Chapter 73 Cat's Past 3
Bai Yifeng's gaze fell on Bai Qingchen with undisguised disgust, as if he was looking at an eyesore.
He snorted, not taking the child seriously at all, and directly ordered the triangular-eyed butler, "Go, invite the officials, so that some people won't cry until they see the coffin."
Soon, two yamen runners in black uniforms came with the housekeeper.
Bai Yifeng took out the document with the official seal and whispered a few words to the yamen runner.
The yamen runner had obviously already received the benefit. He only glanced at the document and said gruffly to Uncle Chen, "Mr. Bai is indeed a relative of Bai Yize, and there are official documents to prove it."
The triangular-eyed butler immediately said, "See? This is the Bai family's affair. You, an outsider, have no right to interfere. Quickly pack up your things and leave the Bai Mansion!"
Chen Boru was struck by lightning. Looking at the indifferent face of the yamen runner, and then at the smug expressions of Bai Yifeng and others, he was instantly overwhelmed by a huge feeling of powerlessness. He staggered a step and held onto the door frame to avoid falling down.
"Uncle Chen!" Bai Qingchen rushed over and hugged Uncle Chen's legs, like a drowning man grabbing the last piece of driftwood.
"Don't go, Uncle Chen, don't go!" Tears finally burst out again, mixed with fear and reluctance.
Uncle Chen burst into tears, stroking Bai Qingchen's head with trembling hands, his throat choked with sobs and unable to utter a complete sentence: "Master, old servant... old servant..."
He wanted to stay, but the government was holding the knife in his hand. How could an old servant like him resist?
The triangular-eyed butler walked forward impatiently, grabbed Bai Qingchen's thin arm and pulled it out hard: "Little bastard, get out of here!" The force was so great that the child's arm was almost dislocated.
"Let him go!" Uncle Chen's eyes were bloodshot and he wanted to step forward to stop them, but was stopped by the two yamen runners with expressionless faces.
In the end, Uncle Chen was forced out of the Bai Mansion's gate. He was hunched over and only had time to look back at the crying and struggling child for the last time.
The two heavy black lacquered doors of the Bai Mansion slowly closed with a muffled bang behind Uncle Chen, amid Bai Qingchen's helpless cries, isolating the two worlds inside and outside.
As soon as Uncle Chen left, the situation in Bai Mansion changed completely.
Those so-called tribesmen immediately bared their ferocious fangs.
Bai Yifeng seemed to have become the new master. He commanded the few fierce servants he brought with him and began to take inventory of the warehouse and check the account books.
Most of the original servants in the mansion were driven away by them, leaving only a few servants and cooks who looked honest and did not dare to say much.
The newly replaced servants all had fierce eyes and ordered Bai Qingchen around without showing any respect.
Bai Qingchen was driven back to his bedroom like a frightened young animal. He curled up in the cold corner of the bed, listening to the noisy sounds of rummaging through drawers and smashing things outside, as well as the greedy discussions of those people without any reservation.
"This house is in a good location and is worth a lot of money..."
"Hurry up and count out the gold, silver, and valuables in the warehouse!"
"And those account books. Check out how much debt is owed out there. Collect whatever you can quickly..."
"What about that kid? How do we deal with him?"
"Hmph, a bastard, looking so unlucky! I'll find a place to send him away in a couple of days..."
Bai Qingchen bit his lips hard until he tasted a hint of blood.
No! In his parents' room, there were his father's favorite books, his mother's favorite tea set, and the scent of his parents. He couldn't let them go in and ruin it.
This thought gave him an inexplicable courage. He jumped out of bed barefoot, rushed out of the room like a gust of wind, crossed the corridor, and threw himself in front of the closed door of his parents' bedroom. He stretched out his little arms and pressed against the door panel tightly.
He shouted at the two servants who were rummaging through something inside, "Don't touch my parents' things! Get out!"
His little strength was like an ant trying to shake a tree in front of the two adult servants.
One of the servants stumbled after being bumped by him. He immediately turned around in anger and cursed: "You little bastard! You're looking for death!"
The big hand like a palm-leaf fan swung violently, bringing with it a gust of evil wind, and fanned Bai Qingchen's face hard.
“Bang!”
The crisp sound of the slap was particularly harsh in the silent corridor.
Bai Qingchen felt that half of his face lost consciousness in an instant, followed by a burning pain, a buzzing in his ears, and stars in front of his eyes.
The huge impact made him lose his balance and he slammed into the cold wall with a thud. His forehead hit the raised blue brick edge at the corner of the wall, which immediately created a gash. Warm blood flowed down his brow bone and covered one of his eyes.
He lay on the ground, his eyes blurred with blood and red. The pain made him curl up, gasping for breath, and a whimper like a small animal came from his throat.
The servant spat, without even looking at him again, turned and went back into the house to continue rummaging through the drawers.
It was unknown how long it took before Bai Qingchen struggled to get up from the severe pain and dizziness.
He wiped the blood off his face and stood up shakily.
The pain on my face and the wound on my forehead are nothing compared to the coldness and hatred in my heart.
The two servants actually found the young boy's eyes a little creepy, and their faces instantly turned red: "What are you looking at, you little bastard!"
The two men looked at each other, dragged Bai Qingchen up from the ground roughly, and threw him into the woodshed in the corner of the backyard, which was full of debris and smelled of mold and dust.
