After midnight

Song Xin got up early, before daybreak. She and her uncle had to prepare many things. The paper money had been prepared, tied up in piles and placed in a basket. They would have to go to the grave to unroll it and unfold it into the shape of gold ingots. The tribute could be prepared now. The meat had been cooked, and there was still time to prepare other food.

But her eldest brother, Song Yu, was still missing. This was what made her uneasy. Where had he gone? After the elders' meeting, he never came back once, and Song Xin couldn't help but complain.

The sun was high in the sky, hiding behind the clouds. When they were about to set off, Song Yu rushed back, exhausted. He put on a plain white mourning dress, and went to the cemetery with Song Xin and Song Hongda.

Song Xin looked at him and said nothing. This was not the right time, and Song Yu didn't give her time at all.

The three of them hurried on their way in silence, and also did their respective tasks in silence. After they had arranged their things, they lit a fire, burned incense and paper, and watched the burnt ashes float up with the heat and then fall to the ground.

"Say something to your father."

After Song Hongda finished speaking, he patted Song Yu on the shoulder and walked to the open space next to him with the empty basket. After the two stood for a while, Song Yu also walked away.

"Father." Song Xin shouted, but she didn't know what to say next. The sycamore leaves fell lightly at her feet. Song Xin continued, "Father, I'm fine. Are you okay in that world? I hope you can meet your mother. Father, don't worry, my brother and I will definitely avenge you."

After Song Xin finished speaking, she stood silently for a while before walking back. Song Hongda and Song Yu were waiting for her under a pine tree not far away. She walked over and stood obediently in front of them.

"Let's go." Song Hongda said as he took a step forward.

But Song Yu didn't wait for her. He followed Song Hongda and left, not too far away. Song Xin opened her mouth but didn't say much. When she left the cemetery, she couldn't help but look back. Her father was sleeping in the green mountains.

It was around 2pm when the three of them returned home. The servants had prepared a simple meal. After the meal was served, Song Hongda saw that they were not interested and said, "After dinner, go and have a rest. You still have to keep watch tonight."

"Then I'll go back to my room first." Song Yu immediately put down his chopsticks and left.

"Let him rest first."

Seeing that Song Xin had been watching her brother leave with dissatisfaction mixed with worry, Song Hongda comforted her.

"Well, uncle, I'm going back too."

After Song Xin left, Song Hongda had to sit alone at the dining table and eat slowly. The vigil would start at six in the evening and last until six in the morning.

After returning to the house, Song Xin took off the white linen dress she was wearing and lay down on the bed. She originally wanted to close her eyes and sort out recent events so that she could tell her brother, but she fell asleep after a while.

At 5:45 in the evening, when Song Xin rushed to the mourning hall in a panic, Song Yu was already kneeling there.

"Xin'er, go to the kitchen and fill your stomach before coming back. Otherwise, you might not be able to endure kneeling all night."

"Brother, have you eaten yet?" Seeing that Song Yu cared about him, Song Xin suddenly lost his temper.

"Well, uncle should be there now. I saw him on the way here."

"Okay." Song Xin glanced at the tablet in front of her and stepped back hesitantly. When Song Xin arrived in the kitchen, Song Hongda was eating the leftover cold food from lunch.

"Xin'er, your brother came to see me this afternoon, and we plan to go look for Jiuxiang early tomorrow morning. So, you will be alone at home tomorrow."

"I'm fine, you guys go." Song Xin took the cake handed to her by Song Hongda.

The white candles in the ancestral hall were burning, shedding tears drop by drop. It was so quiet around her that Song Xin could hear the sound of the flames jumping in front of her. She looked to the side and saw Song Yu kneeling beside her, and her uncle kneeling right in front of them.

Keeping vigil for her father was a serious matter, and Song Xin never dared to slack off. As time passed, Song Xin could no longer hold on. She felt pain in her knees, waist and shoulders. Another hour passed, and Song Xin carefully changed her movements several times but could not relieve the pain. It was late at night, and she would rather be a little sleepy.

She began to think about all sorts of things to distract herself. Since her father died, she hadn't seen Yun Shuang since she met her once. She didn't know how she was doing. Where had her brother gone during this time? Why didn't he come home or write to her? And... Zhang Dong, she hadn't replied to him yet, and she hadn't seen him again.

