Beneath the heavy overcast skies, a lone rocky trail makes its way up the hilly landscape, twisting with bends and turns along the narrow route. At its end, there built a solitary temple of prayer, which overlooked rows of tombstones and small gravel dwellings, decorated with lion and dragon motifs, reminiscent of the temple’s very own designs.
Suddenly, a large, golden bell rang loudly in the distance. It soon began to play at a regular pace, relaying its mighty clang for all to hear in the encompassing area. One such group was a long line of people, dressed in tunics and robes of gray white, maroon or black. A myriad of stringed and percussion instruments sounded back amidst the ringing. A high pitched tune, accompanied by low claps and bellows.
In the center of the line was a long wooden box carried by several strong laborers, lined with a variety of flowers and engraved with silver. A wide blanket of cloth was draped evenly over it. It glowed a vibrant red, marked with special black writing wishing for an auspicious journey. Surrounding them, lines of weeping men and women followed alongside it, carrying wrapped gifts and food. And at the front of the crowd, a young man, who appeared to be in his early twenties, was leading all of them towards the temple above. Dressed in a white robe, he held a spirit tablet within his shaking arms. It had a vertical line of characters written upon it, traced with shiny gold. All it read was:
“Xu YaoXi”
The former lord of the Xu pharmacy had passed away. He died of natural causes.
---
Finally reaching the summit of the hill where the temple resided, the young man halted his steps in front of the tall front doors of the temple. Shortly soon after, a loud clang of metal could be heard and the double doors shook as they opened inward, bringing the view of the spacious interior within. The following crowd, who also arrived in pace with the young man, solemnly made their gazes to the front. Their eyes were greeted by a massive hallroom, housing a large altar at the end of the expanse, upon which several huge and shiny golden-coloured statues of the Buddha and its numerous other identifications and variations. Surrounding the central figures were the smaller models of the Deities that represent parts of human society and the world they live in. Off to the sides, the four Heavenly Kings were evenly placed with the South and West to the left, and the North and East to the right. With the sizes of these beings of worship, hundreds of candles and large lanterns readily illuminated the space in a gleaming spectacle.
And at the opened entrance, a youthful woman in her late teens stood steadily beyond the young man, addressing his welcome. She wore a similar white robe, fastened with a black sash. Her face was devoid of any make-up but her marble, doll-like face was still as stunning as it was natural. And yet, this beauty had a lifeless aura emerging from her. The young man, however, could relate to her despair. Perhaps, his own feelings were even greater than those she could ever have felt.
Looking across the woman, he observed the nuns and monks as they settled their final preparations for the funeral ceremony. Their main robes and fabrics were the usual creamy yellow, covered with several folds of dark red outer layers.
Facing the woman once again, the man waited.
A nod.
With her approval, the man raised his hand, signaling for the laborers to proceed with resting the coffin in front of the altar of the deities, which upon its laying, a flower bed and a raised platform encircled the coffin.
With the corpse in place, the young man called out for everyone to gather about it in a uniform manner. Organized into rows, at the very last were acquaintances and relatives of close friends. Closer were his father’s confidants, which included business partners, fellow scholars of medicine and army heads under his orders. One such comrade was the former second-in-command, who was currently as feeble of a elderly man as the next person. He also wore a white robe with dark blue outlines as he knelt down on his knees with the rest. Near the front were the relatives of the Xu family and the one leading the large, mourning crowd was the lord’s son, Xu YaoMing.
“Elder brother, it’s time.”
The black hair beauty promptly came to her place beside him after she finished making the confirmations with the head monk.
She was the adopted daughter of former Lord Xu, Xu TianXing.
With everyone settled on their respective prayer seating cushions, the young man gave a firm nod to the head monk who was standing at the side of the coffin with a bell in hand. It was time for the true funeral ceremony to begin.
---
The side rows of monks sang deeply in unison. Their soothing chants and hypnotizing hymns echoed grandly throughout the spacious hallroom. The melody of the small handheld bell and the background support of the Zen round drums further enhanced the ceremonial performance. Respectively, its highly tuned tings and low rhythmic claps synergised greatly with their slightly dreary voices.
With the lead voice of the head monk finishing his first book of religious scripture, he smoothly transitioned to the second volume without any reference point. After all, that elderly man has memorized all of the ‘teachings’ by heart, spending decades within this lone temple with the other acolytes. In the midst of this calming sea of sounds and voices, the crowd kept silent for it was the utmost decorum for the dead.
