Ye Jiuliang’s eyes held a genuine smile as he said, "I’ve eaten."

"Why didn’t Mohan come back with you?" he asked, voicing the doubt in his heart.

Ye Jiuliang replied, "Mohan has some business to attend to—he’ll be back in a couple of days."

It was exactly as he had guessed. The Li Family’s elderly patriarch spoke with a chuckle, "Now that you’ve handled things here, you’ll return to the Li Mansion in the next few days. Whatever you want to eat, just let the kitchen know—they’ll make it for you. Eat lots."

Hearing this, Ye Jiuliang felt it sounded eerily familiar; it seemed like something his grandmother often said too.

Ever since she became pregnant, the bird’s nest and other nutritional supplements had been in endless supply. Anything she couldn’t finish, she would give to her Li Mochan to eat.

As the two conversed harmoniously, not far away, the Ye family patriarch watched with a dark expression on his face.

Since when did this girl get along so well with the Li elder? With that kind of warmth between them, anyone who didn’t know better might think the Li patriarch was her grandfather.

After the phone call, Ye Xin walked up to Xiang Zhen, her eyes looking maliciously at Ye Jiuliang. "Ye Jiuliang, you’d better admit it now, to spare yourself the embarrassment later."

Ye Jiuliang looked at her with a smile that was not a smile, her voice cool, "Is this the way you speak to your future aunt-in-law?"

So this is what it felt like to pull rank—it wasn’t too bad.

Ye Xin’s face turned from green to white, looking extremely ugly.

"You..."

Ye Jiuliang’s gaze was cool and detached as she spoke slowly, "You what? Or how about this: don’t marry Li Jingjie. That way, I won’t have to be your aunt, how does that sound?"

"Ye Jiuliang, you..." Ye Xin was infuriated, her face black as coal.

"With such a terrible attitude towards your future aunt, I’m sure your future uncle wouldn’t be happy to know this. It might make it very difficult to enter the Li family’s doors." Nearby, Ji Mingqian added fuel to the fire in a quiet tone.

"What’s it to you? When did our Ye Family affairs become the business of an actor like you? You’re so protective of Ye Jiuliang, who knows what dubious relationship you two might have." Unsuccessful in her confrontation with Ye Jiuliang, Ye Xin directed all her anger towards Ji Mingqian.

With her words, the living room fell into awkward silence, the tension palpable.

Plotting against Ye Jiuliang in front of the Li Family elder and Mingchong, one had to wonder whether to call Ye Xin stupid or foolish.

Even Ye Yan couldn’t help but frown, internally cursing Ye Xin for being idiotic. Even if she was dissatisfied with Ye Jiuliang, she shouldn’t have said such things in front of the Li Family elder. Being who he was, these words could only leave a bad impression on him.

As expected, as soon as Ye Xin finished speaking, the Li Family elder’s face turned ashen, his gaze towards Ye Xin filled with displeasure and indignation.

Ye Jiuliang took a step forward, her cool gaze fixed unwaveringly on her, her voice cold, "Apologize."

Meeting her gaze, those unfathomably cold eyes made it impossible to hold her stare for more than a few seconds. Ye Xin awkwardly averted her gaze and stubbornly said, "I didn’t say anything wrong. Why should I apologize?"

When she failed to comply, Ye Jiuliang, not bothering to waste words, pulled out a dagger from her waist, flipped it between her fingertips, and placed the dagger, sharp enough to cut through iron like mud, directly against Ye Xin’s throat.

With a speed akin to a ghost, everyone except for Ji Mingqian watched with wide eyes and tongues tied.

"Ye Jiuliang, what are you doing?" Ye Xin was terrified, her face instantly draining of color.

Ye Jiuliang’s voice turned colder, "Apologize. I don’t want to say it a third time."

"I-I..." Feeling the icy blade against her skin, Ye Xin’s legs trembled with fear.

"Mom, save me."

