Chapter 5 – Exposed Face to Face

The moment the real Xu Nuo appeared, the Lu family was completely stunned.

For a long while, Cheng Wanying stammered, “Th-this… what is going on?”

Two Xu Nuos showing up within just a few days—she was completely confused. At this point, she couldn’t even tell who was the real one and who was the fake.

Lu Huaizheng frowned. “You say you’re Xu Nuo too? Do you have any proof to back that up?”

Hearing this, Xu Nuo turned around and replied calmly, “You must be Uncle Lu? Hello, Uncle Lu. I don’t have anything on me right now that can prove my identity. But if you send someone to my hometown to investigate, it’ll be clear. I am Xu Nuo, and she—she’s my second uncle’s daughter, my cousin—Xu Shan.”

Xu Shan never expected this. That Xu Nuo would actually escape, and not only that, she’d find the Lu family so quickly.

With her timid, pushover personality, she used to be as soft as dough—barely able to say a word. But now, after just a few days, she seemed like a completely different person.

“You’re Xu Shan?” Lu Huaizheng’s tone deepened. “Then why did you impersonate Xu Nuo?”

Xu Shan was panicking inside.

Being exposed like this in front of everyone was beyond humiliating. Still, she refused to back down. “I’m not Xu Shan—she is! She’s the one pretending to be me!”

“Oh? I’m impersonating you?” Xu Nuo smiled lightly, completely unbothered. “Then let me ask you something. You say you and Grandma depended on each other for over ten years—she was the closest person in your life, right? Then why, when she was on her deathbed, did you come to the capital instead of staying with her? Does that make any sense?”

Xu Shan’s lips trembled. “It—it was Grandma who told me to come. She said if I didn’t run, my uncle and aunt would marry me off to a fool in the village…”

“Sure, keep talking. But lies can’t become truth, and truth can’t be faked.” Xu Nuo didn’t want to waste time arguing. She turned directly to Lu Huaizheng. “Uncle Lu, I’ve said all I can. As for the rest, I’ll have to trouble you to send someone to verify.”

This era really was inconvenient—no ID cards or anything.

If she had an ID card, all this trouble would’ve been avoided.

Lu Huaizheng slowly nodded. “We’ll definitely look into it. Lu Chen, you’re on leave for now. Tomorrow, head over to Qingshan Village and check things out for yourself.”

“Yes, sir,” Lu Chen replied. Then he paused, tilting his gaze toward Xu Shan. “And if it turns out she lied, then this is a case of marriage fraud. How should we deal with that?”

As soon as Xu Shan heard that she might be dealt with, she completely broke down. She let out a wail and burst into loud sobs: “I was wrong! I’m not Xu Nuo—I’m Xu Shan… I didn’t mean to do this. It was my parents! They forced me to come! If I didn’t, they would’ve beaten me…”

Her crying grew louder and louder, until she was squatting on the floor, unable to get up.

People in the countryside naturally had louder voices, and her howling was unbearably grating. Even Lu Huaizheng’s heart was shaken by the volume. The baby in Cheng Wanying’s arms was startled and started bawling too.

Lu Cheng had absolutely had it. He clutched his head in frustration, covering his ears.

“Xu Shan, stop crying already!” Xu Nuo stepped forward to calm her. “Crying won’t solve anything. You should’ve expected this when you chose to impersonate me. Still, I won’t hold it against you.”

As soon as Xu Shan heard that, she quickly wiped her tears.

The room finally quieted down.

“But,” Xu Nuo added, “you did deceive the Lu family and their feelings. Whether or not to forgive you—that’s up to Uncle Lu and the others.”

She turned toward Lu Huaizheng.

Xu Shan also quickly wiped her tears and looked at him pitifully. “Uncle Lu…”

Lu Huaizheng, of course, would forgive her. There was no need to say it.

The Xu family had done them a great favor back in the day. Compared to that, this little incident was nothing.

“I forgive you.”

Only then did Xu Shan finally breathe a sigh of relief.

One Xu Shan gone, another Xu Nuo appeared.

But to the rest of the Lu family, this Xu Nuo was clearly more attractive—fair-skinned, clean-cut, and she spoke with confidence, showing no hint of nervousness.

With the comparison laid out clearly, Cheng Wanying felt that Xu Nuo was far better than Xu Shan.

She knew it!

There was no way her judgment could have been that wrong. Yang Peiying had been such a capable and cultured woman—how could her daughter possibly have turned out to be so crude and unrefined?

But as for Lu Cheng, he still wasn’t interested in Xu Nuo.

Yes, Xu Nuo was indeed beautiful. At first glance, he had to admit she’d startled him a little with her looks. But he wasn’t a shallow man—what he wanted was someone whose soul aligned completely with his own.

An arranged marriage?

Forget it!

Lu Cheng had already made up his mind: no matter how much pressure they put on him, he would never marry Xu Nuo.

“Lu Cheng,” Lu Huaizheng looked at his younger son and issued his final ultimatum, “this time the person has changed—surely you can’t refuse this marriage again! Whether you like it or not, you will marry her.”

Lu Cheng raised an eyebrow, just about to explode, when he noticed that his father’s hand was clutching his chest.

The old man had heart problems and had been on medication for years.

Lu Cheng was afraid that if he pushed back now, his father might have a heart attack on the spot.

Seeing him hesitate, Lu Huaizheng’s expression darkened further. “So? Yes or no?”

Lu Cheng was quick-witted—he knew when to push and when to back off.

He decided to appease the old man for now, and figure the rest out later. “Fine, I agree! Is that good enough?”

Lu Huaizheng, already prepared to blow his top, saw his son relent and immediately relaxed. “Weren’t you just kicking up a fuss? What changed so suddenly?”

—Could it be that the new girl’s beauty turned his head?

Hmph.

Lu Cheng scratched the back of his head and muttered, “How could I say no? The way you were looking at me, I had a feeling you’d pull a gun on me if I even said a word.”

“Look at you, talking like your father’s some kind of bandit!” Cheng Wanying gave her son a reproachful glance.

Lu Cheng had been born when Lu Huaizheng was already forty—always a little rascal, but smart and handsome, and deeply doted on.

Honestly, before the real Xu Nuo arrived, even Lu Huaizheng had thought this engagement was beneath his son.

But now, seeing this girl—well-spoken, elegant, and striking in appearance—he felt much better about it.

“Let him grumble a little,” Lu Huaizheng waved it off. “Since you’ve agreed, go submit the marriage report. Once it’s approved, you’ll get married.”

Lu Cheng quickly protested, “Dad, Mom, aren’t you rushing this a bit? Xu Nuo and I just met—shouldn’t we at least spend a few days getting to know each other?”

Hearing that, both Lu Huaizheng and Cheng Wanying looked toward Xu Nuo, clearly wanting her opinion.

Xu Nuo nodded obediently. “Sure. I’m in no rush anyway.”

“Alright then. Settled.” Lu Huaizheng made the final call. “Sister Lin, set the table for dinner!”

At the dining table, Cheng Wanying briefly introduced the family.

Lu Chen was the eldest, twenty-seven years old, and had always worked in the military. He was on leave this time and would be staying home for a while.

Lu Cheng, the youngest, was twenty-one.

Between them, they had another brother, already married. He didn’t live in the military compound and only returned with his wife on weekends.

Xu Nuo quietly listened—then suddenly, something dawned on her.