Chapter 48: The Father-Daughter Rift
As night fell, the dining hall of the Ye residence was brightly lit. Ye Qingyan Jing sat obediently across from her cheap father, Ye Chengzong.
“Father, please try this,” she said, delicately picking up a piece of translucent Dongpo pork and trembling slightly as she placed it into Ye Chengzong’s bowl.
Her precise movements and filial expression could have been a new model for the “Twenty-four Filial Exemplars.”
Ye Chengzong’s hand holding the chopsticks stiffened noticeably.
The way he looked at her was akin to examining some prehistoric creature—curious, skeptical, and tinged with a hint of being unexpectedly favored.
She understood.
Since her mother’s death, their dynamic had been: she provoked, he fumed. Ye Qingyan often spoke with sharp barbs disguised beneath polite words.
Offering to serve him food was already an act of mercy; anything more was beyond expectation.
“Qingyan, what are you doing?” Ye Chengzong asked cautiously, his tone laced with three parts uncertainty and seven parts suspicion of some scheme.
Ye Qingyan lowered her eyelids, her long lashes hiding the calculation beneath, her voice dripping with feigned grievance.
“Father, your daughter has come to understand.”
“I was immature before, always making you angry.”
“Now that I’ve grown, I should share your burdens.”
Her performance was Oscar-worthy.
Upon hearing this, Ye Chengzong perked up completely.
He put down his chopsticks, his sharp eyes fixed intently on her.
“Oh? And how do you intend to ease your father’s worries?”
She inwardly celebrated, the little schemer within her drumming triumphantly.
Outwardly, she wore a tearful, bewildered expression.
“I... I don’t know.”
“I just feel that idleness all day is no solution.”
“Most noble ladies my age in the capital are already engaged. As for my marriage... Father, do you have any plans?”
By the end, her voice was as soft as a mosquito’s hum, her cheeks flushed.
Shy?
No, she was stifling laughter.
Acting was truly exhausting.
Ye Chengzong’s heart swelled with delight—or rather, his paternal pride blossomed.
His wrinkles seemed to bloom into smiles as if he had just secured a billion-dollar deal, not discussing his daughter.
“Excellent! Wonderful! My child has finally grown up!”
He slammed the table, causing the dishes to clatter.
“I have already selected a suitor for you!”
Clearing his throat, he began listing them like treasured possessions.
“The third son of the Minister of Revenue, talented and accomplished, having already passed the imperial exams at a young age—his future is boundless.”
“The young lord of the Duke of the Nation’s mansion, commanding military power and unmatched bravery—marrying him would give our Ye family a stronghold in the army.”
“And the son of the Deputy Minister of Personnel...”
Each name represented a blatant transaction of benefits.
The Ministry of Revenue? That’s the treasury.
The Duke of the Nation’s mansion? That’s military might.
Listening, Ye Qingyan’s own mental calculations clattered loudly.
Good heavens, really good heavens.
“Am I playing a game of matching pairs here?”
“Do you take me for what? A super VIP voucher for the family’s rise?”
He rambled on, spitting enthusiasm, mapping out the Ye family’s glorious future.
Not once did he ask, “Daughter, do you like any of them?”
Not a single word about, “Daughter, will you be happy?”
In his blueprint, Ye Qingyan was merely the most exquisite chip to be traded for greater profit.
Ha. Just another tale of power, wealth, lust, greed, anger, and ignorance!
She listened quietly, maintaining a submissive facade.
But inside, she counted down.
“Three, two, one.”
“Father.”
Her voice interrupted Ye Chengzong softly, trembling slightly.
He stopped, looking at her with satisfaction.
“What is it, Qingyan? Have you found someone you fancy?”
She slowly raised her head, tears welling in her eyes.
This time, it wasn’t an act.
It was a physiological reaction.
She was disgusted by this shameless old man.
“Father...” Ye Qingyan looked at him, speaking each word deliberately, voicing a question long buried in her heart.
“Did you ever love mother?”
The air froze instantly.
The warm light in the dining hall seemed to grow cold.
Ye Chengzong’s smile faded inch by inch.
In its place came bone-chilling coldness and impatience.
He looked at her as if she were a foolish troublemaker.
“Sentimental nonsense!” he spat coldly, the words stabbing into Ye Qingyan’s heart.
“She stood in my way and deserved to die!”
The last thread named “blood ties” snapped in her mind.
So that was it.
She blocked his path.
Therefore, she deserved to die.
How justified, how cruel and heartless.
He continued.
“Ye Qingyan, listen carefully!”
“Your greatest value is bringing benefits to the family!”
“Those loves and affections are useless! They will only be your stumbling blocks!”
Watching his mouth open and close, Ye Qingyan suddenly found it all laughable.
So she really laughed.
A light chuckle pierced the dead silence of the dining hall.
Ye Chengzong frowned. “What are you laughing at?”
“Ha ha...”
“Ha ha ha ha ha!”
She laughed until she bent forward and back, tears streaming from her eyes.
Ye Chengzong looked bewildered, even wondering if she had gone mad.
“Father.”
Finally stopping, she wiped the tears from her eyes.
Ye Qingyan stood and looked down at him with an icy, indifferent gaze.
“Father, you are right. I understand.”
“I understand completely.”
She gave him a dazzling, eerie smile.
“From now on, I will make full use of my status as the Ye family’s legitimate daughter.”
“To secure for myself one grand—‘bright future.’”
She emphasized “myself” and “bright future.”
Unfortunately, her power-drunk cheap father clearly didn’t get the point.
He thought Ye Qingyan had finally “seen the light” and was successfully “manipulated” by him.
He nodded approvingly, his face regaining its confident, scheming expression.
“You’re teachable.”
“That’s my good daughter.”
Ye Qingyan gave his hypocritical face one last smile.
Then, without a trace of regret, she turned and left.
The moment she stepped out of the dining hall, she straightened her back.
“Goodbye, laughable so-called blood ties.”
“Goodbye, humble and unrealistic dreams.”
“From this moment on, Ye Chengzong, you are merely my enemy.”
“The first and greatest stumbling block on my path of revenge.”
At the instant of her resolute turn, her heart boiling with murderous intent,
A commanding voice thundered in her mind!
[Host has completed hidden task: Sever worldly ties.]
[Emotional detachment: 100%!]
[Dark awakening: 100%!]
[Congratulations, host: ‘Mad Beauty’ mode officially activated!]
[System upgrading... Upgrade complete!]
[Special reward granted: Absolute Control—‘Cutting All Ties’ Experience Card!]
[Host, please begin your performance!]