Meanwhile, despite feeling numb in both legs and not having stood up for the past hour, the young man and woman continued to remain still in the kneeling position, just like the others. It was an irritable pain upon their stiff knees and their body itched in its supposed serenity, not that the young man could have easily adjusted, had he regularly attended such prayer sessions.
And as the head monk finally finished the fourth volume of the scripture, the laborers got ready into action. As per tradition, they lit torches and steadily walked towards the air-tight coffin. Tossing their respective flames evenly throughout the perimeter of the frame, the flames started to grow larger and hotter, becoming a bright reddish orange and flickering with sporadic rises and slumps. Above it, rising black smoke quickly made its way up and out of the ceiling, where specialized wooden and clay hatches were retracted open to increase air ventilation.
The wood crackled, bursting large planks into smaller bits and scattering splinters. The coffin, along with its host, was visibly seen being burned into the black, blanketed by the raging blaze. Bare ribs could be seen jutting out and a loose hand gently slid off the raised platform and into the burning flower bed beneath. It was a devastating, yet majestic sight.
But that was not all of it. Shortly after, the cold, humid wind suddenly blew in through the opened windows, tending to the more potent flames. With each gust of wind, the head monk raised his voice, gradually in loud, long bellows. The scripture fastened in pace and the fifth volume was promptly finished, bringing in the sixth verses next; while the instruments switched to heavy leather drums, banging the similar melody and at a faster, sharper frequency.
Accompanying all of this was grief. The cries and the wails. The shrieks and the sniffling. The kneeling crowd, who was obediently waiting and keeping their feelings in check, could now finally let their hearts out. They flooded the chaotic atmosphere with a sorrowful display of tragedy. An incredibly immense one at that, and filled to the brim of powerful emotion.
The beautiful woman was the same as the rest…
She growled heavily and screeched her throat out. Her bloodshot eyes were running with tears, screaming out painful calls for her dear father.
“PA!!! PA!!!...PAAWAAAH!!!”
Ultimately, she failed to look ahead at his burning corpse and instead, she groveled deeply at the edge of the flower bed, just enough to prevent herself from touching the ongoing blaze. Her back arched forward and head hitting the cold, porcelain tiled temple floor.
“DON’T LEAVE ME!!!”
Her shrieks continued to resonate throughout the temple amongst the numerous other sounds.
---
On the other hand, there was her stepbrother. Unlike the others, the young man didn’t shed any tears nor show any signs of unwavering misery. He just sat perfectly still as before, without moving a muscle. His eyes were dilated, its void black circles reflecting the fiery display that his adored father was given a send off by. Behind the burning, he could still smell the familiar scent of thick incense, the burned money paper and the odor of freshly hunted pig, duck and cow. His glasses loosened from its place on his nose, but it did not bother him. All his focus was set upon his father’s grandiose departure to the Heavenly Kingdom. But at the back of his mind, something was slowly crawling its way into his conscience. It was his father’s final parting words.
In the end, he continued to watch the flames burn on; the surrounding crowd raged on with its anguish of loss. As the head monk finished his performance with the seventh volume’s final verse, he swiftly placed aside the bell and metal stick on a neighboring table and gathered the bowl of flower water with a lotus flower submerged inside it. The flames haven’t died down yet but its ferocity was more tamed than earlier, several minutes before. With several swipes of his hand holding on the cut stem of the lotus, the head monk sprayed the droplets of water across the burnt corpse which was now a mixture of black charcoal, ashen gray bone pieces and glittering thin gold bits.
And with a few more swipes, the head monk also placed aside that bowl and lotus flower.
A deep breath.
Gently removing his black beaded necklace from his neck, he rolled a couple of them before intertwining the necklace between his clapped hand and fingers. This was the sign of the end of the ceremony.
“Namo Amituofo”, the head monk muttered in condolences.
And following right after his chant, the other acolytes and monks repeated the phrase in unison.
“NAMO AMITUOFO”
.
.
.
With the funeral session finished, the crowd began to make their way out of the temple to clear their minds or gather close around the burning fire to watch their Lord for one last time.
The two children, the young man and woman, were the last to leave their seats. She slumped heavily onto the side in exhaustion and distress. Her face was an obvious mess. Reluctant to say a few words to her brother, she eventually got up from her place and exited the temple through the backdoor while he remained on his spot. His legs, lifeless from the lack of fresh blood flow.
