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Author's Note:
One more chapter to come
Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 23:47:32 on March 23, 2022 and 04:12:19 on March 25, 2022!
Thank you to the little angel who watered the nutrient solution: 55157345 (1 bottle);
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 64
Xin Wenwen was soon woken up from her room by Aunt Zhang.
Xin Wenwen came downstairs dressed in all black. Xin Hailan noticed that her recently dyed light brown hair had turned pure black this morning.
When the housekeeper saw her come downstairs, he quickly asked, "Miss Wenwen, would you like me to prepare something to eat?"
Xin Wenwen waved her hand: "No need, eating is not as important as sleeping. I'll lie down on the sofa and sleep for a while. You can call me later."
The housekeeper nodded, and Xin Wenwen, still sleepy-eyed, walked straight to the living room. Seeing Xin Hailan sitting there, she nodded and greeted her, "Are you up?"
Xin Hailan nodded and hummed in agreement.
Finally able to rest for a day, Xin Wenwen stayed up until the early hours of the morning last night. Completely sleepy, she didn't notice Xin Hailan's watchful gaze. Xin Wenwen simply leaned back on the sofa, closed her eyes, and went to sleep.
Xin Hailan looked at her for a while, then reminded her, "Your hair color has faded."
Xin Wenwen sat up abruptly, turned around and looked at the large black stain she had smeared on the sofa, then sighed with a bitter face, "My dad's going to yell at me again!"
Xin Hailan asked curiously, "Why are you using disposable hair dye spray today?"
Xin Wenwen reached out to touch her hair, but then realized there was black residue from the spray she had just applied. She paused, withdrew her hand, and said, "Didn't you know?"
Xin Hailan shook her head, her face full of confusion.
Xin Wenwen's expression changed several times. After hesitating for a while, she said, "Today is the anniversary of my fifth uncle's death."
Xin Hailan's expression froze, she was stunned.
Xin Wenwen looked hesitant: "You really don't know?"
Xin Hailan shook her head.
Xin Wenwen continued, "Do you know anything about Fifth Uncle?"
Xin Hailan shook her head again.
Xin Wenwen opened her lips as if to say something, but all the words stuck in her throat. She didn't know how to bring these things up.
After a long pause, Xin Wenwen sighed, "No wonder you dared to chat with your aunt. I thought you were so bold as to directly offend your aunt to her face."
After sighing, Xin Wenwen looked at the blank expression on Xin Hailan's face and realized she had revealed too much. She quickly stood up and said, "I'll go upstairs first."
Xin Wenwen jogged away, afraid that Xin Hailan would ask her about her fifth uncle.
Having received so much information from Xin Wenwen, Xin Hailan vaguely felt that something had happened between her fifth uncle and her parents.
A bad feeling slowly rose in her heart.
Today, family members and other caregivers and housekeepers were very busy, constantly running upstairs.
Xin Hailan sat in the living room, and no one came to see her. She felt very out of place.
She suddenly didn't want to sit in the living room anymore and quickly went back to her room.
In the room, Xin Hailan changed into a black outfit and sat quietly waiting.
Upstairs, Xin Wenwen and Xin Hailan finished their conversation and ran upstairs. She gently knocked on her grandfather's door, and a few seconds later, the door was opened from the inside. Xin Sinan glanced at her and said, "Little brat, go out and play for a while before you come back."
Xin Wenwen said "Oh" and ran downstairs again. This time, Xin Hailan, who was originally downstairs, was gone.
Upstairs, in Xin Guangjin's room, Xin Guangjin and Dai Jiaozhi sat on armchairs, with Xin Boliang and Xin Sinan sitting on either side. The group remained silent throughout the room.
The grandfather clock inside ticked away as everyone waited for the time of the memorial service to arrive.
After a long silence, the old lady said, "Let Hailan pay her respects today as well."
For a moment, no one spoke. Xin Si Nan was in a daze when he heard this. He was a beat late and said, "Good heavens, today I'll see if my fifth brother can be angered to the point of resurrection."
"you!"
"You brat!"
What are you saying!
These words immediately drew angry stares from the other three people in the room.
Xin Si Nan shrugged and said nothing more.
There was a knock on the door, and the butler came over to remind them. The previously somber room fell silent as everyone got up and went outside.
After Xin Ying was found, her physical condition was poor, but her mental condition was also poor.
To soothe her emotions, and also to comfort her sixth brother, Xin Guangjin didn't want these events to escalate and cause the family to completely break apart. After Xin Ting'an passed away and was buried in Hong Kong, Xin Guangjin established a rule that no other members of the Xin family were allowed to go to pay their respects on the anniversary of Xin Ting'an's death each year; that day was reserved for the two siblings.
For more than fourteen years, no one has disturbed Xin Ting'an on the anniversary of his death each year. Those in Hong Kong will pay their respects the day before or the day after. In addition, every winter solstice, Xin Guangjin will lead everyone to Hong Kong to pay their respects.
Xin Ying went to Hong Kong today, but the rest of them will not forget this day. There is a special small room in the house with photos of the Xin family members who have passed away one after another, for everyone to come and pay their respects.
