Joyful Motherhood in a Rural Family

Chapter 867: Chapter 867: The Mystery of Lin Xiner’s Origin!

Waiting until she lifted her head again, Liu Sisi’s two eyes were hazy, her hands clinging to his neck, her consciousness already blurry. seaʀᴄh thё ηovёlFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

Di Yelei’s eyes, however, shone brightly, his entire brows expressing joy.

“What, don’t you want to wake up yet? Does your husband need to show you some intense love again?”

Love?

Startled by the word, Liu Sisi instantly sobered up and quickly wriggled out of his embrace.

“What time is it now?”

…

Her gaze darted everywhere but at him.

“Now? It’s still early; it’s not completely dark outside.” Di Yelei spoke with a thick layer of laughter in his voice.

On a cold winter day with it still light outside, the two of them had shut the door and been affectionate for half the day—if outsiders saw them, who knows what they would think.

“You should get up and go outside! If it gets any later, others won’t know what to think.”

She urged him hurriedly.

But he acted coy, leaning in and wrapping his arms around her, “What else could they think? Surely they’re thinking…”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated on Ɲονɢᴑ.сο

“Get out quickly! With so much going on nowadays, it’s hard to believe you’re still in such good spirits!” She glared at him, her cheeks flushed with anger.

“Worrying takes a day, laughing takes a day! Either way, it’s the same life we’re living. Life is short, why make it hard for ourselves? We should cherish you properly!” Di Yelei’s speech became more and more irregional, continuously winking and making faces at Liu Sisi.

–

When the two finally emerged from the small courtyard and arrived at the flower hall, they discovered that everyone was already sitting there, waiting for them to join for dinner. Even Tang Ji sat off to the side, smiling merrily at them.

As soon as everyone saw the couple entering, they promptly stood up to greet them.

Liu Sisi’s face turned red with embarrassment, but Di Yelei didn’t show the slightest bit of abnormality, “I was just inside discussing something with your mother, so we came out a bit late. Everyone, please sit. Let’s sit down and then talk.”

Turning his head, he saw Tang Ji sitting there and hurriedly greeted him with a smile: “No matter what, people have to eat. We’ll fill our stomachs first and then discuss other matters.”

“Yes, Old Master Marquis. To be able to join this family feast is indeed a great honor!” Tang Ji’s face was adorned with his usual smile.

It was a family feast, and he happened to join in—it was indeed an honor.

“Old Tang, you are my honorable teacher, already a part of our family. Naturally, you can join this family feast. Please take a seat, Old Tang!”

Di Yelei invited Old Tang to the table with an easy grace, and then sat down to start dinner.

After dinner, Di Yelei and Tang Ji proceeded to the side hall.

“A few days ago, you had this old man look for some clues—now we have some leads.”

Not waiting for Di Yelei to inquire, Tang Ji took out a list from his embrace and handed it to Di Yelei, “Aside from the suspicious people on this list, this old man also unearthed an old story.”

“Oh? What’s the matter exactly?”

Di Yelei casually skimmed through the list, which densely cataloged records of individuals dispatched towards Gongzhou City on specific dates and years.

“Old Master Marquis, didn’t you ask this old man to look into the brothel where Lin Zhaorong was back in the day? Out of long-standing habit, I followed the trail and traced Lin Zhaorong’s origins. Surprisingly, I found that in the month she arrived at the brothel, a group of people suddenly stayed in the Mingyue Inn, which is under the same behind-the-scenes owner as the brothel. This group spoke with a thick Xixia Country accent and had two little girls with them, about eight or nine years old,” Tang Ji explained.

The Lin Zhaorong Tang Ji spoke of was none other than Liu Sisi’s Concubine Princess Mother, Lin Xiner.

“Hmm… go on, Old Tang,” Di Yelei urged after briefly musing.

“Although this group dressed like Han people, their accent betrayed them, so as soon as they settled into the inn’s Heaven-grade rooms, they immediately caught the attention of countless people. However, peculiarly, on the second night after the group checked in, the Mingyue Inn caught fire, and the group perished in the blaze. The government office quickly sent officials to investigate and hastily closed the case as an accidental incident.”

“What exactly are you trying to say?” Di Yelei frowned, having not found any connection to Lin Xiner in the long story.

“Old Master Marquis, don’t be impatient! While others may not have noticed the fire that killed people at the Mingyue Inn, this old man made a special trip to the Yizhuang and confirmed the number of deceased at the time. Eventually, I even found the person who helped collect the bodies and excavated a few graves at the burial mound. Old Master Marquis, guess what I discovered?”

Stroking his gray goat beard, Tang Ji’s face bore a mischievous expression.

“What did you discover, Old Tang?” Di Yelei inquired.

“I found… I found two small sets of bones.”

“That’s quite normal. Two eight or nine-year-old girls died and left behind small skeletons.”

“That’s where the problem lies. Supposedly, the deceased were two eight or nine-year-old girls, but when I dug up the graves, I found that the skeletons inside clearly differed in size and didn’t resemble the twin girls as people suggested. Instead, there were remains of a boy and a girl, both young children,” said Old Tang, his eyes intently fixed on Di Yelei.

Di Yelei was startled! He stood up from his chair abruptly, gasping.

But he quickly regained his composure and with a flash in his eyes, he interrogated Tang Ji, “So, of the two girls who died, only one perished? And the one who escaped was Lin Zhaorong?”

“No, that’s not right! I’ve checked. Among the remains of the boy and the girl, the boy’s were indeed about eight or nine years old, but the girl’s were only six or seven.”

“The ages don’t match up… So, both girls survived…”

Di Yelei sat back down, his mind racing with endless possibilities.

“Exactly! Both girls survived. On one side, a pair of sisters from Xixia Country died in a big fire, while at the same time, the brothel took in two newly adopted sisters, personally trained under the Brothel Owner’s careful guidance. A few years later, a woman named Lin Xiner emerged in the capital city like peach blossoms blooming overnight, stirring up a sensation. As soon as she appeared, she swiftly captivated the heart of Crown Prince Zhao Dun…”

“That’s enough, stop talking!”

Di Yelei raised his hand to stop Tang Ji’s incessant chattering. He found it difficult to articulate his feelings.

“According to you, the real identity of Lin Zhaorong is…”

Tang Ji didn’t respond but instead silently nodded, his eyes holding an undeniable affirmation.

After all the investigations, it came to such a conclusion.

“Don’t tell Sisi about this for now; I’ll tell her myself when the time is right.”

“There’s no need, I’ve already heard everything.”

Outside the side hall’s room door, Liu Sisi stood holding a tray with a teapot and teacups. Her face was as pale as paper, but her steps were exceptionally steady as she walked into the side hall, step by step.