Jiang Die had married the owner of the most famous clothing company in all of S City, Shengyi Company. Even three Jiang families combined could not compare to him. Although he could not bring any direct benefits to the Jiang family, his reputation alone was enough for her to “throw her weight around.” Besides, she had seen his photo, and the man was undeniably handsome.
She had accidentally let this idiot marry into a wealthy family. It would have been better if she had simply let her marry Xing Yiming.
She really was lucky.
Hearing Jiang Weiling say the exact same thing Xing Yiming had said, Jiang Die raised her brows slightly and calmly curled her lips into a smile.
“It really has been a long time. I also heard that my sister tried to take her own life on the day of my engagement banquet, and Xing Yiming was so anxious that he left without a second thought. Shouldn’t I thank you for giving me the chance to meet the good marriage I have now?”
Jiang Weiling’s face turned deathly pale. She had not expected Jiang Die to know about this. She nervously glanced around, and only after confirming that no one else was nearby did she calm herself down.
“Sister, I only regard Yiming as my brother now. I know you were upset when he abandoned you at the engagement banquet, but what does that have to do with me?”
Jiang Die could clearly see the stiffness in Jiang Weiling’s expression and knew that she cared deeply about saving face.
She could hint to Jiang Die that Xing Yiming only cared about her, but she absolutely could not let it be known that she had used something as extreme as attempting suicide to keep him by her side. That would make it look as though she had lost.
After all, in Jiang Weiling’s eyes, Xing Yiming was merely a trophy she had won from Jiang Die.
Sometimes, Jiang Die really could not help wondering whether Jiang Weiling had turned her love for her into hatred.
Seeing that Jiang Die remained silent for a long time, Jiang Weiling deliberately put on a worried expression.
“Sister, did you marry someone else just to anger Yiming because he left the engagement banquet?”
“Have you really thought this through? You’ve liked Yiming for so many years. Maybe he had some difficulties of his own that prevented him from completing the engagement ceremony with you.”
Jiang Die found it amusing. She had not expected the two of them to be so perfectly in sync when it came to lecturing her.
“A man like Xing Yiming, who can’t even secure a director position in his company, compared with the owner of Shengyi Company, naturally, I’ve thought it through very carefully.”
Jiang Die paused. She had no intention of continuing this fake sisterly affection with her and spoke bluntly.
“But you don’t need to be so nervous. I’m already married, so I won’t regret it. Whatever your relationship with Xing Yiming is has nothing to do with me. But from what I can see, he seems to care quite a lot about this. He’s been acting like an obedient dog around you for so long, so you really should give him a proper status.”
Without waiting for Jiang Weiling to respond, she walked straight into the house, leaving the latter frozen in place. Her trembling fingertips revealed just how uneasy she was.
In the past, whenever she provoked Jiang Die, the other girl would simply endure it in silence. When did she become like this?
Especially when Xing Yiming was mentioned, there was no trace of love or heartache on her face anymore.
And Xing Yiming must have told her something. Otherwise, how could she possibly know?
Jiang Weiling thought about how Feng Youmei had always treated her coldly simply because she was not related to the Jiang family by blood, making every step she took difficult.
She knew Feng Youmei too well. Fortunately, Jiang Die had nothing but words without evidence.
If Feng Youmei ever discovered that she had been behind what happened at the engagement banquet, then even though the engagement banquet had already ended smoothly, Feng Youmei would still hold it against her. If anything major happened to the Jiang family in the future, she would be the first person sacrificed to take the blame.
“…”
As soon as Jiang Die entered the house, she saw a middle-aged woman in a green dress sitting on the sofa in the living room beside a teenage boy who was scribbling on a drawing board.
She had not expected this family to stay away when she got engaged, only to summon everyone back as soon as she got married.
“Xiaodie, you’re back?” The woman immediately walked over with a warm smile. “Where is your husband? Why didn’t he come with you?”
“He had something to take care of. He’ll be here later,” Jiang Die replied indifferently.
It was no wonder she had said the Jiang family was a complicated and dangerous place. The woman in front of her, Chen Aiyu, was Jiang Weiling’s adoptive mother. After her uncle’s original wife died, he remarried Chen Aiyu.
The teenage boy sitting on the sofa as though he had not heard them speaking was their son, Jiang Shunan. A few years ago, he had suffered an accident and developed autism.
Feng Youmei held deeply traditional views and strongly favored sons over daughters. When Jiang Die’s mother had been pregnant, they did not even know whether the baby would be a boy or a girl, yet Feng Youmei had placed all her hopes on the child. Who would have thought those hopes would turn to nothing?
Otherwise, how could Jiang Die have been the one raised to become the person in charge of the Jiang family?
And perhaps because Jiang Shunan had fallen ill, his mother seemed to have given even more of her love to Jiang Weiling, which had also allowed her to become the person she was today.
Jiang Die simply could not understand it. No matter what, Jiang Shunan was her biological son, so how could he possibly be less important than an adopted daughter?
Still, she had no intention of involving herself in another family’s affairs. Other than her sick cousin, the mother and daughter were both more calculating than the other, with dark intentions, while her uncle was a spineless man. Not a single one of them was harmless.
Jiang Die went upstairs and returned to her room. She pulled her suitcase out from the compartment beside the wardrobe and began packing her belongings.
Now that she was married, she could leave with Lu Liyan after dinner.
She was folding several sets of clothes when a steady knock sounded at the door.
Jiang Die opened it and was not surprised to see who was standing outside.
“Are you done with work?”
Lu Liyan did not look particularly well. He merely answered coldly, “Mm.”
“Are you all right?” Jiang Die immediately felt that she might be meddling in something that was none of her business. She stepped aside to make room for him and changed the subject. “Dinner isn’t ready yet. Want to come in and sit for a while?”
Lu Liyan did not refuse, but with the two of them alone in the same room, everything they needed to discuss had already been settled, leaving the air feeling almost frozen.
After Jiang Die finished folding her clothes and was about to put them into the suitcase, she could no longer ignore the intense gaze fixed on her back. She turned around and saw the man standing completely out of place in her room, as still as a statue, with frost seemingly gathered between his brows.
She glanced at her bed, which was covered with her belongings, and finally pulled out the chair in front of her desk.
“Want to sit?”
Lu Liyan said nothing, but he finally moved. When Jiang Die watched him walk toward her, she could not help swallowing nervously.
Just then, there was another knock at the door, followed by Aunt Liu’s voice.
“Miss Jiang, Mr. Lu, lunch is ready. Come downstairs.”
“Okay, we’ll be right there.” Jiang Die answered the door while hurriedly stuffing the clothes into her suitcase. She zipped it up and was just about to drag it away when the man’s hand simultaneously grasped the handle, his long fingers brushing against the back of hers.
Jiang Die’s heart skipped a beat, and her hand instinctively pulled back.
“I’ll take it.”
Lu Liyan took the suitcase without changing his expression and walked ahead.
The two of them went downstairs together.
The dining table was right beside the staircase, and several members of the Jiang family were already seated. In complete silence, an inexplicable sense of strangeness slowly spread through the room.
Only the teenage boy turned his gaze toward them. He then slowly shifted his chair, leaving a small gap between himself and the two empty chairs beside him.
Jiang Die took the initiative to sit beside the boy, leaving Lu Liyan the seat at the far end where there was more space and where he would not have to face the mother and daughter opposite them.
After Aunt Liu brought out the final dish, Feng Youmei elegantly lifted her spoon and took a sip of soup before suddenly asking, “When are you two planning to hold the wedding?”