130. Defiance

(Note: This is a repeated chapter; it will be revised later.)

The pitch-black room was empty and eerily quiet, enough to send a chill down one's spine.

Mo Yuhua stood rooted to the spot, eyes wide, staring at the dim, distorted shadows of the furniture in the room. They looked like restless monsters of varying sizes. He could not for the life of him figure out where Feng Lizhi had gone—the man had been in this very room only an hour ago, and the door had clearly been locked.

You Hu keenly sensed something was wrong. He strode to the door, took one look, and immediately turned to Gu Fei. "We need to leave! Now!"

But before his voice had even faded—

"Leave? Leave for where?" A resounding, forceful voice suddenly echoed from behind them, followed by the sound of approaching footsteps and the blinding glare of torches.

Gu Fei turned back, her almond-shaped eyes squinting in discomfort at the flickering torchlight. It was Mo Yan, dressed in a dark blue round-collared robe, followed by a score of guards. Two of them were holding Feng Lizhi, who had a cloth gag stuffed into his mouth.

Upon seeing Gu Fei, Feng Lizhi struggled violently, but unable to break free, he began to make muffled, urgent noises. No one could tell what he was saying.

Gu Fei’s second glance landed on Mo Yuhua, who stood by the door. She saw the look of bewilderment and loss on his face, followed by a flicker of anger in his eyes. In her heart, she knew that whether he had been involved in tonight’s events or not, it no longer mattered.

"Quite the grand display," Gu Fei said with a cold sneer, one eyebrow arching in mockery. "Were you just waiting for me to walk right into your trap?"

Mo Yan stood with his hands behind his back, a mysterious light dancing in his narrow eyes. "Since I couldn't invite you back politely, I had no choice but to do this."

He turned his head toward Mo Yuhua. "You are no longer needed here. You may go."

At these words, Mo Yuhua’s expression changed drastically. He looked at Gu Fei and hurriedly explained, "A-Fei, I didn't know... I didn't plot against you..."

"No need to explain," Gu Fei interrupted him sharply. She did not look at him, but instead addressed Mo Yan, "To use your own son—what a fine father you are!"

Mo Yan remained unmoved. Gu Fei’s words were like a light itch to him; he had heard far worse insults in his time, let alone these petty barbs. "I have already prepared a courtyard for you, and all the daily necessities have been arranged. From now on, you will stay here peacefully. Without my permission, you are not to step one foot outside this courtyard."

Gu Fei let out a soft laugh, her pale lips curving into a delicate arc. Her clear, piercing eyes were so bright they were impossible to look at directly. "So, you intend to imprison me for the rest of my life?"

Mo Yan neither denied nor confirmed this. He mused for a moment before continuing, "Your parents are gone. Now that you have returned to Yizhou, you belong at the Small Mo Estate. Besides, with your crippled legs, the Small Mo Estate won't need you to sacrifice anything in the future."

He might as well have said outright that Gu Fei was not even worth the cost of a sacrifice.

"Heh," Gu Fei hadn't reacted yet, but You Hu, standing to the side, let out a scoff. He was a handsome man, and even such a rude expression rarely looked unattractive on him. "Head of the Small Mo House, why are you so certain that this young lady’s legs cannot be healed? And who says no one would want her?"

Mo Yan shot a sharp, electric glare at You Hu. He did not deign to speak to a servant, merely turning his head to command the guards, "Escort the young lady inside!"

"Yes." Four or five guards immediately stepped forward, surrounding Gu Fei from left and right, pressing in on her.

Gu Fei was fearless. She set her gaze on Feng Lizhi. "I want to speak with Lizhi."

Mo Yan nodded and reached out to rip the cloth gag from Feng Lizhi’s mouth.

"Mo Yan, you old bastard!" The first thing Feng Lizhi said once he could speak was a stream of curses. He took a deep breath, ignoring Gu Fei to glare at Mo Yuhua with a fierce look, clearly categorizing the father and son as villains working in collusion.

Mo Yuhua’s lips trembled. He wanted to explain, but a sense of powerlessness washed over him, leaving him dejected.

"Lizhi, are you alright?" Gu Fei asked in a soft, gentle voice.

Feng Lizhi gave a bitter laugh, shaking off the two guards holding him and rubbing his wrists. "I'm fine."

He frowned, seemingly feeling that he had dragged Gu Fei into this mess.

Gu Fei nodded. She traced the armrest of her wheelchair and said, with no room for compromise, "He must stay with me."

Mo Yan’s jaw tightened. He stared at Gu Fei without blinking, as if trying to see into the depths of her eyes and discern her thoughts. After a long silence, he finally said, "Very well."

Satisfied, Gu Fei didn't hesitate. She took Feng Lizhi with her, and the group of five headed toward the courtyard Mo Yan had arranged.

But soon, her expression turned cold. The guards leading them walked further and further into the remote areas of the estate, finally stopping at a gate shaded by a grove of thin, emerald bamboo at the southernmost tip of the Small Mo Estate.

Gu Fei looked at the bamboo, which was no thicker than a thumb. A sharp, icy light flashed in her dark pupils. Her fingers gripped the armrest of her wheelchair so hard they turned white. A fire burned in her chest, and her hatred for Mo Yan deepened.

"I thought about it, and I figured that in the Small Mo Estate, this is the only courtyard you would be accustomed to. Since your parents passed, I have kept it exactly as it was. Nothing inside has been moved. You..."

"Take care of yourself."

Mo Yan, who had followed them, spoke with cold indifference. He only saw the back of Gu Fei’s head and could not see the expression on her face.

You Hu wore a look of realization. He curled his lips and glanced down at Gu Fei, clearly seeing the turbulent emotions hidden beneath her blank expression. He lifted his hand slightly, placing it on her shoulder and giving it a firm, grounding squeeze.

Gu Fei regained her composure. Without turning her head, she replied in an equally emotionless tone, "Then I must truly thank my uncle."

This was the first time she had called Mo Yan "Uncle" since returning to Yizhou.

The light in Mo Yan’s narrow eyes dimmed. Leaving only four or five guards to watch the gate, he turned and left.

You Hu personally pushed the wheelchair, bringing Gu Fei into the courtyard.

The courtyard was not large—certainly not as spacious as the two-tiered house in Gu Fei’s peach orchard. It consisted of a main room and two side rooms, but there was no study, let alone a workshop.

In the cramped courtyard were two neat vegetable patches and a stone mill. It was so simple it resembled the home of an ordinary peasant, completely out of place among the other exquisitely decorated courtyards of the Small Mo Estate.

You Hu tilted his chin, signaling for You Er and Bailu to go rest. As for Feng Lizhi, he didn't concern himself with him, simply pushing Gu Fei into the main room.

Gu Fei pushed the door open with a creak. There was no musty smell as she had expected, only a dry, stagnant air.

Inside the main room, there was a daybed and two or three small stools. Gu Fei leaned forward, and You Hu quickly moved the wheelchair.

She touched one of the stools, her fingers lingering with a sense of lingering attachment.

You Hu, sharp-eyed as he was, saw that despite the dim light of the oil lamp, there were crooked characters carved into the stool. He squinted his phoenix eyes and saw the two characters for "Xuan Fei," followed by a simple, crudely drawn figure.

He guessed this must have been a stool Gu Fei had carved with her brother in childhood, a memento of great sentimental value.

But just as he thought this, he saw Gu Fei suddenly pick up the stool and smash it against the floor with a loud *bang*. It shattered into several pieces of wood, beyond recognition.