Before Lanxiang could finish speaking, a heart-wrenching cry suddenly came from outside the door.
As the familiar voice grew closer, Lanxiang and Yuniang saw it as it stepped through the door. Lanxiang then realized that it was Yan Hong helping her white-haired, unsteady grandmother into the room.
After experiencing this harrowing ordeal, although she had only been apart from her grandmother, with whom she depended on each other, for a day, Lanxiang felt as if a lifetime had passed.
Seeing her grandmother appear unharmed before her, she was both surprised and overjoyed. At that moment, all she wanted to do was hold her tightly in her arms, the person she loved and missed most dearly.
Thinking of this, Lanxiang's heart warmed instantly. She was still reeling from what had happened today, and she thought she would never see her grandmother again. So, she murmured "Grandma" in surprise, and with a heart full of emotion, she hurriedly stepped forward and opened her arms to her.
Unexpectedly, what she was eagerly anticipating was a sudden slap. The slap landed heavily on Lanxiang's fair face, immediately leaving five clear red marks.
Lanxiang stopped abruptly, the joy on her face vanishing instantly. Instinctively, she raised her hands to cover her face, staring in astonishment into the old woman's eyes, asking in confusion, "Grandma, what's wrong? Did Lanxiang do something wrong?"
Lanxiang was completely unprepared for this slap, and even Yu Niang and Yan Hong, who were standing to the side, were taken aback. Seeing how painful it looked, the two of them couldn't help but shudder, as if they were stunned.
What happened next shocked everyone present.
Before anyone could react to what was happening, the old man suddenly raised his hand in the air and, in front of everyone, slapped his own old face, etched with the marks of time and aging, with a force even greater and more ruthless than the slap he had given Lanxiang earlier.
Just as the old woman was about to reach out her other hand to slap her other cheek, Lanxiang quickly snapped out of her daze, took a big step forward, and knelt down at her grandmother's feet with a thud. At the same time, she hurriedly reached out to support her grandmother's arm and cried out, "Grandma, no! What are you doing?"
The old woman struggled desperately to break free from Lanxiang's grasp, trying to slap herself again, while crying and saying, "Why are you stopping me? Don't stop me! You wretched girl, how long do you intend to keep deceiving this useless old woman?"
Lanxiang knelt on the ground, crying and shaking her head, pleading fearfully, "Grandma, please talk this out, don't do this. What did Lanxiang do wrong? If you want to hit or scold me, then hit or scold me. Lanxiang only begs you not to hurt yourself, please don't do this..."
Seeing this, Yan Hong and Yu Niang, who were standing to the side, also quickly came to their senses and rushed forward to pull and persuade her. For a moment, the room became noisy.
The old woman lamented, “Over the years, I, this old woman, have been so careful, never daring to pry too much into your affairs. From childhood to adulthood, I know your background has brought you so much suffering. I was afraid that if I spoke too harshly, your burden would be even heavier; if I didn't speak, I was afraid you would think I neglected you and didn't care about you. But no matter what, you can't just ‘give up’ and come to Wanjiao Pavilion to debase yourself. How can I face your deceased mother if you do this? Heavens, what sins did I commit in my past life that God would punish me like this? It wasn't enough that I, an old woman, had to bury my child; now He's tormenting my poor granddaughter like this?”
“Grandma, none of this has anything to do with you. Lanxiang didn’t want this either. Tell me, who in the world would want to come to a place like this to make a living? It’s all…it’s all…” Lanxiang stopped abruptly as she spoke.
She thought to herself: Once, she could blame all this misfortune on Erlang, whom she thought had abandoned her and was heartless.
Because the facts, as revealed in the written agreement, were indeed that he had sold her into this hellhole. But now, she knew the truth. It turned out that all these years, she had wronged Erlang and innocently caused Hongmei's misfortune.
Even if we concede that this disaster wasn't caused by Erlang himself, it was still his fault. It's a case of 'I didn't kill Boren, yet Boren died because of me.' But now, Erlang has already sacrificed his young life to protect her. Even if he truly owed her, this death should be enough to repay all the debts he owed her in this lifetime.
So, at this moment, what else can she say besides, "It's all fate's cruel joke, it's all her destiny"?
After a long while, Lanxiang could only say weakly and heavily, "Grandma, fate is cruel. This is Lanxiang's destiny, and Lanxiang has no choice but to accept it!"
Upon hearing this, the old man suddenly stopped sobbing, then gritted his teeth and said bitterly, "No, this is not fate playing tricks on you, nor is it your destined fate. 'Heaven's justice is clear, and retribution is swift'. This is retribution, this is all retribution!"
