“Ruan Xining, don’t push it too far. My mother didn’t steal anyone away.” Ruan Nianzhi glared resentfully at Ruan Xining. Her mother was clearly not an outsider. If anything, Ruan Xining and Wen Yunru were the outsiders.
Ruan Xining paid no attention to her and stared straight at Ruan Jianwei.
“Huizhi, you’ll just have to put up with it for a while. If you feel unsafe staying here, I’ll rent you a place and you can stay somewhere else for a while,” Ruan Jianwei sighed.
When Song Huizhi heard this, it felt as though the sky had fallen on her. Her heart was filled with indescribable bitterness, but she could only force a sensible smile. “Cousin, compared to everything you’ve done for me, what is this little hardship? I’ll just stay here. Besides, everything in the house has already been stolen, so I don’t think the thief will come back.”
“Dad.” Ruan Nianzhi called out indignantly.
“If you don’t want to go to your maternal grandparents’ house, then stay here and keep your aunt company,” Ruan Jianwei scolded.
Ruan Xining watched the scene with a mocking expression. Ruan Jianwei’s kindness toward Ruan Nianzhi and Song Huizhi was based entirely on whether his own life was going well. But the moment the two of them threatened his interests, he was perfectly capable of turning cold and ruthless.
In the end, Song Huizhi stayed behind at home.
By the time Ruan Xining’s family arrived at the Wen family’s home, Grandpa Wen already knew about the disgraceful things Ruan Jianwei had done, so he naturally gave him a cold reception.
Wen Yunru, however, was confused when she saw everyone arrive together and looked at her daughter. “What happened? Did something happen at home?”
“Mom, Grandpa, Grandma, someone broke into the house. The thief stole everything, without even leaving us a single change of clothes.” Ruan Xining spoke in a pitiful voice with her back to Ruan Jianwei and Ruan Nianzhi, but when she looked at the Wen family, she wore a mischievous expression.
The Wen family had initially been filled with concern, but when they saw the look on their granddaughter’s face, they finally relaxed.
“It’s fine. Let them steal it. As long as my darling granddaughter is safe, that’s all that matters. They’re only some clothes. Let your grandmother take you to buy new ones.”
“Xining, come on. Your eldest aunt will take you shopping for clothes.” Su Wanzhen smiled as she took her arm.
As soon as Ruan Nianzhi heard this, she moved closer and looked at Su Wanzhen ingratiatingly. “Eldest Aunt, the thief stole all my clothes too.”
“Oh.” Su Wanzhen responded indifferently.
Seeing her attitude, Ruan Nianzhi immediately complained, “Eldest Aunt, you only favor my sister too.”
“That’s enough, Nianzhi. Do you really think we don’t know about the disgraceful thing you did? You framed your own sister just for the sake of a marriage, and you’re actually proud of yourself. Your mother may indulge you, but your grandfather and I won’t. Since you’re here, I’ll take this opportunity to teach you a proper lesson on your mother’s behalf.”
As she spoke, Grandma Wen looked at Su Wanzhen. “Go get the feather duster.”
Ruan Nianzhi’s face immediately turned pale at the mention of the feather duster.
The Wen family was a respected household and naturally had family rules, although punishments were generally reserved for the boys in the family.
“Grandma, I didn’t frame my sister. I only misunderstood her. You can’t hit me.” She hurriedly hid behind Ruan Jianwei.
By then, Su Wanzhen had brought over the feather duster and handed it to Grandma Wen.
“Jianwei, are you going to let Nianzhi keep making mistakes?”
When Grandma Wen was young, she had traveled across the country with Grandpa Wen and had experienced a great deal in her life. She merely glanced at him, her gaze deep and cold, carrying the sharp authority forged through years of experience.
Anyone caught beneath that gaze would instinctively feel uneasy and restrained, as though an invisible pressure were bearing down on them.
At that moment, Ruan Jianwei was so intimidated that he did not dare utter a word and silently stepped aside.
Before Ruan Nianzhi could beg for mercy, the feather duster came down hard across her back, making her cry out in pain.
“Grandma, I really was wronged! I didn’t frame my sister. Sob, sob… Mom, save me! I know I was wrong, sob, sob…”
Ruan Nianzhi wept bitterly as she begged for mercy, tears and mucus running down her face.
