Chapter 231: There's Really an Older Sister
Her words caused an uproar.
The entire venue was in shock.
What was this woman talking about?
Was the younger sister marrying in place of the older one?
They never expected to witness so much just by attending an engagement party.
First came the famous dignitaries and gifts worth hundreds of millions.
And now, a last-minute swap between sisters. This trip was definitely worth it!
Xiao Ye's expression darkened completely. He steadied Lin Chuyue. "Make yourself clear!"
The woman lifted her face and looked at Lin Aoshan behind them. "He knows whether it's true or not."
"Lin Chuxing is the Lin Family's first daughter. Lin Chuyue was born later."
"Even the name Chuyue was chosen because of Chuxing."
Lin Chuyue swayed, her voice filled with disbelief. "I grew up in the Lin Family! I don't have an older sister!"
"My parents only had me!"
"Who are you? Who sent you to ruin my engagement ceremony?"
Lin Chuyue couldn't believe a word the woman said. She had lived for over twenty years without ever knowing she had a sister.
If she really had one, how could she have never heard a single whisper about it?
Just then, Lin Aoshan stepped forward.
The earlier smile was gone from his face, replaced by a look of utter defeat.
Lin Chuyue gripped Xiao Ye's hand tightly. In that moment, she knew the woman might be telling the truth!
"Grandpa... do I really... really have an older sister?"
Lin Aoshan sighed. "This is a private Lin Family matter. We can discuss it later. Chuyue, I'll tell you after the ceremony is over."
Hearing this, the woman immediately raised her voice. "Since you know Lin Chuyue isn't the one meant to fulfill the covenant, how dare you let her marry!"
She looked at Xiao Ye again. "I know about the Golden Saber. My master told me about it once."
"If the covenant is to be fulfilled, it must be by the one who bears it, not someone else. Otherwise, there will be a backlash!"
"Do you really still want to get engaged to Lin Chuyue?"
"Once your engagement is official, neither of you will meet a good end—unless the one who bears the covenant willingly gives up their claim!"
Xiao Ye remained silent.
It was true. The Golden Saber Covenant could not be fulfilled by anyone else.
He had always believed Lin Chuyue was the one, which was why he'd proceeded so smoothly with the engagement ceremony.
But if she wasn't, then things truly couldn't continue today.
'I will only be with Lin Chuyue. She's the woman who can undo my seal; we're fated to be together.'
That was why he couldn't bear to see Lin Chuyue suffer the backlash. He knew some of his master's techniques, but many things were simply beyond his power to fix.
The only way was as the woman said: the true bearer had to willingly renounce their claim so Lin Chuyue could take her place.
Seeing Xiao Ye's reaction, Lin Aoshan knew the woman was right.
To prevent his granddaughter from coming to any harm, he quickly said, "Xiao Ye, perhaps we should cancel the ceremony?"
Xiao Ye nodded and faced the crowd. "Everyone, the ceremony is canceled for now. My sincerest apologies."
"Your gifts will be returned to you untouched. The Xiao Family will reimburse all of your travel expenses!"
With that, Xiao Ye took Lin Chuyue's hand and left the banquet hall.
They went to a room inside.
Xiao Ye held Lin Chuyue tightly. "Chuyue, listen to me. That woman wasn't lying. Your grandfather's reaction proves it."
"It's not that I don't want to marry you. I can't right now, because I don't want to see you get hurt."
At this point, Lin Chuyue still hadn't processed what happened.
Happiness had been right in front of her, yet this sudden turn of events was impossible to believe.
Tears streamed down Lin Chuyue's face. 'Am I... going to lose the man I love?'
A knock came from the door.
Lin Aoshan entered with a sigh. "It's my fault. I'm the one who hid this. Let's go home first. I'll tell you everything."
The group left at once, the mysterious woman following them back to the Lin Family estate.
As for the guests, Xiao Ye's men saw them off one by one, returning their gifts in the process.
Since Xiao Ye had made the offer, they took them back.
They could always just give them again next time.
The Lin Family Estate.
Red decorations were plastered everywhere.
Even though it wasn't the wedding itself, they had still decorated for the occasion.
But in the living room, everyone was silent, the atmosphere heavy and tense.
Lin Aoshan looked at the woman and was the first to ask, "How did you know about this?"
The woman leaned back on the sofa, as comfortable as if she were in her own home, showing no restraint at all.
She waved her hand dismissively. "I'll tell you how I know later. Why don't you start by telling your story first?"
Lin Chuyue was already out of patience and hurriedly asked, "Grandpa, what is going on?"
Lin Aoshan let out a long sigh. "Chuyue, it's true. You do have an older sister, and her name is indeed Lin Chuxing."
"She was your parents' first child. You were born when she was a little over a year old."
"You were named Lin Chuyue, not as a continuation of Chuxing's name, but because you have a crescent-moon-shaped birthmark."
"And your sister has a birthmark that looks very much like a star."
Lin Chuyue felt like she couldn't breathe. She really had a sister!
'If this is real, does that mean... I can never be with Xiao Ye?'
But that thought was quickly replaced by another: Lin Chuyue was more desperate to know what had happened to this sister of hers.
Lin Aoshan continued, "The year Chuxing was just over a year old—the day after you were born, in fact—a master suddenly came to our home."
"He was incredibly skilled, a man of real power. He said that your and Chuxing's birth charts were in direct conflict. If you were raised together..."
"At best, one would die and the other would be injured. At worst... both of you would die young!"
The world seemed to spin around Lin Chuyue. "So, Grandpa, am I the one who was kept?"
Lin Aoshan knew some things couldn't be hidden any longer. It was better to be clear from the start.
Otherwise, Lin Chuyue would probably find it even harder to accept the truth if she learned it later.
"Yes, you are the one who was kept. Because you were just born, and your health was poor, while Chuxing's was much better."
"So your parents took her, intending to leave her with some friends to be raised temporarily. The plan was that once you were both grown and the threat of death was no longer so severe, you could slowly get to know each other."
"Even if you couldn't be together every day, seeing each other occasionally would have been nice."
As he spoke, Lin Aoshan suddenly started coughing, a discomfort spreading in his chest. What happened next was the pain of his lifetime.
Xiao Ye took out a silver needle and immediately performed acupuncture on him.
Lin Aoshan felt much better. He gripped Lin Chuyue's hand. "Later... after they left, they disappeared. They never came back!"
"All these years, not a single word. I searched for over a decade, only giving up when you became an adult."
"I think... they must have had some kind of accident back then. If they were still alive, how could they not come home? How could they not come to see you!"