132. You treacherous wretch.

The courtyard was silent, heavy with a deathly stillness.

A breeze drifted through the ancestral hall, stirring the wisps of hair and the hem of Gu Fei’s skirt. A smile played on her face—a mocking expression, bright and sharp as glacial water. With one arm, she held two spirit tablets to her chest.

Standing across the threshold, she spoke with an air of breezy amusement, "Today, I am taking my father and mother with me. As for the family assets that ought to be divided, I shall have to trouble Uncle to settle the inventory."

Mo Yan’s face turned ashen. Although he had suspected that Gu Fei would not remain docile, he had never imagined that she would so brazenly take advantage of the ancestral worship ceremony to snatch the spirit tablets of Mo Hui and Bai Zilan.

"Put them back! And I might just overlook this!" Mo Yan’s voice was as hard as stone, heavy with a dignity that brooked no defiance.

Had it been anyone else, they might have been trembling with fear, but Gu Fei felt no such thing. Her smile remained unchanged. She did not even mind that no one had come to help lift her wheelchair. "Ha, and by what authority do you command me?"

The lines of Mo Yan’s face tightened, and a sharp glint flashed in his narrow eyes. He tilted his head back, about to lash out, when he suddenly felt his limbs turn to lead. His vision blackened, and he stumbled forward, overcome by a wave of dizziness.

Mo Yuhua, who had been watching him closely, reacted with lightning speed, catching him in his arms just before he hit the ground.

Mo Yan clutched Mo Yuhua’s arms, gasping for breath until he felt slightly better. But the sudden, inexplicable weakness of his body sent a chill through his heart. "You..."

"Father!"

Before he could finish, Mo Yuhua’s voice, calm and unruffled, sounded in his ear. He looked at Gu Fei with a blank expression and lifted his chin slightly. Two guards stepped forward to carry Gu Fei out of the ancestral hall. Only then did he add, "You are unwell and should rest. From now on, the affairs of the Lesser Mo family will be handled by your son."

Hearing this, Mo Yan felt as if a giant hammer had struck his ears. His chest tightened, and he was unable to recover for a long time, unable to comprehend the meaning behind Mo Yuhua’s words.

The smile on Gu Fei’s face faded. She narrowed her apricot-shaped eyes at Mo Yuhua, her gaze unreadable. "You need not do this. Since I dared to take the tablets in broad daylight, I naturally have a way to escape."

Mo Yuhua twitched the corners of his mouth, as if attempting a smile, yet he could not manage any further expression. His grip on Mo Yan tightened, and he said in a tone that even he felt was detached, "The Lesser Mo family owes you; it is only right that we repay it."

At this, Mo Yan finally understood. It was clear that the reason he was so devoid of strength was the doing of his own son.

Anger surged within him—a tidal wave of betrayal and profound disappointment that made his body sway.

He steadied himself and looked up, meeting the face of his son, Mo Yuhua—a face both strange and familiar, the handsome features bearing a striking resemblance to his own youth. He had painstakingly groomed him, hoping that if the Lesser Mo family could not return to the Great Capital’s main house under his own hand, he would at least pave the way for his descendants to do so.

But now, the physical pain was nothing compared to the agony of his disappointment and rage.

"Good, good, good," he hissed through gritted teeth, his voice filled with the weariness of a life lived. "Your wings have grown, and you dare to strike at your own father..."

"Think of me, Mo Yan, and the two things I have been most proud of in my life," he continued, a flush rising to his cheeks. "First, that the Lesser Mo family stands at the pinnacle of Yizhou. Second, that I raised a son like you, bringing the return of our family to the Great Capital within reach..."

Hearing this, Mo Yuhua’s body trembled. He stared fixedly at Gu Fei, not daring to glance at Mo Yan, for fear that his resolve would falter.

"Truly, a good son I have raised! Hahaha..." Mo Yan laughed aloud.

Gu Fei lowered her eyelashes, her fingertips grazing the edge of the spirit tablets. Her voice drifted, ethereal and hollow. "But you do not know—had you sent me directly to the head of the Mo family in the Great Capital back then, instead of coveting the empty promises of the old Madam, the Lesser Mo family would have already returned to the Great Capital by now."

With her talent and skill, she would never have fallen into such a state.

Mo Yan turned to look at Gu Fei with a complex expression. After a long moment, he straightened slightly and said, "That is also the greatest regret of my life."

Gu Fei curled her lips into a low, quiet laugh. Strands of hair fell across her cheeks, obscuring her expression.

The world knew the Great Capital’s Mo family as a two-hundred-year-old ink-making dynasty, but few knew of the internal infighting and the intricate web of factions that made it a labyrinth for outsiders.

Back then, Mo Yan had "sold" her in a high-stakes gamble. The outcome was clear: he had bet on the wrong horse, forcing the Lesser Mo family to remain confined to this remote corner for all these years.

"Leave," Mo Yuhua finally said. "Take Li Zhi with you." Behind him, the guards stood motionless, none daring to move without his command.

The others from the Lesser Mo family were too far away to hear the exchange. They only saw Mo Yan stagger and Mo Yuhua steady him, nothing more. They had no idea that Mo Yuhua had orchestrated the situation.