Ye Jiuliang caught a glimpse of Xiang Zhen reaching out and warned in a cold voice, "Daggers don’t have eyes. Don’t test my patience."

As she spoke, she applied a slight pressure with her wrist, and a faint red line appeared on Ye Xin’s neck, followed by tiny beads of blood.

Seeing this, Xiang Zhen immediately withdrew her hand, not daring to act rashly any longer.

The moment Ye Xin’s cheek was sliced, she immediately trembled with fear, no longer daring to talk tough. "I’m sorry, it was my fault."

Ye Jiuliang snorted coldly, emphasizing, "Apologize to him."

Swallowing her resentment, Ye Xin looked at Ji Mingqian and squeezed out three words, "I’m sorry."

Ji Mingqian sneered dismissively, "Remember to brush your teeth when you get up, so your mouth doesn’t stink."

With the dagger still at her neck, Ye Xin, however angry, didn’t dare to speak recklessly anymore.

Ye Jiuliang sheathed the dagger and gave her a cold glance, "From now on, you’d better keep your mouth shut. If you say anything else to displease me, I can make Li Jingjie marry another woman tomorrow. Don’t believe me? Just try it."

To deal with someone like Ye Xin, you have to hit the snake where it hurts; without giving her a dose of her own medicine, she wouldn’t realize why the flowers bloom so splendidly.

As expected, Ye Xin stared at her intently, her complexion as dark as ink, yet she also dared not make a sound.

Just then, Zhao Yi and Ye Rui arrived, one after the other.

Seeing Ye Rui covered in injuries, Ye Jiuliang raised an eyebrow.

Xiang Zhen straightened her back, looking towards Ye Jiuliang with a confident gleam in her eyes, "Zhao Yi, tell us what you heard."

Zhao Yi stole a glance at Ye Jiuliang before quickly lowering his head and recounting the events of that day once again.

Ye Jiuliang’s gaze grew deeper. Ye Lei had been seriously injured and framed her, and this Zhao Yi showed no signs of lying.

"Ye Jiuliang, what do you have to say for yourself? It was you who harmed my son," Xiang Zhen accused impatiently.

"My son is still unconscious. If anything happens to him, I’ll fight you to the death."

The decibel level of her voice was so high that it made Ji Mingqian’s ears ache.

What is with the Ye Family and its oddballs.

"He’s the only witness?" Ye Jiuliang asked, neither cold nor hot, her calmness unnerving.

"Of course not." Xiang Zhen turned to Ye Rui, commanding, "Ye Rui, you were also there at the time and heard everything. Say what you know in front of everyone."

Ye Rui’s gaze lowered; sensing everyone’s eyes converging on him, his expression became slightly complex.

After a long while, he lifted his head, inadvertently locking eyes with Ye Jiuliang’s chilly gaze, and his thoughts firmed up once again.

His lips moved slightly, his voice hoarse, "It’s not like that."

The brief statement struck the Ye family members like a bolt of thunder.

A hint of a smile played on Ye Jiuliang’s lips as her gaze swept over the other members of the Ye Family unobtrusively.

"Ye Rui, what nonsense are you spouting? Repeat what you said that day," Xiang Zhen, furious, began jumping on the spot, pointing at his nose and scolding.

"Are you afraid that Ye Jiuliang will harm you, that’s why you dare not tell the truth? Or are you eyeing Ye Lei’s position, hence you refuse to testify for him?"

"Ye Lei’s injury has nothing to do with Jiuliang." Ignoring her fiery gaze, Ye Rui said calmly. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

"Ye Rui, that’s not what you said that day. You told grandfather that it was related to Ye Jiuliang, but now you’re retracting your statement. What do you mean?" Ye Miao looked at Ye Rui and retorted rudely.

"Do you take us for monkeys to be played with?"

"Ye Miao, don’t interrupt," Ye Yu, fearing her son might invite trouble, grabbed him and scolded sharply, "Stay quiet."