The eldest brother's skin had turned wheat-colored due to long-term sun exposure, and his face was smooth. At least there were no acne scars visible to her naked eyes. Only the palms of his hands had calluses from martial arts training, and there were a few fine scars on his wrists and the backs of his hands.
She also checked Gu Yuan's pulse and judging from his pulse, he was in good health and showed no signs of weakness.
Most importantly…
In his previous life, Gu Yuan would die of smallpox two years later.
The eldest brother broke his leg and lost his job, and the eldest son no longer had any status in the marquis's mansion.
But even so, the lady still refused to divide the family, and let the eldest branch be abused. The eldest brother tried his best to protect her until he was infected with smallpox, and he was worried about her until his death.
Smallpox is terrible, but once you have it, you won't get it again! The wind howled and raged, bringing gusts of cold air from the window, almost blowing out the oil lamp, which shrank to a tiny dot.
The room suddenly became much darker, making Gu Yanfei's face look gloomy.
After a while, Gu Yanfei asked calmly, "Mammy, you were by my brother's side taking care of him back then. Did he really have smallpox?"
As she asked this, she already had the answer in her mind.
Madam Gu had gone to such great lengths to drive Madam Pang away from her eldest brother, and now she was even willing to kill someone.
There is only one possibility -
To silence them.
Aunt Pang was stunned by Gu Yanfei's question. She stared at her blankly and said hesitantly, "It's smallpox. How could it not be?!"
"At that time, many doctors came to the palace, including the Pure Pure Master of Wuliangguan, and they all said it was smallpox."
"The eldest master is dying..."
What happened fourteen years ago came clearly to Aunt Pang's mind. She still remembered that she was worried and frightened during that period. She couldn't sleep well and prayed to gods and Buddhas every day, hoping that gods and Buddhas would bless the eldest young master to survive this disaster safely.
When no one was talking, the house was extremely quiet, and the sound of the wind outside seemed particularly sharp, and the trees in the courtyard were creaking in the strong wind.
"Has Mammy met my eldest brother at that time?" Gu Yanfei asked again.
In her previous life, she couldn't understand why, even though there was war in Sishui County at that time, it was far from being lost.
Dad has gone to the front to guard the city, and Mom just needs to stay in Huling City in the back. It will be safer than for her, a pregnant woman, to run out for "refuge"!
It turns out that she did it for her elder brother...
Gu Yanfei felt a sharp pain in his heart, and his fingertips were so pale that they were almost transparent.
Madam Pang's throat felt dry and bitter, and she shook her head feebly, "No. Because smallpox is contagious, the Madam sent the old slave and the servants of Cihetang out of the house."
"During that time, only the Madam was personally guarding the Young Master."
Smallpox is a plague, more terrible than the plague. People who get smallpox are in danger of death. Once smallpox spreads, it is common for an entire village to be destroyed, which is terrifying.
Back then, when Madam Pang saw how devotedly the Madam took care of the sick young master, she was somewhat moved.
But now, after talking with Gu Yanfei, Aunt Pang thought about it again and felt that something was wrong, as if she had overlooked something.
Another gust of cold wind suddenly blew in through the window, completely extinguishing the light of the oil lamp. The room was instantly plunged into darkness.
Juanbi saw that the oil lamp was out, and groped in the darkness to light it again.
The firelight gradually lit up, illuminating Gu Yanfei's eyes first.
Under the dim light, her beautiful almond-shaped eyes were unusually bright, flashing with a light like a sword.
In a trance, Nanny Pang felt as if she saw the late Marquis Gu Ce again.
Gu Yanfei's voice, as cold as the wind, cut through the silence: "When Nanny was driven away, it was before my father returned to Beijing, right?"
As far as she knew, after her mother died, her father stayed in Yangzhou for three whole years and never left for a moment. It was not until the sixth year of Xuanren that he returned to Beijing because of the summons of the late emperor.
"Yes." Madam Pang nodded, and every word she said was so difficult.
She still remembered that everyone in the Marquis' Mansion was overjoyed at that time, and they were all saying that the Marquis would soon return triumphantly, and that was what she told the eldest young master.
"I understand." Gu Yanfei said ambiguously.
smallpox.
These two words pierced her heart deeply like a sharp blade, and the blade stirred in her heart repeatedly.
A trace of tragic blood flashed across Gu Yanfei's eyes.
My heart seemed to be constantly surging like violent waves, one wave hitting another, each higher than the last.
She couldn't help but think that if her eldest brother had not been "dying", fourteen years ago, her mother would not have rushed back to the capital from Sishui County and died in premature childbirth on the way.
Everything will not be like this now...
What if my mother’s death was not an accident, but a conspiracy by someone else?
Then how innocent was my short life in the previous life...
Gu Yanfei stood up, her heart pounding, and she only said, "Mammy, you should take a good rest and heal your wounds first. Your health is the most important thing."
Nanny Pang looked at Gu Yanfei's slender back and wanted to call her, but in the end she didn't say anything and her mind became even more confused.
