Qin was shocked, her eyes widened, "A Ying! What...what is going on here?" She stumbled into the grave, leaning over the coffin. She peered closely to take a look, "Could it be that Zhuo Zhuo wasn't dead back then, and was buried alive by Old Madam Gu?"
"Look at the talismans filling the coffin!"
"And these strange ritual artifacts!"
"This is clearly a living sacrifice!"
"It's a live burial!"
"That old woman! How could she be so cruel to Zhuo Zhuo!!!!"
The sharp contrast between her fair fingers and the torn, scratched black marks was startling. Such a miserable and terrifying scene would shake anyone's heart!
Gu Boqing's mouth was pressed in a tight line, staring at her unbelievingly, his body trembling violently. With a long wail, "Zhuo Zhuo!"
Hearing her father's sorrowful cries, A Ying's arm was being held up by Yin Lan. Tears suddenly rolled down her eyes. Profound pain and hatred churned in her chest, her five viscera and six bowels felt like they were being twisted and wrung by an invisible giant hand, the pain was unbearable.
She gritted her teeth tightly, fists shaking. She wished she could shred that abominably cruel old woman into ten thousand pieces!
"A Ying!"
A clear, cold scent of water lilies swept over from the deep darkness.
A Ying's limp body fell into a broad, gentle embrace. Turning her eyes, she saw the familiar, handsome face of the man. Only then did she completely close her eyes and faint away.
...
The matter with Ye Zhuoning caused great alarm.
That night, when A Ying woke up again, she was already at Dongping Earl Manor.
Twilight Snow Studio looked the same as always, meticulously managed by Gu Boqing personally all these years.
When A Ying opened her eyes, she found little baby curled up cozily asleep beside her, still hugging her arm tightly.
Zhao Changdu said gently, "He insisted on coming along himself, said he was worried about Mother."
Her eyes felt somewhat sore, and her whole body was very tired, but waking up to see her husband and little baby were both at her side still warmed her heart.
"Has he eaten dinner?"
"No, since you didn't eat, he couldn't eat either. This must be the mother-child connection, seeing you faint like that, his little brows were furrowed so tight, knowing something major had happened, so he didn't make trouble for me."
A Ying smiled, "And he could still fall asleep like this."
Zhao Changdu chuckled lightly, stroking the little girl's soft cheek with his fingertip. Knowing she had suffered great grievance today, his tone was especially gentle, "He's still a child, needs a lot of sleep."
A Ying's heart softened. She kissed little baby's milk-white forehead, taking his little hand out from under the blanket, placing it familiarly into the man's palm.
Zhao Changdu sat at the little girl's bedside, clasping her hand tightly. Concerned, he gathered up her body into his arms to gently coax her.
"Mother's remains have already been properly reinterred by people. As for what comes next, Father said he wants to handle it personally."
Hearing the intoxicating, melodious voice soothed A Ying's turbulent emotions slightly.
She nestled against the man's embrace, resting her chin on his sturdy shoulder. After calming down for a long time, her voice still carried traces of crying, "Du, she's my grandmother by blood."
Zhao Changdu gently patted A Ying's back, as if soothing a child, "I know."
"Ever since I was little she never loved me and A Ning...but she treated Gu Jia and Gu Wan very well, and even Shuanger..."
"I know..."
"When I was small, I always thought it was because I wasn't good enough, didn't gain grandmother's favor, so I desperately tried to be obedient and worked hard, but still never got grandmother's attentive gaze."
"It's alright now. You have me and Yan'er to dote on you, love you, and cherish you. A Ying doesn't need her attention."
"But I really never imagined she actually harbored such deep prejudice against my mother! And would do something as sinister as a living sacrifice! Du, my mother was truly gentle and beautiful...not an ominous person at all...it was all grandmother's fault...She poisoned mother and buried mother alive..."
Zhao Changdu held the little girl's waist tightly, listening attentively to her complaints, echoing, "She deserves death."
A Ying wiped her tears, raising hopeful, reddened eyes to meet the man's deep phoenix eyes, "If I want to avenge mother, will Du feel I'm heartless?"
She had considered forgiving grandmother, but whenever she recalled the scene of mother being suffocated alive in that coffin, she couldn't let go of this hatred.
Zhao Changdu's lips curved up slightly, stroking her dark hair with his big hand. These past five years, he had long treated her like a daughter, doting on her.
Yet this girl still lacked a sense of security. Looks like he still needed to keep working hard.
"What does A Ying want to do?"
A Ying ground her teeth, "Repay evil with justice!"
