Ning Fan's face was as calm as water. He knew his guess was correct, but he just didn't want to admit it.
The ground was soft, and with the combined efforts of the eight won, they soon dug eight graves and covered them with dirt.
When he saw the won distribute wreaths where the bodies lay, the last trace of his wishful thinking was shattered.
The scene he least wanted to see had finally beco a reality.
The way back was sowhat silent, and Ning Fan couldn't help but ask the question on his mind,
"How many bodies are buried in that grassy area?"
Ziyun replied sorrowfully, "Three hundred and twenty-six."
"So many!"
Ning Fan was utterly shocked—this number far exceeded his expectations.
"And that's just what I know. There might be more victims."
Ziyun, with a bitter expression, recounted the history of that grassy area.
When she joined the Hu Family, the grassy area was already there. She knew of an unwritten rule among the servants.
Whenever a servant died, others were responsible for burying the body in that field.
Even if there were no remains, a tomb would be built with their clothes and accessories.
Ziyun didn't know who set this rule, but she was sure it wasn't the Hu Family.
After the old grandma who told her about it died, Ziyun buried her according to her will.
Just as Ziyun was carving a wooden tablet for her, she was stopped by a mber of the Hu Family overseeing them.
From this, Ziyun knew that the Hu Family wasn't as "kind and generous," so she made a wreath. That's how she learned that behind every wreath on that grass, there was an innocent life.
Before this, she had no idea how many more people had suffered.
"The Hu Family has at least a thousand-year history; no wonder she said that."
Ning Fan felt a heavy weight in his heart.
Back at the courtyard, the young won started to busy themselves with heating water and cooking.
Ning Fan, feeling disgusted, road the rooms.
There was no choice. The bodies of the Hu Family mbers he had killed earlier had yet to be dealt with, and he couldn't just let them rot there.
He randomly found a secluded corner and used his True Qi to blast open a pit, throwing all the bodies inside.
After finishing this task, Ning Fan silently returned to the courtyard.
Seeing Ning Fan appear, Ziyun, as though eting her pillar of support, instantly lost her anxious expression.
"Young Master Ning, where did you go?"
"Nowhere, just wandered around."
Ning Fan didn't dare speak of what he had just done.
If they knew, those young won might really cut up the bodies into pieces.
Despite their delicate and tender appearance, in such an inhumane environnt, their hearts had long beco iron-clad.
"The Hu Family is wicked by heart and body. It's better to bury them."
"Young Master Ning, we have prepared the al."
In the kitchen, which was both the cooking space and dining area for the girls.
In the Hu household, the young won took care of all the chores. Cooking, cleaning, farming, and tending to animals...
Simply put, all aspects of life were handled by the young won.
Thus, each of them was a jack-of-all-trades because those without value ended up as food for the Gu Insects.
"Strange. Why is the Hu Family so trusting of them? Aren't they afraid of being poisoned? After all, this place is full of poisons."
Just as Ning Fan asked, he suddenly realized, "I'm so silly. This is the Gu Poison Hu Family; how could they fear poison?"
Faced with a table full of sumptuous dishes, Ning Fan wasn't in the mood after the heavy scene earlier.
But the young won's enthusiasm was overwhelming; all he had to do was open his mouth.
Their eagerness was excessive, so Ning Fan quickly urged, "You should eat too!"
Ziyun replied with a troubled expression, "We are not in the mood."
The other seven won nodded continuously.
If not for Ning Fan, their benefactor, they'd probably still be grieving, unable to force a smile.
Hearing this, Ning Fan laughed and couldn't help joking, "Then I will be in the mood."
Ziyun was startled and then hurriedly said, "Young Master Ning, that's not what I ant..."
"Enough. I've told you not to kneel."
Ning Fan lifted Ziyun up and then said, "I understand your feelings. But you must know, you're not just living for yourselves now. So many sisters sacrificed for your new life..."
With Ning Fan's continuous persuasion, the won finally let go of their burdens.
"Young Master Ning is right."
Ziyun, on the verge of tears and smiles, said, "Sisters, we must live well and not let their sacrifices go in vain."
Ning Fan smiled gently, "That's the spirit. Let's eat together."
Watching the sadness dissipate from the won, Ning Fan finally breathed a sigh of relief.
After eating their fill, Ning Fan lounged around, digesting like a grand lord, while the won busied themselves heating water and making beds.
"Young Master Ning, if you don't mind, please stay in our place tonight."
"Sure. Why would I mind?"
Ning Fan now felt conflicted, tangled up with that courtyard.
All the Hu Family mbers had died there, making it a haunted house through and through.
But Ning Fan didn't care about that at all.
Thinking about the Hu Family's actions, he felt a knot in his heart.
But this waterfront pavilion courtyard—he really loved it to the extre.
Even if modern construction techniques could replicate it, it didn't have that classical charm.
"We'll see in the future. At worst, I'll keep the exterior and remove everything inside."
He arrived at the won's courtyard. The best eastern wing room was cleaned, and the bedding was all new.
In a side room, there was a wooden tub filled with hot water and petals.
Ning Fan couldn't help but laugh, "I've never tried this."
Used to the convenience of modern appliances, he had only seen this bathing style on TV, and now seeing it firsthand was quite refreshing.
Noticing Ziyun hadn't left, Ning Fan asked curiously, "You..."
"I am here to assist Young Master Ning with bathing and clothes changing."
Ziyun, her face flushed, stood nearby holding a wooden ladle.
"There's no need for that."
If they had known each other longer, Ning Fan naturally wouldn't refuse, but now it felt too abrupt.
"Then I won't disturb your bath."
Finishing her words, Ziyun ran out, her face beet red.
"I haven't even undressed yet. What are you blushing about?"
Ning Fan shook his head, teasingly saying.
As Ning Fan soaked comfortably in the hot bath, he was unaware that outside the courtyard, a group of young won eagerly awaited.
Noticing Ziyun's ergence, they surrounded her and started chirping questions,
"Sister Yun, why are you out?"
"Yeah, didn't Young Master Ning let you tend to him?"
"Could it be that Young Master Ning doesn't like you? But Sister Yun, you're so beautiful."
...
Ziyun playfully chided, "Alright. Stop it. Whose idea was it to send over?"
At her words, the won all turned their gaze to a girl in purple clothing.
User Comments
0 comments from readers