievances she hadn’t expressed in the hospital.

Cherry Sauce comforted her by holding her arm, “Qian Xia knows her limits. Before reaching that limit, she will definitely return to see you.”

“Ah, it was好不容易才重新见面…”

Mother’s eyes were filled with melancholy, pitiful and helpless, but the matter of Grandma was more pressing at the moment.

Although Mother seemed light-hearted, she actually placed great importance on Grandma… This wasn’t just about doing something before disappearing, but even though they had never recognized each other, as half-soul of Brother Zhu, she and Grandma were undoubtedly mother and daughter.

“Before visiting Grandma tomorrow, let’s go meet Grandfather in the south of the city first.”

Lin Hua seemed to have some thoughts.

I reminded her, “The senior sister has certainly informed Master about Grandma going into ICU, but she can’t come out.”

Grandma’s physical state also made it impossible for her to visit Master Haliluya. As a result, it was likely that they wouldn’t be able to meet each other.

A grand goddess of beautiful girls, unable to save her own happiness, how could she spread happiness?

—”Grandfather has long ceased performing divine duties. Now, her existence is solely to preserve this last ember.”—

What about me?

Do I have a way to make both of them happy?

—”Don’t ask me, I don’t know how to do that either.”—

Isn’t there a way to lift the punishment?

Doesn’t Heavenly Path have any compassion?

—”I understand your feelings, but getting angry at a purely rational ‘world stability system’ won’t help.”—

Is there a way to put the emotional Lord Hai back into this system?

These thoughts flashed by, and Lin Hua shook her head and continued speaking.

“I don’t expect her to come out to visit Grandma. I just want to confirm her stance and then plan the next steps.”

“Master is also powerless, she wishes to be by Grandma’s side.”

“Kai-chan, I don’t want to hear these words from you. I want her to say it herself, so Grandma can hear it.”

“…You hope Master convinces Grandma to undergo the surgery at the senior sister’s place?”

“Yes, I believe Grandma’s psychological knot must be resolved by her.”

Lin Hua’s statement also drew the attention of Mother and Cherry Sauce.

Cherry Sauce shrugged, “There’s nothing wrong with that. After all, Grandma’s psychological wound was left by Grandfather… If handled improperly, it could directly lead to Grandma dying in bed from anger. She can’t afford any emotional fluctuations right now.”

“That’s why I need to confirm first.”

I asked, “And then what?”

Lin Hua replied, “Let them meet…”

Cherry Sauce added, “But they can’t meet. Grandfather is still serving an indefinite sentence in Heavenly Path’s prison temple.”

“But apart from not being able to go out, she can do everything else, right? Cherry Sauce, don’t underestimate modern technology!”

Lin Hua winked playfully, and I understood her meaning.

“You plan to…”

“Yes, video call over the internet. I’ve wanted to do this for a long time, but Grandfather has always been unwilling… But if we don’t act now, it might be too late.”

Lin Hua looked at me and reaffirmed, “Let us make this happen!”

A spirited declaration.

But she must convince both Grandma and Master.

“Don’t treat this as if it’s none of your business. You can’t stay out of it. You can’t help with ritual development, but at least you need to contribute to Lin Hua’s side.”

I was lectured by Cherry Sauce.

I sighed, “So do you have a detailed plan?”

“I think convincing Grandfather isn’t hard, the challenge lies in making Grandma accept the video call, and how Grandfather can gain Grandma’s forgiveness and convince her to accept Boss’s transplant surgery… Grandma is very stubborn. If she doesn’t forgive Grandfather, she will likely refuse to undergo the surgery.”

“Grandma wouldn’t risk her life, would she? Her saying she needs to consider it today is probably just formalities…”

“Kai-chan, you don’t understand Grandma. If her death could make Grandfather suffer and feel guilty, she might truly give up on life… That’s not twisted feelings, it’s pure hatred. Grandma has been driven by this hatred for decades.”

Two people once in love, a small misunderstanding, after fermenting over time, could escalate to such a degree.

And we were planning to mend their relationship. The difficulty of this task was evident.

“Then let’s go to the south of the city tomorrow morning.”

Although I hadn’t gone to school for three consecutive days, now school was no longer important.

I said, “Confirm Master’s sincerity and convey this to Grandma!”