False evidence

Chapter 394 Family Mark
I didn't react much to what Tong Xiangnan said at first.

After a moment of eye contact, she said dejectedly:
"You don't know you're going to die soon, so you're just finding a random relative to take care of you in your final days, do you?"

Tong Xiangnan laughed and said, "If I were you, I would think the same way. But when I was diagnosed with brain cancer, I had already signed a body donation agreement. My usable organs will be transplanted to people in need, and my body will be sent to the medical school for students to conduct cadaveric research. So, by acknowledging me as a relative, you will not only not have to spend any money, but you will also legally inherit all of my estate."

I still didn't have a stronger reaction, because it was because of the saying "things will turn into their opposites when they reach an extreme".

Tong Xiangnan's few words have already left my mind in a state of confusion and numbness.

At this moment, Fang Ling suddenly walked behind Tong Xiangnan, looked him up and down, and her gaze lingered on the back of his head.

Fang Ling suddenly asked Tong Xiangnan, "Who is Tong Jiaqin to you?"

This time it was Tong Xiangnan's turn to be stunned. He turned to Fang Ling with a puzzled look, "You are..."

Fang Ling clenched her fists, bit her lip, and said, "Answer my question first."

"He is my grandfather."

Fang Ling's body stiffened, and her eyes immediately welled up with tears: "Has his right leg been healed?"

Tong Xiangnan shook his head slightly: "His kneecap was shattered. At that time, the medical technology could not cure him."

I sensed something was amiss, so I walked over to Fang Ling and whispered, "Tong Jiaqin is...?"

"He's my second brother!"

Fang Ling wiped away her tears.

Tong Xiangnan's eyes widened in disbelief: "You...you could be...?"

Now that things have come to this, I have no choice but to tell the truth: "She is Tong Jiawen."

Tong Xiangnan let out a soft "Ah," staggered back a few steps, and sat heavily on the bed.

After a long while, he looked at me with a hint of realization and said:

"When I first heard you mention the name Tong Jiawen, I was a little surprised. Because my grandfather had mentioned that he had a younger sister named Tong Jiawen. But all I knew was that there was such a great-aunt; no one told me whether she got married or passed away a long time ago..."

Fang Ling gave a bleak smile, but turned to me and said, "It's more appropriate for you to explain this matter."

Perhaps it was another twist that shifted my chaotic thoughts. I let out a long breath and first explained Fang Ling's current situation to Tong Xiangnan.

Then, she said to him, "The Tong family was a scholarly family in the area back then. When Zhao Tiezhong's marriage proposal failed, he resorted to force and despicable means to marry Tong Jiawen."

Although such things were not uncommon in society at the time, wealthy families considered them a disgrace. Since they could not resist, they could only hold onto the thought that "family scandals should not be aired in public..."

Fang Ling wiped her eyes and said, "My second brother's right leg was crippled by Zhao Tiezhong. In order to prevent my family from getting hurt again, I had no choice but to agree to marry him."

He thought he was good to me, but he didn't know that I wanted him dead every moment! On the train, I was harassed by a foreigner.

When I saw Lü Xin step forward and handle the whole matter flawlessly, I knew then that my chance had come.

I do like Lü Xin; men like him are indeed very attractive to women. But I also know what kind of person he is.

Shortly after arriving in Guangdong, I sensed that he had lost interest in me. At that time, I told him that Zhao Tiezhong's family possessed a hidden treasure.

At this point, Fang Ling looked up at me, but said to Lü Xin, "You got what you wanted, and I achieved my goal. So, I'm only jealous of the woman you truly love. I don't know where I fall short of her, but I don't hate you, at least not the kind of hate that would make me wish you were dead."

"That's why they say you should never offend a woman."

Tong Xiangnan and I simultaneously wiped the cold sweat from our foreheads.

"You...you are my great-aunt..."

Tong Xiangnan's expression was indescribably strange.

Fang Ling smiled bitterly: "After I left Lü Xin, I went home once. By then, my parents had both died from illness caused by years of grief. My eldest brother, Tong Jiahao, was already a bit of a troublemaker; after failing to appeal to the authorities, he drank heavily every day and drowned in a river during a rainstorm. My second brother, Jiaqin, was crippled by Zhao Tiezhong..."

"It's all because of me. I ruined this family. I had Lü Xin and Chen Zudao wipe out Zhao Tiezhong's entire family before I'd tell Lü Xin where the treasure was... I got my revenge, but I have no face to go back home. I wanted to find an honest man to spend the rest of my life with, so, alas, I married Jiang Baohan."

After Fang Ling finished speaking, Tong Xiangnan and I were both speechless for a moment.

I seem to know more about Tong Jiawen than Tong Xiangnan.

That's why I've only now truly come to understand the tragic life of this woman.

I even heard Lü Xin sigh: "Ah, you silly woman, you should have told me sooner. If you had told me sooner, Zhao Tiezhong's family would have died even more miserably, and at least I could have found a way to send you home."

The monkey looked at this, then at that, and finally couldn't help but ask:

"So, after all this time, you two are family? A great-aunt and a grandson? Then what's your relationship with Sanqi?"

Fang Ling and Tong Xiangnan exchanged a glance, as if they had reached a tacit understanding in a short period of time.

The two men simultaneously raised one hand and tapped it twice behind their respective necks.

The monkey didn't understand, but I suddenly felt a jolt.

Fang Ling said to me quietly:

"When I first met you, I was filled with resentment and bitterness, wanting to settle all scores with someone. But soon, a discovery made me change my mind. At that moment, I suddenly felt that everything was predestined, and I... I never expected that after so many years, I would actually see my family again!"

The monkey counted on its fingers: "Well, you're Tong Xiangnan's grandfather's sister, Tong Xiangnan's great-aunt, so you'd be... at his age... I can't figure it out."

Tong Xiangnan said, "He is my nephew, and like Sun Jing, he is Li Ru's child."

The answer seemed to already be in my mind, but when Tong Xiangnan pointed it out, I still didn't react excessively.

I even tried to summarize this shift... to summarize my emotions at this moment.

After trying several different analogies, I finally settled on the one that I felt like I was sitting on the toilet, watching horror and suspense movies for half a century straight.

My mind is foggy; not only are my legs numb from squatting, but my whole body feels numb...

The monkey took out his phone and said, "Words are no proof. I'll call Brother Gao and ask him to do a DNA comparison between Sanqi, Sun Jing, and Tong Liru."

“It can be done, but there is an even simpler way to prove Sanqi’s identity.”

Fang Ling walked behind me, extended a slender finger, and gently traced it across the back of my neck. "This mark is the symbol of the Tong family. No one with Tong family blood will be missing!"

(End of this chapter)