Rebirth: The Time-locked Girl
Chapter 387 Buried Secrets [1 Update]

Chapter 387: 387 Buried Secrets [1 Update]

She still didn’t believe it. With her biological mother right in front of her, Ye Wanlan still managed to act as if she knew nothing and avoided her.

"..."

With those words, the entire Lin Family Old House fell into silence.

Lin Weilan reigned in her smile, her gaze swept toward Old Madam Kang with icy coldness.

Even though she had been expelled from the main family, more than forty years ago, she had been one of the most outstanding core disciples of the Yunjing Lin Family.

Old Madam Kang, a commoner born in the inner residence, naturally couldn’t withstand Lin Weilan’s piercing gaze.

She couldn’t help but take a few steps back, her heart pounding with fear.

How could a branch member of the Lin Family possess such an imposing aura?!

Lin Weilan coldly said, "Those unrelated, leave the Lin Family."

"Look at what you’re saying, how can they be unrelated?" Old Master Kang also walked in, "Qingxian and Mufeng have been away for business and have only just returned on the last day of the year, of course, we had to bring them to meet the children."

Ye Wanlan slowly lifted her head and met the gaze of Zhu Qingxian, who stood at the doorway.

For the first time, an emotion named "astonishment" appeared on Zhu Qingxian’s usually calm and composed face, her expression nearly shattering.

She hadn’t expected to meet here...

By contrast, Ye Wanlan’s expression was much steadier, her brows and eyes still faintly indifferent.

The two indeed had similarities.

Although Zhu Qingxian was over forty, she looked not even thirty. Standing opposite Ye Wanlan, she seemed not like a mother, but more like an older sister.

But Ye Wanlan looked more like Lin Jiayan; her features were sharper, and between her brows, there lurked a hint of fierceness, a sharp and piercing beauty.

Zhu Qingxian stood frozen, her complexion turning pale in an instant.

A few seconds later, she finally came back to her senses, turned her head, and left without a word.

Old Madam Kang shouted angrily, "Stop her! Her daughter is right in front of her eyes, what does it mean for a mother to run away like this?"

But with Kang Mufeng present, the bodyguards didn’t dare to truly stop Zhu Qingxian.

"Sorry, sorry, Old Madam, we truly apologize for today," Kang Mufeng bowed to Lin Weilan, "We’ll be leaving now, sorry for the disturbance."

Lin Weilan stared at his face, feeling she had seen Kang Mufeng somewhere before.

But she was getting older, and her health was not what it used to be; her memory had been getting worse over the years.

Kang Mufeng forcefully left the Lin Family Old House with Old Madam Kang and Old Master Kang.

"Mom, you’ve gone too far!" Kang Mufeng reproached, "If you wanted to come to the Lin Family, why didn’t you say so earlier?"

"Say it earlier?" Upon hearing this, Old Madam Kang sneered, "If I had told you earlier, would you have followed?"

Old Master Kang’s expression was also very unsightly, "Mufeng, you haven’t left any offspring, and your mother and I have already conceded, but now that we have such an outstanding daughter, why not bring her back? Do you think the Jiangcheng Lin Family is the Yunjing Lin Family?"

"Dad, Mom, this is impossible," Kang Mufeng insisted firmly, "Don’t waste your efforts, Qingxian and I will not agree."

He didn’t linger with them, quickly chasing after Zhu Qingxian.

Zhu Qingxian was fast, and in a matter of minutes, she had already reached the artificial lake ahead.

"Qingxian, I didn’t expect either that mom and dad would suddenly take us to the Lin Family," Kang Mufeng sighed, "Otherwise, we should tell..."

"Absolutely not." Zhu Qingxian turned her head sharply, her voice trembling, "It’s not the right time yet, our mission is not over, if we can’t hold on at this moment, all our efforts will be in vain."

Kang Mufeng fell silent, lowering his head to look at his hands.

They had been working on this for a very long time; indeed, they could not fail now.

"But..." Kang Mufeng spoke softly, "But she seems to have a great misunderstanding about you, and the Lin Family also..."

Zhu Qingxian had already regained her former calmness, saying lightly, "Hatred lasts longer than love, if possible, let her hate me forever."

In this era, there always needed to be a sinner to bear the infamy.

She had nothing, being that sinner was more than appropriate.

Kang Mufeng moved his lips but, in the end, said nothing, merely patting Zhu Qingxian’s shoulder, "There will be a day when the clouds part and we see the moon clear."

After a long silence, Zhu Qingxian finally spoke, "I see Old Madam’s health seems to be getting worse, when we go on a mission next time, we should find some medicine in the sea."

"Old Madam Lin..." Kang Mufeng looked a bit somber, "Even with medicine, I’m afraid she won’t last much longer."

That Lin Weilan had lived until now after being seriously injured over forty years ago was already a miracle.

But no matter what, as the ones responsible for guarding this secret and mission, they would continue to protect it.

**

In the dining room of the Lin Family Old House, the atmosphere was momentarily congealed.

