Chapter 55 There are some things in this world that can make people go against their humanity.
Watching the Lin family father and daughter leave, Achan walked over and sat down next to Bai Xiuming.
She had her eye on this chair earlier, and if it weren't so eye-catching to sit on it, she would have come over long ago.
Achan looked around and saw that Bai Xiuming had a plate of mung bean cakes shaped like lotus flowers and leaves next to him. She pointed at them and asked, "Do you want some of those?"
She fell asleep without even eating dinner yesterday, and was called over and interrogated before she could eat anything this morning. She's starving now.
Bai Xiuming placed the plate of pastries in her hands, then stood up to leave.
Ah Chan was very satisfied with the taste of the mung bean cake. She took a bite, then looked at the father and daughter standing in the courtyard and suddenly asked, "Lord Bai, may I ask you something?"
Bai Xiuming turned to look at her.
What do you think of General Anxi's character?
Ah Chan still remembers that Zhao Ming, whom Bai Xiuming looked down on last time, was indeed no good. She thought she could get a rough idea of Lin Sui's father's character through him.
"I am not familiar with him."
“Even if you’re not close, you should know a little bit, right? Why don’t you tell me secretly? I promise I won’t tell anyone.” Achan moved closer to him, looking at him expectantly.
Bai Xiuming probably knew why she asked that question. He glanced at the people in the courtyard before uttering two words: "Acceptable."
Before Achan could react, he had already strode away.
"Huh?" Ah Chan lost her chance to ask further questions and sighed in disappointment. How stingy! Saying a few more words wouldn't have killed him.
The "acceptable" Bai Xiuming mentioned meant the person's character was decent. It seemed this general had found the doctor for his illness last time, so the doctor was probably a good person, much better than Lin Sui's birth mother.
Since his character is relatively reliable, there shouldn't be too much concern about Lin Sui's safety.
As Achan was thinking this, she turned her head and saw that Feng Yang had not left yet, so she quickly called out to him, "Lord Feng."
Feng Yang, who was about to catch up with his master, paused for a moment: "Is there anything else, Miss Ji?"
"It's nothing, I just wanted to ask if the heir of the Duke of Li has a good relationship with your master?"
Feng Yang was taken aback, not expecting her to ask the heir of the Duke of Li.
He shook his head and said, "As far as I know, our lord has no private dealings with the nobles in the court."
"So he's a particularly sensible person?"
Seeing Feng Yang shake his head, A Chan thought to herself, "It seems that the person who spoke well of her wasn't doing so because he's a good person."
"But he seemed quite easy to talk to. I thought he was agreeing so easily because of you adults."
“This…” Feng Yang’s eyes flickered slightly, as if he had figured out the reason.
"Lord Feng, what have you thought of? Tell me."
Feng Yang's love for sharing gossip is not going to change anytime soon. Seeing A Chan's curious look, he finally said, "I guess he realized that the master wanted to settle things peacefully, so he deliberately did him a favor."
After all, it wasn't his own brother who was injured, so it wasn't unreasonable to use him to curry favor. These family heirs who could secure their positions as heirs were no pushovers.
"Why?" Achan pressed.
Feng Yang chuckled, lowering his voice even further: "Didn't I tell you before that there are nobles in the capital who raise half-demons? This is the heir of the Duke of Li."
Achan's eyes widened; this melon was incredibly solid.
She thought that those who would raise half-demons would be those bloated and spoiled brats. It wouldn't be a good thing for a duke's son to get involved with a half-demon, would it?
"Last year, our superiors purged a group of demon-raising clans. I guess he was worried that this year even half-demon raising wouldn't be allowed, so he did us a favor."
Achan wanted to hear more, but Feng Yang refused to say any more.
After sharing his gossip, Feng Yang quickly slipped away. A-Chan returned to the plate of snacks, filling her stomach while wondering, "I wonder what kind of half-demon that Duke Li's heir has been raising, that he's so interested in him?"
On the other side, Lin Cheng and Lin Sui hadn't gone far, not even leaving the princess's courtyard. The father and daughter stood facing each other in silence for a long time.
Finally, Lin Cheng spoke first: "I know everything that happened yesterday."
Lin Sui lowered her eyes, awaiting the impending accusations.
"Your second brother was in the wrong first."
Lin Sui thought his words would be followed by a "but," but they weren't.
