Yun Ying pushed the servants aside and strode in, her face a mask of fury.
The further she walked, the more stunned she became by the completely transformed General's Mansion.
It looked even more exquisite and luxurious than before!
Moreover, they had taken so many servants with them when they left, yet the General's Mansion was now filled with unfamiliar faces!
It had only been a day or two!
Yun Ying couldn't articulate the complexity of her emotions.
Just then, she spotted Yun Shu standing not far away.
A surge of anger immediately welled up in her chest.
She glared fiercely at Yun Shu.
"Yun Shu, was it you who ordered them to stop me, to prevent me from entering? The General's Mansion is also my home. How dare you order people to block me?" Yun Ying demanded, her voice laced with indignant coldness.
As she spoke, she advanced towards Yun Shu.
She reached Yun Shu.
She raised her hand, intending to strike Yun Shu.
Yun Shu looked up.
Her gaze fell upon Yun Ying.
Yun Ying froze.
Her hand halted mid-air, completely unable to land.
Why was that gaze so terrifying?
"From now on, anyone who tries to barge in without announcing themselves will be stopped at the gate. Anyone who dares to let them in will receive twenty hefty lashes," Yun Shu said coldly to the servants behind Yun Ying.
The servants' hearts skipped a beat.
They quickly acknowledged her command.
Yun Ying's face immediately turned pale. Feeling her dignity shattered, she gritted her teeth and said, "I am also Father's daughter. Why can't I come back? I can enter however I please. You have no right to stop me. If not, I'll go find Father! I don't believe Father wouldn't want his daughter to visit him!"
"Someone, escort her out!" Yun Shu glanced at Yun Ying dismissively and ordered the servants nearby.
Seeing this, Yun Ying completely lost her composure and cried out, "Yun Shu! How dare you!"
"Oh? Then tell me, what is it that I dare not do?" Yun Shu countered with a half-smile.
Yun Ying's heart trembled. She immediately recalled her previous treatment by Yun Shu and was overcome with fear. "You! You! But you can't stop me. I've come to retrieve my belongings. You, you don't intend to hoard my things, do you?"
"You, don't get too arrogant! Don't forget why we left the General's Mansion. The General's Mansion will soon be subject to severe punishment! By then, you might be begging me to help you! You might as well try to curry favor with me now!"
Yun Shu crossed her arms and watched Yun Ying with a playful smile.
She hadn't said a word.
Yet, Yun Ying grew more enraged and ashamed.
And the more she spoke, the more guilty she felt.
"Someone, follow her and make sure she takes all her belongings from the General's Mansion," Yun Shu commanded.
Immediately, two servants stepped forward.
They followed behind Yun Ying.
Yun Ying's face turned crimson. "You, you? Yun Shu, you're wary of me? You're treating me like a thief! You! You're detestable!"
"Escort her out!" Yun Shu ordered.
At once, several servants approached Yun Ying aggressively.
Yun Ying had never witnessed such a scene before. "Yun Shu, how dare you!"
"Please, Third Young Lady, it's time to leave!" the servants urged Yun Ying.
Yun Ying was furious. "Yun Shu, don't get too pleased with yourself. Do you know that Yun Yueyin will be back in two days? Once she's back, let's see how arrogant you are! Do you think you can make people look at you with admiration just because you caused a stir in the palace? You're dreaming! You won't!"
After speaking, she felt a sense of relief.
Yun Shu's eyes flickered. So, she was finally returning.
Seeing Yun Shu actually smile, Yun Ying found it utterly unbelievable.
"What are you smiling about?"
Her smile sent a chill down Yun Ying's spine.
She had a strange feeling that Yun Shu's smile was peculiar!
Hearing that Yun Yueyin was returning, Yun Shu wasn't scared, but instead, she was smiling!
This!
"I'm very happy to hear that Yun Yueyin is returning. Tell her that we are sisters and our bond is deep. If she returns, she is always welcome at the Grand General's Mansion." Yun Shu said with a half-smile, then turned and left.
Looking at Yun Shu's retreating back, Yun Ying's strange feeling intensified.
It was too odd!
Why wasn't Yun Shu afraid?
And by the looks of it, she seemed to be hoping Yun Yueyin would return?
Yun Ying immediately forgot the purpose of her visit to the General's Mansion today.
She had come today to cry poverty to Yun Changfeng and demand half of the silver Yun Shu had produced that day.
After leaving the General's Mansion for the past two days, her paternal aunt had not given her and her mother any money, telling them to use their own savings.
They had very little savings of their own, and it would soon run out!
But when she arrived, she found out Yun Changfeng was not at home.
After forcing her way in, she encountered Yun Shu!
Her luck today was truly terrible!
Damn Yun Shu!
"You'll definitely be begging me with tears one day!"
After muttering this to herself, Yun Ying left, her teeth clenched in anger.
As if by chance, as she was about to leave the gate, she bumped into Yun Changfeng, who had just alighted from his carriage and was about to enter the mansion.
"Father!"
Yun Ying was initially stunned, then quickly rushed to Yun Changfeng.
She wept, tears streaming down her face.
"Father, I missed you so much! Father!"
Yun Changfeng's eyes moved. He looked down at Yun Ying, who had thrown herself at him, and frowned slightly. "Let go. You are not my daughter. There's no need to call me Father anymore."
Yun Ying froze. "Father, are you angry with me? I didn't want to leave the General's Mansion, nor did I want to go with them. It was... I told Father before, I thought Father would consider my feelings and fulfill my wish, but I didn't expect Father to still be angry with me!"
"If there's nothing else, do not come to the General's Mansion again," Yun Changfeng said coldly and turned to enter.
Yun Ying was struck as if by lightning. She looked at Yun Changfeng in disbelief. "In Father's eyes, do I not have a daughter? Father!"
What did he mean she wasn't his daughter? Why should she never come to the General's Mansion again? Why was Father so heartless towards her?
Yun Changfeng stopped and looked back at Yun Ying.
He had investigated some matters in the past two days and found evidence proving that Yun Ying was not his daughter. Aunt Xiao had merely been used by someone back then, and he had never betrayed Shu'er's mother.
However, he had not exposed this matter, partly out of consideration for Yun Ying having called him Father for so many years, and partly because they had left the General's Mansion and were no longer an eyesore.
"Father, do you truly not care about me at all?" Yun Ying asked, tears welling up.
"From this day forward, you have no connection to the General's Mansion or to this official. Go back and ask your mother, and you will understand," Yun Changfeng replied coldly.
Yun Ying stumbled back a step. "Father! You are too cruel! Indeed, in your eyes, I was never your daughter! You only have Yun Shu as your daughter! Father, you are too cruel!"
Her eyes turned bloodshot, her heart filled with unbearable pain.
She looked at Yun Changfeng with eyes full of hatred.
Suddenly, she had an idea!
She couldn't leave like this!
"Fine! Since you no longer want me as your daughter, you must compensate me. I am soon to be of marriageable age. Give me tens of thousands of taels of silver as dowry, and I will never appear before you again!"