Chapter 128 - The Contents Of The Box

At night, all the kids had fallen into their beddings,having been exhausted from their exciting day. Shi AI was also in her room,and had just come out of the shower. She felt so happy that she was humming a happy song and she had forgotten all about the hurtful things from last night. Actually,it could be said thatshe was trying not to dwell on those things for the time being.

Suddenly,there was a knock on her door and she went to open it unaware of the tempting picture she was going to present. Ah Hai stood at the door with a grim look on his face and seeing her looking so pretty like an innocent flower,his face turned blacker. Entering the room and closing the door behind him with a bang,Ah Hai looked at her and said,"You are not going to go out like this from now on!"Shi Ai was confused at this since she was only wearing cotton pyjamas but of course she never realized that even such a simple thing on her was alluring to Ah Hai. Ignoring his edict and his tone,she smiled at his and asked,"Why are you here so late at night?"

Recalling the reason for his nocturnal visit,Ah Hai frowned and then continued,"First promise me that you will never go in front of anyone like this!"

Shi Ai: ".." Finally, to appease the man,Shi Ai just nodded her head in agreement. Since he had not specified what 'this' meant she was not going to take it seriously. 

Satisfied with her agreement, Ah Hai then said,"The box has been opened."

Suddenly Shi Ai had difficulty breathing. She had wanted to have the box open with all her heart but now that they were so close, she was also worried what the box would contain. Shi AI looked at him searching trying to find a clue in Ah Hai's expression but that was ofcourse impossible. So she just nodded her head and said fearfully, yet resigned to her fate,"Let's go and see it."

Soon the two people made their way to the study where Ah Hai had now placed the box of contents. Once Shi Ai had sat down on the chair,Ah Hai placed a bracelet of glittering jadeite on the table. It's shine reflected off the table almost illuminating the whole room. Shi Ai could not move her eyes and did not dare to touch it. She could see that this piece of jewellery was priceless..

She looked at Ah Hai in question. "There were four pieces of jewellery in the box that your mother left with the Grey family. From what I have appraised this bracelet is the least expensive but it is also the one provided the biggest clue. We might just have had a breakthrough. The bracelet is part of an antique set from the Ming dynasty. It was said that the then empress divided the four pieces and sent them to the different corners of the world when she was angry at the emperor for betraying her. It was one of the most priced items from then. Later on three pieces were discovered over the years,a jade crown,a jade necklace and pair of earrings. A collector had brought the three together and offered a handsome price to anyone who brought forward the fourth item. The man wanted to present the gift to his wife to pledge his loyalty to her. This bracelet was thus found by the man and he actually won it in a game of gambling. But before the man could do that,his wife was diagnosed with last stage of cancer and died immediately. The man would have buried the jewellery with his wife but he chose to keep it  for his only daughter."

Shi AI heard the story carefully and only after a few minutes did she realize how the story could be linked to her. In a hesitant voice she asked,"Was my mother that daughter?"

Ah Hai only nodded and turned the laptop's screen towards her. There,on the screen, Shi Ai read an old news article which detailed how a novue rich trader by the name of Shi Xiadong had collected the ancient jewellery and then in his wife's untimely demise kept the same as part of his only daughter's dowry. Shi Xiadong. Shi AI repeated the name in her head a few times. If what Ah Hai said was true then this man Shi Xiadong had been her maternal grandfather..

Even as Shi Ai was processing this piece of information,Ah Hai came to her side and leaning over her,he pressed another key on the keyboard and soon another article appeared on the screen. It was a recent article about an almost eighty year old man holding a service in the memory of his wife and late daughter. This time there was a photo of the people in the article unlike the previous one and Shi Ai's eyes widened in shock. The pictures of the two women closely resembled her. It was like seeing her own picture in different eras. Another thing that caught her eye were the two men standing beside the picture. An older man with a walking stick in his hand was tagged as Elder Shi while the other man looked to be in his 50's was called Elder Shi's nephew and to be successor. "Yes,Elder Shi had never retired from his business until now. And only at this memorial service did he announce his intention to retire due to his failing health. It is being discussed that in the lack of an appropriate heir,he is going to become the chairman. Do you recognize the man, Shi Ai?"

Wordlessly, Shi Ai nodded. The man was the one who had stood next to her mother in the picture they saw yesterday.

Ah Hai then placed the next sets of jewellery in front on Shi Ai. It was indeed the entire set from the Ming dynasty. As Shi Ai stared at the priceless antique jewellery,AH hai then placed a black book in front of Shi Ai. And the rolls of cash. "These are the rest of the things from the box." Shi Ai recognized at first glance what the  lack book was. It was a diary. To be precise it must be her mother's diary. With trembling fingers,she picked up the book lovingly and hugged it to herself. She then opened the book and read her mother's name, "This diary belongs to Shi Qing." She finally knew her mother's name. Shi AI smiled happily and started to read the diary. Seeing her engrossed look, Ah Hai left the room to give her some privacy. 

Shi Ai folded her legs on top of the chair as she read her mother's words in the diary. She realized that her mother did not write the diary on a regular basis and only wrote on special events. The diary began on her mother's sixteenth birthday when she was gifted the jewellery and the last entry was of the day when her mother was burnt to death. From smiling at the entries,Shi Ai read through the night and by the end of the diary her eyes were blazing with a fire. The fire of revenge. Their mother had left them the answer to their biggest questions.

Shi Qinglan. Tha man responsible for everything that they had suffered. The man who stood by their grandfather's side as he mourned for his family. Shi Qinglan. The one who was responsible for their mother's death and for everything that she suffered. 

The night had passed when Shi Ai came out of the door and the sun shone high in the sky. Seeing the dark circles under her eyes, Ah Hai said nothing,simply took the diary she offered and guided her into her own room. She shook her head,rejecting his offer to let her rest but Ah Hai made her agree with single line,"You need to rest well to get revenge."

He guided her onto the bed,pulled the quilt over her and then sat next to her,patting her forehead softly.

Meanwhile,Zhang Min had been handed the responsibility to take the kids back to Matt. With the eldest kids understanding that their Aunt and Uncle were coping with some serious matters,they coaxed everyone and were soon out of their hair.

After Shi Ai had fallen asleep,Ah Hai made his way down the stairs only to see that Zhang Min was browsing through Shi Ai's mother's diary. Zhang Min looked at Ah Hai in shock and asked hesitantly,"What..what is the meaning of this? Who is this person and what have they written that caused Shi Ai to resemble a zombie?"

Ah Hai gestured for Zhang Min to sit and then started to explain everything from the beginning. He had to do this because their next step was vital to Zhang Min.