Sludge suction system

The setting sun at dusk bathed Changqing Pavilion in an amber hue. Tan Ge, clutching a sachet at his waist, hurried in, but froze the moment he stepped inside. Qian Wanguan leaned against a vermilion pillar, his jade ring striking Tian Xue'er's silver bell repeatedly, the broken clapper jingling harshly on the blue bricks.

"Young Master Tan is right on time." Qian Wanguan raised his hand to signal, and the guards released their grip on Tian Xue'er. She collapsed to the ground, her left eye swollen high, and the bloodstains at the corner of her mouth stained the faded lotus sachet dark red. Tan Ge instinctively took a step forward, but was met with a dozen spears pressed against his throat, the cold spear tips piercing his tight-fitting clothes and leaving small bloody marks on his skin.

Qian Wanguan slowly unfurled the blood-stained silk, Tian Xue'er's handwriting blurred by the bloodstains: "I'm somewhat surprised that Xue'er didn't betray you." He suddenly used his thumb ring to lift Tian Xue'er's chin, "It seems the bond we formed in that dilapidated temple back then runs deeper than I thought."

"What do you want?" Tan Ge's voice trembled, his gaze fixed on the blood seeping from Tian Xue'er's back. She struggled to lift her head, her broken right hand drawing a crooked "walk" on the ground.

Qian Wanguan burst into laughter, his robe sweeping away the jade pendant on the stone table in the pavilion. "A smart man should negotiate." He crouched down, his golden robe brushing against Tian Xue'er's trembling fingertips. "Sang Xuan's blood jade. I want it to appear at the county office in three days. If you handle this matter properly, I will release Xue'er and give you a hundred taels of gold to escape to.

Tian Xue'er suddenly coughed violently, splattering blood onto Qian Wanguan's python robe: "Don't... believe him..." Before she could finish speaking, Qian Wanguan grabbed her hair and slammed her against a stone pillar. Tan Ge struggled desperately, but was forced to kneel on the rubble by the guards, blood instantly seeping from his knees.

"Think it over carefully," Qian Wanguan threw the sachet in front of Tan Ge, its lotus embroidery stained with Tian Xue'er's blood. "Three days from now, at sunset, the blood jade will be exchanged for the beauty. If you dare to play any tricks..." He drew the sword from his guard's waist, the blade pressed against Tian Xue'er's throat, "I will make her live worse than a dog did in the Drunken Red Pavilion."

The setting sun cast long streaks of blood on the blue bricks. Tan Ge stared at Tian Xue'er, who lay slumped on the ground, a metallic taste rising in his throat. Her gold hairpin lay scattered beside her, the broken silver bell trembling slightly with her weak breaths, as if it might go out at any moment. Qian Wanguan's jade thumb ring still hung in her blood-stained hair, and in her strained eyes, there was only a desperate warning, a head-shaking gesture.

"Xue'er..." Tang Ge broke free from the guards' grip, ignoring the spear that had slashed his arm. He knelt on the gravel, carefully pulling her trembling body into his arms. The blood from Tian Xue'er's back soaked through his clothes; the familiar jasmine scent mingled with the pungent smell of blood, reminding him of the night in the dilapidated temple when she held him, feverish, and sang to him.

"Don't...don't answer him..." Tian Xue'er's voice was weak and feeble as her broken right hand struggled to touch his face. Tan Ge tightly gripped that scarred hand, tears falling onto the bruised back of her hand. The snowy night when he was seventeen suddenly appeared before his eyes, when she had also trembled as she stuffed half a steamed bun into his mouth, saying she would take him to see the lotus flowers in Jiangnan.

Qian Wanguan's cold laugh pierced the twilight: "Deep affection, indeed." His boot toes crushed the sachet on the ground, trampling the faded lotus embroidery to shreds. "If Blood Jade doesn't arrive in three days, I'll skin her and hang her skin on the city tower."

Tan Ge raised his head, his eyes as cold as ice. He gently wiped the blood from Tian Xue'er's lips, his voice as firm as a rock: "No matter the cost." He buried her head in his neck, feeling her faint breath. "Wait for me."

As dusk tinged the Changqing Pavilion with a dark red hue, Tan Ge gently placed Tian Xue'er on the stone bench, his fingertips tracing her swollen cheeks, a feeling of poisoned thread tightening around his throat. Qian Wanguan leaned against a vermilion pillar, toying with a jade thumb ring, his gilded wine pot tipped over, amber liquid trickling down the trail of blood dripping from Tian Xue'er.

"Three days' deadline, not a moment less." Qian Wanguan's boot toe crushed the fragments of the sachet on the ground, the lotus embroidery turning to dust on the sole. "That old fox Sang Xuan will definitely make all sorts of excuses tomorrow. Do you think I, this official..."

"Tomorrow, when Lord Qian goes to the Sang residence, I have my own methods." Tan Ge suddenly looked up, his gaze like that of a hawk locking onto the greed in Qian Wanguan's eyes. "The Blood Jade needs to be nurtured with the essence of a living person for forty-nine days before it can manifest in the world. The 'Jade Marrow True Scripture' is hidden in a secret compartment in Sang Xuan's study, recording the complete secret technique for nurturing the Blood Jade." He paused deliberately, noticing Tian Xue'er clutching his sleeve in terror. "But you also know, sir, that such a confidential item cannot be obtained easily."