After thinking about it, Song Xin avoided the question of her father. Maybe she hadn't figured out how to tell her brother, or maybe she was tired now. People have the instinct to avoid pain.

She began to daydream, and then there was a loud 'bang' which scared her so much that her shoulders shook violently and she almost screamed.

Song Yu fell to the ground, and did not wake up even after making such a loud noise and being hit. Song Xin moved over worriedly, but almost fell down because her legs were numb.

"Song Yu, Song Yu."

Song Hongda leaned over and called his name, but Song Yu did not wake up. He looked left and right for a long time, and just when Song Xin could not help but move closer, Song Hongda finally spoke. "Song Yu is too tired, I will take him back to his room to rest first."

Song Xin nodded, and Song Hongda carried Song Yu and walked out the door with difficulty. As the two of them left, Song Xin, although still kneeling, inevitably relaxed. Another hour passed, and when Song Hongda came back, it was already past one in the morning.

"Xin'er~"

"Uncle, how is my brother?" Song Xin didn't dare to stand up and asked with his head raised.

"He must have fallen asleep because he was exhausted from running around these days. Xin'er, go and look after him."

"But here..."

"I can do it. Night watch is just a tradition. It's enough to have this person and this rule."

"Then uncle, I'm going."

Song Hongda nodded, and after watching Song Xin walk away rubbing his knees, he knelt down straight in front of the tablet.

Song Xin came to Song Yu's room and saw that Song Yu was lying on his back on the bed without taking off his shoes. She put the hot water on the floor, took off her brother's shoes first, and then lifted the quilt beside him to cover Song Yu.

She touched Song Yu's forehead and felt that her brother seemed to have a fever, but Song Yu's face was calm and he didn't look particularly painful. Finally, Song Xin wrung out the towel and wiped Song Yu's face, then moved a stool to sit over. She lay on the bed and looked at her brother's face for a while, feeling very uncomfortable. To be honest, she didn't seem to understand her brother at all.

Song Xin watched and lowered his head and fell asleep.

At 2:30 in the morning, when Song Xin was in the deepest dream, she was awakened by mumbling.

Song Yu slept very uneasily, and he didn't know when he curled up under the quilt. Under the dim desk lamp, Song Yu's face looked very painful, with a thin layer of sweat on his forehead, and his fists were clenched tightly. He kept uttering unclear mumblings.

Song Xin panicked immediately. She tried to call him, but Song Yu could not hear her at all and showed no signs of waking up. Song Xin hurriedly soaked the towel that had fallen to the side with water again, trying to wipe off the sweat that soaked her hair.

At that moment, before Song Xin could react, she was pinned down by Song Yu. Song Yu grabbed the hand holding the towel, and Song Xin's wrist was pinched so hard that she couldn't use any strength.

"Brother!" Song Xin panicked and shouted loudly.

"Shut up! Don't force me! Don't force me to kill you!" These words suddenly came out of Song Yu's mouth, and at the same time, he pinched Song Xin's thin neck as if he had suddenly gone crazy.

"Brother?" Song Xin was frightened. She hurriedly grabbed Song Yu's hand and tried to pry him apart.

Song Yu was very strong, and Song Xin couldn't break free for a while. But Song Yu was clearly not awake yet. Song Xin saw that his eyes were still closed and he was still mumbling.

"I didn't want to..." Song Yu suddenly let go of his hand. He changed from his previous violent look to a very fragile one, and leaned against Song Xin's arms. "I didn't want to, father, I didn't want to... It's all your fault... Why don't you shut up, don't force me... Don't force me to kill you, father..."

Sensing the wetness on her neck, Song Xin's hand that was about to comfort Song Yu suddenly stopped there. Song Xin suddenly widened her beautiful round eyes, and the darkness turned into a thick black fog that pressed down on her, covering her mouth and nose, and taking away her breath.

Song Xin suddenly gathered up all her strength, struggled to break free from the person on her and escaped. She ran for a long distance until her chest began to hurt, then she squatted down and breathed deeply. Big tears fell into the darkness, she cried so hard that she was out of breath, she cried so hard that she almost fell over.

But she couldn't make herself stop, she couldn't stop herself from crying.

