Madam Jiang grasped the hem of her skirt and chased after Duan Mingxi, grabbing her tightly. Her eyes were red as she stared intently at her. “You cannot go!”
Duan Mingxi shook her off without hesitation. “I deeply regret returning to the capital. I’d rather have grown up, married, and lived out my life in Jiangcheng than have a selfish, self-serving mother like you who sells her daughter for glory.”
Madam Jiang froze, stunned by the words: selfish, self-serving, selling her daughter for glory…
That’s not true! She didn’t!
“Mingxi, I know you have many misunderstandings about me…”
“Misunderstandings? Was it a misunderstanding when you took your precious daughter on a trip while I was sick? Was it a misunderstanding when you wanted to marry me off to Gao Zhan, even though he already had someone he loved?
Was it a misunderstanding when you helped Duan Huirou steal my opportunity to enter Shangyang Palace? Was it a misunderstanding when the Jiang family backed Duan Huirou and ignored me? Was it a misunderstanding when Jiang Bingyuan harmed my adoptive father?
One thing after another—tell me, which of these was a misunderstanding? Are you really my mother, or are you my enemy? And as for the Jiang family, I don’t care if they favor Duan Huirou, but if they dare lay a hand on my adoptive father, I won’t hold back!”
Duan Mingxi thought she would feel furious recalling all this, but to her surprise, she felt calm. She realized she had truly let go.
Let go of the persistence she clung to in her previous life, the family bonds she desperately sought. For these so-called relatives, she broke herself, gave up her wealth, and tried to be the perfect noblewoman to win their favor.
She pursued what she could never have and abandoned those who protected her.
Her adoptive father, mother, and brother’s tragedies all stemmed from her decision to acknowledge her biological family.
She believed her second chance at life was granted because her heart was filled with too much regret, guilt, and the desire for redemption. She wanted to save those she had failed.
She refused to accept it.
She refused to resign herself to fate.
She had lived a life of virtue, doing all the good she could, yet ended up like that.
If being a good person brought such results, in this life, she’d rather be a villain.
Madam Jiang was stunned by the icy gaze Mingxi directed at her. Her entire body felt stiff, as if paralyzed. In those eyes, she saw a blazing fury and profound disdain.
Back when she brought this daughter back home, she had been genuinely happy.
When had everything gone so wrong?
“Madam, Eldest Young Miss, the Old Madam of the Jiang family is here!” Wan Mama, who served the Old Madam, hurried over and bowed slightly to the two women. “The Old Madam has instructed this old servant to summon the Madam.”
Duan Mingxi froze and looked at Wan Mama.
Wan Mama smiled gently at the Eldest Young Miss. “The Old Madam said matters among elders should not trouble the younger generation. The Eldest Young Miss doesn’t need to worry about it.”
Duan Mingxi was momentarily taken aback. She hadn’t expected the Old Madam to shield her, assuming instead that she’d be pushed forward to confront the Jiang family’s Old Madam.
Seeing the expression on the Eldest Young Miss’s face, Wan Mama sighed internally. She stepped closer and said softly, “The Old Madam truly cares for the Eldest Young Miss. You should go back and rest.”
Duan Mingxi had no desire to meet the Jiang family Old Madam. The old woman was skilled at weaponizing weakness, filial piety, and familial affection to manipulate the younger generation. Mingxi detested the Jiang family so much that she didn’t even want to see their faces.
“I know Grandmother cares for me. Wan Mama, please thank her for me.” Duan Mingxi nodded with a solemn expression and turned to leave without hesitation.
Madam Jiang instinctively reached out her hand but then dejectedly withdrew halfway.
“Madam, this way, please,” Wan Mama said, observing the situation and realizing that the mother and daughter had likely quarreled again.
However, she had no intention of comforting the Madam this time. After all, who would have thought that Third Master Jiang could stoop to such actions?
Wan Mama would never have imagined that in her past life, the Marquis Manor had colluded with the Jiang family over wealth.
In this life, because of Duan Mingxi’s foresight and decisive methods, she had managed to suppress the Marquis Manor’s ambitions, preventing them from targeting the Duan family in Jiangcheng.