She looked up in surprise. She wasn't familiar with her biological father, but in the Lin family, he and her older brother were considered normal. Although they favored Lin Ting, they never criticized her.
Even five fingers can be of different lengths, so Lin Sui never expects fairness. But every time she thinks that Lin Ting is the one who is favored, she loses confidence in the life she has in front of her.
Seeing his daughter's expression, Lin Cheng sighed inwardly, "He harmed Gao Luo first, then instigated the tiger demon to capture you, and almost implicated others..."
He could barely continue speaking at this point.
After arriving at Heyuan in the morning, he first went to see Zhang Xuyao, whose injuries were not serious, and heard some "insider information" from him.
Zhang Xuyao initially refused to speak, but later, when the heir of the Duke of Liguo intervened, he reluctantly revealed the truth: it was actually the tiger demon they had instigated that caused Ji Chan and Lin Sui to be captured.
Lin Cheng had spent almost half his life in the military, and what he found most intolerable was his second son, who was so vicious and utterly incompetent.
When that child was young, he was clearly well-behaved, diligent, and sensible. But in the years since I left the capital, he has turned into a complete spoiled brat, without a trace of his childhood self.
No matter how bad Lin Heng was, he was still his child, and it was his fault for not raising him well. But Lin Sui was also his child. As a father, he couldn't take sides in the feud between the two siblings, but if he removed his role as a father, he didn't think Lin Sui was at fault.
If it were him, he would probably be even more ruthless than this child.
Lin Sui interrupted Lin Cheng: "He harmed me and my brother, so I ruined his future. It's fair. If you think I'm wrong, let's make things clear today. The General's wife has already kicked me out of the General's Mansion. I am no longer your daughter, and we don't need to see each other again."
Lin Cheng frowned, recalling how he had just heard his wife call Lin Sui "a vile beast" repeatedly, and said, "Even your mother can't make decisions for me. Even if you made a mistake and killed someone, we can find a way to make amends. Besides, the fault is not yours today. You are my daughter, and no one can drive you out of the General's Mansion."
Lin Sui felt that her father was somewhat contradictory. He was actually a reasonable person, and the rumors she had heard about General Anxi seemed to be true.
But why does his attitude change immediately whenever Lin Ting is involved?
Lin Sui hesitated for a moment before saying, "Father, Lin Heng told me that the reason he made things difficult for my brother was because Lin Ting instigated him."
"How could Tingting do such a thing?" Lin Cheng frowned, his tone clearly showing disbelief.
As expected, the father was not so wise when it came to Lin Ting.
“If Father doesn’t believe me, he can call Lin Ting over so we can confront each other in front of Lin Heng’s bed. Besides, I wasn’t the only one who heard this; Hui Niang, who saved my brother, also heard it.”
Lin Cheng hesitated for a while before finally nodding: "Okay, then let's call Tingting over and ask her for clarification."
"Father, please wait a moment. I will speak with Miss Ji for a few moments and then leave."
"good."
Lin Cheng waited for Lin Sui in the courtyard, but Lin Sui turned around and went back into the hall.
At this moment, everyone in the hall had left, leaving only Achan still there.
She ate a few pieces of sweet but not greasy mung bean cake, which calmed her rumbling stomach. When she looked up, she saw Lin Sui walk in.
Lin Sui looked alright, so it seemed that General Lin hadn't made things difficult for her.
"How did your conversation with your father go?" Achan asked.
"It was a bit of a surprise," Lin Sui said honestly. "He's more sensible than I expected."
Ah Chan couldn't help but laugh, thankfully General Lin couldn't hear Lin Sui's evaluation of him.
Lin Sui then added, "I just told him about Lin Ting instigating Lin Heng, and sure enough, whenever Lin Ting is involved, his first reaction is disbelief."
She paused for a moment, then added, "I'm going to confront Lin Ting in a bit. I suspect that even if Lin Ting admits to it, he'll still favor her."
After a moment's thought, Achan said, "In a little while, you might want to observe Lin Ting and your family carefully and see how they react each time Lin Ting speaks."
"What?" Lin Sui asked, puzzled.
Achan said, "I always feel that there's something wrong with your sister. Let's take a look."
"Okay," Lin Sui replied.
