Chapter XIX Introduction

Gaofu, Qiyan Pavilion.

This attic is the forbidden courtyard of Gaofu, and many years ago, Gao Yang ordered that no one was allowed to step into this attic for half a step. And when this order was given, it was the third day after Gao Zhaorong fell into the water, and he gave an order to everyone in the whole house.

Over the years, no one dared to disobey the order, but he boasted that sometimes he would come to the attic inexplicably in the middle of the night, and sit for a night.

He always held a pot of wine, sat quietly alone in front of the screen in the room, and drank sullenly while looking at the painting on the screen.

The scroll on the screen depicts a woman looking ahead.

Gao Yang felt that the woman in the painting was like looking at himself.

The woman has passed away, and he can't forget it all these years. And the night the woman died, he still remembered it.

It was a cold night ten years ago, and he was busy with government affairs in his study, and he hadn't fallen asleep yet. Suddenly, the slaves and maids in the mansion outside the door hurriedly reported to him: "Master, it's not good, something happened to the third aunt's Qiyan Pavilion."

The maid who came to report to him was Zijin, the maid who served the third aunt in Qiyan Pavilion. Zijin is the maid given by Gao Yang to the third aunt after she married into the Gao Mansion.

Hearing that something had happened to Qi Yan Pavilion, Gao Yang immediately got up and went straight to Qi Yan Pavilion. On the way there, Gao Yang asked Zijin, what happened?

Zijin was vague and not very innocent. Gao Yang only heard that two women broke into Qiyan Pavilion, and there was a long sword in their hands, and the sword was pointed directly at the third aunt. After Zijin saw it, he quietly came to report.

Gao Yang had already taken his saber before leaving the study, and when he hurried to Qiyan Pavilion. The other two maidservants of the Qiyan Pavilion were knocked unconscious in the antechamber. And the third aunt had already collapsed in the inner room, and the clothes on her chest were already dyed red.

Gao Yang picked up the woman lying on the ground in a panic, hugged her on the bed, let her lie in his arms, and shouted in fright: "Lan'er, Lan'er, what's wrong?"

The woman in her arms was dying, breathing hard.

"Come and find Lang Zhong!" Gao Yang shouted at Zijin who followed.

Zijin was already frightened, and after hearing Gao Yang's shout, he hurriedly ran away.

The woman reached out to touch her cheek again, but struggled weakly. Gao Yang hurriedly grabbed her bright red hand and put it on his face.

The woman was fragile and almost speechless, and opened her mouth for a long time before she spit out a few words: "I... Think... Look... That painting..."

Draw?

Gao Yang understood which painting she was talking about. Since the woman married into the Gaofu, she took that painting with her, and she took it out from time to time to look at it. Gao Yang put her down, took the painting from her cupboard, and laid it on the bed to unfold.

The painting is also a woman, a very delicate woman. Gao Yang had already seen this painting, and several times, he had seen Lan'er quietly looking at the woman in the painting.

At this time, he only wanted to know who hurt his Lan'er, and his eyes froze: "Who hurt you, tell me, I will avenge you." ”

Lan'er's face became paler and paler, and her words became weaker and weaker.

"No... Used... I don't blame her..."

The woman's eyes were only fixed on the woman in the painting, and her bloody hand gently caressed the picture.

"It's her, it's your sister who hurt you! Isn't it? ”

Gao Yang paused, his eyebrows tightened.

He knew that the day Lan'er was worried about had finally come.

The woman grabbed the man's hand tightly and said with her last strength: "Promise me ----, don't--to hurt her again, this is what --- Lan'er owes her, Lan'er--this-time--finally pay her back."

When Zijin brought Lang Zhong in, the woman had already passed away. Gao Yang also seemed to have lost half of his soul, holding Lan'er stupidly, not moving.

And everyone else in the Gao Mansion had already learned about it when Zijin was looking for a doctor. All of them are coming.

The reason why Zijin didn't shout loudly when the assassin came, and let the people in the mansion know, was because Zijin and the other two maidservants had been ordered by the third aunt.

If the woman in the painting came to her one day, no matter where she was, she was not allowed to make a noise.

Zijin was walking from outside the courtyard when he saw two women dressed in black, wearing cloaks and hats covering their heads. She wanted to scream, but suddenly saw the woman in black knocking out the slave maid in the front hall, and walked directly to the room of the third aunt in the inner room. She didn't dare to make a noise, quietly approached, and saw that the third aunt was talking to the woman, and she suddenly saw a woman's face, which was the woman on the painting that the third aunt often looked at.

