Chapter 23 Persuasion

  Lin Mengyan saw He Huan and said with a fake smile: "Last time you framed me in front of my sister's husband, today you actually dare to come to my door and frame me again."

  "Whether it's a frame-up or not, everyone knows in their hearts." He Huan stared straight into Lin Mengyan's eyes.

  Lin Mengyan coldly laughed and loudly ordered: "Guards, take her away!"

  He Huan didn't struggle, allowing Lin Mengyan's maids to grab her arms from both sides. She sneered: "Miss Lin, apart from using an embroidery needle to stab people, do you have any other tricks?"

  Lin Mengyan was taken aback for a moment. She had never used this method to deal with outsiders before, how did He Huan know about it? Was it Lin Xiyue who told her? Hadn't they fallen out long ago?

  Lin Mengyan's heart was filled with vigilance, and she looked up and down to see what Huan was like. All she saw was that he was wearing a half-sleeved shirt that had been washed until it was pale white, and his dark green horse-face skirt had already lost its color. Yet even so, it couldn't hide his elegance.

  In one night, Lin Mengyan's hatred reached its peak. From young to old, everyone praised Lin Xiyue for being smart and beautiful, she was always the foil of her elder sister. Now that her elder sister had finally died, another He Huan appeared out of nowhere. Wasn't she weak and timid? How dare she provoke her three times, she must teach her a good lesson!

  Lin Mengyan suddenly became hot-headed, took big strides to stand in front of He Huan, and shouted loudly: "Today I'll teach you a good lesson on behalf of my elder sister!" Before she even finished speaking, she had already raised her right hand high up.

  He Huan took advantage of Lin Mengyan's unpreparedness, using force to pull back her right hand and grasped Lin Mengyan's wrist. She smiled and said: "Miss Lin, from the moment I knocked on the door outside, all the way through the second gate until I reached your side, guess how many people I met? If I walked in smoothly but came out covered in injuries, what would others think of you? What would Brother-in-law think?"

  "Get out, all of you." Lin Mengyan shook off He Huan's wrist with a heavy hand and said coldly: "Don't think I'm afraid of you. Let me tell you, in my eyes, you're not even as good as an ant. One foot from me can crush you to death!"

  "Miss Lin Er, I know you've tried to step on me before, but unfortunately, you didn't manage to trample me to death. Instead, you ended up with a bloody nose, didn't you?" He Huan said, taking two steps back and increasing the distance between them.

  Lin Mengyan's expression grew increasingly gloomy as she heard his words. She suppressed her voice and threatened, "Don't think you'll always be so lucky!"

  He Huan did not expect Lin Mengyan to dare to admit it with her own mouth. She became more worried about her mother and brother, only regretting that she had not exposed the true face of the second house of the Lin family in front of Shen Jinglu earlier. She silently scrutinized the flower-like girl in front of her. The 16-year-old Lin Mengyan's facial features were not unattractive, but her hypocritical smile could not conceal the chilliness in her expression.

  In the brief silence, Lin Mengyan's maid Mei Qing reported from outside the door: "Second Miss, Madam is asking for you. The elder madam knows that Miss He has arrived and ordered me to bring Miss He to see her."

  Lin Mengyan stared at He Huan, not responding to Mei Qing's words. Mei Qing continued outside the door: "Second Miss, Madam said that Eldest Young Master's wife is the aunt of the He family's cousin miss, and she's waiting for Cousin Miss right now!"

  "I know." Lin Mengyan replied loudly, then lowered her voice and said: "I know, your real purpose is to see my aunt, I'll help you achieve it, don't be too grateful to me."

  He Huan looked at the smile on Lin Mengyan's mouth and suddenly had a bad premonition. Just as Lin Mengyan said, her purpose this time was to break through the various barriers set by her past self, see her mother and brother. But Lin Mengyan's confidence made her suspect that the second house was brewing some conspiracy.

  Before long, He Huan was led by Mei Qing to the courtyard of Lin's main house. As soon as she stepped into the gate, she saw Bai Shao with her hands tied behind her back, kneeling in the center of the courtyard.

  "What happened?" He Huan asked the gatekeeper's wife.

  The old woman grasped He Huan's wrist and said in a cold voice, "Miss Biao, please follow me to see the madam."

  He Huan was pushed by his mother-in-law into the main house, where he saw Da Han's wife sitting in the main seat with a stern face. The only other person in the room was her dowry servant, Lu Da Shu.

  "Aunt." He Huan stepped forward and bowed to Mrs. Da Han.

  Dae-han slammed down the teacup in his hand and ordered Mrs. Lu to close the door, saying displeased: "Huan Yaotou, your abacus is really well-played, I almost fell for it. When did your mind become so deep?"

  "Aunt, I don't understand what you mean." Hehuan glanced at Lu Dasa with the corner of her eye. She had always been reserved about this person's character, but unfortunately, her mother liked her. Earlier, she thought that as long as she was watching, she wouldn't be able to stir up any trouble, but unexpectedly, the two words "difficult birth" ruined all her plans.

