Wei Qilin turned to look at his wife.
"What did you just say?" he asked.
Zheng Feibao snapped out of her daze, almost forgetting what she was about to say, and said somewhat sluggishly, "Ah, I mean, what are Fu Lai and the others doing? Why did they suddenly go upstairs?"
She stood up, frowning, and said, "I wonder if something happened, let's go check it out."
On the other side, Xu Gui had also stood up and started walking upstairs at a leisurely pace, her expression calm. This made Zheng Feibao take a second look at her—she always felt that this Miss Xu had a very peculiar aura that made her unable to help but pay attention to her.
However, soon after reaching the top of the stairs, Zheng Feibao's attention shifted from Xu Gui, because she heard a gasp coming from the room in front.
"Grandpa, Grandpa, what's wrong?"
"Grandpa! Wake up!"
"Brother Feiran..."
"Calm down, go call Dr. Fu!"
Zheng Fulai's panicked voice and Zheng Feiran's voice, trying to remain calm, overlapped. Zheng Feibao quickened her pace and bumped into Zheng Fulai, who rushed out of the room, just as she reached the door.
"Fulai, what's wrong with Grandpa?" Zheng Feibao asked rapidly.
Zheng Fulai's face was covered in sweat, whether from cold or heat, it was hard to tell. He said in a panic, "Grandpa has a rash and suddenly can't breathe... I have to go call Dr. Fu."
He remembered something and said, "Right, Second Sister, you're a doctor, you should take a look at Grandpa!"
Before Zheng Feibao could react, he pulled her into the bedroom. When she came to her senses, she couldn't help but say, "...Fulai, I'm a surgeon."
A surgeon, it's fine to have her scalpel on the operating table, but treating a rash? That's not her specialty.
"Qilin!" She turned sharply to her husband, saying, "Qilin, you're an internist, quickly check on Grandpa!"
Xu Gui and the others entered the room. As soon as they came in, Xu Gui smelled a unique, lingering scent of old age that even fragrance couldn't mask. Zheng Feiran was bent over by the bed, anxiously checking on the person on it.
His expression was grave, and cold sweat was visible on his forehead.
Lying on the bed was an elderly man, near death, clutching his chest, breathing heavily, seemingly struggling to breathe. Red spots of rashes were visible on his face.
"Qilin, quickly check on Grandpa!" Zheng Feibao had already pulled Wei Qilin to the bedside, anxiously urging him to check on his grandfather.
Wei Qilin's expression was serious. He was about to step forward when he heard a soft voice from behind him: "I advise you not to let him go up there, because he might secretly try to kill you."
Wei Qilin paused, turning around to see Xu Gui standing at the bedroom doorway, his gaze gently fixed on her.
The others in the room reacted differently to Xu Gui's words.
Zheng Fulai was somewhat bewildered. Looking at Xu Gui, he forgot that he had introduced her as a friend to Zheng Feibao and subconsciously asked, "Master, what do you mean by that?"
Xu Gui lifted her eyelids to look at Wei Qilin, who stood there, his tall figure appearing incredibly silent and gloomy.
Xu Gui smiled and said, "Mr. Wei should understand what I mean."
"Miss Xu is joking." Wei Qilin smiled, his smile gentle and harmless. "I don't quite understand what you're saying."
Just then, a figure rushed in from outside. Before even entering the bedroom, a voice could be heard shouting, "The doctor is here! The doctor is here!"
Zheng Fulai and the others turned to look and saw Yang Haolin, the person who had been following them, rushing in—only then did they realize that they hadn't seen Yang Haolin at all.
Behind Yang Haolin was someone being pulled along. Once that person stood up straight, Zheng Fulai and the others immediately recognized who it was.
"Dr. Fu?!" Zheng Fulai was overjoyed. He rushed forward to Dr. Fu, shouting, "Dr. Fu, please take a look at my grandfather! He suddenly broke out in rashes all over his body and seems to be having trouble breathing."
Dr. Fu hadn't even caught his breath before he had to examine Grandpa Zheng.
Wei Qilin's smile faded the moment he saw Dr. Fu appear. His cold eyes were fixed on Xu Gui, watching this unexpected turn of events.
Zheng Feibao had been somewhat distracted after hearing Xu Gui's words. Now, noticing the change in her husband's expression, she felt her heart sink.
"...Grandpa's having an allergic reaction!" Dr. Fu, having finished examining Grandpa Zheng, quickly said, "Everyone, move aside to ensure air circulation. Thankfully, there's no swelling in his throat."
