After sending the neighbors off, Lin Zhitang glanced upstairs before turning to Song Zhiqiang and saying, “Uncle Song, let’s all have dinner together tonight and get to know each other properly.”
Song Zhiqiang agreed and headed upstairs to look for Su Ya.
Now that Su Ya had already been driven out, no matter how unwilling Su Yun was, she knew Lin Zhitang would never let her stay behind. Besides, the Lin family was now nothing more than an empty shell.
Watching Su Yun shoot her a vicious glare before going upstairs, Lin Zhitang merely smiled indifferently.
She was very satisfied with today’s outcome. Originally, her plan had only been to drive them out of the Lin residence first. As for everything else… there was no rush.
“Ming’an-ge, the house is such a mess. Let’s clean up a little,” Lin Zhitang said.
She wasn’t afraid of Lu Ming’an realizing she had pushed things along behind the scenes. If she truly planned to be with him, she couldn’t keep pretending forever. Besides, if he couldn’t accept this side of her, then there was no need to continue.
In this life, she wasn’t going to live just to accommodate others.
“You go upstairs and sort out your room. I’ll handle the outside,” Lu Ming’an replied.
Lu Ming’an wasn’t blind. Naturally, he had noticed some of Lin Zhitang’s subtle expressions. As for the Lin family’s affairs, without knowing the full story, he wouldn’t judge. But from what happened today, it was obvious Su Ya and Su Yun had tried to scheme against someone and ended up being schemed against instead.
Lin Zhitang was the woman he had already decided to marry. As long as she hadn’t been hurt, he would trust her. If she wanted to tell him things, she naturally would. If she didn’t want to, then he would respect that.
After all, they had only known each other for two short days. It was normal for her not to trust him completely yet.
Moreover, before coming here, he already knew the relationship between the women in the Lin household was far from harmonious. Otherwise, with the Lin family’s connections, the three women could still have survived comfortably in Shanghai no matter what. Yet Father Lin had specifically asked the Lu family to protect Zhitang, mentioning only her.
Since she intended to put on a full performance, Lin Zhitang had also hidden away all the valuables in her own room.
After returning upstairs, she casually rearranged the room a little to restore appearances. Lu Ming’an wouldn’t deliberately inspect it anyway, and since she would soon be leaving Shanghai for Beijing, whatever was missing could simply be bought again later.
As for strange things like rebirth and the jade pendant space, she had no intention of telling anyone. What if someone thought she was a monster and sliced her open?
As for living with Lu Ming’an long-term in the future and what would happen if he discovered it… Lin Zhitang hadn’t thought that far ahead yet.
Since it hadn’t been discovered now, she would deal with it when the time came.
After acting and crying the entire morning, her eyes ached terribly. Lin Zhitang washed up, took a bath, and changed clothes when she heard a knock on the door.
“Who is it?”
“Zhitang, it’s me.”
Lin Zhitang opened the door. “Ming’an-ge, is everything downstairs cleaned up?”
Lu Ming’an looked at her. Compared to her earlier bedraggled appearance, the light yellow dress she now wore made her look lively and dazzling.
“It’s cleaned up. There’s barely anything left in the house anyway. Let’s go eat at the state-run restaurant for lunch.”
“Okay.”
“If there’s anything you still need for daily use, we can stop by the department store afterward. As for large items, let’s not buy them for now, alright? Once you follow me to the army post, we’ll buy them then.”
“Alright.”
Originally, Lin Zhitang had no intention of buying large items anyway. They couldn’t be taken along. Hearing him mention her following the army, however, still made her blush slightly.
Su Ya and Su Yun had taken away everything they could carry, but all the large savings books and valuables worth taking had already been hidden away by Lin Zhitang. Even if anything had slipped through the net, it probably wasn’t much.
Meanwhile, outside the Lin residence—
Su Yun pulled Su Ya aside.
“Mom, didn’t you say everything was foolproof? What am I supposed to do now? Am I really going to marry Wu Jianguo and become a stepmother?”