The heavy door slammed shut from the outside, and the sound of the lock was cold and harsh.
Darkness and loneliness surrounded him like a cold tide. The wound on his face still hurt, and the blood scab on his forehead stuck to his hair.
Bai Qingchen hugged his knees and huddled in the cold pile of firewood, his body shaking uncontrollably.
Fear, helplessness, deep hatred, and longing for parents grew and fermented wildly in the silent darkness.
He didn't know how long he had been locked up, but hunger and cold made his consciousness a little blurry.
Just when he thought he would die silently in this dark corner, the door lock of the woodshed was opened with a rattling sound.
The dazzling light poured in, and Bai Qingchen subconsciously shielded his eyes with his arms.
"Come out!" It was the voice of the young man following Bai Yifeng, full of disgust and impatience. "I'll take you to a good place later!"
Bai Qingchen was roughly pulled up and pushed out of the woodshed.
Just as he was being pushed towards the gate of the mansion, he passed by the tightly closed door of his parents' bedroom. The door was ajar, and the inside was in a mess.
His eyes suddenly fixed on an inconspicuous corner under the dressing table, where lay a palm-sized ebony box carved with orchids.
That was my mother's most treasured thing, and it was said to be a family heirloom left to her by her family.
His mother usually kept it deep in the most secret drawer of her dressing table, and would only take it out occasionally, gently wiping it with a clean soft cloth, her eyes gentle yet with a complexity that he could not understand.
While the servant escorting him was talking to the triangular-eyed butler at the door, Bai Qingchen used all his strength to break free from the servant's hand on his arm and rushed into his parents' bedroom.
"You little bastard! What are you doing!" Behind him came the sharp curses of the triangular-eyed butler and the servants chasing him.
Bai Qingchen turned a deaf ear and rushed to the corner with a clear goal, grabbing the cold and heavy ebony box with her small hands.
The box felt slightly heavy in his hand, with a smooth surface and a sense of ancient coolness. Without even looking at it, he held the box tightly in his arms, covering it tightly with the wide sleeves of his mourning clothes.
The pursuing servant had already rushed to the door. Bai Qingchen, holding the box, turned around without hesitation, and nimbly slipped through the servant's armpit, knocking aside the triangular-eyed butler who was blocking his way, rushed out of the bedroom door, staggered out of the main room, and ran into the yard.
"Catch him!" Bai Yifeng's angry roar sounded behind him.
Bai Qingchen held the cold box, which had become his only support at this moment, and ran towards the open gate of the mansion without looking back.
His small figure looked so thin in the sunlight. He rushed out of the door and into the busy street outside.
The shouting and the sound of chasing footsteps behind him were soon drowned out by the noise of the city.
Bai Qingchen didn't dare to stop, but just ran desperately. The ebony box in his arms pressed against his chest, cold and hard, yet seemed to have a trace of weak power.
He didn't know where he was going, he just knew he had to escape from that hellish home.
Finally, he was blocked in a secluded dead end by the servants who had caught up with him. The triangular-eyed butler caught up with him breathlessly, threw him to the ground, and reached out to grab the box in his arms.
"Let go! You little bastard!" The butler twisted his fingers viciously.
Bai Qingchen held the box tightly, as if protecting the last treasure. His small body burst out with amazing strength. His knuckles turned white from the force, and his nails dug deeply into the ebony.
He clenched his teeth, growling like a beast protecting its food, and stared at the butler with bloodshot eyes.
“That’s enough!”
The young man also arrived and looked at the old box in Bai Qingchen's arms impatiently and said with contempt.
"What's the value of a broken wooden box? Take it away quickly! Don't waste time!" He obviously didn't take this insignificant old thing seriously.
Upon hearing this, the triangular-eyed butler fiercely pried it open twice more. Seeing Bai Qingchen holding on tightly, he spat, "Unlucky thing!"
He gave up the fight and instead roughly grabbed Bai Qingchen by the back of his collar, dragged him up from the ground like a bag of garbage, and dragged him out.
Bai Qingchen was dragged and staggered, almost falling down several times. The cold box pressed against his chest, as if it was the last weak connection between him and his parents.
He was dragged behind a building in the west of the city. Next to him hung a faded old wooden sign with three words engraved on it - Renjitang.
A mixture of cheap medicine and mildew wafted out from the door.
The triangular-eyed butler roughly pushed Bai Qingchen forward and said to a middle-aged steward in a dusty robe and expressionless face standing at the door, "Here, the man has been delivered. From now on, he will be a member of your Renjitang."
After saying that, he turned around and left without even looking at Bai Qingchen, as if he had gotten rid of a huge trouble.
The manager drooped his eyelids and glanced at Bai Qingchen, whose face was covered with stains, forehead was injured, and eyes were empty, as if he was looking at an item to be processed.
He waved his hand and signaled a half-grown apprentice next to him: "Bring him in."
Bai Qingchen was pushed by the apprentice and staggered over the high threshold of Renjitang. At the last moment before the door was closed, he suddenly turned back.
His sight passed through the gradually closing crack of the door, across the long dusty street, and in the distance he seemed to be able to see a corner of the tall, familiar wall of the Bai Mansion.
The home that was once filled with his parents' laughter and warmth now stood coldly in the distance like a silent giant beast, completely isolating him.
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