The mistress who remarried has returned.

Seeing that Madam Su's apology seemed sincere, Xue Cheng sighed.

"Since Madam Su has agreed to all our requests, then we have nothing more to say. We'll just punch this child a few times in the eyes, leaving him with a black and blue mark like my son. You'll both be expelled from school immediately, and the two children will have no further contact. That will be the end of it. When you get back, you must discipline them properly and make sure they don't hurt anyone again. If General Qin hadn't come in person today, you wouldn't have been so accommodating. You think I didn't know you just said 'sorry' and moved on? Su Yuanzhou didn't even come in person."

Su Yunxi lowered her eyes dejectedly. Her father must know that Wang Guirong wanted Yunze to take the blame. Thinking of this, her heart felt like it had been stabbed, the pain unbearable. Why did Father...?

Qin Huai stared intently at Su Yunxi's brows, his expression serious as he slowly curled his fingers.

"Lord Su has urgent business at his post and truly cannot leave," Wang Guirong said obsequiously to Qin Huaifang. "I will personally teach this good-for-nothing a lesson. You say when to stop, and I will stop my fists. You are a reasonable family; you only asked for one eye, but I came with sincerity, so I will beat both his eyes black and blue."

When Su Yunze heard his father's new wife about to slap him, he realized that he was about to be expelled from school. He had been enrolled in this school with the help of Qin Huai when he was young, and had been studying there ever since. In recent years, he had been able to continue studying because of the Crown Prince. Now, he could no longer continue studying. How heartbroken his older sister would be if she found out. He had not expected it to be so serious that he would have to be expelled. He thought it was just a matter of taking the blame, apologizing, and getting a beating.

Su Yunze looked up at Qin Huai, who was staring at the door, not at him. He didn't know who was at the door, but even if there was no one there, Qin Huai wouldn't say anything to help him.

Because he was no longer his brother-in-law. He was a bad guy who slapped his sister. Su Yunze scoffed; he didn't care about this brother-in-law at all. The one in the Eastern Palace was his real brother-in-law.

Su Yunxi didn't know when Qin Huai had seen her, but when she turned her gaze away from Su Yunze, her eyes met Qin Huai's.

For some reason, she suddenly remembered how he threw away the cloak she had worn because he thought it was dirty.

Just as Wang Guirong's fist was about to land on Su Yunze's cheek, with a sharp ring on her fist that would be extremely dangerous if it hit his eye, Qin Huai made no attempt to stop it.

Su Yunxi didn't know what she was expecting. Was she expecting Qin Huai to come and support her brother, not Xue Wenying's nephew? Was she expecting Qin Huai to give an order to Wang Guirong to stop, and then personally help her brother up?

Qin Huai would only avoid suspicion out of concern for Xue Wenying's displeasure, and would act as if he didn't know her well in front of her. He would be more likely to laugh at her than help her.

"Stop!" Su Yunxi placed her food box at the doorway, then lifted her skirt, stepped over the threshold, and entered the inner room.

She quickly came to Wang Guirong's side and grabbed Wang Guirong's wrist.

The Xue family's gazes all fell on Su Yunxi. The newcomer was dressed in simple old clothes, but it couldn't hide her natural beauty. She was the kind of beauty that could be recognized at a glance in a crowd, and this was without any deliberate dressing up.

Wang Guirong was stopped from moving. In the blink of an eye, she fell into Su Yunxi's sharp gaze. Wang Guirong shrank back suddenly. Such a fierce gaze made her shiver. In this family, she was wary of this little vixen.

She stared at the little vixen in surprise. Of all the people in the family, she was the most difficult to deal with—wild, stubborn, and cunning. But wasn't she supposed to be out of the manor? Why had she suddenly come all this way? "Daughter, you... why are you here?"

Su Yunxi forcefully shook off Wang Guirong's wrist. "If I hadn't come, you would have just kept this from me!"

Wang Guirong staggered and took two steps back.

Su Yunze looked up and saw his sister. His eyes lit up instantly. The helplessness he had felt earlier transformed into a thousand kinds of warmth. Like a lost lamb finding its flock, he couldn't help but call out. In his eyes, his sister was like a peerless hero. "Sister."

Just now, Xue Ping was surrounded by everyone, and Su Yunze felt envious. He felt very lonely. Even his former brother-in-law was now Xue Ping's future uncle. He felt bad. But when he saw his sister, he instantly stopped envying Xue Ping. He had his sister's love, which was equivalent to having everything. His sister's heart and eyes were full of him. He was his sister's darling.

When Madam Xue saw someone suddenly barge in, she cautiously glanced at the distinguished guest, Qin Huai, only to find that Qin Huai was also looking at the woman. She couldn't help but worry that the distinguished guest might be offended by the newcomer, so she said, "Who is it in the hall? Do not be rude. Today, the Xue family has a distinguished guest. Do not be arrogant. You must greet him and pay your respects before you can speak."

After she finished speaking, everyone stared at Su Yunxi, waiting for her to kowtow to Qin Huai.

Su Yunxi glanced at the crowd, not unaware that they were all waiting for her to kowtow.

But Su Yunxi did not kneel. She stood upright with her chin slightly raised, showing no intention of bending her knees.

First, why are the siblings kneeling while everyone else is standing, even though they haven't done anything wrong?

First, she harbored resentment towards Qin Huai. He was no longer the Qin Huai she respected; he was merely down on his luck. She didn't have the courage to expose his seven years of exploitation of her and offend him.

Madam Xue panicked. This young lady was actually a stubborn person who didn't understand etiquette. She didn't even seem to know the basics of currying favor. She was truly an anomaly in the capital. She then cautiously glanced at Qin Huai.

A playful smile played on Qin Huai's lips. Everyone else bowed and scraped before him, but she, despite having nothing, stood tall, ignoring him and disregarding his status. Was he truly nothing to her, or was she resentful that he had wronged her, and was she holding a grudge against him...?

Madam Xue hurriedly said, "Madam Wang, since this is your daughter, you should teach her some manners. There are many noble people in the capital. If she acts like this, she will cause trouble sooner or later."

Su Yunxi understood that Madam Xue wanted Wang Shi to force her to kneel down.

Wang Guirong came over and said shamelessly, "Girl, you have a sense of shame, so just kneel down yourself. We don't need to be pulling and shoving each other like this, making Su Yuanzhou lose face too. If word gets out, everyone will know you're impolite. Aren't you going home, girl?"

Su Yunxi sensed the threat and implied retribution in Wang Guirong's words, but simply turned her face away and ignored her.

Wang Guirong reached out to press Su Yunxi's shoulder.

Madam Xue quickly spoke up, saying, "Don't act so arrogantly. What kind of place is this? You can't just throw a tantrum and fight like this."

Then she said to Qin Huaiyan, "This was originally my fault. I don't know which servant was greedy for money and let this girl in, thus disrespecting you. If you mind, just have someone take this girl out and give her a beating to vent your anger."

With a soft chuckle, Shuang'er couldn't help but laugh out loud. She quickly suppressed her laughter, for her mistress had instructed her to be reserved and not to be too outwardly joyful.

Xue Wenying gazed quietly at Su Yunxi, also waiting for Qin Huai's response.