"Ah Lan, your favorite sweet and sour pork ribs, don’t just stand there, eat." Lin Woyu called out, "Tonight is New Year’s Eve, and we’re allowing the of-age kids to have a drink."

Lin Wenli looked at the small cup of wine in front of her with some trepidation, "Mom, do you think I will collapse after one drink, just like dad?"

"No," Khor Peiqing said, "Because I can hold my liquor."

Hearing this, Lin Wenli finished her drink with confidence and indeed didn’t feel anything off.

Lin Huaijin touched his head and tentatively spoke, "Peiqing, I think—"

Khor Peiqing turned her head, her face expressionless as she looked at him, "You think you can fly?"

Lin Huaijin: "..."

He didn’t want to, he shut up.

Aside from Lin Huaijin’s ignorance, this meal left many with mixed feelings.

After the meal, Ye Wanlan went up to the terrace and leaned against the railing to watch the stars.

Footsteps approached, and a coat was draped over her.

"Are you troubled by today’s unexpected events?" Yan Tingfeng stood beside her, "If there’s something bothering you, you can talk to me."

Ye Wanlan looked up at the sky, her voice faint, "Ever since I was conscious, I truly never saw my father; she was the only person by my side."

Even as someone reincarnated with memories, due to the physical weakness inherent in infants, she could not defy her body’s innate reactions.

At least within the first three days after birth, her consciousness was not fully awake.

And when she finally opened her eyes to see the world clearly, the first person she saw was Zhu Qingxian.

At that time, they weren’t in Jiangcheng but in a small city deep within the mainland of Shenzhou.

Afterward, Zhu Qingxian took her from city to city, never staying longer than three months in each.

Her memory was deep, and in just five years, they had moved through more than twenty small cities.

In the end, Zhu Qingxian disappeared one morning, and she was left at the doorstep of an orphanage.

The director, seeing her as an orphan, kindly took her in.

She did not refuse to stay at the orphanage and started school at the legal age, keeping a low profile, until Lin Huaijin found her and brought her back.

Ye Wanlan’s eyes subtly shifted as she muttered, "It’s as if she was hiding from some flood or beast..."

This was something she had not considered before.

After all, she had been abandoned by Zhu Qingxian, and her heart had certainly grown cold.

Being constantly on the move meant either a lack of financial resources or that one place couldn’t be stayed in for long.

But before the age of five, she was well cared for, and Zhu Qingxian had never mistreated her.

So, it could only be the latter.

Ye Wanlan’s eyelashes dropped.

But then, what was she hiding from?

If her guess was accurate, could this matter be related to her father?

"Perhaps she had her reasons, but Xiao Wan, you were indeed hurt," Yan Tingfeng smiled slightly, "So, you don’t have to take all the responsibility upon yourself."

Ye Wanlan sighed softly, "I’m just very curious about what happened all those years ago..."

Was Lin Jiayan alive or dead?

If alive, where could he be?

Ye Wanlan shook her head, "Let’s go back, uncle will be worried otherwise."

After descending from the top floor, Lin Huaijin indeed looked at her anxiously, "Ah Lan, are you alright?"

"Uncle, I’m fine."

"Ah Lan, don’t bother with that Kang Family," Lin Huaijin said furiously, "And your mother, since she abandoned you and remarried, she has nothing to do with us anymore!"

If he hadn’t searched far and wide to find Ye Wanlan, who knew how much longer she would have wandered.

Watching Ye Wanlan become more and more outstanding, the Kang Family was now approaching, wanting to reap the fruits of her successes alone—a notion without a chance!

"Uncle, don’t worry, I won’t leave the Lin Family," Ye Wanlan smiled, "I was born in the Lin Family, and naturally, I will always be part of the Lin Family."

"Don’t worry, neither uncle nor your grandmother will let the Kang Family take you away," Lin Huaijin scoffed, "They should have looked for you years ago if they truly cared."

"Alright, uncle," Ye Wanlan’s eyebrows lifted, "There are fireworks later, let’s go watch them."

Lin Huaijin’s eyes twinkled with joy, "Alright, I’ll go call your brother."

As the new year arrived with the ringing of the bell, Jiangcheng was ablaze with lights, the sound of fireworks and firecrackers unceasing.

When Ye Wanlan went to sleep, it was already three in the morning.

After a full twelve hours of sleep, she fully recovered her vitality.

"Miss Wanlan, you’re awake," Steward Lin smiled, "Young Master Wenli and Miss Qinqin took Old Madam out for a walk, they’ll be back soon."

Ye Wanlan nodded, "Don’t worry about me, I’ll go out for a walk too."

The second wave of unexpected visitors arrived at that moment.

It was a very young girl, around Ye Wanlan’s age.

"So you are Ye Wanlan, the daughter of my great-aunt?" The girl looked Ye Wanlan up and down with a slightly condescending tone, "I’m here to tell you, even if my grandparents came specially to find you, you should not covet what doesn’t belong to you. Your dad died, your mom doesn’t want you, and the Kang Family isn’t a place for taking in orphans."