Of course, although Nie Manyu looked younger than her peers, because she always compared herself to a woman she disliked, Nie Manyu would naturally grit her teeth in hatred whenever that woman was better than her.
The reason Nie Manyu was so eager to please Lin Xingwan was that Lin Xingwan had given her a beauty pill.
In fact, dealing with these wealthy socialites was easy. Beauty, men, and luxury goods were all topics they loved to discuss.
Lin Xingwan had so many beauty pills, so naturally, these wealthy wives wanted to curry favor with her.
"What happened between them?"
At this moment, Lin Xingwan and Nie Manyu were taking a bath. They were the only two women in the spacious hot spring.
Nie Manyu leaned closer to Lin Xingwan and whispered, "Have you heard of the Helian family?"
Lin Xingwan shook her head. "No, I haven't."
Nie Manyu suddenly seemed to have opened a floodgate and began to speak. "Speaking of the Helian family, there are so many melodramatic stories. The Helian family was once a dominant force in the entire Yanjing. It is said that their ancestors were even princes. Although they later declined, the family's strength was undeniable. The Helian family had many descendants, but very few daughters. More than twenty years ago, the Helian family finally welcomed a baby girl. It is said that when this baby girl was born, auspicious clouds descended from heaven. The sky was overcast all around, but a rainbow appeared above the Helian family, illuminated by sunlight. I saw that scene back then. In today's terms, it was like the end of the world, and then golden sunlight shone down on the Helian family... Everyone who witnessed that scene said that this youngest daughter of the Helian family was extraordinary, a reincarnation of a celestial being."
Lin Xingwan looked at Nie Manyu's face, which was full of astonishment. From her expression, Lin Xingwan could fully imagine the profound impression that scene must have made on Nie Manyu.
"This youngest daughter is indeed extraordinary," Lin Xingwan agreed, feeling a bit bored in her heart.
What she really wanted to hear was about the family feuds of the Helian family back then. If she could start from there, she would definitely be able to find out why her mother ended up the way she did!
"The old master of the Helian family was so delighted that he named her Helian Lingruo. Helian Lingruo was intelligent and clever from a young age. Among her peers, we could only trail behind her. Even at a young age, Helian Lingruo possessed the ability to make people unconditionally obey her. It was as if wherever Helian Lingruo was, there was no danger. Later, Helian Lingruo went to the border with her family. Her decision caused a sensation in the entire Yanjing. Everyone believed that a celestial daughter like Helian Lingruo should dedicate her life to learning how to manage the entire family, and when the elders grew old, she would be the future leader of the Helian family! However, Helian Lingruo disdained all of this. She craved the uninhibited freedom of a bird. The sky that belonged to her was not a few companies or factories, nor was it vulgar wealth. She had her own pursuits."
"I was so envious of Helian Lingruo back then. Not only was she beautiful, but she also had her own opinions. Unlike me, no matter what I did, it always seemed to end in failure. After Helian Lingruo went to the border, the entire Helian family seemed to have lost its vitality. Later, Madam Helian rescued a little girl from traffickers who looked very much like Helian Lingruo. This girl was the same age as Helian Lingruo. At first, they even made a big blunder. This girl resembled Helian Lingruo by eight or nine parts. Coincidentally, Helian Lingruo, who was playing in the border region, went missing. Everyone thought this little girl was Helian Lingruo. Only after they rescued her did they realize it wasn't her.
But this little girl looked too much like her daughter. Madam Helian missed her daughter so much that she couldn't see her often, so she adopted the girl and named her Helian Diejin. Helian Diejin transformed from a sparrow into a phoenix. Although she was an adopted daughter, she enjoyed the life of a pampered young lady in the Helian family. She worked hard and continuously improved herself. Even though Helian Lingruo was excellent, Helian Diejin was not inferior. Moreover, because Helian Lingruo was away in the border region for a long time, Helian Diejin's reputation in Yanjing eventually surpassed Helian Lingruo's. When people mentioned the Helian family, Helian Diejin was the first person they thought of, as if Helian Diejin was the only daughter of the Helian family."