  Dahyun saw He Huan, who was not flustered or busy, and whose expression did not show a hint of tension. Her mind was even more cautious. "I already know that your grandmother went to Qing Song Guan." She stated the fact.

  "Auntie is auntie's mother, not grandmother." He Huan corrected.

  Dae-han was taken aback, and involuntarily thought of the time when she and Lin Xiyuan had earnestly advised He Huan not to acknowledge Wei as her "grandmother", let alone recognize Cao as her "stepmother". At that time, He Huan not only didn't listen but also turned around and blamed them.

  "Auntie, Auntie's mother indeed went to Qing Song Guan. I don't know if there is any misunderstanding in this."

  "Didn't you repeatedly persuade me to go to Xiyu's villa a few days ago just because it's close to Qing Song Guan, and on top of that, your uncle has a good relationship with the host of Qing Song Guan? Don't think I don't know what you're up to!" She thought about it more and got angrier, saying: "I've been thinking about our aunt-nephew relationship all along, but you, you were already calculating against your own aunt from an early age."

  He Huan hastily bowed his head to Da Han and explained in a sad tone, "Auntie, you know that Auntie Niang went to Qing Song Guan, and you should also know that at that time we didn't even know that our cousin was gone."

  Mr. Daehan's gaze involuntarily turned to Mrs. Lu. Mrs. Lu looked down at Hehuan with a slanted glance and said, "Madam, the young lady left last night, Mr. Wei left for Qing Song Guan early this morning, and Miss Biao also strongly advised you..."

  "Aunt, you should be clear that after my cousin passed away, my brother-in-law was so grief-stricken that he didn't send someone to report the death until a day later. The He and Shen families are separated by several streets, how could I have known about my cousin's passing early in the morning? Besides, aunt knows very well how grandma treats me, where can I persuade her?"

  "Madam, Master Gou has gone to Qing Song Temple. Miss Biao tried her best to please you and strongly advised you to go to Madam Gou's estate, which is indeed the truth. Madam, people's hearts are separated by a layer of skin!" Lu Da Shu knelt down at the feet of Madame Han.

  "It's all right, don't say anything more." Mr. Da Han scolded in a loud voice, closing his eyes and gently rubbing his brow.

  He Huan looked at her mother, a wave of sorrow in her heart. Why did the heavens play such a huge joke on her, making her unrecognizable to her own mother and subjecting her to her mother's suspicion? Now, the one who made it difficult for her to take a step forward was not the second house of the Lin family, nor the old and weak women and children of the He family, but herself from her past life.

  Dahyun remained silent for a long time, then ordered Lu Dajie to withdraw and said to Hehuan: "Huan'er, I don't want to investigate the truth of the matter anymore. Since you listened to my advice and no longer acknowledge Cao as your stepmother, and Wei is just your aunt, after your eldest sister's 49th day, I will go discuss with your uncle's wife about arranging your marriage. I'm doing this for your mother's sake, showing a little sisterly affection. Don't worry, your dowry won't be lacking, I'll find you a good family to marry into."

  He Huan's tears welled up in her eyes. Her mother was just too kind-hearted and would easily believe others' words.

  "What's wrong, you don't want to?" Da Han furrowed his brow.

  "Aunt." He Huan bowed her head again, "I'm already seventeen years old, and with the situation at home, which good family would be willing to marry me?"

  "Don't worry about this."

  "Auntie, the person you should be worried about now is Nian Xi."

  When she heard this, Mrs. Da Han turned her face away, and a few moments of embarrassment and discomfort appeared on her face. To be honest, although she was an elder, she didn't dare to look straight at Shen Jinglin. This time, for the sake of her grandson, she gritted her teeth and negotiated with him. As a result, he treated her very well, and his words were very respectful to her, but she felt that throughout the conversation process, it was simply self-inflicted humiliation.

  He Huan saw the expression on Da Han's face and immediately understood that she had underestimated her mother's reverence for Shen Jinglun. She turned to ask: "Aunt, have you asked Lu Dajie how she knew that Auntie had gone to Qing Song Guan?"

  Dahyun's eyes widened slightly in surprise.

  He Huan continued, "Auntie, you just saw it yourself, Mei Qing personally escorted me here. Also, do you think Lin Er is willing to meet me? The days ahead are long, aren't you worried about your nephew?"

  "You don't have to be so alarmist here." So said Da Han, but the second branch of the Lin family had once tried to harm her son in secret, and she had every reason to worry.

  He Huan ventured to the Lin family, fearing that Er Fang would hastily harm her brother. "Aunt, since Brother-in-law chose Qing Song Guan to hold a Buddhist ritual for Eldest Sister, if your body permits it, why not take Brother along to recite more scriptures for Eldest Sister?" As she spoke, He Huan raised her right hand and swore to heaven: "Aunt, I promise you that as long as Brother-in-law is at Qing Song Guan, I will not set foot in the temple half a step." After saying this, she took out a letter she had written early that morning and handed it to Da Han Shi, saying: "This is a letter I wrote to Aunt, telling her that I am unable to visit her."