She cried for a while, then stopped, and then started crying again. She kept crying until dawn.

At dawn, the vigil was over. She wiped her face stubbornly, which was covered with dried tears. She turned and walked back to her room. Her eyes hurt from crying, and they hurt when they were exposed to the light. She stubbornly walked back to her room step by step, closed the door with difficulty, and then let herself fall asleep.

This time, Song Xin didn't get what she wanted. She woke up quickly. It was still daylight when she woke up. She stared out the window for a while, then turned over. Her eyes were empty and she was completely hopeless.

After waking up, she was extremely clear-headed. She had figured out everything. She was the most favored person in the family and didn't like to meddle in other people's business, but that didn't mean she wasn't smart. So, could she accept it? She couldn't accept it, and her heart ached. She stared at the whitewashed wall, and just kept staring at it.

In the evening, she was hungry. Her stomach was rumbling and she felt extremely hungry.

She actually felt hungry. Song Xin once thought that she had no other senses except vision.

"I knocked on the door just now and no one answered, so I came in. Xin'er, I came to see you. Aunt Zhang said that you haven't been out for the whole day and haven't eaten anything."

Zhao Yunshuang sat on the edge of the bed and stared at the back of her head. After hearing this, Song Xin just turned around and rolled her eyes. She stared at her straight, without speaking or moving. Zhao Yunshuang seemed to be frightened. She pulled her up and begged her to speak.

"Xin'er, get up and have a meal. You look very bad."

Song Xin didn't have the extra strength to resist her and let Zhao Yunshuang pull her up.

"I'm not hungry." Song Xin hissed.

"You have to eat even if you're not hungry. You haven't eaten for a whole day."

"Yun Shuang, I've been thinking that this is all my fault, really."

"What do you mean, I don't understand."

"I was selfish and cowardly. I clearly noticed their conflict but I just watched and avoided it. I only enjoyed their kindness and dedication to me, but I didn't do anything. That's why the punishment came upon me."

Zhao Yunshuang listened to her quietly and saw that Song Xin wanted to cry again as she spoke.

"I was born here, and I should shoulder the glory that this place brings me, but I am afraid of hardship and fatigue, and I am afraid that I can't bear this responsibility, so I just rely on the love I receive and continue to act willfully. I envy others so much. Look at Lin Nuan, she is so strong and powerful, and you have been trying so hard to survive. Only I, how can I be such a despicable person?"

"It's too late. It's too late for everything. Yun Shuang, it's too late for me to even regret."

"Xin'er, what are you talking about? It's not like that. You think too much."

"Yun Shuang, why are you here?" Song Xin asked her back, trying to change the subject.

"Yesterday was the day my second uncle was leaving, so I thought about coming to see you. My brother was also worried about you."

"is it?"

"Ah."

"Don't worry, I'm fine. Yun Shuang, I'm a little hungry."

"Okay, let's eat. I asked Aunt Zhang to make a lot of delicious food."

Seeing Zhao Yunshuang quickly walk to the table to serve her food, Song Xin wiped away her tears stubbornly. She made up her mind that this matter must not be known to anyone.

"Yun Shuang is back, how is it?" Zhao Yunqi asked her.

"Song Xin is not in a good condition. She has been staying at home all day and hasn't eaten much. She is stuck in a vicious circle of self-pity."

"It's okay, give her some time and she will get over it."

"Well, she will."

"Uncle and Song Yu went to Jiumen early this morning. Did you see them when you came back?"

"No, I didn't see them in the Song Mansion. Song Xin should know about this. After she woke up, she didn't even ask where they went."

Since knowing that Song Hongtian did not die of poisoning, Zhao Yunshuang inevitably felt fortunate. This was also the reason why she dared to enter the Song Mansion, but Song Xin's condition today was really a bit strange.

"What's wrong?" Zhao Yunshuang looked up and asked when she saw Zhao Yunqi staring at her.

"Nothing, I just feel like something is different about you."

“Is there?” Zhao Yunshuang said helplessly: “Brother, I still hope that we can leave as soon as possible without any worries.”

"Don't worry, we will leave when the time is right."

He must leave. This belief has become stronger since the night Zhao Yunqi learned the truth. He must leave.