The Real Daughter's Husband is a Top-Notch Boss

by Usui Takumii

or Really rich husband is a full-level boss. Not mine, novelhall and wattpad by Darkknight123457. Beware MTL.

1. 00 to 07

Description

Ruan Su was the true daughter of a wealthy family who was mistakenly taken away, but when she returned to her biological parents, she was forced to marry a comatose man as a replacement for the fake daughter.

The fake daughter was reincarnated and learned that in her past life, Ji Mingchong never woke up from his coma, and soon after, the Ji family would go bankrupt. So she schemed to push the engagement with the Ji family to Ruan Su.

She waited for Ruan Su to be tormented by the wicked mother-in-law, but instead they became as close as mother and daughter. She waited for Ruan Su to live as a widow for the rest of her life, but Ji Mingchong woke up. She waited for Ruan Su to struggle in poverty, but Ji Mingchong rose from being a nobody to a respected and powerful figure.

What went wrong?!

No one knew that during the five years that Ji Mingchong was in a coma after a car accident, he had traveled through countless worlds, fighting in a cruel apocalyptic world and rising to power in a strict ancient society. He had honed his skills and retired to his original world, only to be told that he had a wife.

At first, his mother said, "Susu is a good girl. You should treat her well."

He said, "We haven't registered our marriage, I can treat her like a sister."

Later, his mother said, "Your friend seems to be a good match for Susu. What do you think…?"

Ruan Su initially married Ji Mingchong to repay a debt of gratitude, but as he became more powerful, she felt it was time to leave.

But one night, he found her, grabbed her and wouldn't let go, his voice hoarse and desperate: "…don't leave me."

When Ruan Su woke up, she was not fully conscious yet. She turned her head and saw a pale-faced man lying beside her.

The alarm on her phone was still ringing persistently, but her husband-in-name lying beside her showed no signs of waking up.

In an instant, she was completely awake. She frantically turned off the alarm on her phone, and the room finally became quiet again.

Last night was her wedding night. She was in a trance while looking at the man who, although unconscious, still exuded an extraordinary demeanor. She remembered something that happened during her university days. At that time, her friend was busy with her love life and skipped class, but was caught by the teacher during roll call. So, her friend begged her to help her attend the class, and she actually went to listen to the class of the Department of Economics and Management. When the class was about to end, the teacher played a short clip.

In the clip, a young man in a suit and leather shoes was full of spirit and attracted the admiration of the students in the classroom.

He was Ji Mingchong, the heir of Ji Group. When he was studying abroad, he teamed up with his friends to complete a big project, and his achievements were also reported in financial magazines. The media spoke highly of him, even saying that once he took over the reins from his father, he would lead Ji Group to even greater heights, and change the direction of the entire business world. It was not an exaggeration to call such a person as the prodigy of heaven. He completed his university studies at the age of 18, and continued to pursue higher education. At the age of 20, he had already established a very promising company on his own.

He was the pride of the Ji family, and the opponent of many people.

Even a retiring veteran in the business world at that time saw him as the biggest threat to their group's development.

However, life is ever-changing. In the year when Ji Mingchong was 22 years old, he and his elder brother were involved in a car accident on the highway. His elder brother died on the spot, and he has been in a coma for five years since then.

At that time, Father Ruan had built his fortune with the help of the deceased Father Ji. Father Ji had been kind to him, and the two families had been friends for generations. Before Ji Mingchong's accident, the Ji and Ruan families had already arranged a marriage between them, and they were set on joining forces. After the accident, the Ruan family wanted to cancel the engagement, but they feared being criticized and shamed. Moreover, Mother Ji was a fierce woman who nobody wanted to mess with.

Father Ruan was a person who cared about his reputation and face, and even though Ji Mingchong had become comatose, he still married his daughter to the Ji family.

Everyone thought that Ruan Su would definitely be crying her heart out.

However, Ruan Su thought it was good this way.

