Chapter 509: Chapter 509: Truly Unbelievable

"Hurry up and go."

Lian Hengruo knew that her eldest sister-in-law was cunning, and she absolutely couldn’t let her spoil this opportunity, so she took control and instructed the maids and older women in her own courtyard to tie people up.

Gu Ruinian tightly shut his eyes, and Xu Zaohua lay face down, unmoving.

"Oh my, the clothes on that female thief look so familiar? They seem like Sister Zao Hua’s clothes. Quickly turn her over and see if it’s Sister Zao Hua." Gu Taohua, afraid the old woman couldn’t do it, stepped forward and lifted Xu Zaohua.

Xu Zaohua closed her eyes.

Wishing at this moment that the mountain would collapse and bury everyone in this room.

It was too humiliating.

The crowd saw Xu Zaohua’s face clearly and exclaimed. The usually composed ladies couldn’t hush their cries of surprise.

"It really is Sister Zao Hua. How could Sister Zao Hua be a thief? People in our village all said that after marrying into the Zheng Family, Sister Zao Hua would have endless silk and jewelry to wear. Why would she come to the lady’s room to steal?" Gu Taohua raised her head, her cheeks flushed with a pair of innocent big eyes full of naiveté.

Several ladies looked at Tong Huaqiong, realizing that the daughter of the owner of Jufu Supermarket was just too naive. This wasn’t about stealing things; it was stealing people.

The eldest young madam of the Zheng Family sneaking around with someone from the Lian Family; what kind of trick was this? 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

Everyone truly lived to see such a spectacle.

In an instant, the ladies unleashed their wild imaginations.

Could it be that the Eldest Young Madam Zheng took a fancy to a servant from the Lian Family and sneaked over during the birthday banquet for a secret tryst?

Where would be the safest place to meet within the Lian Family? Naturally, it would be in Mrs. Hua’s room.

Actually, that possibility wasn’t small. The Lian and Zheng families were discussing marriage, so the Eldest Young Madam Zheng hooking up with a servant from the Lian Family was quite natural.

In the rumors, the Eldest Young Madam Zheng already had a history. It was said her son wasn’t the posthumous child of Mr. Zheng, but the offspring of a servant from her household.

But upon reflection, how did this get connected to the second young master of the Lian Family?

How could there be such a fuss that the second young master’s head ended up with a hole?

If it were said the second young master was upholding family honor by seeking justice because a household servant had an affair with the Eldest Young Madam Zheng, it wouldn’t add up, as he was involved in his own scandals and unlikely to care about others’ affairs.

No matter how much they speculated, they couldn’t come up with a reasonable conclusion, and most of the ladies found their minds as overtaxed as Mrs. Hua’s.

Since they couldn’t figure it out, they decided to wait for the truth to unfold. After all, it wasn’t their own drama but the Lian family’s drama, which made it even more exciting to watch.

The more astute ladies, such as Mrs. Han, who was sharper than a sieve, already speculated that the second young master of the Lian Family and the Eldest Young Madam Zheng were working together against Lian Hengruo.

How malicious.

Perhaps the whole thing was orchestrated by Mrs. Hua and her son.

She had heard that since the second young miss of the Lian Family was too competent and unwilling to marry the waste from the Zheng Family, the mother and son might have conspired to force the second young miss to marry into the Zheng Family.

The presence of the Eldest Young Madam Zheng here was proof.

But in doing so, they shot themselves in the foot.

Serves them right!

Mrs. Han glanced at the ground, mistakenly identifying Gu Ruinian as the Second Young Master of the Zheng Family, as she wasn’t familiar with him.

Tsk tsk tsk, a widow and her brother-in-law—how scandalous would that sound if spread?

She had even sympathized with the Eldest Young Madam Zheng for raising her child alone without remarrying, planning to help erect a memorial arch to honor and protect her and her child.

If that arch were indeed established, wouldn’t it slap her son’s face and even drag her, as a widow, into scandalous rumors?

Tong Huaqiong noticed Mrs. Han secretly glancing coldly at Mrs. Hua.

"Sister Zao Hua, wake up. I saw you open your eyes just now. Why did you close them again? I don’t believe you stole anything. Explain to the madams that you didn’t steal anything. You’re living such a good life; how could you possibly steal?"

