011, My sister Pearl

  Autumn wind blows in gusts, rolling up yellow leaves, swirling and falling.

  Bai Luli stood in front of the window, one hand leaning on the windowsill and the other holding a copper mirror. She looked up at the somewhat hazy blue sky, her gaze distant. After a moment, she lowered her head and looked at herself in the copper mirror.

  In the copper mirror, the wound that was originally still swollen with flesh had completely scabbed over, and some of the scars were starting to peel off. Bai Liuli raised her hand to gently stroke her face, her eyes cold and stern, indeed recovering very slowly.

  Bai Liuli sat down at the desk by the window, placed the copper mirror on the table, and then cleaned her hands. She began to apply medicine to the scars on her face, bit by bit. The stinging pain of the medicinal mud penetrated deep into her bones, but Bai Liuli didn't even furrow her brow. Her expression remained calm as she finished applying the medicine, and then wrapped the lower half of her face with gauze, covering everything below her eyes.

  Today is the day when Bai Zhenzhu takes over as the head of the Bai family, and she will reappear in front of the world with her identity as the eldest daughter of the Bai family. The position of the head of the household can't be passed on to Bai Zhenzhu's hands.

  During these two or three days of quiet convalescence in her chamber, she had learned from Shamu's words all that she wished to know.

  That day, she made a scene at Yu Shiyan and Xiahou Lü's new house. The Zhuangyuan Fu mobilized all the servants and guards in the imperial capital to search for her. The official statement was that thieves had caused trouble, and the princess was so frightened that she took to her bed to rest.

  On the second day, the coffin of the evil woman Bai Luli was formally buried. The champion Lang Yu Shiren personally went to the grave to offer incense. Bai Zhenzhu personally entered the palace to ask the imperial physician to come and take the pulse for Old Master Bai Yue, saying that he was unable to do anything, and Bai Zhenzhu fainted from grief.

  Bai Zhenzhu's personal maid, Lan Er, suddenly disappeared and couldn't be found anywhere.

  Even got the news, these days the patrol in the city has increased, and many people are saying that something bad is going to happen.

  But it was also fortunate that these things made no one notice the firelight that would shine in the remote medicine pavilion of the White House at night.

  Bai Liuli smoothed her shoulder-length hair with five fingers, took off the silk hat hanging on one side, and slightly curved the corners of her mouth. Indeed, something was going to happen.

  Just as Bai Luli was about to put on the silk hat, Sha Mu rushed over in a hurry, looking flustered. Seeing Bai Luli, she even forgot her manners and only panted anxiously: "Young Miss, something's wrong! The old master suddenly woke up today, and when he heard that Miss Pearl is going to take over as the head of the household, he rushed to the ancestral hall! No matter how hard I tried to stop him, I couldn't!"

  The Bai family ancestral hall is a place where the ancestors' spirits are worshipped, and it is also where the Bai family's descendants take over as the new head of the household. Today, Bai Zhenzhu's inauguration ceremony as the new head of the Bai family must be held here. At this moment, there are not only members of the Bai family in the hall but also nobles who have been invited to witness the succession of the new head of the Bai family. Everyone knows that Bai Yue is mentally unstable, and if he were to cause trouble in the Bai family ancestral hall, it would tarnish the reputation of the Bai family and make everyone laugh at them.

  Of course, Shamu thought that it wouldn't be so simple and numerous, she only thought that if the old man rushed over like this, he would definitely suffer a loss, even if this was the White family's home, even if he was the oldest elder of the White family.

  Shamu's words made Bai Liuli's eyes gleam with a hint of coldness, and she saw Bai Liuli's expression unchanged as she steadily fastened her veil to her head, striding out of the pavilion, leaving Shamu with only one sentence of cold words: "That maid, it's time for her to return to her master's side."

  Sha Mu stared blankly at Bai Liusi's back, suddenly feeling as if there was a big sister who feared nothing in the world. When she came to her senses again, Bai Liusi's figure had already disappeared from the room, and she hastily ran out of the medicine pavilion to carry out Bai Liusi's orders.

  At this moment, the temple is filled with dignified atmosphere. The curtains are lowered to the ground, and the ritual vessels are neatly arranged. The musicians, guests, masters of ceremonies, distinguished guests, and other officials have taken their positions. The entire temple is now filled with the gentle flow of ancient zither music, accompanied by the whispers of the guests.

  Suddenly, a loud and sonorous shout came from outside the courtyard, "The one who has taken office is here——"

  At that moment, the whispers mixed in the music suddenly stopped. Everyone looked out of the house in unison, and then each face showed a look of surprise. Even breathing seemed to be held back at the moment they saw the person coming, as if afraid that their own gasps would ruin the beautiful scene before them.