Su Ya stared at the Lin residence through the gate and remained silent for a moment before replying, “For now, just marry into the family first. Yesterday, weren’t you the one who personally brought Wu Jianguo into Lin Zhitang’s room? Don’t you know what happened?”
“I watched him go in with my own eyes! Lin Zhitang ate the drugged food right in front of us. I don’t understand either. And we didn’t hear a single sound. Plus, the whole house was robbed overnight—how could everything disappear completely? Could someone have helped Lin Zhitang move the Lin family’s property away? Maybe someone Uncle Lin left behind?”
“I don’t know either. Things have already come to this point, so let’s just leave it for now. I’ll investigate more later.”
Su Ya truly couldn’t understand what had happened either.
Why had Lin Zhitang, after being drugged, remained perfectly fine?
Why had the entire house been emptied overnight without anyone hearing a thing?
Why had they all slept so deeply that night?
For the moment, Su Ya couldn’t sort out the mess in her mind.
Song Zhiqiang was the man Su Ya truly loved. Although things had gone off course, she was still happy to be marrying him.
Just thinking about marrying Wu Jianguo and having her innocence ruined by him filled Su Yun with disgust from the bottom of her heart.
She would never accept this fate.
Lin Zhitang—she was certain all of this had something to do with her.
Lu Ming’an went to the guesthouse to retrieve his luggage, planning to stay at the Lin residence from now on.
Although only the main building of the Lin estate remained, the house itself was still quite large. Leaving Lin Zhitang to live there alone—not to mention whether she would be afraid—Lu Ming’an also worried something else might happen.
Besides, after this morning’s events, the news that Lu Ming’an was Lin Zhitang’s fiancé had already spread throughout the neighborhood. Their relationship was legitimate, and at least outwardly no one could gossip about them.
The news that the Lin family home had been completely robbed overnight even made the newspapers the very next day, warning citizens to be cautious against theft.
In this era, newspapers were the primary source of information. After a single morning of circulation, practically all of Shanghai knew what had happened to the Lin family.
Of course, the scandal involving Madam Lin and the Lin family’s adopted daughter both being caught in illicit affairs became even more widely discussed, turning into one of the city’s greatest jokes.
After all, the Lin family was one of Shanghai’s famous wealthy households. The head of the family had only been dead for a few days, yet his wife had already been caught cheating. Some people were even disappointed they hadn’t witnessed the spectacle in person.
Lin Zhitang also received a phone call from Uncle Liu. The plan had gone smoothly. She briefly explained the morning’s events, and Uncle Liu was so furious over the phone that he burst into curses.
That evening, inside a private room at a grand restaurant—
Song Zhiqiang’s elderly mother looked extremely dissatisfied with Su Ya.
Of the three children born to Song Zhiqiang’s late wife, the two daughters appeared timid and had little reaction toward Su Ya, while the youngest son reacted fiercely, glaring at her as though she were an enemy.
Su Yun and Wu Jianguo had also come. Wu Jianguo’s elderly mother and three children were present as well. Compared to Old Madam Song’s restrained displeasure, Old Madam Wu wore an openly harsh expression, and even Wu Jianguo’s daughter and two sons behaved rudely and arrogantly.
Old Madam Wu had originally already picked out a sturdy, fertile-looking, obedient young woman for her son. Yet Wu Jianguo suddenly brought Su Yun home, claiming they were already married.
Already dissatisfied, Old Madam Wu became even more displeased after hearing about today’s scandal.
“Just look at this—mother caught cheating, and the daughter follows right in her footsteps. Both mother and daughter are shameless sluts. Son, are you really bringing this woman into our family?” Old Madam Wu’s words didn’t break the awkward atmosphere in the room—instead, they only made it worse.
Su Yun’s face darkened terribly.
At the Wu household, Old Madam Wu constantly spoke viciously, and the three children cursed at Su Yun whenever they saw her. By the end of the day, Su Yun had nearly forgotten how to smile. Yet Wu Jianguo acted as though none of it mattered, making her furious enough to curse him inwardly as a useless man.
