Madam, don't do this!

Chapter 123 Tears (2)

These two sentences revealed a great deal of information: these six people were most likely assassins, and their target was Princess Luo Yuheng. This was extremely confidential information, and normally it wouldn't be spoken casually, but in this kind of place, there was no need to worry about it being overheard.

The pretty widow frowned slightly.

The two young men dressed as scholars also hesitated.

They are assassins, and taking money to eliminate trouble for people is their job, but doing this job for royalty is a death sentence.

One can imagine what they would face if they killed the princess: a relentless investigation by the government, a never-ending pursuit by the imperial court, and even many in the martial arts world would be after their lives, just to exchange their heads for a high bounty.

“Brother, I think Sixth Sister is right. She is the Princess, and the guards around her are definitely not ordinary people.” One of the scholars said slowly, “There might even be an army around Luo Yuheng. Even if we six villains have a good reputation in Ningguo, it would be no different from courting death if we faced an army.”

This scholar is quite clear-headed.

It's true that martial arts practitioners are strong, but they're nothing but chickens and dogs when facing a regular army. Not to mention them, even those elusive ninth-rank martial artists would only turn into hedgehogs when facing powerful bows and crossbows.

The Six Great Villains of Ningguo.

The eldest brother, Ghost Face Mad Blade.

Second Brother Ghost Whirlwind.

The third one, Bloodhand Butcher.

The fourth one is the Soul-Stealing Scholar.

The Fifth Brother, the Deadly Scholar.

The sixth wife is a pretty widow.

These six men are all notorious bandits in Ningguo's underworld, with countless lives on their hands. They have a thick stack of wanted posters, and they have yet to be captured and brought to justice.

Ghost Face Mad Blade scoffed, "Why weren't you scared when we were collecting deposits?"

"Are you scared now?"

"late!"

"Are people who can produce 180,000 taels of silver easy to mess with?"

“We still don’t know who the other party is, but they know everything about our situation. If we take the money and run away, countless constables will surround us immediately.”

Ghost Face Mad Blade's voice seemed to be damaged, and his voice was sinister. Coupled with the thunder and lightning outside the mountain god temple and the eerie atmosphere inside, it only made people feel gloomy and terrifying.

The remaining people all had stiff expressions, knowing that they had been forced into trouble this time.

Seeing that the group's fear had been dispelled, Ghost Face Mad Blade laughed, his face covered in scars writhing as if centipedes were crawling all over it: "But don't worry too much, the employer has provided detailed information."

"There aren't many experts in the entire Princess's residence. There are about a hundred guards, most of whom are second or third rank. There are only seven who have reached the sixth rank, two who are seventh rank, only one who is eighth rank, and none who are ninth rank."

"Aside from her status as the eldest princess, Luo Yuheng is just an ordinary woman."

"The Luo brothers, Luo Tianshu and Luo Tianquan, are just weak scholars who are not skilled in martial arts, so they can be ignored."

"The third brother, Luo Tianyang, is said to have some strength, but he's an idiot and not worth worrying about."

"The eldest daughter is a consumptive, and the third and fourth daughters are just two little girls."

"The second daughter does have some skill, but it's all just fancy moves; she's no match for us at all."

"My second brother and I are both eighth-rank martial artists, and the four of you are all seventh-rank martial artists. No matter how you look at it, the advantage is mine, and there is no way we can lose."

Ghost Face Mad Blade was full of confidence. Although the Luo family had more guards, they were assassinating someone, so there was no need to confront them head-on. He believed that as long as he made a move, the guards around Luo Yuheng would have no chance to stop him.

Thinking this, he couldn't help but lick his lips, his scarlet eyes filled with greed and madness. He had heard that Luo Yuheng was a beauty of unparalleled grace, praised as the most beautiful woman in Ningguo. If he could disfigure that face, it would surely be the ultimate pleasure.

"Moreover, I've already made plans."

After a brief pause, Ghost Face Mad Blade spoke again: "Songzhou Prefecture is now full of refugees, and Ningping County is no exception. With this torrential rain, the number of refugees will probably be even greater."

"As the eldest princess, she should naturally step forward to take charge of the overall situation at this time. She may even have to personally go out to provide disaster relief and distribute porridge, since these people love to do this kind of superficial work."

"The masterminds around Luo Yuheng will be transferred away by his employer. At most, he will be accompanied by some maids. Then we will blend in and pretend to be refugees. As long as we can get close to Luo Yuheng, I am confident that I can kill him with one blow."

"Boats are ready at the seaside. Once the mission is accomplished, we can sail south into the territory of Zhao, and then we will be safe."

"No matter how far the Ningguo government's reach extends, it can't reach Zhaoguo. And with those 180,000 taels of silver, we can live a life of wealth and luxury for the rest of our lives. Moreover, the employer also said that for each of the other members of the Luo family, including that son-in-law who came to live with us, we will get an extra 30,000 taels for each one we kill."

His words echoed in everyone's ears.

We looked at each other, the worry in our eyes gradually fading, leaving only greed for money.

Only the pretty widow frowned, feeling an invisible oppression lingering in her heart.

……

at the same time.

Within Ningping County.

The torrential rain seemed to have subsided slightly.

A breeze blew in through the window, causing the candlelight to flicker slightly.

