Above the funeral tent, clouds began to mount higher and higher into the sky, reaching toward the heavens and spreading across the entire firmament in the blink of an eye.
Though the sky remained bright, no one inside the funeral tent noticed these changes, as all attention was focused on Eighth Aunt.
Eighth Aunt felt somewhat uneasy and forced a dry laugh. “What is there to say?”
Her smile pierced Xie Qingyao’s eyes. The young lady’s pretty face tensed as she said coldly, “Tell us about how you’re planning for my brother’s welfare, and what benefits the bride’s family offers. Eighth Aunt was so eloquent earlier—why are you now at a loss for words before my parents’ spirit tablets?”
Eighth Aunt quietly tugged at her hem, glancing at her Maternal Aunt. “Perhaps Madam Maternal Aunt should speak first, as you are our guests.”
Maternal Aunt cast a disdainful look at Eighth Aunt and said seriously, “There’s no need to distinguish between guests and hosts—we only have Yin Lou’s best interests at heart and have nothing to hide. Qingyao, you and your Second Sister have been close since childhood. You know what kind of person she is. Your Grandmother suggested having your Second Sister marry your brother to help him through these difficult times. Think about it—who could be more caring than your maternal cousin? Unlike some people who dig up girls from who-knows-where, trying to force anyone they can find into the Earl’s mansion, regardless of their quality—”
Eighth Aunt wouldn’t stand for this and immediately retorted, “What exactly are you implying, Madam? The girl I proposed to Yin Lou has the Clan Leader’s approval. We can’t write two different versions of the surname ‘Xie’—we’re all one family. How could we not wish the best for Yin Lou?”
Both women were sharp-tongued and articulate, trading barbs back and forth with equal force, quickly forgetting they were in the solemn setting of a funeral hall.
Xie Qingyao occasionally interjected, fanning the flames.
Xie Yin Lou had a faint suspicion that his sister’s actions weren’t without purpose, so he watched this farce unfold with an expressionless face.
Jiang Si stood at the outermost edge, clearly seeing the changes in the clouds above.
Just as the Maternal Aunt and Eighth Aunt were arguing until their faces turned red, the towering clouds suddenly seemed to collapse and plummet downward.
Jiang Si gave a gentle cough.
Xie Qingyao clutched her rough white hemp mourning dress, suppressing the urge to look at Jiang Si.
“Since both Maternal Aunt and Eighth Aunt claim to have my brother’s interests at heart, my brother and I are at a loss. How can we please one sister-in-law without disappointing the other?”
Her feigned difficulty made both women pause their confrontation to look at her.
Before the spirit tablets, the young lady in full mourning wore a bitter smile: “Whichever of you can swear to heaven that you truly have my brother’s best interests at heart, we’ll believe you and accept your candidate as a bride.”
Eighth Aunt felt an inexplicable chill run down her scalp and complained, “Child, marriage is a joyous occasion—what’s all this about swearing oaths—”
Xie Qingyao turned directly to Maternal Aunt: “Maternal Aunt, then let’s choose my Second Sister.”
Hearing this, Eighth Aunt grew anxious and quickly raised her hand: “I swear we are wholly dedicated to Yin Lou’s welfare, without any selfish motives…”
The maternal Aunt, believing Xie Qingyao’s sudden loss of both parents had affected her judgment, thought the girl’s behavior bizarre and incomprehensible. Yet it was precisely because her mind wasn’t clear that this girl might do anything, and not wanting Eighth Aunt to gain an advantage, she too raised her hand.
She thought it unnecessary to quibble with an ill-mannered young girl at this moment—securing the marriage was the priority.
In Maternal Aunt’s mind, only the two families would know what transpired in the funeral tent, and neither the argument with Eighth Aunt nor the oath-taking was truly shameful.
It was common for siblings to quarrel over inheritance after their parent’s death—when faced with benefits, only fools neither fought nor grasped. Once her daughter became the Earl’s wife, outsiders would only see her daughter’s glory and status—who would know about these moments?
As the two women rushed to swear their oaths, the clouds above had turned pitch black. A massive dark shroud seemed to descend over the previously bright funeral tent, plunging it into instant darkness.
This was followed by a thunderclap that rolled down, exploding beside people’s ears with such force that the entire funeral tent seemed to shake.
Maternal Aunt and Eighth Aunt screamed simultaneously.
The funeral hall was shrouded in darkness, with only white candles flickering their ghostly light.
“You truly wish the best for Yin Lou?” A woman’s ethereal voice echoed from somewhere unknown.
Purple lightning split the sky, illuminating Xie Qingyao’s pale face.
Eighth Aunt rubbed her eyes vigorously and stepped backward, accidentally stepping into the earthen basin used for burning spirit money.
A scream rang out as Eighth Aunt, eyes wide with terror, scrambled to flee. But the young lady not far before her suddenly transformed into the appearance of Madam Earl Yongchang.
“Eighth Sister-in-law, lying invites heaven’s punishment.” The blood-covered Madam Earl Yongchang gave Eighth Aunt a ghastly smile and took a step forward.
“Ah, don’t come near me, stay away!”
Madam Earl Yongchang appeared instantly behind Eighth Aunt, placing her ice-cold hands on her neck.
Eighth Aunt quickly found herself unable to breathe, her face turning liver-colored.
“This is for your lies, this is for your lies!” Madam Earl Yongchang repeated over and over, “Lying invites heaven’s punishment.”
With a deafening boom, lightning and thunder seemed to explode right beside Eighth Aunt, who could even faintly smell her hair burning.
Eighth Aunt’s rationality suddenly collapsed as she cried out, “Please spare me, I won’t dare again, never again. We just thought to keep the wealth in the family by having Xie Yin Lou marry my niece, so we could control the Earl’s estate. We’re all Xie family members—shouldn’t the clan get some benefit when the Earl’s mansion prospers…”
Meanwhile, Maternal Aunt was making similar confessions: “If we don’t marry our daughter to him, won’t those clan members view Yin Lou’s marriage as a piece of fat meat to covet? At least Ying’er is his maternal cousin—why should someone else benefit from his sister’s dowry?”
“Have you gone mad? Silence!” Xie Qingyao’s maternal uncle rushed forward and delivered a resounding slap to the Maternal Aunt’s face.
Eighth Uncle kicked viciously at Eighth Aunt: “Fool, have you lost your mind?”
Outside the funeral tent, rain poured in torrents, but the pitch-black clouds now dispersed, restoring light to the earth.
Inside the tent, everyone wore ugly expressions as they coldly watched the two deranged women.
Eighth Aunt and Maternal Aunt shuddered simultaneously, gradually regaining their senses.
“What happened to me?” Eighth Aunt raised her hand to fix her disheveled hair, touching a burnt curl. Her face turned pale as she vaguely recalled how sparks from the spirit money basin had singed her loose hair after she stepped in it.
“You dare ask? Were you possessed?” Eighth Uncle roared in fury.
A cold laugh rang out, carrying the unique clarity of a young girl’s voice.
Xie Qingyao looked expressionlessly at these people with their ghostly hearts. When their gazes were drawn to her, she suddenly covered her face and began to cry: “So neither Maternal Aunt nor Eighth Aunt truly had my brother’s interests at heart. If brother had agreed to marry within the first seven days of mourning, our parents would surely rest uneasily…”
The young lady turned to her brother with grief-stricken eyes: “Brother, isn’t that right?”
Xie Yin Lou’s gaze toward the crowd was ice-cold: “Indeed. So please, elders, speak no more of marriage during the mourning period.”