The Bai family's ancestral hall was built in the southwest corner.

The gate to this courtyard is usually locked, and the only key is in the hands of Old Master Bai.

So, this was Bai Qianmo's first time coming in.

Sister-in-law Zhao brought the key and opened the door.

"I don't know what's wrong with the old man lately. He's been doing things that are more and more absurd. Today it was clearly Bai Xinrou's fault, but the old man is taking it out on you. He's really confused!" Zhao's wife said, speaking up for Bai Qianmo.

Bai Qianmo smiled faintly and stepped into the courtyard of the ancestral hall.

The courtyard wasn't large, and two willow trees were planted in it, one on the left and one on the right of the main hall.

They were like two majestic and awe-inspiring statues, solemn and dignified.

Gu Jueye followed Bai Qianmo in.

Bai Yitang then exchanged a few words with Sister Zhao at the door.

Sister Zhao said, "Young Master Yitang, later you should persuade Miss Qianmo to apologize to the old man as soon as possible. This ancestral hall is not heated and the room is not exposed to sunlight. Living people will not be able to stand it if they stay in it for too long."

"I understand, Sister-in-law Zhao, you can go back now."

"Okay, just call me if you need anything."

Bai Yitang responded and followed them into the ancestral hall.

Zhao's wife sighed. Ever since Bai Xinrou started staying at the Bai family home, the children in the family have suffered a lot of grievances.

After muttering a few words, Sister Zhao turned and went back to the front yard.

At this moment, Bai Qianmo had already arrived at the main room of the ancestral hall.

The house faces north, which is the opposite of the orientation of a house where people live. Because it has not received sunlight for a long time, the house is somewhat damp.

In addition, there was no fire lit, and the moment I stepped into the house, I immediately felt a chill.

Suddenly feeling a weight on her shoulders, Bai Qianmo looked down at the heavy coat draped over her shoulders, then turned to look at the man behind her.

Gu Jueye draped his coat over her shoulders, while he himself was only wearing a cashmere sweater.

"I'm not cold, and you're not dressed warmly either." Bai Qianmo tried to pull her clothes off, but was stopped by a pair of hands.

"There are spare clothes in the car, I'll go get one later."

Bai Qianmo tugged at Gu Jueye's little finger with her small hand and shook it back and forth a couple of times.

"Mr. Gu, you are so good to me!"

"Cough cough cough, Bai Qianmo, that's enough already. I'm almost full from this dog food. Shouldn't we discuss a solution?"

Bai Qianmo looked at Bai Yitang: "What's the plan?"

"Of course we want the old man to let us leave. Do you really intend to make us kneel in the ancestral hall as punishment?"

Bai Qianmo remained silent, a glint of light flashing in her eyes.

Her gaze fell upon the altar in the very center.

The memorial tablets are densely packed together. If you look closely at the surnames on them, there are a total of 18 tablets, 8 of which are surnamed Huo, all of which are male names.

Of the remaining 10 people, judging from their names, 9 should be women.

Bai Zongting was likely her great-grandfather, who was also her grandfather's father.

Bai Yitang also noticed the strangeness of the memorial tablet at this time.

"Why does the Bai family's ancestral hall enshrine so many people with different surnames?"

"Haven't you heard Grandpa mention the Bai family's past?"

Bai Yitang shook his head: "How could the old man tell me these things? What exactly is going on?"

Seeing that Bai Yitang truly didn't know about the Bai family's past, Bai Qianmo offered a brief explanation.

"You're saying Grandpa was a son-in-law who married into the family? Our great-grandfather's surname was Huo?"

"Yes, this century-old house was originally the Huo family mansion. Because the great-grandfather only had one daughter, in order to continue the family line, he eventually chose to marry into the Huo family."

Gu Jueye asked in confusion, "When a man chooses to marry into his wife's family, doesn't the first child born usually take the mother's surname?"

"I don't understand this either. Asking Grandpa will make everything clear."

As she spoke, Bai Qianmo's gaze carefully searched around the ancestral hall.

I'd like to see if there are any hidden compartments or buttons that could be used to create mechanisms.

But after looking around, I didn't find anything strange.

Could it be that she misunderstood?

Grandpa didn't have any other deeper meaning in making her kneel as punishment in the ancestral hall.

"Hey, why are there a few holes in the roof?" Bai Yitang walked onto a bluestone floor tile and noticed clusters of light shining on it.

Looking up, I discovered that there were seven small holes, each about the size of a thumb, in the roof.

"Grandpa is so careless! The roof of the ancestral hall has several holes, but he can't bear to repair it. He really is a miser, not willing to spend a single penny!"

Bai Qianmo and Gu Jueye's eyes were drawn to the holes.

"Qianmo, don't these holes look like..."

There are seven stars, four of which form a diagonal quadrilateral, while the other three are arranged in a straight line in the center.

"It's Orion!"

"Yes, that's right, it's an image of Orion. These holes must correspond to something very important."

Bai Qianmo closed her eyes, carefully recalling the movements of Elder Bai as he turned the beaded string in his hand.

【】

"!I see!"

"What? What is this number?" Bai Yitang was completely bewildered.

Gu Jueye carefully studied the numbers in his mind, then slightly lifted his eyelids to look at the few holes in the roof that were letting in light.

He then looked down at the bluestone floor beneath him.

Because the bluestone floor was left by our ancestors, even after several generations, not a single brick or tile here has been moved.

Each floor tile is meticulously polished by craftsmen before use, and its surface has been polished smooth and shiny.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!