Chapter 305 - 303: The Inside Story (Part 2)

Chapter 305: Chapter 303: The Inside Story (Part 2)

He took another sip of water, smacked his lips, and said with some regret, "Back then, after our parents spent a nerve-wracking half-month hiding at a farmer’s house outside the city, no one came from the Lin family. They didn’t dare ask around, so they just quickly took me and the second brother and headed back to our old home. At the time, Mom and Dad didn’t think too much of it. They were still wholeheartedly hoping someone from that Lin family would show up. But five or six years passed in a flash with no news. By then, the second brother and I were getting older, and it was time for me to be given a proper name. That’s when Dad looked at the second brother and got an idea.

"Maybe it was because he’d spent so much time with our family, but the second brother started looking more and more like one of us. He actually had a proper name originally. But in the beginning, because they were afraid those people would come looking for him, Mom and Dad just called us ’Eldest’ and ’Second.’ They always told him they were his parents and never revealed his true origins. Later, when it was time for me to get a proper name, Dad thought about it. ’There are two kids, and the second one doesn’t even resemble his real parents. He looks more like one of ours. If we just swapped him and me, probably no one would ever know...’"

Hearing this, how could Shi Xiuhua not understand? But while her mind grasped the situation, she still asked in disbelief, "You said the second brother originally had a proper name. Could it be... that his original name was your current one?"

"Mhm, that’s right." Lin Ding wrung his hands and sighed. "I found out the truth back then. It was also around that time that my parents intentionally started making the second brother serve me like a servant, all to cultivate in me the bearing of a wealthy family’s child. It’s a shame that after all these years, no one from that Lin family ever came looking. They probably didn’t escape back then and were all wiped out. Otherwise, I might have already replaced the second brother and become the real young master of the Lin family... To this day, my parents are filled with regret. They say they were too timid; otherwise, they should have gone back to look. Maybe they could have gotten their hands on a piece of the Lin family’s fortune. Even a little more and our family wouldn’t be in the state it’s in today."

"So you’re saying those old heirlooms Mom and Dad have weren’t actually left by Grandpa’s side of the family? They were all left for him by the old madam of that Lin family? But that’s what I find strange. Since the Lin family’s old madam could arrange for our parents to be safe, why didn’t she just take her own people and hide?" Shi Xiuhua asked, managing to sort through her jumbled thoughts.

"That’s what you don’t understand. ’Humans die for wealth; birds die for food.’ That Lin family was huge, with a vast fortune. In that situation, if the old madam had really taken people and fled, she couldn’t have taken many of the family assets with her on short notice. Plus, if she really left, it wouldn’t have been easy to hide her tracks. And besides, where would it be safer than the Lin estate? You have no idea what Mom and Dad said back then. Describing the Lin family’s home as being as solid as a fortress wouldn’t be an exaggeration." Lin Ding rolled his eyes and shot Shi Xiuhua a disdainful look. ’He remembered what his father had just said: ’A woman’s hair is long, but her insight is short.’ It really was true.’

"...I don’t know about all that. All I know is that no matter how sturdy they built their house, in the end, it was like throwing a meat bun at a dog—a complete waste. In that case, it would have been better to just abandon the wealth and hide from the start. As long as you’re alive, what’s there to be afraid of if you lose a little money?" Shi Xiuhua muttered under her breath.

"That’s because you’ve never seen that kind of money. You think it was just a small amount that could be casually abandoned?" Lin Ding couldn’t be bothered to explain much more to Shi Xiuhua, but at the same time, he couldn’t resist the urge to confide in her. He had been bottling these words up for so many years with no one to tell, and it was agonizing. Now that he finally had someone to talk to, how could he hold back?

He thought for a moment, then added, "You saw the jewelry, small yellow fish, gold leaves, and silver coins Mom and Dad had when the family property was divided. Did you think that was a lot?"

"A lot. Of course it was a lot! I’ve never in my life seen so many treasures piled up together. It’s a pity that even without the second brother getting a share, your mom still went and had two more brothers for you. Ugh, why have so many kids?" Shi Xiuhua’s eyes lit up just thinking about those heaps of dazzling Gold that could blind a person, all sorts of jewelry, and the silver coins. She sighed with regret. ’It would have been so great if all of that was ours. Why on earth did my hateful in-laws have to have so many children?’

Lin Ding’s expression darkened a little as well, but he pressed his lips together and said nothing. After a moment of sighing, Shi Xiuhua’s spirits revived, and she stared at Lin Ding with bright, hopeful eyes. "Do you think... Mom and Dad might still have more things hidden away?"

Lin Ding nodded. "Of course they do. I’m not afraid to tell you. Mom and Dad have at least half that amount left. They said that as the eldest son, according to the old ways, my inheritance should have been two or three times more than my brothers’. But things are different now. This is the New Society; who still follows the old customs? So they can’t openly give it all to me, lest they cause friction between the brothers."

"New Society, Old Society, who cares? If you ask me, some of the good old rules should be preserved..." Upon hearing this, Shi Xiuhua was both secretly delighted and annoyed. "But I guess what Mom and Dad are worried about makes sense. Still, I just think it would be so much better if they gave us the things now. I can’t feel at ease when the stuff isn’t in my own hands." She grew anxious, fretting over the potential loss. "I’m just worried... what if something unexpected happens?"

"It won’t. I know where they hide everything." Lin Ding was confident about this, and a smile touched his lips. ’His parents still doted on him the most. No matter how many other children they had, he was still the one they cared about most, the most favored one in the family. The thought brought him a great sense of comfort.’ "Did you forget? When the property was divided, didn’t we sign a document stating that everything Mom and Dad leave behind will be ours?"

"Right! How could I forget?" Shi Xiuhua slapped her thigh, finally feeling reassured.

Lin Ding continued, "Mom and Dad aren’t wrong, though. They need to keep some things for themselves to feel secure. Actually, they have another idea in mind. What if, one day, someone from that Lin family really does show up? Dad has another angle: if I’m successfully acknowledged by the Lin family, then with even a small portion of their wealth... a single hair from that would be thicker than our waists are now. By then, I wouldn’t even care about the things they’ve saved, so they might as well leave it for my two younger brothers. But if no one from that Lin family ever comes, then after our parents pass away, everything they have left will be mine."

"Why should they get it? Even if someone from that Lin family comes and takes you back, what’s ours should still be ours! Why is Dad still thinking about letting the other two split it?"