Chapter 152: Chapter 152 She Has a Father and an Older Brother Now

At this moment, inside the hall, there were no outsiders.

Only Murong Jiu, Jun Yuyan, and General Fu and his sons were present.

Their faces were full of guilt, and their eyes, ashamed, did not dare to meet Murong Jiu’s.

Having mistaken her identity for sixteen years, how could they face her?

Murong Jiu’s feelings were incredibly mixed, but above all, she was happy.

She smiled at the four of them and took the initiative to say, “Father, brothers, I’m sorry for being late.”

She had long known her true identity but had not confessed to them or acknowledged her kinship; it was her fault.

She also knew that once she acknowledged them, her father and brothers would certainly treat her well, compensate her doubly, but she indeed had selfish motives, wanting them to discover Fu Baozhu’s issues on their own and find her themselves.

Her addressing them shook them deeply, with excitement and bitterness resonating at the tip of their hearts.

“No, no, no, Ah Jiu, it’s our fault, our fault for not discovering it sooner, for making you suffer all these years.”

General Fu’s voice was choked with emotion, his large frame seeming to stoop, and his normally stern face was also reddened around the eyes.

His eyes and heart were filled with tenderness and guilt towards his daughter.

“Ah Jiu, we are sorry. Your brothers promise never to have any contact with Fu Baozhu again. Our sister is only you.”

Fu Heng said to her softly.

Fu Sheng and Fu Han nodded vigorously too.

They would never let Ah Jiu suffer the slightest grievance and would completely sever ties with Fu Baozhu.

Perhaps some would say they were too heartless.

But so what? Ah Jiu was their real sister. They had let her suffer for sixteen long years; even if they had a deep affection for Fu Baozhu due to long companionship, they promised to cut ties cleanly.

Previously, they truly loved Fu Baozhu as their own sister because they had been deceived into thinking she was pitiful for having lost her mother at birth, and their mother had entrusted their father to take good care of their sister before passing away. At that time, they didn’t know the truth. Now that they knew, they only hated that their discovery was too late, allowing the false sister to enjoy too much, while the real sister suffered endlessly.

Moreover, considering that Fu Baozhu had known her true background for years yet still pretended as if nothing was wrong, taking for granted everything that didn’t belong to her, they could no longer feel any pity for her.

Not only that, they remembered how Fu Baozhu intentionally got close to Ah Jiu, visiting Prince Ling’s Mansion multiple times, seemingly forging a good relationship with Ah Jiu but then subtly speaking ill of her once back home.

Since they had met Ah Jiu first and she had even saved the life of the Zhou family’s young master, they had always had a good impression of her and thought that Fu Baozhu merely misunderstood Ah Jiu and didn’t think much of it.

Now they realized that back then, Fu Baozhu was purposely slandering Ah Jiu to give them a bad impression of her, preventing her true identity from being discovered.

Yet at that time, they still believed that Fu Baozhu was pure of heart and naive in her speech.

“Father, eldest brother, second brother, third brother, you really shouldn’t feel guilty. I understand your feelings and won’t blame you. Fortunately, our recognition wasn’t too late, right?”

Murong Jiu said, smiling. She wanted to lighten their mood, to make them happy.

Knowing their intentions and seeing their attitude was enough for her.

Moreover, when she thought about how her father and brothers had died because of her in her previous life, her heart ached. How could she blame or resent them?

Hearing her address him, General Fu wept profusely, his tears last shed when his wife had passed away.

“My wife, our daughter is just as kind and beautiful as you. I almost let our daughter be forgotten outside, raising the daughter of our enemy. How can I face you when I eventually go to the netherworld?”

General Fu’s heart grew ever more sorrowful.

Back then, had he been more perceptive, he might have noticed Lady Wang’s conspiracy, his wife would not have died tragically, and their daughter would not have been swapped and abandoned in the countryside to suffer.

They had investigated Ah Jiu; she was born just after the Old Marquis died. The Old Madam and Lady Wang both claimed that she had caused the Old Marquis’s death. A few days after her birth, she was sent to the manor.

Lady Wang, afraid of harsh gossip, did send a wet nurse over, but the wet nurse was not kind to Ah Jiu. She would only feed her when her breasts were engorged, and otherwise she ignored her crying and fussing.

Before she was even half a year old, they weaned her, treating her as though she were a little puppy or kitten, just giving her some broth to drink.

It was truly Ah Jiu’s fate to have survived.

But the servants in the manor treated her as an outlet for their frustrations, beating her when they felt displeased and making her do chores like washing clothes and dishes. Sometimes, they even tied her up with the dogs.

It was only when an old man, a court physician, appeared that Ah Jiu’s situation began to improve.

Now, whenever General Fu recalled the messages from his subordinates about Ah Jiu’s childhood, his heart felt as if it were being tightly grasped and squeezed, and he felt suffocated with regret and pain.

You see, Fu Baozhu was surrounded by several wet nurses from birth. Whenever she cried, someone was there to hold her and comfort her; she was fed with silk and wore jewels, never experiencing a day of hunger or cold.

Compared to Fu Baozhu, Ah Jiu had lived a life worse than a beggar’s.

She was a daughter of great wealth, yet Lady Wang’s malice ruined everything.

Fu Han said loudly, “Yes, father, it’s not too late. We still have plenty of time to compensate our sister.”

As he spoke, he looked towards Murong Jiu, “Sister, I hope you’ll definitely give us the chance to compensate you. From now on, Fu Baozhu, no, Wang Baozhu, whatever happens with us is unimportant. It’s only you, you are our only sister!”

Fu Baozhu’s biological father being Steward Wang, she naturally took the surname Wang and thus had no ties with the Fu family anymore.

General Fu, Fu Heng, and Fu Sheng were all somewhat nervous as they watched her, afraid that she would refuse them the opportunity to make amends.

They knew that she was now well off in Prince Ling’s Mansion, having both wealth and exceptional medical skills, lacking nothing and, most importantly, deeply loved by Prince Ling, which was evident to all.

Therefore, they feared Ah Jiu would not accept their compensation.

Murong Jiu, seeing their expressions, felt both bitterness and happiness in her heart.

This was a kind of familial love she had never felt before, a careful and tender familial love.

She said, “Don’t talk about compensation, it’s not your fault. You didn’t wish for this; I understand all of it.”

Seeing their anxious expressions, Murong Jiu quickly continued:

“I acknowledge you. Don’t worry. I am very happy in my heart. I have a father and brothers now, and I am willing to be listed in the family genealogy and return to the Fu family soon. But, I don’t want to change my surname, because my mother’s surname was also Murong, and I want to use my name to forever remember her.”

Murong Shuang, her mother’s name.

A mother she had never met, yet who died giving birth to her.

General Fu choked up, “Ah Jiu…good, good child, your mother in the netherworld will surely be comforted.”

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