Gu Liyue said in a deep voice, "Although I don't know the reason, I've long understood that you, madam, never really intended to adopt me as your god - daughter. You like Jiang Yingyue more. She grew up under your care, no different from your own daughter. I guess there must be a special reason why you're so insistent on not recording her in the family register and bringing me into this picture. Am I right?"
Madam Jiang had been holding her breath all this time. Only now did she completely give up. Her eyes were red - rimmed, and she could hardly contain herself. She nodded slowly with a blank look in her eyes. "You're right. It's just like this... I dote on you because you're so well - behaved, Liyue. I shouldn't have been so harsh on you. I knew all along how unfair my favoritism was to you..."
She sobbed painfully. It took a long time for her to raise her head. She stared fiercely at the Duke of Jiang and roared, "Are you satisfied? Are you completely satisfied? In the past, for the sake of the princess in the palace, you ignored your own daughter. Have you ever felt guilty all these years? Have you ever thought about Yue'er even once? You brought Jiang Yingyue back and said you wanted her to accompany me and be my daughter. You even changed her name to Yue. Do you think I don't know? She's not some daughter from a side branch. She's your illegitimate daughter you've been raising outside! She dreams of getting into the family. You're daydreaming!"
Jiang Yingyue stared blankly at Madam Jiang and then at the Duke of Jiang. She was a bit dazed. Wasn't he her uncle? How could he be her biological father?
A surge of ecstasy welled up in her heart. Originally, she was a daughter of the Jiang family, but since she was only from a side branch and Madam Jiang refused to record her in the family genealogy, her status was rather awkward. But now that she was the Duke's own daughter, everything was different. She was a daughter of the Duke's Mansion!
Gu Liyue also didn't expect things to turn out like this. Jiang Yingyue wasn't a daughter from a side branch of the Jiang family but the Duke's daughter raised outside.
The Duke of Jiang's face turned deathly pale. He scolded, "You... Don't talk nonsense."
Madam Jiang slumped to the ground on her knees. She covered her face and sobbed, unable to speak.
The Duke of Jiang, seeing the surprised looks on the faces of the Gu family, felt a burning anger and was extremely ashamed. He reached out to support Madam Jiang. "Is this how you manage the family when I let you take charge? Come back with me. Don't make a fool of yourself here!"
Madam Jiang pushed him away forcefully. "I'm not going. I want a divorce! I want a divorce!"
The Duke of Jiang's face flushed red. "Even if you want to go crazy, go home and do it!"
Madam Jiang burst into wild laughter. "Hahaha, go crazy? Yes, I'm crazy. I've been crazy for a long time, since she was ten years old seven years ago! Since I knew the real reason why her name was changed from Jiang Yingrong to Jiang Yingyue, I've been crazy!"
The Duke of Jiang's chest heaved violently. He glared at her angrily and finally slapped her hard across the face.
The scene was in complete chaos. Jiang Shi had to step forward to pull the Duke of Jiang away. "Brother, sister - in - law is heart - broken. Why do you have to force her like this? Let her calm down."
Old Master Gu and Lord Gu quickly got up, helped Madam Jiang sit down on a chair, and sent all the servants out. They comforted her, saying there were no outsiders here.
Madam Jiang's face was ashen. She shook her head and said, "I'm fed up and tired of this kind of life. I've known since I was a child that every family has its own secrets. As the mistress of the clan, I should always think about the family. But my Yue'er... My Yue'er died so miserably... Sister - in - law, you're a mother too. You should understand me, right? My Yue'er died so miserably, all because of him, all because of him!"
Jiang Shi held Madam Jiang's hand to comfort her. "Yes, yes, it's all my brother's fault. But - that incident happened back then, and he was also sad. It's been almost sixteen years. Let's not talk about her. Sister - in - law, think about it. You still have three sons. Che'er isn't married yet, and you have a grandson, don't you?"
Madam Jiang was in great grief. She shook her head and said, "I should have let go of Yue'er's death long ago. No matter how painful it was, I still had other children. If I left, what would they do? I just lived with him separately, just like two people sharing a life. But he actually brought back that daughter he raised outside. I didn't know before and really treated Yingyue whole - heartedly. It was only seven years ago when I learned the truth that I... I... My Yue'er died so miserably, but I actually thought Yue'er had come back to me..."
Jiang Shi looked up at the Duke of Jiang reproachfully. "Sister - in - law has been managing the Jiang Mansion for all these years, giving birth to children for you. She's never made a single mistake. She's not a jealous woman and has taken in several concubines for you. Why did you have an outside lover?"
The Duke of Jiang stammered, "I... I..."
Madam Jiang sneered. "It's because that woman was from a low - class background and wasn't worthy of entering the Duke's Mansion. She wasn't even qualified to be a low - ranking concubine. And yet, your brother even wanted me to record her daughter as the legitimate one..."
The more Jiang Yingyue listened, the more shocked she became. Her mother was from a low - class background? How could this be? No, she couldn't just sit back and wait for disaster. She had already offended Gu Liyue. If things went on like this, even though the Duke of Jiang doted on her, he might not be able to protect her if Madam Jiang didn't like her!
Immediately, she began to sob softly. She crawled a few steps on her knees to Madam Jiang's side. "Auntie, don't you love Yue'er the most? Auntie, Yue'er regards you as her own mother! Yue'er didn't know anything about those things. Yue'er only remembers that you loved and protected me, gave me a name, and made me, who was lonely since childhood, feel the warmth of a mother..."
Madam Jiang was stunned. She looked down at Jiang Yingyue with tear - filled eyes. Her heart was in great pain. She knelt on the ground and hugged Jiang Yingyue in her arms. "If I didn't love you, would I have kept you until now? I would have had you killed on the day I learned the truth... Do you know how painful I am? Watching you grow up by my side day by day, I was so happy. But... When I think about your identity, it's so hard for me..."
She looked up at the Duke of Jiang and asked sharply, "You had Yingyue the year after Yue'er died. Did you do it on purpose? Did you deliberately want Yingyue to take Yue'er's place? Did you not tolerate Yue'er anymore after you knew you were going to have another daughter?"
The Duke of Jiang also looked dejected. He shook his head and said, "Yue'er was in good health. I never expected... I never expected... How could I not love Yue'er and really let her die? She was the apple of my eye and my pride. Moreover, if I really wanted to play a substitution trick, I would have brought Yingyue back from the very beginning. Why would I wait until she lost her mother to bring her back?"
Madam Jiang also knew that a selfish man like the Duke of Jiang would never kill his own legitimate daughter for an illegitimate one. Yue'er was a real legitimate daughter and a role model among noble girls at a young age. She was just indignant and couldn't help but question him.
Jiang Yingyue trembled. She couldn't lose all this. If she let them continue like this, the final outcome might just be her tragic end. She had to find a way to change all this, and that little bit of pity from Auntie became her last straw.
She hugged Madam Jiang even more tightly and choked out, "Auntie... Oh no, madam. I was raised by you. No matter what, I'm yours. I was mean to Gu Liyue because I was jealous. I was jealous that you treated her better than me. You don't know how important you are to me... Madam, don't abandon me. I don't want to be a young lady anymore. I'll be your maid. Please don't abandon me or stop loving me, okay?"
Gu Liyue felt a tightness in her heart. The affairs of this family were so complicated. She couldn't bear to listen anymore. So she just bowed and left first. It was only the next day at the old lady's place that she heard from Jiang Shi about what happened later.