After the ghost-hunting master descended the mountain, his fame spread throughout the capital.

Upon hearing this, Meng Xueyan froze completely, her soul light fluctuating violently, revealing the shock in her heart.

Those books… those were the only light in her gloomy life, and her father had tacitly approved of them?

Meng Qingxi felt as if she had opened a box that had been sealed away for a long time, a box that even she herself was reluctant to touch.

His tone was no longer merely an explanation, but rather a mixture of pain and contradiction:

"Yes, I value rules and etiquette! Because I am Meng Qingxi, the Director of Studies at the Imperial Academy!"

"Throughout my life, I have studied the classics, followed the path of a virtuous person, maintained upright conduct, and been meticulous in every detail. Only then have I achieved my current reputation and position!"

"How harsh this world is on women! One wrong step and they are doomed!"

His voice rose in agitation, "Do you think I chose your family background solely for the sake of the Meng family's reputation?"

"No! I want to find you a stable place to rely on! The family I've found for you, if you marry into it, you'll be a proper wife, with parents-in-law to depend on and servants to serve you. You'll have no worries about food and clothing for the rest of your life, and it will be peaceful and prosperous!"

"This is the safest future I can plan for you as your father!"

He looked at Meng Xueyan, and for the first time, a father's heartache showed in his eyes:

"I'm having you study 'Admonitions for Women' so that you can understand how to establish yourself in your husband's family and how to avoid blame!"

"I discipline you strictly because I'm afraid you'll go astray, get into trouble, and ruin yourself!"

"You say those are the ropes that bind you, but Yan'er... in this world, aren't those rules also a layer of armor protecting you?"

"As your father, I'm just protecting you in what I think is the best way."

"The freedom you crave, the mutual affection you desire—those ephemeral things, how can they feed you?"

"How many tragedies have I seen and heard of? How many women have blindly married far away in pursuit of love, only to end up with tragic fates?"

"How could I... how could I possibly gamble your entire life on this?!"

Xu Yishuo, who was standing to the side, was stunned when she heard these words.

Isn't she the one Uncle Meng was talking about?

At this moment, she seemed to have come to understand the feelings of being a parent.

Meng Qingxi staggered a step, holding her forehead. "I allowed you to read those books because I knew you were intelligent and clever, but lonely confined to your room."

"I was thinking of giving you something to look forward to, to see the mountains and rivers outside, so that you might feel more at ease, and perhaps you'll understand that the life I've chosen for you is a tangible and stable one!"

"I never imagined, never thought those books would inspire you to fly away, and in the end... in the end, they ruined you!"

By the end, Meng Qingxi's voice had choked with emotion, and her spine, which had stood straight all her life, finally bent completely.

He loves his daughter and wants her to be safe and sound; this feeling is genuine.

But his understanding of love and security is based on the entire set of rules.

What he perceived as protection became the executioner that killed Meng Xueyan.

Meng Xueyan listened intently, the light around her soul body flickering uncertainly.

Meng Qingxi's words were like another key, unlocking a corner she had never seen before.

Zeng Yanran never imagined that Meng Qingxi harbored such a struggle and what she thought was a profound and far-sighted plan.

She stopped crying, and after a long while, she murmured, "Master, why...why did you never tell me these things?"

Meng Qingxi closed his eyes, shook his head dejectedly, overwhelmed by exhaustion and regret, leaving him unable to answer.

Some things, when kept within the framework of rules and conventions for too long, even you start to believe that it's the only way to express yourself.

It wasn't until a terrible mistake was made and they hit a wall that they realized the wall was made up of the bones of their closest relatives.

The intense fluctuations in Meng Xueyan's soul gradually subsided, replaced by a clear and bright state.

The self-deprecating sneer on her face melted away like ice and snow, slowly dissolving and eventually turning into a sense of relief.

She looked at her father, who was in unbearable pain, and then at her mother, who was heartbroken. Her clear voice rang out softly in the study, without the sharpness of her previous questioning, only the peace that came from seeing through the barrier between life and death.

"Dad, I'm so happy to hear what you said."

As soon as she finished speaking, Meng Qingxi and Zeng Yanran were both startled and looked at her.

Meng Xueyan tilted her head slightly, as if recalling something, or perhaps sorting out what she had just realized:

"So, it turns out, Father didn't not love me. It's just that the way you loved me was worlds apart from what I expected, and there was a whole set of sage principles that you held in high esteem."

"You wanted to give me what you considered the safest time, but you forgot to ask me if I was willing to go into such a time, or if I could even breathe."

She paused, her gaze gently falling on Meng Qingxi:

"I think I understand that saying now. Parents who love their children plan far ahead for them."

"Father, you built an impregnable fortress for me in your own way, protecting me inside."

"But... the bricks of this fortress are cold rules, the gaze of others. It's too cold, and too small, so small... that it can't hold a living person."

"So, I don't blame you anymore, Father." Meng Xueyan's voice grew even softer, like a breeze that was about to dissipate. "And please, Father... don't blame Mother anymore, and don't blame yourself anymore."

"In this tragedy, perhaps no one is purely evil. We were just too stubborn, stubbornly guarding our own world, wasting our energy and missing the opportunity to understand each other."

She floated between her parents, her ethereal gaze earnestly shifting between them:

"Father, Mother has suffered just as much as you have all these years. She loves me dearly, yet dares not disobey you, enduring torment day and night. Mother,"

She then looked at her mother, "Father... isn't heartless. He's just trapped by his own reasoning and used the wrong methods."

With tears blurring her vision, Zeng Yanran looked at her husband with a more understanding gaze.

Meng Qingxi's throat tightened, and she wanted to say something, but it ultimately turned into a heavy sigh.

"I should go now," Meng Xueyan said finally, turning to Jiang Dusheng and bowing deeply. "Miss Jiang, thank you for bringing me here, allowing me to ask what was on my mind and... hear an answer I never expected. My knot in my heart is now untied."

Jiang Dusheng nodded slightly and said to the Meng couple, "Lord Meng, Madam Meng, your daughter's obsession has been resolved, and she is no longer lingering and suffering. This is a fortunate thing."

"She will leave with me, and when the time is right, I will send her off to her next life. Take care, both of you."

After saying that, she didn't say anything more and turned to walk out the door.

Meng Xueyan and Xu Yishuo's souls nestled together, following closely behind, like two wisps of smoke, drifting past the morning sunlight and disappearing at the study door.

"Yan'er!"

Zeng Yanran subconsciously took two steps after him, leaned against the door frame, looked at the empty corridor, and burst into tears.

Meng Qingxi slowly walked behind his wife, raised his hand, seemingly wanting to sternly tell her to "mind her manners" as usual, but his hand eventually fell limply down and, with a slight tremor, placed on her shoulder, which was trembling from crying.