The clingy concubine ran away, and the sickly prince lost control.

Granny Liu was powerless to argue with Madam Sun. She had raised Luo Qingyan and treated her as her own daughter.

As a mother, she forced her already engaged daughter to marry two men. What girl wouldn't want to die in that situation?

Qingyan committed suicide, and she followed her, so she wouldn't be alone on her journey to the underworld.

"Wait a moment." Seeing that Luo Qingyan was in a hurry to leave, Madam Sun guessed that she was going to find Granny Liu.

In this household, she was only close to Granny Liu, and acted as if she didn't know anyone else. She always had a deadpan look on her face, as if someone owed her money.

She came back dressed in gold and silver, but brought her nothing. It won't be so easy for her to see Granny Liu.

"Qingyan, are you going to find Granny Liu? No rush, I'll call her over in a bit. You should spend more time with Mother." Madam Sun held onto Luo Qingyan's wrist tightly, but her eyes were fixed on the gold hairpin in Luo Qingyan's hair.

"Your sister has never worn such fine jewelry before. She went to the shop several times but couldn't bear to buy it. The butterfly tassel gold hairpin is the most fashionable right now; I've seen many daughters of officials wearing it. It's not that we don't have the money to buy it, but your sister isn't a wasteful person; she knows how to be thrifty and manage the household well, so she just won't buy it. Qingyan, you can lend it to her for a few days to make her happy and show your sisterly affection. You can have it back later."

As she spoke, Madam Sun reached out and pulled the gold hairpin off Luo Qingyouyan's head.

Luo Qingyan grabbed Sun's outstretched hand: "Mother, shouldn't I give my sister the Duchess's gift? She came with a head full of jewels, but she's gone with nothing on her head. People who don't know better will think she's been robbed."

Take it and wear it for a few days? It's definitely a one-way trip.

Luo Haitang would always say she was borrowing her things, but she never returned them.

"You can say it's a sign of sisterly affection, and that you gave it to your elder sister. The Duke's mansion will definitely think highly of you, knowing that you respect your elder sister. I'll return it to you privately."

Sun's sinister eyes gleamed with a predatory pleasure.

"No, what if someone thinks that the older sister saw that her younger sister had something good and forcibly took it away? Wouldn't that ruin the older sister's reputation?" Luo Qing turned her face away from Sun Shi's piercing gaze.

Over the years, every month on the day the clinic paid its staff, she would see that look in her mother's eyes—it was horrifying.

In her past life, the sight of her mother's aggressive gaze would make her as frightened as a rabbit, obediently handing over all her wages. In this second life, her last remaining illusions about maternal love are gone. She is not afraid now, but she doesn't want to see it either; it's disgusting.

What mother in the world torments her daughter like this?

Sun's face darkened instantly.

"Qingyan, if you disregard sisterly affection, don't blame me for being ruthless. Don't even think about seeing Granny Liu again."

She slammed her hand on the table, determined not to lose control of this little vixen. She hadn't even given birth yet, and she already thought she was a phoenix rising from the ashes, showing no respect for her own family.

The Crown Prince's life is nearing its end; you'll have many days to cry in the future.

Luo Qingyan remained unfazed and unperturbed, a slight smile playing on her lips as she returned Sun Shi's gaze: "Mother, I truly care about my sister. Think about it! Shen Nanxun is the most outstanding student at the Imperial Academy. What would he think if he knew?"

Shen Nanxun, the sweetheart of Luo Haitang, is the most promising student to enter the top rank in this year's imperial examination. Luo Qingyan remembers that in her previous life, Shen Nanxun was ranked third in the imperial examination.

After meeting Shen Nanxun, Luo Haitang secretly fell in love with him and would never let him know that she had taken her sister's things.

Sun was furious that Luo Qingyan dared to threaten her, her chest heaving and her hands clenching into fists. She really had grown quite bold.

Shen Nanxun is a rare and excellent son-in-law. His literary talent is well-known throughout the capital. It is a blessing that Haitang has been fortunate enough to meet him.

