The man called Uncle Yi hooked his glasses under his nose, lowered his head slightly, raised his eyes to look at her, and sized her up and down with a sharp gaze, as if he could tell what she was thinking at a glance.
"Oh, go ahead."
There was a golden owl statue on the counter. He turned it slightly and saw that there was a crack in the cabinet next to it.
Wen Qiao was a little surprised. She followed Dong Yao to the bookcase and found it was a dark room.
Entering the dark room was a long staircase, followed by a narrow corridor. After several twists and turns, an iron door appeared in front of him. Dong Yao reached out and opened the door.
Wen Qiao couldn't help but let out a "wow" sound.
It was as if there was light at the end of the tunnel, and there was a whole new world underground.
What came into view was a huge hall, like an old-style train station from the Republic of China era. Opposite was a huge ancient clock. When they arrived, it was exactly six o'clock in the evening, and the hour hand reached six-
'Ding... Ding...' A heavy bell sounded, echoing in the empty hall. Wen Qiao could feel the stairs under his feet shaking slightly.
The hall was bustling with people, and all around it were various shops selling everything from rare antiques to precious medicinal herbs, many of which were things Wen Qiao had never seen before.
The people here all look ordinary, just ordinary people who wouldn't attract any second glances when they walk on the street, no matter their appearance or their clothes.
When the two of them just pushed open the door, almost everyone in the hall focused their attention on them. Coming in through this door proved that they were from the Dong family. This underground market was founded by the Dong family. Looking at the two people again, they should be the young master and daughter of the Dong family.
Dong Yao led her downstairs, and those people were not particularly attentive.
Dong Yao walked through the crowd and headed straight for a shop in the southwest corner where business was relatively slow.
There were two people chatting at the door, one was a young man and the other was an old man with gray hair.
"Is it Grandpa Lin?" Dong Yao asked the white-haired old man.
The old man turned around and looked at him: "Who are you?"
"My grandfather is Dong Yifu."
The old man called Grandpa Lin immediately smiled and said, "Oh, it's the old boss's grandson. He has grown up so big."
"Grandpa Lin, I have something to ask you."
"What is it?"
Dong Yao looked around. This Grandpa Lin had traveled a lot and was well-versed in human relationships. He could see through everything at a glance, so he said, "Let's go to the flower bed over there."
Wen Qiao and Dong Yao followed the old man to the flower bed. It was quiet there and not many people around.
Dong Yao then said, "My grandfather said, you know a disease where a person cannot live without another person, right?"
Grandpa Lin looked him up and down, then looked at the little girl behind him: "What's wrong?"
"Dong Yao didn't intend to hide it, and pulled Wen Qiao to him: "She has this disease."
Grandpa Lin frowned slightly: "What kind exactly?"
Wen Qiao told the old man about why she couldn't leave Fu Nanli for thirteen days. The old man looked a little solemn, "I have heard about it. My ancestor was a historian in the imperial palace. Of course, these things can't be recorded in the official history, but my ancestor left a book of unofficial history. I read it and found that a concubine must stay with the emperor to survive. It seems to be seven days. It is similar to your symptoms. After reading it, I think my ancestor made up too much lies. Today I see you and know that there are so many strange things in the world."
Wen Qiao's heart suddenly rose to his throat, and his voice was a little urgent: "What happened to the concubine in the records? Was the disease cured?"
Grandpa Lin: "Well... she fell out of favor and was banished to the cold palace. She couldn't see the emperor and died miserably in the cold palace."
Wen Qiao: …
excuse me
(End of this chapter)