Uncle Ding also sighed deeply and recounted the events of twenty years ago at General Baili's estate to Bai Sheng and Lu Ye from beginning to end.
The Baili family was a noble military lineage that had existed since the founding of the Great Xia Kingdom. Baili ancestors were important officials during the founding period.
Although centuries had passed, due to their strict family discipline and diligent efforts, each generation produced talented individuals, and the family flourished, continuing until the generation of Baili Chengyan.
Over twenty years ago, General Baili Chengyan was a great hero in the hearts of the people of Great Xia. He was heroic, courageous, wise, and skilled in battle, repelling the invasions of the Northern Qiang Kingdom multiple times and rendering immense service to the Great Xia Kingdom.
He had almost become a god of war in the hearts of the citizens of Great Xia.
His eldest son, Baili Ronghe, died on the battlefield.
His second son, Baili Rongxuan, died on the battlefield.
His third son, Baili Rongmo, went to the battlefield at the age of thirteen, had his legs severed by the enemy, and became disabled.
It was thought that the Baili family, having served the court with such devotion and sacrificed so many sons, would gain the Emperor's trust. Unexpectedly, twenty years ago, someone accused General Baili of treason and colluding with the enemy, with irrefutable evidence.
The Emperor was greatly shocked and immediately issued a decree to arrest General Baili, execute his entire family, and moreover, exterminate the nine generations of relatives.
When the Baili family incident occurred, the fourth son, Baili An'an, was only three years old.
The eldest daughter, Baili Ranran, was thirteen.
The second daughter, Baili Shushu, was only five years old.
When the capital's Imperial Guards surrounded the Baili residence, the main gate was tightly shut.
The commander of the Imperial Guards, out of respect for the Baili family having sacrificed several sons for the court, called out from outside the gate, giving General Baili the time it took for an incense stick to burn to open the gate, otherwise they would storm the residence.
Within the time it took for an incense stick to burn, General Baili, refusing to yield, led all the male members of the family to draw their swords and commit suicide.
The female members of the Baili family also refused to yield and all hanged themselves.
Most of the Baili family's servants followed their masters to their deaths, while a small portion mysteriously disappeared and their whereabouts remain unknown to this day.
Overnight, the entire estate ran with blood, and the rooms and corridors were hung with swaying corpses.
When the Imperial Guards rushed in, they were all terrified by the scene, their bodies trembling. Some soldiers were so frightened they froze on the spot, and even the commander of the Imperial Guards suffered mental trauma, taking months to recover.
They did not find a single living person in the Baili residence. The entire Baili household gave the court no opportunity to behead them.
Such steadfastness.
Such resolution.
From then on, the citizens of the capital discussed the matter endlessly.
Most people believed that General Baili could not possibly have colluded with the enemy. Such a valiant and upright person, whose sons had died on the battlefield, would not have secretly communicated with the Northern Qiang, the killers of his sons, unless he had lost his mind.
However, some believed that one could not judge a person by their appearance. The Baili family had made such great sacrifices for the court, yet the court increasingly distrusted them. Perhaps General Baili's heart had been broken long ago, leading him to plot rebellion and treason.
Others said that the Baili family had become arrogant due to excessive favor, increasingly disregarding the emperor and even plotting to usurp the throne.
...
Various discussions soon reached the Emperor's ears. The Emperor was furious and immediately ordered that no one should discuss General Baili's matter further, on pain of death.
The people then kept their silence, daring not to mention the Baili family's affairs.
But not speaking did not mean forgetting. Twenty years had passed, yet the people of the capital still had a vivid memory of that bloody incident.
Later, rumors of the Baili family mansion being haunted gradually spread. The mansion changed hands repeatedly, remaining vacant for many years until Lu Ye bought it.
After hearing the Baili family's story, Bai Sheng was greatly shocked. A military family with centuries of foundation, a god of war in the eyes of the people, had fallen overnight, and their nine generations of relatives were annihilated.
What a monumental change, what a thrilling and horrifying event!
Regardless of the truth of the matter, Bai Sheng felt that the men, women, and even the servants of the Baili family, with their unyielding spirit and refusal to bow down to death, deserved admiration.
Bai Sheng had Jin Mu Shui Tu redecorate and repair the ancestral shrine in the residence. New green pines and emerald bamboos were planted beside the shrine.
On the main spirit tablet of the ancestral shrine were the spirit tablets of Lu Ye's parents. Then, Bai Sheng placed a smaller spirit tablet next to the main altar, on which stood a spirit tablet with no inscription.
This inscription-less spirit tablet was crafted by Bai Sheng for Lu Ye to honor the entire Baili family.
There were too many spirits in this residence. Whether or not superstition was involved, respecting ghosts and gods was more beneficial than harmful.
For self-protection, the spirit tablets could not be inscribed with the Baili family name, but Bai Sheng had consulted books on placing inscription-less spirit tablets.
According to the methods in the books, an inscription-less spirit tablet was placed in the center of the altar, with offerings in front of it. The worshipper was to bathe, abstain from meat for three days, and pray in their heart for all the departed souls of the Baili family. Then, they were to burn incense and kowtow every morning for forty-nine consecutive days. The departed souls of the Baili family would then come to claim the inscription-less spirit tablet, and from then on, only daily incense burning would be required.
Apart from Lu Ye, no one in the household knew that the inscription-less spirit tablet was to honor the Baili family.
However, what Bai Sheng found strange was that after she set up the spirit tablet for the Baili family, the spirit tablets of her in-laws beside it would inexplicably fall down.
She thought it was knocked over by rats, but Lu Ye said that the rats in the residence were his little scouts and should not dare to knock over his parents' spirit tablets.
Perhaps it was due to the wind, as her parents' spirit tablets faced the main gate of the ancestral shrine, and there was wind at night.
Having found the reason, Bai Sheng and Lu Ye would prop up and straighten her parents' spirit tablets whenever they went to offer incense daily.
Over time, they grew accustomed to it.
Lu Yun and the children, along with the three foolish dogs, played wildly in the residence all day long. When the residence could no longer contain them, they wanted to expand their activities outside.
The capital was not like Hongshu Village; there were many child snatchers everywhere. Although the children had some martial skills, they were still children and could not outwit the intricate schemes of child snatchers.
Fearing that the children would get lost, Bai Sheng forbade them from going too far, allowing them to play only in the vicinity of Yuhua Lane, and instructed the three dogs to keep a close watch on them.
Lu Ye planned to quickly find a better school to send the little rascals for some discipline.
Following the recommendation of Uncle Wu, the shopkeeper of the grain store, Lu Ye chose "Houde Academy," located on Wenyuan Street.
Houde Academy, with a heritage of a hundred years, offered classes for all levels of elementary education and imperial examinations. However, the elementary and imperial examination classes were separated by a wall, and the students on either side could only hear each other's voices but not see each other.
The sources of students were also quite complex and diverse. There were many from noble families, many from affluent merchant, artisan, and farmer families, and also students from poor backgrounds.
The academy's atmosphere was generally acceptable. Although there were quite a few dissolute and unruly students, with the headmaster and teachers keeping them in check, they dared not create too much trouble.
Most of the teachers were re-hired after retiring from their posts as Confucian scholars or were scholars who had passed the imperial examinations but failed to secure official positions. Some also transferred here after resigning from their official duties, and occasionally renowned scholars from the capital would come to lecture.