No words that could be said that would be detrimental to Haitang could be spread. She was hoping that Shen Nanxun would marry Luo Haitang after passing the imperial examination.

Helpless, Madam Sun gritted her teeth and said, "Qingyan is so thoughtful. Go find Granny Liu! I'm all done here."

Luo Qingyan curtsied politely, and after taking a few steps, she heard Madam Sun behind her say again, "Don't get too close, or you'll get your clothes dirty. The Duke's Mansion will say that our Luo family is slovenly."

Ignoring her mother's sarcastic remarks, Luo Qingyan paused briefly before continuing to walk forward. A moment later, she heard the sound of a teacup shattering behind her.

She didn't have her own courtyard in the Luo family mansion; she shared a servants' room with Granny Liu.

Granny Liu couldn't bear to see it, so she used a curtain to create a separate space, picked some wildflowers to decorate it, and made it her boudoir.

Luo Qingyan walked through the long corridor, passed Luo Haitang's exquisite courtyard, and after turning a few more corners, she arrived at the back of the Luo residence, where the servants lived.

"Granny."

Luo Qingyan gently called out to the old man who was bending over washing clothes not far away.

The old man seemed to sense something, looked up and around, saw nothing, and then lowered his head to continue washing clothes.

"Granny!" Luo Qingyan called out loudly. She couldn't wait any longer, tears welling up in her eyes, and she ran to Granny Liu in three steps.

"Qingyan?" Granny Liu stared blankly at Luo Qingyan, still holding the dripping clothes in her hand.

"It's me!" In the morning light, Luo Qingyan's face lit up with joy, as if she had returned from her past life.

"Qingyan, it really is you." Granny Liu put down the clothes in her hands, wiped her hands vigorously on the apron around her waist, and then let her hands fall down again, feeling that they were not clean enough.

"Granny, let's go inside." Luo Qingyan grasped Granny Liu's hand, which was trying to pull back.

inside the house.

"Granny, you must come with me out of the manor immediately." Luo Qingyan wanted to take Granny Liu out to avoid Ye Hui and escape today's disaster.

Liu Mama's indenture was in her mother's hands.

She couldn't get Granny Liu to leave the Luo residence immediately, so she could only go out and avoid it for the time being, and then see how things went after Ye Hui and her mother finished their argument today.

"Miss, what happened?" Granny Liu asked, puzzled by Luo Qingyan's anxious expression.

"Ye Hui will cause a scene at the Luo residence today, and Mother will definitely take her anger out on you and punish you. Let's go out first and see what happens after Ye Hui has finished causing trouble." Luo Qingyan spoke very quickly.

How did you know?

"Stop asking, come with me now." Luo Qingyan pulled Liu Mama away.

Granny Liu broke free from Luo Qingyan's grasp: "Madam won't let me out."

"Look at these buckets of clothes. If we don't finish washing them, we won't even have food to eat, let alone go out into the world."

"Why is Ye Hui making a scene? Is it because Madam didn't annul the engagement for you? If that's the case, it's terrible. If the Duke's Mansion finds out, they definitely won't let you off the hook! My punishment is nothing; you should think about yourself first."

"Mother said she will handle Ye Hui's matter entirely, and even if there's a dispute, I'll have an explanation. For now, come with me."

Arranged by her parents and a matchmaker, Luo Qingyan planned to shift all the blame onto her mother, Madam Sun.

The Duke's mansion is still counting on her to produce offspring, so they won't take her life anytime soon.

"I'll just get a scolding at most, it's nothing." Granny Liu thought Luo Qingyan was being too nervous.

In this life, she didn't commit suicide. Perhaps her mother wouldn't beat Liu Mama to death, but she couldn't let life and death be based on speculation.

"Granny, just come with me for a walk. It's good to avoid trouble. The Duke's mansion treats me well. Look how nice I am dressed and what I'm wearing. Let's go out for a nice meal."

Luo Qingyan and Granny Liu had just come out of the house.

"Where are we going?"