Luckily, he had brought allergy medication, which he quickly administered to Grandpa Zheng. After observing Grandpa Zheng's breathing gradually slow down, Dr. Fu's heart finally settled.
He had been genuinely worried that his grandfather's allergy might escalate to its most severe form, at which point simple treatments wouldn't be enough.
Dr. Fu looked at Zheng Feiran and asked, "What did your grandfather eat today? Did he eat kiwifruit?"
Zheng Feiran's furrowed brows hadn't completely relaxed. Hearing Dr. Fu's question, he denied it without hesitation, "Impossible! My family knows my grandfather is allergic to kiwifruit; there's no way he'd have any kiwifruit at all!"
His grandfather had been allergic to kiwifruit since he was young; everyone in the family knew this, so even if someone in the family liked kiwifruit, they would never bring it home.
"My grandfather couldn't possibly have had any contact with kiwifruit!" Zheng Feiran stated firmly.
Dr. Fu said, "The old man is only allergic to kiwifruit. If it wasn't from contact with kiwifruit, then a detailed examination is needed to see what the allergen is."
Zheng Feiran asked, "How is my grandfather now?"
Dr. Fu replied, "His condition has stabilized, but he still needs close observation. If he has trouble breathing again, he'll have to be taken to the hospital... The hospital's equipment is definitely more complete."
Zheng Fulai had already moved closer to the bedside, kneeling and leaning over the headboard, softly calling to the old man, "Grandpa, Grandpa..."
The old man's face was slightly flushed. Slightly opening his eyes, Zheng Fulai looked at him, grasped his hand, and asked with slightly moist eyes, "Grandpa, are you alright?"
Grandpa Zheng raised his hand and gently touched his head, weakly saying, "I'm fine."
Seeing the old man close his eyes again after speaking, his face weary, Zheng Feiran said, "Fulai, Grandpa needs to rest now. Let's go out first and let him get some rest."
Zheng Fulai obediently nodded and followed everyone out of the old man's bedroom. However, Dr. Fu stayed behind; he needed to stay and look after the old man in case anything unexpected happened.
After Xu Gui and the others went downstairs, Zheng Feiran's expression became stern, and Zheng Feibao's smile vanished. Only Zheng Fulai, still preoccupied with the old man, was oblivious to the tense atmosphere, until…
Zheng Feiran suddenly looked sharply at Xu Gui.
"Miss Xu, did you know my grandfather would have an accident?" he asked sternly.
Zheng Fulai snapped out of his daze and instinctively spoke up to defend Xu Gui: "Why are you being so fierce to Master Xu?"
Zheng Feiran was momentarily speechless.
Xu Gui glanced at Zheng Feiran but didn't answer him immediately. Instead, he walked to a chair and sat down before speaking.
"If I remember correctly, if it weren't for me, your grandfather would have been in danger." Xu Gui smiled, slightly raising his chin, and said with a reserved air, "So, Mr. Zheng, isn't your attitude towards me a little impolite?"
Zheng Feiran: "…"
Hearing their words, Zheng Fulai suddenly remembered something and said, "Oh right, it was Master Xu who reminded me that I realized my grandfather was in trouble… No wonder you told me to eat quickly, saying that I probably wouldn't be in the mood to eat afterward."
He asked Xu Gui, "Master, did you know my grandfather would be in trouble a long time ago?"
Xu Gui: "Not too early, just a little bit earlier than you… Because this matter wouldn't have happened now, it was a variable, so I didn't know much earlier than you."
Zheng Fulai suddenly thought of something and blurted out, "Was it when you said my appearance changed?"
Xu Gui nodded.
Zheng Fulai's mind was a bit confused. He said, "You said this is a variable, meaning my grandfather wouldn't have ended up like this. But why? Why did this variable occur?"
Xu Gui replied, "The variable is me. Because of my appearance, the predetermined fate changed... However, my appearance only brought this forward. Without me, this would still have happened sooner."
"As for why this happened, you'll have to ask Mr. Wei." Xu Gui smiled at Wei Qilin. "After all, it was Mr. Wei who personally had kiwis added to your grandfather's food."
"..."
The living room was quiet.
Or rather, after hearing what Xu Gui said in the grandfather's bedroom, the Zheng family intentionally avoided the topic, or rather, dared not bring it up.
They were afraid that if they did, things would develop beyond their expectations.
Zheng Feiran pursed her lips and looked at Zheng Feibao.
Zheng Fulai looked at this and that, seemingly sensing the subtle atmosphere, and obediently fell silent, not daring to speak.
Finally, it was Zheng Feibao who took a deep breath and spoke first.
