Chapter 61: Atonement

"What is it?" Yang Xiao pressed.

"Do you still remember those girls the Feng Mansion bought? These girls weren't just bought at random. They... they were all the firstborns of their families. We found the families of a few of these girls. According to their parents, some families had more than one girl and wanted to sell them all, but the people from the Feng Mansion would only take the eldest. They didn't even want the remaining girls if they were given away for free."

"Some families didn't originally intend to sell their children, but they couldn't withstand the Feng Mansion people coming to persuade them time and again. They said that keeping a girl at home was a burden, she couldn't do heavy labor, and she was just another mouth to feed. If they sold her to them, not only could they get some silver to subsidize the household, but more importantly, it would give the girl a good future. They even said that as parents, one must learn to think for the child."

"They promised to send the girls to a Nun Temple in another region to be raised, letting them cultivate their hearts and minds to accumulate hidden virtues for their families. Once they were older, the Feng Mansion would even arrange for someone to find them a good family to marry into. This was a blessing that couldn't be cultivated in several lifetimes."

Kuang Hongyi said all this in one breath and couldn't help but sigh. This Feng Mansion was no better than the head of the opera troupe; in the end, they were all birds of a feather.

Hearing this, Yang Xiao understood. So, the saying "Tou Nu Bu Wai Jia" alluded to these poor girls. If they hadn't been "married" off, they wouldn't have fallen into the hands of the Feng Mansion and wouldn't have suffered such torture in the end.

Now that the roots of the three phrases had all been found, according to Kuang Hongyi's analysis, their mission was nearing its end.

Afterward, Yang Xiao informed Kuang Hongyi of the intelligence he had obtained on this trip and brought out the old garment with Chun Jie's Birth Date and Time written on it, as well as the Opening Coffin Axe.

Kuang Hongyi's eyes lit up, and he praised repeatedly, "Excellent, excellent! With Chun Jie's Birth Date and Time in hand, our chances of winning have increased significantly! Also, this axe is a treasure for suppressing evil. Brother Chu is truly a lucky general."

"It's not just my credit. It's thanks to Miss Su for handling Shopkeeper Liu at the coffin shop and even becoming his goddaughter. If we encounter more difficulties, I'm afraid we'll have to ask Miss Su to step up again," Yang Xiao said with a polite smile to Su Tingting.

Hearing Yang Xiao say this, Kuang Hongyi also found Su Tingting much more agreeable. Out of respect for Shopkeeper Liu, he would have to think twice before picking on her again. "Hehe, Miss Su is truly talented but keeps a low profile. It was I who underestimated you."

How could Su Tingting dare to put on airs in front of Kuang Hongyi? She repeatedly demurred, pushing all the credit onto Kuang Hongyi and Yang Xiao, and said a whole lot of words of gratitude.

After some pleasantries, the group turned to the main topic. Yang Xiao brought up what Shopkeeper Liu had said and analyzed, "I agree with Shopkeeper Liu's view; it is very unlikely that Chun Jie's daughter is still alive."

Kuang Hongyi nodded along: "Correct. With the head of the opera troupe's vicious nature, he didn't even spare Chun Jie, so it's even less likely he would leave that child alive. When cutting grass, one must remove the roots."

"So what we need to do now is find the burial site of that child and bury this garment with Chun Jie's Birth Date and Time nearby. Mother and child are connected at heart; only then is it possible to resolve Chun Jie's resentment." Yang Xiao changed the subject, "However, Shopkeeper Liu warned that there must be something strange about that place; otherwise, with Chun Jie's abilities, she shouldn't have been unable to find it."

This was practically spelling it out. Kuang Hongyi slapped his thigh, "It's... it's the Soul Suppressing Pagoda!"

"Right, that's what I thought too. Calculating by the timeline, after the head of the opera troupe left the Feng Mansion with the troupe, they headed straight for the Laoniu Bay Ferry without stopping. No matter how you calculate it, the area under the Soul Suppressing Pagoda is the best place to bury the body, ensuring the child's soul is trapped so it won't come looking for trouble."

Recalling the chilling aura he had felt from afar when passing by the Soul Suppressing Pagoda, Yang Xiao still felt lingering fear. That place definitely counted as having something very strange.

The subsequent matters were much clearer. Tomorrow morning, they would find an opportunity to leave the mansion, then get a carriage and head straight for the Soul Suppressing Pagoda to bury Chun Jie and her child together.

If everything went smoothly, then this mission would be considered finished.

"Sigh, it's easy to say, but we still have to survive tonight at least." Kuang Hongyi turned his head to look out the window, his expression ugly.

"There's still something tonight?" Su Tingting immediately felt weak.

"Yes." Kuang Hongyi withdrew his gaze, "When I went over today, Master Feng was talking to Shi Dali. Master Feng appeared very sad. He told us he expressed repentance for the previous incident involving Feng Laotaiye. He hopes to atone for his sins."

"The physician in the mansion said that today or tomorrow is about the time for the Second Young Mistress to give birth. Master Feng has already made arrangements to send the Second Young Mistress onto the lake tonight. He is following the same ritual as sending Xi Yao... no, sending Chun Jie, using the Boxi Boat. Life and death are fated; he hopes such sincerity can resolve the grudge between the vengeful ghost and their Feng Family."

Yang Xiao: "???"

This was the method of atonement Master Feng came up with? Yang Xiao had thought Master Feng had regained his conscience and was preparing to commit suicide to apologize or something.

What was this? How was this atonement? It was clearly him being afraid of death, so he didn't care about anyone else and was preparing to use the last bloodline of the Feng Family as a scapegoat for himself.

"How shameless, not even caring about his own grandson, right?" Su Tingting realized she had still overestimated the moral bottom line of the Feng Family, "Then... will the Second Young Mistress agree to that?"

Yang Xiao was so angered by Master Feng's pious attitude of atonement that he laughed, cursing, "What use is it if she agrees or not? A woman with a big belly, does she have any say in the mansion?"

Yang Xiao didn't care about the affairs of the Feng Family; he was more concerned about whether he could survive, "Brother Kuang, do you know what we are required to do tonight?"

"I heard we are to escort the Second Young Mistress to the lake. Master Feng didn't mention the specifics, and the time... the time is probably around the 3rd watch," Kuang Hongyi said.

Now that things were generally clear, Yang Xiao and Kuang Hongyi discussed and decided not to inform Shi Dali about the discovery of Chun Jie's Birth Date and Time for the time being. As for the Feng Family, they had to be even more secretive. Kuang Hongyi reminded Yang Xiao that when he was searching for clues outside the mansion with Shi Dali today, he clearly felt someone was following them. It should have been people from the Feng Mansion, and there was more than one.

Yang Xiao sighed, his expression becoming vigilant, "We know too much about the Feng Family's affairs. Any one of these things, if brought out, would be enough for Master Feng to lose his head. They haven't made a move now because we are still useful and they are counting on us to hold back Chun Jie. Once things are completely over, I'm afraid we will also be thrown into the bottom of this lake, dying without anyone knowing why."

"Then what should we do?" Su Tingting asked hurriedly. If they didn't die at the hands of the ghost, but ended up dying at the hands of the Feng Family, that would be truly stifling.

Yang Xiao had no clue about this either, "We'll take it one step at a time. But there is one point: the situation has changed. The Feng Family poses a greater threat to us than Chun Jie. It's unlikely Chun Jie will kill us all, but Master Feng can."