The Lucky Heiress

He Miaomiao had yet to comprehend the severity of the issue. Her sole concern was to quickly placate the Wei family’s anger, so she continued to plead:

“Lord Wei, Madam Wei, it’s not that we were fabricating things. If you don’t believe us, you can send another trusted person to Huzhou Prefecture for verification. That fortune teller is still hale and hearty! My parents really didn’t do this intentionally!”

Lady He also hurriedly piggybacked on her daughter’s explanation: “Exactly, I mean, I didn’t know that the baby got switched then. Who could bear to see their own flesh and blood suffer? We really had no other choice! Even though we sent her to the countryside at a very young age, we did not ill-treat her. We provided her with five taels of silver monthly allowance! Plus, she also had her nurse and a maid to take care of her. We’re not an affluent family, so five taels of silver was substantial support for us!”

Wei Qingwan’s face visibly paled. At this moment, she wished the He family would just shut up.

But she was helpless, considering that anything she might say right now could make the situation worse.

The more excuses the He family made, the worse the countenances of Wei Mingting and Lady Yun became.

Wei Mingting rose abruptly, anger pulsating through him as he seized the sword hanging on the wall behind him.

On seeing this, the He family was completely petrified.

They had never witnessed such a scene before! Lord Wei had killed countless men during his military career!

“Lord Wei, please calm down! Lord Wei, please calm down”

Each member of the He family was on their knees, begging for mercy.

Wei Mingting, the thought of his daughter sent away to the countryside at the tender age of three, gripped his sword even tighter.

Lady Yun still had her wits about her. She stepped forward to mediate: “My Lord, do not…”

Even though the He family was hateful, if her husband were to kill them right here, he could face the penalty of the government office.

Even a commander-in-chief like him has no legal right to execute civilians within his home.

Wei Mingting pointed his sword at the He couple: “I do not want to ever set eyes upon you again! Leave this residence immediately!”

“Yes, yes…”

The He family of three swiftly picked themselves up. Stumblingly, they made a run for it, fearing that their lives would be lost if they delayed any further.’

After the He family had left, Wei Mingting put his sword away.

Lady Yun advanced, her expression filled with anxiety as she called to him, “My Lord.”

Wei Mingting spoke in a grave tone, “To think of how much suffering and pain Ruoruo had to go through these years… If it wasn’t for Jinyi going to Huzhou Prefecture to study, we’d still be kept in the dark by the He family.”

Lady Yun was equally tormented. Their own flesh and blood had been treated so horridly by the He family, and they were deceived into oblivion about it.

Lady Yun expressed her discomfort,”Why wouldn’t Ruoruo tell us about any of this?”

Wei Mingting responded with a tone of self-reproach, “It must have been our inability to gain her trust, leading her to refrain from addressing the matter with us.”

Lady Yun lowered her gaze. Something seemed lodged in her chest, making her feel breathless.

Immediately, Lady Yun’s gaze flickered towards Wei Qingwan on the side, and the words uttered by the He family earlier flooded her mind.

If what the He family said was true, then their own Wanwan was the child that the fortune teller had predicted would bring death upon her parents!

Upon realizing that Lady Yun was looking at her, Wei Qingwan nervously lifted her head: “Mother…”

“You should return to Wangmei Garden now.” Lady Yun spoke to Wei Qingwan.

Her mind was in a whirl right now and she didn’t know what to say to Wanwan.

“Mother…” Wei Qingwan looked at Lady Yun reluctantly.

“Go now. Your father and I have a few things to discuss,” Lady Yun instructed.

“Yes, I will take my leave.”

Wei Qingwan took heavy steps, her heart aching as she exited the room.

Upon returning to Wangmei Garden, Wei Qingwan broke down into tears.

Curse the He family! What on earth were they doing in Xingshan County?

It was one thing to persistently torment her, but now they had started a rumor that she was an ominous omen to her parents’ lives.

What if her parents believed them and distanced themselves from her, or worse, expelled her from the family, fearing that her existence could lead to their deaths?

###

Wei Ruo had received the news from the military prefecture even before her return to Xingshan County.

Jing Hu was the one who brought her the news. Wei Ruo of course knew that he was doing this not for her sake but for her second brother.

Her second brother had played a crucial role in the smooth execution of this plan. Not only did Wei Ruo use his name to reveal her story of being sent to the countryside at three by the He family, but she also used his name to convince the He family that the Wei family needed something from them, hence the invitation.

After reading the letter, Xiumei threw her head back and roared with laughter: “Hahaha, this will surely disconcert the He family and the second Miss! How I wish I could have seen their faces when they were being threatened by Master with his sword. It must have been hilarious!”

After reveling in her joy for a while, Xiumei asked Wei Ruo, “Miss, how could the He patriarch and his lady be so audacious? Given their past mistreatment of you, how dare they step foot in the military prefecture? If it weren’t for the law against murder, our Master would probably have cut them down on the spot!”

Wei Ruo explained, “At the start, when I was taken back by the Wei family, they were likely anxious, worrying that I might reveal their mistreatment to the Wei family. However, there was no way they could prevent it, since I was immediately taken away by the Wei family, leaving no chance for an encounter. As time passed, with no repercussions from the Wei family, plus the recent invitation to gather medicinal herbs, they probably felt that there was nothing to worry about.”

In the original narrative, the original character, driven by her longing for familial affection, had begged for a meeting with the He family before being taken away by the Wei family.

It was during that encounter that the He family, with their fraudulent expressions of familial affection, managed to deceive her into believing they cared for her. Convinced, she willingly aided them in concealing their deeds.

Later on, the He family consistently schemed to profit from the original character by having her plead to Wei Mingting for assistance on their behalf. Their ploys succeeded, with the deceived original character fulfilling all their requests.

This time though, Wei Ruo did not give them the opportunity to manipulate her. Instead, she directly exposed their manipulative nature to the Wei family, exacting a measure of revenge for the original character.

While she initially planned to exact her revenge after gaining a more secure footing within the family, she thinks there’s no harm in collecting a little ‘interest’ for now.

Xiumei asked another question: “Miss, do you think the Master and Madam will believe that ominous prediction?”

Wei Ruo replied, “I have no way of knowing that. My father, I reckon, may not buy into such superstitions. As for my mother, I can’t speak for her.

Regardless, Wei Qingwan is probably not having an easy time right now. This ordeal should keep her preoccupied for a while.”

This matter was never disclosed to the Wei family in the original book, so Wei Ruo had no idea what their attitudes toward it might be, whether they too, like the He family, would shun her like a deadly plague.

Xiumei, brimming with joy, declared, “I hope she has no time to bother you, Miss, from now on! Also, here’s hoping the Master’s heart aches for your past suffering, Miss, after this revelation!”

Wei Ruo smiled softly. She wasn’t holding out hope for that.

“Alright, don’t let them bother us anymore; how are Aqing’s practices going?” Inquired Wei Ruo..