Old Madam Song’s smile didn’t reach her eyes either.
She had wanted Song Zhiqiang to remarry so someone could care for her son and grandchildren, but she had never wanted that person to be Su Ya. If she had liked Su Ya, she would have allowed her into the family over ten years ago. Why wait until now?
The younger son pointed at Su Ya and shouted, “Shameless woman! You fox spirit! You’re trying to steal my father away! I won’t let you marry him!”
Song Zhiqiang was so angry he nearly struck his son, but his mother shielded the boy.
Song Zhiqiang truly loved Su Ya. If not for his mother’s refusal back then, he would have married her long ago. After all these years, his wish had finally come true.
Lin Zhitang thought: This really feels amazing.
Seeing how both the Song family and Wu family treated Su Ya and Su Yun, Lin Zhitang couldn’t have been happier.
“As a good daughter, of course I should help fulfill my mother’s true love. I just wonder how long this so-called true love can last once there’s no money supporting it.”
In her previous life at the Wu household, Lin Zhitang had suffered endlessly. Old Madam Wu had been sharp-tongued and cruel, the stepchildren constantly caused trouble, and Wu Jianguo not only ignored it all but even beat her.
Thinking of the radiant, triumphant look Su Yun once wore in front of her in her previous life, and comparing it to Su Yun’s current miserable state, Lin Zhitang sneered inwardly.
Can’t endure it anymore already? This is only the beginning. Everything you once gave me, I’m returning to you now. Su Yun, no need to thank me.
“Grandma Song,” Lin Zhitang said sweetly, “my mother and Uncle Song truly love each other. I hope you’ll take good care of her in the future. My mother will definitely be filial to you as well, and she’ll also treat Uncle Song’s children as kindly as she treated me.”
Old Madam Song replied expressionlessly, “Don’t worry. I will.”
Bah. True love, my foot.
She’s just a shameless fox spirit, seducing one man after another while clinging to Zhiqiang.
If she wants so badly to enter the Song family, then let her enter. We’ll see whether the Song family’s door is truly so easy to step through.
“Auntie Wu,” Lin Zhitang said, “my sister is marrying for the first time. She doesn’t mind that Brother Wu is divorced and that she’ll become a stepmother the moment she enters the family. You must take good care of her and love her dearly.”
“I spit on that!” Old Madam Wu exploded instantly. “She doesn’t mind? I haven’t even started minding her yet! Seducing men into her own home for an affair at such a young age—what kind of decent woman could she possibly be?”
Hearing those words, Su Yun lowered her head without arguing back. Her eyes brimmed with hatred.
Old hag, how dare you humiliate me. As if I wanted to marry Wu Jianguo. Just you wait. Lin Zhitang, you bitch—I’ll never let you off. Don’t think you’ll get to live better than me.
Su Ya’s mood had sunk to rock bottom.
She had schemed for over ten years, yet in the end she still had to move into the Song family’s tiny house.
Although the Lin family’s money might already be gone, there was still the Lin estate itself. Lin Zhitang would be leaving for Beijing anyway, so leaving the mansion empty would be a waste. Su Ya was already thinking about moving back into the Lin residence somehow.
Lin Zhitang knew Su Yun would never simply accept her fate. But so what?
Su Yun now had nothing. Trying to deal with her would be difficult, and escaping Wu Jianguo would be even harder.
As for Su Ya, Lin Zhitang could roughly guess what she was thinking. She knew Su Ya would never give up so easily and still wanted to move back into the Lin residence.
Dream on.
After Lin Zhitang and Lu Ming’an returned to the Lin residence, she looked at the now-empty yet peaceful house without Su Ya and Su Yun and felt as though even the air had become fresher.
The tense nerves she had carried ever since her rebirth finally relaxed somewhat.
Tonight, at last, she could sleep peacefully and soundly.