Xiao Xiangqiu then opened the wooden box and looked inside...

Tao Qingyun walked over and gently patted his shoulder, then turned back to look at the Qin family cemetery, lost in thought for a moment, and gave a bitter smile. But it was quickly drowned out by the sound of the continuous drizzle. He saw Qin Weixi stand up, one foot sinking into the rain-soaked mud, and he stepped forward to help her up with an umbrella.

The rainy season continues, and today it's drizzling incessantly. Qin Weixi got up and was about to walk behind the group when she suddenly noticed Jiang Yuanjun staring intently at her. She smiled and stepped forward, asking, "Fifth Brother? Is there something on my face?"

Jiang Yuanjun was taken aback, then smiled at her and shook her head.

Feng Hua and Zi Shu called Luo Yuan, the driver, to bring the carriage closer. Tao Qingyun instructed the two girls present, "You two should be careful lately. Li Chuirong, the daughter of the Li family, did not leave with the women of the Li family after the house was raided. She ran away a few days ago after robbing food in the street."

The three rode horses, while Luo Yuan drove a carriage with the four girls. They hurried as fast as they could and arrived in the city at nightfall.

Upon arriving in the city, Jiang Yuanfu suggested going to Shuiyunlou to order some food, but Tao Qingyun said she was tired from the journey and wanted to return home to rest early, so they went their separate ways.

On the way, Luo Ling noticed that Qin Weixi was in a bad mood, so she dismounted and rode in the carriage with her. She told Luo Ling about the clues she had learned from Kang Shi when she entered the palace that day. Luo Ling listened patiently to her story, and then her brows furrowed more and more.

Luo Ling said, "This Lu is a key witness to exonerate the Qin family, but over the years we have sent out wave after wave of people, and none of them have discovered her existence. My brother has even wondered at times whether she is already dead."

He remained silent for a long time, then looked at Qin Weixi with gentle eyes: "Brother has sent some things back to Jiangnan. Is there anything you would like to take back with you, little sister?"

Qin Weixi's expression immediately hardened: "Why are you returning to Jiangnan at this time? Is it for Grandmother?"

Luo Ling shook her head, looking troubled, but quickly smiled and said, "Little sister is very perceptive, nothing can be hidden from you. Grandmother has been coughing lately, probably because she was sick a while ago and hasn't fully recovered."

Qin Weixi hurriedly asked, "When? Why didn't you tell me, brother? How is Grandmother now? Is she taking her medicine properly?" Her eyes were full of anxiety. "Should I go back to Jiangnan?" She immediately urged Luo Yuan, who was driving the carriage, to hurry back to the Luo residence.

Luo Ling quickly pressed her down: "It's all over now. I explained the matter to His Majesty, and the people from the Imperial Hospital have written a prescription. They will send it to Jiangnan by fast horse tomorrow."

Qin Weixi calmed down slightly after hearing this, pondered for a while, and then said, "Letter. Then I will write a letter to Father and Mother. Grandmother loves to eat Beijing Eight Delicacies. Tomorrow morning I will go and buy ten or eight packs and have someone take them back."

Luo Ling laughed upon hearing this: "How could Grandmother eat so much?"

Qin Weixi said, "And my father and mother."

She suddenly remembered that Xiao Shu had mentioned Jiang Yuanjun to her in the palace that day, and fell into deep thought.

After a short while, Luo Ling heard her sigh softly, and then she said, "Brother, please ask someone to bring me back a Zhejiang brush."

Luo Ling nodded, but did not ask any further questions. Since returning to the capital, his younger sister had never asked him for anything, and he knew she had her reasons.

Back at the Luo residence, Uncle Gu prepared two bowls of hot noodle soup and delivered them to the brother and sister at their respective residences. Seeing the young lady painting at her desk, he didn't disturb her. As he put down the bowl of noodles and was about to leave, Qin Weixi looked at the bowl of noodles and suddenly called out to him, "Uncle Gu, have you ever seen His Majesty from your childhood? Or your father, uncles, and other relatives from your youth?" She got up, poured a cup of hot tea, and handed it to him.

"Thank you, Miss." Gu Han smiled kindly as he accepted the gift and asked, "Would you like to hear some stories from long ago?"

She nodded: "Uncle Gu, please have a seat."

Gu Han waved his hand, put the hot tea back on the table, and said with a smile, "I was born into the family. My father gave me the nickname 'A Shou' back then, which was to tell me to keep my true self and to protect the Luo family." He sighed as he said this, "But the Luo family is now falling apart. I haven't seen the old lady, master, and madam for ten years."

“Uncle Gu, life is full of choices, but I know you will be reunited one day,” Qin Weixi said softly.

Gu Han chuckled and stroked his white beard: "Speaking of the past, I've witnessed three generations grow up. In the Luo family, there was your grandfather, your father, and your elder brother. Back then, the founding emperor was as close as your grandfather, your grandfather, and the grandfather of the Chu family as brothers. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call them true brothers. The Chu family was good at fighting, your grandfather was good at planning, and your grandfather was good at taking advantage of others. All three were indispensable. When I was young, my father had already seen that they would definitely achieve great things in the future."

"As for His Majesty the present." As he spoke, his once bright and spirited gaze suddenly sharpened.

"I cannot say much about the affairs of the imperial family. Back then, I followed my master and my grandfather through thick and thin. I only know that the late emperor had high expectations for the current emperor and often taught him to be friendly and respectful to his brothers."

"But back then, I had never seen so much blood in my life. It wasn't the blood shed on the battlefield when I was fighting alongside my grandfather, where it was either you or me who won, or you or me who died. Instead, it was the world filled with slaughter, and everywhere I looked there was a sea of ​​corpses."

