Chapter 19: Collection of Books
Qin Fei instantly sneered when she heard her husband’s words. The hate in her eyes were so apparent that it made one wonder why she would hate her elder sister so much.
Qin Fei remembered how she used to like Qin Jinghua when they were children. Just like any other younger sister, she used to run around and chase her like a little puppy. At the beginning, the two sisters used to play with each other. However, everything changed when Qin Fei saw her mother begging Bec Facci for her forgiveness one time. Was Tang Lingyun truly sorry for what she did? No, it was all an act to show the Qin family that she was remorseful and gain their sympathy and trust again, especially from Old Madam Ye. However, at the tender age of eight, Qin Fei did not know this.
It happened during Old Master Qin’s birthday. Tang Lingyun drugged Bec Facci with a drug that would cause her to suffer hallucinations and eventually lose consciousness. Under the influence of the drug, Bec Facci had accidentally stumbled into the pond, dragging an important guest with her. This whole ordeal was a huge embarrassment to the Qin family for they had offended the guest.
When Bec Facci woke up the next day, she met with Old Madam Ye and claimed that she had been drugged. Moreover, Qin Jinghua added that she thought she had seen Tang Lingyun’s personal maid behaving suspiciously in their bathroom. Old Madam Ye immediately asked her men to search Bec Facci’s room and they found that her vitamins had been swapped with a drug, confirming Bec Facci and Qin Jinghua’s testimony.
Old Madam Ye was furious and Tang Lingyun was punished. She was ordered to offer prayers to their ancestors at their family temple, everyday, for a month. Somehow, their family matter became known to some of Qin Fei’s rich socialite friends and she became a laughing stock in the entire school for having a scheming mother. At that time, Qin Fei thought that her mother had been innocent and she got angry when she saw her mother begging Bec Facci for her forgiveness.
Ever since then, Qin Fei started to hate Qin Jinghua. She blamed Qin Jinghua for ’framing’ her mother. Of course, that was only the start of their hateful relationship. As time passed, the sisters only grew more estranged from each other. Their relationship was further strained when Xuan Hui came into the picture.
Qin Fei grew up spoiled and unruly. She was frank and straightforward, and would always say what was in her mind. After meeting Xuan Hui, she immediately told her mother that she liked the young man. Who would have thought that Xuan Hui was already engaged to Qin Jinghua? Even her mother couldn’t do anything about it because it was Old Madam Ye’s decision and no one in the family would openly defy her.
This made Qin Fei hate her elder sister even more. This hate and a strong desire to possess Xuan Hui led her to scheme against Qin Jinghua. The goal was to tarnish the reputation of Qin Jinghua so that there would be a valid reason to cancel this engagement. Was Qin Fei acting alone? No, because somewhere along the way, Xuan Hui had fallen for Qin Fei and was more than willing to join Qin Fei in her scheme. They succeeded and they got married a year after Qin Jinghua’s disappearance.
At the present, Qin Fei still felt nothing but disgust towards Qin Jinghua. Thinking about what happened in the past, she felt disgusted at Qin Jinghua for harboring the thought of marrying Xuan Hui even though she was already tainted by another man. Her disgust was intensified when the media released photographs showing Qin Jinghua being intimate with some unknown man. Even though those images were released by Tang Lingyun, Qin Fei still felt indignant that her elder sister betrayed Xuan Hui. What an embarrassment to the Qin family!
She couldn’t help but feel excited about meeting this long-lost sister of hers and to see who she has become now. Years have passed since they last saw each other and Qin Fei now held the status of a distinguished lady of the Xuan family. Moreover, she was also an list artist whose face had appeared on almost every magazine cover in Hong Kong. Qin Fei couldn’t help but wonder how Qin Jinghua would react when she sees how happy Xuan Hui and her are and realize that their relationship was the envy of the top socialites in this country.
Would she cry and breakdown just like she did all those years ago?
Qin Fei smirked inwardly as the door of the study opened again, revealing a beautiful girl with curly short hair. Her eyes were clear, forming a crescent. Her lips were curled up in a smile, making her small face even more beautiful. Qin Fei instantly frowned when Qin Jinghua took a seat across her. The woman in front of them was undeniably Qin Jinghua, however, there was just something about her that Qin Fei could not put into words.
Something about Qin Jinghua’s smile seemed to irk her and every other member of the Qin family in the room.
"And you still dare to show yourself?" Qin Mo scolded in his usual stern voice.
"If I don’t show up, what would happen to Grandmother’s properties?" Seeing that Qin Mo had shot a glare at her, the smile on Lily’s face became even wider. "I could leave now if you want me to."
"Enough!" Qin Mo bellowed, feeling his blood pressure rising. Qin Jinghua had never spoken to him like that before. "Is that what you learned from living abroad all these years? You did not even bother to give us a call us to inform us that you are still well and alive? We have all been worried about you for nothing!"
"Honey, please calm down." Tang Lingyung immediately reached for her husband’s hand, squeezing it. Then she eyed Qin Jinghua and said, "Apologize to your father. I know that you hate me because of what happened to you and your mother seven years ago. It was my fault. However, you are being extremely unfair by treating your father like this."
"I’m sorry……" Qin Jinghua’s eyes widened. "Apologized to whose father?"
"You-" Tang Lingyun’s words were interrupted by the sound of Lawyer Yan clearing his throat.
Everyone immediately held back their tongue and turned their attention towards him.
"I apologize for the interruption but I believe we are all here for the reading of the late Old Madam Ye’s final Will. Before I begin, I would like to ask that everyone remain silent while I read the Will." Seeing that everyone had turned silent, Lawyer Yan continued. "After reading the late Old Madam’s will, I will also be reading a letter that was written by the late Master."
"I will start now." Lawyer Yan cleared his throat. "I, Ye Xiaoxuan from Northern Summit City of Hong Kong, being of sound mind, hereby declare that this is my final Will of testament."
"The effect of this Will is conditional upon the presence of my granddaughter, Qin Jinghua, during its reading."
"First, I bequeath my collection of antique books to my granddaughter, Qin Jinghua. I hope you will treasure it with love and care."
Qin Liwei and Qin Fei immediately scoffed at the lawyers words. Collection of books? As expected from their late grandmother, she would not leave Qin Jinghua with anything valuable as that would only make her a target of their schemes.
Editor: Swaning