Hu Mingmei said calmly, "You did a good job!" If he were in charge, he would do the same: gather everything together, take stock, and then redistribute it once he had a clear understanding of the situation.

"Take all these people back to Old Master Huang's courtyard and keep them under guard. Dismiss all of Old Master Huang's concubines from the backyard. Our Hu family does not support idlers."

Supporting Huang Wenbai and the others was already the greatest act of patience Hu Mingmei could muster.

But Huang Haichuan didn't think so. He exclaimed in surprise, "You're going to imprison us?"

Hu Mingmei sneered, "How could that be? I'm just finding a place for my second uncle and grandfather to live out their old age! From now on, you won't have to worry about the Hu family anymore. You can just enjoy your retirement!"

Xia Donglai obeyed orders without question. Even as Hu Mingmei spoke, he had already moved on to Huang Haichuan. Huang Haichuan was dragged up and became utterly enraged, glaring at Hu Mingmei with a ferocious expression. "Hu Mingmei, you will get your retribution! I curse you to be childless and without descendants!"

When Huang Haichuan and the others came out of the hall, Bai Nuo only glanced at them before returning to her work.

Hu Mingmei came out carrying a pile of account books.

"How come there are still so many?" Bai Nuo looked at him with distress. Now, whenever she saw the ledger, she felt uncomfortable all over and her head was dizzy.

“Everything is here, sweetie. Let’s go eat first. We can have Xia Donglai and the others come over!” Hu Mingmei put down what she was holding and took Bai Nuo’s hand.

Dinner was eaten in the yard. Bai Nuo had stewed pork rib soup and white porridge. Neither of them had time to eat, so they just heated it up and ate it. They were tired after a long day and didn't have much of an appetite for anything else. White porridge and pickled vegetables were just the right amount to whet their appetites.

After dinner, Hu Mingmei lay down again, with Bai Nuo keeping him company. They talked about what had happened that day, and Bai Nuo asked, "What's the deal with the Royal Guard?" It was the first time she had seen these people, but they looked like secret agents.

"They've been with you the whole time?"

Hu Mingmei shook his head, knowing that she had many doubts in her mind, and asked one by one, "You know about Lu Ying's background, but do you know about Xia Donglai?"

Bai Nuo shook her head, seemingly not entirely sure.

“Xia Donglai is different from Lu Ying,” Hu Mingmei said. “Lu Ying was just an ordinary guard. We knew each other when we were young. I said I needed someone to protect me, so Lu Ying stayed. Xia Donglai, on the other hand, was a member of the Royal Guard. My grandmother had him by my side since I was a child.”

"So you've been in contact with them all along?" Bai Nuo asked.

“No!” Hu Mingmei said, “Not long after my grandmother passed away, my parents also passed away. Because of Huang Wenbai, most of the Royal Guards were either dead or injured. None of them survived. Xia Donglai has been looking for them all these years. We finally found them a few days ago. However, these people are not the same people from back then. They are their descendants.”

Bai Nuo understood that some people, once they have a profession, will continue to do it for generations. Their ancestors and parents followed Hu Mingmei's grandmother, so their descendants will naturally follow Hu Mingmei as well.

Hu Mingmei continued, "Originally, I planned to proceed slowly, but I didn't expect them to target you, so..." He wanted to make these people experience how he lost everything back then, but they were too eager to die.

Bai Nuo said apologetically, "It's all my fault. I messed up your plans." Huang Wenbai and the others sent someone to summon her, and she could have easily used Hu Mingmei's poor health as an excuse not to go.

Hu Mingmei shook her head. "You didn't disrupt my plan, you just brought it forward. I was already planning to do it that way. How could I let them hurt you and your child?" A flash of ruthlessness crossed Hu Mingmei's eyes. The scene of her father's death and her mother's passing was still vivid in her mind. The expressions on those people's faces as they killed her grandmother and took concubines were something Hu Mingmei could never forget. When she was suffering so much, she vowed to protect the people she cared about.

Seeing him like this, Bai Nuo was very worried that his excitement would aggravate his condition, so she quickly snuggled into his arms and hugged him, saying, "It's okay, I'm fine, and the baby is fine too. From now on, we will both be fine."

Hu Mingmei held Bai Nuo in her arms, rested her chin on Bai Nuo's head, and asked softly, "Aren't you afraid of me? I've shown you so many bloody things, and I've even killed people."

Bai Nuo shook her head. "I'm not afraid. You're ruthless, but I'm cold-blooded too. I personally turned Chen Zhi into a woman. At that time, when Third Sister was in a bad state, he still tried to harm her, so I took action. It was a dark and windy night."

Besides, although Hu Mingmei claims to be cold-blooded and cruel, having committed murder and other crimes, so far, there are only two people who are truly connected to him: Zhang Jingwen and Hu Quan. As for Zhang Jingwen, it goes without saying that Hu Mingmei did it for her sake. Zhang Jingwen did not die at Hu Mingmei's hands, but at the hands of her maid, Xiangming.

As for Hu Quan, if Bai Nuo were to do it, Bai Nuo would do the same thing.

Hu Mingmei simply locked up the rest of the people.

How can he be considered cruel?

Even if he is cruel, she will become cruel along with him.

Bai Nuo didn't know how long she had been sleeping with Hu Mingmei. When she woke up, it was noisy outside. Bai Nuo turned her head and saw that Hu Mingmei was still fast asleep, looking very tired. Bai Nuo didn't want to wake him, so she quietly got out of bed, put on her clothes, and went out.

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