A normal expression was all he could muster.
Taking a final look at the burnt corpse, the young man removed his glasses and rubbed his eyes tightly, elevating his head up high.
It appeared that he hadn’t blinked for a single time throughout the whole 2 hour ceremony. In recollection, he sighed deeply.
And as he gazed at the sight of the residing smog, a dry, monotone voice sounded and parting lips shifted into a light smile.
“Till we meet again, Father.”
---
“Blechhh…”
A dark-brown and yellow, thick and viscous fluid plopped onto the soil beneath. A distance away from a pair of black cotton scandals.
The youthful woman slowly stood upright and approached close for the nearby flower fountain. It was a large, shiny black marble bowl with wooden reinforcements and on top of that, a miniature statue of a snow lion was placed.
She carefully picked up a bamboo ladle and scooped up a bucketful of rich flower water. With a few large gulps, the woman gurgled a mouthful and rinsed the stench away. Next, she washed her dried up face, along with the ends of her silky black hair and high neck. This was a customary practice to cleanse away the unfortunate that would be brought along with the invited on their way back from a trip to the graveyards.
Finally, she took out a towel from under her inner robes and proceeded to wipe herself dry. However, with her vision blocked, the woman failed to notice a person walking towards her. The crackling sound of his footsteps across fallen leaves went unnoticed. Pausing for a moment, he hesitated.
‘Was it the proper time to talk?’ he questioned, watching her subtly tranquil gaze into the forest beyond. Her mind, deep in remembrance, and he did not want to ruin it. However, as bad as he was at having the confidence in his ability to resolve issues through communication, the man understood that if there was a better time to address her despair, it was now. With that in mind, he gathered up the courage to confront the woman who he loved dearly.
“Xiao Tian”
Unaware of his presence, she turned back in shock.
“...”
“...”
It was her step brother.
“Ah-ah...say…I never would have thought that there was such a secret spot within the area. It surely is a good view here.”
YaoMing decided to go by the book. Slow and steady.
He proceeded forward towards the small garden where the fountain was built upon, and in his arms, he held a small towel.
“...”
Without saying a word, XiaoTian readily made way for her brother to clean himself as she perched a seat on the side of a pile of boulders.
Picking up her train of thought, YaoMing followed up with her gesture and as he washed his face, the two of them did not say a word. Realizing this, YaoMing quickly came up with a dialogue to continue the conversation but unexpectedly, his sister responded first.
XiaoTian gave in, which YaoMing was proud of. He was progressing well.
“This particular fountain is one of the farthest away from the temple, making it quite deserted most of the time so I chose this ideal spot. No one knows of this place, aside from some monks who come here on random occasions.”
“...Quite the exaggeration, XIao Tian,” YaoMing replied before continuing to wipe down his face dry.
“So, when are we going home, Elder Brother?”
“After the guests leave, the workers will clean up the remains while the monks will collect some large parts of Father’s bones and ashes into a sealed jar. And they will give us the choice to keep it or bury it here. After that’s all settled, I will return home. In regards to you…you can head home earlier, Xiao Tian. I will manage the rest.”
YaoMing took another gulp of flower water, watchful eyes anticipating his sister’s response.
“So, what’s the decision then?”
“...Both. Some parts will be kept by us and the rest will be buried. Reason being, I wanted a keepsake. I hope it doesn’t bother you.”
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
“Whatever you say, Elder Brother. I am done for today. For the whole month actually, if I’m being true to myself.”
“...”
Recalling the weeks into the preparation for the ceremony, YaoMing knew this was not a false claim. It was dreadful observing her as today crawled near.
“Anyhow, your earlier greeting act was very embarrassing, Elder Brother. It doesn’t suit you. The appearance of a man who uses those types of words, I mean.”
“I-I was just trying my best.”
“Yes, yes, I got what you meant. Do not stress yourself out about me. I’m old enough already. I’m turning 18 this year so rejoice!”
She joyfully flung her arms in the air.
“...Well, that’s wonderful.”
“...”
A pause.
“Hey Elder Brother”
“Yeah…?” YaoMing replied, putting his glasses on. He felt a sudden change in her mood.
XiaoTian averted her face away from his gaze.
“Could Father have lived longer if he just raised you only?”
“...”
This was very sudden.
“Would he be proud of the woman I have become?”
“Xiao Tian…”
He felt heavy in his chest.
“Did he waste his efforts upon me? I…I barely got the chance to prove it to him.”