After she finished washing up, she opened the curtains so that Ji Mingchong could bask in the sun. She walked out of the bedroom gently, not wanting to wake up her mother-in-law and nephew. The kitchen was already small, and things were all over the place, making it even more cramped.

Today is different from the past, and the Ji family is not what it used to be. After the major incident five years ago, Father Ji who lost his beloved son aged rapidly and his body collapsed within two years. Without a successor, the Ji family lost their influence in the company, and the Ji family began to decline. A huge deficit appeared, and after struggling for two years, the Ji family declared bankruptcy and the company changed hands. Father Ji was diagnosed with liver cancer last year and passed away a few months ago. Originally, a son should not have been getting married so early after his father's death, but Mother Ji was not an ordinary person. She was afraid that the Ruan family would regret their decision, so she insisted on sticking to the original wedding date and forced the Ruan family to marry their daughter into their Ji family.

Now the Ji family has moved out of their villa and into this three-bedroom small house.

It is said that this house was the first property that Father and Mother Ji bought when they were young and had just made their fortune. It has been more than twenty years since it was built, and from the outside, it looks old and dilapidated. This is the only place they have left to live.

Ruan Su is not someone who likes to complain. After tidying up simply, she took out a few eggs from the refrigerator.

There were also some food piled up in the fridge, but when she carefully checked them all, she found that they had all expired.

While Ruan Su was frying eggs after opening the exhaust hood, a little one sneaked in but didn't dare to get too close to her, only stretching his neck to look at the pot.

Ruan Su looked down and saw him.

"Junting, good morning, have you brushed your teeth and washed your face?" Ruan Su asked.

The child's name is Ji Junting, the third generation of the Ji family, and also her nephew. The child is also very pitiful. His father died in a car accident, and his mother later remarried and went abroad, so now he lives with his grandmother. The appearance and demeanor of the Ji family are first-rate, and even though they are temporarily down and out, the child is clean, with natural curly hair, messy but also very cute, with a pair of grape-like big eyes staring at people, looking straight into their hearts.

"Aunt, you don't have to call me by my full name. Just call me Maodou," Maodou said, holding his stomach with a troubled expression. "Every time someone calls me by my full name, I feel like I'm going to get scolded."

Ruan Su was amused and nodded, "Okay, then I'll call you Maodou from now on. Maodou, have you brushed your teeth and washed your face?"

Maodou grinned, showing his small white teeth, "I brushed my teeth, they're so white now."

"Well, then wait a bit more, breakfast will be ready soon. There isn't much in the fridge, so we'll have to make do with egg noodles today, okay?"

Since she was ten years old, Ruan Su had been cooking for herself and had developed good cooking skills over the years.

She knew how to take care of herself. Even in times of poverty, she was the kind of person who could make life enjoyable. Therefore, faced with the current situation of the Ji family, she was neither disappointed nor upset.

Maodou nodded eagerly, "That's great! I'm tired of eating bread every day!"

Ruan Su understood his meaning. The Ji family's situation was not good, and there was no other source of income. Mother Ji was almost sixty years old and had lived a comfortable life for many years. Even if she went out to find work, it would be difficult to find a suitable job. Although she had experienced hardships in her earlier years, after several decades of good times, suddenly going back to the kitchen, the food she cooked was cooked but not very tasty. The family couldn't afford to hire a maid anymore, so they had to do everything themselves.

Maodou was five and a half years old and still in kindergarten. The kindergarten hadn't started yet, and he had been eating with his grandmother for the past few days. His chubby little face had become much thinner.

After experiencing a drastic change in his life, the five-and-a-half-year-old child has become more mature than other children of his age. He knows that the family's situation is not good, so he doesn't complain, but he is still a child after all. Now that he can see that his Aunt's cooking skills are obviously much better than his grandmother's, it fills him with expectations.

Soon, Ruan Su finished making breakfast, and at this time, her mother-in-law, Mother Ji, also got up.

Mother Ji looked indifferent, but her expression softened a bit when she saw the noodles on the table.

