Evening, Rongguo Mansion.
Grief and anxiety shrouded the entire Five-Courtyard Compound.
Everyone looked haggard, gazing at one another in silence.
Jia Mu lay quietly on the heated couch, her eyes empty and desolate.
There was nothing physically wrong with her.
But her spirit had gone numb. The Old Madam had lost all hope!
Their ancestral glory had been squandered utterly, their most outstanding descendant would stink for ten thousand years, cursed by all the world, and their own clansmen had even turned on one another, publicly submitting memorials accusing him of unfilial conduct.
The succession of blows had shattered the Old Madam's spirit until she could no longer even rise.
"Grandmother, Grandmother!!"
Jia Baoyu hurried over, flung himself beside the couch, and said in anguish:
"Poor Grandfather, with his illustrious military achievements and lifelong good name, has been sullied and implicated after death by his concubine-born grandson. Even his soul must bear that shame beneath the Nine Springs, never knowing peace."
"Enough!" Jia Zheng glared furiously.
"You keep deceiving yourself, Master, unable to stomach a single word of truth." Madam Wang entered, glittering with jewels.
Jia Zhen made a show of asking after the Old Madam, then stood calmly to one side.
An aged tear slipped from the corner of the Old Madam's eye.
The Jia Family had risen through military merit, their forebears unmatched in valor.
The Jia Family would also meet its end on the battlefield, its descendant losing battle after battle and dooming Northern Liang.
This was fate.
This was the endless cycle of Buddhist reincarnation.
Human strength could never, ever shake destiny!
Jia Baoyu cleared his throat and brought up his real purpose before everyone, saying sorrowfully:
"Old Madam, Father, hurry and write a family letter. Tell that beast... tell Brother Huan to leave Northern Liang!"