The concubine watched her trusted subordinate depart, her heart breaking as she wept. Even though she knew this was the only way to ensure her child’s survival, the thought of parting with her child forever was unbearable for a mother.
Wei Wensong also felt a pang of sorrow, but he wished to leave a bloodline behind in this world. None of his other sons were suitable; only this newborn son was the most appropriate.
As the figure of his subordinate disappeared into the darkness, Wei Wensong let out a sigh of relief. He looked at the child’s cradle, his mind churning. Now that the child had been sent away, the most pressing matter was to provide a reason for his disappearance. He had once held a grand full moon celebration for this child, and Ling Luoyi would surely know about it. She must have no doubts about the child’s disappearance, otherwise, the matter would be exposed.
With this thought, Wei Wensong looked at the still-crying concubine, a cruel glint flashing in his eyes.
The next morning, news spread throughout Yun Yuan City that Wei Wensong’s most favored concubine and his infant son, only three months old, had perished in a fire.
Some gossips managed to pry the details of the incident from the Wei family’s servants.
It turned out that while everyone in the Wei mansion was asleep in the middle of the night, a fire suddenly broke out in the concubine’s room. Due to the suddenness of the event and the fact that the concubine’s courtyard was a bit secluded as she was caring for the child, the fire was not discovered immediately.
By the time the Wei mansion servants saw it, the fire had already grown quite large. After the servants managed to extinguish the fire, it had been nearly an hour. Upon entering the room, which was almost completely destroyed, they found the charred remains of a young woman who had recently given birth and the body of a three-month-old infant.
Both had been burned to charcoal and were unrecognizable. However, with these two distinguishing features, and only the concubine and the young master fitting the description within the Wei mansion, there was no need for further investigation. It was indeed those two.
They speculated that the young master had woken up crying in the middle of the night, and since the concubine and the young master slept in the same room, the concubine was woken up. When she lit a candle to check, the candle accidentally ignited the room, thus causing the conflagration.
Although there were suspicions about the concubine and the young master sleeping together, Wei Wensong used the excuse that he was considerate of his concubine and couldn’t bear to separate mother and son, so he allowed her to take the young master with her. Others did not pursue their suspicions further, only feeling pity for the child.
This news also reached the Ling family. Ling Luoyi was speaking with Ling Huayu and others when she heard the news. Upon hearing it, Ling Huayu and the others couldn’t help but show expressions of regret.
Although it was Wei Wensong’s child, at only three months old, he had done nothing. Despite the irreconcilable hatred they held for the Wei family, they couldn’t help but feel a pang of sorrow at the death of such a young child.
Seeing that Ling Luoyi’s expression remained unchanged, Ling Huayu sighed and said, "Luo’er, don’t think we are being overly compassionate. It is truly a pity that such a young child died like this."
"Grandfather, what are you thinking?" Ling Luoyi said softly, "It is indeed a pity for such a young child to die. You are both fathers and mothers, and hearing this news, even if it is from an enemy family, it is hard not to be moved."
Ling Huayu sighed again and said, "Luo’er, let’s not dwell on this. How do you plan to deal with the Wei family’s affairs?"
"Ah? Oh." Ling Luoyi smiled faintly, "Grandfather, the Wei family is not my enemy alone, but the enemy of the entire Ling family. How to deal with them must be decided by everyone. Grandfather, what are your thoughts?"
The Ling family could finally get revenge. Ling Huayu sighed and said, "In my opinion, I do not wish to exterminate the entire Wei clan. The Wei clan has tens of thousands of people, among whom are the innocent and the kind. If all of them were to be exterminated, it would be difficult to avoid the charge of indiscriminate killing."
Ling Luoyi smiled without comment and then looked at the others, asking, "What are the thoughts of you uncles and aunts?"
Those who were addressed exchanged glances. Ling Qi said, "Luo’er, your grandfather is right. The Ling family only wants revenge, not to kill the innocent."
"Yes."
The others chimed in agreement.
Ling Luoyi looked at them and finally smiled, saying, "Grandfather, since this is the Ling family’s matter, please make the decision yourself. We will do as you wish."
Seeing Ling Luoyi's understanding, Ling Huayu breathed a sigh of relief. He had been worried that Ling Luoyi might be angry. Exhaling a breath, Ling Huayu said, "Luo’er, the Ling family has more than just the Wei family as enemies. I do not want to let go of the families who participated back then! However, I also do not want to harm the innocent, but I fear letting the tiger return to the mountain."
At this point, Ling Huayu and the others couldn't help but worry.
Ling Luoyi said with disdain, "Grandfather, they are not tigers, at most they are cats."
Upon hearing this, they were stunned, not expecting Ling Luoyi to say that.
Ling Luoyi looked at them. It was understandable for them to have such thoughts. The Ling family was kind-hearted but also knew where to apply their kindness. They could not let their enemies go, yet they did not want to implicate the innocent, and they feared letting the tiger return to the mountain. This contradictory psychological state had troubled them for days, but there was no perfect solution.
After thinking for a moment, Ling Luoyi said, "Grandfather, if you do not wish to implicate the innocent, then leave the innocent to me."
They were slightly surprised, not knowing what Ling Luoyi intended to do, but they agreed.
Ling Luoyi smiled with satisfaction and said, "Grandfather, revenge should be a family affair, so this matter should be told to Elder Brother and the others."
"Grandfather knows about this. When they enter the small world tonight, Grandfather will inform them."
With the teleportation talismans in their sea of consciousness, Ling Luochen and the others could enter the small world at any time. Ling Luochen and the others lived together at the Ancient Spirit Academy, so they would enter the small world together after returning to their dormitories, not fearing being discovered by others. Therefore, for the past month, Ling Luochen and the others had been sleeping in their residences in the small world at night.
"Good." Ling Luoyi stood up, bowed to them, and said, "Grandfather, you continue with your business. I will return now."
"Good."
Ling Luoyi returned to Qing Yin Pavilion, recalling the news from the Wei family. It was riddled with flaws!
Since she was Wei Wensong’s most favored concubine, why did she live so remotely? Even if she had to care for the young master, didn’t Wei Wensong arrange for others to help? Even if the concubine had a low status and few maids, what about the young master’s wet nurse? Did Wei Wensong, who doted on this youngest son so much, not have secret guards watching over him? The fire definitely did not start slowly, otherwise, it would have been discovered long ago. It must be that something in the room had accelerated the combustion.
It seemed that Wei Wensong was indeed in a hurry, implementing such a flawed plan.
Even with this explanation full of loopholes, outsiders had no choice but to believe it. Although the Wei family was not as influential as before, it was still a prominent family. As a prominent family, it was not short of dirty dealings. How many times had these prominent families handled matters this way? How many families had dealt with them this way? Having seen it so often, the common people did not dwell on it and continued with their lives.
Although this incident seemed no different from the past, Ling Luoyi knew that this time it was different. Wei Wensong was desperate. He knew the Wei family could not escape, so he wanted to leave a bloodline, even if that child would never know the truth.
Unfortunately, his movements last night were too conspicuous and were discovered, thus dooming him to disappointment.