"Back then, after returning from the battlefield, the old Duke's temperament suddenly changed. He ran to the palace to meet the emperor and resigned his position as the Grand General, handing over all his military power. I heard that the entire court was shocked and couldn't understand it."
"That's hundreds of thousands of troops under his control. I heard that on the battlefield back then, as soon as the soldiers from neighboring countries heard it was a Pei family member, they would retreat three points before the battle even started. Their morale plummeted, and they were often defeated without a fight."
"The Pei family's name, its power to intimidate and deter, is more than just bluffing."
"Every generation of the Pei family has produced exceptional generals, and even beautiful generals and female generals like your grandmother. They have never harbored any rebellious intentions, and each one has sworn loyalty to defend the country until death. Generations of their descendants have served in the military, and as Pei Sanlang said, there have been dozens who have died on the battlefield over the decades. How could this not be tragic?"
"The Pei family is so abruptly giving up their military power. Who wouldn't be suspicious? I'm afraid everyone in the court is wondering, what exactly is the Pei family planning?"
"I heard that the emperor kept a close eye on the Pei family for a full ten years. Finally, seeing that the old Duke was becoming increasingly ill and insane, and that the old Dukes and their successors had passed away one after another, the entire Pei family gradually declined and fell into complete ruin. There was a lack of successors in the court, and the Pei family's influence in the army was almost gone. Only then did he gradually loosen his watch on the Pei family."
"But Twelve Mother knows that the Pei family is indeed more than what it appears to be."
"The old Duke came back seriously ill because he was poisoned by a strange poison."
"In the first few years, he can act like a normal person. But once the poison takes effect, he becomes like a madman, killing, biting, or simply being bloodthirsty."
"The people in the old Duke's courtyard changed every year, then every month, and then later, except for one or two regular people, no one dared to serve him."
"And he gradually rarely appeared in public anymore."
"It was just once. When Pei Shier Niang was young, she accidentally saw the old Duke go mad and lose control as he rushed out of the yard. He was chasing a bloody maid with a sword. If Shier Niang's father hadn't appeared in time, she might have died."
"Later, she heard her father repeatedly admonish her, saying she must never go near the old Duke's courtyard again. In fact, with the exception of Twelve Lady, all the women in the Pei Mansion were forbidden to even set foot near the old Duke's courtyard on weekdays."
"Even if you want to see the old Duke, it's best to take a detour."
"Even chasing, playing, joking, and playing, you are not allowed to come near. This is a death order!"
"So even when Twelve Lady was bullied as a child, no one dared to push her over there, fearing that the elders in the family would really get angry."
"When Twelve Niang was little, she asked her father why her great-grandfather had become so terrifying. Wasn't he a great hero who protected the country? He was a hero admired by everyone, but now he had become a terrifying madman."
"At that time, Twelve Niang's father replied: He fell into a treacherous scheme on the battlefield for the sake of Daliang State, so the Pei family must support him to be worthy of our ancestors."
"Twelve Mother didn't understand at all. Why did my great grandfather kill so many innocent people, yet my family would continue to support him even at the risk of ruin?"
"But fortunately, their Second House and Second Courtyard have always been far away from the First House. As Twelve Lady grows up, the Third House has become more and more distant."
"Twelve Niang's father has become increasingly prominent in the Ministry of Revenue, even gaining the Emperor's appreciation. He once said that as long as Great Grandfather dies, their second branch will be able to completely move out of the Pei family and stay away from the disputes of the Pei family's main branch."
"But can you really stay away from her completely? Twelve Niang later learned a secret. It turns out that before her concubine Guan entered the Pei Mansion, her future mother-in-law really disliked her and had been trying every possible way to break up the lovers Guan and Pei Yuan. So, instigated by her sister-in-law from the first house, she once lured Guan to the old Duke's courtyard."
"Fortunately, the old Duke was sober that time. He just stared at Guan for a long time as if he were his prey. It scared Guan so much that she fell seriously ill after returning home."
"After that incident, Guan was terrified and for the first time, she felt like backing off from the person she loved."
"If Pei Yuan hadn't known the truth, he would have been so angry that he drew his sword and went to the main room to make a scene. The whole Pei family would have known about it, and it would have even reached the ears of the old Duke."
"In the end, it was the old Duke himself who stepped forward and punished the eldest daughter-in-law, and the matter finally settled."
"After that incident, the old Duke became less and less visible. Until a few years ago, he rarely even left the courtyard."
"But it was only in the past two years that he completely lost his mind. Outsiders probably only knew that his health was deteriorating, but no one knew that he had already become insane."
"Okay, I'll tell you some of the old secrets of the Duke's Mansion for now. Now let's talk about Pei Twelve Niang's death."
"It's said that on the fifth day of the lunar year, Twelve Lady would take a nap every afternoon after drinking medicine. But on that day, she actually woke up at 3 p.m."
"But she listened to the servants whispering in the yard and on the porch, and listened quietly for a while to the sound of falling snow. Suddenly, she felt strong enough to get out of bed quietly."
"Shi Er Niang had been cooped up in her small square courtyard for so long that she thought she would die there. But that day, she suddenly felt full of strength, as if she had come back to life, and she wanted to go out for a walk on her own."
"So, she put a pillow under the quilt and climbed out of the room through the window."
"It was snowing that day. She looked back and saw that the snow would soon cover her footprints."
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