Zhao Changdu indulgently said, "Then do as you said."
A Ying's heart warmed, but she knew her biggest problem wasn't the Eldest Prince, but her father.
She was connected by blood to her mother, felt the hatred was as deep as the ocean, but her father was also grandmother's son, connected by blood. Even though father loved mother...he still couldn't erase his filial piety towards grandmother.
"A Ying." Seeing her worried expression, Zhao Changdu knew what she was thinking. "I don't want to stain your hands. Leave it to me, okay? You take Yan'er home first. I'll handle the rest."
A Ying raised her pitch black pupils. Tears fell as she said, "Okay..."
...
Zhao Changdu had always felt that after this matter, Old Madam Gu should have hanged herself to atone for her sins.
He didn't expect that when he arrived at Yongshou Hall, she was still putting on the arrogant manner of the old matriarch of Earl Manor, or a mother's innate control over her child, scolding Gu Boqing until his head bled instead.
"I never agreed to letting you marry her into the family! But you insisted on not listening to me. You can't blame this on me!"
"She was born in the fifth month, destined for punishment and harm in her fate, an inauspicious person!"
"I did this for the sake of the entire Dongping Earl Manor!"
"It was all for your sake! For your elder brother's sake! For your father's sake!"
"Yet you unfilial child still married her. Don't you know how your father died? If it wasn't for her inauspiciousness, how could your father have left me so early!"
Gu Boqing's hoarse voice, "So all these years, the reason mother mistreated A Ying and A Ning, deliberately sowing discord between father and children, was to cover up this preposterous deed?"
The old woman shouted angrily, "You're right, I don't like Ye Zhuoning and her two cursed spawns!"
Gu Boqing also yelled, "They're not cursed spawns! They're my and Zhuo Zhuo's descendants, the offspring of the Gu family, your own grandchildren!"
Madam Gu was so angry her face turned ashen. "Gu Boqing, you rebellious unfilial child, you're also a cursed nuisance!"
Gu Boqing laughed bitterly to himself, silently kneeling inside Yongshou Hall, eyes wide and bloodshot.
He was filled with pain, but had nowhere to vent it.
He could only watch wide-eyed as this old mother who killed his wife scolded him until she wept, seeming even more pitiful than him.
Qin was shocked, her eyes widened, "A Ying! What...what is going on here?" She stumbled into the grave, leaning over the coffin. She peered closely to take a look, "Could it be that Zhuo Zhuo wasn't dead back then, and was buried alive by Old Madam Gu?"
"Look at the talismans filling the coffin!"
"And these strange ritual artifacts!"
"This is clearly a living sacrifice!"
"It's a live burial!"
"That old woman! How could she be so cruel to Zhuo Zhuo!!!!"
The sharp contrast between her fair fingers and the torn, scratched black marks was startling. Such a miserable and terrifying scene would shake anyone's heart!
Gu Boqing's mouth was pressed in a tight line, staring at her unbelievingly, his body trembling violently. With a long wail, "Zhuo Zhuo!"
Hearing her father's sorrowful cries, A Ying's arm was being held up by Yin Lan. Tears suddenly rolled down her eyes. Profound pain and hatred churned in her chest, her five viscera and six bowels felt like they were being twisted and wrung by an invisible giant hand, the pain was unbearable.
She gritted her teeth tightly, fists shaking. She wished she could shred that abominably cruel old woman into ten thousand pieces!
"A Ying!"
A clear, cold scent of water lilies swept over from the deep darkness.
A Ying's limp body fell into a broad, gentle embrace. Turning her eyes, she saw the familiar, handsome face of the man. Only then did she completely close her eyes and faint away.
...
The matter with Ye Zhuoning caused great alarm.
That night, when A Ying woke up again, she was already at Dongping Earl Manor.
Twilight Snow Studio looked the same as always, meticulously managed by Gu Boqing personally all these years.
When A Ying opened her eyes, she found little baby curled up cozily asleep beside her, still hugging her arm tightly.
Zhao Changdu said gently, "He insisted on coming along himself, said he was worried about Mother."
Her eyes felt somewhat sore, and her whole body was very tired, but waking up to see her husband and little baby were both at her side still warmed her heart.
"Has he eaten dinner?"
"No, since you didn't eat, he couldn't eat either. This must be the mother-child connection, seeing you faint like that, his little brows were furrowed so tight, knowing something major had happened, so he didn't make trouble for me."
A Ying smiled, "And he could still fall asleep like this."
