Wei Xin'er's Past

  "Xin'er's older sister, why are you following the old lady?"

  Wei Xiner's smile changed to a bitter expression when Qing Luan asked her this: "Qing Luan, although we call each other sisters now, but in reality, we are just distant relatives who can't be considered close family. When Old Lady Feng went down to the countryside, there were many Wei surname relatives on that side of the old mansion. When the main Old Lady of the Weiyuan Marquis's manor came, it caused a stir, and many relatives sent their daughters or granddaughters in, all in hopes of entering the Old Lady's good graces."

  "But my parents were unwilling, they thought that even if our family was poor, we didn't have to send our own daughter in to serve others." Wei Xiner seemed to be lost in her memories, a faint warmth appearing on her face. "My father and mother only had me and my sister, although there was no son to inherit the incense, but as long as our family of four had clothes to wear and food to eat, we were very happy. At that time I was only four years old, and my memories of that time are already a bit vague. My sister is eleven years older than me, and she's quite pretty."

  "If she were a young lady from the Wei Yuan Marquis's household, such looks would naturally bring her boundless honor and glory. However, since she was born into our family, those looks only brought disaster. In my fifth year, sister was taken a liking to by the county magistrate, who was old enough to be her grandfather but relied on his power to bully others, and forcibly took her away. Father went to demand her return, but was beaten up, and came back without three days passing before he left."

  Qing Luan gazed at the person sitting across from her, she had never thought that Wei Xin Er would have such a past, yet the tragic story in her mouth was still ongoing.

  "After my father's funeral, my mother took me to find the old lady. She brought me to kneel in front of the old lady's door for three days. At that time, the old lady did not know about our family matters and was forced to take me in reluctantly. My mother entrusted me to the old lady and went to the county alone, where she found my sister and told her about father's death. My sister then became the thirteenth concubine of the county magistrate, but on their wedding night, my sister and mother conspired to kill the county magistrate to avenge my father's death. However, they were also beaten to death with sticks. After the news arrived, the old lady finally learned about these events and used her connections to clear up the matter, even clearing my sister's and mother's names. But in the end, they were still gone. From then on, the old lady personally raised me, and this time she brought me back to the capital because she was worried that I would be bullied in the countryside."

  Qing Luan somewhat regretted her words and actions, all coming to an end. That kind of courage wasn't something everyone had. She thought back to that big fire, the scorching pain of being engulfed in flames. If there was no other choice, who would choose a dead-end path?

  "Xin'er's older sister, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked." The wound was reopened and it hurt so much. A hint of regret flashed in Qing Luan's eyes.

  "It doesn't matter, those things are all in the past." Wei Xiner smiled at Qing Luan, and for some reason, she felt especially close to this cousin at this moment.

  Just as she was speaking, the carriage suddenly stopped. Qing Luan's face flashed with a hint of confusion - it shouldn't be time to arrive at You Ran Mountain Villa yet. She lifted the curtain and saw that another carriage had stopped in front of theirs, its wheel apparently broken. Several people were standing beside the carriage, and when Qing Luan caught sight of one figure, her blood surged with anger. That silhouette she would never forget - Bai Shuangshuang, the woman she had dragged into the fire.