After speaking with Achan, Lin Sui returned to the courtyard to find Lin Cheng. With Lin Cheng leading the way, Lin Sui finally entered Yao's courtyard and met Lin Heng and Lin Ting there.
Yao still looked at her as if she wanted to torture her to death, but she no longer pointed at her nose and cursed her, seemingly out of fear of Lin Cheng.
After being called into the room, Lin Ting glanced at Lin Heng, who was usually her closest friend, before turning her gaze away and saying affectionately to Lin Cheng, "Father, you've finally arrived. I've missed you so much these past few days."
Lin Cheng patted her head, his expression softening considerably.
Lin Sui often witnessed such scenes, so whenever Lin Ting was around, her mind would always be filled with various negative emotions. This time, with A Chan's reminder, she tried her best to become an observer and watch them.
"Father, let's get down to business first," Lin Sui interjected coldly from the side.
Lin Cheng glanced at Lin Sui and nodded slightly.
He came to Lin Heng's bedside and saw his second son lying on the bed, still crying out in pain even after taking the medicine. He put one hand on Lin Heng's shoulder and poured his inner energy into his body.
Lin Heng felt a cool sensation spread throughout his body, and the pain in his body lessened considerably.
"Heng'er, tell your father, why do you keep causing trouble for Gao Luo?"
Lin Heng was stunned for a moment. He turned to look at Lin Sui, his eyes still filled with undisguised anger and fear.
Lin Sui stared back at him expressionlessly.
Then, Lin Heng turned his gaze to Lin Ting.
Lin Ting frowned slightly and said, "Second brother, why don't you answer Father's question quickly?"
"I...I..." Lin Heng looked at Lin Ting's face, but the words that were on the tip of his tongue changed when they came out. "I just don't like him. It's all Lin Sui's fault for telling everyone that I harmed Gao Luo. I was just angry and made a mistake."
Lin Sui frowned; she didn't believe Lin Heng had lied to her before.
If he could lie about the answers he received in a life-or-death situation, it would only prove his extraordinary character. In reality, however, he was just an ordinary playboy who would never have dared to lie at that moment.
Therefore, what he is saying now is undoubtedly a lie.
This person, who could push his own sister to the tiger demon at a critical moment, can still take all the blame upon himself and protect his adopted sister at this time.
Lin Sui finally couldn't help but wonder if Lin Ting had given Lin Heng some kind of spell.
This isn't just favoritism; it goes against Lin Heng's instincts.
"Second Brother didn't say that last time. Did you want me to invite Hui Niang here for a face-to-face confrontation?" Lin Sui said.
"Shut up, it's none of your business to speak here," Yao finally snapped.
"Madam, be careful what you say!" Lin Cheng looked calmly at Madam Yao, but Madam Yao's heart skipped a beat.
"I misspoke," Yao said with a forced smile.
"From now on, I don't want to hear Madam say anything like she wants to kick Lin Sui out of the mansion."
“My husband is right.” Yao glanced at Lin Sui out of the corner of her eye, suppressing her disgust for her.
With Lin Cheng and his wife interrupting, Lin Heng seemed to have finally come up with an excuse: "I was lying to you before, this matter has nothing to do with my second sister."
"Is that so? But you weren't around when I was complaining about you to others. As for who told you about it, it shouldn't be hard to find out, don't you think, Father?"
Although Lin Sui's last question was directed at Lin Cheng, he was actually looking at Lin Ting.
Lin Ting remained defiant, and with a slight smirk at Lin Sui, she suddenly stepped forward: "Father, actually, it was my maid and I who overheard my sister complaining about my second brother, and we told him about it."
Before Lin Cheng could react, Lin Ting's eyes reddened: "It's my fault for telling my second brother about this. I failed to persuade him, which caused him to lose his temper and do something irreparable, which ended up harming him."
"How can this be your fault? It's all because Lin Sui is vicious and can even harm her own brother." Madam Yao was the first to step forward to comfort Lin Ting. Because she had been warned by Lin Cheng earlier, she only dared to glare at Lin Sui and did not dare to say anything more hurtful.
Even though Lin Heng himself was half-dead, he still didn't forget to defend Lin Ting: "It's not Second Sister's fault."
Lin Cheng finally spoke up to comfort him, saying, "Don't cry, your father doesn't blame you."
After saying that, he looked at Lin Sui and said, "This matter has nothing to do with Tingting, so let's just let it go."
