Chapter 57 – The Grave

The sky over Kyoto to-day was at times cloudy and at times clear, always failing to show accurately either a smile or a look of sorrow, as in the case of Fan Ruoruo’s face at this time. This girl’s face was green and white for a while, and the light red cheeks that were slightly wet with fragrant sweat at that previous moment had been turned into a theater of fear after hearing these words, fully performing the various emotions that a citizen of Daqing should show at this time.

It was obviously a warm spring day, but Fan Ruo Ruo’s body felt like it was being tortured in an ice cellar, and it was only after a long time that she trembled and whispered, “I don’t know.”

This was the most useless answer, and also the most natural answer, Fan Xian had fallen into a black hole and was having trouble pulling himself out, and holding his sister’s hand again would only result in one more pitiful descendant being torn to shreds at best, and would do little to help matters.

Fan Xian’s heart softened, gently stroked the top of the girl’s head, and said gently, “Don’t be scared silly, there’s just no place to talk about it, so I had to find you to talk about it.”

After a long time, Fan Ruoruo looked at her elder brother with timid eyes, and said in a mosquito-like voice: “Is it true?”

Fan Xian was silent for a long time, his eyes looking towards the small secluded courtyard across the river, thinking about the plague of bloody knives that this small courtyard had suffered twenty years ago, thinking that twenty years ago, perhaps this place was a hell on earth, not knowing how many people of the old Ye family had died, while that amazing woman happened to be at the most debilitated stage of her life.

Because she gave birth to herself.

And all the people around her that she could rely on, all of them left her side because of this or that, irreversible important reasons, she was that isolated. It was a surprise attack from the closest behind herself, a violent and decisive killing. I’m sure she must have left the world rather unwillingly and alone?

Borrowing seed? Fan Xian would not believe this, he knew women too well, even if this woman was his own mother, the unique Ye Qingmei under the sky, Fan Xian still did not believe it. Without feelings for a man, how could she charm him into her bed? Other women might be vain with men they dislike for social or family reasons, yet did Ye Qingmei need to?

Fan Xian stared blankly across the river, a cold smile spreading across the corners of his lips, that man was still really cold-blooded.

A slightly trembling voice pulled Fan Xian back from the miserable images of the past. Fan Ruo Ruo was a bit wary of the cold generally leaning close to her elder brother’s side, the wet handkerchief in her hand had long since fallen to the grass, her hand clutched Fan Xian’s sleeve tightly, tilted her face and said, “…… I …… used to …… had a brother.”

Fan Xian’s heart suddenly surged a chill, he knew what his sister was talking about, because he knew when he was a child that there was supposed to be a young master in the Sinanbo residence, and that young master’s age was about the same as his own, and he was the child of his father and the original wife, but because of his youthful infirmity, he died at a very young age.

At this moment, when his sister suddenly mentioned that elder brother who had long since disappeared from people’s memories, Fan Xian vaguely seemed to have caught on to something, and his face changed instantly.

Chen Pingping had more than once reminded Fan Xian to be nicer to Fan Jian, as the Fan family had paid a lot for his survival. What exactly had the Fan family paid for? Could it be that back then, when he was in Taiping Bei Yuan, he was able to survive the aftermath and make it to the moment when Uncle Wuzhu rushed back because under the fierce attacks of the Empress Dowager, the Qin Clan, and the Empress Clan, someone had met death in his place?

Fan Xian’s face turned a little white as he silently thought in his heart, if things turned out to be progressing this way, at first concealed from the Empress Dowager, and then Sinanbo raised an illegitimate child in Tanyu, why did the palace not move to question it? Could it be that the emperor returned to the capital and suppressed the situation, blocking the news?

His head ached a little, some details had not yet been thought through, but that possible horrifying picture was clear in his mind. He thought with some indifference, it turned out that when he opened his eyes for the first time in this world and saw his own pair of baby white lotus-like hands, in front of the hands stained with blood on the white lotus, there was already a baby that had just been born not too long ago who had already died a death instead of himself.

