The woman covered her mouth and smiled faintly, "His identity is somewhat hidden, so it is inconvenient to tell you. However, I heard today that at the banquet of the Minister of Works, both the left and right prime ministers were present, and the right prime minister said some surprising things. Therefore, I became curious about Miss An. Since we happened to meet here, I would like to chat with Miss An for a while. I'm afraid I'm disturbing you."
Xu Ruolan thought to herself that rumors always spread the fastest, and in less than half a day, everyone knew about it!
An Xin ate slowly, seemingly oblivious to their conversation.
"Rumors are the least credible. How could we possibly be worthy of the Right Prime Minister? Please don't believe the rumors, young lady." Xu Ruolan was always modest, but her modesty at this moment had a hint of self-deprecation. It wasn't that she would do this, but rather that she would avoid mentioning the Right Prime Minister's name as much as possible, let alone getting involved in any ambiguous or irrelevant matters.
The woman covered her mouth and chuckled, "I certainly wouldn't believe it, but everyone knows that the Right Prime Minister is very clear about his likes and dislikes. If he has a good impression of someone, he will spoil them rotten, but if he hates someone, he would want to tear them to pieces. The concubines he keeps in his mansion are the same; the Prime Minister always plays with them and then throws them away..."
Xu Ruolan's expression suddenly changed, and she secretly glanced at An Xin, who remained expressionless and continued eating.
"What does the young lady mean?" Xu Ruolan was somewhat puzzled by the woman's implied meaning.
“Miss An is a good girl. It’s best to stay far away from someone like the Right Prime Minister, lest one misstep lead to eternal regret!” The woman sighed, her expression complex and inscrutable.
Xu Ruolan's heart skipped a beat. What this woman said was true. However, she found her daughter increasingly unfathomable. If it were an ordinary girl, upon hearing these words, she would either declare that she had no connection with the Right Prime Minister, or if she were truly interested in him, she would frown upon hearing them. But An Xin didn't even flinch...
Out of politeness, Xu Ruolan forced a smile and said, "Thank you for reminding me, Miss." Then she didn't know what else to say.
The girl named Xiuer couldn't contain her anger and said, "Didn't you hear what my young lady said?!" This sharp shout was naturally in favor of An Xin, but this time, the beauty did not stop her.
An Xin rolled her eyes and said indifferently, "I heard that."
Xiuer immediately blushed, not knowing how to reprimand An Xin.
An eerie silence fell over the entire table.
...
"Someone died in the north of the city, have you heard?"
"What? Weren't they saying that only poultry died?"
"Heaven knows what's causing this. The poultry died in a very strange way, and the person who died is also said to be very strange. He was a very strong man, but he died in his sleep!"
"Is this a coincidence? How could a perfectly healthy person just suddenly die? Could it be murder?!"
"If it were murder, who could kill someone without anyone noticing and without leaving a trace? I bet it's the Black and White Impermanence coming to claim a life!"
"Don't talk nonsense, it's creepy..."
...
A dark glint flashed across An Xin's eyes, and then she suddenly stood up and walked toward the person who had spoken.
Xu Ruolan and the woman were both taken aback.
"Maybe it really is the Black and White Impermanence!" The group, who were chatting enthusiastically, were suddenly interrupted by a voice. They all turned their heads to look and saw a pretty girl smiling as she spoke.
“…Little girl, there are no ghosts in the world! I don’t believe in ghosts!” a person said in a trembling voice.
An Xin's eyes darted around, and she casually pulled over a stool, sat down, and leaned closer, saying, "The mysterious deaths of poultry are usually due to illness or being killed, but after examination, those poultry were neither sick nor injured. How could they have died? Unless they reached the end of their lifespan and died of old age!"
“They can’t all die of old age, can they? Besides, the news just came that some people have died!” another person said, their face slightly pale.
An Xin clapped her hands and said, "That's why I said it! It must be the Black and White Impermanence coming to collect souls! Once they make their move, they won't just take one soul..."
The men's expressions changed drastically: "You can't just say things like that, little girl, we don't believe in ghosts!"
An Xin raised the corner of her lips and said, "Whether you believe it or not, you should cherish your lives, right? So these days, everyone should stay away from the north of the city. What if you get your souls stolen? Wouldn't that be a huge injustice?!"
Upon hearing this, everyone felt a lingering fear, and the few who had initially intended to investigate immediately abandoned their plans.
Dewdrop whispered, "Miss usually doesn't believe in ghosts and monsters at all, why does she suddenly believe in them today?"
Xu Ruolan's face paled slightly as she said, "In any case, this matter is too strange. Xin'er probably said that to save those people."
Dewdrop exclaimed admiringly, "Miss is so amazing! If Miss were a man, Dewdrop would definitely marry Miss!"
"It's getting late, let's go." The woman suddenly stood up, but left in a hurry without pausing for a moment. The maid named Xiu'er turned around and glared at Lu Zhu before strode away.
Dewdrop pouted and said, "These two, master and servant, are so strange, acting all mysterious."
Xu Ruolan sighed inexplicably.
An Xin slowly walked back, and Lu Zhu hurriedly said, "Miss, those two strange master and servant have left."
An Xin ignored Lu Zhu's words and looked at Xu Ruolan, saying, "Mother, let's go back to the manor."
Xu Ruolan said worriedly, "Xin'er, what happened in the north of the city is probably not ordinary. You must not go there. Don't go to places of trouble, understand?"
An Xin had originally planned to go and find out what was going on, but after Xu Ruolan said that, she could only say, "Don't worry, Mother, I know what I'm doing."
Poultry are dying in droves, but the cause of the disease cannot be found, and now it has even spread to humans... What on earth is causing this?! The Black and White Impermanence are pure nonsense, but this indiscriminate slaughter is simply terrifying!
Hopefully, this person who died was the first and the last!
****
The wish is beautiful, but the reality is often cruel and bloody!
The next day, a sudden imperial edict shattered the tranquility of the morning. An Youwei rushed in and woke up the sleeping An Xin.
An Xin, half-awake, sat up and asked, "Dad, what's wrong?"
"Xin'er, something terrible has happened in the north of the city!" An Youwei hurriedly instructed Lu Zhu to help An Xin change her clothes. An Xin's heart skipped a beat, and she immediately got off the bed. Before Lu Zhu could help, she had already quickly put on her clothes.
"The palace has issued an imperial decree, ordering your father to take you to the north of the city to investigate a case. Last night, half the people in that village died, without exception, all of them died under mysterious circumstances!" An Youwei wiped away cold sweat, his face turning pale.