The whole family is reborn, and their five-year-old child becomes the darling of the entire capital.

Does this person know him? Xie Yaochuan wondered to himself, but his gaze remained fixed on the woman in front of him.

Every word and action revealed the demeanor of a lady from a prominent family. The details of her bowing indicated that this woman was no ordinary person and must have grown up in the capital.

Thinking of this, Xie Yaochuan couldn't help but feel a little more curious about her.

Her surname is "Yun".

There is only one family in the entire capital that can use the surname "Yun"!

Back when the late emperor was still alive, the Yun family was incredibly popular.

However, the current head of the Yun family is from the second branch, while the first branch has almost been wiped out and has long since severed ties with the major families in the capital.

As for the daughters born out of wedlock, most of them had already married. They either married into powerful and wealthy families as concubines or married rich merchants in exchange for some wealth. In short, regardless of their circumstances, these women all remained in the capital and would never appear in such a remote and desolate countryside.

However, upon closer reflection, it's clear that the main branch of the Yun family has indeed dwindled to almost nothing. The eldest daughter of the Yun family, Yun Jingcen, tragically died at the young age of thirteen. Since then, the Yun family has suffered a series of misfortunes: first, the matriarch passed away, then the old lady also departed, and subsequently, members of the main branch died one after another, ultimately leaving the family with few descendants and no one to carry on the family line.

If we absolutely have to deduce it from age...

If Yun Jingcen had not died young, she would be in her early twenties now, just like the woman in front of her.

Could it be that……?

A startling guess popped into Xie Yaochuan's mind.

Xie Yaochuan raised an eyebrow slightly, "Yun Jingcen?"

Lady Yun raised her head slightly, her gaze falling on him. A faint light flickered in her beautiful almond-shaped eyes as she quietly stared at him.

She hadn't heard that name in a long time.

Xie Yaochuan noticed that she remained silent, which he assumed meant she agreed.

Could it be that the eldest daughter of the Yun family is still alive?

Just then, the village chief suddenly took a big step forward, a slightly embarrassed smile on his face, and explained, "Her name is Yun Duo. She is the third daughter of the Yun family in the neighboring village. She has been married into our village for quite some time now. About eight years, I think. Everyone in the village knows her."

As the village chief spoke, he gritted his teeth and threatened in a low voice, "Yun Duo, speak up!"

Lady Yun lowered her head silently and said with her eyes downcast, "I am Yun Duo, just as the village chief said, I have been here for eight years."

Then, Lady Yun glanced at the smug village chief out of the corner of her eye, a barely perceptible smile playing on her lips. "However, this also means that I know everything that happened here. I witnessed it all..."

At this point, Lady Yun paused slightly, then chuckled softly and continued, "I know everything about Miss Mu's life from childhood to adulthood. What she has experienced, what hardships she has endured, and who has wronged her. Young Master Xie, are you interested in this?"

Xie Yaochuan raised his eyebrows slightly and looked at her. She had just emphasized the time point of "eight years," and Yun Jingcen had indeed been gone for eight years.

Xie Yaochuan looked around, seemingly somewhat dissatisfied with the houses in the area. Finally, he pointed to the carriage and said, "Hmm, I am quite interested. Lady Yun, please, let's get in and discuss this further."

Xie Yaochuan leaned against the carriage window, lifted a corner of the curtain, and only after seeing that the guards had kept everyone else out of the carriage did he feel relieved enough to lower the curtain. Then he turned his gaze to Yun Niangzi, who was standing somewhat reservedly by the carriage door.

He raised his hand and poured two cups of tea.

"If we're talking about seniority, I should address you as my cousin?" Xie Yaochuan's lips curled into a slight smile as he looked at her. "Your words just now implied that you knew what I was investigating here?"

Although she mentioned knowing about Yu Xi's affairs, she was actually talking about other things.

Lady Yun took out a handkerchief from her bosom and gently laid it on the seat before slowly sitting down. She gazed firmly at Xie Yaochuan. "Yes, I understand what you care about. However, before that... I'd like to know more about the current situation of the Yun family."

She had lived in this place for eight long years, the first four of which she had been trapped in a cellar, without sunlight, and severely confined.

It wasn't until four years ago that she began to compromise and accept her fate, leaving the cellar, but she was still unable to leave the village, let alone know about the Yun family in the capital.

For the four years she endured inside, she believed her family would come to rescue her. She refused to submit, and she loathed all the filthy people in that place.

That man will never meet a noblewoman like her in his entire life, and he is not worthy to touch her.

She persisted for four years, counting down the days, year after year, but each day passed in vain. Instead, she was tormented beyond recognition, beaten, insulted, and tortured every day.

But unlike in the stories, no one came to her rescue.

She was completely disappointed before she gave in, got pregnant, and finally left the cellar.

She thought that since that was the case, she should just live well. If she wasn't destined for a life of wealth and luxury, then living in the countryside wouldn't be so bad. It would just be a bit tough and tiring, but as long as she could survive, that was good enough.

However, her first child was aborted by her husband because a pulse diagnosis confirmed it was a girl.

He punched her repeatedly, and she watched helplessly as her child died.

The hope of surviving was gone.

She was only allowed to take her son for a walk in the village last year after giving birth to a son.

For so many years, she had always thought of the Yun family, but why did her mother and grandmother, who loved her so much, abandon her?

Was it just because she embarrassed herself?

She was tricked into coming to such a place, disgracing the Yun family.

So her father and mother didn't want her anymore, and her grandmother didn't want her either; she was completely abandoned.

is it?

"The Yun family?" Xie Yaochuan looked at her thoughtfully. "You hate the Yun family?"

Yun Niangzi's lips trembled slightly, unsure how to begin. She seemed to hate, but it also seemed that she didn't hate that much.

She just wanted to know if her father and mother had a new child, and whether her younger brother or sister knew about her existence.

Have they ever thought about her for a single moment? Have they ever thought about what kind of life she has been living all these years?

Even just coming to see her would be enough.

"Shouldn't I hate him?"