She hadn't known much about Zhiyi before. Although he had promised to marry her, she knew very well that it was impossible for her to marry Zhiyi as a wife. At most, she would bring her in as a concubine.

Normally, Yang would have happily agreed, but in the blink of an eye, she thought of the pie in the sky that Anle had promised her.

Faced with Duan Qi's attitude, he hesitated.

If she could really be a wife—

No, no, no, what Lewazi said is right. Even if she enters the family in Baicheng and becomes a wife, based on the attitude of this family, she won't benefit much from the Qiao family in the future.

This saying, "distant water cannot quench immediate thirst," is indeed true, especially since Baicheng is far away from Jincheng.

There's something that's beyond our reach to help.

It's better to stay in our own backyard. If Zhiyi marries into an official's family in the future, she can help Zhishu and Zhili.

Then her whole family will truly benefit.

She could tell from Zhang's temperament that she didn't like the Qiao family at all. Her snobbish and condescending attitude made it clear that she wouldn't have a good future.

In the blink of an eye, his thoughts had gone through countless twists and turns before he finally made up his mind.

He was determined to sever ties with that family and find another official to marry into.

She dared not speak for anything else, but she knew her daughter's embroidery skills all too well. There was absolutely no one who could embroider better than her daughter, and she certainly couldn't find anyone within a hundred miles of Jincheng.

Since Lewazi is so confident, this matter must be able to be accomplished.

With the big business deal involving Lewazi, we can connect Zhiyi with someone, and the deal will definitely be done.

Her Qiao family has been rooted in Jincheng for generations. When she finds an official position, the person in charge will also be from Jincheng. This way, they can take care of her in the future, and she can benefit from it as well.

But that's hard to say; they might be lucky if they don't give you the cold shoulder.

Yang, with a composed expression, cleared her throat.

"This marriage to your Duan family is something my Qiao family can no longer afford. Your Qiao family is not what it used to be. Now my Qiao family is starting to learn to judge people from afar."

Moreover, it was originally agreed that my daughter Zhiyi would be formally married into the family, but now your Duan family has gone back on their word and committed such despicable acts.

What else can the Qiao family say?

It would be better to pack your bags and leave as soon as possible, so as not to get in the way of the Duan family.

"Zhiyi, let's go."

After Yang finished speaking, she took the lead and walked into the courtyard. Qiao Zhiyi followed behind Yang, bit her lip, glanced at Duan Qi, and her eyes were full of indifference.

Duan Qi felt a little flustered by Qiao Zhiyi's calm yet distant gaze. He turned around, took a step back, and grabbed Qiao Zhiyi, saying, "Zhiyi, wait a minute. I haven't agreed to let you leave yet."

I always keep my promises.

Regardless of my family's attitude, regardless of my parents' attitude, I have decided that you are my wife.

Qiao Zhiyi removed the large hand gripping her arm, smiled slightly at Duan Qi, her eyes filled with indifference, said nothing, and followed Yang Shi into the courtyard without hesitation.

Duan Qi chased after him relentlessly, "I know I'm sorry for what happened today. Please don't go. Let's get married right now."

I'll marry you right away. It doesn't matter if my parents don't like it. If you don't like our household, we can move out after we get married.

Out of sight, out of mind.

Qiao Zhiyi followed Yang's footsteps with her head down, without responding to Duan Qi.

Duan Qi was truly panicked. He could see that she was determined to leave and did not intend to stay in the manor any longer. If she really left like this, then there would be no possibility between him and Zhiyi, and their fate would be truly over. He did not want that to happen.

He must keep the people he likes.

"Zhiyi, please forgive me."

Qiao Zhiyi lowered her eyes. How could Duan Qi still not understand? The fault was not his at all. The fault lay in the fact that the two of them were destined to be apart, and that their social statuses created an insurmountable chasm.

The mistake lies in the concept of social class.

This is something deeply ingrained throughout history and can never be changed, so how could any miracle possibly happen to these two people?

Unless the Qiao family achieves a meteoric rise and becomes as powerful as the Duan family, the two of them will never be able to cross this chasm.

She didn't want to waste her time on something that would lead nowhere.

The disparity in their social standing was too great; this was the end of it.

Not wanting her daughter to get entangled with Duan Qi any further, Madam Yang quickened her pace and soon arrived at the hall entrance. Seeing that the door was open, she went straight in.

Yang suddenly let out a scream, startling Qiao Zhiyi and Duan Qi who followed in.

The scene that immediately caught their eye caused both of them to change their expressions.

"Mother—" Duan Qi cried out and rushed forward, throwing out a dagger to cut the white silk hanging from the beam, and quickly caught Zhang Shi as she fell.

With trembling hands, he reached under Zhang's nose. His face gradually turned pale. At this moment, Zhang was barely breathing, but thankfully, there was still hope.

There was also faint breathing.

He never expected his mother to be so resolute about his relationship with Zhiyi, to actually consider suicide. He thought she was just trying to scare him.

It's actually true!

Duan Qi's emotions suddenly plummeted, filled with hurt, grief, and pain, a mixture of feelings. He couldn't care less about his immediate feelings and hurriedly carried the unconscious Zhang Shi to the bed in the inner room.

Yang and Qiao Zhiyi stood dumbfounded at the entrance of the hall, still somewhat bewildered.

How could this be?!

Yang stared with her sharp eyes, looking incredulous, and it took her a long time to find her voice.

"Why would someone like that deliberately seek death?"

Qiao Zhiyi was brought back to her senses by her mother's shout, and her eyes dimmed.

Why would I want to die?

Is it because the things he did to harm her were exposed today, so he wants to commit suicide?

How could that be? In her eyes, Madam Duan wasn't that kind of person. How could she possibly take her own life for her sake?

So what exactly happened?

Could it be that Duan Qi had some conflict with Madam Duan before leaving? Did he lose his temper and act rashly?

In her mind, this was the only possibility.

Otherwise, she couldn't understand what the current situation was like.

However, because of her disappointment, Qiao Zhiyi has remained calm since deciding to leave. Even now, facing Madam Duan's suicide attempt, she is still able to calmly and composedly speak to Madam Yang.

"Mother, it seems we can't leave anytime soon. Why don't you go to the back and call my little cousin over? Once Madam Duan wakes up, we'll leave together from here. Don't keep her waiting in the back."

Yang nodded hesitantly, glanced at the direction of the inner room, and then turned and left.