An Nuan had no other recourse.
She had visited Ye Qianyi once at the Ye family residence.
Ji Wenyun seemed to be planning to sue Ye Qianyi.
Time was becoming increasingly urgent, leaving her no extra moments to waste.
She knew clearly in her heart that the person she needed to find was not Shen Xizhou. If she had gone to him so openly that day, it would have been useless for him to do anything.
This time, she seemed to have learned her lesson. She privately sought out Xu Ruowei.
Without Shen Xizhou present, there was nothing she would hold back, no words she would conceal.
Upon thinking this, she felt a pang of bitter amusement, and then a profound sense of sorrow for herself.
Arriving at the location designated by Xu Ruowei, An Nuan stood still, scrutinized by Xu Ruowei like a piece of merchandise.
She didn't know what Xu Ruowei intended to do next, but the venom in her gaze told her that what was to come would not be simple.
The path ahead remained arduous.
Xu Ruowei walked up to An Nuan, reached out, and lightly patted her cheek, saying triumphantly, "An Nuan, you are truly obedient. I asked you to come, and you came immediately."
She feigned remembrance and said, "You know, if you had been this well-behaved back then, wouldn't that have been wonderful?"
"Back then, I asked you to give Shen Xizhou to me," Xu Ruowei said coldly. "But you refused no matter what."
"You said Shen Xizhou would be mine sooner or later. Why weren't you obedient then?"
"An Nuan, you came to me, just to have me stand up and testify for Ye Qianyi, right?"
"I imagine you would do anything for Ye Qianyi."
An Nuan's face was expressionless. Her eyes, filled with a trace of hatred, fixed on Xu Ruowei. The hands by her sides were clenched tightly.
Her gaze drifted into the distance, as if contemplating something, as if no one was in front of her.
She felt Xu Ruowei's malicious words, her heart-piercing remarks. It wasn't that she didn't feel them, nor that she didn't want to retort. It was simply that she no longer had the right to.
All she could do now was to obey.
Her temper, her words of defiance, could only be deeply buried in her heart.
Xu Ruowei, holding something unknown in her hand, made a swift motion. A scratch appeared on An Nuan's arm, and blood seeped out. However, the wound was small, barely visible unless one looked closely.
But the pain was real. It was a searing pain, a pain that pierced to the bone.
Her body could barely remain upright.
She could no longer stand steady. Fortunately, she grabbed onto a nearby table, preventing herself from falling to the ground.
She forced herself to stand, slowly raising her gaze to meet Xu Ruowei's.
An Nuan knew she had to persevere. She had to hear Xu Ruowei say, "Yes, I agree." She had to hear that she would help.
She was struggling to maintain her composure.
"Miss Xu, could you please..."
Before An Nuan could finish speaking, Xu Ruowei slapped her again. Her head snapped to the side. It was evident how much Xu Ruowei despised her, how forceful the blow was.
Xu Ruowei truly hated her to the core, didn't she?
Yet, she couldn't understand why, if she was so disgusted with her, she didn't just kill her. Keeping her alive was not something Xu Ruowei would normally do.
However, why Xu Ruowei chose to spare her remained unknown.
But this was not something she needed to concern herself with. Her only objective now was to get Xu Ruowei to agree.
Xu Ruowei yanked An Nuan's hair forcefully, almost tearing it out, and said coldly, "What Miss Xu? Think carefully before you address me."
"If you are begging someone, you should have the demeanor and posture of someone begging."
An Nuan's hands were clenched tightly as she struggled to regulate her breathing.
She suddenly understood why Xu Ruowei was in a bad mood, why her gaze felt like a death threat.
It turned out she had addressed her incorrectly.
"Mrs. Shen, I wish you and Mr. Shen a long and happy marriage," An Nuan said softly.
Having said that, surely Xu Ruowei wouldn't be angry anymore?
Surely she wouldn't make things difficult for her any longer?
So, Xu Ruowei had wanted her to say these words? In reality, it wasn't difficult for her at all.
Perhaps, in the past, it would have pained her, made her unable to speak. But now, she was long accustomed to it. In fact, she felt it meant nothing.
"Kneel," Xu Ruowei commanded icily. "Kowtow to me. Repeat those words continuously. If it improves my mood,"
She looked at An Nuan with disdain and said, "Perhaps, I will agree to your request."
"You know what to do and what to say. I don't think I need to remind you."
Xu Ruowei said triumphantly.
While she couldn't make An Nuan disappear, she could torment her.
Perhaps, tormenting her was more fun than killing her.
An Nuan obediently knelt on the ground, kowtowing heavily, her voice repeating the same words over and over, exceptionally loudly.
Because, just now, Xu Ruowei had said her voice was too soft.
Therefore, she had to speak louder.
After a long while, Xu Ruowei looked at An Nuan with a light smile.
"Alright, you don't need to kowtow anymore."
An Nuan quickly got up. Her forehead was injured, and blood trickled down, looking somewhat gruesome. But she couldn't care less. She looked at Xu Ruowei and quickly said, "You agreed, didn't you? Thank you."
She suddenly stopped, as if remembering something, and immediately corrected herself, "Thank you, Mrs. Shen."
With this address, perhaps Xu Ruowei's mood would improve.
Looking at Xu Ruowei's satisfied smile, An Nuan knew she had addressed her correctly, and her gamble had paid off.
"That was a good address, Mrs. Shen."
Xu Ruowei looked at An Nuan and said with a light smile, "As for Ye Qianyi's matter, I'm afraid I can't help you."
"An Nuan, Ye Qianyi has already been taken away by Ji Wenyun. He said that Xia Wanqing was harmed by Ye Qianyi. Although Xia Wanqing was saved, she lost her right to be a mother. And Ye Qianyi is the instigator of it all. Therefore, Ji Wenyun naturally has no intention of letting her go."
"It seems Ji Wenyun has sent her to a deserted island. You should know what kind of place that is better than anyone."
An Nuan's face instantly turned ashen. Her whole body trembled. She looked at Xu Ruowei with utter disbelief in her eyes.
When she came here, Ye Qianyi was fine. She had even smiled and said that Father and Mother Ye would return soon.
How long had it been since she left, and Ye Qianyi was already gone?
She suddenly stood up, grabbed Xu Ruowei's clothes tightly, shaking her, and gritted her teeth, saying, "No, it's impossible. Sister Ye won't have any trouble. When I left this morning, Sister Ye was fine. How could something suddenly happen?"
"You're lying to me, aren't you?" As An Nuan spoke these words, the light in her eyes had long since vanished.