Chapter 443 - 385: Until Death
Chapter 443: Chapter 385: Until Death
The resentment was suffocating. ’It wasn’t fair! Why should Fang Qinglan get to be so healthy and young while I just grow old?’
’Fang Qinglan is Manman’s paternal grandmother, but I, Lin Aizhen, am her maternal grandmother! Manman has youth-restoring secret recipes and powerful medicines, and she only lets the Tang Family enjoy them, not the Wu Family. It’s unfair!’
This was why she insisted on dragging Wu Xiaowen along, relentlessly and frequently seeking out Manman. That girl had clearly lucked out and found an expert, learning incredible medical skills. She knew all sorts of secret recipes and had a collection of rare herbs. ’Just look at how she’s nursed Tang Renqian and Fang Qinglan back to such vibrant health! I’m her maternal grandmother, for crying out loud. I don’t care what it takes—even if I have to force her—she has to treat me the same. She has to prescribe a few treatments to get me back in shape and restore my health. And if I end up looking ten-odd years younger, all the better!’
Lin Aizhen closed her eyes, her mind drifting. Images of Tang Renqian and Fang Qinglan surfaced—their full heads of thick, black hair, their faces smooth and rosy without a single age spot. More than a decade ago, Fang Qinglan’s figure had already grown plump and lost its shape. Now, in her late sixties, her waist had miraculously slimmed back to the slender grace of her youth. Her hands were alabaster-white and delicate, so supple they looked as if they would release water with a gentle pinch.
More importantly, the couple was bursting with energy and radiated vitality, their movements light and agile. Tang Renqian practiced his boxing, leaping and bounding high into the air like a young man. Fang Qinglan could move four or five flowerpots at once without even catching her breath. And those weren’t just any pots; they were heavy, blue-and-white porcelain, each weighing at least a dozen pounds. She would just casually bend down, scoop one up, and walk off without a moment’s hesitation. Lin Aizhen would never dare to even attempt such a thing.
Even though they had been sent to the countryside, Lin Aizhen and Wu Yu Xuan had never really done any heavy or dirty labor, thanks to their son-in-law Tang Qingshan looking out for them. The couple was usually assigned light tasks like patrolling the wheat fields or irrigation channels, watching a few cows, or cutting some pig feed. As a result, she had never developed a strong constitution and had little physical strength. Besides, she was getting on in years, with all sorts of aches and pains. Her bones were brittle and weak; most days, she found even a basket of groceries too heavy to carry. How could she ever move a flowerpot weighing more than ten pounds as effortlessly as Fang Qinglan?
Even if she could struggle to lift one or two, she wouldn’t dare try. She was afraid she’d break a bone, or that the exertion would leave her so breathless she’d go into cardiac arrest and couldn’t be revived.
She had no intention of dying anytime soon.
Fang Qinglan had been so sick she was on the verge of death. Yet, in just three or four years, she had not only recovered but had also nursed her body into such incredible condition. Lin Aizhen would never admit it aloud, but in her heart, she had to believe her own eyes: Fang Qinglan, a woman in her late sixties, looked like she was in her forties, still possessing a mature charm and a pleasant, graceful beauty.
Tang Renqian was just as vigorous and full of life, worlds better than her own husband, Wu Yu Xuan, who was constantly coughing and wheezing, his complexion ashen and his figure gaunt. And Wu Yu Xuan was several years younger than Tang Renqian!
’At this rate, with that couple getting healthier and younger by the day, Tang Renqian could easily hold on to his high position for another ten or twenty years if he wanted to. And with that tigress Fang Qinglan dominating the Tang family and controlling everything, Wu Xiaowen won’t stand a chance!’
Lin Aizhen’s eyes narrowed as layers of hatred and resentment churned within her, impossible to quell. ’Is this damned fate toying with me? If it was going to give my daughter the chance to marry into the Tang family, then things should have gone according to my plan! She should have gotten a firm hold on her husband and seized control of the Tang family. She should have taken all their assets, everything Fang Qinglan prided herself on, and put it all under a new name—Wu or Lin, it doesn’t matter! Just take every last scrap, leaving the Tang family with nothing. Best of all would be for their family line to die out. Now *that* would be satisfying!’
’Do they really think I, Lin Aizhen, was ever eager to become their in-law? Over a decade ago, when I first plotted for my daughter to get close to Tang Qingyun, I already had countless schemes in mind. All I’ve ever wanted was for the day to come when I can grind the Tang family’s reputation—and Fang Qinglan’s face—into the dirt to avenge the grudges of the past!’
