A large hand grabbed Ye Yunniang, pulling her into a narrow alley. Hot, insistent lips pressed down, swallowing all her startled cries.
"Don't... Second Master, don't..." Ye Yunniang pushed weakly at Jiang Mingzhe, her voice hushed, afraid of drawing attention from passersby outside the alley.
Jiang Mingzhe ignored her protests, taking advantage of the moment to deepen the kiss.
When their lips finally parted, Ye Yunniang slumped against Jiang Mingzhe's chest, gasping for breath. She pressed a hand against his mouth to stop him from claiming her lips again. "Second Master... are you alright?" The moment the words left her mouth, she inwardly scolded herself for her thoughtlessness. How could the Jiang family possibly be "alright" in their current state?
Jiang Mingzhe didn’t answer. Instead, he tightened his arms around her, inhaling the faint milky scent clinging to her skin, letting it soothe the fury burning inside him.
Pressed against him, Ye Yunniang could feel his exhaustion, his simmering rage. She didn’t resist, letting him hold her until her body grew stiff. "Can you let go now?"
Jiang Mingzhe released her.
Ye Yunniang took two steps back, fishing a jade thumb ring from her sleeve and handing it to him. "Your belonging."
Jiang Mingzhe didn’t take it. "If I gave it to you, it’s yours now."
"You need it more than I do." She studied the ring—its fine quality meant it could fetch a decent sum if pawned.
"This was the reward I bought myself at thirteen, after closing my first business deal. I’ve worn it ever since, considering it my lucky charm. Keep it safe for me."
At this, Ye Yunniang relented, tucking the ring into her embroidered pouch. She then pulled out two silver notes and pressed them into Jiang Mingzhe’s hand. "I believe Second Master will restore the Jiang family to its former glory as Jiangcheng’s wealthiest household."
The sight of the silver notes dissolved the last of Jiang Mingzhe’s resentment. He seized Ye Yunniang in a crushing embrace.
"You—"
A storm of passion overtook them.
Jiang Mingzhe lifted Ye Yunniang as effortlessly as a child, carrying her deeper into the alley.
Terrified of falling, she wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist. "M-Master... where... are you... ah—!" Her words fragmented into breathless gasps.
He kicked open a wooden door midway down the alley, stepping into a small courtyard before heading straight for the bed inside.
"Second Master, no—" Ye Yunniang panicked. Broad daylight was no time for this.
"Call me by my name. Jingzhi. Say it, Yunniang—call me Jingzhi."
"N-no... Jingzhi... we can’t... not in daylight... ah... stop—!"
In the dilapidated temple next door.
"Old Man Jiang, still acting like the grand patriarch of the richest family? The Jiangs have been stripped of everything—you’re just a penniless old man now." Jiang Mingshu sneered.
"Jiang Mingshu, he’s still your father," Jiang Mingrui snapped, disgusted by his brother’s arrogance.
"Jiang Mingshu? Hah. I go by Li Mingshu now. I have nothing to do with the Jiang family." The groveling, obedient Jiang Mingshu of the past was gone.
Now, standing before the Jiangs was Li Mingshu—a man who bore the Li name, not Jiang.
When Old Master Jiang discovered Jiang Mingshu and Jiang Mingyue’s affair, he had been furious enough to send Jiang Mingshu to prison.
Jiang Mingyue had knelt before Old Madam Jiang, kowtowing and begging for mercy. Concubine Bai had also pleaded, even revealing she was pregnant.
Old Master Jiang hadn’t believed it at first—until the physician confirmed it. A child at sixty? He was overjoyed.
Under their combined pleas, he relented, sparing Jiang Mingshu from the law. But the Jiang household could no longer tolerate him. He was cast out with nothing—no family, no inheritance.
Jiang Mingyue and Concubine Bai emptied their private savings for him.
Fearing the Jiangs might still silence him, Li Mingshu used the money to establish himself in a neighboring town. The moment he settled, news arrived—the Jiang family had been raided.
Laughing at heaven’s justice, he rushed back to Jiangcheng.
"Yueyue, come with me." Li Mingshu extended a hand to Jiang Mingyue. His feelings for her were genuine.
Without hesitation, she took it, standing firmly by his side.
"Anywhere. I’ll follow you anywhere." Her eyes held no one but him.
"Mingyue, you can’t!" Old Madam Jiang lunged for her daughter’s hand. She couldn’t let her be stolen away like this.
"Drop dead, you old hag!" Jiang Mingyue shoved her away, voice dripping with venom.
"Mother!" Jiang Mingrui steadied the stumbling old woman before rounding on his sister. "Jiang Mingyue, have you no shame? Pushing the woman who doted on you for sixteen years—all for an outsider?"
"She’s not my real mother. My birth mother died because of her. I’ve hated her all along." The loathing in Jiang Mingyue’s eyes was laid bare.
Old Madam Jiang staggered, heartbroken. Sixteen years of love, and this was the result. Blood always told—no matter how much she had given, a child not her own would never truly be hers.
Li Mingshu smirked in triumph before turning to Concubine Bai.
"Mother, come with me."
Concubine Bai hesitated, a hand resting on her belly.
"Mother, the old man has nothing left. If you stay, he might sell you off the moment he needs coin."
Old Master Jiang ignored Li Mingshu’s taunts, his gaze fixed on Concubine Bai. "Will you leave with him?"
"My lord, I—" Yesterday’s exile had been unbearable—no food, only prickly straw to sleep on. After years of luxury, she couldn’t return to hardship.
Her silence was answer enough.
"Fine. I’ll draft a release. You’re free to go." If her heart wasn’t here, he wouldn’t force her.
With no ink or paper in the temple, Li Mingshu sent someone to fetch them.
Once the document was signed and sealed, the Jiang household had one less concubine.
Bai Yurong clutched her release, tearful eyes meeting Old Master Jiang’s. "My lord, I’ll bear this child and raise them well."
"Mother, this child has no ties to the Jiangs. You should get rid of it." Li Mingshu had no intention of raising a Jiang heir.
Jiang Mingyue stayed silent, agreeing with him.
"Mingshu, this is your brother!" Concubine Bai refused. She grasped Old Master Jiang’s hand. "My lord, no matter how hard life gets, I’ll ensure our son becomes a scholar. He’ll pass the imperial exams and restore the Jiang name."
Pleased by her vow, Old Master Jiang whispered something in her ear.
"My lord, come with us. Let’s leave Jiangcheng together. Our child can’t grow up without a father." She collapsed against his chest, weeping.
"Mother, what nonsense is this? You have me!" Li Mingshu yanked her toward the exit.
Dragged away, Bai Yurong twisted back, tears streaming as she cried out, "My lord! My lord—!"
