Chapter 14: The Mystery of the Jade Pendant
1076words
"How does it feel?" Alexander Morgan stood beside me, watching the television news report on the collapse of Thompson Enterprises.
"Strangely, I don't feel as satisfied as I imagined." I answered softly, "The taste of revenge isn't as sweet as I had expected."
Alexander Morgan nodded thoughtfully: "Because revenge itself cannot truly heal the pain."
We stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows at the Lakeside Villa, the sunset turning the lake surface golden. After the crisis, we returned to this quiet place, temporarily away from the clamor of the business world.
"I've always had a question I wanted to ask you," Alexander Morgan suddenly said, "Your father... how did he pass away?"
This question made my heart tighten. Father's death had always been the deepest pain in my heart, and even after being reborn, that feeling of loss remained vivid.
"Car accident," I answered briefly, "When I was eighteen, he drove to meet an important client, and never came back."
Alexander Morgan was silent for a moment, then took a small box from his pocket: "This might mean something to you."
I puzzledly took the box, and upon opening it was surprised to find inside an ancient jade pendant with intricate patterns carved on it.
"This is..." I looked at the pendant in shock, "my father's! He always carried it with him before he died, and it disappeared after the car accident. How did you get it?"
"My father left it to me," Alexander Morgan's voice was low, "he gave it to me on his deathbed, saying it was the regret of his lifetime."
I carefully examined the jade pendant and found an almost invisible fine mark on the back, which looked like a series of numbers.
"These numbers..." I frowned in contemplation.
"I noticed them too, but I've never been able to decipher their meaning," Alexander Morgan said. "My father only mentioned that it had something to do with your father, and told me to find an opportunity to return it to you."
I suddenly remembered something: "Wait, I recall there was a similar jade pendant in my father's safe!"
I hastily took out my phone, called the butler, and asked him to check my father's belongings. Shortly after, the butler sent photos—sure enough, there was an almost identical jade pendant, with similar engravings on the back.
"They're a pair," Alexander Morgan said in surprise. "They seem designed to fit together."
We eagerly arranged to have the other pendant retrieved. When the two pendants were finally placed together, we discovered they fit perfectly, and the engravings on the back formed a complete sequence of numbers.
"This looks like some kind of code," Alexander Morgan pondered, "or perhaps..."
"A bank account number!" I suddenly realized, "Father mentioned it once before he died!"
We immediately contacted the bank and confirmed the account's existence. Since important documents were involved, we decided to go there in person.
Three days later, in an old bank vault in City A, we opened the safety deposit box that had been sealed for many years. Inside was only a folder.
I took a deep breath, opened the folder, and was shocked by its contents—detailed evidence of how the Chen family manipulated the market and conducted corporate espionage.
"My father discovered the Chen family's illegal activities and was preparing to report them, so they..." my voice choked, unable to continue.
Alexander Morgan gently embraced me: "I'm so sorry."
But what shocked me even more was another name mentioned in the documents—Alexander Morgan's father.
"Your father... knew about all this?" I asked in disbelief.
Alexander Morgan's face turned pale as he quickly scanned the document: "Yes, he knew. But he was threatened by the Chen family. If he revealed the truth, my mother and I would be in danger."
The document showed that Morgan's father had felt guilty about this choice his entire life, eventually dying from depression. The two jade pendants were a testament to the friendship between him and my father, as well as the key to the truth.
"So, all of this was arranged by fate," I said softly. "I was reborn, met you, and now we're fighting against the Chen family together..."
"It's not fate." Alexander Morgan held my hand, "It's our own choices."
After returning to Jiang City, we submitted the evidence to the prosecutor's office. Victor Thompson was arrested for commercial murder and multiple economic crimes, receiving life imprisonment. Sophia Parker, as an accomplice, was also sentenced to ten years.
A month later, at my father's grave, Alexander Morgan and I stood side by side.
"Father, I've brought justice for you," I said softly as tears rolled down my cheeks.
Alexander Morgan knelt on one knee and bowed deeply to the tombstone: "Uncle Wilson, I apologize to you on behalf of my father. He couldn't protect you, and that has been his lifelong regret."
After rising to his feet, Alexander Morgan turned to me, his eyes filled with deep affection: "Emily Wilson, I know our encounter has been full of pain and conspiracy, but throughout this process, I've discovered that you are the most important person in my life."
He took out a small box from his pocket, opened it to reveal a sparkling diamond ring: "I don't know if you're ready to begin a new life, but I hope to walk alongside you. Will you marry me?"
Sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting dappled shadows upon us. I looked at the man before me, recalling everything we had experienced together—from our initial confrontation when we first met, to the tacit understanding we developed fighting side by side, to this heartfelt confession now.
"I do." I answered softly, with tears and a smile, "Not because of fate's arrangement, but because I love you."
Alexander Morgan placed the ring on my finger, then embraced me tightly. At my father's grave, at the end of the feud between our two families, we began a new journey.
The two jade pendants, now united as one, just like our destinies, finally found each other after experiencing numerous hardships.
