Chapter 46

Lin Yi glanced at the barrage of comments on the live stream and secretly smiled to himself.

He had no choice but to say he was Xiao Jian; in the vast Forbidden City, it was difficult for an outsider like him, a "eunuch," to find a place to settle down!

However, by attaching himself to the likes of Little Swallow and Fifth Prince, he could secure his position without any issues.

On his way to the Shufang Study, he had already decided on his identity: Xiao Jian.

Xiao Jian—originally named Fang Yan, from Zhejiang. His father, Fang Zhihang, was imprisoned by Emperor Qianlong due to a literary inquisition and later executed on the order of Magistrate Ma.

Nineteen members of the Fang family were implicated, and only the brother and sister managed to escape in the chaos. The boy was taken to Yunnan and apprenticed to a high-ranking monk, where he studied literature and martial arts.

The girl, by a twist of fate, was abandoned at a nunnery and her whereabouts became unknown!

When the boy grew up, he traveled across the land with a flute and a sword, adopting the name Xiao Jian, determined to find his sister. The deep-seated enmity and the search for his sister, who was none other than—Little Swallow, the Pearl Girl, were etched in his heart.

Xiao Jian would only come to the capital in the second part of "The Story of a Pearl," which was still a long way off. Lin Yi decided to "play the role" of Xiao Jian and secure his position in the Forbidden City.

Inside the Shufang Study, everyone stared at Lin Yi, their faces filled with shock and disbelief. What was going on? Little Swallow's brother?

Little Swallow, being straightforward, didn't care about Lin Yi's motives and asked in confusion, "I've never had a father or mother since I was little, how could I have a brother?"

Lin Yi looked at Little Swallow and smiled, asking, "When you were little, were you ever taken in by a nun?"

"Yes!" Little Swallow fell into a reverie and then suddenly exclaimed.

Lin Yi nodded and said, "That's it! You are my biological sister, we are surnamed Fang!"

Little Swallow asked with some doubt, "But you're called Xiao Jian, right?"

Everyone also stared at Lin Yi, what was going on? One moment he's Xiao Jian, the next he's surnamed Fang? Little Swallow's brother?

Lin Yi said calmly, "My name Xiao Jian, like your name Little Swallow, is not real. Our family, the Fangs, is a prominent family from Zhejiang, residing in Hangzhou.

Over a decade ago, my father was pursued by his enemies. Fearing for our safety, he hastily entrusted me to my adoptive father and sent me to Yunnan to be raised.

My one-year-old sister was given to a wet nurse to be taken to Beijing and handed over to an old family friend there.

However, on the way, the wet nurse fell ill and was left at the door of a nunnery, where my sister was taken in.

The wet nurse fled back to Zhejiang and abandoned my sister!

A few years ago, I found the wet nurse and then the nun who had taken in my sister. She told me that she raised my sister until she was seven years old. One day, my sister sneaked out to see the lanterns and was never seen again!"

Everyone listened intently.

Little Swallow was particularly moved and asked with excitement, "Then... why do you think I am your sister?"

Lin Yi smiled and said, "I don't have 100% certainty! The nun told me that my sister was very mischievous and often got into trouble, frequently sneaking out to play and disliking studying.

Since she went missing, I have never seen her again.

Until recently, in Beijing, during the emperor's sacrifice to heaven, I saw the Pearl Girl in the procession. Her bold and expressive eyes reminded me of my little sister from back then!"

"Really?" Little Swallow's eyes were filled with tears, her heart racing. Could this really be her real brother?

Lin Yi nodded and said, "That's why I infiltrated the palace to find you."

"You became a eunuch?" Little Swallow looked at Lin Yi in his eunuch attire, shocked by his infiltration of the palace.

Lin Yi smiled and said, "A fake eunuch."

Everyone was astonished, thinking how daring this person was to pretend to be a eunuch and successfully infiltrate the palace!

Little Swallow asked urgently, "Then, were our parents killed by our enemies?"

Lin Yi sighed and said, "Our father was killed, and our mother died of grief!"

Little Swallow was filled with righteous indignation and said, "What deep-seated enmity could lead to the death of our father? How despicable!"

Lin Yi sighed again and said, "The enmity in the martial world is complex, and I am not entirely clear about the details."

Little Swallow asked, "Then... have you found the enemy?"

"No." Lin Yi shook his head, unwilling to dwell on the issue.

The people in the room, seeing him and Little Swallow, were already 80% convinced, especially when "Xiao Jian" mentioned that Little Swallow was taken in by a nun and went missing at the age of seven.

This was Little Swallow's personal experience and could not be faked.

Little Swallow's eyes welled up with tears as she stared at Lin Yi, a new kind of pain welling up in her heart. She said with excitement, "So, I'm not an orphan anymore? So, I have a brother! I have a surname! How strange! After being an orphan for so long, suddenly finding out I have a brother..."

Tears streamed down her face as she spoke.

Lin Yi, seeing this, suddenly felt a bit guilty about deceiving such an innocent girl.

But there was no choice; he had to survive! Anyway, you do have a brother, and Xiao Jian will come to find you eventually!

"Little sister!"

Lin Yi called out with excitement, and Little Swallow, tears streaming down her face, threw herself into his arms, muttering, "Xiao Jian, you are my brother... we are surnamed Fang... I have a brother..."

The people in the room were also moved by this scene, temporarily easing the tense atmosphere after Zhiwei was taken by the Empress.

Lin Yi patted Little Swallow's shoulder to comfort her and then asked, "I heard outside that you seem to have some trouble?"

"Huh?" Little Swallow pulled herself out of her "brother's" embrace, her excited expression turning anxious.

Everyone else was also anxious, and they started to explain in a flurry of words.

Zhiwei... was taken by the Empress!

Lin Yi nodded silently, occasionally nodding in agreement.

In the live stream, a barrage of comments rolled across the screen—

"This is really going to be 'The Story of a Pearl'! My childhood memory! A classic!"

"I remember watching 'The Story of a Pearl' when I was in elementary school, with my parents. It's so nostalgic!"

"A childhood classic!"

"But wait! The streamer is playing Xiao Jian, isn't that from the second part? I remember Zhiwei being taken by the Empress in the first part?"

"Exactly, when Zhiwei was taken by the Empress, she wasn't even a princess yet, just a palace maid! This is the first part! Xiao Jian only appears in the second part!"

"Damn! Streamer, you're messing with the script! I'm going to sue you!"

"Exactly! No random insertions!"

"Alright, you bunch of losers, the streamer has the money and the freedom to do as he pleases. What's wrong with Xiao Jian appearing in the first part?"

"Exactly, exactly!"

... Mobile users, please visit http://m.piaotia.net

Page flip AD starts

Page flip AD ends