Mei Qing and the others were all somewhat astonished to hear that the Master, Mei Hua, had actually used such a violent method against an ordinary elderly woman.
“Actually, in recent years, the Master has always been very kind to the servants in the household. No one could have predicted that day would be different. The violent aura he exuded was so intense that even the midwives and maids nearby could feel it. Everyone was terrified, but the Master stood there coldly, silent and unmoving. Ah Nu blocked the door, and no one dared to move or ask a question; everyone hurried away to attend to their duties. We apprentices dared neither enter nor leave, and could only wait outside the door. But then…”
Pausing, Liu Xing shook his head and continued, “At that time, I thought my eldest and second brothers were acting strangely. They seemed distracted, as if secretly discussing something. I didn’t have time to dwell on it, but I was worried about Wuduo inside. As her cries grew more urgent, I paced like an ant on a hot pan. The others stood motionless under a tree outside the room.”
“At the time, it seemed like only half a day, but waiting outside felt longer than ten years. Finally, we heard the baby crying from inside the room. As I was about to enter, Ah Nu stopped me.”
“The apprentices looked at each other, puzzled about what was happening inside. At first, it was eerily silent, then gradually some sounds emerged, as if the Master and my junior sister were talking, but the words were too indistinct to understand…”
At this point, Liu Xing’s face turned puzzled as he continued, “This matter is very strange. Given the Master’s cultivation level, if he didn’t want us to hear, he certainly could have set up barriers. Yet there were no restrictions, and the voices were just too low for us to hear clearly. At the time, all of us felt very uneasy.”
“After a while, my junior sister’s voice gradually faded. Eventually, we could no longer hear her at all, and only the Master’s voice suddenly rose sharply!”
Liu Xing’s eyes widened as he described, “The Master was never one to raise his voice, even when furious. But that day, his voice was piercingly sharp, clearly filled with extreme anger. He shouted, ‘Don’t even think about it! Don’t even try!’
“At that moment, we brothers were greatly startled, unsure of what had happened. They looked at each other, too frightened to move. I gathered my courage and was about to enter the room when I saw the Master suddenly emerge, his face pale and twisted, as if in great pain.”
“When the Master saw us, his expression softened slightly. He merely grunted, glanced at Ah Nu, and then vanished.”
“We didn’t know whether he had returned to his room or left altogether, so we stood there for a while longer. Then I rushed into the room and saw my junior sister cradling the child, dazed and still. The midwives, pale and shaken, managed a weak smile and said, ‘It’s a boy.’ I didn’t know how to respond, so I hesitantly asked, ‘Junior sister, what did the Master just…’
“She shook her head and said, ‘Nothing. Third senior brother, please don’t ask anymore, okay?’
“At this point, the other brothers entered and looked at the baby. At that time, you were quite small and frail. But we were all grown men, helpless in such a situation. Fortunately, the midwives and maids had only fainted, and after I revived them, they seemed to have forgotten everything that had just happened. They busied themselves with boiling water and cleaning up, finally giving the impression of a proper postpartum scene.”
Liu Xing suddenly stopped speaking and looked at Mei Qing, saying, “Who would have thought that twenty years later, that infant would grow into what you are now. Although your appearance resembles your mother’s, your manner and speech are somewhat different. Your mother’s demeanor was something no one could imitate.”
As he spoke, he sighed several times.
Mei Qing thought to himself that this old Mr. Liu must have been deeply in love with his mother back then. Therefore, seeing him so similar to her, he couldn’t help but sigh, probably stirred by memories of the past.
“What happened after that?” Mei Qing asked. “Did the Master leave or what?”
“No, the Master just returned to his quarters. But every few days, he would come to my junior sister’s room to see the two of you, and each time there would be an argument. Eventually, he started coming daily, and stayed longer each time. This went on for about a month. We all felt the atmosphere in the mansion becoming increasingly oppressive, as if something was about to happen.”
“During those days, we brothers continued our daily duties, guarding my junior sister. Actually, since Wuduo had already given birth, there was no longer a need for guarding. But since the Master hadn’t said to stop, we dared not either. On that day, it was my turn to be on duty. Because I had always been close to my junior sister, unlike the others who stayed outside, I stayed in the room, playing with you. By then you had already opened your eyes, and had become chubby, looking exactly like Wuduo. When it was nearly evening, Lao Si came to relieve me, and Wuduo asked me, ‘Third senior brother, I asked you for a favor before. Do you still remember it?’
