That night, the lights in Duchess Zhu Man's room were dim, and the atmosphere was oppressive. She had dismissed all her maids and faced Dai Yueheng alone. He looked listless, still bearing the humiliation of his defeat earlier that day.
"Yueheng, even now, can you still not see the situation clearly?" Zhu Man's voice carried an icy desperation and ruthlessness. "Dai Youheng's wings have fully grown. His strength is increasing at a terrifying rate, and he has even won the princess's favor. His standing at court rises by the day! If this continues, never mind your position as the eldest legitimate son-even the entire White Tiger Duke's Mansion will bear the Xu surname one day! That Dai Youheng is already one of the Xu Family!"
Dai Yueheng abruptly raised his head. His eyes were bloodshot, and his lips moved, but he could not find a word to refute her.
His mother's words stabbed into his heart like knives, while his crushing defeat that day kept replaying before his eyes.
Zhu Man stepped closer and lowered her voice, revealing the venomous scheme she had been brewing for so long. "I've already thought of a countermeasure. I'll write another letter to your father. There's no need to mention the Tyrant Tiger Soul Refining Blade again. I'll simply say that Dai Youheng is wild and unruly, that he openly defied his father's orders and must be strictly disciplined. I'll have your father invoke the clan rules and family rules to summon him to Mingdou Camp immediately to explain himself. Once he leaves Star Luo City-"
A sinister gleam flashed through her eyes. "While he's away, we'll find a way to invite Bai Wanning and Dai Luoli to the Zhu Family's territory as our guests! Then he won't just have to obediently hand over