Qian Wanguan slammed his thumb ring heavily on the stone table, causing the wine pot to tip over: "Do you think I'm a three-year-old child? This is just stalling talk..."

"The Sang residence has a secret chamber with mechanisms that will take seven days to crack." Tan Ge gently wrapped the blood-stained corner of his sleeve around Tian Xue'er's broken wrist, his movements gentle yet his words as firm as iron. "If you kill Xue'er now, Sang Xuan will surely notice something amiss tomorrow. It's better to spare her life and exchange it for a more secure opportunity to obtain the Blood Jade." He suddenly ripped open his collar, revealing a hideous old scar on his chest. "Back when her legs were crushed by the carriage, Xue'er knelt at the entrance of the Drunken Red Pavilion, begging for the money to save her life. I, Tan Ge, will repay this debt, even if it means my death."

Tian Xue'er coughed violently, splattering blood onto Tan Ge's clothes. Qian Wanguan stared at the old scar, recalling the spies' report of Tan Ge's limp healing strangely, a hint of suspicion flashing in his eyes. "Ten days at most," he said, grabbing Tian Xue'er's hair and forcing her to look up, "If I don't get the secret technique by then, I'll grind her bones into powder and mix it into the tea at the Sang residence."

Tan Ge gripped the short sword at his waist, his nails piercing his palms. As Qian Wanguan's guards dragged Tian Xue'er away, a smile suddenly appeared on her pale face—the cunning look she had when they had agreed to elope in the dilapidated temple, hiding among the wild chrysanthemums. In the instant twilight swallowed their figures, Tan Ge gazed at the beads of blood seeping from his palm, silently adding the second half of his vow in his heart: Even if it costs me the lives of the entire Sang family, I will tear open this bloody mystery.

As dusk settled, the dark twilight seeped into the blue tiles of the Sang residence. Tan Ge stepped through the side gate, his footsteps treading on the fallen ginkgo leaves. The dull thud of his sword against the stone steps startled the crows roosting under the eaves, their flapping wings sending a shiver down his spine—the sound of which perfectly matched the rhythm of Qian Wan Guan's jade thumb ring striking a wine pot.

Sang Yu's knuckles turned white as she gripped the lantern tightly, the warm yellow light flickering on Tan Ge's blood-stained face. Memories of her past life gnawed at her like venomous snakes—on a similarly rainy autumn night, it was the person before her who plunged a poisoned jade hairpin into her back, while her father, Sang Xuan's, corpse lay just five steps away. Now, the lingering ligature mark on his neck seemed like a cruel twist of fate.

"Brother, you don't look well. Could it be that you've caught a cold?" She deliberately emphasized the word "brother," and the shadow cast by the lantern twisted into a demonic shape on Tang Ge's face. The girl's fingertips, hidden in her sleeve, had already touched the mechanism of a hidden weapon. In the memories transmitted by Xiao Zha when she was reborn three years ago, Tang Ge would steal the fragments of the "Jade Marrow True Scripture" from the study tonight.

Tan Ge's Adam's apple bobbed as he avoided her probing gaze. "Thank you for your concern, sister." As he turned, the jade pendant at his waist, askew, brushed against the doorframe, making a soft rustling sound. The sound made Sang Yu's temples throb. In her previous life, it was this very jade pendant, engraved with the character "Ge," stained with her blood, that sank into the Bian River. She watched the young man's departing figure, her nails digging deeply into her palms—in this life, she would never let him succeed again.

Inside the study, Sang Xuan placed the jade Guanyin back into the brocade box. The click of the copper lock closing startled Tan Ge, making him tense. He lowered his gaze to the tattered pages of the *Jade Marrow True Scripture* on the desk, his peripheral vision catching Sang Yu leaning against the doorframe, the red rope around her neck moving without wind. That vibrant red suddenly overlapped with the blood-stained hem of Tian Xue'er's skirt in his memory, and Qian Wanguan's sinister laugh rang in his ears: "If you don't obtain the secret technique within ten days, skin her alive to make lampshades."

“Father, Qian Wanguan is coming to the manor tomorrow…” Before Tan Ge could finish speaking, Sang Yu strode forward, her fingertips subtly pressing against the edge of the tattered page. “Father, I noticed my sworn brother looks off. Could it be that he’s gotten into trouble outside?” She deliberately dragged out the last syllable, her gaze sweeping over Tan Ge’s waist with a half-smile. “After all, some people will do anything to achieve their goals.”

Tan Ge's hand gripping the sword bulged with veins. The candlelight flickered suddenly, and he saw the hatred surging in Sang Yu's eyes, but inexplicably recalled the last look Tian Xue'er gave him when she was taken away. The night watchman's drum shattered the silence; he knew he had to act tonight—but if Sang Yu discovered him, not only would he fail to rescue Tian Xue'er, but he would also drag the Sang family into utter ruin.

"Get out of here." Sang Xuan rubbed his temples and waved the two away. As Tan Ge turned around, she heard Sang Yu's deliberately suppressed cold laugh, mixed with Xiao Zha's electronic voice in her ear: "Detected Tan Ge's killing intent level has surged. Host, be on guard." As night deepened, the sword shadows in the west courtyard and the faint light of hidden weapons in the east wing confronted each other from afar. A life-or-death struggle spanning two lifetimes was quietly unfolding.