Chapter 172: Chapter 2: The Real and Fake Heiress (Part 2)

When Li Qinglan was seven, Zhang Minrong was pregnant again and gave birth to a son.

Thus, Li Yu became more focused on Li Qinglan and naturally paid even less attention to Li Shuning.

When Li Shuning was nine, Li Qiong ascended to a higher position and became the governor of Jiang Province.

However, everyone still lived in Chun City, as Chun City is the capital city of Jiang Province.

The Li Family’s status rose, and because of this, Li Yu paid even more attention to Li Qinglan, further neglecting Li Shuning.

This situation continued until Li Shuning turned twenty.

Because Li Shuning had skipped grades, she was already a senior in college, interning at a multinational corporation where she met a man. That man was the chairman of the corporation, young yet remarkably accomplished, while Li Shuning was also intelligent and capable.

Sparks flew between them.

However, the man was an old acquaintance of the Li Family, and during a visit, he was seen by Li Qinglan, who then took a liking to him.

But the man felt nothing for Li Qinglan.

When Li Yu discovered that Li Shuning was involved with the man while her own daughter was ignored by him, she was furious.

She locked Li Shuning up, yelling, “You’re just the daughter of a simple maid. It’s impossible between you and the chairman. He’s only interested in your body and looks. You need to see yourself clearly, know your identity, and not aspire for things you can’t have.”

At this time, Li Yu’s scoundrel returned.

Seeing his daughter so beautiful made him very happy, and after several days of intimacy with Li Yu, she told him everything.

Consequently, the scoundrel’s gaze toward Li Shuning changed.

What would it be like to sleep with such a beautiful woman? After all, she’s not really his daughter, right?

But he thought further; if it became known that he slept with his daughter, other complications might arise. It would be disastrous if people found out she wasn’t really his daughter.

He had his plans; with the daughter of a governor, he could gain numerous benefits in the future.

This Li Yu was simply foolish, only focused on her daughter’s well-being, not thinking about bettering her own life.

However, the man her beloved daughter liked was extremely wealthy, as he had heard of the company himself.

Therefore, Li Shuning had to be dealt with, or she’d block her daughter’s path, which he wouldn’t allow.

The scoundrel wandered outside and indeed knew a lot of people.

He discussed with Li Yu their plan, and despite having reservations about treating Li Shuning this way initially, she ultimately decided to proceed for the sake of her daughter’s happiness.

She released Li Shuning.

Both acted nicely, saying they had reconsidered and that a child’s happiness is something to be fought for.

Since Li Shuning liked the man, she should go after him.

That night, Li Yu even cooked many delicious dishes, and though Li Shuning was suspicious, she still ate the meal.

But after that meal, when Li Shuning woke up, she found herself in Hell.

She had been sold to a bachelor in a remote village by the couple. There were sleeping pills in the dinner, and that night, the man took advantage of her. She was beautiful, so the man kept a close watch on her.

And with women generally being weaker than men, even when Li Shuning was awake, she was powerless, living with the man for several years.

She tried every means to make him lower his guard, finally escaping from there.

When she returned to Chun City, she discovered many things had happened over these years.

Since the scoundrel and Li Yu revealed Li Qinglan’s identity to her, Li Qinglan was wary. She didn’t want a maid for a mother and a ne’er-do-well for a father.

The scoundrel often approached Li Qinglan, asking her to help him with things.

Using Governor Li Qiong’s identity, the scoundrel greatly profited.

From projects to shoddy construction, and thus the governor was publicly accused.

Originally, Li Qiong had a promising career, poised to rise further once his term ended, but it was all ruined because of Li Qinglan.

Knowing what his cherished daughter had done, Li Qiong was deeply affected. To think that his troubles also impacted the family, did Li Qinglan even know what she was doing?

Well, his daughter was grown, no longer close to him or his wife, instead very close to the maid.

In the end, he took Zhang Minrong and their son back to the Capital. But this departure signified that from now on, within the family, he could only be a leisure man. For Li Qiong, it was a huge blow, as he was only forty-eight.

The chairman, when Li Shuning disappeared without a word, was quite disheartened, while Li Qinglan used an aphrodisiac given by the scoundrel on the chairman. The two had an affair.

At that time, the families were well-matched, so the chairman married Li Qinglan.

Although he didn’t like Li Qinglan, the chairman was a principled man, and having married her, he treated her well.

Even though Li Qiong fell from grace, the chairman still treated Li Qinglan well.

As for the scoundrel, he was sentenced to life imprisonment for bribery and for deadly shoddy construction.

The scoundrel never revealed Li Qinglan’s identity, thinking perhaps with her around, things might turn, and despite being a rogue all his life, he still didn’t want anything to happen to his only daughter.

Upon returning to Chun City, Li Shuning was shocked to learn of these changes and deeply questioned her parents—why they treated her like that.

Li Shuning thought it over. She approached Li Yu, disguised as a female ghost during the quiet night, claiming to be miserable, beaten and tormented, asking if she were truly her biological daughter and why they treated her that way, vowing not to forgive her even as a ghost.

Li Yu sobbed and begged for mercy, recounting everything.

Li Shuning was astonished beyond measure; was this how it truly was?

The truth revealed that Li Qinglan was Li Yu’s daughter, meaning the woman before her ruined their family?

Li Shuning’s shock alerted Li Yu that something was amiss.

When she realized Li Shuning was human, not a ghost, fear set in.

She feared her daughter’s identity being uncovered.

To prevent Li Shuning from spreading word, Li Yu and Li Shuning fought, knocking the mosquito net onto the ground, igniting the mosquito coil, which soon led to a fire.

Li Shuning and Li Yu both perished in the fire.

But Li Qinglan breathed a sigh of relief, knowing with parents like hers, she always worried about exposure.

Her husband, though not fond of her, still offered her plenty of respect; she didn’t want to lose her current life.

The father was locked up, the mother was dead, and thus no one would ever know her identity again.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep