Old Mistress Xie’s figure stumbled, nearly falling to the ground.

The old woman clutched her chest, leaned on her cane, and quickly walked to Xie Shiwei’s courtyard.

She saw her most valued great-grandson, Xie Shi’an, crouched on the ground, hand covering his forehead. Fresh blood flowed from between his fingers, dripping onto the ground drop by drop.

That glaring blood made the Old Mistress’s head buzz, and she nearly fainted.

“Wretched creature! How did my Xie family give birth to such a wretched thing!”

The Old Mistress forced herself to maintain her breath and rushed over. The cane in her hand struck mercilessly at Xie Shiwei’s head.

Xie Shiwei was eight years old and had already grown rather tall. He reached out and grabbed the cane from the Old Mistress’s hand, forcefully snatched it away, and violently smashed it on the ground.

The Old Mistress was furious beyond measure. This wretched creature dared to fight back!

The old woman stepped forward and grabbed Xie Shiwei’s ear with one hand. “Kneel down! You kneel down for me! Today I must straighten out this wretched creature!”

“I won’t kneel! I just won’t kneel!” Xie Shiwei shouted. “The one who should kneel is him! He killed his own birth mother! He should kneel down in atonement! What did I do wrong? I only broke the skin on the Marquis of Xuanwu’s heir’s hand, just a tiny bit of blood flowed. Why should I suffer all this…”

“Outrageous wretch!”

Old Mistress Xie’s entire body trembled. She raised her hand to slap him across the face.

But Xie Shiwei dodged it, gave her a hard shove, and ran away with all his might.

The Old Mistress’s cane had been taken away. Nanny Zhou at her side had gone to check on Xie Shi’an’s condition. With Xie Shiwei’s shove, she couldn’t stand steady. With no one to support her, her entire body toppled backward.

Bang!

A tremendous sound.

Xie Shi’an jerked his head up and saw the back of the Old Mistress’s head strike the ground. That floor tile was instantly stained red.

Xie Shiwei was completely frightened senseless and forgot to run.

Xie Jingyu had just entered the courtyard when he witnessed this scene.

He immediately pinned down Xie Shiwei. “Tie up this unfilial wretch and throw him in the woodshed!”

The frightened servants came to their senses and quickly restrained Xie Shiwei, gagged his mouth, and dragged him toward the woodshed.

Nanny Zhou couldn’t attend to Xie Shi’an. She crawled and stumbled to the Old Mistress’s side. She saw the Old Mistress’s eyes wide open, her face ashen gray.

She placed her trembling hand at the Old Mistress’s nostrils and retreated in terror. “No—this is bad! The Old Mistress has stopped breathing…”

Hearing these words, Xie Jingyu’s left leg went soft and he fell to the ground.

He tried to stand up but discovered his left leg, like his left hand, couldn’t exert even half a bit of strength.

Enormous panic swept through his entire body. Using his right hand to brace against the ground, he struggled to stand up, dragged his left leg, and walked to the Old Mistress’s side. His leg gave way and he knelt down.

He reached out to feel for her breath, but couldn’t sense even a trace of it. The Old Mistress’s open eyes made him think of countless dreams where He Shi’s two eyes were bloody holes.

His hand moved upward, covering the Old Mistress’s eyes.

His entire body was shaking. Tears fell uncontrollably, drop by drop, and then he began to cry aloud.

“Father, now is not the time to cry.” Xie Shi’an covered his forehead and said in a lowered voice. “So many people in the courtyard saw that it was Hui’er who pushed the Old Mistress. All these people will believe Hui’er caused the Old Mistress’s death. If this matter spreads, the Xie family—the Xie family will be finished…”

Hui’er would be arrested and interrogated.

The Censorate would impeach Father for failing to teach his sons properly.

The Xie family’s younger generation was unfilial—he would also be implicated. Everyone would likewise consider him unfilial…

Xie Jingyu raised his head and looked at Xie Shi’an.

