Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
For this grandmother who suddenly appeared, Ouyang Zixin felt no affection at all. It was now clear that her mother, Bai Su, came from the Bai Clan, and that Baike was likely a relative of hers. Therefore, she felt quite resistant to the idea of meeting this grandmother.
"Mother, there's no rush." Ouyang Zixin gave Liu Ying and Liu Lu a glance and helped Bai Su sit down in the room. The two maids quickly brought over the tea set. Ouyang Zixin had been away for quite some time, and rather than meeting some grandmother, she preferred to sit down with her mother and enjoy a pot of tea, particularly her mother's specialty flower tea.
Seeing Ouyang Zixin like this, Bai Su understood the reason behind it. Though her heart felt bitter, she forced a smile and said, "Xin'er is so filial; you still remember that I love the flower tea you brew." Saying this, she picked up the tea that Ouyang Zixin had just poured and brought it to her nose, taking a gentle sniff. "It really brings back memories."
"You two can leave now." Ouyang Zixin waved her hand. She knew that when she returned to Yuexin Pavilion, Liu Ying and Liu Lu had been sent to serve the Matriarch. By sending them away now, she intended for them to stall for time. She wasn't worried about the Matriarch knowing her attitude; she had no intention of hiding it, but she didn't want to make it too obvious in front of Bai Su and upset her.
The two maids understood and took their leave from Bai Su and Ouyang Zixin, saying they would go check on the Matriarch to see if there was anything that needed doing.
"You," Bai Su naturally knew Ouyang Zixin's intentions. She was too anxious; her daughter had just returned, and she brought up matters concerning her mother. It was normal for her daughter to avoid such topics.
Ouyang Zixin smiled but did not respond. She certainly understood what her mother wanted to say. Otherwise, her mother wouldn't have mentioned filial piety over something as trivial as a pot of flower tea. However, this time Ouyang Zixin wanted to pretend not to understand; some things could be glossed over as long as they weren't made explicit.
Especially since her mother was well aware of what she was trying to dodge.
"I heard Father went to the palace?" Ouyang Zixin set down the teapot and picked up a cup of tea for herself, lightly blowing on the steam. "He usually handles affairs at the yamen without needing to go to the palace. What’s different today?"
Bai Su knew about Ouyang Hao's trip to the palace; it was all for her daughter's shield, Baike. Since she didn't want to discuss matters regarding the Matriarch, they might as well talk about something else.
Thus, Bai Su began recounting stories about those who had come out from the Millennium Ruins before, including Baike. Even though she deliberately mentioned other people, Ouyang Zixin still keenly sensed that Bai Su was primarily talking about Baike.
"Ah." It seemed unavoidable. I never expected that upon returning home, I would be surrounded by matters concerning the Bai Clan. Not to mention escaping from my grandmother, I also had a cousin to deal with...
"Xin'er..."
"Alright. Mother, since I can't avoid it, let's talk about it." In fact, she regretted her decision to be straightforward the moment she made it. She hadn't even sorted out her own issues yet, and now she was getting involved with others from the Bai Clan, which made her feel exhausted. But exhaustion was of no use; the matter was evidently urgent, or else her mother wouldn't be pressuring her so much.
"Grandmother, why have you never mentioned this before?" Compared to Baike, Ouyang Zixin preferred to hear about other matters because the grievances with Baike were complicated and couldn't be clarified in a short time. If they were all relatives, should they not let bygones be bygones?
Unfortunately, for someone who once wanted to kill her, she found it impossible to simply laugh it off.
"Xin'er, do you remember? When you participated in the Mystical Energy Test at five years old, I told you that there were some things I would definitely tell you when the opportunity arose, and I would never hide them from you." Bai Su took Ouyang Zixin's hand. At that time, Ouyang Zixin was very understanding and considerate of her mother. She had thought that her daughter was still young and that matters could wait a bit longer. Who would have thought everything would come so quickly in just five or six years?
Ouyang Zixin nodded. Back then, she sensed that her mother had something on her mind but didn't want to bring up her scars, so she never asked further. Now that her mother was taking the initiative to speak about it, she would be a good listener.
"Back then, I was supposed to inherit your grandmother's position and become the Legitimate Daughter of the Bai Clan. However... your uncle, who is now the clan leader Bai Zhan, used many schemes because he wanted to become the leader himself and even imprisoned me..."
The mother and daughter sat in the room discussing past events. Occasionally, Bai Su's narration was interrupted by her choking back tears; at times, Ouyang Zixin slammed her hand on the table in anger...
"How can he call himself a son? A brother? He's worse than a beast!" Ouyang Zixin had considered that her mother might have suffered greatly in the Bai Clan, but she never imagined that the suffering came not from outsiders but from her own brother. "He even imprisoned his own mother; how can such a person be a clan leader?!"
This Bai Clan was simply too disgraceful!
Bai Su's eyes were red-rimmed and somewhat unfocused as she said, "Back then, I thought he was blinded by ambition. But after so many years since your father and I left, he still hasn't learned to restrain himself. We wanted to rescue your grandmother but were powerless; our strength was too weak back then."
If what Mother said is true, then the Matriarch is also a victim, right?
If that's the case, it wouldn't hurt to meet such a Matriarch. However, another contradiction arises: if the Legitimate Daughter of the Bai Clan is truly that noble, why can Bai Zhan imprison the Matriarch? Is there really no one else in the clan who can speak up?
Ouyang Zixin raised her doubts: "Mother, when you and Father left the Bai Clan back then, was it because there were some things you didn't know in detail? Didn't the Matriarch explain why Bai Zhan could dominate everything?"
"She did say that Bai Zhan somehow managed to steal the clan's treasured Bright White Stone, and the Legitimate Daughter of the Bai Clan who lost it would be stripped of all power. Later, he used tricks to pretend that he had retrieved the Bright White Stone, which allowed him to become the White Clan Leader." In fact, when Madam Bai told Bai Su this, Bai Su also had her doubts. How could such a precious item be stolen so easily?
However, Bai Su had a gentle personality and couldn't bring herself to ask her mother about it. Ouyang Zixin was different; she didn't hold Madam Bai in such high regard.
"Let's go. Since we've come this far in our conversation, we might as well clarify everything at once. We're going to see the Matriarch." Ouyang Zixin suddenly stood up, pulling Bai Su along as they headed outside. "By the way, my friends are still at Flower Hall. Mother, you go wait for me with the Matriarch."
She almost forgot about Yun Tianmo and the others... (To be continued.)
Comment 0 Comment Count