The spring sunlight streamed through the window into the spacious tea room.

Feng Yi stared at the stack of papers before him, his face strained, beads of sweat tracing paths down his forehead.

Just an hour ago, he was a miserable young man, betrayed by a business partner, deep in debt, and struggling desperately.

And now…

Feng Yi glanced at the old man seated across the table. The man was immaculate from his clothing to his hair, like an old-world gentleman. He wore a smile so perfectly measured that the curve of his lips seemed calibrated; any wider would be deliberate, any less would be perfunctory. It was as if the documents on the table were merely a dinner menu, not a property transfer agreement worth hundreds of millions.

When Feng Yi was at his lowest, nearly in despair, this old man had appeared and told him he had a great-aunt he’d never met who had recently passed away and left him a massive inheritance.

As an adult who had recently been battered by society, Feng Yi didn’t believe in sudden, fortunate windfalls, especially not ones that appeared so conveniently.

So, when the old man first presented the news, Feng Yi’s immediate thought was….

A scammer!

But now, facing the property transfer agreement on the table, Feng Yi was about seventy percent convinced.

Of course, this conviction was heavily influenced by the three renowned lawyers from the city sitting nearby. A quick search online would pull up a lot of information on them, and Feng Yi had even dealt with one of them briefly before.

Why not completely convinced?

What lay before him was a property transfer agreement, not a will. According to the old butler, the portion of the great-aunt’s segmented estate meant for Feng Yi was handed directly to the butler, who would then transfer the assets to Feng Yi in batches, with no time limit or specific amount required for each installment.

This entire process struck Feng Yi as completely baffling.

He couldn’t understand why his great-aunt would choose such a method to bequeath her legacy.

Was the old butler trustworthy? More so than her own children?

If one of his great-aunt’s children or grandchildren had come, it would be understandable; they at least had a blood relationship.

But an old butler?

The first installment that the butler was offering Feng Yi was a hundred million. The prerequisite was simple: Feng Yi had to do one thing, go to the Feng family ancestral home and write his name into the Family Register.

Setting aside the “Feng family ancestral home” that Feng Yi had never heard of, a “Family Register?”

Did such a thing even exist anymore?

What era was this, that a family register was still a factor?

Yet, putting all that aside, getting a hundred million just to go to an ancestral home and sign a name seemed too easy.

He didn’t trust it.

But… one hundred million.

Saddled with crushing debt, he desperately needed the money.

After a long time, Feng Yi finally managed to lift his gaze, which had been fixated on the papers. He wiped the sweat from his palms on his trousers. “…I need to use the restroom first.”

The elder across from him smiled with understanding and gave a slight nod. “Please, take your time.”

Feng Yi stiffly walked out of the tea room, his composure instantly shattering. Breathing rapidly, he rushed into the restroom, locked the door, and splashed cold water hard onto his face from the sink.

Even the cold water didn’t fully wake him up.

Good. It’s not a dream.

Feng Yi looked at his reflection in the mirror.

Due to prolonged insomnia and the stress of his debt, he hadn’t rested properly in a long time. His bloodshot eyes were a frightening, vivid crimson under the stimulation of his emotions.

Splashing his face one more time, he hurriedly dried his hands and pulled out his phone. The dozen-plus missed calls were all from debt collectors.

Ignoring them, Feng Yi opened his contacts and looked at two specific numbers. He hadn’t dialed either since leaving the Feng family five years ago. He hesitated, then called one of them.

It rang for a long time, unanswered.

He called the second number. It was cut off after two rings.

Not unexpected.

Feng Yi let out a soft breath.

A person still has to rely on themselves!

He put the phone back in his pocket.

After using cold water to smooth his face one last time, he composed himself and returned to the tea room.

His overheated brain had cooled down slightly. A careful listener could still detect a slight tremor in his voice, but he wasn’t stammering anymore, and his smile at the old butler had become more natural. In truth, his heart was still in utter chaos, but he had to maintain his outward stability.

“My apologies for the wait.”

“Not at all.” The butler’s smile deepened as he observed Feng Yi’s current state. “Have you made up your mind?”

“Yes. After a few moments of calm reflection, I still have many doubts. Your timing is so precise, I’m starting to wonder if you did it on purpose,” Feng Yi probed.

