chapter 39 Woman is cursed

"Brother Noah, the secretary of the CEO from Allure Beauty Group came this morning. She sold all of the beauty cooling tea, here's the money we earned." As soon as Noah Jiang came back, Ruth Chen handed him the money from the tea sales. "Good, thank you. You should go back to your work now." Noah Jiang parked his electric bike and greeted Ruth Chen with a smile. "Hehe, I sold out all the cooling tea for you. Don't you think you should reward me?" Ruth Chen blinked and giggled. "How about I treat you to an ice popsicle?" Noah Jiang said, holding a ten-yuan bill with a smile. Ruth Chen pouted, "Who wants an ice popsicle? I want to watch a movie. There's a new one that came out recently, which Hina told me is really good. Will you go with me tonight?" Seeing the anticipation in Ruth Chen's eyes, Noah Jiang laughed and let go of her hand, "I've been a bit busy recently. You know I have to go home and cook in the afternoon. How about I go with you another day when I'm free? Hurry back to work, or Uncle Henry will come looking for me." "Hmph, fine then. I won't talk to you anymore." Ruth Chen pulled away from him, pouting, and headed back to Uncle Henry's Clinic. Noah Jiang sighed. He understood Ruth Chen's feelings. That entire afternoon, Noah Jiang sat by his cooling tea stand at the clinic. Occasionally, two patients would come in for treatment. He was busy until 5 pm. Finally, Evan Xu, who was getting off work, bought two cups of strengthening and cooling tea. A few passers-by also purchased some traditional fever-reducing cooling tea. That marked the end of the business for the day. After closing up shop and locking the door to Jiang Clinic, he rode his electric bike to the market to buy groceries and didn't return to his residence until 6 pm. At the pavilion in the villa, a group of middle-aged people was gathered. They had heard that Leo Zhang found the legendary Divine Land Landscape Picture by Taran Huang in Xiguan Antique City and had come to admire it. "Noah's back. Don't cook tonight. I've booked a feast at Jook Tower. We'll all go there for drinks tonight." Leo Zhang cheerfully told Noah Jiang when he saw him return. Even Junko Ye stayed silent. She had spent the afternoon listening to these collectors discuss the value of the Divine Land Landscape Picture. Realizing that the useless man had managed to obtain such a treasure, she didn't berate anyone. Instead, she said to Noah Jiang, "Quickly cook some chicken legs for my Sade. She's starving." "Alright, mom." Noah Jiang smiled and placed the groceries in the fridge before preparing the chicken legs for his mother-in-law's beloved dog. "Mr. Zhang, you have a really talented son-in-law. To discover the secrets of the Divine Land Landscape Picture, he's something else," a friend commented, admiring Noah. "What's so special about him? He just got lucky," Junko Ye retorted, clearly not believing in her son-in-law's abilities. Fred Lin and some other friends just chuckled and sipped their tea. Leo Zhang looked helpless. Even though he wanted to defend his son-in-law, he knew better than to upset his fierce wife. Just then, a Mercedes car pulled up. Cindy Ye walked in, looking pale and unsteady. Leo Zhang was taken aback, "Cindy, why are you home so early today? You look ill, did you catch a cold?" "What happened, Cindy? You look out of it," Junko Ye said, rushing to support Cindy. "I'm fine, mom. I just have a headache. I'll rest for a bit upstairs, and I'll be okay. Don't worry about me," Cindy Ye replied weakly. "No, let Noah check on you." Leo Zhang immediately went inside to call for Noah, but Junko Ye snapped, "Why would you call him? He's a quack. He might just make things worse." "It's okay, I'm fine. I just need to rest for the night. Don't worry about me." Cindy Ye staggered into the villa. Noah Jiang seemed to hear their conversation and came out to see Cindy Ye, who was about to go upstairs. He said, "Are you sick? Let me take your pulse." "No need, I'll be fine after a night's rest." Cindy Ye went upstairs without looking back. Seeing her struggle on the stairs, it was evident that she was seriously ill. Noah Jiang expressed concern, "Mom and Dad are going out for dinner tonight. Let me make something for you to eat before you rest." "Didn't you hear when I said I didn't need it? I don't need your feigned concern," Cindy Ye snapped, looking irritably back at Noah Jiang. Noah Jiang slightly frowned. He noticed her pale face and a trace of dark energy at the center of her forehead. He quickly asked, "Did you come across something unclean?" "It's you who's come across something unclean." Cindy Ye glared at him, unaware that her current appearance was rather terrifying. Noah Jiang, seeing the malevolent energy on her forehead, realized that she had been cursed! "Who could be trying to harm her?" He wondered, rubbing his chin. The curse seemed to come from a high-level sorcerer. This curse was different from simply encountering unclean entities. To break this curse, they would need to find the one who cast it. Noah Jiang wasn't sure who might have cursed her. "Dad, since Cindy is feeling unwell, I won't go out for dinner with you. I'll stay and take care of her," Noah Jiang told Leo Zhang and the others as he went out. "That's fine. Take good care of Cindy. It's getting late; we should head to the restaurant," Leo Zhang replied, then joked with his friends like Fred Lin. "Make sure to keep that painting safe!" "Of course, I'll lock it up in my safe." Leo Zhang laughed, put away the Divine Land Landscape Picture, and hurriedly went upstairs to his room. He locked it securely in his safe, which was specially made for his valuable collections. Only after ensuring everything was in order, he went downstairs. Along with Junko Ye and a few of his friends, they drove to the restaurant. Noah Jiang stayed at home, glanced at Cindy Ye's room on the second floor, then returned to his own room. He fetched a piece of yellow paper, then went to his father-in-law's study to get cinnabar ink and a brush and began to draw several talismanic symbols. Meanwhile, on a bench near the villa area, two young men were watching as Leo Zhang and the others drove away. One of the men took out his phone and said, "Fatty, Leo Zhang and the others have left. We're not sure if they took the painting with them." "Get James to follow them, and you, Logan, wait for me at the villa," the voice of Jared Wang instructed over the phone. "Alright." Logan immediately called someone named James, who quickly left the villa area by car to follow Leo Zhang and ensure the painting wasn't with them. About half an hour later, a black car with a fake license plate pulled up on a small path by the western wall of the villa complex. Logan quickly got into the car. "Any news? Are you sure the painting is in their villa?" asked Jared Wang, the car's driver. "Yes, James followed them and confirmed that they only went for dinner and didn't bring the painting. It must be in the villa," Logan nodded and added, "But there are still people in the villa." "Who? How many of them?" Jared Wang was startled, and Logan answered, "It's Leo Zhang's daughter and son-in-law." Jared Wang's eyes narrowed menacingly, and he gritted his teeth, "Call a few more people. We must retrieve that painting no matter what." "Alright, I'll call Lionel and Eric over." Logan nodded and immediately made the call. Jared Wang sneered, murmuring, "The Divine Land Landscape Picture can only belong to me."