“At that moment, I thought, ‘Could my junior sister be planning to escape?’ Considering how the Master had been pressuring her daily, maybe he had ill intentions toward her. Actually, even without her saying anything, seeing how things were going lately, I had already been thinking of helping her escape, even if it meant offending the Master and losing my life. So when she asked, I immediately replied, ‘Of course. Junior sister, what is it? Just tell me, and I will help you.’
“My junior sister smiled faintly and said, ‘Then thank you, senior brother.’ Then she pointed to a tea table nearby and said, ‘Senior brother, could you help me bring that plum blossom over?’
“The plum blossom my junior sister referred to was a dry branch she always kept in her room, which she cherished greatly and never allowed anyone else to touch. I fetched it for her, and she held it in her hands, looking at it repeatedly for a long time before sending me a thought. It turned out that what she wanted me to do was… to move this plum blossom to a specific location she had designated and plant it in the soil.”
Liu Xing’s voice grew somber, and he lowered his head, silent for a long time. After a while, he looked up again and said, “At that time, I didn’t think much of it, although I found it strange, I didn’t ask. That day, as I carried the plum blossom away, I looked back and saw Wuduo holding the child, smiling faintly at me. Her eyes held a mixture of contentment and reluctance… In short, that scene has remained as vivid to me as yesterday, even after all these years.”
As he spoke, Liu Xing slowly turned his gaze to the window, gazing at the sky outside, and sighed once more.
“What happened after that?” Bi Zhen asked. “What happened next?”
Liu Xing hesitated for a moment before continuing, “After that, there was nothing much. The next day, the child was found missing. When we went to look for Wuduo… my junior sister had already passed away…”
“What?” Mei Qing asked in shock. “Just like that… How did my mother…?”
“I don’t know, I really don’t know,” Liu Xing sighed. “She was just gone. We didn’t know what to do. We brothers were all afraid of the Master’s punishment. The eldest and second brothers suggested that we all run away…”
“At that time, the eldest and second brothers were acting suspiciously. When they said this, they didn’t look at Lao Si, who seemed sinister but actually had fewer ulterior motives. At that moment, he said, ‘Where can we run to? Maybe…’ and then looked at me.”
“But I had no such thoughts at all. I just felt that Wuduo was already dead, and everything was so unclear and ambiguous, so I said, ‘I don’t care what you say. I must go to the Master and ask for the truth. Why did this happen?’
“The other apprentices said I was crazy. At that moment, I really felt like I had gone mad, and I disregarded their attempts to stop me as I rushed to the Master’s door. Lao Si was almost ready to attack me when suddenly we heard the Master’s voice from inside the room saying, ‘Come in.’
“At that moment, we were all stunned, and even Lao Si was too frightened to move. We entered the room with trepidation and saw the Master sitting there, with Ah Nu standing beside him. We were all startled because the Master looked extremely old and exhausted. We had never seen him so disheveled in all these years.”
“The Master said, ‘You ask me why? To be honest, I don’t know either. Since it’s all in the past, why bother asking why? Enough. This matter is settled. From now on, no one should ask about it again. Tomorrow I will leave for the mountains to retreat for a while. You few, if you wish to return with me, come along. If you don’t want to return, you may stay or go as you please.'”
“After the Master said this, I said I would stay here and never leave again. The eldest and second brothers said they wanted to travel. Unexpectedly, at this point, Lao Si stood up and said, ‘A teacher for a day is a father for life.’ He didn’t want the Master to be alone and wished to serve him, returning to the mountains together.”
Mei Qing and Bi Zhen both exclaimed, “Huh?” Since Duan Chao had once been punished and was so afraid of the Master, Mei Hua, it was indeed strange that he would choose to follow him at this moment.
Liu Xing said, “At that time, I didn’t want to think about it either. The Master nodded, took Ah Nu and Lao Si, and left. The two senior brothers also left soon after. I was heartbroken and stayed at home for a few days. Coincidentally, an old friend came to visit. I didn’t want to see her… and so I went out to avoid her for some time. It was during that time that I happened to meet Meier, and I adopted her as my daughter.”
After saying this, he turned to Meier and said, “Girl, actually, you are not my biological daughter, and I have never told you this before. These years, I have been searching for your birth parents, but I have found no trace of them.”
After hearing Liu Xing’s words, Meier lowered her head, tears streaming down her face, and said, “The kindness of raising me is greater than that of giving birth to me. In my heart, you are my real father.”
Seeing Meier’s expression, Bi Zhen felt a great deal of sympathy and quickly comforted her, saying, “Meier, you don’t need to feel this way. Actually, even though Qing has a father, he has been alone and neglected since childhood. Compared to him, you are much luckier.”
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage