Mai Qi stopped.

Lu Yan’s breathing quickened.

I had a feeling I knew what was coming.

Mai Qi revealed her usual haughty smile before she continued, “This issue persisted for 2 years and everything slowly calmed. People forgot about it even though Miss Ye’s condition had worsened over time. She rarely appeared before the public. It was because whenever she saw someone similar to her daughter’s age, she would run forward to grab the girl and refuse to let go.

“Therefore, the Gu Family locked her up. However, since the Ye Family is a powerful family, the Gu Family doesn’t dare to do more than that. Furthermore, this was a scandal for both families. Eventually, someone came up with a solution, they would find a girl to impersonate the missing daughter and tell Miss Ye that her daughter had been found. However, while Miss Ye was crazy, she was not dumb. She would push the girls out of her bedroom the next day, saying that they were not her daughter.

“The maids who were tasked to do this dirty work were sent into prisons by the Gu Family and the Ye Family with various excuses so that this would remain under wraps. Eventually, a maid came home with a girl. The maid said the girl was actually Miss Ye’s daughter. Strangely enough, Miss Ye did take to the girl.

“The Gu Family invited a master to look through the girl’s fate and destiny. Apparently, the girl’s life force was not strong enough to sustain the surname Gu so she was forced to take her mother’s surname, Ye. The girl was adopted by Miss Ye’s brother and officially joined the Ye Family. Miss Ye didn’t mind this at all, as long as her daughter could be with her. Since her daughter was back, Miss Ye cherished her even more. She fed, bathed, taught, and did everything for the girl personally. Miss Ye didn’t trust any of the maids.

“Just like that, Miss Ye’s conditions slowly recovered and the girl with the unique background became a special presence at the Gu Family and the Ye Family. Thankfully, the girl knew how to play her cards. Even though she was not that pretty, she was very clever. She had high IQ and EQ. When she was eighteen, she interned as Master Gu Er’s secretary, she was valued by Master Gu Er. After she came back from overseas, she stayed with Master Gu Er, and that girl is Ye Qian.”

Mai Qi and I turned to Lu Yan.

Lu Yan stared blankly, her eyes losing focus.

We sat there a long time… until the tea was cold.

I poured the tea down the tray and picked up the teapot to refill their cups. The sound of the cups knocking against each other startled Lu Yan. Her face was pale.

None of us spoke. Lu Yan reached for the cup but her hands shook so badly that she could barely hold the cup. I reached out to grab her hands. “Lu Yan.” Her hands were so cold.

Lu Yan looked at me and smiled faintly.

Lu Yan was actually a very pretty girl. She was elegant and pure. But living under constant pressure had made her extremely timid. She didn’t even dare to look people in the eye so it was easy for others to overlook her beauty.

Her smile was like a flower fluttering in the spring rain, there was a poignant sadness in it.

“Nanxing, so she was not beaten, scolded, or bullied, yes? That is what Mai Qi meant, right?” Lu Yan’s tears fell on the back of my hands.

I looked at Mai Qi.

Mai Qi turned her head away. The princess didn’t know how to console people.

I nodded at Lu Yan and said gently, “Lu Yan, she was not beaten or tortured. She was well-cared for, so you don’t need to blame yourself. Forgive yourself. This is not your fault.”

I couldn’t continue. After all, perhaps the truth was not as I imagined? What knew what happened behind closed doors.