The room was quiet. Yang Siyao had gotten up from the floor. Her face seemed to have returned to calm, and she was no longer gagging as before. Only her eyes remained as cold as before.

Song Yan placed the bundle on the table and slowly walked towards it.

Song Yan and Gu Banxia looked at Yang Siyao's figure with worry in their eyes, but they didn't know how to comfort her in the current situation.

Any words of comfort seemed so pale.

This is a hurdle for Yang Siyao herself, and she has to overcome it on her own.

Touching it with her fingers, she could vaguely feel the hardness of the bones through the slightly damp fabric. She pursed her lips, reached out and opened the bundle. What she saw was a mass of grayish-white material. It was bone.

The bones were still dressed in clothes, though the colors had faded, but the style still showed that it was something she had prepared for her sister two years ago.

The skull was covered with messy hair, which was quite long, almost reaching the waist, indicating that it hadn't been groomed for a long time.

Whether it was while alive or after death, this body must have suffered an extremely violent impact. The skull was full of cracks, with a hole on the top of the head, ribs were broken, and leg bones were fractured. Many bones had even completely detached from the body.

Luo Tianxuan tidied up very carefully, collecting even the smallest fragments and leaving nothing behind.

There was a piece of paper on the bone. Yang Siyao picked it up and glanced at it. She found that it was left by Luo Tianxuan. It recorded in detail how Luo Tianxuan searched for her sister after arriving in Langya, and what her sister had encountered.

The process is actually not complicated.

With Luo Tianxuan's strength, it wouldn't be difficult for her to kidnap a few members of the Yang family and pry them open to learn about her sister's information. Of course, to keep it a secret, these people would definitely not survive.

As expected, the younger sister did not receive good care in the Yang family. Being bullied, insulted, and even beaten was commonplace.

Of course, whenever Yang Siyao asked to meet her sister, the Yang family would take good care of her for a few days, at least to help her recover from her injuries, change into clean clothes, and have a few good meals. However, such a life was far too rare for her sister.

Those people would also prick my sister's fingernails with needles, forcing her to learn what she should and shouldn't say.

As she watched, Yang Siyao's body trembled slightly.

Before I knew it, tears were streaming down my face.

She was working for the Yang family, but behind her back, her younger sister was being tormented by them.

Even so, the younger sister still didn't have the right to live. She played around in the Yang family like a child all day long, and then accidentally offended the eldest daughter of the Yang family, who was the youngest daughter of Yang Miaoqing's brother and the apple of his eye.

A thirteen-year-old girl; last year, she was only twelve.

Their hearts are more vicious than those of snakes and scorpions.

All because she took a liking to the beads on her younger sister's wrist... It was a round, smooth, and translucent stone that her sister had found. There were two of them, and Yang Siyao thought they were quite pretty, so she had them made into two lucky beads. She put one on her sister's wrist and kept the other for herself. The young lady took a fancy to the beads, but her sister wouldn't give them to her and held them tightly in her palm. When leaving, she accidentally bumped into the young lady, who then ordered her servants to drag her sister to the back mountain and throw her off a cliff.

She already had everything since birth, so why did she have to try and steal her sister's tiny stone?
My sister's life ended just like that.

Yang Siyao couldn't imagine the fear her sister must have endured when she was thrown off the cliff.

Pry open your fingers, and the bead is still lying quietly in your palm.

For the younger sister, this was the most precious treasure in the world, and she never let go of it, even until her death.

clack.

A cup of tea was placed on the table.

Steaming hot.

Looking up, I saw Song Yan.

As for Gu Banxia, ​​she had already left sometime earlier, perhaps because she didn't want to disturb us at this time.

"Have some water, you've shed so many tears," Song Yan said softly.

Yang Siyao exhaled, slowly sat down in the chair, took a small sip, and placed her hands on her lap, her fingers gently caressing the teacup: "Thank you."

"Do you feel better?"

"much better."

Yang Siyao sniffed hard again: "I think I'm actually a very ruthless woman."

"How to say?"

"I'm heartbroken because my sister is gone."

"This is normal."

"But when I was heartbroken, I actually felt a sense of relief." Yang Siyao laughed self-deprecatingly. She felt like a scumbag, as if she had gotten rid of a heavy burden despite losing her only relative.

Song Yan paused for a moment, then asked, "Have you ever heard a saying?"

"what?"

"Prolonged illness tests the filial piety of even the most devoted children."

Yang Siyao's eyes widened. In this era that values ​​filial piety, Song Yan's words were considered heretical. He truly deserved to be Luo Yuheng's son-in-law.

If these words were to get out, I'm afraid they would be severely criticized by those great Confucian scholars.

Song Yan twirled the teacup on the table, her gaze sweeping over the gray bones beside her: "Taking care of your sister is your parents' responsibility, not yours."

"It was their irresponsibility that forced this responsibility onto you. How old were you then? Nine? Ten? Eleven?"

“I won’t say things like your sister will remember your kindness and hope you live well even after she passes away. I just want to tell you that you have done more than enough.”

"You're already very tired."

"Before, you lived for your sister; from now on, you can live for yourself."

Yang Siyao listened quietly, her face calm.

But why is something rolling down my cheek?

Are they tears?

Am I crying by myself?

But I'm so tired.

(End of this chapter)