A few days later, a group arrived in town with little fanfare, heading straight for Wu Caiwei's residence upon entering.
The leader was an old woman in her late forties or early fifties. As soon as she saw Wu Caiwei, she scrutinized her with a critical gaze. Wu Caiwei met her gaze fearlessly. If she guessed correctly, this was Zhang Dahai's birth mother. The woman surely believed Wu Caiwei was not worthy of her son. Even though Zhang Dahai was raised by her, she expected him to be with her, especially since she had never raised him and therefore had no right to speak.
Zhang Dahai emerged from behind, and upon seeing the situation, he quickly stepped in front of Wu Caiwei, blocking the woman's gaze, and asked unpleasantly, "May I ask whom you are looking for?"
Seeing his reproaching eyes, Madam Lin felt a pang of sadness. After all, this was likely her son, and before he had even entered her household, he was already defending someone else. If he were to enter, what place would there be for her?
However, no matter how unhappy she was, she restrained her temper in front of this son whom she had lost and found, and said as calmly as possible, "I believe you are aware of my purpose, otherwise you would not have said those things at the Zhang family's home."
"To be honest, I'm not sure, I just have some suspicions. And the reason I said those things wasn't because I wanted to be part of an official family. It was mainly out of imbalance. They were all so heartless, to have ruined our family to this extent and then turn around to enjoy their lives. It's jealousy at play," Zhang Dahai said truthfully, feeling there was no need to hide his thoughts.
As soon as he spoke, Madam Lin's favorable impression of him immediately improved. Although she thought no farmer's son would refuse the status of an official's son, she believed what he said later. She felt he was either very cunning or very sincere, and at the very least, not overly clever.
Soon, the Zhang family also arrived. The moment Zhang mother saw Madam Lin, she immediately knelt on the ground and kowtowed respectfully, "This old servant greets Madam."
Madam Lin looked down at her from her superior position, slowly sipping her tea, deliberately not allowing her to rise. After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, she said lazily, "The reason I entrusted the child to you back then was primarily because the Lin family had encountered misfortune. I thought none of us would survive, so I gave you a lot of silver and told you and your family to take my child and leave, at least to leave a descendant for our Lin family. Fortunately, we suffered greatly back then, but we all survived. Ten years later, the imperial court overturned the verdict. By the time we looked for the child, we couldn't find you. Time passes so quickly. In the blink of an eye, over thirty years have passed. I never expected we would live to meet again."
Listening to Madam Lin's laments, Zhang mother trembled all over, cold sweat streaming down her face. She had a strong feeling that what she had done had been discovered.
"I'm giving you one last chance. Tell me, which one is truly my son, or are none of them here?" After her lament, Madam Lin looked at her sternly.
Zhang mother was terrified by Madam's gaze. She desperately wanted to tell the truth, but she thought about how she had treated Zhang Dahai, his wife, and his daughter over the years. She felt that even if she told the truth, Madam would not let her off. She could only grit her teeth, close her eyes, and commit to her deception, "The third one is indeed the young master, and the second one is my son."
Upon hearing this, Madam Lin quickly gestured to the old women beside her. The old women approached Lin Dajiang and Zhang Dahai and respectfully said, "Please, both young masters, reveal your arms."
The two men looked bewildered and hesitated for a moment before complying. The嬷嬷 personally stepped forward to examine them. Lin Dajiang's arm, near his shoulder, had a large, dark birthmark. Zhang Dahai's arm, however, was clean.
Had she been mistaken? Just as Zhang mother said, was he truly her son? But she had directly told him that was not the case.
Madam Lin favored Zhang Dahai more than the two. The moment Lin Dajiang entered, his eyes held greediness and jealousy. He masked it well, but Madam Lin was no ordinary person. How could she not see it? On the other hand, Zhang Dahai was very composed. Even though things weren't developing as he expected, he remained humble and dignified. He would surely be someone of consequence in the future.
What a pity. After a while, she said to Lin Dajiang, "We will depart from here tomorrow."
Lin Dajiang's face immediately lit up with surprise and joy. Madam Lin inwardly shook her head. He was too simple, truly a man raised in the countryside, he couldn't even mask his expression.
Zhang mother secretly breathed a sigh of relief. As her composure returned, she felt her back sticking uncomfortably; her clothes had become damp with sweat without her realizing it.
"Wait, something feels wrong." Wu Caiwei had remained silent from the beginning of the matter until now because the moment she saw the birthmark, she knew something was amiss. She had been contemplating what was wrong and finally figured it out. She walked to Zhang Dahai's side and carefully examined the area where the birthmark should be, and indeed, she found something unusual. She then went to Lin Dajiang's side and yanked up his sleeve. It was Lin Dajiang's first time encountering such a fierce woman. He quickly tried to cover his sleeve, but it was too late. Wu Caiwei firmly grasped his arm and, ignoring his struggles, examined it closely.
"How dare you, woman? You are to become his sister-in-law, how can you disregard the boundaries between men and women?" Zhang mother exclaimed anxiously.
Wu Caiwei looked at her meaningfully, "Why are you so nervous? Are you afraid I'll see something amiss? It's too late. As expected, when it's not your own child, the blows are heavy."
Upon hearing this, Madam Lin shot up from her seat, "What did you discover?"
"On the surface, Lin Dajiang has the birthmark, and Zhang Dahai's arm is unmarked. But if you look closely, you'll see that he was once injured there. It was just that he was very young at the time, and it healed quickly. However, the person who inflicted the wound was very heavy-handed, so much so that even after decades, traces can still be seen upon close inspection. As for Lin Dajiang's arm, it's dirt that's accumulated over years of not washing, deliberately shaped to resemble a birthmark. At first glance, the two form a stark contrast, easily making people overlook the difference from an actual birthmark."
Madam Lin, upon hearing this, immediately ordered the guards behind her to take Lin Dajiang away for a wash. She then rushed to Zhang Dahai's side and examined the place where the birthmark should be. Indeed, there were traces of an old injury there. She couldn't imagine how much suffering he must have endured over the years if Wu Caiwei's words were true.
Soon, Lin Dajiang was brought back. His arm was clean, and there was no birthmark. Madam Lin looked at Zhang Dahai with heartache and then at Zhang mother with hatred, "I thought I treated you well. I gave you thousands of taels of silver back then, and this is how you repay me?"