Chapter 41 Is she truly his mother?

Jiang Xiuyuan followed closely behind, his expression somewhat complex. "Jiang Lingyao, I was worried about Lian'er just now and panicked, leaving you behind there. Did Princess Wende continue to make things difficult for you?"

Jiang Lingyao twitched the corner of her mouth. "It was nothing much. She just said a few words, and thinking I wasn't a true daughter of the Duke's estate, she asked if I had been adopted from elsewhere."

Jiang Xiuyuan, who had initially been feeling guilty, flew into a rage upon hearing this. "Why can't you ever speak to me properly? Must you always try to prick me?"

Having no desire to entertain him further, Jiang Lingyao turned to Pei Xingzhi. "Thank you for the escort, Your Highness."

As she turned to leave, Pei Xingzhi could no longer suppress the anger on his face. He grabbed her sleeve and said in a deep voice, "Jiang Lingyao, exactly what are you holding against me?"

Jiang Lingyao shook off his hand without the slightest hesitation and said coldly, "Show some self-respect, Your Highness! No matter how close the Duke's estate is to the Pei family, you have no right to overstep your bounds like this!"

Pei Xingzhi stared at her fixedly, the anger on his face growing more intense.

Was she doing this on purpose today just to provoke him?

At the side, Jiang Xiuyuan, suppressing a vague and nameless sense of guilt, was beside himself with rage. "Jiang Lingyao! Why are you so snarky with everyone? Get this straight, we don't owe you anything! Look at Lian'er—she is so sensible and knows the proper boundaries when speaking to anyone, and then look at you!"

Pointing a finger at Jiang Lingyao, his face flushed red, he demanded, "Why can't you learn a thing or two from her?"

"Brother Pei, you don't need to endure this out of past affection. Jiang Lingyao has such a cursed temper; she is completely unsuited to be the mistress of the Pei household. You should reconsider and let Lian'er become the main wife, and then have Jiang Lingyao brought into the estate later as a concubine."

In his extreme anger, he did not lower his voice. Passersby who heard these words froze in their tracks, staring at him with wide eyes.

What... what did the eldest young master of the Jiang family just say?

He wanted the adopted daughter to be the primary wife, and his own flesh-and-blood sister to be a concubine?

Had he lost his mind?!

***

Hearing this, Jiang Lingyao could not help but find it laughable. What did they take her for, casually deciding her entire future in just a few words?

They constantly operated under the banner of doing what was best for her, yet in reality, they treated her merely as a weak and easily bullied pawn, never once consulting her opinion on anything.

Such "care" made her feel sick to her stomach!

Jiang Lingyao sneered, raised her eyes, and said with a steady gaze, "If you want a concubine so badly, why don't you marry him yourself?"

Jiang Xiuyuan was furious, pointing an accusing finger at her. "You—!"

"What about me? I never said I wanted to marry Pei Xingzhi, let alone become his concubine. How is it that you two are already sitting here planning it all out?"

With a cold and ruthless glint in her eyes, Jiang Lingyao lowered her voice. "Jiang Xiuyuan, if word of today's events gets out, I should congratulate you in advance—it looks like you'll soon be famous throughout the capital."

Angered to the extreme, Jiang Xiuyuan froze upon hearing these words. Subconsciously, he slowly looked around and, seeing several curious onlookers gathered about, his expression turned instantly pale.

Panic struck his heart. Forgetting about Jiang Lingyao as she turned to leave, he hurriedly tried to explain, "I was just provoked into anger by Jiang Lingyao and spoke without thinking. Please, everyone, do not spread this outside."

The onlookers nodded and quickly dispersed.

He clenched his fists tightly, his face turning paler and paler as a cold sweat broke out all over his body.

Pei Xingzhi also stood frozen in place, massive waves churning in the depths of his eyes.

Did Jiang Lingyao just say she had no intention of marrying him?

***

After waiting in the carriage for a short while, Wenqiu parted the curtains, panting slightly, and said earnestly, "Young Miss, I have already delivered the gift."

She paused, then asked, "What kind of trouble did you run into that you had to have a Pei family maid bring a message to me?"

Jiang Lingyao shook her head and sighed. "It's nothing, just some shameless pests."

Seeing that she looked exhausted, Wenqiu did not press any further.

Upon returning to the estate, Jiang Lingyao headed straight for her grandmother's quarters, only to be intercepted halfway by Madam Jiang.

"Mingzhu."

Madam Jiang asked with a look of feigned concern, "Why have you returned so early?"

Jiang Lingyao raised her eyes. "There was nothing pressing, so of course I had to return to the estate to take care of Grandmother."

All the words Madam Jiang had prepared next were completely blocked. Sighing, she said, "Mother knows your filial piety toward your grandmother, but the Pei family is different. Right now, everything should take second place to your marriage affairs; you shouldn't have come back so early."

Looking at Madam Jiang's expression of apparent concern, Jiang Lingyao felt a momentary daze.

The person before her was her birth mother, the mother who had given birth to and raised her. Yet she was also an accomplice who, alongside Jiang Xiuyuan, had pressured her into accepting that unreasonable demand.

Her worry at this moment was not fake, and the care she had shown her in the past was not fake either. That was precisely why facing her always brought Jiang Lingyao even greater pain.

The words Princess Wende had spoken earlier suddenly drifted into her mind, startling Jiang Lingyao into a daring thought.

Was this woman truly her mother?

Seeing her fall silent, Madam Jiang continued, "Mingzhu, we are only doing this for your own good. I am your mother; how could I possibly harm you? You... think carefully about the matter we discussed last time."

Was she truly her mother?!