His own pair of baby white lotus hands were not only coated with the blood of the people that Uncle Wu Zhu had killed, but also the blood of that true young master of the Fan family!

Fan Xian’s body trembled slightly. Fan Ruo Ruo clearly sensed her elder brother’s abnormality and said in a mournful whisper, “I don’t know how my elder brother died, only that I vaguely heard the old maids in the house cry and mention a couple of things later on, and I had some suspicions, but I didn’t know where it went wrong.”

Fan Xian gently held his sister’s hand and said nothing in silence. He knew that Ruo Ruo’s real mother had lingered and died shortly after giving birth to Ruo Ruo, and it was only later that his father had welcomed Liu into the house.

A Squire’s wife, because of what matter has been depressed in her heart? Because her own son should not have died but did?

Fan Ruo Ruo then lowered her head and said quietly, “I heard from old Sister that Mother and Aunt Ye should know each other as well.”

Fan Xian had gradually realized the deeper meaning of Chen Pingping’s words, only that he still couldn’t figure out why Chen Pingping still refused to let down her father’s guard during those years if he knew that his father had paid such a big price for himself.

The relationship between Fan Jian and Ye Qingmei was not like the first love that Fan Xian had envisioned when he was a teenager, but perhaps these two were more of a brother and sister who trusted each other, just like Fan Xian and Fan Ruo Ruo today.

Ye Qingmei had just given birth to a son in the Taiping courtyard, and it was only natural for Mrs. Sinanbo to go to the courtyard to help out. As for what happened later, it was probably exactly what Fan Xian had guessed in his mind.

Much like the plot of a novel? It turned out that reality was always more bizarre than fiction, or more accurately, reality should have been more bizarre than fiction.

Fan Xian held his sister’s hand tightly, and his heart was flooded with countless complicated feelings, as the face of his grandmother, who had always loved him immensely, appeared before his eyes, as well as his father’s face, which was upright and dignified, and which seemed to never be angry, never be joyful, and which was only silently walking in the official world.

His heart suddenly hurt, he felt that he really owed the Fan family too much. His heart suddenly went cold, too many people had died and too much blood had been shed back then.

Fan Xian stood up and looked coldly at the Taiping Buyeon across the river, and suddenly opened his mouth and said, “Don’t talk to anyone about what you said today.”

Although he knew for sure that his sister would not spread this shocking secret, Fan Xian still couldn’t help but remind him, and then said in a low voice, “Regarding this matter, I need to ask father in person.”

“Brother is going back to Tanyuzhou?” Fan Ruo Ruo followed and stood up, looking at him in surprise.

Fan Xian shook his head and said, “Father is not in Tanyuzhou right now.”

The fact that Fan Jian, who had already left his post as Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, was retired in Tanyuzhou was something that everyone under the heavens knew, but Fan Xian was unusually certain that his father was not in Tanyuzhou, because only he knew that his father was in a place in the northeast, helping himself to a great thing, and he was going to go to his father in person to ask him for instructions, because he thought that his father had his own say in this matter as well.

Fan Ruo Ruo held back from asking any questions, but only stared blankly at her elder brother’s somber face, her heart aching a little. She knew how much of a storm Fan Xian would stir up in the future with the things he said today. Today’s Fan Xian was more than just the second person in the world, and had too much power in his hands, if he really flipped with His Majesty the Emperor and wanted to avenge his mother, a big battle between the ruler and his ministers, I’m afraid that the entire world would be dragged into it.

“Accompany me to another place.” Fan Xian traveled towards the road deeper into the bamboo forest. Fan Ruo Ruo hmmmed and followed with small steps.

The three black carriages left the bamboo forest at Taiping Beiyuan and arrived at another place in the outskirts of the capital with a ghostly atmosphere. The coolness of this place was not the same as the Taiping Residence, and it had a frightening odor – because this was a cemetery.