Gu Taohua shook Xu Zaohua vigorously.

Xu Zaohua kept her eyes tightly shut, her face swollen and painful from Gu Taohua’s slaps.

She hated Gu Taohua for trying to wake her when she desperately wanted to pretend to be an ostrich.

How did things turn into such a mess?

She had clearly mixed an entire nail’s worth of drugs into the wine, and she’d seen with her own eyes that Gu Taohua drank that cup. How could it be that when they got inside, Gu Taohua suddenly burst out in strength, and she didn’t even have time to react before she was slapped to the ground?

Where did it all go wrong?

"Is it really the Eldest Young Madam Zheng? Might there be a mistake?" one lady whispered. This kind-hearted madam was meeting the Eldest Young Madam Zheng for the first time today and hadn’t paid attention to her specific appearance at the banquet. She feared mistaking someone else and tarnishing the reputation of a widow.

"It’s definitely the Eldest Young Madam Zheng." Gu Taohua said, "Sister Zao Hua and I grew up together. There’s no mistake."

"It really is the Eldest Young Madam Zheng," Mrs. Han spoke, her tone icy.

The County Magistrate’s mother had already confirmed it was the Eldest Young Madam Zheng, so who would dare claim otherwise?

Besides, most of the ladies had seen the Eldest Young Madam Zheng before. Her face was swollen but not disfigured, and she could still be recognized. Not to mention, the red gold hairpin on her head was her trademark, worn everywhere, and now it sat loosely on her head.

Mrs. Tang, the eldest daughter-in-law of Mrs. Hua, was anxious.

She couldn’t understand how the Eldest Young Madam Zheng ended up sneaking around in her mother-in-law’s bedroom.

She had a feeling it wasn’t that simple.

"Eldest Young Madam Zheng, why are you here?" As Mrs. Hua had a mental lapse, Mrs. Tang braced herself to speak up, not allowing the situation to spiral further.

Xu Zaohua remained silent, feigning death with her eyes closed.

Mrs. Hua shouted for someone to tie up the Eldest Young Madam Zheng.

Regardless of whose young mistress she was, she would have to be punished for daring to harm her son.

The maids and older women moved to tie Xu Zaohua but were stopped by Mrs. Tang’s gaze.

Everyone was looking at Xu Zaohua, inexplicably overlooking Gu Ruinian on the side.

Gu Ruinian attempted to crawl away discreetly.

But was pinned down by Gu Taohua’s foot.

"Madam, there’s another thief here," Gu Taohua said.

All eyes shifted from Gu Taohua to Gu Ruinian.

This person looked unfamiliar.

Most people mistook him for a servant from the Lian Family.

Mrs. Tang, familiar with the family’s servants, immediately knew he was an outsider. Her heart skipped, recognizing this man was brought by the second young master to deal with his young aunt, though she didn’t understand why he got entangled with the Eldest Young Madam Zheng.

She couldn’t fathom why every time trouble aimed at her young aunt, she could always emerge unscathed.

She shot a meaningful glance at Gu Taohua; even the daughter of Jufu Supermarket helped her young aunt.

What a charm her young aunt had.

Gu Taohua, seeing everyone’s eyes on Gu Ruinian, covered his exposed legs with clothes on the ground.

The corners of everyone’s mouths twitched.

"Who is this guy daring to come into my room as a thief?" Mrs. Hua was furious.

Like Xu Zaohua, Gu Ruinian kept his eyes closed, feigning death.

It’s over. It’s all over.

Will the Lian Family kill him?

Tong Huaqiong exclaimed, "Oh my, isn’t that my brother-in-law’s son, Rui Nian? His face is so swollen I couldn’t recognize him."

Upon hearing Tong Huaqiong’s exclamation, Gu Taohua took a closer look and shouted, "It’s Rui Nian, it’s really Rui Nian. Oh, Rui Nian, why are you here?"

Tong Huaqiong intentionally announced it.

Gu Ruinian being her nephew was a confirmed fact. Even if she didn’t mention it now, this connection couldn’t be concealed later. To prevent everyone from thinking she was in cahoots with Rui Nian, announcing it herself allowed her to distance herself from the situation.