Chapter 78 - Beast

Today has truly been full of surprises.

"A deal?"

In Song Yan's eyes, Yang Siyao was an extremely intelligent woman, and this kind of woman was often extremely dangerous. Making a deal with this kind of woman, he was afraid that one careless move and he'd be sold out.

He was carefully deliberating. Yang Siyao, on the other hand, had a faint smile on her face, as if she weren't anxious at all.

The pavilion fell into a strange silence. Before they knew it, even the sun had tilted further. The edge of the sky was like a fire, plating the entire Duke's mansion in a layer of golden light. The sparse vegetation in the courtyard cast mottled shadows on the ground.

Occasionally, a handmaiden would pass by here. Seeing Song Yan, she would hurriedly lower her head, shrink her shoulders, and leave.

Yang Shi's eighth son, Song Lu, also appeared once. When he saw Song Yan, he seemed to want to come over, but after noticing Yang Siyao by Song Yan's side, he frowned. After a brief hesitation, he turned and left, it was unknown for what reason.

Song Hongtao, who knows where he went with Song An, had not appeared from beginning to end. Even that Yang Miaoqing was nowhere to be seen. Normally, even if Yang Miaoqing really had something to discuss with those Wokou, it should have been finished after such a long time.

Butler Wang, on the other hand, was at leisure. He sat on the steps of the courtyard gate like an ordinary old farmer, holding a dry pipe and taking puffs. It's just that this kind of old-fashioned dry pipe was quite difficult to smoke. One careless move and it would get clogged. He could be seen tapping the bowl of his pipe against the steps beside him.

"Why make a deal with me?"

Song Yan's voice finally tore through the long-lasting silence.

"Because I have no way to live on the Yang family's side." Yang Siyao was quite frank.

"Although life may not be so satisfactory at times, as long as one is alive, there is hope. If you die, then there is nothing."

Saying this, she took out a letter from her bosom, placed it on the stone table, and pushed it in front of Song Yan.

Picking it up and glancing at it, Song Yan smiled.

The mission the Langya Yang clan had arranged for Yang Siyao was actually to get close to and control him.

"I am just asking for a way to live. I have previously informed the Langya Yang clan that there are two extremely powerful women by Younger Cousin's side, the kind who could easily kill me. What's more, there is the Grand Princess Luo Yuheng. If the Grand Princess knew that I was seducing her son-in-law, what do you think she would do to me with her temper?"

Song Yan thought about it seriously. Probably a fate worse than death.

"It's something you and I both know, but obviously, the Langya Yang clan side doesn't take it seriously. To them, my body, my life, are just the property of the Langya Yang clan. Since it's property, it can be used, exchanged, and even sacrificed. If I refuse to carry out the mission, I will receive cruel punishment."

"You are quite clear about your own position." Song Yan raised his eyebrows.

"So, the purpose of your deal with me is to hope that I can save your life?"

"Not just my life. I also hope you can help me rescue my younger sister from the Langya Yang clan." After a brief silence, Yang Siyao spoke again. This time, her voice carried a slight tremor.

It was unknown if it was from fear, or from knowing that this request was a bit excessive.

For the current Song Yan, in a place like Ningping County, it was simple to protect Yang Siyao's life. He just needed to throw Yang Siyao into the Luo Mansion. With the defensive power of the Luo Mansion, even if the Yang family wanted to kill Yang Siyao, it would not be easy.

But to rescue a person from the Langya Yang clan, the difficulty was on another level. That was the Yang clan's territory. With the foundation of a thousand-year-old aristocratic family, wanting to kill him on their own turf would be all too easy.

But Song Yan did not refuse directly: "What can you give me?"

Her fair hand held the teacup, and she took a light sip. The tea soup was already cold.

The bitter taste was even more pronounced.

"Me."

Song Yan's eyelids twitched violently.

Behind him, Gu Banxia's gentle kneading of his shoulders also suddenly stopped. Her delicate brows knitted together, and her gaze towards Yang Siyao carried undisguised hostility.

The Grand Princess was right. This world is truly full of fox spirits. Another one trying to seduce the Young Master-in-law.

"My appearance may be too ordinary for Younger Cousin, but Younger Cousin should know that I have studied seduction arts."

Since she had already prepared to make a deal, Yang Siyao no longer hesitated.

"A woman who has studied seduction arts is of great benefit to a man. For a martial artist who practices dual cultivation, she can provide even greater benefits."

"If Younger Cousin wants me, I can give myself; but perhaps the information I possess is of even greater value to Younger Cousin."

"I know Younger Cousin is very smart, but when a person thinks about things alone, there will always be areas that are not thoroughly considered. I believe I can fill in these holes."

Song Yan smiled. Quite confident.

