“I know that no matter what I say now, it can’t make up for the mistakes of the past. I don’t ask for your forgiveness, I just hope that I can do something to make amends. I know that Li’er has been investigating the cause of her birth mother’s death.”
These words immediately roused Lin Yan, and she couldn't help but look at Madam Xie, her voice unconsciously carrying a hint of urgency.
"You know the truth?"
Madam Xie gave a bitter laugh and said self-deprecatingly:
“I know, Li’er may have been wondering if I killed her birth mother. How could that be? She was still my own sister. Even if I was jealous of her, even if I were heartless, I couldn’t bring myself to do that…”
In fact, not only Xie Li had suspected Madam Xie, but Lin Yan had also had suspicions, but after thinking about it carefully, she felt that it was unlikely.
After all, Madam Xie didn't seem to be the kind of ruthless person.
However, there were no other women in the Xie household, so the trouble could not have been caused by jealousy or rivalry.
"Who did it?"
Madam Xie exhaled a heavy breath before speaking.
"It's His Majesty..."
How could that be?
Lin Yan was indeed startled. She never imagined that Xie Li's mother's death would be related to the emperor.
Under her watchful gaze, Madam Xie began to recall the past and slowly revealed the secret that had been buried in her heart for many years.
"Back then, His Majesty was just a prince. He accidentally bumped into my second sister and became interested in her. Li'er inherited only seven or eight parts of my second sister's beauty, which was already quite stunning. You can imagine how beautiful her mother must have been. His Majesty already had wives, concubines, and children. He wasn't the eldest son or the legitimate heir, so my second sister could only marry him as a concubine. Naturally, my father didn't approve. He was quite ambitious. Later, he sent my second sister to the Eastern Palace against her wishes, only to have her sent back untouched. It turned out that my second sister had already become pregnant under His Majesty's coercion, which naturally didn't escape the eyes of the old women in the Eastern Palace. My father was so angry that he had no choice but to settle for His Majesty. But what we didn't expect was that His Majesty could be so heartless. After getting my second sister's body, he refused to acknowledge it. Seeing that my second sister's belly was becoming more and more obvious, my father had no choice but to set his sights on the Xie family..."
After hearing Madam Xie's description, Lin Yan felt a lump in her throat and felt an overwhelming sense of sympathy and pity for Xie Li's birth mother.
Indeed, for both men and women, beauty alone can be a fatal disaster without sufficient protection.
It was originally thought that Xie Li's birth mother had a passionate affair with her sweetheart before marriage in order to resist the arranged marriage by her parents.
I never expected the truth to be like this...
She seemed to have seen that poor woman through time.
Whether she was forced to become pregnant by the prince, sent to the Eastern Palace, or married into the Xie family, all of these were things she had no choice but to do.
She had absolutely no choice.
Lin Yan took a few heavy breaths until the tightness in her chest and shortness of breath subsided considerably before she voiced her doubts.
"Then why did the emperor wait several years before suddenly taking his own life?"
"At that time, His Majesty had already ascended the throne and seemed to have begun to appreciate Second Sister's qualities, so he wanted to bring her into the palace. But Second Sister refused, even at the cost of her life, yet His Majesty used the entire Xie family as leverage. Helpless, Second Sister could only agree to secretly enter the palace to meet with her husband and brother-in-law while they were away on campaign. Although none of this was of her own free will, she had no other choice, and each rendezvous caused her immense pain. Gradually, she developed a heart ailment, and over time, she became depressed and tragically passed away."
Many years have passed.
Madam Xie had long realized that her poor second sister was completely innocent.
But back then, she was young and impetuous, and she didn't understand this principle. All she knew was that she and her mother had stolen her father's favor.
He constantly looked down on them, even making sarcastic remarks, and never gave them a kind look.
It wasn't until she lost it that she realized how wrong she had been.
It was clearly the man's fault, but she blamed it all on two innocent women.
"Don't laugh at me, but back home, I was jealous of my second sister's beauty and always targeted her. It wasn't until she married into the Xie family that I saw how much more beautiful she was than me, yet she never received a single bit of love from her husband. My dark feelings seemed to vanish. I started to care for her more, and our relationship improved considerably. But I knew nothing of this until after she passed away, when I found her will while sorting through her belongings. I dared not tell anyone, so I secretly kept the will."
After saying that, Madam Xie took out several letters from her sleeve and handed them to Lin Yan.
After receiving the suicide note, Lin Yan slowly opened it with an extremely heavy heart.
Your handwriting reflects your personality.
The handwriting on the letter was elegant and graceful; just from the handwriting, she could imagine what kind of charm and beauty Xie Li's birth mother must have possessed.
The sheets of paper were clearly very light, but when she held them in her hands, they felt as heavy as if they weighed a ton.
The most ruthless are those in the imperial family.
They can even disown their own flesh and blood...
"Thank you for entrusting this to me, Madam. Although the beauty has passed away, the truth buried inside is still very important."
Lin Yan silently put the letter away.
She was still considering whether or not to tell Xie Li about it, after all, this was no small matter...
Hearing the words of thanks, Madam Xie was momentarily flattered and hurriedly waved her hand.
You're welcome! You're welcome!
Although Lin Yan's face was still cold, Madam Xie could sense the softening of her attitude and immediately felt much more relaxed.
After leaving the study, the gloom that had been hanging over her for days finally dissipated considerably.
...
Night slowly fell.
After washing up, Lin Yan walked out of the bathroom and entered the bedroom. When she saw the scene inside, she was so surprised that she could hardly close her mouth.
The room was decorated in a festive red.
The bedding and sheets were all changed to red, a pair of double happiness paper-cuts were pasted on the window, and even a pile of flower petals were scattered on the ground.
For a moment, she felt as if she had traveled through time, as if she had returned to the day of her wedding.
Thinking about what was about to happen, Lin Yan couldn't help but blush, and a feeling of sweetness welled up in her heart.
Before long, before the heat on her face had dissipated, she saw Xie Muqing, covered in steam, walk out of the bathroom.
His usually steady steps now seemed somewhat disordered, and his expression carried a hint of impatience.
Meeting his burning gaze, Lin Yan unconsciously looked away and asked softly:
"Why did you decorate the house like this?"
"Last time, because of my mistake, our wedding night was ruined. Tonight, I'm making it up to my wife."
Without realizing it.
Xie Muqing's large hand silently grasped Lin Yan's hands, and their breathing was exceptionally clear in the quiet environment.
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