Duan Mingxi turned to glance back from a distance, watching as Wan Mama and Madam Jiang disappeared into the covered corridor.
See? As long as she worked hard, she could change her fate.
Now, the Marquis Household stood opposed to the Jiang family.
Next, as long as Father could establish himself firmly in the capital and prove his capabilities, she could persuade the Marquis Household to accept a formal relationship between her and her parents.
Currently, the Marquis Household looked down on the merchant Duan family. Even though her parents had raised her, they were regarded as socially inferior merchants, unworthy of association. Maintaining ties with them would be considered disgraceful.
But she refused to accept a life where the family that raised her could only watch her from afar, unable to acknowledge her openly.
Thus, she had to work harder, become stronger, and wield more power.
If they refused to approach her, she would find a way to approach them instead.
“Young Miss, Master has been summoned by the Internal weaving and dyeing bureau,” Li Quan reported, rushing in with a worried expression.
Duan Mingxi glanced at him. “Was he escorted away, or invited?”
Li Quan paused, then replied, “It seems he was invited.”
“Then it’s nothing to worry about,” Duan Mingxi replied calmly.
Her father was playing the role of a victim here—a foster father and mother who couldn’t bear to part with their foster daughter and secretly tried to establish themselves in the capital, only to fall into a trap.
Five hundred thousand taels of silver. Even in the capital, it was an enormous sum.
But that five hundred thousand taels were the golden key to prying open the Internal weaving and dyeing bureau’s doors, and the arrow to elevate Xie Fang’s position as a qianshu. It was worth it.
With this connection established, they would naturally recoup the investment several times over in the future.
“Madam asked me to inquire how Young Miss intends to handle this,” Li Quan said.
“Go back and tell Madam to stay at home and wait for Father to return. She doesn’t need to do anything. If anyone from the Jiang family comes to make trouble, have Mother go outside the main gate and cry as miserably as she can,” Duan Mingxi instructed.
Li Quan: …
“Understood. Is there anything else you’d like me to convey, Young Miss?”
Duan Mingxi’s expression softened. “Tell Mother to take care of herself. I’ll visit her in a few days. Father will be fine; with me here, she can rest assured.”
Li Quan quickly took his leave.
The Old Madam’s stance, barring Mingxi from meeting with Old Madam Jiang, made it clear that the latter would not be able to influence Duan Pingchang through Mingxi.
Thus, the Jiang family would likely turn their efforts toward persuading the Duan household.
While her mother was gentle and kind-hearted, she wasn’t foolish. She would surely understand the reasoning behind Mingxi’s suggestion to show weakness: to tarnish the Jiang family’s reputation as bullies.
Sure enough, events unfolded as Mingxi anticipated. After Old Madam Jiang’s efforts failed, the Jiang family sent someone to the Duan residence.
Remembering her daughter’s instructions, Madam Xu disheveled her hair and wept loudly at the front gate, pleading with the Jiang family to spare them. The commotion drew neighbors and passersby, further damaging the Jiang family’s already sullied reputation.
Although Jiang Binyuan’s crimes weren’t severe, his scheme to entrap Duan Pingchang had implicated him. However, he hadn’t been drawn into the Crown Prince and Qi Wang’s political conflict. The Jiang family could find ways to secure his release, but convincing Duan Pingchang to change his testimony remained the simplest and most direct approach.
Yet, with Duan Pingchang unwilling to budge, the Jiang family had no choice but to bribe Xu Donglin to intervene. If Xu Donglin spoke up, Jiang Binyuan could walk free.
It was at this point that Qi He appeared.
“You’re saying that as long as I don’t give my approval, Xu Donglin won’t release Jiang Binyuan back to the Jiang family?” Duan Mingxi asked.
“Wangye says this matter is entirely up to Young Miss,” Qi He replied, marveling at Wangye’s newfound ability to coax.
Duan Mingxi: …
What was Duan Wang’s intention?
Was he testing her, trying to uncover her behind-the-scenes maneuvers?