Taiping courtyard had buried many people, here also buried a lot of people, Fan Xian today resigned from his hometown, came to the place of death, followed by the Supervisory Yuan officials are a bit austere, but do not know what exactly went wrong.

This side of the green hills below, feng shui is very good, is buried in the Qing country south war left behind the tomb of the nameless warriors. And one of the newest and largest cemetery, was repaired three years ago. During the battle of that Kyoto Rebellion, the Forbidden Army had suffered heavy deaths and injuries, and the Supervisory Authority had also paid an extremely horrific price, especially in sniping Qin Heng’s vanguard battalion all the way to the Zheng Yang Gate, and the Black Cavalry’s later courageous pursuit in front of the plaza, which had resulted in more than a thousand extra graves in this new cemetery.

The traditional April Festival had just recently passed, and there were still many traces of worship, incense and unburned paper money left behind in the garden, fluttering with the mountain winds amongst these quiet graves.

Fan Xian brought his subordinates and sister to the graves and bowed deeply to the cemetery, where his subordinates were buried, people who had died because of one of his decisions.

Mu Feng’er and a group of subordinates to know what the original Lord Titus want to do today, the heart also some feelings, some moved, the Lord will soon take over the Supervisory Yuan President, did not think to return to the hospital to deal with the matter, but the first time to come to the cemetery to pay homage to the dead brothers.

Looking at the Lord Tisch’s extremely sincere and heartfelt salute, dozens of officials of the Supervisory Yuan in the Castle Peak Garden couldn’t help but be moist in their eyes, and saluted one after another after him, only that they came in a hurry, and didn’t have a way to arrange their objects.

Fan Xian took a deep breath and said, “Care about sincerity of heart, don’t care about those aside.”

Mu Feng’er answered yes from the side.

Fan Xian was silent for a moment before saying, “When you return to the capital, have Mu Tie look into the pensions over the years, how well the families of the officials in the courtyard have been taken care of, and draw up a dossier for me as well.”

“Yes, my lord.”

Mu Feng’er answered, not really alarmed. The Compassionate follow-up matters of the Supervisory Yuan were all handled by one place, and his cousin Mu Tie was precisely the head of one place, and today when he heard that Lord Fan Jr. wanted to check the accounts, he was not worried. For one thing, the entire court, only the Supervisory Yuan’s pension is the highest, and the Lord Tisi takes good care of his subordinates’ families, of course, thanks to Fan Xian’s sleeve inside the hidden treasury such a gold mountain, and secondly, he knows that his own uncle’s person, in these matters is absolutely not dare to make a mistake.

Fan Xian no longer cares about him, carrying his hands behind his back, leading Fan Ruo Ruo out of the cemetery under the green hill, leaving those loyal subordinates some distance away, until he had to climb to the waist depression of the green hill, only then did he turn around to look at the densely packed graves underneath him and sighed: “A general’s success is ten thousand bones withered.”

Fan Ruoruo did not understand why her brother had come here after meditating for a long time in Taiping Buyei.

Fan Xian seemed to guess what she was thinking, and explained in a low voice, “I have to use these dead people to remind myself that I am more than just a me nowadays, and that I have to be responsible for a lot of people who are alive and dead. I have to use these graves to remind me to become a little more conscious and calm.”

The brother and sister climbed over the waist of the green hill and turned to the other side. The feng shui on this side was heard to be not as good as on that side, but it was also full of densely packed graves, all of which were where the ancestors of the people of Kyoto were buried, and at this point in time the smell of smoke and fire seemed to be floating in the air.

Separated on both sides of the green mountain pass there are a few large graves, the gravesite style ordinary, just seems to be extremely large, and there are gardens outside the graves, there are also guards of the officials and soldiers. A few officials and soldiers saw someone walking in with such a flourish, and were about to go forward to rebuke them, when they were immediately driven out by a few of the Inspectorate’s swordsmen.