"Is what Miss Xu said true?" She looked at her husband, with whom she had shared a bed for many years, and asked softly, "Grandpa, is it really you who caused this?"
Wei Qilin blinked and chuckled, "Feibao, you don't really believe what she said, do you? Grandpa is so good to me, why would I harm him? But Miss Xu..."
He looked sharply at Xu Gui and said, "You're slandering me with these baseless accusations. I think it's you who harmed Grandpa, otherwise how would you know so well when I would be in trouble?"
"Only the perpetrator knows best when the victim will be in trouble, doesn't he?" he retorted.
All eyes turned to Xu Gui again. Zheng Fulai frowned and said, "It couldn't be Master Xu. I specifically invited Master Xu to look at our family's feng shui and exorcise evil spirits. Before this, she had no connection with our family at all!"
Wei Qilin sighed, "Fulai, you're still too naive. You only think she has no connection with our family, but who knows what the truth is?"
"If she didn't harm anyone, I really can't understand why she would know so clearly when Grandpa would have an accident. It can't be that she can predict the future, right?"
He smiled at everyone, "What era are we living in? You don't really believe that such a thing as predicting the future exists, do you?"
Zheng Fulai: "..."
He secretly glanced at Wei Qilin and whispered, "But Master Xu really can predict the future." He had personally experienced this.
But...
if what Master Xu said was true, then the problem was with Wei Qilin, his second brother-in-law?!
Zheng Fulai's brain finally caught on, and he finally realized how serious the situation was, and understood why Fei Ran and his second sister had been silent just now.
He looked at Wei Qilin in horror, blurting out, "Brother Qilin, you, you, why did you harm Grandpa?"
Hearing this, Wei Qilin's smile vanished instantly.
"Fulai," he frowned, "do you mean you trust this stranger you've only known for a short time more than me, your brother-in-law?"
Zheng Fulai was speechless, realizing his attitude seemed strange to others, but…
"But Master Xu really can tell fortunes!" he said confidently, his mind surprisingly clear. He continued, "Besides, Master Xu has no conflict of interest with our family; she has no reason to harm Grandpa."
Wei Qilin retorted, "Then do I have a reason to harm Grandpa?"
"Of course you do," Xu Gui said, staring intently at Wei Qilin, enunciating each word clearly, "Because your surname is Wei! The Wei that has a grudge against the Zheng family."
Wei Qilin: "…"
His smile vanished instantly, replaced by a blank expression.
Zheng Feibao had been married to him for many years. While she wouldn't say she knew him inside and out, she was quite familiar with him. Seeing this unfamiliar expression on his face, one she'd never seen before, chilled her to the bone.
"...Did you really do this?" she asked softly, then her thoughts raced. "So, all the strange things that's happened at home these past month, is it because of you? Are you playing tricks?"
Wei Qilin looked at her, a hint of sadness in his eyes.
"Didn't you already guess?" he said helplessly.
He admitted it…
Zheng Feibao felt a pang of pain. Confused and angrily, she questioned, "Why? Why did you do this? Was I bad to you? Was our family bad to you? Why did you do this!"
Wei Qilin was even more agitated than she was. He shouted, "Because my surname is Wei! Wei as in Wei Liao!"
Zheng Feibao was bewildered: "Wei Liao?"
Wei Qilin looked at them, a deep-seated hatred flashing in his eyes for the first time. He said, slowly and deliberately, "Wei Liao is my grandfather."
"So, you're Wei Liao's grandson."
At that moment, a slightly hoarse voice suddenly came from upstairs.
Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw Grandpa Zheng being helped up the stairs by Dr. Fu. His cloudy eyes stared at Wei Qilin as he said, "I thought you looked familiar before, and now I realize it's because you look a lot like your grandfather."
Wei Qilin looked at him, his eyes flashing with deep and blatant hatred. He said, "You didn't expect Wei Liao to have descendants still alive, did you?"
The old man coughed lightly and was helped downstairs by Dr. Fu.
"Grandpa!" Zheng Fulai hurried over, supporting his other hand, and together with Dr. Fu, helped him sit down on the sofa.
Zheng Feiran, full of questions, couldn't help but ask, "Grandpa, who is Wei Liao?"
"Wei Liao," the old man said with a look of reminiscence, "he was my good brother and good partner."
Wei Qilin sneered: "Your so-called good brothers and partners are just people who, after you've achieved success, try to kick your business partners out, then betray them, seize their assets, get their children involved in drugs, and ruin their entire family!"
