Jiang Youli's words managed to quell Jiang Xing's anger somewhat.
Especially when he considered how much she must have suffered while living away from home—suffering she would never have endured had she grown up in the Jiang Family.
After a long pause, his voice came out stiff. "It’s true that Little He’s mother secretly switched you two at birth, but Little He was just a child back then. She’s innocent..."
Jiang Youli picked at her ear, unimpressed. "How boring. You people always fall back on the same excuses. If the switch wasn’t her mother’s doing, then sure, she’d be innocent. But her mother meticulously planned this for her sake. And yet you still call her innocent? By that logic, half the world’s criminals have ‘innocent’ children. Even a child trafficker’s kid is ‘innocent’—after all, the trafficker only stole other people’s children to make dirty money and give their own kid a better life."
She smirked. "Oh, and the night before I returned to the Jiang Family, your ‘innocent’ sister hired someone to try and defile me."
"Impossible!"
"Tch. Go investigate if you don’t believe me."
Jiang Xing fell silent, his clenched fists gradually loosening. "You’ve been humiliating me this whole time just to make me feel the same pain you did, haven’t you?"
"Of course. There’s no such thing as true empathy. The best way is to make people like you—who’ve never suffered a day in their lives—experience it firsthand." Jiang Youli flashed him a radiant smile.
Yet despite its brilliance, Jiang Xing only saw malice in it.
"Steady yourself. The game’s only just begun. When your family loses everything and ends up with nothing, you’ll really lose it then." With that, Jiang Youli swaggered off toward the Jiang Family’s garage.
Jiang Xing turned, watching her retreating figure. Instead of disdain or hatred, his gaze was uncharacteristically complicated.
But no matter what, he refused to believe that Little He would ever hire someone to assault Jiang Youli.
...
Jiang Yonghe returned to her room, preparing to freshen up before heading to Starlight Entertainment, when she caught sight of Jiang Xing trailing behind Jiang Youli outside her window.
She frowned in surprise.
Wasn’t Jiang Xing supposed to be at the company?
Why was he following Jiang Youli?
She stepped closer to the window, gripping the sill tightly.
Had Jiang Xing already been won over by Jiang Youli? Was he now on her side?
The thought sent a sharp pang of dread through Jiang Yonghe’s heart.
Her place in the Jiang Family depended entirely on her value to her adoptive father, Qin Yulian’s bragging rights, and the unconditional affection of Jiang Xing and Jiang Zhao.
If she lost Jiang Xing’s unwavering support, her footing in the family would crumble even further!
No. She couldn’t let that happen.
Tonight’s welcome banquet—she had to do something!
...
"Little Huan, I brought him. Ask him yourself—did he say he was only nice to me because he wanted something?" Jiang Youli announced as she arrived at their usual meeting spot, where Qi Huan was already waiting in the pavilion.
Jiang Xing, his right leg unsteady, lagged behind and only caught up after a moment.
Hearing Jiang Youli’s words, he paused mid-step and looked at Qi Huan.
Meeting Qi Huan’s gaze, Jiang Xing felt an instinctive tension. But then it struck him—Qi Huan wasn’t the same man he once was. With one more crippled leg than him, his future as the Qi Family’s heir was uncertain. Why should he still fear Qi Huan?
Even with that self-assurance, the moment their eyes locked, Jiang Xing still faltered.
Those calm, depthless eyes were like a black hole, threatening to drag him into an abyss of ruin.
"Oh? So the eldest young master of the Jiang Family thinks that way?" Qi Huan smiled faintly.
The Jiang Family had always been overshadowed by the Qi Family in Jing City, and Jiang Xing had rarely interacted with Qi Huan, the once-dominant heir.
Now, face-to-face, the pressure radiating from him was chilling.
Jiang Xing’s voice wavered. "...I did say that."
Qi Huan let out a low chuckle. "And why would you think so?"
Jiang Xing steeled himself. "Because compared to Little He, she’s far inferior."
The faint smile on Qi Huan’s lips faded slightly. "Have you ever even tried to understand her before making such bold claims? Jiang Xing, as the Jiang Family’s eldest son and its former future heir, is your judgment really this narrow?"
Jiang Xing hesitated, glancing at Jiang Youli, who leaned lazily against the pavilion pillar.
"Young Master Qi, what’s there to understand? She grew up in some backwater village with limited education. A quick investigation would show she dropped out in middle school. How could someone like her compare to Little He?"
Qi Huan’s gaze darkened. "Outsiders might dismiss her for not being ‘perfect,’ but as her own brother, how dare you look down on her?"
Jiang Xing had no retort.
Qi Huan scoffed. "Jiang Xing, your family will regret this. She’s far more remarkable than you realize. Even after being switched at birth by Jiang Yonghe’s vile mother and deprived of the privileges Jiang Yonghe enjoyed, she’s weathered every storm out there and only grown stronger. That alone deserves respect."
Listening to Qi Huan’s praise, Jiang Youli’s amused expression shifted to curiosity.
Really, why was Qi Huan so certain she wasn’t inferior to Jiang Yonghe?
They’d only met a handful of times, and their interactions had been brief.
"I admire Jiang Youli. I like her. That’s why I choose to treat her with all my kindness—not because I ‘need’ something from her, as you assume," Qi Huan continued. "I called you here to clarify this in front of her. I won’t have my feelings misunderstood. If I hear you slandering me like this again, don’t expect me to be this civil."
Jiang Xing instinctively apologized. "I understand."
Qi Huan waved him off. "Leave. Don’t interrupt my time alone with my fiancée."
Jiang Xing: "..."
Jiang Youli burst out laughing.
Jiang Xing stared at her, incredulous. "You’re just going to make me walk back like this?"
Jiang Youli shrugged. "What? You only lost a leg, not your life."
After a beat of silence, Jiang Xing realized she wasn’t joking. Gritting his teeth, he gripped his cane and hobbled away.
Once he was gone, Jiang Youli turned back to Qi Huan, curiosity gleaming in her eyes.
"Little Huan, what you said earlier got me thinking. Why don’t you see me as ‘inferior’ to Jiang Yonghe like everyone else does?"
Qi Huan smiled, serene as a breeze. "Little Li, do you really think I got this far in the Qi Family just by luck?"
"On the very first day I went to Jianshan Village to find you, I discovered one of your secrets. Those medicinal herbs hanging on your walls had appeared at an auction house in Jing City, each worth at least ten million. Yet, you had them displayed so casually, which made it clear that money meant nothing to you. When you met me, you were neither submissive nor arrogant—your speech was confident and bold. That kind of demeanor isn’t something one can fake overnight. It’s the mark of someone who has long been self-assured and accomplished."