These graves contained the Eldest Princess, the Crown Prince, and the Second Prince–Fan Xian walked past the Eldest Princess’s grave, past the Crown Prince’s grave, with an expression on his face that didn’t move at all, and then finally, to Fan Ruo Ruo’s surprise, he stopped in front of the Second Prince’s grave.

The tomb of the Empress Dowager was far to the south of Cangshan Mountain, eighty miles away from Kyoto, and was said to cover a huge area, with extremely gorgeous decorations, perfectly demonstrating His Majesty’s benevolence and filial piety, but Fan Xian had not been there even once.

The officials of the Supervisory Court dispersed in all directions, and Fan Xian’s siblings stood quietly in front of the second prince’s grave. I don’t know how long they had been looking at it, but Fan Xian suddenly opened his mouth and said, “Actually, I don’t like you very much because I know that you and I are the same kind of people, and just as you said the night before you died, we don’t see eye to eye with each other.”

“From the first moment I saw you, I saw through that shy smile on your face and knew your hypocrisy.” Fan Xian smiled as he looked at the grave, “Of course, when you saw that slightly shy smile on my face, you also knew of my hypocrisy …… but you couldn’t confirm that, you just subconsciously guessed.”

“Because I hide it more deeply than you, my smile is more genuine than yours.” Fan Xian’s voice wasn’t high, but it seemed extraordinarily resolute, “When it comes to acting, no one in this world can compare to me, because I’ve been acting since the first day I was born.”

“A slightly shy smile? To disguise yourself as a little baby, of course you have to learn how babies smile.” Fan Xian lowered his head slightly, “This has become my natural nature, I will only smile …… slightly shyly.”

He raised his head and said, “Chengze ah, I will come back to see you in the future when I don’t have to smile shyly.”

Fan Ruo Ruo looked at his elder brother in shock, wondering why he was babbling these things in front of the second prince’s grave, what camouflaged baby?

Fan Xian stretched out in front of the grave, he had already stood up a long time ago, just when would the slight shy smile on his face turn into a look of impatient anger towards this world?

Fan Ruo Ruo finally couldn’t help but reach out to probe his forehead to see if his elder brother had been shocked into a fever by that news, and ended up cold to the touch.

Fan Xian was taken aback by her, but then he realized what the girl was thinking and laughed out loud.

Hearing Fan Xian let out a rare bright smile, Fan Ruo Ruo put her heart down and laughed along with her, only that there was still a layer of haze in her heart as she looked at her elder brother, wondering what kind of hard work and struggle would be in the midst of this burst of laughter.

Fan Xian calmed down and said gently, “I’m done with the things I need to do today, the madness I need to send out, you said earlier that there was something going on in the capital, what exactly is it?”

Fan Ruo Ruo hesitated for a moment and then said softly, “It is the Sun family miss came to the house, thanks to sister-in-law is not in …… the vine everyone’s anxious to do nothing.”

“Sun …… Sun ……? Sun Jingxiu his girl?” Fan Xian froze for half a day, said, “A great lady, how did you make such a mess?”

This Miss Sun, naturally, was the fan who had done Fan Xian a heavenly favor in the Kyoto rebellion back then. It was just that Fan Xian was well aware of this girl’s temperament, and even if she was a fan of the Stone Records again, she wouldn’t have done something so detrimental to the family’s morale.

“She’s here for her father?” Fan Ruoruo gave him a tentative look and said, “Something seems to have happened on Lord Sun’s side, and he was in such a hurry that he couldn’t do anything about it, so I see that Miss Sun was also forced to come here by her father.”

A gust of wind came from the mountains, blowing Fan Xian’s clothes hunting, blowing his brows also wrinkled, he couldn’t help but curse something twice, only the voice was so low that even Fan Ruo Ruo, who stood beside him, didn’t hear it clearly.