The ancient war between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law in a wealthy family

The glaring light made me squint my eyes, and only after I adjusted myself could I see the scene clearly.

We were in a spacious room, the air was filled with the quiet scent of sandalwood, the walls were covered with ancient calligraphy and paintings, the quaint bookshelves were filled with ancient thread-bound books, and in the center was a mahogany eight-immortals table carved with exquisite patterns, with the four treasures of the study neatly placed on the table, as if the owner was only away temporarily and would be back at any time.

"This... is this the Zhan family's ancestral hall?" I looked around, my heart full of doubts.

Lawyer Fang didn't say anything. He walked to the bookshelf and carefully looked through the books on it, his brows furrowed, as if he was thinking about something.

"What are you doing here?!" Suddenly, an angry shout sounded at the door. I was startled and looked back suddenly.

Old Qin stood at the door, his face livid and his eyes burning with rage. Behind him were several bodyguards in black, all expressionless, their hands on their waists, ready to strike at any moment.

"Mr. Qin..." I opened my mouth, but didn't know what to say.

"How dare you!" Old Qin stormed in, "Who allowed you to break in here without permission?!"

"Mr. Qin, we just..." I tried to explain, but was rudely interrupted by Mr. Qin.

"This is where the Zhan family's ancestors and family secrets are kept. How can you youngsters just tread freely in here?!" Old Qin pointed at our noses and shouted, "Do you have any respect for the rules?!"

I was startled, knowing that Old Qin held a high position in the Zhan family and always kept his word. Now that we were caught by him, I was afraid it would be difficult to escape.

"Mr. Qin, we have no ill intentions." Lawyer Fang stepped forward, standing in front of me, and said calmly, "We just want to clarify some things."

"Find out what happened?" Old Qin sneered. "What can you possibly find out? Do you know what you're doing? You're playing with fire and getting burned!"

"Master Qin, we just want to know the truth." I mustered up the courage to say, "There are some things we must clarify."

"The truth?" Qin Lao's tone was full of sarcasm. "Who do you think you are? What qualifications do you have to know the truth?"

"Mr. Qin, you misunderstood..." I was about to explain, but Lawyer Fang stopped me. He pulled a document from his pocket and handed it to Mr. Qin. "We just want you to take a look at this."

Mr. Qin looked at Lawyer Fang suspiciously, reached out to take the document, and slowly opened it.

The room suddenly fell into dead silence, and you could hear a pin drop.

I looked at Mr. Qin nervously, and saw that his already gloomy face became even uglier, and the fingers holding the document trembled slightly because of excessive force.

"This..." Old Qin suddenly raised his head and looked at Lawyer Fang with eyes full of shock and disbelief, "This is impossible..."

"Impossible? Mr. Qin, please take a closer look. It's written in black and white, and there's the seal of the Zhan family leader. How could it be fake?" Lawyer Fang's tone was calm, but every word was clear and powerful, like throwing a stone into a calm lake, causing ripples.

Old Qin's breathing quickened noticeably. He flipped through the document again and again, his cloudy eyes filled with struggle and doubt. I knew this document contained some of the Zhan family's secret past, and it was also related to the truth I wanted to uncover.

"That's just one side of the story! It doesn't prove anything!" Old Qin slammed the document on the table and said angrily, "Don't even think about trying to deceive me like this!"

"Mr. Qin, we didn't mean to deceive you," I explained anxiously, "We just wanted to..."

"What do you want to do?" Before I could finish, a sarcastic voice suddenly came from behind us, "Do you want to rebel?!"

I was startled and turned to see Mo Qinxin leading a group of people out from the corner of the room. They all had menacing expressions, and their presence was hostile. It was then that I noticed there was a secret door in the corner of the room, which we hadn't noticed when we first entered.

"Aunt Mo, why are you here?" I asked calmly, suppressing the uneasiness in my heart.

"Why can't I be here?!" Mo Qinxin sneered, "But you guys sneaked here, what are you trying to do?!" She said, her eyes fell on the documents on the table, "What is this? What the hell are you doing?!"

Without waiting for our explanation, Mo Hexin snatched the document and quickly scanned it. Her expression immediately darkened. She slammed the document to the ground, pointed at us, and cursed, "You two are traitors! How dare you peek at family secrets? You even forged documents and slandered our ancestors. Your crimes are simply unforgivable!"

I immediately understood that Mo Qinxin was trying to turn the tables and throw dirty water on us.

“Aunt Mo, you misunderstood, we didn’t…” I wanted to explain, but was rudely interrupted by Mo’s confidant.

"Shut up! I saw you sneaking around here with my own eyes, and you're still saying no?!" Mo Qingxin pointed at me and said to Elder Qin, "Elder Qin, you have to take charge of this for us! These two people have ulterior motives and want to destroy the unity of the Zhan family. We can't let them off easily!"

Old Qin's face was terribly gloomy. He looked at us and then at Mo Qinxin, as if he was weighing something.

"Mr. Qin, please don't believe the slander. We..." I wanted to explain, but was stopped by Lawyer Fang.

"Mr. Qin," Lawyer Fang stepped forward and said calmly, "We just want to find out the truth and give justice to the Zhan family."

