Doctor Zhou stepped forward to examine Mrs. Lu, but Mrs. Lu slowly withdrew her hand and waved it. Her breathing was weak and her voice became labored and hoarse: "No need. I know today is my end." Mrs. Lu looked in that direction again, at the man in the black cloak next to the young man, and a calm smile appeared at the corner of her mouth.
Everyone outside the hall became panicked when they saw the blood at the corner of Lu's mouth.
"Ancestor!"
Mrs. Lu waved her hands at them, stronger and calmer than them: "I'm fine. Close the door." Mrs. Lu turned her head and shook her head and waved her hands, hiding all the bitterness on her face.
Before the people outside could see clearly, Doctor Zhou had already walked out of the hall and immediately closed the door again, hiding everything inside and blocking out the strange and gloomy aura.
Everyone could only look at the doors anxiously, and some women and children began to cry anxiously.
Inside the hall, Mrs. Lu's expression calmed down after the gust of cold wind.
She took out a silk handkerchief and slowly wiped the blood from the corners of her mouth and the tears from her face, trying to restore her last dignity as the widow of a master of traditional Chinese painting: "In the following two years, Huang Ye had been deceiving and controlling Lu Xuan with fame and fortune and his love for him. He also threatened and put him under house arrest by making Lu Xuan lose his reputation. Huang Ye wanted to possess Lu Xuan not only for his own sake, but also for his paintings. Lu Xuan's paintings made him famous in the capital, and he became famous again. People from the royal family to the nobles came to ask for paintings, which made Huang Ye deeply trapped and unable to extricate himself. If there were only Lu Xuan's paintings but no name, he would not be able to sell them at a high price. If there were only his name but no Lu Xuan's paintings, he would be beaten back to two years ago. Therefore, he could not let go of all that fame and fortune brought him. He was like poisoned and could not get out of it. He could not uncover the truth himself and admit that those paintings were not painted by him... "Lu took a deep breath and sighed, "At the same time, because he loved Lu Xuan so much, he would draw Lu Xuan in every painting after Lu Xuan finished it, to prove his love to Lu Xuan... But as Lu Xuan grew up, he became more and more difficult to control, and became more and more brave. Maybe... he also found that he had no one to rely on and could only rely on himself..."
Lu slowly raised her face and looked in that direction again. Deep regret and guilt emerged in her calm eyes. She continued to talk in that direction, "Huang Ye's coaxing and intimidation were no longer effective. He decided to leave Huang Ye and tell the world that those paintings were painted by him. Huang Ye was furious and wanted to strangle him to death. He would not allow Lu Xuan to leave him, let alone let him tell the secret between them and let the world know that he was such a shameless person!" Lu's lips trembled slightly, and her eyes were wet with tears again. "During the fight, Lu Xuan knocked him against the wall, and therefore left blood on the painting of Aomei..." Lu turned her gaze back and fell on the painting of Aomei. The bloodstains on it had dried for more than 50 years, but the scene at that time was deeply engraved in her heart and was still vivid. It did not fade like a painting with the passage of time, but became clearer and clearer.
“Huang Ye fainted at the time… Lu Xuan was also panicked… At that time, I had been tortured by two years of pain and hatred, and I ordered people to imprison Lu Xuan…” Every deep wrinkle on Lu’s face was filled with guilt and regret, “The next day… I asked someone to pretend to be Lu Xuan, and then… I said that he drowned while boating in the lake… Lu Xuan’s parents came to make trouble, so I simply told them everything, slandering that Lu Xuan seduced my husband with his sex appeal, and threatened them to either keep the secret until death, or I would report to the police… At that time… If Lu Xuan’s parents didn’t believe me… Even if they had a little doubt, my inner demons… wouldn’t…” Lu choked up, her old, dry hands clutching the clothes on her chest, “Lu Xuan’s parents believed everything I said, and thought that Lu Xuan had brought disgrace to the family. They also hated Lu Xuan so much that they didn’t want to take him home, saying that they would just treat this unfilial son as dead! So they threw… Lu Xuan to… me, and let me deal with him… I… I… "Lu lowered her head and sobbed again, "I did something extremely cruel to Lu Xuan... I used him... to vent the hatred in my heart..."
Fu Mingsui and Yi Jixuan were surprised. It seemed that the person who tortured Lu Xuan had been found.
“Wuwuwu—” Lu cried and beat her chest, sobbing, “I… I… I tortured him for a whole night… Tortured him beyond recognition… Blood… There was blood everywhere…” Lu’s hands trembled, and her eyes looked forward in horror, as if Lu Xuan’s blood was right in front of her. The air was filled with a strong smell of blood, and Lu Xuan’s painful screams still echoed in her ears, “The more he shouted, the more I hated him. He begged me not to hurt him anymore, but I, I can’t stop… I really… can’t stop…” Lu held on to her crutches and cried, “I’m not a human… I’m not a human… I really… not a human… I… I’m sorry… little brother… I… I’m sorry for his parents… Wu… Why… did I… do something worse than an animal… I really deserve to die… Damn it… Ah—ah—”
Mrs. Lu burst into tears and could no longer utter a complete word.
When everyone heard this, they were filled with mixed feelings. How could others understand the grievances, causes and consequences? Many times, people talk without thinking, but if they were in the situation and made the same choice, they would most likely end up like the murderer.
Lu's hatred broke through the last line of defense of goodness and completely released the evil in her heart. This evil made her uncontrollable and she brutally killed Lu Jingting.
Fu Mingrui sighed softly, looked at the painting "Ao Mei Tu" for a moment, then raised his eyes to look at the crying Lu: "What about Huang Ye?"
Lu slowly stopped crying: "He didn't make it three days... He died... That night... Something strange happened, that painting..." Lu suddenly trembled, pointing to the "Ao Mei Painting" in fear, "That painting suddenly disappeared. Later, when I went to the dark room where I imprisoned Lu Xuan, I saw this painting, the blood on it was gone, and Lu Xuan was dead. I was very scared at the time, so I quickly threw Huang Ye's body into the well and told everyone... He became an immortal... I took advantage of the rumor to sell the painting... Then... our whole family moved away..." Lu slowly raised her face and looked in the direction she had been looking at, "Lu Xuan, I'm sorry for you, I'm guilty, I don't ask for your forgiveness, I recite scriptures every day, so that you can be reborn into a good family in the next life, and don't meet a bastard like Huang Ye... and a... poisonous woman like me..." Tears fell from Lu's eyes and flowed in every deep wrinkle on her face. (To be continued)