At such a moment, his eldest son’s first thought was not grief over the Old Mistress’s death, but rather calculating gains and losses for himself.

For the first time, he realized this son was truly selfish and self-serving to the extreme.

Yet he had to admit that what An’er said was correct.

If this matter spread, the Xie family would be finished.

He turned his head and saw four or five male servants standing in the courtyard, along with three or four maidservants, and two or three older women at the courtyard entrance.

So many people—their mouths simply couldn’t be stopped.

“Father, Great-grandmother is already dead.” Xie Shi’an’s voice was very low, somewhat hoarse. “If Great-grandmother knew her death had brought catastrophic disaster to the Xie family, she probably wouldn’t rest easy even in death. Father, for some matters, when decisions must be made, they must be made.”

Xie Jingyu’s mind was complete mush.

He had always been a filial person. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have used his newlywed wife to exchange for the life-saving divine medicine.

He hadn’t yet accepted the news of the Old Mistress’s passing, yet he had to deal with this mess of rotten affairs. His head hurt terribly—it felt like it was about to explode.

“An—An’er, do as you see fit.”

He handed the decision-making power to Xie Shi’an.

Xie Shi’an’s head also hurt, but it was only an external injury. His mind was very clear.

He spoke in a deep voice. “Have everyone who witnessed the Old Mistress’s death enter this courtyard. Set it on fire and burn it all, along with the Old Mistress’s body, together…”

Only the dead wouldn’t reveal secrets.

To the outside world, they would claim the Xie manor caught fire. The Old Mistress was elderly and couldn’t escape, and together with these servants, was burned to death.

Xie Jingyu’s eyes widened in disbelief. He looked at Xie Shi’an once and saw the coldness and decisiveness on this son’s face.

He looked again at the Old Mistress. That face covered with wrinkles had already turned ashen gray.

In his childhood, when Father studied and Mother kept him company, it was Grandmother who raised him. His feelings for Grandmother couldn’t be expressed in just a few words.

He had once sworn he would definitely let Grandmother enjoy her old age in comfort, let Grandmother enjoy blessings in her twilight years, let Grandmother have a glorious burial…

But now—

Grandmother died with eyes wide open.

Her body would also suffer being burned by fire.

Even in death, she couldn’t find peace!

…But he had no choice.

Xie Jingyu closed his eyes, about to speak.

Then he heard chaotic footsteps at the courtyard entrance.

Immediately after, Yun Chu’s anxious voice came through. “How could such a thing happen? Old Mistress, what’s happened to the Old Mistress! Quick, quickly call a physician!”

Xie Jingyu’s heart sank. Why had Yun Chu come…

Xie Shi’an took a deep breath and said, “Mother, Great-grandmother has already passed away. Calling a physician is useless now.”

“What? The Old Mistress is dead…” Yun Chu’s figure swayed, her voice grief-stricken. “No, I don’t believe the old woman died just like that! What are you all standing there for? You, hurry and fetch a physician! You, go to Shande Hall and buy ginseng to sustain the Old Mistress’s life! And you, quickly inquire about the divine physician’s whereabouts…”

Several servants in the courtyard were dispatched by Yun Chu.

She continued giving orders. “Nanny Zhou, and the rest of you, quickly carry the Old Mistress to Anshou Hall!”

The remaining servants in the courtyard surrounded her. With seven or eight pairs of hands, they lifted the Old Mistress and in a rush departed from Xie Shiwei’s courtyard, heading to Anshou Hall.

Along this entire route were servants who had heard the commotion and came to watch the excitement. The Old Mistress, covered in blood, emerged from the courtyard. Almost two-thirds of the entire Xie family witnessed it.

Xie Jingyu’s heart pounded violently, as if about to leap from his chest.

He looked at Xie Shi’an, looked at this son who had always been clever, but from the depths of Xie Shi’an’s eyes, he also saw bewilderment.

Seven or eight servants could be burned in a fire, but the entire Xie manor had so many people—they couldn’t burn them all… The matter of Old Mistress Xie’s death could no longer be concealed!