You Si was just about to step forward when something suddenly occurred to her. She took a veil from her sleeve and covered her face.
Now, everything in this world frightened her a little. She could no longer understand what "human nature" meant, nor did she know whether she could truly accomplish that goal.
The villagers had all gathered in the village square. At its center stood a wooden stake, with a bare-chested young man bound to it.
The young man was covered in wounds. His thin body stood out starkly against the snow- and ice-covered ground.
An old man stood beside him, holding a torch, and loudly asked the gathered clanspeople, "Shall we burn him?!"
"Burn him to death! Burn him to death!"
The clanspeople shouted.
"Ah." You Si slowly sighed and turned away. She had seen far too many unfortunate souls in this world, including several young men like him. By now, there was really no need to save him.
"I truly don't know where Qinglian and Peach Blossom went..." the young man said slowly. "I swear I'm not lying."
"Utter nonsense!!" The old man brandished his torch and said viciously, "I warned those sisters long ago that taking in an outsider was extremely dangerous! You saw that they were as beautiful as flowers and had a sick mother at home, so evil took root in your heart, and you killed them both. Am I right?!"
"No... you're wrong..." the young man said weakly. "All Qinglian and Peach Blossom told me was that they were going up the mountain to gather herbs for their mother. I truly don't know why they haven't returned. If you have the strength to burn me to death, you'd be better off going up the mountain to look for them. What if they