Upon hearing this, Lanxiang was filled with confusion and astonishment. "Retribution? What does Grandma mean by that?"
As the old woman gently helped Lanxiang to her feet, she said earnestly, "Yanhong has already told your grandmother everything. You shouldn't have kept everything from your grandmother and borne it all alone. Between you and Erlang, your love was ultimately deep but your fate was shallow. He was willing to die for you, which shows he was a responsible and good man. But the dead cannot be brought back to life, so don't dwell on him anymore; it will only bring you no benefit."
Upon hearing this, Lanxiang glanced furtively at Yanhong, who was timidly hiding behind Yu Niang, and sighed, "Lanxiang understands. But why did Grandma say just now that all of this wasn't Lanxiang's fate, or that it wasn't a cruel twist of fate, but rather some kind of retribution? Why did Grandma say that?"
With Lanxiang's help, the old woman slowly sat down to the side, saying indignantly, "That's right, this is retribution. But it was clearly that beast who committed the crime. Isn't it enough for my daughter to pay with her life? Now, does it also have to cost me the life of my only granddaughter, who is my only family?"
At this moment, Lanxiang seemed to have some guesses in her mind, but she was still puzzled, so she urged anxiously, "That beast? Could it be that person? What other heinous things did he do? Grandma, please tell me quickly!"
At this moment, Yan Hong and Yu Niang, who were equally surprised, were about to quietly retreat when Lan Xiang saw this and quickly went over to stop them, saying, "You don't need to avoid me. You are all sisters who treat Lan Xiang like your own flesh and blood. Lan Xiang is not afraid of your elder sister and younger sister knowing about her family's shame. Grandmother, just tell me. Now that things have come to this, what is there that Lan Xiang cannot accept?"
After a deep sigh and a moment, the old man took another breath and said, "Xiang'er, actually, your mother was always depressed before she died, and she couldn't get over the knot in her heart until her death because she regretted not doing one thing."
"Regret not doing something? What is it?" Lanxiang asked in surprise.
The old man sighed again and recalled, "I regret not exposing that beast, which later harmed a whole family of innocent and kind people."
"What?" Lanxiang exclaimed in surprise, her eyes wide.
The old woman bit her lip and said, "Actually, that man truly loved your mother. He was handsome, talented, and erudite; no woman could resist him. Yet, he only loved your mother, as your grandmother could tell. But for some reason, one day, his personality suddenly changed. He became suspicious and often agitated. When asked why, he wouldn't say anything. So your mother invited him to go with her to the City God Temple in the southern suburbs of the city to offer incense and pray for his well-being. Who would have thought that on their way home, they would have a huge fight, and your mother, in a fit of anger, went home alone. But since then, we've never heard from him again."
"And then what happened?" Lanxiang asked anxiously.
The old woman closed her eyes for a moment, then slowly opened them again, saying, "Later...later your mother would go to the place where they had argued and separated every few days, foolishly waiting for him, regardless of wind, rain, snow, day or night. This waiting lasted for nearly nine months. Then one day, she heard from a passerby that...that the beast had saved the daughter of a very virtuous family in the south of the city, a family known for its good deeds and kindness to its neighbors, praised and respected by everyone. Moreover, she had already married into the family and become their son-in-law. But your mother didn't believe it and insisted on seeing it with her own eyes. So, guided by that passerby, your mother went alone, without telling me, to the home of that virtuous man."
Lanxiang asked anxiously, "Is it really that person? Did my mother confirm it with her own eyes? Did she see him?"
The old man glanced at her and said, "I saw him. It was him, that beast, but it was too late. That young lady was gentle and kind; she knew nothing. Besides, she was heavily pregnant and looked like she was about to give birth."
"Then what about my mother?" Lanxiang asked, her face filled with sorrow.
The old woman sighed and said helplessly, "As a woman myself, your mother... she was just a poor woman from a humble family. Faced with such people and such things, what could a weak woman like her do? After returning home, she would just hold you and cry day and night. Until one day, she heard from the old lady next door who came to visit that the entire family of that kind and generous philanthropist in the south of the city had been brutally murdered overnight. Moreover, the entire house had changed hands overnight. People were saying that it was the son-in-law who had harbored ill intentions towards that family from the beginning and was the one who caused it. When your mother heard this, she fainted and never recovered. She was filled with resentment until her death, wondering why she hadn't warned that kind young lady."
"How could this be? Is he really so wicked that he would even harm his own flesh and blood?" Lanxiang was stunned.
Just then, a woman's voice suddenly rang in everyone's ears: "No, the family of that great philanthropist from back then was not massacred..."
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