"Mom, let's have breakfast," Ruan Su whispered, "I don't think we have anything else in the house."

Actually, Mother Ji didn't expect Ruan Su to get up and make breakfast. It's not like in the ancient times when the new daughter-in-law has to serve tea to her parents-in-law and make breakfast for the family early in the morning. She married this daughter-in-law for two reasons: one was that she couldn't stand the way the Ruan family did things and wanted to disgust them; the other was her own selfishness. As a mother, she always felt that her son would wake up someday, but she didn't know when that day would be. Maybe at that time, she wouldn't be there anymore, so she wanted to find someone to accompany her son.

As a mother-in-law, she has always felt conflicted. No matter what her son is like, she always thinks he is the best. If her son hadn't had an accident, Ruan Su would definitely not be worthy of him. However, she had already figured it out. As long as Ruan Su is a reliable person, she will never treat her unfairly in the future.

She may have thought about it that way, but if she really had to act like a close family member now, being affectionate and opening up her heart, it wouldn't be her style.

She had to observe Ruan Su for a while first.

As for the breakfast, Maodou ate comfortably, and so did Mother Ji.

Maodou finished drinking the noodle soup and was feeling full in his little belly. He was still puzzled and asked, "Grandma, these noodles are the same, with the same egg and salt. How come yours tasted so bad while Auntie's tastes so delicious?"

Mother Ji : "…"

When Ruan Su went to wash the dishes, Mother Ji took Maodou to the room and carefully locked the door.

"Maodou, you have to listen carefully to what I am about to say," Mother Ji whispered, "if she asks you how much money our family has left, you have to say 'none'."

One must not be without vigilance towards others. Many people outside are guessing that this broken ship still has three catties worth of nails[1]. The Ji family was once glorious for a long time, so how could they just go bankrupt like that? Perhaps Mother Ji still has a lot of private money on hand. Everyone knows that Mother Ji loves jewelry the most. If she casually hides some, it would be a lot of money. With such rumors circulating, Mother Ji also knows that she will be targeted by others, so she has been extra cautious in the past year and has been very frugal. She knows that the food she cooks is not delicious, and even though her grandson Maodou is starving, she still won't take him to restaurants every day.

She cared so much about the reputation of the Ji family that she even arranged yesterday's wedding reception at a small restaurant, but it was very shabby. She did it to avoid suspicion and being watched.

Now that Ruan Su had become her daughter-in-law, Mother Ji still regarded her as an outsider that needed to be carefully guarded against.

Maodou raised an eyebrow, "Who is she?"

Mother Ji : "Your Aunt."

Maodou shook his head, "She didn't ask."

"Grandma means that if she asks, you should answer like this!"

In fact, Mother Ji didn't worry too much about her grandson's loose lips. On the one hand, he was still young and didn't know anything, and she didn't dare let him know. On the other hand, although he was young, he was very clever and not someone who could be easily bribed. If Ruan Su wanted to get information about their family from him, it was useless.

However, she still had to remind him.

Maodou pouted. A few days ago, he watched a TV drama with his grandma. In the drama, there were two women who were particularly annoying, always quarreling. The young aunt said that being a daughter-in-law was not easy, and the wicked mother-in-law was too much. The grandma said that times have changed, and the daughter-in-law dared to bully the mother-in-law!

Yesterday, he learned that grandma was Aunt's mother-in-law, and Aunt was grandma's daughter-in-law.

Now when he heard grandma's words, he remembered that TV drama. So he put on a serious face and said, "Grandma, from now on, I will remain neutral in this family. I won't help Aunt bully you, nor will I help you bully Aunt!"

As the man in the family, he had to make his position clear.

Mother Ji was taken aback when she heard this and her mouth twitched. She raised her hand and said, "Get out, quickly!"

Author's note :

The female lead is not the type to accept her fate. There's a reason why she married the male lead, and it's not for her biological parents.

