Inside Qiyun Yuan.
The carved wooden windows were wide open, allowing the chilly autumn wind to pour in and cause the white Hangzhou silk hanging from the rafters to tremble slightly.
Xie Siyu wore a tender pink ruqun embroidered with continuous lotus patterns, cinched at her waist by a gold-threaded begonia belt that highlighted her thin, delicate silhouette.
Standing on a pearwood embroidered stool, she gripped both ends of the silk tightly, bringing the cold fabric toward her neck. She wept piteously, her voice broken by sobs:
"Don't stop me… truly, don't stop me… Sister has returned, so there is no longer a place for me in this Houfu. I shouldn't occupy it any longer… just let me die! That way, I won't make Sister unhappy or implicate Father, Mother, my younger brother, and Eldest Brother…"
The corners of her eyes were flushed red, and tears rolled down her cheeks. Her breathing was shaky, and her chest heaved slightly, making her look like a startled little rabbit.
The maidservants surrounding the stool were frantic with worry. They reached out to pull her sleeves, but Xie Siyu violently shook them off. They could only pull back their hands, tears streaming down their faces as they cried out:
"Eldest Young Miss! You mustn't! If something happens to you, we wouldn't be able to answer to the Marquess's Wife even if we died ten thousand deaths! Please, come down!"
In the chaos, Xie Rujue rushed forward. The youth, who usually carried himself with an arrogant and domineering air, was now completely panicked:
"Sister Siyu! Come down quickly! I only recognize you as my sister! There has never been any other Eldest Young Miss in the Houfu! When Father and Eldest Brother return, they will definitely stand by your side. Please, don't do something foolish, okay?"
"Come down, and I'll handle everything for you! I'll go tell Father to send that wild girl away!"
This was the scene that met the Marquess's Wife when she rushed into the room.
"My Siyu… my darling… come down quickly! Mother is begging you!"
She stumbled toward the stool, her voice so choked with emotion it almost fractured into pieces. "Mother knows you're afraid that since your sister is back, Mother won't love you anymore, right? Silly child, you're the child Mother raised for ten years, the very core of my heart! Even though your sister has returned, no one can take your place in my heart—not even by a fraction!"
"Mother… just let me die! If I'm dead, Sister won't have to worry about anyone competing for the position of the Houfu's young miss. You and Father will have your biological daughter by your side, and my little brother won't be implicated because of me…" Xie Siyu sobbed piteously, gasping for breath.
Her gaze landed on Xie Mianmian, and as if she had reached a firm resolution, she suddenly exerted force with her wrists. The white silk was about to tighten around her neck.
"Siyu!"
Accompanied by the Marquess's Wife's heart-wrenching scream, a silver wire flew out from between Xie Mianmian's fingers.
With a flash of silver light, the white silk snapped.
Losing her support, Xie Siyu's body fell downward like a flower petal drifting in the wind.
The maidservants cried out and reached to catch her, and Xie Rujue also rushed half a step forward, but the Marquess's Wife beat them to it.
She lunged forward, catching Xie Siyu firmly in her arms, her movements as gentle as if she were holding fragile porcelain.
The mother and daughter immediately burst into tears in each other's arms. The Marquess's Wife lightly stroked Xie Siyu’s back, her voice trembling: "It's all right, Siyu, it's all right… Mother is here, no one can bully you…"
Xie Siyu buried herself in the Marquess's Wife’s embrace, her shoulders twitching with sobs as if she had suffered a monumental grievance. "Mother… I'm so scared… I'm afraid Sister doesn't like me, afraid you and Father don't want me, afraid no one will love me anymore…"
"Silly child, how could Mother not want you?" The Marquess's Wife stroked her hair heart-breakingly, gently wiping away the tears on her face.
When she looked up, her gaze was like a knife stabbing toward Xie Mianmian, her tone filled with warning. "From now on, stay away from Siyu! Don't push her again! Otherwise, don't blame me, your mother, for being unkind to you!"
Seeing that Xie Siyu was safe, Xie Rujue’s heart finally settled. He glared at Xie Mianmian: "It's all your fault! You truly are a jinx! You've only just returned and you've already turned everything upside down! In any case, I only recognize Siyu as my sister. Don't even think about me acknowledging you!"
Xie Mianmian rubbed her wrist, her eyes as calm as water as she swept her gaze over them. "I am the true legitimate eldest daughter of Yongchang Houfu. Whether you recognize it or not, that will not change."
"But just now, when your precious daughter and sister was seeking death, I was the one who acted to save her. I could be considered her savior, so you ought to be nicer to me."
His Highness had said: Sometimes, being polite before using force makes one's actions more justified.
Xie Mianmian was just admiring her own ability to reason with people when she saw Xie Siyu staring at her with eyes full of resentment, weeping once more. "Who asked you to save me? Why didn't you let me die! You'd be happy if I were dead, wouldn't you? Just let me die!"
"Siyu, are you trying to gouge out Mother's heart?" The Marquess's Wife held Xie Siyu, her heart aching for her, while her disgust for Xie Mianmian reached an extreme. "The culprit actually dares to think she can use this 'favor' to demand a reward? How can you even say such a thing?"
"Exactly!" Xie Rujue added indignantly. "Without you, Sister Siyu wouldn't have been in trouble in the first place!"
Xie Mianmian’s gaze drifted over the three of them as she reflected seriously, I really shouldn't have meddled.
Actually, she hadn't intended to save her; she had considered helping her shuffle off this mortal coil directly.
But she found their crying far too noisy. If this person actually died, there would be a funeral… which would be even noisier!
So Xie Mianmian had performed a small favor, thinking that saving the person would quiet things down.
She hadn't expected this family to be such ungrateful white-eyed wolves!
"Exactly! You—" Xie Rujue's words were cut off by a flash of silver light before his eyes.
The previously severed silk was pulled together by the silver wire and, winding around Xie Siyu, headed straight back toward the rafters!
"Aaaah!" Xie Rujue could only manage one sound.
"Siyu! Siyu!" The Marquess's Wife desperately clung to Xie Siyu, who was being hoisted up by the silk.
She followed the silver wire and turned her head, looking at Xie Mianmian with eyes full of terror. "Xie Mianmian! What are you doing?!"
Xie Mianmian answered seriously, "Stopping my meddling, restoring things to their original state, and letting her hang back up."
His Highness had said: To recognize one's mistake and reform is the greatest virtue.
She was being so obedient and well-behaved!
…
"Mother! Save me!" Xie Siyu, who had just been wanting to hang herself, was now screaming for help.
Seeing the silver wire precisely reconnecting the two pieces of silk and then gently winding around Xie Siyu’s neck, the Marquess's Wife felt as if her soul were shattering.
All the insults she wanted to hurl at Xie Mianmian were stuck in her throat. Her face instantly turned deathly pale, leaving only terror in her eyes.
She looked at Xie Mianmian, her voice shaking like a leaf in the autumn wind: "Mianmian, let Siyu down quickly! She'll die! Put her down now!"
Xie Mianmian looked down at this Marquess's Wife who had previously been domineering toward her. There was not a single ripple in her eyes as she spoke calmly, "Are you sure you've thought it through? Don't blame me again for meddling or trying to claim a favor."
The Marquess's Wife nodded repeatedly, tears rolling down her cheeks. "Mianmian, Mother was wrong! Mother shouldn't have said those things to you. Mother was muddled! Please, put Siyu down, Mother is begging you…"
Beside her, Xie Rujue was also forced to bow his head and admit his mistake, pleading reluctantly, "I was wrong too! You were the one who saved Sister just now. Please, save her again!"