At the sight of the swing set, Mrs. Tong was momentarily dazed.
Before her eyes, it seemed as if her second daughter appeared again, sitting on the swing and playing merrily.
Back then, the sound of her silver - bell - like laughter would always ring out in Qianqiu Garden, lifting everyone's spirits.
But now, such laughter had not been heard for a long time...
"Madam, Madam?"
Someone gave her a gentle push on the shoulder. Mrs. Tong snapped out of her reverie and crouched down on the ground again with the paper money in her hand.
She took out a fire starter, lit the paper money, and murmured:
"Yuan'er, Mother knows you've suffered a great deal and have a lot of grievances to pour out, which is why you came to Mother. Mother does feel sorry for you, but you... you were just too headstrong. There were many things Mother was powerless to do. Now Mother has found a Taoist priest to perform a ritual to pacify your soul. If you have any wishes, tell the priest. As long as it's within Mother's power, Mother will surely help you fulfill them. Once you've let go of your grudges, go and be reborn..."
Beside her, Taoist Priest Wenqing gently shook a bell in his hand and chanted incantations for summoning and pacifying the soul.
The tongues of fire danced, devouring the paper money in Mrs. Tong's hand, and the flames gradually grew larger.
Everything seemed to be going smoothly.
However, before Mrs. Tong could feel relieved for long, all the paper money in her hand went out again.
The shadows of the trees around remained motionless, and there wasn't a single breath of wind in the yard. The atmosphere at the scene could only be described as eerie.
A shiver ran down Mrs. Tong's spine. She looked at Taoist Priest Wenqing and stammered, "R - Reverend, what on earth is going on?"
Taoist Priest Wenqing frowned tightly. Apparently, this was the first time he had encountered such a situation. After a moment of thought, he said:
"There are only two possible reasons why the paper money won't burn and goes out on its own. One is that your daughter's resentment is too deep, and she refuses to forgive you. The other is that your daughter's soul has already scattered and is no longer in this world."
"No, it can't be," Mrs. Tong murmured. "If she could appear in my dreams, her soul couldn't have dissipated!"
Taoist Priest Wenqing said, "Then it means she refuses to forgive you."
"Reverend, what should I do to resolve her grudges?" Mrs. Tong asked anxiously. She hadn't slept for a whole day and night. If she couldn't resolve this matter tonight, she was afraid she would have that nightmare again when she fell asleep. If this continued, how could her body endure it?
Taoist Priest Wenqing said, "I have a second solution. Set up a memorial tablet, place it in the ancestral hall, and offer incense."
Mrs. Tong blurted out instinctively, "No, I need the marquis's permission to open the ancestral hall and welcome a memorial tablet. Yuan'er once did something that brought shame to the marquis's mansion. The marquis will never allow Yuan'er's memorial tablet to enter the ancestral hall."
Taoist Priest Wenqing said meaningfully, "Can't you think of a way yourself?"
Meeting the Taoist priest's gaze, Mrs. Tong was stunned for a moment and then immediately understood.
"Alright, I'll do as you say. Set up a memorial tablet, place it in the ancestral hall, and offer incense."
Completely unaware that she had almost been "pacified," at this moment, far away in another corner of Shengjing, in the Duke Yong's Mansion, Su Yuanyuan received a gift from her second brother, Su Huaiyuan.
"Yuanbao, take a look. Do you like the gift your second brother gave you?"
Su Huaiyuan squatted in front of Su Yuanyuan, leveling his gaze with hers. His square - jawed face, which resembled Su Qing's, was filled with anticipation.
But looking at the gift in her hand, Su Yuanyuan didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
The gift Su Huaiyuan gave her was a dagger.
At the top of the handle was inlaid a crystal - clear gemstone, and the scabbard was embroidered with many intricate patterns in gold thread. It felt heavy and substantial in her hand.
In terms of value, this dagger was more valuable than the wooden carved rabbit that Su Huaisheng had given her. She wondered where her second brother had gotten it and how he could be so willing to give such a precious gift to her.
Su Yuanyuan grasped the handle and slightly drew out the dagger. Under the lamp light, a sharp glint could be seen seeping out from the gap.