Before getting married, Ruan Su had also specifically learned how to take care of a vegetative patient. Before going out to buy groceries, she took out the saline solution she had prepared in advance, intending to clean Ji Mingchong's mouth. Taking care of a vegetative patient was not an easy task. On the contrary, it required more attention and effort to make the patient appear no different from an ordinary person. It wasn't convenient for Ruan Su to wash Ji Mingchong's body, and Mother Ji knew that. They usually asked their neighbors for help. Yesterday, after their neighbor had helped clean Ji Mingchong's body, Ruan Su started to "brush" Ji Mingchong's teeth.

Mother Ji took good care of Ji Mingchong. He had been lying in bed for five years, but apart from his pale complexion, he looked like he was just sleeping briefly in the sunshine.

Ruan Su carefully cleaned Ji Mingchong's teeth, and she couldn't help but be stunned. Before Ji Mingchong had his accident, she had never met him in real life. Now, she couldn't help but imagine what he used to look like.

He probably didn't smoke, and he should have regularly had his teeth cleaned. He should have paid attention to oral hygiene in general, as evidenced by the condition of his teeth.

She looked at his hands and lifted them up, wiping them with a warm towel.

At that time, his signature was also printed in a financial magazine. Although it was only three words, she could tell that he had a good handwriting, with a sharp and imposing style.

After staying in the room for a while, Ruan Su prepared to go out. Today was the second day of her marriage. Even if it was for her own stomach's sake, she was going to cook for herself. There were no vegetables in the refrigerator, so she had to go to the supermarket to buy some.

In Ruan Su's classmates' notes, the most common evaluation she received was "loving life and being positive."

She didn't like to appear gloomy, so she put on a pretty dress, tied her long black hair into a cute bun, and applied a light makeup. Looking at the clean and tidy girl in the mirror, she smiled.

"Mom, I'm going out to buy some groceries," Ruan Su said to Mother Ji, who was sitting on the sofa, while changing her shoes.

Mother Ji responded with an "Hmm" and then stood up, taking out a hundred yuan bill from her wallet and handing it to Ruan Su. Her expression and tone were still cold as she said, "Take this money to buy groceries. You don't need to worry about the household expenses. If you run out of money, you can tell me, but I need to see the receipt. With you in the family now, you can manage our food expenses, and you don't need to be too thrifty. After all, Maodou is still young, and you are also young. But don't waste money. You should know the situation at home. It's not like the past."

Ruan Su felt embarrassed to take the money. It's not like she didn't have money, so she quickly waved her hand and said, "No need, Mom. I have my own money."

"Your money is also the Ruan family's money," Mother Ji said. "You can take it if you want. But my Ji family doesn't have the habit of taking advantage of others."

Ruan Su took the money from Mother Ji.

Mother Ji's expression softened a bit. "In addition, I will put the living expenses in the cookie jar. If you use it up, I will add more. Let me make it clear that if you don't want to cook, I won't force you. But besides the basic daily expenses, I don't have any other money to give you. You need to be clear about this."

Ruan Su smiled, "I have hands, feet, and a job. I don't need any pocket money from you for my living expenses."

"That's good." Initially, Mother Ji wanted to ask what kind of job Ruan Su had, but the words died in her throat.

She didn't know much about Ruan Su, at least not as much as her former prospective daughter-in-law, Ruan Man.

Ruan Man was originally not the child Ruan family; she was switched at birth. The real Miss Ruan was Ruan Su, but she was only recognized four years ago when she was already studying in college in another city. After returning to her biological family, she was not very close to them. On the contrary, Ruan Man was recognized as the Ruan family's adopted daughter and was more like a family member.

After Ruan Su was recognized, Ruan Man returned her identity to her and, incidentally, withdrew from the engagement with the Ji family.

Mother Ji was particularly angry. Even if Ruan Man was not the Ruan family's biological daughter, she had been carefully raised and had a higher education and knowledge than Ruan Su, an ordinary person. When the engagement was made between the Ji and Ruan families, Mother Ji did not think highly of Ruan Man. Later, when the Ruan family switched to someone who was not as good as Ruan Man, it was easy to imagine how angry she was. Therefore, now seeing Ruan Su, she was neither warm nor cold, and very unfamiliar.

