"Jianjian, my dear daughter! By the time you read this letter, I am already gone. The lawyer should have already notified you about the things left for you. The reason you are able to read this letter is because you came here entirely by yourself. I don't have much time, so I will leave you with three things.
The White Magnolia Jewelry has been passed down by our ancestors and must be kept safe. It must not be given away to others. If you cannot unlock its mysteries, leave it to your own descendants.
Your father is a member of the Zhao Family in the capital. If they come looking for you, yield to their conditions as much as you can possibly tolerate. Do not go head-to-head with them, especially when you lack the strength to resist them. Stay far away from them.
Do not believe anyone who brings up your mother's past to you. Mother has left some things for you separately; the key and this letter are given to you together. Remember to retrieve the items and keep them safe.
Mother loves you. I hope my child lives a smooth, happy, and joyful life! Mother, Jian Rou."
It was evident that the person who wrote the letter was in some hurry. Although the handwriting was somewhat scrawled, every single word and line reflected her love for her daughter. Jian Jian's eyes filled with tears as her fingers lightly stroked the handwriting on the envelope, as if doing so could bring her a little closer to her mother.
"Knock, knock, knock," the sound of a knock echoed. Only then did Jian Jian realize that the manager had left at some unknown point, presumably while she was reading the letter.
Quickly wiping away her tears, she took a light breath to calm her emotions, and then she called out clearly:
"Come in!"
The manager pushed the door open, nodded in greeting, and said:
"Miss Jian, will you also be claiming the contents of the other storage box today?"
Jian Jian answered without hesitation:
"Yes, since I'm already here, I'll take them all at once."
Then she voiced her own confusion:
"If I hadn't come alone today, but came with two people, and I didn't know about the subsequent items, how would I claim them?"
"Rest assured, Miss Jian, and please trust our bank's integrity. There are rigorous procedures for all of this.
If you hadn't come alone today, our bank would only need to assist you in claiming the contents of the first box. The second box we would keep for twenty years.
If you failed to come and claim it after twenty years, the items in this locker would be jointly owned by us and the law firm.
Of course, there is no need to worry about the two of us colluding to conceal anything. Our bank is responsible for safeguarding the items, the law firm is responsible for conveying the will, and a third party is responsible for notifying you in person to claim them after the maturity date.
The three of us parties have no contact with one another, ensuring the maximum protection of our clients' rights, interests, and privacy," the manager explained very professionally.
No wonder this hadn't happened in her previous life. Twenty years later, she wouldn't even have known where she was exploring, and the items would probably have gone cheaply to the bank and the law firm.
"Of course I trust your bank. Please lead me to fetch the contents of the other box."
"Very well, right this way please, Ms. Jian."
The same procedure was run through once more, and she returned to the reception room.
Opening the box, the first layer inside was likewise a red velvet jewelry box. Upon opening it, one could see a White Magnolia hair stick and a jade ring carved in the pattern of a magnolia flower.
Jian Jian was startled and suspicious upon seeing this. No wonder Du Yanran had constantly sought out the White Magnolia Earring both openly and covertly in her past life—it turned out this was a complete set.
Neither of them had obtained the complete set of White Magnolia jade pieces. Her mother had held something back, fearing she would be plotted against, and so had separated the jewelry for storage. It was also thanks to the fact that she had left without obtaining the complete set, otherwise—
Jian Jian shook her head with lingering fear. After removing the jewelry box, the second layer was also a hollowed-out wooden box carved with peonies.
Opening it revealed various pieces of jewelry: rings, earrings, bracelets, necklaces, hair sticks, and other styles and types. There were gemstone hair ornaments, pearl hairpins, and jade ornaments, every single piece gleaming with jewels and obviously of immense value. She only gave them a hurried glance.
Opening the third layer, she saw small gold bars the length of a little finger, this time stacked one layer deep, exactly ten of them.
She immediately nodded to the bank manager:
"The items are all in order."
"Very well, please sign here and here respectively. Do you need us to provide a handbag?"
"No thanks."
Jian Jian packed all the items directly into the backpack she was carrying today, and said directly:
"The formalities are all settled. Can I leave now?"
"Of course, please follow me, there is a dedicated passageway this way."
Jian Jian nodded. Carrying a massive fortune, safety always came first. After taking a detour, Jian Jian emerged from the back door of the bank, and as soon as she stepped out, she immediately hailed a cab home.
It wasn't until Jian Jian curled up in her own bed that she let out a light breath of relief, slowly reviewing today's events in detail.
Up to this point, there were no omissions whatsoever. The only difference was that in her past life, Du Yanran had accompanied her to the bank, so she had not obtained the contents of the second box.
After the two of them returned to her residence, Du Yanran had used every possible method to take away the White Magnolia Earring. Immediately the next day, she had been taken away by the Zhao Family in the capital—now everything had changed...
"Ring-ring-ring," the telephone bell dragged Jian Jian back from her thoughts. The caller ID showed Du Yanran.
Really relentlessly persistent. Jian Jian hung up the phone directly, sent a text message saying, "Busy, talk to you later," and turned her phone straight off.
Giving her cheeks a light pat to pull herself together, Jian Jian put down her hanging heart, took the items from her bag out one by one, and placed them on the bed. She set the others aside, but placed the set of White Magnolia Jewelry directly in front of herself.
In her past life, after binding the White Magnolia Earring to her soul, she had only thought it was a high-level storage Space that also possessed defensive functions. However, through that dream-like past life, she was certain there was likely another secret hidden within it.
And that book had simply glossed over this as well, without focusing on describing it.
Looking at the four pieces of jewelry before her, Jian Jian made a decision. She picked up the utility knife from the nightstand and gently sliced her finger, crimson blood slowly welling out.
Jian Jian seemed unable to feel the pain as she dripped her blood one by one onto this set of jewelry. She waited for a moment, but there was no reaction at all. What was going on? She had been able to bind them in her previous life, so there was no reason she couldn't in this one.