“e…enough”
This was what he was worried about and…
“I am!-It’s all my f-!”
“Xiao Tian, that’s enough!”
… he would not tolerate such behavior any longer, especially when it was progressing into something even darker and deeper.
“Br-Brother…”
Walking up close to her, YaoMing softly embraced her into a hug.
Her petite figure gently nestled in between his arms; her voice, meek and broken.
It felt warm.
Holding her tighter, YaoMing said his piece.
“Do not blame yourself…Xiao Tian.”
“brother, don’t-”
“This is just all your own mindless and wasteful thinking. First of all, they’re not.
“but…”
“So what if they were all true? The present won't change either way. Regardless if there was truth to your claims.”
“...Brother”
Pushing her apart, YaoMing made direct eye contact with her. His eyes lively with fury.
“What I’m saying is love yourself! Even if Father’s not here with us, he will surely be watching over us from above. I swear that with my life, Xiao Tian…So please, I beg you. Enough with your self-loathing. Don’t let him down and strive for what you want to achieve.”
“...”
“Xiao Tian, I rightfully believe that Father would be better off happier seeing you smile than being all miserable like this. All that sadness is dandelion seeds in the wind, swayed away with the funeral mourning. Therefore, we have to keep moving forward with life. And with much more pride than ever. Do you understand me?!”
“...”
She was speechless.
Overwhelmed with emotions. Hurt, yet hopeful from her brother’s words, XiaoTian remained silent for a short moment.
Carefully choosing her words, XiaoTian decided to follow her brother’s advice, knowing he just wishes the best for her.
“You are right, Elder Brother.”
“Xiao Tian…”
Getting up slowly, she hastily added, “I deeply apologize for such a pathetic display!”, before running off into the temple within and out of the main gates to return back home, waving quick goodbyes to some familiar faces along the way.
“...”
Slowly getting up from his position, YaoMing breathed a sigh of relief.
‘Yes…this is much better. Both for myself and XIao Tian.’
He washed his hands for a final time with the flower water.
‘Alright, let’s wrap things up here as soon as possible and make it home in time for dinner!’ YaoMing pleasantly thought to himself, making his way towards the temple’s backdoors.
---
“...”
“Mother…I want to express my condolences for Grandfather’s loss.”
Eddison gripped his hands tightly onto his mother’s, imagining the pain she felt at the time. But, even he knew that that was just the beginning, and this did not go unnoticed by his mother.
“Eddison, do you need some time to take it all in?”
“...No, please, continue with your story.”
TianXing’s eyes widened at his confident answer. It was a sense of maturity that she failed to realize since the beginning and his growth…
She felt a warming sensation in her heart. It surely was a nostalgic feeling.
‘How long has it been since?’ she reminisced in silence.
“Mother? Mother?”
“Oh yes…sorry about that.”
She cleared her throat and readied her mind.
.
.
On the opposite side of the carriage, Mr Xu seemed more tense than usual, as carefully observed by ReZhui, who at this point, he can confidently say that he knows plenty much about his mentor, including his mannerisms.
“Yes, ReZhui?”
“Ah, it’s nothing, Mr Xu,”
“...Don’t hesitate to say something. Even if this is a problem involving our family, you have the freedom to voice your concerns. After all, you are under my tutelage.”
“...Got it, Mr Xu. But really, it’s nothing major.”
And with that stated, Mr Xu brought his full attention to XiaoTian.
“Right after Fath-Grandfather’s passing, the pharmaceutical business ran as usual. Your uncle was focused on treating patients and selling all kinds of concoctions and herbs while I continued on with my studies at Luo ChengShi, making a deadline for departure to the merchant city of ShanWei some time later. I greatly insisted on this and it took a couple of tries before your uncle was successfully convinced. Everything was going very well until three years ago, before my planned trip.”
“What happened?”
“...”
Mr Xu’s face darkened.
---
A hard slam onto the wooden main desk could be heard from outside the study room. Piles of messenger scrolls and letters laid unorganized across the dimly lit floors. Tea cups and plates were tossed aside, leaving dried mold and rancid stenches throughout its porcelain bodies.
And at the center of the sofa, a lone man lethargically dozed off into an ineffective, distressing and paranoid slumber. He had the eyes of a dead fish. Dark eyebags reached low into the upper cheek. Long unkempt hair draped over the edge and loosened clothing went unbothered. Additionally, the man was beaten all over with a noticeable red hand mark on his left cheek.
