Chapter 13: Luring the Snake from Its Lair

Thanks to Director Feng’s private car, I managed to rush back to the Gu family ancestral home in just twenty minutes.

At the doorstep, I saw my mother-in-law, Ye Qiang, tending to the flowers in the courtyard. She was holding a watering can, carefully irrigating the flower beds.

Seeing me come back in such a hurry, she quickly approached and asked, “Mazi, you’re back so soon? How did things go with Director Feng? He’s been Gu Beitang’s first client in twenty years, so you must make sure everything is handled properly...”

I didn’t have time for small talk and got straight to the point. “Mom, did anyone come looking for Qianxi this morning? Where is that person now?”

Ye Qiang was momentarily stunned, then asked in disbelief, “How do you know this?”

I thought to myself, How could I not know? That person nearly killed Qianxi! But there was no time to explain; I had to catch the mastermind behind all this as soon as possible.

“Mom, tell me first—who is this person? Where are they now?”

Seeing my urgency, Ye Qiang quickly said, “Oh, don’t worry. That person isn’t a bad person; I actually invited him to do a vision rehabilitation check for Qianxi.”

“You know, Qianxi’s eyes have been blind for seventeen years. Although she regained her sight recently, she still needs rehabilitation and care to avoid lasting complications...”

Suddenly, it all made sense.

So that mastermind was impersonating a rehab doctor, taking advantage of my mother-in-law’s trust to sneak into the villa and harm Qianxi.

That eye mask filled with venomous snakes must have been that person’s doing!

“Where is the doctor now?” I asked in a low voice.

Ye Qiang replied, “He left a while ago, right after finishing the rehabilitation check.”

“But he was quite kind; before leaving, he specially left a steam eye mask for Qianxi to wear while sleeping. He said it could relieve eye fatigue and protect her vision.”

Just as she finished speaking, a ride-hailing car pulled up at the Gu villa’s gate. The car stopped, and a medical worker in a white coat carrying sophisticated equipment stepped out.

“Hello, is this the Gu Qianxi residence? I am Dr. Zhao from Yan City Ophthalmology Hospital, here to conduct a vision rehabilitation check for Ms. Gu Qianxi.”

Hearing this, Ye Qiang was dumbfounded, staring at the doctor in shock. “That’s not right! Your colleague already came earlier and completed the vision rehabilitation check for my daughter! Why are you repeating it? Didn’t you coordinate with your colleague?”

Dr. Zhao was also taken aback and said in confusion, “What? My colleague? That can’t be! I’m the only person responsible for vision rehabilitation checks today. Other colleagues handle different departments. Are you sure you’re not mistaken?”

Ye Qiang’s face went pale, sweat pouring down. “W-what on earth is going on?”

I sneered coldly, “What’s going on? It’s simple—the person who just came for the vision rehabilitation check was not a medical worker at all, but the very culprit who blinded Qianxi years ago!”

After saying that, I hurried inside and went upstairs to Qianxi’s door.

Knock knock knock...

I knocked loudly and called out, “Honey, open the door. It’s me, I’m back.”

Hearing my voice, Qianxi hurried over, cautiously confirming, “Mazi, is it really you?”

I replied, “Yes, it’s really me. Open the door; it’s safe now.”

She obediently opened the door, then like a frightened fawn, crashed into my arms.

“Mazi, you scared me to death. Someone came to check my vision earlier, gave me an eye mask to wear for a nap, saying it would relieve eye fatigue...”

“But when I put it on, I felt something moving inside. I hurriedly took it off, and then saw many small white snakes crawling out from it!”

I gently patted her back, soothing her softly, “Don’t be afraid, sweetheart. You did very well. If you hadn’t taken the mask off in time, those snakes would have bitten your eyes and poisoned you into blindness.”

Thinking of this, a burning rage welled up inside me. I said sternly, “That bastard is truly despicable, intent on blinding you. The sinister spells from back then I managed to break, but now he’s resorting to venomous snakes to harm you. What deep hatred does he bear against you?”

At that moment, my mother-in-law Ye Qiang came upstairs with the real ophthalmologist, anxiously asking, “Qianxi, what happened? What just occurred?”

Qianxi then recounted everything—the snakes hidden in the eye mask, how I used a paper effigy to protect her, and how I burned the snake-infested eye mask—all to my mother-in-law.

Ye Qiang gasped sharply and nearly fainted.

Qianxi quickly supported her, comforting gently, “Mom, don’t worry, I’m fine now, thanks to Mazi’s protection. Nothing happened to me.”

I nodded and said, “Exactly. Actually, I deliberately lured that person out. I picked today to announce to everyone that Qianxi’s eyes had been cured, just to draw the snake from its hole.”

“So the villain took the bait. Qianxi, do you remember what that person looked like? She might still be hiding nearby, ready to strike again.”

Qianxi thought for a moment and described, “I didn’t look closely, but I remember she was a short-haired woman, about forty or fifty years old, with very narrow eyes. The most distinctive thing was her exceptionally pale skin, almost like she had albinism!”

I then asked my mother-in-law, “Mom, did you notice anything else about her appearance besides what Qianxi described?”

Ye Qiang pinched her forehead and said, “Ah, I’m terrified, so scared! My mind’s completely blank—I can’t remember anything else!”

“Why are there such cruel people in the world? And why must she go after Qianxi? My daughter hardly ever goes out; how did she offend this person?”

Seeing my mother-in-law so shaken, I realized she wouldn’t be much help.

I turned to Qianxi and said, “Qianxi, can you describe that person’s appearance in more detail? I’ll try to sketch her.”

Qianxi nodded, “I’ll try my best.”

Immediately, I grabbed some paper and a pen and sat in the living room to draw according to Qianxi’s description.

Among the various trades and professions, there is a class of people skilled at making portraits for a living.

They can not only sketch from live subjects but also have a unique talent for drawing a face they have never seen before, purely based on others’ descriptions.

What’s more remarkable is that although they’ve never seen the person, their portraits are astonishingly accurate, as if drawn directly from life.

In the old days, without cameras or surveillance footage, the authorities relied on this skill to solve cases.

Through victims’ descriptions, they would create images of suspects.

Back then, at the burial ground, I met an old sketch artist who had served in the government for decades, and I learned this ancient craft from him...