Chapter 3

Mrs. Yan scolded fiercely, “Don’t look at Xiao You. Someone even took photos of you at the airport, and they’re in the news now.”

“Do you even know that you’re already married? How can you treat Xiao You like this?”

“In terms of looks, talent, and character, Xiao You is in no way inferior to that scheming little vixen.”

Yan Feng was irritated by the reprimand. “Mom, stop calling her a little vixen. Xia Ling isn’t a vixen.”

Mrs. Yan was even more enraged. “You’re still defending her? You’re truly out of your mind. I can’t deal with you; your grandfather will take care of it later.”

“Go to the study quickly. Grandpa is waiting for you.”

Yan Feng, with a cold face, left for the study. Mrs. Yan clutched her chest, fuming, “What a wayward child. How did I end up with such a rebellious son?”

Jiang Ciyou comforted her, “Mom, don’t be angry. Your health is important.”

Mrs. Yan looked at Jiang Ciyou’s feigned nonchalance and felt a pang of sympathy. “Xiao You, don’t worry. Even if I disown this son, I won’t disown you as my daughter-in-law. Our whole family will stand by you.”

Jiang Ciyou took Mrs. Yan’s arm, feeling touched. “Mom, I’m fine.”

After Jiang Ciyou returned from the hospital, her mother’s attitude towards her had changed. Only Mrs. Yan felt like a real mother to her.

When she had cut her wrists back then, Mrs. Yan had cried endlessly. During her week in the hospital, Mrs. Yan had stayed by her side day and night, while her own mother had never visited her even once.

It had been three years. Her feelings and obsession with Yan Feng had long since faded. She no longer harbored as much hatred towards Xia Ling either. All that was left was a bit of unwillingness.

So, she would actively end this relationship. But she really was reluctant to leave the Yan family. If she left here, where else could she go?

After talking with Mrs. Yan for a while, she went upstairs. As she passed by the study, she heard the old man’s reprimanding voice directed at Yan Feng.

Jiang Ciyou intentionally slowed her pace.

“You want to divorce Xiao You? Fine. I’ll transfer twenty percent of the company’s shares to her name.”

“If you marry that woman, you will be dismissed from the Yan family. The Yan family will give you not a penny.”

Yan Feng’s voice also sounded angry. “Grandpa, how can you be so biased? Jiang Ciyou is just an impostor from the Jiang family. I’m your real grandson. The Jiang family doesn’t even plan to acknowledge her anymore. Why do you care so much about her?”

The old man’s tone seemed very disappointed. “I don’t care about Xiao You’s background. I only know that when she was born, I was the first to hold her and watched her grow up. The Jiang family has grievances with her, but our Yan family doesn’t care about that. You should understand that the grievances of the previous generation have nothing to do with Xiao You. She’s always been a victim. If you don’t pity her, fine, but don’t join others in mistreating her. Let’s see if I agree!”

Yan Feng tried to say something but was interrupted by the old man.

“Remember, you can give up your role as Xiao You’s husband, but you’re also giving up your status as the heir of the Yan family. If you’re willing, I won’t stop you.”

Jiang Ciyou listened for a while and then returned to her room. The Yan family was truly very kind to her.

Since the incident at the Jiang family, the Yan family had been supporting her in every way. Forcing Yan Feng to marry her was also meant to provide her with a shelter from the storm.

Half an hour later, Yan Feng returned to the room. He saw Jiang Ciyou sitting at the vanity, removing her makeup in a lazy manner. Without her elaborate makeup, the mirror reflected a delicate face with an air of elegance.

“Jiang Ciyou, what kind of spell did you cast on Grandpa, for him to treat you better than his own grandson?”

Jiang Ciyou started applying a face mask after finishing her makeup removal. Her movements were graceful and meticulous, and she spoke casually.

“Maybe he thinks I’m more reliable than his own grandson. For a woman, to have cut off all contact with the family for three years—it’s quite unfilial from their perspective.”

“So you’re taking advantage of this and trying to win their favor? Inciting Grandpa to revoke the shares under my name if I break up with you?”