Zhao Changdu chuckled lightly, stroking the little girl's soft cheek with his fingertip. Knowing she had suffered great grievance today, his tone was especially gentle, "He's still a child, needs a lot of sleep."
A Ying's heart softened. She kissed little baby's milk-white forehead, taking his little hand out from under the blanket, placing it familiarly into the man's palm.
Zhao Changdu sat at the little girl's bedside, clasping her hand tightly. Concerned, he gathered up her body into his arms to gently coax her.
"Mother's remains have already been properly reinterred by people. As for what comes next, Father said he wants to handle it personally."
Hearing the intoxicating, melodious voice soothed A Ying's turbulent emotions slightly.
She nestled against the man's embrace, resting her chin on his sturdy shoulder. After calming down for a long time, her voice still carried traces of crying, "Du, she's my grandmother by blood."
Zhao Changdu gently patted A Ying's back, as if soothing a child, "I know."
"Ever since I was little she never loved me and A Ning...but she treated Gu Jia and Gu Wan very well, and even Shuanger..."
"I know..."
"When I was small, I always thought it was because I wasn't good enough, didn't gain grandmother's favor, so I desperately tried to be obedient and worked hard, but still never got grandmother's attentive gaze."
"It's alright now. You have me and Yan'er to dote on you, love you, and cherish you. A Ying doesn't need her attention."
"But I really never imagined she actually harbored such deep prejudice against my mother! And would do something as sinister as a living sacrifice! Du, my mother was truly gentle and beautiful...not an ominous person at all...it was all grandmother's fault...She poisoned mother and buried mother alive..."
Zhao Changdu held the little girl's waist tightly, listening attentively to her complaints, echoing, "She deserves death."
A Ying wiped her tears, raising hopeful, reddened eyes to meet the man's deep phoenix eyes, "If I want to avenge mother, will Du feel I'm heartless?"
She had considered forgiving grandmother, but whenever she recalled the scene of mother being suffocated alive in that coffin, she couldn't let go of this hatred.
Zhao Changdu's lips curved up slightly, stroking her dark hair with his big hand. These past five years, he had long treated her like a daughter, doting on her.
Yet this girl still lacked a sense of security. Looks like he still needed to keep working hard.
"What does A Ying want to do?"
A Ying ground her teeth, "Repay evil with justice!"
Zhao Changdu indulgently said, "Then do as you said."
A Ying's heart warmed, but she knew her biggest problem wasn't the Eldest Prince, but her father.
She was connected by blood to her mother, felt the hatred was as deep as the ocean, but her father was also grandmother's son, connected by blood. Even though father loved mother...he still couldn't erase his filial piety towards grandmother.
"A Ying." Seeing her worried expression, Zhao Changdu knew what she was thinking. "I don't want to stain your hands. Leave it to me, okay? You take Yan'er home first. I'll handle the rest."
A Ying raised her pitch black pupils. Tears fell as she said, "Okay..."
...
Zhao Changdu had always felt that after this matter, Old Madam Gu should have hanged herself to atone for her sins.
He didn't expect that when he arrived at Yongshou Hall, she was still putting on the arrogant manner of the old matriarch of Earl Manor, or a mother's innate control over her child, scolding Gu Boqing until his head bled instead.
"I never agreed to letting you marry her into the family! But you insisted on not listening to me. You can't blame this on me!"
"She was born in the fifth month, destined for punishment and harm in her fate, an inauspicious person!"
"I did this for the sake of the entire Dongping Earl Manor!"
"It was all for your sake! For your elder brother's sake! For your father's sake!"
"Yet you unfilial child still married her. Don't you know how your father died? If it wasn't for her inauspiciousness, how could your father have left me so early!"
Gu Boqing's hoarse voice, "So all these years, the reason mother mistreated A Ying and A Ning, deliberately sowing discord between father and children, was to cover up this preposterous deed?"
The old woman shouted angrily, "You're right, I don't like Ye Zhuoning and her two cursed spawns!"
Gu Boqing also yelled, "They're not cursed spawns! They're my and Zhuo Zhuo's descendants, the offspring of the Gu family, your own grandchildren!"
Madam Gu was so angry her face turned ashen. "Gu Boqing, you rebellious unfilial child, you're also a cursed nuisance!"
Gu Boqing laughed bitterly to himself, silently kneeling inside Yongshou Hall, eyes wide and bloodshot.
He was filled with pain, but had nowhere to vent it.
He could only watch wide-eyed as this old mother who killed his wife scolded him until she wept, seeming even more pitiful than him.