"Yuanbao suffered a loss at the hands of that bad woman last time because you didn't have anything to defend yourself. Now that you have this dagger, those bad women won't dare to get close to you."
Su Huaiyuan had really put his heart into this for her.
Su Yuanyuan closed the dagger and hugged it tightly in her arms. She smiled at Su Huaiyuan and said, "It's beautiful. Yuanbao likes it."
His sister's approval made Su Huaiyuan extremely happy, but on his face, he just grinned foolishly and even scratched the back of his head shyly.
Feeling a tug on his sleeve, Su Huaiyuan looked up and saw that Su Yuanyuan's expression seemed a bit worried.
"Second brother, fighting..."
Su Huaiyuan didn't even notice that his sister seemed more lively than before. The feeling of being cared about by his sister just made his heart surge with emotion. He couldn't help but pat his chest and say:
"Don't worry, Yuanbao. Your second brother is invincible in Mobei. Those pampered young masters in Shengjing are no match for your second brother!"
What Su Yuanyuan was worried about was not that he couldn't win, but that he might be tricked by those scheming young masters.
Rolling his eyes, Su Huaiyuan leaned closer and whispered, "Does Yuanbao also want to go with second brother to watch the fight?"
Su Yuanyuan immediately nodded.
Su Huaiyuan stroked her head and said with a smile, "Next time, next time second brother will take Yuanbao with him. This time, Yuanbao should go to the temple with mother and third brother to pay respects. Second brother also hopes that you will be safe all your life and always be a happy little girl."
Su Yuanyuan was very touched. She wanted to say something to Su Huaiyuan, but remembering that she was still pretending to be a "fool," she could only tug on Su Huaiyuan's sleeve gently.
At this time, Xia Lu knocked on the door and said to Su Yuanyuan and Su Huaiyuan in the room, "Miss, Second Young Master, the Crown Princess is here."
A figure walked into the room. It was Wei Linlang.
Su Huaiyuan stood up and saluted, "Sister - in - law."
"You're here too, Second Brother. Are you here to give Yuanbao a gift? Let me see what gift you gave Yuanbao," Wei Linlang said with a smile. Su Yuanyuan immediately offered the dagger with both hands.
"Sister - in - law, it's beautiful."
Wei Linlang was also amazed by the dagger. Different from Su Yuanyuan, after she picked up the dagger, she drew out the blade completely.
With a "hum," the dark - colored handle was fully revealed in front of everyone. The dagger carried a hint of killing intent, making people's hearts tremble.
Wei Linlang praised, "What a good knife! Where did you get it, Second Brother?"
Su Huaiyuan said, "I got it as a trophy from a barbarian from the north on the arena in Xuancheng Market."
Wei Linlang returned the dagger to Su Yuanyuan and said with a smile, "Yuanbao must take good care of this knife. Your second brother doesn't easily give away the trophies he wins from the arena. At least, we haven't seen him give anything away in all these years."
Su Yuanyuan nodded obediently and put away the dagger.
Su Huaiyuan asked, "Sister - in - law, what brings you here?"
Wei Linlang turned around and waved to the maid behind her. The maid stepped forward with a robe in her hands.
"I'm here to give something to Yuanbao."
Su Yuanyuan's eyes fell on the robe in the maid's hand. She was stunned for a moment, and in front of her eyes, there suddenly appeared a pair of phoenix - like eyes that were as pale and cold as glass, as well as a man's extremely handsome and almost demonic face.
This robe was the one that the prime minister had put on her. Since it had been soaked by the water on her body, Mo had intended to let Wei Linlang throw it away, but she had kept it.
Su Huaiyuan asked curiously, "This robe looks like a men's style. Why?"
Wei Linlang gave him a deep look and said, "It is indeed a men's style. This robe belongs to Cang Xuan."
"What?!" Su Huaiyuan was greatly shocked. "How could Yuanbao be involved with him?"
At this moment, Su Yuanyuan was extremely curious. What kind of grudge did Cang Xuan have with the Duke Yong's Mansion?