"I need to know your younger sister's situation before I can decide whether to agree."

Yang Siyao nodded slightly. After a brief hesitation, she slowly spoke:

"The Yang family is a place teeming with beasts."

A place teeming with beasts? Song Yan and Gu Banxia were slightly stunned.

Good heavens, you're a member of the Yang family yourself. That's really quite an evaluation of your own family!

"The Yang family has been passed down for over a thousand years."

"It already existed during the period of the warring feudal lords. The Great Chu, the Great Han, the Great Wu, the world was divided into four, dynasties changed, and emperors were replaced one after another, but the Yang family has always stood tall. Even during the darkest period of the Central Plains, the Uprising of the Six Barbarians, the Yang family was not hit too hard."

"Therefore, the people of the Yang family are extremely proud of their surname. This pride, after fermenting, evolved into a worship of their bloodline."

Hehe.

Song Yan smiled. In his eyes, bloodline worship was the most foolish thing. To think the Yang family bloodline was noble—that's because they hadn't met Huang Chao. Otherwise, they would discover that the blood of aristocratic clans wasn't too different from that of ordinary people.

"The worship then became a belief."

"In the most fanatical of times, the Yang clan once did not intermarry with other surnames. They went against human ethics, having cousins, and even biological brothers and sisters, marry in order to maintain the purity of their bloodline."

Gu Banxia, who was kneading Song Yan's shoulders, was stunned. The movement of her hands paused. Even though Song Yan was mentally prepared in his heart, his lips still twitched: A pack of madmen. Truly beasts.

The teacup in his hand landed on the tabletop. He beckoned for a handmaiden to bring a new pot of hot tea and then had her leave.

"That must have produced a pile of deformed children... or rather, children with some mental problems, right?"

Yang Siyao looked at Song Yan with some surprise: "Deformed children? That term is quite suitable.”

"That's right. According to the Yang clan records, many simple-minded children were indeed born. The Yang family head at that time felt that the situation was not right and hurriedly put a stop to the intra-clan marriages."

"This matter also led to the concept of human ethics being extremely weak among the Yang clan members. In the Yang family, the act of violating the women of the clan would not receive too severe a punishment."

"My younger sister and I were born just like that..."

Regarding this, Yang Siyao did not elaborate, but seeing her subconsciously clenched fingers, it must have been difficult for her to speak of.

In fact, for Yang Siyao to be able to be frank about her origins, Song Yan already believed her to some extent. And many things seemed to have been suppressed in Yang Siyao's heart for a very, very long time.

This long-term repression was an extremely cruel torment to Yang Siyao's spirit, bringing her to the verge of collapse. She also needed an outlet for catharsis. And with every sentence she spoke, she felt inexplicably much lighter. Therefore, without needing Song Yan to press further, Yang Siyao spoke again:

"Our parents' status is very high, but this is, after all, an extremely shameful matter. My sister and I were naturally not favored. They were clearly the ones who did such a filthy thing, yet they treated my sister and me as the source of all shame. Heh!"

"My sister and I are twins, born from the same womb. It's just that I am normal. Although my sister's appearance is normal, her intelligence is like that of a child."

Song Yan let out a breath. What a tragedy.

Inbreeding, it is said, has an extremely small chance of producing extremely intelligent offspring, but a much greater possibility of producing freaks.

Song Yan could roughly imagine what kind of life the two sisters had in the Yang family. All sorts of bullying were inevitable. Especially Yang Siyao, who not only had to bear all sorts of rumors, humiliation, and bullying, but also had to take on the responsibility of caring for her younger sister when their parents didn't care at all.

For a little girl, every day was an ordeal.

"The Yang family has a deal with the Hehuan Sect. They will select women from within the clan to enter the Hehuan Sect. Most are from the side branches. Their parents and relatives are all arranged for within the clan, on one hand to improve their treatment, and on the other, they are also hostages, for easier control."

"That year, I was only seven. I knew I was still too young and couldn't protect my sister. Perhaps one day, my sister would die for some unknown reason. After all, a simple-minded descendant was a disgrace to the Yang family and to my parents. So, I entered the Hehuan Sect."

As long as the Yang family still wanted to use and control her, they would have to take good care of the younger sister she cared about most.

This is what Yang Siyao thought. This was already the only hope she could grasp at that age and in that environment.

It's just that Yang Siyao didn't know, but Song Yan was very clear that these children born from inbreeding with intellectual disabilities have a much lower lifespan than normal people.

When was the last time you saw your younger sister?"

"A year ago. Before coming to the Duke's mansion this time, I had requested to see my sister, but was refused."

Song Yan let out a breath. His gaze towards Yang Siyao suddenly held a bit of pity.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.