Xie Yunqiu's expression froze; he hadn't expected the fire to spread to him.

She and Ding Huizhu had conflicts, and Old Master Xie knew about it. He had turned a blind eye to it all these years, as long as the two of them kept their distance and didn't cause any scandals.

Why is it that this time, just for Xie Li, they resorted to family discipline against her, a woman who married out of the family?

She felt extremely embarrassed, her face burning with shame. "Dad, I know I was wrong. I'll teach Belle a proper lesson from now on..."

Grandpa Xie waved his hand, "Don't try to fob me off with these words. As her mother, you are also partly to blame for the mistakes Belle made today!"

“You’ve always been proud and strong-willed since you were little, that’s fine. You insisted on marrying into the Jiang family back then, so be it, just live your life well.”

"But if you try to use your status as Madam Jiang to bully others in the Xie family and disrupt the harmony of the Xie family, don't blame me for being impolite!"

"Also, don't apologize to me. The person you've truly wronged is Lili!"

Xie Yunqiu's face turned pale and then red. It had been so many years since she had been scolded so harshly in front of her by Old Master Xie, especially in front of a village girl she looked down on.

But she simply couldn't bring herself to apologize to a junior.

In the end, he could only leave in a hurry and go to the ancestral hall to reflect on his actions.

I'm afraid neither mother nor daughter will be able to sleep tonight.

"Lili, don't worry, they won't dare target you again." Old Master Xie calmed down. "If they don't apologize to you, I'll continue to punish them tomorrow!"

Xie Yunqiu's departing figure stiffened. How could she not understand that Old Master Xie had deliberately said it to her? She gritted her teeth and quickened her pace.

Xie Li watched Xie Yunqiu's hurried departure with a thoughtful expression. An apology? She didn't need one.

The girl's eyes, usually as serene as distant mountains, held a hint of coldness. If it weren't for Jiang Baili's actions against Chen Lian, she might have truly escaped this calamity today.

But she not only harmed Chen Lian, but also almost put Chen Lian in danger.

She simply cannot forgive this.

Madam Shen couldn't forgive the Hang family either, since they were her maternal family. She had no choice but to swallow her anger and vent her frustration on that lewd man.

Because of his momentary greed, the other party will soon face several years in prison.

This lesson is one that should be etched in one's memory.

——

Inside the Xie Family Ancestral Hall.

Jiang Baili knelt upright, copying the family rules with a brush. The more she copied, the more frustrated she felt, and tears streamed down her face uncontrollably.

She had never suffered such injustice before. Why did her grandfather treat her like this?

Is there really such a big difference between a niece and a granddaughter? I clearly said before that I would love her the same and give her the right to compete with everyone else for the Xie family's heir.

But now they're treating her like this just because of Xie Li, their favoritism is outrageous!

Xie Li was completely fine and even used her to climb to the top. She was already in such a miserable state, and her grandfather still wanted to punish her. How dare he say he loved her?

Did he ever consider that he has the Jiang family backing him up, and that the Xie family can't just do whatever they want with him?

After a long time, her knees felt numb from kneeling, but Xie Yunqiu still hadn't appeared. Frustrated, she threw down her brush.

"What are you looking at? Don't you know you should go outside and check? My mom has probably already come over and told me to go home!"

The servant who had been standing by looked at her with a troubled expression. "Miss Belle, you'd better focus on copying the rules. You haven't even finished copying them yet!"