However, Ruan Su had one thing that far surpassed Ruan Man, and that was her face.

Ruan Su had extremely delicate features, and her slender figure was charming and elegant. Even in a simple dress, she was dazzling, standing in the sunlight, reminding people of words like beautiful and gentle.

As she looked at her like this, Mother Ji's mood improved somewhat.

Maodou came in from outside the door and saw Ruan Su was going out, and immediately said, "Aunt, are you going to the supermarket? I want to go too!"

Mother Ji asked, "Have you finished your homework and practiced your calligraphy?"

Maodou scratched his neck and shouted, "I've already finished it!"

Mother Ji didn't say anything, and she also felt that she had treated her grandson not well enough. As a result, he now thinks that going to the supermarket is a very happy thing.

When Ruan Su saw that her mother-in-law didn't speak, she knew that it was agreed, and said to Maodou, "Then we will go early and come back early. Maodou, I'm not very familiar with this place, can you show me the way?"

When he heard this, Maodou immediately agreed!

He felt very proud, but also felt a great pressure. His Aunt didn't even know the way around here, so he had to take charge from now on.

Under the watchful eye of Mother Ji, Ruan Su took Maodou downstairs and left.

Although this neighborhood was a bit old, its location was excellent. There were bus stops and subway stations nearby, as well as large supermarkets and shopping malls. Maodou chattered all the way, but that's how children talk. Ruan Su liked children like that, they made her feel alive. Maodou had been taught well by Mother Ji, not spoiled or wilful, but lively and polite. Looking at Maodou, Ruan Su no longer thought of Mother Ji as the infamous evil mother-in-law.

After walking for a while, they arrived at the supermarket. Ruan Su pushed the cart while Maodou followed her.

Ruan Su asked him, "Maodou, what kind of food do you like?"

Maodou frowned and said, "I used to like shrimp, but not anymore. I also used to like chicken wings, but not anymore."

"Why not?" Ruan Su asked.

"Don't you know?" Maodou turned around and asked her.

His face looked like it said, "I'm too troubled."

Ruan Su reacted and burst into laughter, he was probably complaining about the poor taste of the food that Mother Ji had cooked. In Ruan Su's heart, she felt some admiration for this mother-in-law. Under the same circumstances, if she had experienced her mother-in-law's life, she might not have been able to be so strong.

"Well then," Ruan Su said with a serious tone, "let's go buy some shrimp and chicken wings. Then I'll test you. If you get it right, you'll get a reward."

Maodou was excited. "What are you going to test me on?"

"I'll test you on whether you know what your Grandma likes to eat," Ruan Su said. "A truly filial child must know, right?"

"Of course, I know. Grandma likes to eat fish!"

Ruan Su felt that taking Maodou out was a very good decision.

They went to buy chicken wings and picked up some live shrimp and a sea bass at the fresh seafood area.

The supermarket was very lively, and Maodou was still thinking about his reward. Ruan Su asked him what he wanted, and he hesitated a bit before asking, "It might be a bit expensive, is that okay?"

"Of course, you can," said Ruan Su. "I promised you earlier, didn't I?"

As Maodou counted on his fingers, he said, "I want to eat cheese sticks, and I also want a remote control car… Can I have them?"

But when he got to the end, he looked up at her pitifully and said, "Actually, I don't need the remote control car. Our neighbor has one, and I can borrow it to play. It's too expensive."

Without hesitation, Ruan Su took Maodou to pick out a remote control car. Maodou didn't want anything too expensive; he knew all the numbers and how to look at prices. He picked out the cheapest one, which was 119 yuan.

He was so happy that his face turned red. He held onto the box tightly and wouldn't let go. When the cashier tried to scan the barcode, he still didn't want to let go and kept staring at the remote control car. This scene made Ruan Su feel sad. Ji Mingchong was the proud son of heaven, and Maodou was also born with a golden spoon in his mouth. But now, Maodou is so happy for this cheapest remote-controlled car. Ruan Su really wants to hug him in her arms and rub his little curls.