Watching her get beaten did not make Ruan Xining feel relieved. This was only the beginning. Ruan Nianzhi, Ruan Jianwei, Song Huizhi, and everyone in the Su family, she would settle accounts with every single one of them.
“Mom, Nianzhi already knows she’s wrong. She’s a girl, she can’t take much more of this.” In the end, Ruan Jianwei could not bear to watch and pleaded for mercy.
Grandma Wen knew she could not go too far either. Suppressing her anger, she turned to Ruan Jianwei. “Nianzhi could develop such a vicious mind because you failed as her father as well. I just made Yunru kneel in the ancestral hall. Tonight, you and Nianzhi will kneel there together.”
Ruan Jianwei’s expression immediately fell. He had come here to seek refuge, not to suffer somewhere else.
“What? Do you still think this girl hasn’t done anything wrong?” Grandma Wen’s stern voice rang out.
“Mom, Nianzhi and I haven’t even eaten yet!” Before he could finish speaking, Uncle Wen, Wen Jingshen, dragged him away.
Ruan Nianzhi glared resentfully at Ruan Xining before following Ruan Jianwei away.
Once the father and daughter had left, Grandma Wen lovingly put an arm around Ruan Xining. “Xining, you’ve suffered. Your mother failed to judge people properly and ended up dragging you into this mess. Your grandfather and I never thought highly of Ruan Jianwei. That man is far too calculating. He’s nothing like that boy Huo Tingyuan.
“Although that boy also comes from the countryside, he seems upright and straightforward, and he’s brave and resourceful in the Military. It may be a hardship for you to marry into his family, but considering our family’s social background…”
“Enough! Why tell the child all this?” Grandpa Wen interrupted unhappily. This time, his daughter had already repeated everything her granddaughter had said, and he felt that Xining had truly grown up.
She had actually learned to think so far ahead.
“Xining, what exactly happened at home?”
“Grandpa, Grandma, I simply hid all the valuable things in the house. Once Mom divorces him, I won’t let any of those things fall into someone else’s hands.” Ruan Xining explained.
Grandpa Wen was visibly shocked. To move so many large household items without anyone noticing in just one night was not something an ordinary person could accomplish.
However, seeing that his granddaughter did not want to explain further, he did not press her. After all, everyone had some secrets of their own.
“Grandpa, he already told you about it, right? If you agree, I can hide our family’s things too,” Ruan Xining asked.
Grandpa Wen had been moved by what his daughter told him yesterday. He had still been worrying about whom he could safely entrust the family’s belongings to.
“All right. Your grandmother and I will take your advice. We’ll donate some of the family’s belongings to help build the country and keep some for ourselves. If we run into difficulties in the future, we’ll still have something to rely on. Come with me.”
Grandpa Wen took her downstairs into the basement.
When he pushed open the heavy wooden door, an entire room filled with valuables came into view. Ruan Xining could not help but gape in shock.
She knew her maternal grandfather’s family was wealthy. Going back generations, one of their ancestors had even specialized in supplying fabrics to the imperial court. But she had never imagined that the Wen family possessed such enormous wealth.
Yesterday, she had already been astonished by the treasures Ruan Jianwei had secretly hidden away, but the treasures in her maternal grandparents’ home were dozens of times more valuable than his.
Against the wall stood wooden racks neatly lined with rows of gold bars wrapped layer upon layer in oil paper. Their considerable weight had caused the wooden racks to bow slightly beneath them.
Wooden chests against the wall were filled with gleaming silver dollars, including all kinds of old silver coins, packed into thick layers that shimmered brilliantly beneath the light.
In the corner were dozens of bolts of the finest silk, including Yunjin, Su embroidery, and gold brocade, all luxurious fabrics that had once been worth a fortune.
Their vivid colors and smooth textures made them extraordinarily rare treasures in the 1970s, when supplies were scarce and coarse cloth and plain hemp garments were the norm.
Wooden chests and porcelain jars were arranged by category, containing valuable old medicinal materials such as ginseng, deer antler, and bird’s nest. In an era when medical care and medicine were both scarce, these were even more precious.
There were also all kinds of jade bangles, pearl necklaces, preserved ancient paintings, and official kiln porcelain. If these things were brought into the future, they would probably be priceless.