"Asleep?" Mu Anxiao said, turning her face to the old woman. "But they were just talking to me? They were the ones who asked me to close the door."
"My parents usually sleep like this," the old woman said, smiling at Mu Anxiao. She stepped between the two elders and bent down to gently pat the old man's shoulder. "Dad, wake up."
The old man showed no reaction.
Then, the old woman stood up and turned to the old lady, bending down to gently pat her shoulder. "Mom, wake up."
The old lady also showed no reaction.
Watching the old woman, Mu Anxiao began to feel uneasy.
"What's wrong with them?"
The old woman didn't hear Mu Anxiao's question. Instead, she placed her trembling fingers near the old lady's nose. After feeling for a moment, she cried out, "Mom..."
"What is it?" Mu Anxiao continued to play ignorant.
The old woman slowly stood up and trembling, touched the old man's nose. This time, she burst into tears.
Seeing the situation, Mu Anxiao felt helpless.
"Daughter, I'm sorry."
Hearing this, Mu Anxiao furrowed her brow, turned her head, and was startled to see the old lady appear to her right.
The old lady shifted her gaze from the old woman to Mu Anxiao and said, "I thought you would leave."
Mu Anxiao dared not speak, shaking her head.
The old lady smiled faintly. "All my life, my husband and I thought of that boy Lu Yan. Our daughter always advised us to forget him, but we knew she was all bark and no bite. Although she always yelled, we felt warmth when we heard her voice, because we knew," her voice choked, "she was doing it for our own good. Sometimes we would deliberately provoke her, and seeing her get upset made us laugh."
"Yes, that girl is the most filial among us," the old man appeared beside the old lady.
Mu Anxiao watched them looking at the old woman, and a strange sadness welled up within her.
"Are you going to cry?" a Yin messenger appeared to Mu Anxiao's left.
Mu Anxiao cleared her throat and walked silently behind the old woman, saying, "They say you are a good child."
The old woman sat on the ground, cradling her head in her hands, shaking it repeatedly. "I am a bad person. If it weren't for me, my parents wouldn't have left. Everyone in the village called me wicked. Now," she pouted, slowly tilting her face up to look at Mu Anxiao standing before her, "I forced my parents to their deaths."
"You didn't," Mu Anxiao said firmly.
"My parents had nightmares again a few days ago. Seeing them like that, I didn't bring them food. I starved them to death. It's all my fault, it's all my fault." The old woman sobbed.
Mu Anxiao had never seen someone so old cry so much. Looking at the old woman now, she felt an inexplicable urge to embrace her, but considering her current gender, Mu Anxiao gave up.
"Child, it's time to eat," the old man floated forward and said.
Mu Anxiao glanced at the old man's anxious expression and then looked down at the old woman. "They're going to eat."
"How do you know?" the old woman choked out a sob.
Mu Anxiao scratched her head, then looked at the empty bowls and plates on the round table. "Look." As she spoke, she extended her hand to the old woman.
The old woman cooperated fully, taking Mu Anxiao's hand and then rising with her strength. She looked at the empty bowls on the table, bowed her head, and burst into tears.
"It must have been the cold. It's all my fault, it's all my fault." The old woman continued to blame herself.