Yan Feng sneered. “Jiang Ciyou, you really will stop at nothing to keep me.”

Jiang Ciyou finally turned around and said lightly: “Don’t accuse me unfairly. I haven’t done anything like that.”

Yan Feng’s voice was laced with sarcasm. “Isn’t this your usual tactic? You used to use wrist-cutting to coerce, now it’s company shares. Jiang Ciyou, I didn’t realize before how deep your scheming was. It’s true that genes can be inherited; you’ve clearly inherited the blood of a murderer.”

Jiang Ciyou’s face instantly turned cold. This was her breaking point.

She retorted sharply, “You’re taking out your frustration on me because of Grandpa’s reprimand? If you really care about Xia Ling, then give up the Yan family shares. Deep down, you care more about the Yan family’s assets and company shares than you do about Xia Ling.”

“What Xia Ling did back then, Grandpa and the others are well aware. Even without me, they would never accept her. You know this very well.”

“The barrier between you and her has never been me. If you truly love her, you should give up everything here and stay with her abroad. In the end, you can’t let go of the vast fortune. You won’t admit that you value your personal interests more than Xia Ling, so you recklessly blame me. Yan Feng, you’re so spineless!”

Yan Feng’s face changed colors, turning red and white. Especially when he saw the contempt in Jiang Ciyou’s eyes, he felt a strong impulse to strangle her.

She looked down on him! Always had!

The tense atmosphere was broken by a knock on the door. Old Housekeeper Tang stood at the entrance. “Young Master, Young Madam, dinner is ready. Please come down.”

Today, the Yan family was unusually complete. Even Yan Yin, who was still in his third year of college, had returned.

“Bro, you finally decided to come back. I thought you were going to make Sister-in-law suffer in the cold cave for eighteen years.”

Yan Yin’s words also reflected his dissatisfaction with the situation.

Seeing that the whole family was siding with Jiang Ciyou, Yan Feng’s gaze towards her grew colder.

“But bro, are you planning to leave again this time?”

Before Yan Feng could respond, his father spoke first. “If he leaves again, there will be no place for him in the Yan family. From now on, the Yan family’s assets will be divided equally between you and your sister-in-law.”

Yan Yin clapped her hands in response. She hooked her arm around Jiang Ciyou’s. “Sister-in-law, did you hear that? Once my brother leaves, we’ll be super rich. We’ll be able to throw money around and enjoy ourselves with male models.”

Yan Feng shot her a glare. “You’re still young and full of nonsense. I wonder who you learned that from.” His gaze lingered on Jiang Ciyou’s face.

Jiang Ciyou felt a rare pang of guilt. She had done that very thing herself…

The old man spoke up. “Your brother won’t be leaving. He’ll take over the general manager position at the company tomorrow.”

Yan Yin looked disappointed. “That’s too bad.”

“Recently, as you all know, the company’s situation has changed. Times have evolved, and our construction company is not what it used to be.”

Everyone fell silent. The Yan family had made its fortune in the construction industry. After two generations of development, it had become one of the largest construction companies in the country and had ventured into other industries.

However, most of these ventures were just experiments; construction remained the lifeblood of the company. With the changes in times, economic transformation, market saturation, increased environmental pressure, and the impact of new intelligent buildings, Yan’s company had faced significant difficulties in recent years.

“So, we must secure the Paradise Resort project. This will not only revitalize Yan’s company but also open up connections with the central government. We’ll have a steady stream of good projects in the future.”

The Paradise Resort project was a special approval from the central government, aimed at creating the largest green resort in the country, integrating leisure, vacation, and entertainment. The project’s scale was enormous and was a coveted prize for all construction companies.

“Dad, everyone knows that the Paradise Resort is a once-in-a-century opportunity. But now, thousands of construction companies across the country are eyeing this fat piece of meat. Even just getting a share will be tough.”

The old man replied, “If we can manage to deal with that person, it won’t be difficult.”

“Who?”

“Bo Jinxiu.”