Zhou Yunshen's hand paused around his teacup, his gaze sweeping over Madam Jiang's face.
He had seen plenty of scheming in the secluded courtyards of great households, but this was his first time seeing someone lose his own daughter and bring back an impostor to take her place.
A forest big enough really did have every kind of bird. Live long enough, and you would see anything.
Jiang Shuyue was curious too. [Why would he do that? Am I not his biological daughter? Did my mother have an affair?]
Jiang Mother wanted nothing more than to slap her biological daughter on the forehead.
What did she mean, an affair? She was a lady from a distinguished family. How could she possibly do something so outrageous?
The system sighed. [No! Not only did she never have an affair, she strictly observed propriety, supported her husband, and raised her children. She always strove to be a model wife and mother.]
[Unfortunately, that was exactly what your father hated about her.]
[No charm, no fun, no flavor. He even thought your mother looked down on him, and that was why she laid down so many rules.]
[So your father bought a courtesan's freedom, and then...]
The system chuckled, and Jiang Shuyue understood perfectly.
Jiang Shuyue thought, [Flowers at home never smell as sweet as wildflowers. I get it! Men are animals who can't control their lower halves!]
Zhou Yunshen: ...
He inexplicably felt dragged into the line of fire, and a nameless anger began rising inside him.
The system said, [When your mother was pregnant, that woman was pregnant too. You and Jiang Liuli were born only two hours apart. You're actually the younger sister. Remember the state preceptor's divination?]
Jiang Shuyue nodded. [One was a daughter of destiny, reincarnated with good fortune. The other was a harbinger of doom who brought bad luck to anyone who came near her.]
The system said, [Exactly! After you two were born, your father was implicated in someone else's trouble and sent to the frontier. After that woman cried and raised a fuss, they both decided you were blocking his official career. Besides, your mother wasn't in his favor, and he thought she used her family's power to look down on him and keep him under her thumb. So he decided to go all the way and swap you out.]
[And another thing-they actually intended to kill you after the swap. But someone saw how cute you were, with such soft, delicate skin, and figured you would fetch a good price when you grew up. That was why he secretly spared your life.]
[Want to know who took you away?]
Jiang Shuyue had been about to say no, but when she saw the system's expression, she figured the poor thing might burst if she didn't let him tell her.
Jiang Shuyue thought, [Who? Don't tell me it was Jiang Liuli's biological brother?]
The system said, [She's an only child. She has no brother, but she does have a biological father!]
Jiang Shuyue was a little bewildered.
The system said, [Jiang An thought the child was his, but Jiang Liuli's biological father actually sold salted fish! Her biological mother wanted to attach herself to the rich and powerful, so she lied and said she was carrying Jiang An's child. The man tasked with killing you was her biological father-the very man you used to call Father.]
The relationships were a little tangled.
Jiang Shuyue spent quite a while sorting them out, then burst into thunderous laughter inside her head.
Jiang Shuyue thought, [Hahaha! What a soap opera! Rich families really are steeped in melodrama. Novels never lied to me!]
Jiang Mother's face was deathly pale, and her eyes practically blazed as she looked at Jiang Shuyue.
She had suffered such a devastating blow, yet her own daughter could still laugh!
Jiang Shuyue thought, [What happened next? Is there anything even more melodramatic?]
The system said, [Of course! Your father brought Jiang Liuli into the household partly to give her a comfortable life in your place, and partly to get his hands on the Jiang Family's assets.]
[As everyone knows, your father married into the family. Even his rise to high office depended on your mother's family supporting him. Your eldest brother was raised personally by your maternal grandfather, so he isn't easy to control.]
[Although your father ruined your second brother's upbringing, his roots are still sound. He won't wallow in the same filth as your father. Only Jiang Liuli is of one mind with him.]
Jiang Shuyue thought, [So he brought Jiang Liuli in to nibble away at the family from within, hoping to take over the Jiang Family. Let me tell you a secret: before long, that courtesan he keeps outside will move in under the guise of his younger female cousin.]
Impossible. Absolutely impossible!
Jiang Mother could believe Jiang An had cheated and found another woman, and she could believe he had swapped a dragon for a phoenix. But she did not believe he had the nerve to bring that woman into the house so brazenly.
Zhou Yunshen, however, believed every word.
Jiang An was hypocritical, cunning, and insatiably greedy. Despite serving in the Ministry of Rites, he had repeatedly meddled in the affairs of the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Revenue, then made his own student a scapegoat.
Leaving a man like that around would only invite disaster.
The servants brought out the food, and Jiang Liuli immediately placed a chicken wing in Zhou Yunshen's bowl. "Marquis, this is our chef's specialty. Please try it."
"I don't care for chicken."
Zhou Yunshen pushed the bowl aside in distaste, and Qi Ye immediately replaced his bowl and chopsticks with fresh ones.
Jiang Liuli could not hide her embarrassment. Then she saw Jiang Shuyue snickering beside her, and she gritted her teeth in anger before speaking in a snide tone.
"That was thoughtless of me, but really, Sister, you knew your husband disliked chicken wings. Why didn't you say so beforehand? If outsiders heard of this, what would they think of our Jiang Family?"
Jiang Shuyue said in a soft, sweet voice, "But I like them. Marquis, you don't mind, do you?"
"I don't mind."
Zhou Yunshen placed a chicken wing in her bowl. Watching her eat like a little squirrel, he could not help smiling.
Jiang Shuyue spat two bones out of her mouth. "Chicken wings taste so much better when my husband serves them!"
"Have more if you like them."
Zhou Yunshen kept placing food in her bowl, choosing only the meat dishes she liked.
Jiang Liuli grew increasingly resentful.
The man she had cast aside was actually so handsome and gentle, and she had handed him to a useless woman like Jiang Shuyue. How could she swallow that bitter pill?
Seeing him eat a shrimp, Jiang Liuli hurriedly picked one up with her chopsticks to give to Zhou Yunshen.
Before she could put it in his bowl, Jiang Shuyue murmured, "Sister, your chopsticks have your saliva on them. Isn't it a little inappropriate to serve someone else with them?"
"Although you aren't a biological daughter, you did grow up here. If anyone saw this, they might mock the Jiang Family for having no manners."
"Besides, he's your brother-in-law. You should keep a proper distance."
Jiang Liuli's face turned deathly pale. She looked pitifully at Zhou Yunshen. "That was careless of me. Please punish me, Marquis."
"Very well. Your punishment is to leave. Come back and clear the table after we finish eating."
What? He wanted her to leave? And clear the table afterward?
Jiang Liuli could not believe her ears.
She had grown up cherished and pampered. When had she ever suffered such humiliation?
Besides, whenever people saw her looking hurt, they would rush to comfort her, letting her lead them around by the nose.
Why was Zhou Yunshen reacting like this?
Jiang Liuli made her eyes a little redder and looked at Zhou Yunshen like a rabbit.
Jiang Shuyue said, "Oh, why are your eyes red, Sister? Is the cooking smoke irritating them? You'd better leave the table right away. Be careful you don't catch pink eye. You'll be the one who suffers."
Bullshit. How could cooked food give off cooking smoke?
"Mother..."
Jiang Mother had once doted on this daughter more than anyone.
But now, whenever she saw Jiang Liuli, she was reminded of Jiang An's betrayal, and anger surged up inside her.
"Liuli, today is your sister and brother-in-law's first visit home after their wedding. Be sensible and leave for now."
Before you continue