But it was just a thought. Maodou cared very much about his hairstyle and didn't let anyone touch it.

After leaving the supermarket, Maodou pulled Ruan Su to the side, seeing that no one was watching, he pulled out a necklace with a ring from his shirt collar.

Maodou looked at her and said, "This is the ring my dad gave to my mom. It seems to be used for proposing. Now I'm giving it to you."

The ring is inlaid with fine diamonds, and the diamonds on the ring setting are even more shiny.

Ruan Su was very surprised and asked, "Give it to me?"

Why would he give it to her?

Maodou nodded, "I saw it yesterday."

"What did you see?"

Maodou looked unhappy, "It's that vine[1], you know."

He doesn't like Ruan Man and always calls her that way.

Ruan Su understood.

Yesterday, she got married. All of Ruan's family members were there, and Ruan Man also attended her wedding with her fiancé. The so-called wedding was just a meal with family and friends. After all, the groom did not attend, so there was no need for a ceremony. Of course, there was no diamond ring either. Ruan Man looked at Ruan Su's bare fingers and deliberately pointed it out. On the one hand, she said that the Ji family was so poor that they couldn't even afford a diamond ring, and on the other hand, she was also mocking Ruan Su.

She even made a show of feeling sorry for her sister and wanted to give her own ring to Ruan Su, but Ruan Su naturally refused to take it.

Maodou also saw this.

Seeing that Ruan Su was not speaking now, he pursed his lips and was about to take off his necklace. "I didn't know I needed a ring for the wedding yesterday, otherwise I would have given you this one. Aunt, this is for you."

He also lied. He didn't like Aunt very much yesterday, so he was reluctant to give her the ring. But today, Aunt made him breakfast and bought him a remote control car and cheese sticks, so of course he had to be generous, right?

Looking at Maodou's sincere but reluctant expression, Ruan Su couldn't resist anymore. She reached out and wanted to touch his little curly hair, but her hand didn't touch his hair and instead landed on his shoulder.

"You don't have to, this is your mother's ring. You should keep it well. It will be better to give it to the girl you like in the future," she said.

Maodou was actually reluctant to part with the ring.

He didn't know the value of the diamond ring, but he knew it was something his father had given to his mother and felt a bit attached to it.

"What about you?" Maodou asked. "You don't have a ring, and that vine will laugh at you. I hate her very much. Luckily, she didn't become my aunt!"

Ruan Su thought for a moment, put down her shopping bag, and took out a silver ring from a compartment in her bag. She showed it to Maodou carefully, "Look, I also have a ring."

This silver ring was given to her by her adoptive mother.

It wasn't worth much, but it was her adoptive mother's most cherished ring.

Her adoptive mother was not Ruan Man's biological mother. Shortly after Ruan Su was born, Ruan Man's biological parents thought Ruan Su was a daughter, but they wanted a son, so they left Ruan Su at the hospital, and the hospital staff gave her to her adoptive mother. Her adoptive mother couldn't have children and her relatives wanted to find a child for her to take care of her in her old age. Unfortunately, Ruan Su's adoptive mother died of illness shortly after Ruan Su's tenth birthday, and did not enjoy a peaceful retirement.

"Who gave you the ring?" Maodou asked curiously again. "Is it your mother too?"

Ruan Su nodded and said, "My mother gave it to me."

Maodou sighed and said, "I heard that Grandma Ruan is biased, and it's true. Look at this ring she gave you, it's not even pretty."

Ruan Su smiled but didn't correct Maodou's words.

"Although it's not that pretty, I really like it."

Maodou looked at his Aunt and felt that she was even more pitiful than himself. He couldn't help but sigh. Then he remembered something and his eyes lit up. He grabbed Ruan Su's sleeve and promised, "Don't worry, my Uncle is very powerful. When he wakes up, he will buy you the biggest and most beautiful ring. Then that vine will be so jealous."