"If it weren't for you, how could my grandfather have committed suicide? How could my father have died a violent death in the street? And how could I have grown up without a father?"
As Wei Qilin spoke, the resentment in his eyes almost overflowed. He hated, he really hated so much. From childhood to adulthood, he had grown up immersed in an emotion called resentment.
After hearing his words, Zheng Feibao couldn't help but look at the old man and ask, "Grandpa, is what Qilin said true?"
The old man lifted his eyelids and said, "No, it's not like that. There's more to this story."
Wei Qilin sneered, "More to this story? Do you dare say that if you hadn't swallowed up our Wei family's assets, would your Zheng family be where you are today?"
"Back then, our Wei family was a prestigious family in City A, while you, Zheng Qi, were just a street urchin. If my grandfather hadn't valued you, befriended you, and even invested money in doing business with you, how could your Zheng family be where you are today?"
"But what about you, Zheng Qi? What did you do?"
"You colluded with outsiders to seize our Wei family's property! You caused our Wei family to be destroyed and our people to die..."
These things, since Wei Qilin was six years old, his mother had often told him in his ear, over and over again, each sentence like poison, deeply imprinted in his mind.
"You must remember! It was the Zheng family that harmed your grandfather, killed your father, and it was the Zheng family, Zheng Qi, who caused the destruction of our Wei family!"
"Qilin, you must remember this hatred, remember how your grandfather and father died, you must avenge them, and take back everything our Wei family has lost..."
"Qilin, you must remember what your mother said. Even if you die, you must not forget these things, understand?"
Therefore, Wei Qilin could not forget, nor dared to forget. He would always remember his mother's insane and resentful appearance.
The old man: "...So, you married Fei Bao just to get revenge on me? To get revenge on our Zheng family?"
Zheng Fei Bao felt a pang of sorrow upon hearing this. She looked at Wei Qilin sadly, but Wei Qilin did not look at her; he only stared at the old man.
"That's right, I came to your Zheng family to get revenge on you, to get revenge on your Zheng family!" Wei Qilin admitted it. After all, now that everything was exposed, there was no need for him to be stubborn anymore.
"Things were going so smoothly. I could have killed you without anyone noticing, and no one would suspect me. But then an unexpected thing happened."
Wei Qilin couldn't help but smile bitterly as he spoke of the unexpected event.
He had planned for so many years, patiently getting close to Zheng Feibao, and even after marrying her, he dared not show the slightest resentment. All of this was just to kill Zheng Qi quietly, without arousing suspicion.
Just when the plan was about to succeed, a sudden complication arose, and an unexpected turn of events occurred.
"...If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have acted in such a hurry." He looked at Xu Gui with disappointment and calmness. "You're right, you are the variable." His expression was one of resignation.
According to his original plan, he should have been more calm and less conspicuous in killing Zheng Qi, but Xu Gui's appearance disrupted his plans, forcing him to act prematurely.
"But I never expected that even though I acted beforehand, you still discovered it."
He closed his eyes and said, "My biggest mistake was that I never imagined there really were people in this world who could tell fortunes and truly foresee the future."
Back at the pond, he had personally heard Xu Gui make her prophecy, and then he had watched those two so-called "masters" fulfill her prediction without fail. At that moment, Wei Qilin felt a sense of collapse.
"If you hadn't appeared, things wouldn't have turned out this way!" he said through gritted teeth.
Xu Gui said, "You're wrong. The variable wasn't me, but Zheng Fulai…"
Wei Qilin was stunned, and Zheng Fulai was also stunned.
"Me, me?" Zheng Fulai was bewildered.
Xu Gui looked at him and said, "Have you forgotten? You were the one who came to find me; otherwise, I wouldn't be here at all."
On the surface, Wei Qilin's plan failed because of her, but fundamentally, it was Zheng Fulai's appearance, his invitation to Xu Gui's home, that led to Xu Gui's presence at the Zheng family's house, and ultimately, Wei Qilin's conspiracy being exposed.
Therefore, the variable was actually Zheng Fulai.
Wei Qilin understood this. He looked at Zheng Fulai with a strange gaze and murmured, "Before, I just thought you were ridiculously stupid. Now it seems you really can bring good fortune to your family?"
Zheng Fulai: "..." He was being praised, but why didn't he feel happy at all?
How was he stupid?
Now that the plan had been completely exposed...
Wei Qilin took a deep breath and looked at the old man, saying, "Now that you know everything, what do you plan to do with me? Are you going to call the police?"
Hearing this, Zheng Feibao's expression changed, and he subconsciously looked at the old man. "
Grandpa!"