CHAPTER 236: CHAPTER 236: MUTATION (3)_1

Considering this possibility, Shangguan You’s complexion turned somewhat cold. No matter who it was, if anyone dared target her father in their schemes, she would not let them off. Thinking of the Earth Spirit Bead she had just acquired in her space, Shangguan You planned to blink into her space to research the new power she had obtained.

No sooner had the thought arisen than her shoulder was suddenly patted heavily, two powerful auras engulfing her like a storm. Shangguan You’s eyes turned cold. She hadn’t noticed anyone standing behind her! It was fortunate she hadn’t vanished inexplicably, or it would have drawn attention. Within the military, who could possess such skill to stand behind her soundlessly?

Shangguan You forced her Spiritual Energy into her hands and slowly turned around, her dark eyes settling on the two people behind her.

"Shangguan You, come with us," the newcomers spoke gravely, and immediately moved to grasp her shoulders from left and right. So they weren’t giving her a chance to resist and had come with ill intentions?

「In the Li Family residence within B City’s municipal compound.」

As opposed to the turmoil that had befallen the Shangguan Family, who had all gone to Xiangshan, the Li Family was immersed in joy and laughter, enveloped in a cheerful atmosphere. Apart from Li Wanying and Shangguan Rou—one with a disabled hand and the other with a head wound—everyone else was enjoying the rare leisure of the New Year festivities.

In the study, Li Wanying’s usually gentle face was now a shade of ashen white. Thinking back to how brutally Luo Wu had sent her back to the Li Family on the first day of the New Year filled her with a biting hatred. And when she thought of the continual censure she faced on television and the internet, her heart throbbed as if pricked by needles.

She had played this charade for over a decade, earning herself the reputation of a kind mother and rising to prominence in the military compound. But why had all her efforts collapsed at this juncture, causing her to lose both face and reputation? Now that she was ousted from the Shangguan Family, both she and the Li Family had become the laughingstock of the military and political circles. How could she possibly swallow this indignity?

"Wanying, you and Rourou should stay in the Li Family for the time being. Carry on as usual, but stay away from the Shangguan Family for now, and tell Rourou not to go stir things up. Fade into the background for a while and let her heal the wound on her head. No matter what happens, leave it to me," the Li Family patriarch instructed with a heavy voice. This was a sensitive time; their family’s reputation was tarnished, indirectly affecting his son’s political career. He had obtained nothing he desired; instead, the Li Family’s reputation was ruined.

"Yes, Wanying, it is rare for you to come home. You and Rourou should keep me company. Whatever the Shangguan Family can provide for you, so can our Li Family. Our Li family’s daughter was married into the Shangguan Family, and now that they don’t cherish you, it’s their loss," the elderly Mrs. Li said tenderly to her daughter. She had disagreed with her marriage to Shangguan Hao from the start, yielding only because she couldn’t persuade her daughter and husband. Now that Li Wanying was back, it was for the better.

"Mom," Li Wanying began with a hint of grievance. Although she had been driven back, she believed in her ability to return to the Shangguan Family and achieve what she wanted. Even if Shangguan Hao was as cold as ice, she would have him. Whatever she, Li Wanying, desired, she would obtain by any means necessary—just as she had driven away Lin Mengjie. No matter what, she would make it happen.

"Alright, go check on Rourou. I need to speak to Wanying alone," the Li Family patriarch interjected, cutting off the mother-daughter conversation. His wife’s indulgence was what had shaped Li Wanying’s character; a doting mother often spoils the child.

"I will go see Rourou. We only have this one daughter, and you better not scold her. It’s better that she’s been driven out by the Shangguan Family; you are not to let her go back, or else I will have it out with you, old man, do you hear me?" Mrs. Li gave a few anxious warnings before leaving, gently closing the door behind her.

In her eyes, nothing was more important than her son and daughter; everything else could be pushed aside.

"Wanying, for sixteen years, what have you found? Look at what you’ve been doing lately. I don’t want to scold you during the New Year, but what are you actually doing? Where has my clever daughter gone?" As soon as Mrs. Li left, the Li Family patriarch’s voice grew somber and cool as he coldly interrogated Li Wanying. He was truly disappointed in his daughter.

"Dad, Shangguan Hao only comes home a few times a year. Even if I have methods and means, there’s nothing I can do without him here. He used to at least feign affection with me in front of Shangguan You, but in private, we were like strangers. But ever since the incident a year ago, not only has that obedient girl changed completely, but Shangguan Hao no longer deigns to even glance at me," she explained.

"Dad, do you think I want this? I don’t, truly," Li Wanying said, tears streaming down her face as she spoke. If she had foreseen this outcome, she would never have sent Shangguan You to B City; she should have kept her under her thumb. If that were the case, none of this would have happened, and Shangguan Hao would still maintain appearances with her. But now, she was left with nothing.

"Whenever they have something important or confidential, they go to Shangguan Yu’s place. You know I can’t find anything there; I can’t even enter their study. I used to be able to get Shangguan You to investigate for me, but now I have no way at all. They’re even on guard against Rourou, and I’m entirely helpless," she lamented.

"Sixteen years and you still haven’t captured that man’s heart; you truly are useless," the Li Family patriarch scolded sharply, his eyes full of disappointment. Where had the confident daughter gone, the one who had vowed she could marry into the Shangguan Family and obtain what he desired? Now all her efforts seemed futile.

"Dad, you know as long as that woman Lin Mengjie is around, I will never enter his heart, so you have to help me, please help me," Li Wanying pleaded shrilly. All her painstaking efforts had yielded only this agonizing result. She couldn’t give up! Not only had she failed to find out what she wanted to know, but now she had also been thrown out.

"Alright, there are plenty of good men in the world, not just Shangguan Hao. If the Shangguan Family wants to sever ties with our Li Family, we needn’t beg them," the room door swung open, and a scholarly middle-aged man in his forties, wearing a pair of gold-rimmed glasses, entered, speaking indifferently as he did.