Chapter Seven: The Clan’s Sacred Treasure (Part One)

Tao Ming had no idea whether the calendar system of Weishui had anything to do with this place, but the most pressing issue at hand was how much time Ruanruan had left. She took out her phone, opened the calculator, and tapped away busily. Staring at the result, she said, “Ruanruan is now three years and seven months old, which is roughly 31,320 hours. By Weishui's reckoning, that's just over eight months! Not even a year old yet!”

The White Tiger nodded. “Exactly. That’s why I said I’m still just a little baby!”

Recalling what the White Tiger had said earlier, Tao Ming was stunned. “You said my grandmother is already more than four thousand years old—my heavens!”

The White Tiger was unfazed. “That’s perfectly normal. People who cultivate immortality have long lifespans, and your grandmother is the clan leader—she has access to all the clan’s resources.”

Tao Ming hammered at the calculator again, looked at the result, and declared, “I’m only seven years old! I’m a baby too!” No wonder her foster mother had once said she was still young and there was no rush to get married.

The White Tiger’s mouth twitched and it drawled, “You actually married quite early. In Weishui, girls usually marry at twelve.”

Tao Ming was at a loss for words. She had dutifully followed the policy of late marriage and late childbirth for better offspring, marrying at thirty-one, and the result? Ha.

She was just about to speak when she heard Ruanruan’s cry from the bedroom. “Waaah, Mama, Mama…”

Tao Ming hurried toward the bedroom, muttering, “She must’ve had a nightmare.” Entering the room, she saw Ruanruan sitting on the bed, eyes shut tight, crying her heart out, arms reaching forward, calling for her mother. Tao Ming rushed over and scooped her up. Ruanruan’s forehead was drenched in sweat; Tao Ming pulled a tissue from the bedside and gently wiped her down, softly patting her back. “Mama’s here. Don’t be afraid. Mama will protect you.”

Hearing Tao Ming’s voice, Ruanruan gradually calmed down, blinking open sleepy eyes, then burrowed into Tao Ming’s arms. “It was so scary,” she murmured.

“Mama is with you, Ruanruan. There’s nothing to fear.” Tao Ming rocked her gently, hand still patting her back.

“Mama, some dreams are sweet, but some are very scary.” Ruanruan’s voice was thick with tears as she nestled closer.

A surge of boundless love welled up in Tao Ming’s heart. She kissed Ruanruan’s soft hair again and again. “Don’t be afraid, Ruanruan. Mama will always protect you.”

Then she sang softly, “Mama loves Ruanruan, and Ruanruan loves Mama. Ruanruan is Mama’s little cotton-padded jacket, Ruanruan is Mama’s little hair tie, Ruanruan is Mama’s little dumpling…”

Soon, Ruanruan was asleep again. Tao Ming laid her down, pulled a small blanket over her belly, kissed her chubby cheek, and returned to the living room.

The White Tiger looked at her and asked, “I understand the cotton-padded jacket, but what on earth is a little hair tie?”

“Uh, you see, I have long hair. Without a hair tie, how would I tie it up? So, a hair tie is very important to me.” Tao Ming grabbed her ponytail and gave it a shake.

The White Tiger gave her a ‘well, if you say so’ look and opened its mouth, but said nothing.

After a pause, it asked, “Why didn’t you ask her about her nightmare?”

“If it was a nightmare, wouldn’t asking her just make her remember it again? Why scare her twice?” Tao Ming pouted.

The White Tiger was again left speechless.

Tao Ming sat on the sofa, her mind swirling with thoughts. The notion that Ruanruan was some kind of holy maiden, uncertain what might happen in the future, and the suspicion that her ex-husband was to blame made her want to bite him.

Alas, she feared that when the time came, she wouldn’t be able to bring herself to do it.

The White Tiger saw her drifting off again. “Hey, aren’t we supposed to be discussing important matters?”

Snapping back to attention, Tao Ming apologized. “Sorry, my mind wandered.”

“See, I told you. According to Weishui’s calendar, Ruanruan isn’t even a year old yet. We need to hurry.”

Tao Ming pulled out her phone and calculated again. “By Weishui’s reckoning, in four more months Ruanruan will be a year old. That’s 14,400 hours—just over a year and a half here. By then, she’ll be almost five.”

She paused. “You said you sensed something in the house was fluctuating. What was it?”

The White Tiger lifted its head from its paws. “Your grandmother said your mother took the Qiluo clan’s ancestral treasure with her. It’s the fluctuations from that object that led me here.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about. How about this: I’ll carry you, and you direct me to it.”

Tao Ming was thoroughly puzzled—did her home really contain something like that?

Her apartment had three bedrooms, a living room, a kitchen, and a bathroom. The largest room was Ruanruan’s playroom, the next was the bedroom, and the smallest was a walk-in closet.

Following the White Tiger’s guidance, she walked into the closet, opened a cupboard where she kept bed linens, and finally took out an old bundle-wrapping cloth.

She was about to leave with the bundle when the White Tiger said, “Wait, there’s another strange fluctuation over there.”

Tao Ming looked where the tiger indicated; it was a drawer where she kept valuables—household registration papers, property deeds, and some jewelry.

In the end, she returned to the living room with the bundle cloth and her wedding ring. She and the White Tiger stared at the two objects on the coffee table.

Tao Ming was puzzled. If the bundle cloth was left by her birth mother, there was a reason for it to be unusual. But the wedding ring she’d bought with her ex-husband was a simple platinum band with a six-pronged setting and a thirty-point diamond—hardly extraordinary. Why would the White Tiger sense a fluctuation?

When she’d divorced, Tao Ming had intended to return the ring, but her ex-husband had vanished, so she’d kept it.

She picked up the ring and examined it. “What’s wrong with this ring?”

The White Tiger extended a paw. “Let me sense it.”

Tao Ming placed the ring in its paw. The White Tiger focused intently, then licked the ring and said, “I can sense some formations on it—not ones I recognize, but they’re powerful. That’s all I can tell.”

Puzzled, Tao Ming turned the ring over and over in her hand.

The White Tiger whispered conspiratorially, “I have a bold idea. Want to try it?”

“What idea?” Tao Ming felt a twinge of dread.

Without another word, the White Tiger suddenly swiped a paw at Tao Ming’s head. Before it could get close, the ring emitted a dazzling white light, forming an eggshell-like shield that enveloped Tao Ming.

The White Tiger’s paw froze in midair. “See? I told you something was up.”

Tao Ming stared at the protective shield, more confused than ever. “But I used to wear this ring all the time. I never saw anything like this.”

The White Tiger withdrew its paw. “Maybe it was the intent to harm I had just now.”

Tao Ming widened her eyes at the White Tiger. “What? Were you trying to kill me?”

The White Tiger glared back defiantly. “Look at my innocent eyes. I was just pretending—one must play the part properly!”

Tao Ming scoffed, “As if you’d dare.”

The White Tiger snorted and turned away.

Tao Ming eyed the shield. “When will this thing disappear?”

The White Tiger turned back. “I have no idea. Why don’t you try touching it?”

There was no other option. The White Tiger should have more experience with such bizarre happenings. Tao Ming reached out and touched the diamond with her finger. Instantly, the white light vanished.

“That’s amazing!” Tao Ming exclaimed. Clearly, there was more to Ruanruan’s father than met the eye—he had picked out this ring.

She paused, then said, “I’d better find a cord to thread the ring and put it on Ruanruan from now on.”

She set the ring aside, picked up the bundle cloth, and said, “Now, let’s figure this out.”