  Only to see the white pearl-like eyebrows like emerald feathers, skin as white as snow, waist as slender as a bundle of silk, teeth as neat as threaded shells. A piece of smoke-colored gauze with subtle embroidery and peony patterns, trailing on the ground, was worn over a dress made of cloud-patterned brocade, outlining her slender figure while maintaining the dignity required by etiquette. On her head, she wore a hairpin adorned with three pheasant feathers and pearls, and in her ears, she wore earrings made of Jingtai blue and red coral, which complemented her simple yet elegant makeup. She was indeed a rare beauty, worthy of being called the number one beauty of Zezhou.

  Only saw white pearl dignified and slow steps, every step closer to the temple, will make the male guests' heart beat faster, even if they clearly know that she does not belong to herself.

  Incense Offering——When White Pearl walked to the ancestral tablet of the White family, she only heard the high-pitched chanting of the master of ceremonies. White Pearl knelt down on the cushion with reverence, then knocked her head three times on the cold ground. When she lifted her head again, the attendant handed her three incense sticks that had been lit. White Pearl took them with both hands, stood up, walked forward, and made a deep bow to the ancestral tablet, inserting the incense into the incense burner steadily.

  "Baptism——" The incense was finished, and the white pearl turned around to face the guests, stretching out her arms. The attendant lightly dipped the mugwort in the silver basin filled with salt water held by the main guest, then lightly swept the mugwort over the white pearl's body.

  "Pass on the mission—"

  The handover of the family heirloom should have been done by the previous head of the household to the new one, but Bai Liuli has passed away and Bai Yue is in a coma, so the task falls on Zheng Bin.

  The ceremony of succession is very simple, just complete the above three procedures in front of the ancestors, while the transmission is the most important procedure, because once this procedure is completed, it means that the new head of the household is officially born, and the family is formally taken over by the new generation, so this procedure is also the most eye-catching.

  Bai Zhenzhu knelt on the ground, her head bowed and her hands raised above her head with palms facing upwards. Due to tension, her hands were shaking slightly.

  Just as the white jade pendant was about to be placed in Bai Zhenzhu's palm, a chaotic noise came from outside the house.

  "I'm not dead yet! My crystal is not dead either! Who said the position of the head of the household should be passed on to someone else?!" A loud, angry roar echoed throughout the ancestral hall, accompanied by an old man with disheveled gray hair and beard, his outer robe open, wearing only one shoe, charging into the hall with a fierce expression, destroying the solemn atmosphere that was supposed to be there, leaving everyone stunned, some people bursting out laughing while others whispered to each other.

  Wasn't it said that Old Man Bai from the White family couldn't withstand the blow and fell into a coma on the day Evil Girl Bai Liuli died? How did he appear again?

  A thread of venom flashed in the beautiful pupils of the white pearl, and disappeared quickly without anyone noticing. She saw her swiftly get up, with a worried and surprised face, walking towards White Yue, "Grandfather, you finally woke up, Pearl is so happy. You don't know how much worry Pearl had these past few days..."

  Bai Zhenzhu's words were heartbreaking, and tears immediately welled up in her eyes. Her emotional and sorrowful expression was pitiful to behold, and everyone present felt a pang of sympathy for her. As she spoke, she reached out to grab Bai Yue's arm, but before her hand could make contact, Bai Yue forcefully pushed it away, his eyes blazing with anger as he bellowed: "The master of the White family is my wife Luli's! Who dares say he's dead?! It's you who are dead!"

  As White Yu swung his hand, coincidentally, he happened to swing the white pearl a few steps back. The white pearl fell to the ground and hit her forehead on the corner of the altar table, fresh blood gushing out instantly.

  The crowd erupted into a commotion again, and the solemn ancestral hall was suddenly thrown into chaos, abruptly interrupting the most important ceremony. Seeing this, Bai Li, the chief steward who had been waiting on the side, frowned and immediately stepped forward, shouting: "Old Master is now mentally unstable and prone to hurting people, quickly send someone to escort Old Master back to his room!"

  "Who dares to move against me! I'll fight him to the death! I'm going to kill you, you bunch of useless fools who only know how to make glassy plans!" White Yu roared in anger, his hair standing on end as he savagely chopped at White Pearl with his hand.

  It's worth noting that the White family has produced generals for generations. Although Bai Yue was not considered one of the top two generals in Ze country when he was young, his martial arts skills were still formidable and worthy of respect. Even though he is old now, if this knife were to slash at the soft and delicate body of Bai Zhenzhu, it would either kill or cripple her.

  "Send the old man back to his room, call the doctor!" The crowd was shocked, and Bai Li was also stunned. He stepped forward to block White Pearl, replacing her just in time to block a slap from White Yue. Right on the spot, a mouthful of fresh blood burst out, and before he could even wipe away the bloodstains on his lips, he shouted loudly at the surrounding servants, his tone carrying an unyielding flavor that dared not be disobeyed.

  At the same time, five family members rushed forward together, but just as they were about to grab Bai Yue, they suddenly fell to the ground with a loud thud.

  "Which of you dares to touch him?" A low, cold voice came from outside the house, entering each person's ears.