“Go on, hurry and save her!”

Before Ma Xiangyang could react, Jiang Manyue had already grabbed his arm and rushed toward the fire with him.

Across the street, thick black smoke was pouring from the textile factory’s warehouse. The heat in the air was almost unbearable.

Cries for help rang out nonstop as workers rushed around carrying water basins, trying to put out the flames.

The fire had broken out in the warehouse, where flammable fabric was piled high. The blaze was so intense that anyone who tried to enter was forced back by the flames.

Ma Xiangyang was completely panicked. All he could think about was the frail, helpless Bai Wanrou who was supposedly trapped inside.

He was just about to run in when Liu Cuihua came chasing after him and grabbed his arm.

“Son, you can’t go in there!”

“Mom, let go. Wanrou’s still inside. I have to save her!”

Ma Xiangyang shoved his own mother aside and tried to run straight into the fire.

“No, you can’t! Please, don’t!” Liu Cuihua was nearly hysterical, but she couldn’t hold back her son, who was charging forward like a bull.

“Jiang Manyue, what are you standing there for? Grab him!”

Seeing Liu Cuihua trying so hard to stop him, Jiang Manyue narrowed her eyes. She had already figured out that Bai Wanrou wasn’t in the warehouse at all.

It was a setup from the beginning. The fire was just another stunt to ruin the wedding.

The warehouse had been set ablaze on purpose—by Bai Wanrou herself. Ma Xiangyang clearly had no idea.

“Son, Wanrou’s not even—”

Just as Liu Cuihua was about to tell the truth, Jiang Manyue rushed over and grabbed her collar.

Smack, Smack, Smack!

Three loud slaps landed hard on Liu Cuihua’s face.

“You’re so cruel,” Jiang Manyue snapped. “Were you really planning to let her burn to death?”

Liu Cuihua was stunned. The usually obedient Jiang Manyue had actually hit her.

Covering her cheek in shock, it took her a moment to find her voice. “You… you hit me?”

She deserved much worse. This old woman had made her life hell for decades. Jiang Manyue had cared for her when she was paralyzed, not knowing she’d been part of this lie all along.

If they wanted drama, she’d give them a show.

“Mom,” Jiang Manyue shouted angrily, “if anything happens to your sister-in-law, how could Big Brother ever rest in peace?”

Liu Cuihua’s face turned beet red. She tried to speak again, but Jiang Manyue raised her leg and kicked her square in the chest.

“Ow!” Liu Cuihua stumbled to the ground, clutching her chest and struggling to breathe.

Jiang Manyue pushed Ma Xiangyang forward. “Xiangyang, hurry. Go save her!”

Ma Xiangyang hadn’t expected her to be so cooperative. He looked back with gratitude in his eyes and ran into the fire.

What a touching scene. To onlookers, he looked like a man driven by love, fearless and noble.

“Oh no, my son!” Liu Cuihua screamed, unable to stop him. “You heartless woman!” she shouted at Jiang Manyue. “You want him dead!”

“Mom, what are you saying? Don’t you want your sister-in-law saved?”

“She… she’s not even—”

Liu Cuihua stopped herself just in time, biting back the words.

Of course she had known. They were both sure Jiang Manyue would stop Ma Xiangyang from going in. After all, she had always disliked Bai Wanrou, and this was their third failed wedding attempt.

But they had miscalculated. The reborn Jiang Manyue would be more than happy to see him die.

She turned away coldly and headed for the factory’s back gate.

She remembered hearing that someone had died in the fire. If it wasn’t Bai Wanrou, then who?

She hadn’t thought about it before, but later the investigation concluded that someone had set the fire on purpose.

Not long afterward, people from the provincial capital came looking for a young woman who had gone missing the same day. Her family couldn’t reach her and came searching for their daughter.

Jiang Manyue remembered her. The girl’s name was Qin Ran, and she had arrived at the textile factory to report for duty on the day of the fire.

It was likely that Bai Wanrou had only meant to start a small fire to create a distraction. But when things got out of hand, she fled and hid.

The burned body found afterward must have been Qin Ran’s. The corpse was unrecognizable, and her build was similar to Bai Wanrou’s, so everyone assumed it was her.

Ma Xiangyang had known the truth. He helped Bai Wanrou disappear and used the body to fake her death. Qin Ran’s family searched for her their entire lives.

And Jiang Manyue? She took the blame. People accused her of letting someone die just to hold a wedding.

This time, Jiang Manyue made her way quickly to the back gate. Sure enough, she heard a faint voice calling from inside.

“Help… is anyone there? Please help!”

She immediately called over the security staff. They opened the door and pulled out a girl in her late teens. Her face was black with soot, and she lay weakly on the ground.

This was the girl who had been mistaken for Bai Wanrou.

Because she had just arrived and hadn’t completed her onboarding, no one noticed she was missing. Everyone had gone to Jiang Manyue’s wedding banquet.

Now, Jiang Manyue has saved her. She wanted to see how Bai Wanrou planned to keep pretending she was dead.

“Don’t worry, you’re safe now,” Jiang Manyue said gently, stroking her head.

Thankfully, the girl had only inhaled smoke. Jiang Manyue helped her up just as firefighters arrived at the scene.

Liu Cuihua was pacing anxiously near the front gate. When she saw Jiang Manyue return safe and sound, she charged at her in fury.

“You evil woman! Where did you go? How could you lie to my son and send him into the fire?”

She raised her hand to slap her.

Smack!

Jiang Manyue caught her hand and slapped her back, hard.

Liu Cuihua went down, her face red and swollen from the blow.

Jiang Manyue’s father had been a soldier. He taught her self-defense from a young age, and her strength was far beyond average. Liu Cuihua never stood a chance.

In the past, Jiang Manyue had been too soft, letting people walk all over her.

“You… you…” Liu Cuihua was stunned and tried to fight back.

“What are you doing, Sister Liu?” Director Liu walked up just in time and saw her about to attack.

She burst into tears. “Director, this woman tried to kill my son! She just stood by while he went into the fire!”

But Director Liu had witnessed everything. He saw Jiang Manyue rescue Qin Ran with his own eyes.

“How did she not save anyone? This new worker was rescued by Comrade Jiang Manyue.”

“She’s a hero. How can you attack someone without knowing the facts?”

“If you have time to make a scene, go get Deputy Secretary Ma to the hospital.”

At that moment, Ma Xiangyang was carried out by the firefighters.

His face was blackened, the right side burned, and his left leg was covered in blood and torn open.

He had been crushed by a falling cabinet while trying to save someone and suffered multiple burns. His injuries were horrifying. He was barely conscious.

“My son!” Liu Cuihua cried, throwing herself over him. “What happened to you?”

“Wanrou… Wanrou…” Ma Xiangyang muttered weakly, still calling for Bai Wanrou.

When he couldn’t find her, he passed out and was rushed into the ambulance.

“You vile woman, just you wait,” Liu Cuihua snarled through her bruised and swollen face.

Jiang Manyue gave a cold smile. What a pity.

She hadn’t managed to burn him to death.

But the way things were, even if he lived, he’d be crippled for life.