“How…how did it come to this?” he sighed in frustration.
But, just as he was about to take another second of unfulfilling sleep, the man heard his door burst open. This was soon followed by fast-paced footsteps which echoed deep into the study room and it annoyingly woke him up.
“Elder Brother!”
A worried voice called.
‘Damnation! Why did word spread so fast?!’ YaoMing cursed internally.
His deepest fears were currently coming into truth.
Despite having full attention on the matter, he had no other course of action than to ride it out as safely as possible.
“Ha…”
With that in mind, he lifted himself out of the sofa; presenting himself properly in time to meet his sister, who arrived shortly after, across the vast maze of bookshelves.
“ELDER BROTHER, WHAT IN TARNATION DID YOU DO?!”
“Please calm yourself, XiaoTian. I can explain all of this.”
“Well, you better be, otherwise I would be very pissed.”
“...Then, you’re welcome to take a seat.”
With that wild curiosity thawed, YaoMing hastily prepared some tea for the both of them while XiaoTian angrily stomped towards the sofa opposite to where YaoMing laid earlier.
‘A woolen tunic…and hair tied into a bun. She must have immediately halted her work to come visit me.’ YaoMing thought as he placed aside a half-filled kettle, ‘I cannot let her get involved in this mess!’
He was determined.
A minute later, YaoMing placed randomly chosen used cups, filled to the brim with coloured light brown, upon the wooden coffee table sandwiched between them.
He carefully took his seat, watched intently by his sister.
Gulping saliva, YaoMing gestured his hand forward.
“Please.”
“...”
Her face was unchanged.
Taking a sip of the tea prepared, TianXing sighed and started the conversation.
“The tea’s cold. Very bland too. I suppose it’s true that you really are in deep trouble, seeing the state of you and your study,” she commented, scanning the entire room with YaoMing into the mix.
“Listen, XiaoTian, it wasn’t me who killed them. This…This is all a HOAX!”
He wanted to make that clear first.
“...haaa…Elder brother, I trust you. Not because you are the son of my savior but due to the fact that you yourself are a kind person. No bias whatsoever!”
“XiaoTian…”
She slammed her cup.
It was so sudden and out-of-ordinary for her to do so, sending YaoMing back in surprise.
“Anyhow, with that out of the way, I hope you will truthfully explain to me all the events that have occurred for you to be in such dire conflict since I just got back from Luo ChengShi. All I have heard about you were bad rumors so I will provide my final judgment after hearing your side of the story.”
“...Alright, Xiao Tian.”
“Say your piece then.”
Gripping his hands together tightly, YaoMing bent forward. He was ready.
“It was like every other day in the Xu pharmacy. I do my consultations and have a couple of light and severe examinations. But one day, if I recall correctly, it was 2 months back, the Liang family came running frantically into the courtyard, little Chen in hand. Behind them were six DongBu police officers.”
“It’s that merchant family, isn’t it? The one who sells high quality paint.”
“Yes, Xiao Tian. Their child was diagnosed with a severe headache and muscle cramps on his arms and legs. Naturally, I prescribed several medications for him to take along with a massage and to my memory, there were no inaccuracies with my treatment. Actually…correction, there shouldn't be any. Otherwise, Father wouldn’t have entrusted me with running this place very early on.”
“That’s true… After all, these kinds of symptoms are commonplace throughout the MIddle Kingdom and you, especially, are spotlessly skilled in even the most complicated of procedures.”
“And despite my continuous display of trusted medical guidance, the child passed away shortly after his second consultation with me.”
“So the Chen family that rushed to the pharmacy-”
“Yes, they carried the now deceased little Chen into the estate and made a loud public outrage for all patients and passersby to see. It was a mess to try and settle the problem.”
“What did they want?”
“They accused me of toxifying little Chen with wrongly used drugs and filed a crime investigation on me for improper use and negligence. Even though I clearly had numerous other cases where patients died but at least they know it was hopeless despite my help. Ultimately, they are quite the powerful family within this village so the accusations soon spread like wildfire and the police were easily summoned to my doorstep.”
“Then, you're arrested?”
“Yes.”
“...”
“Days later, I went to the judiciary and fought my case of innocence but…”
“It didn’t work in your favor.”
“Correct. In the end, I was placed on house arrest until further notice. Luckily, there was not enough evidence that the Chens could bring up against me. Moreover, I once treated the magistrate in session that day so my claims had more credibility. And of course, I complied, with the additional permission to continue my medical practises after I retake the Medicinal Guild’s examination to reinforce my medical license.”