"The incident happened suddenly back then, you could say it was too sudden, and it was also quite strange. Your father Luo found me, and the two of us wanted to go out of the city to take a look. Before we even left the gate, the Embroidered Uniform Guards imprisoned everyone in the mansion. But the Luo family seemed to be fine back then, and the Embroidered Uniform Guards didn't guard us servants much. Later, with the help of the master, I was allowed to go out of the city to take a look. Before I even left the city, it was full of patrolling soldiers, and it looked like there was going to be a tough battle. So I climbed up a temple in the city and saw that the city gates were tightly closed, and the people outside the city could not enter, nor could the people inside the city leave."

"I stood on the hillside and saw hundreds of Qin family soldiers who had fought alongside your father, riding horses, one after another trying to protect and help the leader scale the city wall and open the gate. Those in front were shot dead by the Imperial Guards on the wall, and those behind were hacked to death by the Imperial Guards and others who arrived at the scene..."

"I knew something had happened to the Qin family. At that time, I was shocked, but even more so, I was terrified."

"Later, the young master asked me about it, and I also learned about the news that the Duke of Dingguo hanged himself in the palace back then. To this day, we, an old man and an young man, still don't know what those hundred or so personal guards who could have escaped wanted to do back in the capital. We also don't know why they left the city. As for the rumors that those five hundred personal guards were summoned by the Duke of Dingguo's heir to leave the city ahead of time to meet him and plot a raid on the palace," Gu Han shook his head: "I don't believe it."

“I know the young master’s character. But I think he must have known that the Duke of Dingguo was in trouble at the time. Or perhaps those who wanted to climb the city wall knew that the Duke of Dingguo had passed away and wanted to protect the lives of all the women in the Qin family.”

"But they made no attempt to cross the wall and enter the city. I was standing on the hillside when I saw a soldier, covered in wounds, climb the wall alone, but he didn't intend to harm the guards. Instead, he kept shouting from the wall before jumping off. Later, I learned from the people that he had been shouting that the Qin family was full of loyal ministers, with no rebellious officials..."

"That little scoundrel Li, who accompanied the General to the border back then, suddenly returned alive. He claimed that the Duke of Dingguo had colluded with the enemy and murdered his friend, using a secret letter to cause the General to be assassinated by the enemy. But I watched them grow up. What deep-seated hatred could the two families possibly have that would lead to such a thing as murdering a friend? We all think it's nonsense, but does the current Emperor, who grew up with them, really believe it? Xu Zhi could never do such a thing."

Gu Han's gaze gradually became more solemn. He paused and said, "Back then, your grandfather and the old Marquis of Jingning did have a fight. I only know that the fight was very fierce, to the point that the two did not speak to each other for many days. Later, there was some estrangement between the two, and even the late emperor could not mediate the dispute."

"In the end, the old Marquis passed away due to his old illness, and your grandfather followed him. That day, my master and I went to the Qin family's old residence, and we did see the old Duke Dingguo with his eyes wide open, as if he died with resentment. But I don't know much about this matter. I only know that my master and Dingguo suppressed the matter afterward. I think that some villains must have known about this matter and used it as an excuse to carry out this scheme after the death of the Taizu Emperor. But... these things didn't mean much at the time."

Qin Weixi stood still, not moving. Her brother had never told her about these things, nor had her father, mother, or brother.

She was very young at the time and only vaguely remembered that her grandfather had indeed suffered a serious illness, but she did not remember that he died with his eyes open and full of resentment, and that no one in the Qin family clan mentioned it at the time. She always thought it was just a rumor.

So what exactly happened before my grandfather died? My grandfather's advisor, Zhuang Bicheng, is dead, and Zhuang Shijun has also disappeared.

Her legs trembled, and she barely managed to brace herself by placing her hands on the table. Finally, she asked, "Uncle Gu, do you recognize Zhuang Bicheng, my grandfather's close attendant from back then?"

Gu Han was taken aback, and after a moment of thought, he said, "Miss, are you referring to the rumors that circulated in the city back then?" He waved his hand and said, "The remnants of the previous dynasty committed atrocities, and the people suffered greatly at that time. Zhuang Bicheng was someone your grandfather dug out of a pile of corpses back then. He would never allow his son to aid and abet evil."

Yes, in her memory, her father's advisor, Zhuang Shijun, had thick eyebrows and big eyes. He was well-behaved, kind, and extremely good to her and her brother. The last time she saw Zhuang Shijun was on the bank of the canal, where her father instructed him to escort her and her brother to the canal.

At that time, Zhuang Shijun's only living relative, his aunt, had just passed away. He hurriedly returned to his hometown and then rushed back to the capital. She remembered asking Zhuang Shijun why he was in such a hurry to return home, suggesting that he should explain to his father if there was anything wrong in the village. Zhuang Shijun smiled and said to her, "No, there's no one in the mansion to help your father. I'd better stay in the capital."

But after that parting, she went to Jiangnan, and Zhuang Shijun disappeared without a trace.

Gu Han bowed and took his leave, but still sighed softly: "Miss, when Master left back then, he specifically instructed me not to say too much about these things. But you and your brother have grown up. I watched you grow up, and there are some things you should know."

Gu Han smiled kindly again, his eyes filled with relief: "Now that Miss is healthy and safe in this world, I sometimes think how wonderful it would be if she were still alive."

Under the bright moonlight, Qin Weixi went alone to the library in the Luo residence. She pushed open the door, lit an oil lamp, and walked towards the desk by its dim light, pulling open the wooden box. She took out a small, palm-sized, vermilion wooden box.

She then opened the wooden box and looked at the string of small, hollowed-out sachets that were sitting quietly inside.

She always wore it on her body back then, but one day it sank to the bottom of the river, and everything vanished. She was left all alone, with nothing left.

The only things she wore were this fragrant little ball and a golden key around her neck.