“No. I had initially planned a one to two-year observation period. I began watching you last month; this is the second month. Only when I learned you were facing significant trouble did I decide to contact you early,” the butler explained slowly and calmly.

Feng Yi didn’t know if that was the truth and pressed for more information about the great-aunt he had never met.

The butler provided a simple summary.

Feng Yi learned that his great-aunt had emigrated long ago, had children, and had developed her business primarily overseas, though she maintained assets domestically. When the estate was divided, a portion was left for Feng Yi. She was buried abroad, and Feng Yi would need to travel overseas to pay his respects.

That was all.

The butler was unwilling to say more.

“I’d like to know this,” Feng Yi asked. “The Feng family is a large clan, and here in China, there are so many cousins and siblings in my generation. Why did she choose me?”

The butler looked at him with a warm smile, as though gazing at a kitten he’d just rescued from the street. “Ms. Feng said that you have the most pleasing appearance.”

Feng Yi touched his own sharp, angular face.

“Her eyesight must be excellent!”

In all his life, this was the first time an elder had called his appearance “pleasing!”

He was used to hearing comments like “flirty,” “frivolous,” or “lacking good fortune.” Hearing the praise of a “pleasing appearance” was quite a surprise.

Feng Yi did think he was handsome enough; the entertainment industry was full of men with sharp, angular faces, many even more pointed than his. But traditional elders seemed to favor a more conventional “face of fortune,” or a face that looked stable and upright.

But who cares what kind of face I have? As long as I’m handsome, it’s fine!

Feng Yi wasn’t entirely conceited.

When he was a freshman in college, he went for a haircut, and the salon owner personally sought him out for collaboration. He often received event invitations from various student clubs on campus.

In his sophomore year, he expanded his modeling and promotional work to earn tuition and money for a down payment on a house: hair salons, photography studios, clothing and accessory stores, even the biggest hotpot restaurant on the commercial street outside the school hired him for billboard ads.

By the second half of his junior year, he co-founded a small studio, no longer fighting alone, and had saved enough money to buy his first apartment. He was a “life winner” compared to his average peers.

In his senior year, he was lucky enough to squeeze into the cast of a web drama, playing a minor character, a “Snake Demon.” Unexpectedly, his luck improved further! The web drama became a massive hit at the beginning of this year, and his character gave him a solid presence online, allowing him to finally step onto the edge of the entertainment circle.

His career was developing perfectly, in a period of absolute ascent, and he was planning to seize the momentum and make some serious money in the industry. But at the critical moment, he was stabbed in the back, his partner fabricated a series of incidents, then embezzled the funds and ran.

Feng Yi was left alone to face the wrath of his collaborators, colossal breach-of-contract fines, and various compensation payments.

So, his current situation was one of towering debt. He desperately needed this money.

If he weren’t in such dire straits, even with a hundred million laid out before him, he would deliberate carefully. His experience had taught him not to be naive; a windfall could crush you if you didn’t have the capacity to handle it.

The most pleasing appearance? So she left me a massive fortune?

Who are you trying to fool?

A hundred million, how big of a pit was waiting for him on the other side?

Yet, knowing there was a pit, he still had to step into it.

Regardless of his internal complaints, Feng Yi merely smiled on the surface and continued, “Where is the Feng ancestral home? Is it that hundred-year-old villa in Yangcheng?”

The old butler chuckled lightly, as if dismissing the notion of a mere hundred-year-old villa.

“The far outskirts of Yangcheng, on Little Phoenix Mountain.”

I knew it, Feng Yi thought. Never heard of it.

He was born and raised in Yangcheng. He only left Yangcheng after the college entrance examination to attend university in Rongcheng and had never returned since. He thought he had a faint impression of Little Phoenix Mountain, but it wasn’t strong.

However, this was the first time he’d heard of a Feng ancestral home on Little Phoenix Mountain.

In front of the old butler, Feng Yi took out his phone and searched for information on Little Phoenix Mountain in Yangcheng, then fell silent.

He knew it wouldn’t be easy, but the level of challenge was truly significant.

Little Phoenix Mountain was also called Snake Mountain by the locals because it had an exceptionally high population of snakes.

