Wong Liqing's voice was harsh. "The family's interests always come before the individual's. Do you understand?!"

"You don't understand at all! You're not fit to marry into our Wang Family! I order you to break off your engagement with Wong Qifu immediately."

As he finished speaking, the expressions of everyone present changed drastically. It was only then that they realized Wong Liqing wasn't just scolding Xu Ke; he intended to drive Xu Ke out of the Wang Family and annul the engagement with Wong Qifu.

Wang Wu and Lin Qinghua wanted to protest, but Wong Qifu's inscrutable expression gave them no clue as to her thoughts. Mai Qing's face remained placid, watching the dispute between Wong Liqing and Xu Ke unfold as if she were a mere bystander.

Zhou Yi Yi, however, looked pleased. Concerned for Wang Qiya, she had long wanted Xu Ke, with his shady connections to the Ye Family, to leave the Wang Family. Now that Wong Liqing was taking the initiative to expel him, it suited her perfectly.

"Impossible!" a sharp cry rang out.

Everyone was shocked. To their surprise, it was Wang Qiya who erupted first. Before Wong Qifu could even react, Wang Qiya had stepped forward to object.

Xu Ke was also a little surprised. He never expected that Wang Qiya, who had previously wanted him gone, would now stand up for him.

"What did you say?" Wong Liqing's face darkened.

"Xiao Ya, don't..." Zhou Yi Yi paled, grabbing the corner of Wang Qiya's sleeve. She had been delighted just a moment ago but hadn't anticipated Wang Qiya stepping forward.

Wang Qiya shook off Zhou Yi Yi's hand and retorted furiously, "Uncle Qing, my brother-in-law went to save someone for my sake tonight! Do you have any idea what would have happened to me without him?"

The mere thought of Ye Chong's threats sent an unstoppable wave of fear through her. If Xu Ke had been even a little later, she would have been dragged away for real. If Ye Chong had made good on his words, wouldn't her entire life have been ruined?

"But have you considered that if it weren't for Xu Ke, Ye Chong never would have acted that way in the first place?" Wong Liqing roared. How dare Wang Qiya talk back to him?

"What does my brother-in-law have to do with it?!" Wang Qiya shouted.

"You all said it yourselves! Ye Chong only held you there as a pretext to make you apologize for Xu Ke's mistake."

"That was just an excuse!"

"An excuse that was still his fault!"

Wang Qiya stared at Wong Liqing in disbelief, as if he were a stranger. It was one thing for her best friend, Zhao Xinyue, to have changed. But why had Uncle Qing, the man who had watched her grow up, changed as well?!

"You… you just can't stand my brother-in-law!" Wang Qiya shook her head, looking at Wong Liqing as if he were a complete stranger. "Uncle Qing, you can't do this! You're being completely unreasonable and tyrannical!"

Wong Liqing was stunned. Was Wang Qiya actually accusing him now? He hadn't even begun to point out her own mistakes, and she was already blaming him?

Wong Liqing was instantly infuriated.

"Wang Qiya!" he bellowed, glaring at her. "Stop being so willful! I've held my tongue until now only to preserve your last shred of dignity. Don't you dare think you've done nothing wrong tonight!"

Wang Qiya's face turned white. Xu Ke's eyes narrowed slightly.

"Do you think running a great family is like playing house? Ah! Wang Qiya, stop being so self-centered! Everything we do is for the continuation of our family."

"Do you think Xu Ke did the right thing by saving you? If you hadn't been so foolish as to be lured away, none of this mess would have happened tonight!"

"Your sister has protected you too well! If my brother were still here, he would never have allowed you to carry on like this."

"You need to do some serious self-reflection and stop talking back to your elders!"

Wong Liqing used his seniority to command her silence. His words struck Wang Qiya with devastating force. She turned deathly pale, her body swaying precariously as tears instantly welled up and streamed down her face. Already wracked with guilt, she was now pushed to the very edge of the abyss by Wong Liqing's tirade.

