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Ruyi Cosmetic Shop
Autumn Wutong Courtyard, the courtyard where Madam Luo lives alone.
Lady Luo squinted her eyes, looking at the Wutong Tree in the courtyard. She vaguely remembered that this Wutong Tree was planted together with Master after she first entered Ruo Mansion.
Master once said that while a person lives for a hundred years, a tree can live for a thousand. Even if one day both he and she were no longer here, this tree would still stand here, watching over the spring, summer, autumn, and winter, guarding the times they once cherished together.
Cherished times?
A hint of sarcasm appeared at the corner of Lady Luo's mouth.
In just a few short years, before this Wutong Tree could grow enough shade to block the sunlight, her husband, her Master, had already turned his heart elsewhere. Outside, people said that Master Luo and his wife had a good relationship and that Master Luo was broad-minded enough to even tolerate his wife's past lovers. But only Lady Luo knew that it wasn't broad-mindedness; it was that his heart had long since left her.
What they maintained was merely an appearance of happiness. As for why they continued this facade, she did not know, and Master Luo might not truly understand either.
Grandma brought over a cup of tea. Seeing Lady Luo's expression, she knew she was reminiscing about the past again. She had married into the Luo Family alongside Lady Luo and had once been promised to another family in her youth. Unfortunately, her fate was thin; within two years of entering the family, both her husband and father-in-law passed away. Her mother-in-law scolded her as a Death Star and drove her out of the house. It was Lady Luo who remembered their past bond and took her back in. Since then, Grandma devoted herself to serving Lady Luo and never thought about starting her own family again.
Time flew by, and decades passed. As the person who had accompanied Lady Luo the longest, Grandma also understood her innermost thoughts best. No one's heart turns cold without reason, nor is anyone born with malice. At least the Lady Luo before her had once been an innocent girl—a kind-hearted and generous lady—transformed step by step by Master into what she was now.
Since others could bully them and make them unhappy, why should they make others happy? Over the years, Grandma knew well what Lady Luo had done; she understood it all too clearly. But she felt that Lady Luo was not wrong. In this world or in Ruo Mansion, kind people could only be taken for granted.
Grandma lowered her head and walked to Lady Luo's side, offering the cup of tea with both hands. She softly asked, "Matriarch, are you really going to let that child in Young Lady's womb be born?"
Lady Luo's half-closed eyes opened wide as she turned to look at Grandma: "After all, that is my Luo Family's child. Moreover, you have seen Ping'er's attitude. Although I am his biological mother, I can never compare to that woman in his heart. What else can I do? Kill my grandson and make my own son hate me for life? I am old now; my heart can no longer bear such poison."
"Matriarch, why must you be so hard on yourself? In this world, the one who loves Young Master and Sister the most is you. If your heart were not so soft-hearted, today someone else might be in charge of this Ruo Mansion. Even if Master still cares for Young Master and Sister as his own flesh and blood, in the eyes of their stepmother, they are nothing but thorns in her side. It is hard to say how life will go on from here. When Young Master grows older and perhaps becomes a father himself, he will understand your heartfelt intentions."
"Enough already; let him think what he wants and do as he pleases. I have worried enough about this heart of mine. I no longer wish to ask or care about how they will be or how the Luo Family will fare." Lady Luo waved her hand dismissively. "I won't drink this tea; even if it has no taste, I can still taste its bitterness. As for this Wutong Tree in the courtyard, let's find a time to cut it down? After looking at it for so many years, I am tired of it; I no longer want to see it."
Grandma nodded and withdrew her hand holding the tea: "I understand Matriarch's thoughts."
Lady Luo took one last look at the Wutong Tree before walking toward the Bedroom: "I am tired; I want to sleep for a while. Please do not let anyone disturb me before dinner."
Grandma lowered her head without speaking but could tell that Lady Luo was truly saddened.
Over the years, the Matriarch has been treated poorly by the Master, yet she has always accompanied him in his performances without complaint, managing the Luo Family's affairs inside and out. She even went so far as to confront her own son to protect the Luo Family from disaster. Yet now, she remains alone; the Master fails to see her worth, and the Young Master is only angry that she does not favor his wife. After all, the Young Master is still the Master's child, and his cold-hearted nature is undoubtedly inherited from him.
A hint of coldness flickered in Grandma's eyes as she realized she could no longer allow the Matriarch to feel such sadness. In this vast mansion, perhaps she was the only one who truly cared for the Matriarch.
