Chapter 139: The True and False Eldest Daughter
i Chen rushed in and pulled Xiao Yu Ge to her side. For the first time in her life, she spoke seriously to her little emperor uncle: "Little Uncle, Ge'er is my future Crown Princess, please respect yo...Mrs. Xiao held onto Xiaotao's hand tightly, her gaze fixed on the face before her. Although it was etched with the marks of time and differed from the memory she held, she recognized it at once. It was Lan Aunt, the one who had delivered her baby and taken her daughter away all those years ago!
Because Aunt Lan's red burn scar on her face would not fade with time.
"Aunt Lan, it's really you! It's really you!" If not for Xiao Tao's support, Madam Xiao would have probably fainted from excitement.
"Master, Madam..." Lan Yi knelt on the ground, weeping silently.
"Aunt Lan, my grandfather saved you back then, and I have treated you well. But why did you steal my newborn daughter Why" Even now, Mrs. Xiao couldn't understand. Back then, Aunt Lan, who seemed so honest and trustworthy, stole her daughter.
Auntie Lan, upon hearing this, suddenly burst into a sorrowful smile, her voice filled with both hate and guilt: "Because I want revenge. Revenge for my in-laws, my husband, and my son!"
"When you first entered this household, didn't you say that your husband and son were both gone" Madam Xiao looked puzzled.
“Yes! They are gone, but they were all killed by the old master!” Even after more than ten years, the hatred in her heart seemed not to have faded with the passage of time: “You drove the bandits to our village back then and allowed them to kill so many innocent people. My father-in-law and mother-in-law died, my husband, my son, they all died, leaving only me alive. I was supposed to follow them, but you saved me instead. I don't thank you, every day of my life is worse than death......”
"Are you from Huai Village" Xiao Zhan was astonished.
Back then, he was ordered to suppress bandits. As a result, cunning bandits were cornered and broke into Huai Village. However, he was afraid of causing harm and didn't dare to forcefully attack the village. Unexpectedly, those bandits actually carried out arson, murder, and looting in the village, killing many innocent villagers. Although he eventually executed the bandits on the spot, he also brought devastating damage to Huai Village. For this, he once deeply regretted and felt guilty.
So, when he saved Aunt Lan at the village entrance, he immediately took her home, never thinking that it would bring him so much trouble, almost costing his daughter her life.
"Master, you and your wife have been very kind to me. However, every time I see you, I am reminded of my deceased loved ones. Every night, I hear their ghostly cries in my ears, making it impossible for me to sleep or eat. Therefore, I have decided to seek revenge. I want you to experience the pain of losing loved ones as well..."
At this point, Auntie Lan started coughing uncontrollably. Her whole body trembled like dry leaves in the wind. She finally managed to stop, “I’ve been hiding amongst you all, and finally, the opportunity arrived. The master’s wife was giving birth, and I, being the midwife, knew she would give birth soon. So I deliberately sent the maids away, telling them to fetch the master and another midwife. But just as they left, the mistress gave birth to the young lady, cough, cough…”
Before she could finish her sentence, she started coughing violently again.
Xiao Yu Ge watched her frown secretly, what did Ye Big Brother give her How could it make her cough non-stop Looking at her like that, she was really afraid that she would cough and suffocate.
"Where is that young lady Where's the miss" Mrs. Xiao anxiously pursued, although she had confirmed Ge'er's identity back then with the swaddling clothes and the longevity lock, she still wanted to confirm it with her own ears.
“While my mistress was in a coma, I quietly took the young lady out through the back door. I didn't dare to stay and made it all the way out of the city back to Huai Village. I thought there I would strangle the young lady and use her blood to appease my deceased relatives. However, just as I was about to do it, the young lady cried...”
"Then, what did you do to her" Madam Xiao trembled with excitement, eager to know the truth immediately.
Even the spectators on the sidelines were on edge, but Xiao Yu Ge remained calm. After all, she had already known this plot in her past life; this time, she was the director of this play, just bringing it forward a bit.
Aunt Lan continued, "I still couldn't bear to hurt the little girl, but I also didn't want to send her back to the Xiao family. So, I thought about abandoning her in that abandoned temple. But when I arrived at the Sannpo Temple, I unexpectedly found a woman lying there, barely clinging to life. In her arms was a tiny baby..."
Xiao Yu Ge heard this and finally showed some emotion on her face. She wanted to know what had happened to the woman afterward.
The woman, her hands stained with blood, grabbed me and pulled a jade pendant from her bosom, placing it behind the baby's swaddle. Then she shoved the child into my arms. When I looked back at her, she seemed to be dead. I was terrified and ran for a long time with both children until I calmed down. Only then did I open the baby's swaddle to find another girl. Just then, I heard my master and his men approaching. I knew I couldn't escape with two children, but I wasn't willing to just give them back. So, I quickly swapped the swaddles of both children and exchanged their identifying lockets and jade pendants...
"What did you say You switched them"
Everyone was shocked and looked at Xiao Yuge and Xiao Yufu in unison.
"Could it be that Miss Xiao is the legitimate daughter of the Xiao family"
"Probably, let's hear it first..."
"How do I know that what you're saying now isn't lying to us" Xiao Zhan also found it unbelievable, and it was obvious that he was very excited.
"My lady, do you still remember what you saw before you fell into a coma when the young mistress was born"
Mrs. Xiao thought for a moment and said, “Before I fell unconscious that year, I seemed to see a red mark on the child. At the time, I asked you about it, but you said it was bloodstains...”
“Actually, that wasn't bloodstains, but a birthmark. The real Miss had a red birthmark on the sole of her left foot!”
"What A red birthmark I have one on the sole of my left foot!" At this, Xiao Yufu stood up in shock. She had never imagined that she was actually the true eldest daughter of the Xiao family.
Everyone was astonished and turned to look at her. Upon closer inspection, they realized that Xiao Yufu's features bore a striking resemblance to both Mrs. Xiao and Xiao Zhan. Previously, as an adopted daughter, they had attributed this similarity to fate, but they never expected such a convoluted truth to lie beneath the surface.
However, Xiao Zhan and his wife couldn't accept this. Looking at Xiao Yuge's tears, they felt immense pain. In their hearts, they had always regarded Xiao Yuge as their proud daughter. Now, according to Lan Yi, Xiao Yufu was their biological daughter. They couldn't accept that their daughter was actually the cunning Xiao Yufu. both you and the Emperor are the Empress Dowager's biological sons. But I heard that the Empress Dowager hasn't seen you in all these years, only the Emperor. Did you do something to disappoint her"...