Lin Xingwan felt an inexplicable discomfort upon hearing the name Helian Diejin. She even recalled a photograph that Cheng Yanzhe had shown her when he was still alive.
The woman in the photograph looked very much like her mother, even wearing the same makeup. Although Lin Xingwan had spent a few years with her mother, the first person that came to her mind when she saw that photograph was her mother.
Helian Diejin's resemblance to her mother was so striking that it was almost indistinguishable.
"Later, Helian Lingruo returned, right?" Lin Xingwan asked.
Nie Manyu nodded affirmatively. "Yes, this is also the climax of the story. Actually, I just don't like this woman, Helian Diejin. Although she looks very much like Helian Lingruo, she gives off an extremely sinister and vengeful impression. I remember once I accidentally spoke ill of this woman, and because of me, our family almost went bankrupt. I felt that Helian Diejin was inferior to Helian Lingruo. I wasn't wrong to say that, as everyone's aesthetic tastes are different, but I suffered greatly afterward. From that moment on, I knew that Helian Diejin couldn't even compare to a finger of Helian Lingruo.
Helian Lingruo is a true lady from a distinguished family, the apple of the Helian family's eye. No matter how well Helian Diejin performed, she was ultimately just a substitute, and these substitutes can never compare to the original!" As Nie Manyu spoke, her earlier excitement was replaced by a face full of rage.
Lin Xingwan thought to herself that she had indeed asked the right person.
"Yes, a fake is always a fake," Lin Xingwan deliberately echoed Nie Manyu's words. After she finished speaking, Nie Manyu's gaze towards Lin Xingwan was no longer as obsequious as before, but rather held a hint of a confidante's camaraderie.
Nie Manyu took Lin Xingwan's hand and continued.
"Helian Lingruo's return this time was actually a deception by the old madam of the Helian family. The old madam lied to Helian Lingruo, saying she was gravely ill and that if her daughter didn't return soon, she might not even see her one last time! Unexpectedly, when Helian Lingruo rushed back, she was arranged to have a blind date with Cen Jue, the young master of the Cen family. I happened to be at the Helian family that day. Although I didn't witness what Helian Lingruo and Cen Jue argued about, I did see Helian Lingruo beat up Cen Jue in the end! Cen Jue was very handsome at the time, and even with a bruised and swollen face, he was still the white moonlight in my heart."
As Nie Manyu spoke, her angry expression turned to one of heartache.
"Back then, so many socialites in Yanjing wanted to marry Cen Jue. Who would have thought that Cen Jue disliked them all, and was beaten so badly by Helian Lingruo? I was so heartbroken at the time. My idol, the man I held dear to my heart, was beaten right in front of me. Wuwuwu, even now, when I think about it, I still feel immense heartache."
After Nie Manyu finished speaking, Lin Xingwan cleared her throat. Nie Manyu realized that she was no longer the young girl she once was, but a woman in her forties. She sighed helplessly and continued, "Cen Jue and Helian Lingruo were a couple that no one in our circle at the time expected. One was a playboy, Cen Jue, who had been with countless women since childhood; the other was Helian Lingruo, who had gone to the border since childhood, was not gentle at all, and didn't even have a trace of femininity about her. How could they possibly be together? In fact, the most popular choice was Helian Diejin, because Helian Diejin was already the top socialite in Yanjing at the time. Her being with Cen Jue was everyone's wish. Moreover, Helian Diejin also liked Cen Jue. In fact, any woman who was with Cen Jue either disappeared or met with an accident. Over time, no one dared to provoke Cen Jue, and it was even implicitly accepted that Cen Jue and Helian Diejin were a couple!"
"However, Cen Jue didn't like Helian Diejin at all. In fact, at that time, Cen Jue deliberately got close to Helian Lingruo to get rid of Helian Diejin. As soon as he got close, who knew that Cen Jue discovered that Helian Lingruo was the hacker who had caused his company to lose so much money and had humiliated him? Cen Jue and Helian Lingruo became a pair of bickering lovers! No one ever expected that the couple who was most unfavored back then would actually end up together. And to give Helian Lingruo a sense of security, Cen Jue declared that he would never marry anyone but Helian Lingruo in this lifetime, and if he dared to betray Helian Lingruo, he would be struck by lightning and die a terrible death!"
