Chapter 674 - 673: A Strange Twist of Fate

"Who the hell are you, you damn old crone?! You’re trying to get me killed! What do you mean you took that bag of food? I left that for Su Li!"

Ye Xilan was not just shocked, but terrified. Looking at Su Li, who was hovering between life and death in Wu Sheng’s arms, she felt a true, deep-seated panic.

She had wished Su Li would disappear from this world forever. Her resentment had driven her to do something as extreme as locking Su Li up, but she had never wanted to kill her.

She really hadn’t. At most, she had just wanted to ruin the wedding and make Su Li suffer a little.

’But now... how did things get so out of hand?’

Ye Xilan was furious, her eyes filled with hatred as she glared at Mrs. Tang.

"You old hag, you’re trying to kill me! I said I just wanted to lock Su Li up for a couple of days! I didn’t want her dead! I left food and water for her! How could you just snatch it all? Are you insane?"

Ye Xilan screamed. Though her body was immobilized, she desperately turned her head to look at Wu Sheng.

"Wu Sheng, I was wrong! I shouldn’t have locked up Su Li, but I really didn’t mean to starve her or let her go thirsty! It was this old crone who ruined everything! Take her away! Look at the state I’m in now. You’ve gotten your revenge, so don’t let them take me."

Ye Xilan fought to stay conscious, purely because she didn’t want to be taken away.

She was experiencing a pain, fear, and darkness she had never felt before. She was already in this state; the most important thing now was not to be dragged away like this. Given her status, how could she let herself be arrested? Wouldn’t that tarnish Li Xian’s name?

’If Li Xian found out what she did, what if he left her?’

"Wu Sheng, I didn’t mean to kill Su Li! I’ve been framed!"

Ye Xilan shouted, her voice filled with desperation.

Mrs. Tang was also stunned. "You bitch, what nonsense are you spouting? You’re the one who had her kidnapped! What does it have to do with me? I just... I just took a bag of food! How can they arrest me? If they’re arresting anyone, it should be you!"

"Su Li being kidnapped has nothing to do with me! You have no right to arrest me."

Mrs. Tang looked at the burly man being restrained nearby. "He’s the one who grabbed her, I saw it with my own eyes! It has nothing to do with me! The one who ordered this man around was that bitch! I’m not involved at all."

The burly man’s ribs had been broken by a single kick from Wu Sheng. His face was ghastly pale as he stood hunched over, his head bowed in silence.

Waves of darkness washed over Ye Xilan’s vision. The pain made her break out in a sweat in the middle of winter, drenching even her hair.

"You damn old crone, how dare you claim you’ve been wronged! If you hadn’t stolen the food, things wouldn’t have turned out like this!"

Ye Xilan truly never expected things to end up this way. Before she did it, she had considered every angle. First, nothing serious could happen to Su Li. Second, she must not be connected to the incident in any way.

To achieve this, Ye Xilan had only used one person.

The burly man’s name was Dazhuang. He used to have a job, but he’d quit after only two years. Raised by his grandmother with no parents, he had been an outstanding employee, but he’d had to resign to go back and care for her when she fell ill.

Dazhuang’s family had been farmers for generations and didn’t have much money. His grandmother’s treatment, however, required a great deal. In the end, Li Xian found out and decided to help him.

Ye Xilan took over, feeling pity for the man. She found a doctor for him and arranged for Dazhuang’s grandmother to be admitted to the hospital for treatment.

Dazhuang refused to accept too much money, so in the end, Ye Xilan co-signed for him, allowing him to owe the hospital for the medical fees.

His grandmother later recovered and was able to live out her final years in peace, passing away five years later from natural causes.

Through his own hard work, Dazhuang managed to pay off the hospital debt, but he never forgot the kindness Li Xian and Ye Xilan had shown him. Every year, he would send them some of his family’s special homemade goods.

Cured meats, peanuts, roasted peas, and more—it was a generous amount every year.

The items weren’t particularly valuable, but it was the thought that counted. Receiving them each year, Ye Xilan always thought Dazhuang was a good man.

This time, when Ye Xilan wanted to lock up Su Li, she eventually thought of this most honest of men. Dazhuang had initially wanted to refuse such a task; after all, it wasn’t a good thing to do.

But Ye Xilan begged him, insisting it wasn’t anything wicked—just locking someone up for a few days, and nothing would go wrong. She asked him to help her for the sake of their past connection.

Indebted as he was, Dazhuang finally gave in. A bit old-fashioned and rigid, he firmly believed in repaying even the smallest kindness with overwhelming gratitude. He had to repay his debt.

’He had already resolved that if something truly went wrong, he would atone for it with his life.’

It was a scheme Ye Xilan had devised after long consideration: use fake news of Wu Sheng being injured to approach Su Li.

Given Ye Xilan’s status, it wasn’t difficult to procure a uniform. She had Dazhuang put it on and go inform Su Li, even having him use the special nickname they had for Wu Sheng: "Boss."

Dazhuang wasn’t a bad person by nature, and Su Li was distraught by the news of Wu Sheng’s injury. In the end, Dazhuang actually succeeded.

He gave Su Li a handkerchief laced with a drug. After Su Li fainted, Dazhuang took her to a location he had found.

He had chosen the place carefully. It wouldn’t be discovered, Su Li wouldn’t be able to escape, and there was no real danger.

After carrying Su Li inside, Dazhuang placed a bag of food and water, which had been prepared in the car beforehand, near a small window.

When Su Li woke up, she would be able to reach it. There was water and steamed buns. It would be a little difficult, but she wouldn’t starve. At worst, she would just be a bit cold.

Dazhuang and Ye Xilan had planned it all very well. To avoid suspicion, Dazhuang never returned to the area.

But they never imagined that Mrs. Tang would happen to see it all, snatch the bag of food, and blow the situation completely out of proportion.

There’s a phrase for it: a bizarre twist of fate.

Mrs. Tang stumbling upon this was a bizarre twist of fate.

Because she witnessed it and got involved, the situation became much more complicated.

It was also a coincidence that Mrs. Tang came across this scene.

That day happened to be the anniversary of Father Tang’s death.

Father Tang had always been very good to Mrs. Tang, so her feelings for her late husband ran deep. Every year, she absolutely had to commemorate him.

On this day each year, Mrs. Tang was always in a very bad mood. In previous years, she would even personally prepare some of Father Tang’s favorite foods.

Tang Yuanxiao wasn’t around and couldn’t accompany her, so Mrs. Tang prepared to go on her own. She was allowed to leave the nursing home for the day; Tang Yuanxiao had made the arrangements in advance.

Nowadays, Mrs. Tang could no longer cook for herself, so she had to go out to buy the food.

Her caregiver pushed her wheelchair so they could go shopping together. The nursing home wasn’t in a remote area, so they just went somewhere nearby.

Another elderly woman came out with them. Although the woman’s legs weren’t good, she could walk on her own with a cane and wasn’t in a wheelchair.

The other woman was also out to buy things, but her errand wasn’t as important as Mrs. Tang’s. They accompanied Mrs. Tang to buy her items first, then went to get what the other woman needed.

The item the other woman wanted was inside a shop that had steps, which were difficult for Mrs. Tang’s wheelchair to get up, so she waited outside for them.

Mrs. Tang was bored and looked around. As she was fiddling with her wheelchair, she passed a downward slope, lost control, and rolled into a deserted, quiet, and dilapidated side street.

Just as Mrs. Tang was trying to figure out how to get back, she saw a car drive in.

Mrs. Tang was delighted to see the car and was about to call for help, but before she could open her mouth, she saw the sight of Dazhuang carrying Su Li off the vehicle.