Lin Sui stared at Lin Cheng for a while before saying, "Since Father has said so, then let it be. I have other matters to attend to, so I'll take my leave now."
Lin Sui walked out of Yao's courtyard, and a little while later Lin Ting followed her out.
"Lin Sui, how dare you frame me? Luckily, your parents saw through your true colors long ago and weren't fooled by you."
Lin Sui looked at the face she loathed and sneered, "Isn't this the kind of thing you're good at? Before, when you didn't want your fiancé, you said I seduced him. Now that Lin Heng is no longer of any use to you, you're still using the same tricks. Lin Ting, your luck won't last forever."
"Really?" Lin Ting finally dropped the pretense and said smugly to Lin Sui, "Then open your eyes wide and see just how lucky I am. What I can get, you'll never get in your entire life."
"Do you think I care?" Lin Sui didn't look at her again and walked away.
When Lin Sui returned to the courtyard where Bai Xiuming had lived, she saw a doctor being escorted out of a side room by Chen Hui.
Upon seeing Lin Sui return, Chen Hui smiled and waved to her, "Come quickly, your brother is awake."
Lin Sui rushed into the room and found that A Chan had also returned.
Her brother was still lying in bed, but his eyes were open.
"Sister..." Gao Luo couldn't help but call out to Lin Sui when he saw her. His voice was still hoarse, but it sounded especially pleasant to Lin Sui.
"It's good that you're awake." Lin Sui came to the bedside and gently touched Gao Luo's face. "Those who harmed you have been punished, and no one will bother you anymore."
"Sister, I'm fine. Don't argue with your family because of me." Gao Luo had just woken up and didn't know what had happened, but she was still thinking of Lin Sui first.
"I won't argue with them anymore."
After exchanging a few words with Lin Sui, Gao Luo fell asleep again.
Chen Hui said to Lin Sui, who looked worried, "Don't worry, the doctor said he injured his head and will be in a daze for the first few days, but he'll be fine in a couple of days."
Lin Sui was finally relieved upon hearing this. Then she turned to A Chan and said to her, "I just saw Lin Heng and the others, and I think Lin Ting might really be acting strangely."
"Oh, tell me about it?" Achan became interested.
Lin Sui told A Chan what had happened in Yao's courtyard, adding, "I always felt that Lin Ting interrupted Lin Heng deliberately. It seemed like she had to remind Lin Heng before he could speak, and as soon as she finished speaking, Lin Heng immediately changed his mind."
"That doesn't prove anything, does it? Maybe your second brother dotes on Lin Ting and wants to protect her?" Chen Hui had a different opinion.
Achan remained noncommittal, then asked, "General Lin really believed Lin Ting's explanation without asking any further questions?"
"No."
“Even when you question Lin Heng, he will personally take you to verify it. But when it comes to Lin Ting, he is so special. It’s really strange.” A Chan stroked her chin.
Chen Hui hesitated for a moment before asking Lin Sui, "Does your father know your mother's sister-in-law?"
This was the first time Lin Sui had faced a moral dilemma, and she stammered, "I... I don't think we know each other. I heard he's been in the army all these years and rarely comes back. My mother's sister-in-law seems to have been sent down to the countryside with her husband, and they've only kept in touch with the family through letters all these years."
Chen Hui said seriously, "Even so, we can't rule out the possibility that Lin Ting is your biological sister. We just don't know if she shares the same mother or the same father?"
Lin Sui was about to crack.
Seeing Lin Sui's expression, A Chan couldn't stop laughing: "Hui Niang, don't scare her."
Chen Hui shook her head helplessly. She wasn't exaggerating; such things had happened before. However, after listening to Lin Sui's story, she could also sense something strange.
After Ah Chan finished laughing, she said to Lin Sui, "Even if they are one's own children, parents won't always do whatever they want for them. That's probably human nature. But there are indeed some things in this world that can make people go against human nature."
Lin Sui and Chen Hui looked at her at the same time: "If there is such a thing, wouldn't everyone love you after using it?"
After saying that, Lin Sui was stunned. Wasn't that Lin Ting? She didn't know how outsiders treated her, but in the Lin family, she was indeed loved by everyone.
Ah Chan thought for a moment: "It's not necessarily true that everyone will love you, but most people will be affected. However, these things are not permanent. If Lin Ting used them, she should still be using them now."
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