Like Mother Ji, Maodou firmly believed that his Uncle would wake up soon. It was just a matter of time.

Ruan Su smiled, "Okay."

The two of them happily returned home. When Mother Ji saw Maodou holding a remote-controlled car, she moved her lips but didn't say anything.

At noon, Ruan Su went into the kitchen. The range hood wasn't working very well, and with the smell of oil and smoke, the fragrance soon drifted into the living room and into Mother Ji and Maodou's noses.

Ruan Su preferred to cook for herself, although it was more trouble than ordering takeout. However, it was still more cost-effective. For example, this lunch would cost at least over a hundred yuan if she ordered takeout. But by cooking it herself, it only cost her around seventy to eighty yuan, and she could eat two meals out of it. It was so much better.

Maodou and Mother Ji looked at the food on the table and became even hungrier.

There were Coca-Cola chicken wings, steamed sea bass, blanched shrimp, and a mushroom soup that was full of color, fragrance, and flavor.

All three of them enjoyed the meal very much.

In the afternoon, Ruan Su returned to the room and turned Ji Mingchong over to massage him. The most important thing in taking care of a vegetative person is to prevent bedsores. Following the doctor's advice, she guided him through a series of exercises that made her sweat. After all, even though Ji Mingchong had lost a lot of weight, he was still a tall man over six feet. The doctor also said that she should talk to him more often. Ruan Su looked at Ji Mingchong like this and didn't know what to say to him.

She didn't really believe that he could hear her.

But at this moment, he seemed to have become a good tree hole.

Thinking of what Maodou had said today, Ruan Su couldn't help but speak softly.

As she massaged him, she said, "I'm going back home tomorrow[1]. I don't really want to go back to that home. I can even imagine what will happen after I go back. But if I don't go back, it doesn't seem right either. After all, in the eyes of others, that place is my natal home. People always have to do things they don't want to do…Sometimes I think, maybe if I didn't come back to the Ruan's, you would receive better care than now. Because my parents like Ruan Man more, they will definitely help her."

Everything is difficult at the beginning. At first, when talking to Ji Mingchong, she was a little uncomfortable, but as she spoke more, she became accustomed to it.

She spoke softly, but he didn't respond.

However, the room was still extremely warm, and even the sun-drenched blankets had a pleasant smell.

Unlike the current Ji's house, the living room of the Ruan's house was bright and luxurious everywhere. With the downfall of the Ji family, the dream of the Ruan family to join forces also fell apart. The Ruan family was affected, and their company was also going downhill. However, it was still better than the Ji family, and their company was still operating normally, although their annual profit was not as impressive as before.

Ruan Man saw that both Father Ruan and Mother Ruan were distracted and couldn't help but curl her lips.

She had been with this family for two lifetimes, and now she knew what they were thinking even without them saying anything. Father Ruan must be worried about the company, while Mother Ruan was worried about tomorrow.

Tomorrow, Ruan Su was going back to Ruan's house, and the current Ruan Su had become a joke.

She was still young and beautiful, but now she was married to a vegetative patient. Mother Ruan still had a little bit of pain for her biological daughter, and her feelings towards Ruan Su were very conflicted. Although Ruan Su was a piece of flesh that had fallen off her body, Ruan Su hadn't grown up with her. The mother and daughter both felt that they were strangers to each other. They knew they were mother and daughter, and their consciousness told them to love and care for each other, but their bodies rejected this stranger.

Now that Ruan Su had married Ji Mingchong, Mother Ruan was just imagining her daughter's situation, and the meager affection was magnified.

She was worried about Ruan Su, but also afraid to see her.

Ruan Man couldn't bear to watch Mother Ruan in such distress and spoke up to comfort her, "Mom, are you worried about Susu? You don't have to be. She voluntarily accepted this engagement, and you know better than anyone about Mrs. Ji's character, don't you?"