She could endure Ye Dexian's mockery. But this was her closest family. How was she supposed to bear it?

Seeing her burst into tears after only a few words, Wong Liqing grew even more exasperated, frustrated by her lack of resilience. With such a fragile mentality, how could she possibly survive?

He was about to say more, but Lin Qinghua could no longer watch in silence. They all knew what Xu Ke was like; they'd seen him verbally tear members of the other great families to shreds, which was why they didn't intervene on his behalf. But seeing Wang Qiya, who had been sheltered her entire life, being berated to tears by Wong Liqing was more than Lin Qinghua could stand.

Just then, Wong Qifu shouted, "Enough!"

Seeing that the Family Head had finally spoken, the others held their tongues.

"Wong Qifu, what is the meaning of this?" Wong Liqing glared at her coldly.

"Uncle Qing…" Wong Qifu looked at him calmly. "First, the events of tonight still require investigation. Until we have all the facts, you have no right to punish or reprimand anyone."

"Second, as the Family Head, I am well aware that my marriage is a matter of family responsibility. However, as it stands, my union with Xu Ke has had no significant negative impact on the family."

"Third, Uncle Qing, let's separate duty from personal feelings. You may offer your advice, but you are not qualified to give me orders. Do I make myself clear?"

Wong Liqing's face turned utterly ugly in an instant. He retorted, "No negative impact? What about the flood of negative press? You call that no impact?"

Wong Qifu replied coolly, "Even without Xu Ke, do you really think they wouldn't have done this anyway?"

"Last year they already caused us substantial losses. If I weren't with Xu Ke this year, do you think they would simply smile and return everything we lost?"

"Why don't you look at the fact that Xu Ke caused the Huang Family to lose Ouyang Shuang, and the Ye Family to lose Yuk Ming and Song Zhong?"

"Are they not far more capable than anyone you have on hand?"

At her words, Wong Liqing's face turned as black as the bottom of a pot. He glanced around, but no one spoke up for him, and Wong Qifu continued to stare at him coldly.

He took a deep breath. "Fine, fine, fine! Since you insist on protecting him, I have nothing more to say."

With that, Wong Liqing turned to leave.

But Wong Qifu continued, "I will give you a proper account of tonight's events. You are a member of the Wang Family. But so am I, so is Xu Ke, and so is Qiya. I hope you understand that."

Wong Liqing paused for a moment but ultimately left Wong Qifu's house without looking back.

"Uncle Wu…" Wong Qifu glanced at Wang Wu.

Wang Wu understood immediately and hurried out after him.

BANG. The door closed firmly.

Only after Wang Wu and Wong Liqing had left did Wong Qifu allow herself to close her eyes for a moment.

Xu Ke sighed. Even someone as domineering as Wong Qifu needed to offer such a lengthy explanation... It just went to show how high Wong Liqing's status was in the Wang Family.

"Yi Yi, don't go back tonight. Stay here with Xiao Ya," Wong Qifu said, turning to Zhou Yi Yi.

Zhou Yi Yi nodded. She stood and supported the pale, tear-streaked Wang Qiya. "Alright, Sister Fu."

She shot Xu Ke another resentful glare. She had been about to lash out, but seeing Wang Qiya's breakdown, she ultimately decided against it.

"You should reflect on your actions," Wong Qifu said to Wang Qiya, pausing for a beat before finally speaking.

Wang Qiya closed her eyes and nodded.

***

Zhou Yi Yi helped Wang Qiya back to her room.

Meanwhile, Mai Qing and Lin Qinghua remained in the living room as Wong Qifu beckoned Xu Ke to follow her upstairs.

It was the same balcony. The two of them sat facing each other again.

The only difference was that his last visit had been in the afternoon; now, the night sky was filled with countless stars.

"There are a lot of stars," Xu Ke remarked.

Wong Qifu was silent for a moment before she spoke. "Can you now tell me the whole story, in detail?"

"I can," Xu Ke nodded. That had been his plan all along.

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