Nie Manyu's face was filled with tears of envy.
"If Cen Jue had ended up with Helian Diejin, I would have lived my life in jealousy and anger. But since Cen Jue is with Helian Lingruo, although I am reluctant, I sincerely bless them. Only these two together are a perfect match! But their happiness was short-lived. Helian Lingruo actually disappeared. Cen Jue's hair turned white overnight. After searching for her for years and years, there was still no result. Eventually, Cen Jue married Helian Diejin and held a grand wedding for her. After that wedding, Cen Jue never appeared again. And Helian Diejin, due to a serious illness, has been in poor health all these years and lives a secluded life."
"Helian Lingruo, how did she disappear out of the blue?" Lin Xingwan had waited for so long and finally heard a crucial piece of information from Nie Manyu!
"She just disappeared... How else could she disappear..."
Nie Manyu looked at her clasped hands and couldn't help but ask, "Qingdai, what's wrong? Why do you seem so concerned about Helian Lingruo?"
Realizing her lapse in composure, Lin Xingwan couldn't help but reply, "No... I was just so engrossed in the story, especially how a celestial daughter like Helian Lingruo could just disappear. It must be that heaven was jealous of Helian Lingruo, so she disappeared, right? Was Helian Lingruo found later?"
Lin Xingwan deliberately played the role of an attentive listener, but in reality, her mood was very unsettled.
"Helian Lingruo has not been found to this day. She fell from a mountain while hiking. However, that mountain was searched extensively by many people, but to no avail. She seemed to have vanished into thin air. According to popular rumors, after Helian Lingruo fell from the mountain, she was eaten by the wolves and tigers on the mountain, leaving not even a bone. Another rumor is that Helian Lingruo was a fairy who descended to the mortal world, and after completing her trials, she ascended to heaven with full merit.
However, the second theory is indeed laughable. In my opinion, Helian Diejin definitely harmed Helian Lingruo. After all, how could Helian Diejin be willing to be a substitute? But as long as Helian Lingruo disappeared, she would be the only daughter of the Helian family, and there would be no distinction between the original and the counterfeit in this world."
After Nie Manyu finished speaking, as if she had thought of something, she leaned closer to Lin Xingwan's ear and said, "Qingdai, I'll tell you a secret, but you mustn't tell anyone."
"What is it?" Lin Xingwan asked instinctively.
"First, promise me you won't tell anyone, and then I'll tell you!" Nie Manyu's expression was more serious than ever before.
Lin Xingwan had no choice but to pretend to swear, "I swear I won't tell anyone, okay?"
Only then did Nie Manyu speak in an even quieter voice, "Helian Lingruo was pregnant at the time, and I personally saw Helian Diejin poison Helian Lingruo's food. Helian Lingruo later miscarried. Unexpectedly, Helian Diejin was unharmed. This matter eventually ended with a servant of the Helian family being beaten to death. I inquired and heard that the servant liked Cen Jue and was jealous of Helian Lingruo, so she poisoned Helian Lingruo. When I heard this news, I was furious. It was clearly Helian Diejin who poisoned her, but there was no evidence, and I didn't dare to say anything. To this day, every time I think of Helian Lingruo, I feel guilty towards her. I even wonder if this woman wouldn't have disappeared if I had told Helian Lingruo about this earlier. But in this world, there are no 'ifs'."
Lin Xingwan heard these words and finally understood the whole story.
The events of the past were nothing more than the grievances between Helian Diejin and Helian Lingruo as the true and false daughters, and the love-hate entanglement of them both liking Cen Jue.
Therefore, the most urgent matter now was to find evidence of Helian Diejin harming Helian Lingruo!
Seeing Lin Xingwan looking thoughtful, Nie Manyu immediately became excited again and said, "There's another thing I think I should tell you, it'll definitely broaden your horizons! Hahaha, that incident back then was comparable to the story of Helian Lingruo and Cen Jue!"