"Youyou, I still need to thank you for your grandmother’s matter,"
"Huh? That’s what I should have done, Grandfather," Gu Youyou replied in surprise.
Gu Feng shook his head and said, "Actually, when you were little, your grandmother was quite fond of you. It’s just that some things happened afterward... anyway, don’t blame her."
When people are gone, so is their warmth; when a person dies, the light goes out—there’s nothing to blame.
Gu Youyou said, "I don’t."
She truly didn’t. Having not spent much time with her grandmother, and not being the real Gu Youyou, she didn’t care about those indifferent to her. Not caring meant not being too upset, and there was no room for blame.
"Your parents’ death was strange. Although it rained heavily that day, the water wasn’t deep, and your father could swim."
Gu Feng’s sudden remark startled Gu Youyou.
Gu Youyou’s parents had died more than a decade ago, and she had only been here for just over a year. She knew they had died but hadn’t paid attention to how.
But listening to Gu Feng’s words... it seemed there was a story here.
"Grandfather, do you mean that my parents’ death wasn’t an accident, but could have been caused by someone?" Gu Youyou exclaimed in shock.
"We just find it strange, that’s all," Gu Feng said coolly.
Gu Youyou thought for a moment, then nodded softly.
They were just ordinary farmers. Even if they knew there was something odd, what of it? Who would harm a farmer’s family, when there wasn’t even a suspect in sight?
Gu Youyou suddenly thought of something, her eyes widening.
But she heard Gu Feng continue, "Later, you fell ill, and the village started saying you were an ominous person. Your grandmother was superstitious, believing that your parents’ death was caused by you, which is why she stopped liking you.
It’s not that she didn’t like you; she just loved your father too much, her most cherished eldest son."
To Gu Feng’s subsequent words, Gu Youyou just nodded blankly, her mind preoccupied with other matters.
Their death was suspicious, and that same year, Gu Youyou fell ill. However, she wasn’t truly sick; it was part of a grand scheme.
So... was her parents’ death also part of a conspiracy?
This answer, perhaps only the State Preceptor at Xuanzong would know.
The State Preceptor—a grand title, nearly untouchable for commoners like them in their lifetime, yet could they have done such a thing in this small mountain village?
It’s ridiculous. Grandmother’s hatred was not misplaced—if it was indeed so, then her parents’ death was really her fault.
But Gu Youyou knew she could not share any of this with Gu Feng. First, his health was in poor shape, unable to withstand further shocks. Second, even if she told him, it would be pointless. He was just an ordinary old farmer who would only worry, without any benefit.
Gu Youyou smiled and said, "Grandfather, I understand. It’s all in the past now. I will take good care of myself in the future."
She had thought Gu Feng would only say words to comfort her, yet unexpectedly, his expression changed suddenly, his face twisted in pain and utterly unlike the kindly old man he usually was.
He lowered his voice, the words he uttered weighed down with exceptional heaviness.
"Youyou, if you have the chance, find out the cause of your parents’ untimely deaths and avenge them!"
Gu Youyou jumped, as her ever-peaceable grandfather made such an expression, uttering such words.
"This person has caused our family to be broken and separated; our flesh and blood to suffer unspeakable crimes from a young age. If we cannot see him punished, I will not rest in peace even in death, nor will I have the face to meet your parents afterward," he said with a lowered voice, but his turbid eyes sparkled with clarity.