’Tang Renqian, that cold-hearted, fickle man, trifled with my devotion. And Fang Qinglan, that vicious, domineering woman, cruelly murdered my only brother...’ Even in her dreams, Lin Aizhen cursed them to a miserable end.
As for Tang Renqian’s detestable old mother, the one who had utterly humiliated her, Lin Aizhen wished she could grind her bones to dust and scatter the ashes, even if she was already a ghost.
Whenever she woke in the dead of night, unable to fall back asleep, Lin Aizhen would often sigh with regret. ’Fang Qinglan was so clearly on death’s door. The moment she breathed her last, the Tang family would have fallen into my daughter Xiao Wen’s hands, and my wish would have been more than halfway fulfilled! The rest could have been done slowly, step by step, until the Tang family was wrapped around our fingers and dismantled piece by piece. Even if Fang Qinglan got so angry she clawed her way out of the grave, she wouldn’t have been able to do a thing to me, Lin Aizhen!’
The mere thought of that scene was enough to make her giddy with delight!
Unfortunately, Tang Manman had ruined everything.
Lin Aizhen could hardly say she liked this granddaughter of hers. At first, she’d felt a sliver of pity for the girl since Xiao Wen had abandoned her; she was her grandchild, after all. But then she had to stand by and watch as Tang Manman cured Fang Qinglan, who then triumphantly suppressed Wu Xiaowen. And because Tang Manman held a grudge and refused to forgive them, Tang Qingyun and Wu Xiaowen were even thrown out of the Tang Mansion. At that point, Lin Aizhen’s feelings went beyond mere dislike; she grew to detest the girl. She now deeply understood why Wu Xiaowen would rather raise Xuanxuan, who wasn’t even related by blood, than take back her own biological daughter, Manman. ’This isn’t a daughter,’ she thought, ’she’s an enemy sent to torment us!’
With Fang Qinglan guarding the Tang family, Wu Xiaowen couldn’t even get a foot in the door. Tang Qingyun’s career was stalled, and who knew if or when he’d ever get a promotion. It wasn’t just Wu Xiaowen who had lost faith in him; Lin Aizhen no longer had any confidence in her son-in-law either.
She turned a blind eye, letting her daughter rekindle her old flame with the young man from the Bai Family. The Bai Family’s power had been restored, and this young man was right there, granting Wu Xiaowen’s every wish. He was even quick to help with the Wu Family’s affairs, making him far more useful than Tang Qingyun. It was no wonder Xiao Wen couldn’t forget him. ’Now *that’s* how you treat the woman you love—with attentiveness, gentleness, and care. He leaves Tang Qingyun in the dust!’
Lin Aizhen had given her daughters a very traditional upbringing. She had certainly never taught them to be unfaithful wives. But the Tang family had pushed them too far. Lin Aizhen felt her daughter had suffered enough and been suppressed for too long. There was no need for her to hold back anymore; she should just live however she pleased. Besides, the Tang Family would never find out.
’And so what if they did find out? Would they dare make a fuss about it? Heh. Not unless the Tang family wants to throw their reputation in the gutter!’
In the Tang family today, Fang Qinglan stood guard like a hawk. Tang Qingshan, the perennial bachelor, had finally bloomed and gotten married, so now there was an eldest daughter-in-law in the picture. The powerless Tang Qingyun had been completely marginalized. It would be incredibly difficult for Xiao Wen to seize control of the Tang family. As much as Lin Aizhen hated it, as resentful as she was, she had no choice but to accept this reality.
But she would never admit defeat. ’My daughter was married to Tang Qingyun for over a decade. She gave the Tang family children; she contributed through both achievement and toil. The Tang family’s eldest grandson and eldest granddaughter are both hers! My daughter is entitled to a share of the Tang family fortune.’ Lin Aizhen was resolved. ’On that basis alone, I have every right to go toe-to-toe with Fang Qinglan! If I can’t piss her off to death, I’ll make her life a living hell. I’ll make sure she never knows a moment of peace!’
But to do that, she first had to get ahold of Manman and get those recipes for curing illness and restoring the body. She had to get herself back into shape, back to full health. ’If Fang Qinglan can keep getting younger and younger, why can’t I?’
’I’ll be damned if I don’t fight Fang Qinglan to the bitter end in this life!’
Lin Aizhen and Wu Xiaowen rested for nearly half an hour. After exchanging a few words, the mother and daughter stood up, walked to the side of the road to hail a taxi, and headed for Kyoto University.
If Manman wouldn’t listen, they would just go to Tang Haocheng. As long as Wu Xiaowen cried enough, she could usually win him over. And if Tang Haocheng was the one to ask, Manman would listen to her younger brother, nine times out of ten.