"Justice?" Mo Qinxin pointed at Lawyer Fang's nose and cursed, as if she had heard a huge joke. "Who do you think you are? You dare to talk about justice?!" She turned her head and shouted to the people behind her, "Catch them!"

At Mo Qinxin's command, those people rushed towards us with ferocious looks...

At Mo's command, the men rushed toward us like hungry wolves. My heart tightened, and I instinctively clenched my fists, ready to defend myself. However, before I could strike, Lawyer Fang stepped in front of me. He nimbly dodged several of their attacks and quickly struck, knocking them to the ground in a matter of seconds.

Before I could even breathe a sigh of relief, I heard Old Qin's furious voice: "Rebellion! Rebellion! How dare you take action here?!" He pointed at us with a trembling finger, his face ashen, and it was obvious that he was very angry.

"Mr. Qin, we didn't mean to offend you, it's just..." I tried to explain, but was rudely interrupted by Mr. Qin.

"Enough! What else do you have to explain? The facts are right before our eyes, and you still dare to quibble?!" Old Qin said angrily, "Come here, arrest them, lock them up in the ancestral hall, and wait for the judgment at the family meeting!"

As soon as I finished speaking, more people rushed in from outside and surrounded us. I knew there was no escape this time, and I could only watch helplessly as I was roughly tied up by those people.

"Let her go!" Just then, a familiar voice came from outside the crowd. I was delighted and looked up, only to see Zhan Yu hurriedly squeeze in from the crowd. He was followed by several black-clad bodyguards, clearly well prepared.

"Zhan Yu, you've come just in time!" Old Qin's rage intensified when he saw Zhan Yu. "Look at the good wife you married. How could she do such a treasonous thing!"

"Grandpa Qin, please don't be angry. Let me explain." Zhan Yu walked up to Old Qin and tried to calm him down. "Things are not what you think. I and..."

"You're still trying to quibble?!" Old Qin roared. "I saw it with my own eyes, how could it be fake? You've been bewitched by this woman, and you've even disregarded the interests of your family?!"

Zhan Yu wanted to explain further, but Old Qin pushed him away. He pointed at me and roared at Zhan Yu, "If you still recognize me as your grandfather, then stand aside and don't interfere in this matter! Otherwise, don't blame me, your grandfather, for being rude!"

Zhan Yu's face turned pale, but he didn't dare to refute. He could only watch as I was escorted by those people, step by step, towards the ancestral hall.

I turned to look at Zhan Yu, only to see him clenching his fists, his eyes filled with worry and anxiety. I tried to force a smile at him, telling him not to worry.

I know that it's useless to say anything now. Only by finding evidence can we prove our innocence.

As I was being escorted past Mr. Qin, I accidentally caught a glimpse of an exquisite sachet hanging from his waist. The style of the sachet seemed familiar to me, as if I had seen it somewhere before...

The ancestral hall, deep within the Zhan family's old residence, was dark and silent, carrying an ancient and heavy atmosphere. I was escorted, step by step, down a long corridor paved with bluestone slabs, flanked by high walls that seemed to suffocate me.

As I passed Mr. Qin, I deliberately slowed my pace, my eyes fixed on the sachet at his waist. Embroidered on the pale yellow brocade was an elegant orchid, its petals outlined with silver thread, adding to its exquisite elegance.

This sachet... I'm almost sure I've seen it somewhere!

Memories came flooding back, and I finally remembered that the style of this sachet was exactly the same as the one worn around the waist by the ancestor's wife in a portrait that I accidentally discovered when I was sorting out the old things of the Zhan family!

Could it be that... this sachet is related to the Zhan family's secret inheritance?

My heart started beating violently. If this was true, then this sachet would be a crucial clue! However, now I was trapped here. How could I pass on the message, and how could I get the sachet from Old Qin?

I was completely bewildered as I was escorted all the way to the ancestral hall. Lawyer Fang was also being held inside. When he saw me come in, he came up to me with a worried look on his face. "Young Madam, are you alright?"

I shook my head and asked in a low voice, "Lawyer Fang, do you have any communication equipment with you?"

Lawyer Fang was stunned for a moment, then reacted and shook his head regretfully: "I'm sorry, Madam, I didn't know this would happen before I came, so..."

My heart sank. It seemed I had to find another way.

"But..." Lawyer Fang suddenly lowered his voice and whispered in my ear, "When I came in, I saw that Mr. Zhan didn't seem to have left, but went to find the Second Young Master..."

Zhan Yu went to find Zhan Feng?

I had an idea. Although Zhan Feng and Zhan Yu have always been at odds, he has always been smart and might be able to help.

"I understand. Thank you, Lawyer Fang." I nodded, indicating that I felt relieved.

The ancestral hall's door slammed shut, and the sound of a lock clattering from the outside world echoed, completely isolating me from the outside world. Guards paced back and forth at the entrance, vigilantly observing the surroundings.

Lawyer Fang and I were detained in a remote room with no windows. There was only a heavy wooden door with a lock on it, obviously to prevent us from escaping.

"It seems that we have to stay here for a while..." I said with a wry smile, but I was secretly thinking about how to tell Zhan Yu about the sachet, and why Old Qin cared so much about this sachet. Did he know something too?

Just as I was lost in thought, there was a slight noise outside the door, and then a deep voice sounded outside the door: "Open the door."