Ye Zhinan nodded repeatedly, wishing her mother would quickly leave her alone.
"I know, mother. Please set your mind at ease. I definitely won't give others a handle on me."
Hearing this, Han Xiangmei's anger flared up immediately.
"It's not about not giving others a handle. It's about you two not seeing each other at all."
Just as she was about to say something more, Ye Shenyan's cough could be heard from the door.
The mother and daughter turned around. One had a scolding look in her eyes, while the other seemed to have seen a savior.
Ye Zhinan knelt on the bed, her eyes filled with flattery. She secretly clasped her hands together, hoping her father would say some good words for her.
Ye Shenyan had always doted on his daughter. Moreover, she had not done anything out of the ordinary, so there was no need to make such a big deal out of it.
"It's getting late. Go back and sleep. She knows what she's doing."
Seeing that Han Xiangmei's anger had not subsided, he pretended to hold his chest and groaned seriously.
Han Xiangmei sighed and reluctantly stood up. She turned around and gave Ye Zhinan a warning look.
Ye Zhinan stretched out three fingers and made repeated assurances before finally coaxing Han Xiangmei back.
She lay on the bed, looking at the dilapidated ceiling. Her drowsiness immediately vanished.
The smell of blood seemed to waft up again, making her feel uncomfortable.
The next morning, Ye Zhinan got up as usual to do farm work.
"I thought their family would not come. I didn't expect them to come out shamelessly."
"What else can they do? They still have to work. They can't just give up because they beat someone up."
A few women were whispering to each other in the fields. The object of their discussion was the women of the Wei family.
Ye Zhinan straightened her back and rubbed her sore muscles. She lifted her eyelids and looked over, only to find that Wei Shishi had disappeared.
The loom she usually sat on was empty. Only a handkerchief was left hanging on it alone.
"No! Someone's dead!"
A peasant woman shouted and ran over. Her face was filled with fear. Her footsteps were disorderly, and she almost stumbled.
She fell to the ground and gasped for breath. Her fingers trembled as she pointed to a tree not far away.
Everyone looked in the direction she was pointing at and gasped.
"Don't look. It's inauspicious."
Han Xiangmei quickly covered Ye Zhinan's eyes with her hand, not wanting her to see such an unlucky thing.
However, she clearly saw that there was a woman in white hanging on it.
Even though it was far away, one could tell from her figure that it was the woman from last night.
The wounds on her body had been torn open. The blood seeped into her white clothes, leaving mottled marks.
It was shocking.
"Poor Shen Li. Her family declined, and she was sold to sing. She thought she could escape from the brothel, but she unexpectedly got caught up in a group of exiles."
Many people came over to watch the excitement. One of them recognized Shen Li and told her life story.
Ye Zhinan tightened her grip on the medicine in her arms. Her brows were tightly knitted. Although she was clearly sad, she could not shed a single tear.
She was still thinking of taking some medicine for external injuries and secretly going to see her.
However, she did not expect that the first meeting would be the last.
"Her innocence was destroyed. Any woman would not be able to live. The Wei family is really heartless. Even if they took her in as a concubine, it would be better than taking her life."
The people around her were chattering on and on, but Ye Zhinan did not have the mood to listen.
"What are you looking at? Hurry up and get back to work!"
The official shouted at everyone to continue working. The whip was heavily whipped on the ground, and dust flew up immediately.
Ye Zhinan coughed twice and suppressed the heat in her eyes. She waved the hoe in her hand higher.
...
"What should we do? The fever won't go down. If it continues like this, won't it burn her out?"
Han Xiangmei frowned tightly and stared at Ye Zhinan on the bed with heartache. A few tears fell.
Ye Zhinan had a high fever and had been bedridden since she came back that day.
The neighbors around her all said that she was frightened. Some said that she was possessed by Shen Li's vengeful spirit and was waiting to seek revenge on the Wei family.
The more they said, the more mysterious it became. In the end, Ye Shenyan simply closed the door and did not let anyone inquire about Ye Zhinan's condition.
Qin Yihuai took leave and secretly sent over a few packs of medicine. However, after drinking it, there was no improvement.
Han Xiangmei cried until her eyes were like walnuts. Ye Zhinan slowly woke up and saw her mother like this. She felt inexplicably heartache.
"I'm fine. My mind is still sharp. I just dreamt of our previous days and did not want to leave."
Her face was pale, but she still forced a smile.
She did not want her mother to continue worrying about her, so she could only lie.
When she mentioned the glorious days in the past, Han Xiangmei felt even more guilty. Even Ye Shenyan, who was standing far away, leaned on his walking stick and sighed.
"What's so good about those days? They haunted me and made me unable to wake up. It's still more practical to live like this now."
Ye Zhinan felt that Han Xiangmei's complexion was really bad. She stretched out her hand and secretly felt her pulse.
Her brows furrowed slightly. In order to prevent her parents from noticing, she quickly changed the topic.
"Dad, quickly take me back to rest. Look at your eyes. They're so swollen."
She blinked her eyes and winked at Ye Shenyan.
Ye Shenyan immediately understood and pulled Han Xiangmei out of the room.
The room was empty. Only Ye Zhinan was left sitting on the bed, lost in thought.
She was not sick at all. She was just in a state of melancholy and had not untangled her thoughts.
Gurgle—
Her stomach made an inopportune noise. Just as she was about to enter the space to find something to eat, the window was pushed open.
A roasted chicken was thrown in through the window. It lay pitifully on the ground, still steaming.
"Who?"
"I brought you something to eat. I was afraid of being gossiped about, so I had to come through the window."
She heard a familiar voice and inexplicably felt at ease. She lowered her head and curled the corners of her mouth.
Hearing that Qin Yihuai was about to leave, she quickly put on her shoes and ran to the window.
"Wait!"
As soon as she said it, she felt a little regretful. She did not know how to continue.
Qin Yihuai had a good temper. He stood outside the window and quietly waited for her to speak.
Ye Zhinan stammered for a long time before finally forcing out a few words.
"What happened to Shen Li's matter?"
The sun was shining brightly outside. Qin Yihuai's silhouette was reflected on the window.
He was thin and straight. Even his shadow had a unique charm.
"She was buried under that tree. This matter is inseparable from the Wei family. It should have been investigated carefully, but it was settled with money."
Ye Zhinan opened her mouth but did not say a word in the end.
She looked up at the sky and murmured.
"Forget it. I just don't know how much her life is worth?"
The two of them sighed through the window.
Qin Yihuai waited by the window for a while. Seeing that she had nothing else to say, he only left a polite remark and left.
His shadow became virtual from real and finally turned into a light spot, stinging Ye Zhinan's eyes.
"Little sister! I have good news for you. You'll definitely be happy when you hear it!"