Gu Fei gave Mo Yuhua a deep look. Her small, sharp chin held a stubborn curve, and she parted her pale lips to say, "I will leave, of course. But I ask that my Uncle tell me the truth about the unnatural deaths of my father and mother."

At the mention of this, Gu Fei’s face turned icy. She had long since made up her mind: not only would she make everyone watch as she reclaimed her parents' tablets, but she would also extract the truth of what happened that day from Mo Yan. She intended to settle all accounts, interest included.

Mo Yan laughed, his dark beard trembling, his narrow eyes bright as the morning. "I told you already."

Mo Yuhua’s fingers tightened. A sudden fear and trepidation gripped his heart. This was something he, too, wanted to know, yet was terrified to hear.

Gu Fei sneered. She spun her wheelchair with one hand, closing the distance, and looked up at Mo Yan. Her dark eyes were scorching like fire, yet underneath lay a vast, frigid abyss, as if that fire were burning within black ice. "Yizhou lies in the heart of the Great Yin, a place of stable trade. Why was it that so many others left the city without incident, yet my parents encountered bandits the moment they stepped out? I heard that you, Uncle, were the first to arrive and the one who shrouded their bodies. Tell me, as you watched your own kin die such a violent death, their eyes wide with disbelief, did you not suffer from nightmares every night?"

Mo Yan’s lips were pressed into a thin, straight line. He averted his gaze, staring into the void, refusing to look at her.

Gu Fei would not let him off. "You refuse to speak. You hid the truth from everyone. Who exactly are you trying to protect?"

The last word carried a sharpness that shattered like ice. Gu Fei keenly caught the flash of humiliation in Mo Yan’s eyes.

"Whoever it is, this debt shall be paid in blood!" Gu Fei declared, her voice harsh. A perverse light shimmered in her eyes. "If you refuse to speak, so be it. The Lesser Mo family cannot escape its share of the blame anyway. Just watch as I dismantle this family piece by piece. You want to return to the Great Capital? I will make sure you never see that day!"

Under the weight of Gu Fei’s piercing words, Mo Yan’s expression finally flickered with pain. His dark beard shook violently, and his whole body trembled so much that he might have collapsed had Mo Yuhua not been supporting him.

He closed his eyes and opened them again, having regained his composure. The raw emotion he had inadvertently revealed was well hidden once more. "If you truly have such ability, then it can be said that the Lesser Mo family has produced a capable descendant. Whether this family stands or falls, what does it matter?"

Her words felt like a powerful blow landing on cotton—utterly frustrating. A surge of burning anger erupted from her heart, making her face look even colder, like frost. "The Lesser Mo family? Don't you dare. Mo Fei is already dead. I do not carry the name Mo."

Mo Yan shook his head. "The blood that flows in your veins is, after all, that of the Mo family. That is something that cannot be washed away..."

"Shut up!" Gu Fei commanded. Her aura was so violent it seemed to materialize into a faint, killing intent. "Just watch and see how the Lesser Mo family you built is reduced to rubble!"

During this time, Mo Yuhua’s lips moved, but in the end, he said nothing.

"Miss, it is time to go." You Hu stepped out from the shadows, followed by You Er. No one knew what the two of them had been doing.

You Er strode forward, lifted the wheelchair onto his shoulders, and moved with practiced ease.

Gu Fei looked down at Mo Yan from her vantage point. Suddenly, she curled her lips into a smile, her fair face seemingly glowing with a dim luminescence. "Uncle, you probably don't know this, but your 'protector,' Mo Geyi, is now unable to even save himself. It would be better if he never returned to the Great Capital; the moment he steps back, eternal exile awaits him."

Mo Yan was shocked. He looked at Gu Fei with a mix of terror and disbelief, roaring hoarsely, "You vicious girl, what have you done?"

Gu Fei did not answer. She covered her lips with her sleeve and chuckled, her eyes brimming with mockery.

You Er marched forward, staying close to You Hu. As they reached the gate of the ancestral courtyard, Feng Lizhi followed them without needing to be called.

"Stop them! Someone stop them!" Mo Yan shouted. His eyes were bloodshot, his hair disheveled, looking utterly wretched.

However, none of the surrounding guards moved; they acted as if they had heard nothing.

"Father, do not waste your breath. I replaced all your trusted men by midday," Mo Yuhua said, his face expressionless. As he supported Mo Yan while walking out, he added, "From now on, you should focus on your recovery. You need not concern yourself with the Lesser Mo family anymore; I will lead it to greater heights."

Mo Yan felt such a stifling pressure in his chest that it became painful. When he opened his mouth, a mouthful of blood sprayed out. "Very well. Did you poison me?"

Mo Yuhua did not hide it. "Yes. I replaced the incense candles."

He continued, "However, rest assured, it will only leave you with no strength in your limbs. After you rest for a while, you will be fine."

Mo Yan ground his teeth until they rattled. Finding a sudden burst of strength, he pushed Mo Yuhua away and cursed with a savage expression, "You treasonous wretch!"