Gu Yanfei strode out of the east wing and stopped at the corridor. She looked up at the snowy night sky ahead, towards the direction of the capital, towards someone she couldn't see at all at the moment...
Dense snowflakes were blowing in his face with the wind, but Gu Yanfei didn't care at all, as if he didn't feel the cold at all.
The memories of her past life resurfaced before her eyes, along with the pain, regret, suffering, grief and indignation she had once felt...all rushed towards her, almost swallowing her up.
Her inner demons began to grow wildly again, the blood in her eyes grew thicker, and she bared her fangs and claws in her dark pupils.
Why?!
What is her life all about?!
She felt as if there was a raging beast in her body that wanted to be released crazily, and the blood in her pupils surged, almost completely invading her eyes...
Eyes are red.
Suddenly, a cool feeling penetrated into the brain through the pores of the scalp, and the coolness washed over the brain.
In an instant, it was as if someone poured a basin of cold water on her head, and her thoughts became clear.
Gu Yanfei raised his hand and touched the white jade plum blossom hairpin that tied his hair. The touch under his fingertips was cool, delicate and smooth.
Her once out-of-control emotions slowly calmed down...
She still stood facing the wind, her clothes fluttering, dancing gracefully, as if she was going to be blown away by the wind.
"Girl, be careful not to catch a cold."
Juanbi hurriedly caught up with her, put a thick cloak on her, and looked at her with some worry.
Thinking about what Nanny Pang had just said about the late marquis and his wife, Juanbi wondered in her heart whether the girl was sad about it.
The dead cannot be resurrected, and Juanbi didn’t know how to comfort her own girl, so she could only stay by her side silently.
Gu Yanfei stood there, motionless.
The coolness of the hairpin continuously impacted her frantic mood, and the blood color in her eyes gradually faded...
The master said that her cultivation of the Tao was not enough, which was why she was burdened by her inner demons time and time again.
Heaven has its own arrangements for everyone's destiny.
The heavens of this small world favor Gu Yunyan, and this is something she knew in her previous life.
Her previous life was only a dozen years long. In the final analysis, she was just a stepping stone arranged by heaven for Gu Yunmeng.
Her misfortune brought about Gu Yunyan's happiness.
The corners of Gu Yanfei's lips curled up in a sarcastic arc, and his fingers rubbed the plum blossom hairpin again and again, feeling the shape and texture of the hairpin in his hand, and a figure in white clothes as white as snow appeared in his mind.
She couldn't help but think of Chu Yi.
After all, she was a stepping stone to the Destiny Girl, but Chu Yi was much more miserable...
“Puff.”
Gu Yanfei laughed happily, and her laughter was as sweet as the chirping of an oriole.
Fortunately, there is Chu Yi in this world. They are both abandoned by heaven, so she is not alone.
Gu Yanfei's mind was completely calmed down, and his eyes returned to normal, with a little starlight in them again.
Seeing that she finally smiled, Juanbi breathed a sigh of relief and pointed ahead and said jokingly, "Miss, look at how beautiful the red plum blossoms here are. They are no worse than those in the mansion."
The two red plum trees in the courtyard were covered with a layer of white snow. The bright red plum blossoms bloomed in the wind, looking energetic in the cold wind. The rich and clear plum fragrance filled the air...
"It smells so good." Juanbi's small nose moved, and she squinted her eyes in ecstasy. "Can I go pick a branch for you to put in the vase?"
Juanbi was about to walk out of the corridor when she felt her sleeves tighten and Gu Yanfei grabbed them.
"etc!"
After hearing what Gu Yanfei said, Juanbi stopped and turned to look at Gu Yanfei.
Almost at the same time as he finished speaking, a strong wind suddenly blew in the courtyard, making a shrill sound.
The strong wind cut the two red plum trees in the courtyard in half with great force, and the courtyard became a mess in an instant.
The dead branches and leaves were swept up by the wind, and thousands of red petals fluttered up and were mixed in the wind and snow, as if the snowflakes in the air were stained with blood.
This terrible gale came and went quickly, and the whistling sound in the courtyard died down in an instant.
“Quack, quack, quack…”
A dozen pitch-black crows seemed to be blown here by the strong wind. They flapped their wings and circled, flew, and howled in the wind and snow.
The rough crow's cry makes people feel creepy.
Juanbi was dumbfounded, staring blankly at the scene in front of her.
If the girl hadn't called her just now, would the broken plum tree have fallen on her? "Girl, the evil wind just now was too terrible!" Juanbi patted his chest in fear.
When the evil wind rises, something big is bound to happen. Gu Yanfei thought to himself, and habitually counted on his fingers...
As soon as my thumb touched the knuckle of my ring finger, I felt a dull pain in my chest.
She stopped calculating with her fingers and the corners of her mouth twitched slightly.
This feeling is somewhat familiar, which means that the "big thing" that happens next will most likely involve her.
"Miss, you saved me again." Juanbi was a generous person and soon smiled happily again.
Gu Yanfei pretended not to hear and stared at Juanbi's face in a daze.
It was clearly the same face, but in the blink of an eye, a look of death appeared on Juanbi's face.
(End of this chapter)
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