Just looking at the pictures posted online was enough to give him goosebumps.

Feng Yi hated snakes, but what were snakes compared to getting through his current crisis?

Besides, the majority of snakes on Little Phoenix Mountain were harmless Rat Snakes, and there were isolation barriers installed on the mountain.

“The ancestral home, is it guarded?” Feng Yi asked.

The old man seemed rather pleased with Feng Yi’s reaction, his smile widening slightly. “Of course. Someone must maintain it. But don’t worry, I’ve already notified the caretaker.”

Feng Yi nodded. Looked at this way, the difficulty wasn’t insurmountable.

“I need to make one thing clear,” Feng Yi said. “I left the Feng family after the college entrance exam.” He paused, then added, “A conflict of ideologies.”

For someone who had left the Feng family to go back to the ancestral home, flip through the register, and add his name, that would be a huge slap in the face. It would be incredibly difficult. Drawing on scenes from historical dramas, Feng Yi knew he needed to plan carefully.

The old butler sensed Feng Yi’s apprehension. “You needn’t worry. The Family Register has nothing to do with those other Feng family members. Ms. Feng personally placed the register in your ancestral home back then, and no one else is aware of it.”

Feng Yi raised an eyebrow.

That doesn’t sound right.

The Family Register is in the Feng Ancestral Home, yet it has “nothing to do with those other Feng family members”?

Were they drawing dividing lines?

Feng Yi wondered if there had been some sort of “branching off” or disagreement between his grandfather’s generation and his great-aunt’s.

The old butler across the table handed over a Chinese Zodiac Charm Coin.

Feng Yi was familiar with this kind of metal coin that looked like a simple trinket; he wore one around his neck. He’d worn it since childhood.

One side of the coin showed the Twelve Terrestrial Branches and their corresponding Chinese Zodiac animals; the other side showed a Bagua (Eight Trigrams) diagram.

In the Feng family, only those born in the Year of the Snake possessed such a Zodiac Charm Coin.

Feng Yi pulled out the charm he was wearing. He watched as the coin in the old butler’s hand flew from his grasp and immediately adhered to the charm he was wearing.

The two circular coins overlapped, and the patterns on them began to rotate.

A layer of golden light flashed, so bright that Feng Yi couldn’t clearly see the patterns on the charm.

Click. A soft sound, and then silence.

When he looked again, there was no sign that two coins had been stacked together. The charm was only slightly thicker than before, and the side that had once displayed the twelve zodiac signs now only held a serpentine pattern that nearly covered the entire surface!

Feng Yi couldn’t control his expression this time. He stared, eyes wide, taking the charm off to turn it over and even scratching at it with his finger.

It had genuinely merged into one!

“Is this… new technology?” Feng Yi asked the old butler, holding up the coin.

“Old technology,” the butler replied. “Wear it when you go to the ancestral home. It is the key to opening the Family Register.”

“The key?”

Feng Yi realized that this “Family Register” was likely not what he had initially imagined.

He hadn’t paid attention to the tech sector and wasn’t sure what incredible technologies existed today. Listening to the old butler, he briefly lamented the rapid advancement of technology. Whether it was new tech or old tech, anything that could astound a person was awesome tech.

At least, he was astonished.

At the same time, his vigilance surged.

If they were using such advanced technology, the matter would definitely not be as simple as it was written on paper.

But the agreement was signed anyway. In his current situation, this was the optimal solution.

Once the agreement was finalized, the old butler left quickly. Before leaving, he gave Feng Yi a phone number and told him to call if he needed anything.

After the butler and the lawyers departed, Feng Yi sat alone in the tea room for a while, calming his emotions before he walked out. If he were too distracted and emotional, driving would be risky.

However, as soon as he stepped out the door, the cool breeze hit him, and Feng Yi’s steps suddenly froze. He remembered something.

He slapped his forehead.

“I forgot the most important thing!“

He quickly pulled out his phone and sent a message to the number he had just saved….

[U there?]

[Can I borrow some money first?]

NOTES

Huā Qián (花钱): Literally “flower money,” these are Chinese amulet/charm coins, often depicting auspicious symbols, including the Chinese zodiac. They were used for luck and collecting rather than currency.