Xu Lin didn't wait for Old Mrs. Xu to stammer out a response before launching into a scolding.
"You, you, you what? You're old enough to know better, yet you're out here thieving. Aren't you afraid lightning will strike you down?"
Old Mrs. Xu, being scolded as a thief at her age, was furious and indignant. She was in her own home—how could that be called thieving?
But when she met Xu Lin's pitch-black eyes, she silently shut her mouth. Fine, she'd just play dead.
Who could blame her? This little wretch was crazy as ever now, and her strikes were vicious and ruthless.
Hmph, just wait. When her precious son came back, she'd make sure he gave this little wretch a thorough beating.
Not only would she break both her legs, but her arms too—see if she'd dare throw punches at her again.
Old Mrs. Xu harbored these malicious thoughts while forcing an awkward smile onto her face, speaking with a fawning tone:
"Linlin, dear, look at what you're saying. An old woman like me can't take such accusations. If word gets out, people will say you have no upbringing."
"Upbringing?" Xu Lin scoffed. "You dead old hag, you actually have the nerve to talk to me about upbringing?"
"You're the thief! Your whole family are thieves!"
Relying on the fact that Xu Lin was inside the house, Old Mrs. Xu mustered the courage to fire back, but stopped mid-sentence as something felt off.
What did she mean by "your whole family"?
"Your family? What do you mean, your family? You!" Old Mrs. Xu's expression flickered with uncertainty. She wanted to ask but didn't dare.
"That's right, your family—you, your son, your daughter-in-law. Your whole family are thieves."
Xu Lin rested her chin on her hands, leaning on the windowsill as she taunted:
"Don't you wonder why I suddenly seem like a different person?"
Curious? Old Mrs. Xu was dying of curiosity.
She'd even suspected Xu Lin was possessed by something unclean. She'd gotten talisman paper for her, and she was planning to unleash a big ritual tonight to deal with her.
But what exactly had caused this little wretch's personality to change so drastically?
Old Mrs. Xu mulled over the word "your family" and was struck with alarm. A suspicion rose in her mind. She pointed at Xu Lin with a trembling hand and gasped:
"You, you, you—you know? You know!"
Old Mrs. Xu didn't finish what Xu Lin supposedly knew, but Xu Lin understood perfectly well, and her sneer deepened.
"If you don't want others to know, don't do it in the first place." Xu Lin stared into Old Mrs. Xu's guilty, darting eyes and continued her tirade:
"A whole nest of shameless, brazen, morally bankrupt thieves.
You swapped someone else's life, then had the nerve to abuse and gaslight her. You really are something else.
Aren't you afraid of karma coming back around? Aren't you afraid your family line will die out?"
Old Mrs. Xu's eyes flickered with unease as she was cursed to her face. Her heart raced with guilt, and she couldn't bring herself to meet Xu Lin's gaze.
Thinking of Xu Lin's fighting prowess, she silently braced her hands on the ground and began inching backward. She wasn't saying another word—she needed to escape first.
If she let the little wretch keep cursing, the girl would surely fly into a rage and beat her senseless.
When it came to the baby swap, Old Mrs. Xu was indeed guilty.
But Xu Lin didn't make a move. She simply watched coldly, sneering at Old Mrs. Xu's cowardice.
The laugh sent Old Mrs. Xu scrambling to her feet and running. God, this was terrifying. The little wretch was way too abnormal.
No, she needed to have a serious talk with her son and daughter-in-law. They couldn't let this little wretch ruin her precious granddaughter's future of wealth and glory.
With the nuisance gone, Xu Lin lay back on the bed and thought about what to do next.
The Qin family should have gotten the investigation results by now, right? She wondered what choice they would make.
Just as Xu Lin had guessed, the Qin family had already sent people to investigate Xu Lin's background, and the whole family was gathered at the old master's place to discuss the matter.
Old Master Qin finished reading the report and slammed the table in fury. His precious little granddaughter had been swapped away.
And that wasn't even the worst part—they hadn't even bothered to raise her properly.
What could she do with only two years of schooling?
On top of that, the Xu family's torment had made her timid, insecure, and withdrawn. Could such a granddaughter shoulder the family's responsibilities?
Old Mrs. Qin saw her husband's rage and quickly tried to soothe him: "Old man, calm down, calm down. Your health isn't good—you can't afford such strong emotions."
"Calm down? How am I supposed to calm down? My precious granddaughter was raised into a useless waste by them! Tell me, what are we supposed to do about this?"
The more Old Master Qin thought about it, the angrier he got. He even started looking at his son and daughter-in-law with displeasure.
Two useless people—they couldn't even protect their own child, letting someone swap her right under their noses.
And the most infuriating part was that they'd raised the wrong child for sixteen years without a single person noticing. Were they all blind?
Father Qin wiped the cold sweat from his brow and quickly begged for forgiveness. He said nothing in his defense—it was all his fault. He hadn't protected his child.
"Father, I'm sorry. It's all my fault. I was too busy with work back then and couldn't spare time to stay at the hospital, which gave those criminals an opportunity.
Hit me, scold me, do whatever you want—just please don't ruin your health over this."
"Yes, yes, Father. Whatever mistakes were made, they're all ours. Please, you must take care of yourself."
Mother Qin chimed in, her face full of concern, terrified that the old master might keel over. He was the anchor of the Qin family.
As long as the old master was around, their position was unshakable.
But if the old master were gone, their family's future would be greatly affected, and the man's official career might even come to a halt right where it stood.
Seeing that the old master's anger had subsided somewhat, Mother Qin finally spoke up:
"Father, look, this matter has already happened, and we've raised Fang'er for over ten years now. Fang'er is still dating that Su family boy—if word of this gets out, what are they supposed to do?"
Old Master Qin fell silent. Indeed, the matter of Fang'er and the Su family boy concerned the formal alliance between the two families. If they couldn't handle this properly, the alliance would likely fall through.
Old Mrs. Xu, who had fled the courtyard, didn't dare go home. She could only wait at the mouth of the alley, and after waiting a long while, Father Xu finally arrived.
Mother and son huddled together in a corner by the wall, whispering in low voices, their expressions quite grim. Father Xu felt this matter was extremely troublesome.
The matter of the swapped child absolutely could not be spread—otherwise, wouldn't all their years of scheming come to nothing? And if it got out, would the Xu family still have any face left?
And what if the Qin family sought revenge? Could they withstand it?
No, they had to think this through carefully. If worst came to worst, then—
"Mother, did you buy the medicine?"
"Bought it. I got a generous amount—enough to knock out an elephant, no problem."
Old Mrs. Xu patted her pocket, indicating it was stashed right there. Father Xu let out a sigh of relief after seeing this.
As long as they had the medicine to knock someone out, then how to deal with that little wretch was entirely up to the Xu family. As long as they kept the lid tightly sealed, no one could expose the truth.
"I told you back then to drown her, but you wouldn't agree. Now look—we've raised a wolf in sheep's clothing that's turned around to bite us," Old Mrs. Xu complained, her heart full of regret. If they'd gotten rid of her early on, there wouldn't be this trouble today.
"I never expected the truth to come out either," Father Xu said, deep in thought, trying to recall where they'd slipped up. Their family had always been so careful guarding this secret.