Chapter 12: I Am Willing to Sacrifice
“Master! You’re here!”
Upon seeing Chen Fan enter the room, Zhang Qiankun immediately stood up and greeted him with utmost respect.
Jiang Yueshan and Su Juan, standing at the door, witnessed Zhang Qiankun’s reverence toward Chen Fan and felt as if the sky had fallen.
Even Song Shuqiao, wiping away her tears, was surprised—Zhang Qiankun actually showed such respect to Chen Fan!
The word “Master” was truly spoken aloud.
“Clang.”
Zhang Qiusheng entered and closed the door behind him, cutting off Jiang Yueshan and Su Juan’s view.
“Master, please save Xiao Chen!” Song Shuqiao nodded repeatedly. “Whatever you need, we will do our utmost to provide!”
Chen Fan remained silent, and the three of them anxiously stared at him.
Right now, only Chen Fan could help Zhang Chen.
Chen Fan calmly walked to the bedside, his brows furrowing as he looked at Zhang Chen’s face.
This Zhang Chen...
His life palace was off.
In other words, he was not Zhang Qiusheng’s biological son.
Chen Fan opened his mouth to speak but hesitated, instead looking at Song Shuqiao.
“What—what do you intend to do?” Song Shuqiao was unnerved by his gaze.
Chen Fan didn’t answer, instead turning to Zhang Qiusheng.
That piercing look made Zhang Qiusheng shudder uncontrollably.
“Master, what have you discovered?” Zhang Qiankun couldn’t contain his impatience.
“Hmm...”
Chen Fan was silent for a moment. “Actually, solving the backlash from feng shui is quite simple.”
“As long as you establish a cyclical feng shui formation with a blood relative, then sketch a gentle, continuous flow at the ancestral home, it can gradually dissipate the backlash.”
Zhang Qiankun’s face lit up with excitement, his wrinkles deepening with joy.
He clapped his hands eagerly, not noticing the subtle change in Zhang Qiusheng and Song Shuqiao’s expressions.
“As expected of Master, using feng shui to alleviate the backlash! I had thought of this before, but if the details were wrong, the backlash would only worsen.”
“Master, we’re in your debt!”
“At tonight’s apprenticeship banquet, I will surely present a gift that pleases you!”
Chen Fan shook his head slightly. “The apprenticeship banquet is unnecessary.”
Before Zhang Qiankun could voice his confusion, Chen Fan continued, “The real issue now is: who are the child’s biological parents?”
His gaze shifted between Zhang Qiusheng and Song Shuqiao.
This child was neither Zhang Qiusheng’s nor Song Shuqiao’s.
Most importantly, Zhang Qiankun was still unaware and had been treating Zhang Chen as his own grandson.
Chen Fan intended to prompt them to confess themselves, but these two dared not speak.
“Master, what did you say? The biological parents aren’t...”
Zhang Qiankun’s words abruptly stopped.
He stared at Zhang Qiusheng and Song Shuqiao, who lowered their heads to avoid his gaze, and instantly grew furious.
“Speak! Qiusheng, tell me—whose child is this?”
Zhang Qiusheng tilted his head.
“Shuqiao, you say it!” Zhang Qiankun clutched his chest with one hand.
Song Shuqiao bit her lip, hesitating before looking at Zhang Qiusheng.
With a helpless tug at his mouth, Zhang Qiusheng said, “Alright.”
“Dad, Zhang Chen is actually my cousin’s child.”
Song Shuqiao lowered her head and hesitated. “Back then, my cousin was young and naive, pregnant and came to me...”
“Is that an excuse?!”
“Is that an excuse?!”
Zhang Qiankun slammed the table angrily. “What matters to me is why you lied to me!”
His face flushed with fury, his legs weak, forcing him to sit down.
“I’ve spent my life discerning people, yet I never checked if my grandson truly shares the Zhang family bloodline.”
He recalled when Zhang Qiusheng and Song Shuqiao returned from out of town years ago with a chubby boy.
Zhang Qiankun had sensed some connection between the child and the Zhang family, so out of trust, he never examined the boy’s appearance.
He intended to train Zhang Chen as a feng shui master, and using physiognomy to predict a feng shui master’s future was considered rude and improper.
“Dad, I’m sorry.” Zhang Qiusheng hung his head.
After a long pause, Song Shuqiao spoke softly, “Dad, after my sister entrusted the child to me, she jumped off a building...”
“I was helpless; all I could do was...”
Zhang Qiankun waved his hand, ignoring them, and turned to Chen Fan. “Master, do you think... there’s still hope?”
“There is.”
Chen Fan nodded slightly. “But I warn you: in order to remove the backlash, the sacrifice must come from you.”
“Dad!”
Zhang Qiusheng glanced at the sobbing Song Shuqiao and couldn’t help but shout, “Even if Zhang Chen isn’t our blood, he has called me ‘Dad’ all these years and you ‘Grandpa’...”
“Enough.”
The command to be silent wasn’t from Zhang Qiankun, but from Chen Fan.
Chen Fan wanted to see what choice Zhang Qiankun would make:
Would he sacrifice himself to save the boy, or refuse to make the sacrifice?
“Master Chen, please proceed.” Zhang Qiankun sighed deeply.
Chen Fan nodded slightly. Zhang Qiusheng and Song Shuqiao both breathed a sigh of relief.
“Dad, thank you...”
“Thank? No thanks necessary! I choose to save Zhang Chen not because of you two, but because he is a good child!” Zhang Qiankun growled.
Chen Fan said calmly, “Old Zhang, do you want to know what you will sacrifice?”
“Life. I accept that.” Zhang Qiankun sighed.
When it comes to feng shui formations, especially those experiencing backlash, it inevitably causes some form of harm.
With certain unusual feng shui, like the Jiang family’s formation, it’s even possible for it to be lethal.
“Dad...”
Both Zhang Qiusheng and Song Shuqiao’s faces were etched with complexity.
“Enough talk. I’m willing to sacrifice.”
Zhang Qiankun shook his head. “Before I die, being able to witness the master’s miraculous feng shui craftsmanship is enough to satisfy me.”
Chen Fan shook his head slightly. “Who told you it would be your life?”
“Old Zhang, don’t call me Master anymore, and there’s no need for the apprenticeship banquet.”
“I will not take you as my disciple.”
“From now on... we shall discuss our art as equals.”