She remembered what the third aunt had said, if this woman came, don't tell anyone. But it wasn't very friendly to see that the people who came, so Zijin still went to report to the master.

Qiyan Pavilion has been full of people, the eldest lady, Steward Cao, and some servants who have been in the house for a long time. The eldest young master Gao Shouwen also came slowly, and Gao Shouwen was only twelve years old that year. Only the second lady and her child, Gao Zhaorong, did not come.

And when the third aunt died, she still held the painting tightly in her hand, and she cherished the painting very much.

Gao Shouwen was not afraid to shake his father at all, and kept calling Gao Yang, who had been petrified, beside him.

That night, Gao Yang held Lan'er's body until dawn. And early that morning, someone found the body of the sophomore lady floating in the lotus pond. On the same day, the second lady fell ill and was frightened by the slave maid. It was also the third day, Gao Yang ordered that no one was allowed to enter the Qiyan Pavilion.

From that day on, Qiyan Pavilion became a forbidden courtyard, and no one dared to mention the third aunt in front of Gao Yang, for fear of touching the master.

Thinking back, the painting hanging in front of him was Lan'er, every time he missed her, Gao Yang would come to this courtyard, sit in her room, and miss.

And the painting that Lan'er touched with her bloody hands, the painting she cherished the most, Gao Yang didn't let it destroy it with Lan'er's death, he put the painting in the place where Lan'er usually put the painting.

He didn't throw away any of Lan'er's objects, and everything in the Qiyan Pavilion was as it was back then.

～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～

Thinking of the terrifying picture I saw in the lotus pond that night, I was restless for the past two days, and I always felt the gloomy feeling in this high mansion.

Except for Gao Xian, who always has a bright sunshine on his face, the others all have a cold face, including the past two days, the eldest brother Gao Shouwen has always been nowhere to be seen.

Zilan accompanied me to walk around the house, and before I knew it, I walked to the lotus pond again, the weather was gloomy today, and it seemed that it was going to rain, but the rain always couldn't come.

There are only lotus leaves in the lotus pond, and the lotus flowers have long passed the flowering period, and the lotus leaves float on the water, fluttering lightly.

I stopped, but I didn't dare to approach the lotus pond again, I was a little afraid, afraid that I would stumble and fall in.

"Miss is still quite afraid of water." Identity: Zilan said suddenly.

I looked back at her, "Am I afraid of water?" ”

In my mind's eye, I remember floating in the water, swimming towards the shore, and if I was afraid of water, how could I swim?

Or Zilan remembered it wrong.

I didn't dare to approach the lotus pond because I saw a child floating on it that night, but there was no one in the blink of an eye, because I was afraid in my heart, not because I was afraid of water.

Zilan nodded to me very seriously, "Zilan came to Gao Mansion relatively late, and I don't know why Miss is afraid of water, but everyone in the mansion knows that Miss is afraid of water." ”

Zilan said with certainty, then I was really afraid of water before, but why it was different from my memory, I was a little confused, but I didn't think about it again.

Bypassing the lotus pond, I continued to walk towards the edge of the mountain and rock forest, and the park was very quiet.

Before I could take a few steps, Zilan suddenly grabbed my arm and whispered, "Miss, you can't go any further, there is a forbidden place in front of you."

Forbidden? As soon as I thought of this word, I remembered that in Mengxian Residence, Ji Yu told me that my place, there is also a forbidden land, it is a mountain, and what is the forbidden land of this Gaofu at this time?

I wondered, "What is that place over there?" ”

Zilan was in a trance, and said faintly: "Over there is Qiyan Pavilion, which used to be the residence of the third lady of the lord, and after the third lady passed away, it was the forbidden place of this high mansion."

My father's third lady, I don't know why I don't know at all, no one has mentioned it in the past few days, and I don't have any impression in my mind.

I raised my eyebrows slightly, "Why do you want to ban it?" ”

Zilan shook her head, "The slave and maid don't know, after the slave and maid came to the house, the grandmother in the house explained to the slave and maid, and it is not possible to set foot there." ”

Suddenly, I felt that there were too many things in this high mansion that were unspeakable, and I had lost my memory and didn't remember anything.

In a trance, the figure on the other side of the forest swayed, I pulled Zilan tightly, and hid by the flower bed with her, I quietly looked over and saw my father walking out of the courtyard gate over there.