<h4>Chapter 1266: Chapter 1574: The Death of Ling Beichuan (Part 2)</h4>


    A few minutes passed, and Ling Beichuan suddenly opened his eyes, which shone brightly, as if he had regained some spirit. However, everyone knew this was merely a fleeting revival; Ling Beichuan’s end was near.


    "You’vee." Ling Beichuan slightly opened his mouth and uttered a few words. Ling Chen nodded, "Mr. Ling, how are you feeling?"


    "I know I don’t have much time left. This might be myst few minutes in this world." He paused for a moment and nced at the others in the room, "Could I have a word with you alone?"


    "Sure." With that, Ling Chen signaled to Tian Hanzhong, who understood immediately and led a few doctors out of the room.


    Once everyone had left, Ling Chen walked over to Ling Beichuan’s side and asked, "Mr. Ling, is there something you wish to tell me?"


    "Ling Gengqiu..."


    Upon hearing Ling Beichuan mention his ancestor’s name, Ling Chen immediately understood and said, "Mr. Ling, you also know about the findings from thest tomb— the remains inside were not Ling Gengqiu’s, and there are currently no other clues about him."


    Ling Beichuan shakily lifted his hand, pointing to the wheelchair he often sat in, with his mouth slightly open as if trying to say something. But when the words reached his lips, it seemed he lost the strength to speak, unable to utter a single word.


    "Mr. Ling, what are you trying to say?" Ling Chen leaned his ear close to Ling Beichuan’s mouth, trying to catch his words. However, he quickly realized that Ling Beichuan had stopped breathing. Staring at Ling Beichuan’s open eyes, Ling Chen sighed lightly. Unable to uncover Ling Gengqiu’s secret, Ling Beichuan died with regret.


    Closing Ling Beichuan’s eyes, Ling Chen left the room and instructed Tian Hanzhong to handle Ling Beichuan’s body. After a pause, Ling Chen remembered Ling Beichuan’s actions before his death and returned to the room, fixing his gaze on the wheelchair ced against the wall.


    Ling Beichuan had pointed at the wheelchair and was clearly trying to convey something, suggesting there might be a secret hidden within it.


    With this in mind, Ling Chen pushed the wheelchair into his bedroom. After closing the door, Ling Chen walked around the wheelchair, examining it carefully. The wheelchair Ling Beichuan used was quite ordinary, with a cushion on the seat and a small oxygen tank attached at the back.


    Ling Chen took up the seat cushion, tapped the cotton inside, and then tore open a part of the cushion. However, apart from cotton, there was nothing else inside. Ling Chen then checked the oxygen tank, again finding nothing.


    How strange! Ling Chen thought to himself. There was nothing on the wheelchair. Could it be that what Ling Beichuan was hinting at wasn’t the wheelchair?


    "A dying man’s words are kind." Ling Beichuan wasn’t a good person, but there had to be a significant reason behind his final act, and he wouldn’t have any interest in teasing him.


    As Ling Chen’s mind raced, he decided to sit in the wheelchair, thinking hard. As he tapped the armrest, Ling Chen suddenly realized something and quickly stood up. He found a toolkit from his bedroom drawer and began unscrewing the screws on the wheelchair one by one.


    After spending about ten or more minutes, Ling Chen had dismantled the entire wheelchair, reducing it to nothing but a set of rods. Ling Chen sat on the floor and picked up one rod, peering inside. All these rods were hollow, hinting that Ling Beichuan may have hidden the secret within one.


    Just as Ling Chen suspected, after inspecting a few rods, he made a discovery. Inside one rod was a finger-thick alloy rod, approximately twenty centimeters long. The top of the alloy rod was a spiral interface, and after unscrewing the nut, a thick scroll of paper was revealed inside.


    So, it was here!


    Ling Chen’s eyes brightened, and he quickly pulled out the scroll of paper. Unrolling it, he saw dense writing covering both sides. It was apparent that Ling Beichuan had written these words personally.


    As he looked at the content on the scroll, Ling Chen immediately understood why Ling Beichuan had hidden it so securely— this was likely the work of his lifetime.


    However, most of the content on the scroll was already known to Ling Chen, with some parts being Ling Beichuan’s own conjectures. Ling Beichuan had marked these conjectures, where crossed-out parts indicated confirmed theories, which could be discarded. The unchecked parts suggested those theories had yet to be verified.


    By entrusting this to him, Ling Beichuan probably wanted him to continue pursuing these unverifiable theories. In any case, each theory represented a clue, maybe leading to Ling Gengqiu’s secret.


    Just as he was thinking that, there came a sudden "knock knock" at the door from outside. Ling Chen stood up to open the door and saw a woman standing there. Seeing who it was, Ling Chen’s lips curled into a slight smile, "Lady Zhu, it’s been a long time."


    The visitor was none other than Zhu Qing.


    "Mr. Ling, I’m sorry, it was my mistakest time, please forgive me." Zhu Qing lowered her head, apologetically.


    Ling Chen smiled slightly, "Lady Zhu, you were just following orders. It’s not your fault, there’s no need to me yourself." After pausing, Ling Chen continued, "Are you back this time to continue protecting me?"


    Zhu Qing nodded and said, "Besides me, Mr. Chang is here too, he’s waiting to see you in the parlor."


    "Let’s go, we shouldn’t keep Mr. Zhu waiting too long."


    Soon, the two of them arrived at the parlor. As they entered, Zhu Houchang’s heartyughter echoed, "Mr. Ling, they say misfortune spares those destined for great things. You must be greatly blessed."


    "Mr. Zhu, thank you for your kind words. I certainly hope so," Ling Chen replied with a smile.


    Once they were seated, Zhu Houchang spoke again, "Mr. Ling, besides wanting to see you personally, I have another reason foring. Last time you asked me to look into the information about Guo Qiang hiring the Zhu Family. Here it is." Saying that, Zhu Houchang opened his briefcase and took out a document folder, cing it in front of Ling Chen.


    "This is the contract Guo Qiang made with the Zhu Family years ago, dating back several centuries. I had quite a task retrieving it from the Zhu Family’s old archives."


    At these words, Ling Chen eagerly opened the document folder, pulling out a contract encased in protective stic. The contract was quite old, and fortunately, the Zhu Family had preserved it well, keeping it intact.


    On the front of the contract, the content was written in calligraphy, signed by the Zhu Family and Guo Qiang. The lower left corner bore Guo Qiang’s personal signature and a crimson handprint.


    The content revealed that Guo Qiang had paid forty thousand taels of silver to hire the Zhu Family to safeguard the tomb, prohibiting anyone from approaching. If necessary, extreme measures could be taken.