The night of the Yun Family Gathering always arrives particularly quickly.
After nightfall at Ruo Mansion, many lanterns were lit, gently swaying in the night breeze. The shadows danced—sometimes deep, sometimes light, sometimes overlapping, sometimes separating—constantly shifting beneath the eaves.
Yunxi opened her eyes. The bedroom was not completely dark, and she could hear familiar breathing nearby. She gently sat up and nudged her husband, Luo Ping, who was sleeping with his head resting on the edge of the bed. When he did not respond, she quietly slipped out of bed, barefoot and holding her shoes, and walked out of the room.
She wanted to uncover a secret.
This secret was revealed to her by her maid Xuan when they had gone out to summon a doctor recently. The Taoist priest who called himself Moxuyou claimed that if she grasped this secret, she could completely rid herself of Madam Luo's threats—her mother-in-law.
At first, Yunxi did not believe it. There were many Taoist priests in this world who could easily deceive people with their words. However, the scene of Lady Luo visiting and touching her abdomen lingered in her mind.
As a daughter-in-law, she might endure it, but as a mother, she decided to fight for her unborn child. As Xuan said, it was better to believe than not to believe.
If Lady Luo truly harbored a secret that Yunxi discovered, it would give her leverage against her mother-in-law should any ulterior motives arise in the future. If there was no secret, then she would lose nothing.
Passing through the archway and walking along the winding corridors led her to the ancestral hall where the Luo Family honored their ancestors' tablets.
This hall was where she had come on her second day after joining the Luo Family.
According to custom, new daughters-in-law were required to serve tea to their in-laws on their second day. Her father-in-law was understanding and did not care for such formalities; he waived them. However, Lady Luo—her mother-in-law—ordered her maid to bring Yunxi into this hall and made her kneel there holding a tea bowl for an entire hour without saying a word. She remembered clearly that when her husband left the Yun Family Gathering to escort Gulofu out, she had also been called in.
She recalled that besides offering fruits and ancestor tablets on the altar, there was also a plain candle holder.
That candle holder was so ordinary that anyone entering the Luo Family Ancestral Hall would overlook it. Yet its simplicity made it all the more peculiar because there were already elaborately designed candle holders placed on either side of the altar. Thus, that plain one seemed somewhat superfluous.
Initially, those who noticed it would instinctively think it was left behind by a maid who had brought oil or cleaned up but forgot to take it back. However, years had passed and that candle holder remained untouched in its place. Yunxi began to subconsciously believe Moxuyou's words; that candle holder must have some other purpose.
The door of the Luo Family Ancestral Hall was black. Under the moonlight, it resembled a dark hole or an open mouth gaping wide. To be honest, as Yunxi approached this hall alone, she felt a bit frightened. She touched her still-flat abdomen and took a deep breath before shining her lantern at the door.
The threshold of this hall was indeed higher than any ordinary ancestral hall threshold she had seen before.
The so-called threshold refers to the horizontal beam or stone at the bottom of the door frame that touches the ground. The wealthier and more prestigious a family is, the higher this threshold tends to be. However, in front of ancestral halls, thresholds are usually not set too high, especially in those built within one's own home. These ancestral halls are typically used by family members for worship during festivals, and they enshrine the ancestors' tablets. Therefore, the threshold is essentially a formality; it ultimately serves the purpose of facilitating kneeling and offerings. A threshold that is too high can easily cause descendants to trip or bump into it during rituals.
Yunxi knew that the threshold of the Luo Family Ancestral Hall was high, but she had never considered why it was made so elevated, as if guarding against something. Could it be true, as some unfounded rumors suggested, that this high threshold was meant to prevent something inside from escaping into the night?
Thinking of this, Yunxi couldn't help but glance again at the dark wooden door.
What else could there be in the ancestral hall besides tablets?
A threshold that is too high serves not only to block rainwater and dirt from flowing inside but also to prevent something from escaping out.
Ghosts?
According to legend, ghosts cannot bend their legs, so they cannot lift their legs like living people do to step over a threshold.
Thus, the high threshold of the Luo Family Ancestral Hall is actually meant to keep out ghosts, and the secrets hidden within the Luo Family Ancestral Hall are related to ghosts—secrets connected to people. After all, all ghosts were once human.
With this thought in mind, Yunxi raised her hand and pushed against the wooden door.
Still feeling a bit timid, she did not use much strength; however, the heavy wooden door creaked open slightly with a sound. Inside was darkness; the ever-burning lamp was not lit.
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