Chapter 55: Deep Fear in the Heart

“Miss, all these years… I’ve been so worried about you. Master and Madam were kind to me.” The old butler looked guilty. “The day of the fire, my mother fell ill and I had to rush her to the hospital. Though I escaped, I’ve been feeling guilty ever since. If I had been there that day, maybe I could have prevented it. I would have noticed something was wrong.”

Lin Banxia’s eyes were misty. Hearing this, she felt sad too.

But despite her sadness, she comforted him, “It’s already happened. Don’t blame yourselves too much. You are doing well now, and Grandpa and Grandma would be at peace in heaven.”

Because she witnessed it firsthand, she knew how devastating the fire was that day. Having one more person there might have just meant one more body.

Soon, Mrs. Zhou came with four bulging red envelopes. Yes, four. Each contained two thousand yuan in cash.

Lin Banxia got up and took them, then walked around the coffee table and handed the envelopes to everyone, “A small token of my appreciation. Please accept them. You are all like family to me, Lin Banxia.”

Everyone was shocked. They quickly got up and tried to refuse, but they had to accept.

Except for Xiao Ling, the other four received red envelopes. This made Xiao Ling even more nervous. Her mind went blank for a few seconds. She had a bad feeling.

“Go back and live your lives well. Life is unpredictable. I hope you all have good fortune. Those who survive great disasters have good karma.” Banxia smiled, but her eyes held a glimmer of tears.

Everyone, holding the red envelopes, was filled with gratitude towards her, but they couldn’t help but wonder why Xiao Ling didn’t receive one.

But they were too embarrassed to ask directly.

“Xiao Ling, stay.” Lin Banxia smiled. “You’ll stay here tonight. You all go back and get some rest.” She then looked at Butler Shen with a gentle gaze.

Xiao Ling looked at her, uneasy. “It’s getting late. I have to go back, Miss! My son is waiting for me at home!”

Lin Banxia held the file about her, ignoring her words.

Butler Shen made a gesture of invitation at the door, and everyone started saying goodbye to Banxia, lining up to leave the luxurious living room that others could only dream of entering.

Xiao Ling wanted to leave, but she dared not move.

Because she knew this was Young Master Zhan’s territory, and if Miss Lin wanted her to stay, she wouldn’t be able to escape.

Banxia stood by the sofa, looking out through the floor-to-ceiling window at the courtyard outside. She watched as everyone got into their cars and drove away.

When she turned back to Xiao Ling, Xiao Ling immediately lowered her eyes, clearly guilty.

“Xiao Ling, let’s go upstairs?” Banxia said softly to her. “We’ll sleep together tonight, so we can catch up.”

“Miss, I don’t know. I don’t know anything…” Xiao Ling panicked. It was because she feared Young Master Zhan, and also because she had developed some legal awareness.

Lin Banxia couldn’t help but smile. “Strange. I haven’t asked you anything, and you don’t know anything?”

“I…” Xiao Ling’s chest heaved rapidly, her expression clearly panicked.

So timid?

How could she have the guts to point the finger at her?

Lin Banxia sighed softly, took her hand, and led her upstairs, instructing Mrs. Zhou，”Mrs. Zhou，help Xiao Ling find a room tomorrow. She’ll be staying here for a while. Also, prepare some clothes for her.”

Xiao Ling was frightened. Mrs. Zhou hesitated, “Yes.” It wasn’t appropriate to bring another woman to stay without Mr. Zhan’s permission.

But she couldn’t disobey the Madam’s words.

Banxia put her arm around Xiao Ling’s shoulder and led her towards the upstairs.

At first, Xiao Ling resisted, but Banxia softly threatened, “If you don’t tell me everything, you can’t escape. This is Zhan Jingting’s territory. If he wants to find you, even if you change your name and move out of Yincheng, he’ll find you easily.”

“…” Xiao Ling’s face turned pale, her fingers went numb, and her palms started sweating.

Lin Banxia suppressed her emotions. She knew that the dead couldn’t be brought back to life. Now, she had to find witnesses and send Yang Yiming and Xie Yue’ru to prison.

The night was deep, almost twelve o’clock.

Lin Banxia brought Xiao Ling into her bedroom. As Xiao Ling walked upstairs, she was amazed by the luxury of the villa. Even the walls were adorned with exquisite carvings, and the carpets she stepped on were of a high-end quality she had never seen before.

In the large bedroom, the lights were warm yellow.

Banxia casually threw her coat onto the bed. She was still holding the information given to her by Mr. Zhan’s men, which contained all the information about Xiao Ling.

“You don’t need to lie to me. You’re unmarried, so where did you get a son to take care of?” Banxia sat down on the edge of the bed and looked at her.

Xiao Ling pursed her lips. She only knew that Miss Lin was kind, and playing the emotional card with a child would likely make her let her go.

“Xiao Ling, have you felt a bit of guilt all these years?” Lin Banxia’s voice was soft, but it was like a knife. “I’ll ask you the first question. Why weren’t you at the old house the day of the fire?”

In her memory, Xiao Ling had no parents and lived at the old house. Because of her pitiful background, her grandmother loved her dearly, and Xiao Ling spent most of her time with her grandmother.

Xiao Ling lowered her head and didn’t answer.

Lin Banxia gently opened her lips, “Second question, you clearly have parents, why did you tell your grandparents that you had no parents?”

A year before the fire, she had applied to be a maid at the Lin family’s old house, playing the role of a pitiful orphan, and moved into the house.

Xiao Ling was already deeply afraid. It seemed that she had already gathered a lot of information.

“The third question.” Banxia’s seemingly gentle gaze pierced her face like a knife, cold and sharp. “What is your relationship with Xie Yueru?”

The girl’s eyelashes fluttered noticeably, and she looked up in terror, meeting Banxia’s clear, determined eyes.

“Grandfather and Grandmother were kind to you!!” Lin Banxia stood up, raised her hand and slapped her across the face, hitting her cheek, and asked with great hatred –

“Why did you treat them this way?!”

“It wasn’t me who set the fire…” Xiaoling covered her swollen face, looking at her with a pitiful expression. “Miss, please believe me, it wasn’t me.”

“I know it wasn’t you, you don’t have the guts!” Banxia had her own judgment, her palm still tingling.

“But…” Banxia looked at her deeply, sadness flashing in her eyes. “But you knew she was going to set the fire, you’re her niece, she told you to hide beforehand, so you escaped!”

Exposed, Xiaoling’s face turned even paler. For years, she hadn’t slept a single night peacefully.

Although she received a sum of money and left Yincheng with her parents, living a life of comfort, her kind heart was constantly haunted by nightmares.

“Xiaoling, you have lost your sense of right and wrong.” Lin Banxia felt cold. “Even if you couldn’t stop it, you could have told Grandfather and Grandmother beforehand. Even if you couldn’t say it directly for your own safety, you could have found a chance to take Grandfather and Grandmother out beforehand! You clearly had a chance to save them!”

Xiaoling knelt down with a thud, tears rolling down her cheeks. “I’m sorry, Miss…” This apology came from her heart.

She had also been tormented for years.

If she could go back in time, even if she couldn’t stop it, she would definitely try to get the master and the old madam to leave.

She was young and timid at the time, and the temptation of a large sum of money was too much for her.

Large tears rolled down Lin Banxia’s eyes, she looked at her with great pain. “So many lives, what’s the use of an apology? Can you live with yourself?”