The offering table and sacrificial items were already prepared by the steward and Aunt Zhang, and everyone entered the room one after another.
Xin Wenwen was called upstairs again. After entering the room, her expression became serious and solemn as she earnestly offered incense to her fifth uncle.
Xin Hailan sat in the room for a long time, but no one came to look for her. It was as if the people in her family had forgotten that she existed.
Finally, there was a knock on the door, and the housekeeper reminded her that it was almost lunchtime.
As Xin Hailan stepped out of the room, she saw her fourth uncle striding down the stairs.
Before the butler could speak, Xin Si Nan rushed out the door without looking back, saying, "I'm leaving first."
After a while, Xin Bolang accompanied Xin Guangjin downstairs.
Xin Hailan sat quietly in the restaurant, her head down and not uttering a sound.
She felt completely out of place. Everyone else seemed to be part of a whole; they were a family who had come all over the country to do the same thing, while she could only stay in her room, ignored by everyone.
Xin Wenwen sat next to Xin Hailan, eating her lunch and looking at the silent Xin Hailan with some surprise.
In the past, Xin Hailan was always in high spirits at meals and was very enthusiastic towards her grandparents. But today, she was unusually silent.
Does she already know what happened between her fifth uncle and her parents?
After having lunch at home, Xin Boliang went upstairs to the study with Old Master Xin.
After finishing lunch, Xin Wenwen was about to go back to her room to remove the disposable black spray from her head when she saw Xin Hailan suddenly appear.
Xin Hailan stood at Xin Wenwen's door, blocking her from entering. Xin Wenwen tilted her head and looked at her with a puzzled expression.
Xin Hailan stared at her intently for a long while before asking, "Did you pay respects to your fifth uncle today?"
Xin Wenwen nodded.
Xin Hailan pursed her lips. Xin Wenwen looked her up and down, then suddenly asked, "Why did you suddenly return to China? Did my third uncle send you back?"
Xin Hailan said directly, "My father hasn't been home for so many years, and he wants me to go home on his behalf to see my grandparents."
After saying that, Xin Hailan continued to ask, "Why have you always been distant from me? It's not just you, it's my uncle and my third uncle too."
Xin Wenwen stared at her for a while, then slowly said, "You should ask your parents. You're thirteen years old now, you understand everything. Your grandfather could keep your third uncle from returning to China for more than ten years, you should be able to guess the seriousness of what happened back then."
"I wasn't even born back then. What happened back then?"
Xin Wenwen shook her head, wanting to open the door and go in, when Xin Hailan's voice rang out again: "Is it related to your aunt?"
Xin Wenwen didn't say anything and went into the room without looking back.
Xin Wenwen had just returned to her room when her phone rang.
Seeing the caller ID name on the screen, Xin Wenwen's heart skipped a beat, thinking that her aunt had found out about what she had said behind her back.
At this time, Xin Ying had already paid her respects to Xin Ting'an at the Hong Kong Cemetery and was on her way back to the mainland.
She came to ask Xin Wenwen for Chen Lu's phone number, but Xin Wenwen couldn't find out why her aunt wanted Chen Lu's number. Finally, she reluctantly suggested that Chen Lu contact her aunt and tell her everything they had talked about.
After Xin Wenwen finished explaining these things to Chen Lu, she received a message on her phone from her friend in Hong Kong.
Because Xin Bolang spent most of his time in Hong Kong, and Xin Wenwen grew up in Hong Kong, she didn't return to the mainland until she was a teenager.
She has many friends in Hong Kong, and they have kept in touch over the years.
This friend from Hong Kong sent her a photo and asked if it was her sister-in-law and her wife.
The photo was very blurry, but it was clear that the two people in the photo were talking face to face. Xin Wenwen knew her aunt very well, so she could tell that one of the people was her aunt, but she didn't know the other person at all, and she was sure that this person was not Lin Leyao.
Xin Wenwen frowned and edited a message asking, "Where was this photo taken?"
“Ah K took this photo at the cemetery today.”
The Xin family won't be at the cemetery on this day, so who is the woman next to the aunt?
Xin Wenwen didn't even have time to deal with the disposable hairspray on her head before she hurriedly pushed open the door and ran out.
She had just run to the study door when Xin Boliang finished talking with Old Master Xin and came out of the room.
Xin Boliang asked, "Why are you standing at the door?"
Xin Wenwen handed him her phone and asked, "Dad, who is this woman next to Aunt? She was also at the cemetery today."
When Xin Boliang saw the photo on his phone, his expression changed instantly. His face showed a complex mix of emotions, which he quickly suppressed.
Xin Boliang remained silent and returned the phone to Xin Wenwen.
Upon hearing the words "cemetery," Old Master Xin immediately came out of the study. He spotted the photo on his phone and recognized the woman in it. His expression instantly darkened.
Upon seeing the old man's expression, Xin Boliang immediately called out, "Dad."
Xin Boliang then turned to Xin Wenwen and instructed her, "Go back to your room first."
Before Xin Wenwen could speak, the study door in front of her was slammed shut.
Xin Wenwen did not leave as instructed, but instead pressed her face against the door of the study, trying hard to eavesdrop on their conversation.