“It didn’t stagnate from there, did it?”
“As you can see, for the months that passed, more and more ‘faulty’ examinations were reported and rumored throughout DongBu village. However, these cases were pretty minor compared to the first so the majority of villagers still trusted my skills, especially my regulars. That is, until a second was dead under my name as its assailant.”
“What’s the background of this accusation this time?”
“Medical malpractice. A foreign metal scalpel and needles were found in the feces of Mr Low after a surgical removal of his appendicitis and as a result, he had internal bleeding and died a day after.”
“That’s…”
“True, he was the only son of one of the Village council members, Low QingHua, and it angered him severely. This case was made public two weeks back and I guess word of the death of an important noble has reached as far as Luo ChengShi. For what happened next, the response was similar to the first death but a lot more worse.”
“...”
“So, what will you do, Xiao Tian?”
“I-”
She had no clue. The situation seemed too dire for her to cleanse the situation properly.
YaoMing, who watched her panicking unfold, sorrowed back in contemplation. At least he must tell her first.
“Actually Xiao Tian, I would like you to stop right there.”
“Wha-what do you mean?”
Her expression was vague, knocked out of her own procrastination.
YaoMing shoved forward in his seat and held out his hand with her own, tightly clasping them together.
“Listen, this is my problem. It’s my fault things are this way and I do not want you to be affected by it. As I see it, you are doing superbly as a merchant trainee. If you appear here more often, who knows what image of you could spread about. But one thing’s for sure, it will affect your businesses so please-”
A hard knock on the wall, followed by helpless screams and aggressive grunts.
It was trouble.
“Sir, please stop, my Lord is having over a gue-”
“Sir, Lord Xu is currently bus-”
“ENOUGH, THE TWO OF YOU! MAKE WAY FOR MASTER LOW.”
“SCATTER!”
In the midst of the entering crowd, unrelenting by the pleas of the pharmacy’s servants, the siblings turned their bodies towards the approaching commotion. Hearts racing heavily.
“Damn it,” she muttered.
XiaoTian quickly got up to confront them but she was quickly stopped by YaoMing.
Facing back to him in shock, she tried to shove his hand off her, albeit to no avail. She knew what was gonna happen if that noble reached into this place and it might be the end of her beloved elder brother. She did not want that to happen.
Trying to shake off her hand for a second time, YaoMing looked forward at her with disappointment.
“brother…”
Unfortunately, YaoMing has also made up his mind.
“Brother, let g-AHH!”
A high-pitched shriek.
The sudden jerk of furniture and a loud thud to the ground.
XiaoTian fell hard onto the ground. However, that crash was just soft enough for the approaching mob to not notice another person’s presence. One in which YaoMing felt lucky it worked well to what he wanted. It must have been due to his currently frail state, even though he had shoved her aside with the greatest force he could muster up. Nonetheless, all that will just bother him to improve his diet for the days to come, if he could even make it back home in the first place.
Hence, without any second glances back at her, YaoMing approached the mob of the Head Low, his personal guards and police officers, giving them a ‘warm’ welcome; while XiaoTian was hidden within lines of bookshelves and the sofa.
“Lord Low, I greet you with a pleasant afternoon.”
Silence.
“Xi, Yang, return to your duties at once,” YaoMing urgently demanded, hoping that will reduce the tension.
The servants, who were considerably injured with their continued resistance, slowly backed away from the crowd and bowed deeply towards their lord before quietly leaving the scene.
In actual fact, he was grateful for their loyalty to him but this is not the time for such sentiments to take charge. They could get in trouble for supporting him, which was what he least desired the most to happen.
With the servants gone, the Head Low started to speak.
“Quite the dysfunctional household you are having, YaoMing. I expected better of you from your father but I guess sometimes reality says otherwise. It’s truly disappointing!”
He slammed his cane forward, hard onto the ground.
“I deeply apologize for your loss, Sir.”
But YaoMing was left unfazed by this. He was determined to see this through, maintaining strict eye contact with the old man as he bowed.
“Hah! Empty words such as that would not sugar up your punishment, YaoMing boy.”
“...”
“Remaining silent now, huh? Snarky kid. Enforcers, do your job!”
And with that, the accused doctor was roughly escorted out of his pharmacy, leaving behind his treasured sister with a bloodied elbow and deep in tears.