Mother Ruan's spirits were lifted when she heard this, "Yes, you're right. Mrs. Ji loves collecting jewelry and wouldn't overlook her own safety. She must have left herself a way out!"

Many people thought the same way, and Ruan Man used to think the same way too, or more accurately, she did in her past life.

In her past life, Ruan Su never appeared. Ruan Man had always liked Ji Mingchong since she was young, but they were several years apart in age. When she was in China, he was abroad, and when he returned to China, she went abroad. Later, encouraged by her, her parents considered a marriage alliance with the Ji family. At that time, it was an ambitious move, and Father Ruan had to work hard to make it happen. She was thrilled not only to become Ji Mingchong's fiancée, but also to be one step closer to the position of Young Madam Ji.

But not long after, Ji Mingchong had an accident. She thought he would wake up, but he never did. She waited and waited until Father Ji died, and the family went bankrupt. Ji Mingchong still didn't wake up. By then, she had become a bit disheartened, and her determination to marry Ji Mingchong had waned. But Father Ruan would not allow anyone to accuse him of ingratitude and forced her to marry Ji Mingchong. At that time, she heard that Mrs. Ji still had some money and a precious box of jewelry, so she gritted her teeth and went to the Ji family.

Who would have thought that Mrs. Ji didn't have anything at all. She secretly searched the house and only found less than 100,000 yuan in savings.

Mrs. Ji obviously used to have so many jade bracelets, any one of which was worth tens of millions!

Mrs. Ji treated her badly, always speaking coldly. Ruan Man relied on Ruan's family to maintain her ordinary life in the Ji family. It was a joke to anyone who heard it.

Even that little kid from the Ji family, he ignored her, never called her "Aunt".

The grandmother and grandson treated her as if she was invisible. Later, when Mrs. Ji asked her to leave, she refused. She had gained nothing, so how could she leave? This stagnation lasted for several years. Eventually, she couldn't stand this kind of life and became the mistress of a married man. Before she could even think of ways to become pregnant and secure her position, she was killed by that man's wife's scheme.

Even at the time of her death, Ji Mingchong never woke up, and she never saw Mrs. Ji's jewelry.

Perhaps the heavens thought she was too pitiful. She was unexpectedly reborn, so she no longer kept the secret from her past life that she knew. She found a way to let Father and Mother Ruan know that she was not their biological daughter. Later, Father and Mother Ruan found Ruan Su. Ruan Man immediately pushed the engagement Ruan Su. No one knew that yesterday, she was so happy. She finally changed her destiny!

In this life, she is determined not to jump into the fire pit of the Ji family again.

As for Ruan Su, that is not her concern. She had already suffered through Ruan Su's miserable life in her past life. Ruan Su owed her, and now Ruan Su has to pay it back!

Thinking of her return home in her past life, she returned alone. Mrs. Ji didn't show any expression, nor did she care.

Ruan Su will return home tomorrow, and she will definitely be alone.

Ruan Man looked at Mother Ruan's face and naturally thought of Ruan Su's even more beautiful face.

She didn't know how Ruan Su was doing in her past life, but Ruan Su must have had a better life than her. With a face like that, as long as Ruan Su managed it well, her life would definitely be comfortable.

Of course, that was in her past life. In this life, no matter how beautiful Ruan Su is, Ruan Su will be ground down by Mrs. Ji's evil temper.

Thinking this way, Ruan Man's smile became even more gentle as she continued to comfort Mother Ruan, "Who says not? Susu's life will definitely be better. Don't worry."

With Ruan Su there, Mother Ji is much more relaxed than before. In order to avoid being suspected by others, Mother Ji didn't dare to hire a caregiver, so the responsibility of taking care of her son fell on her. Apart from asking neighbors to help wash her son's body, she did everything herself. She is almost sixty years old now, and her body sometimes couldn't handle it. In order to prevent her son from getting bedsores, she had to turn him over every two hours. To prevent muscle atrophy, she had to hold him up every day, either sitting on the bed or fixed on a standing platform. Therefore, Mother Ji had to stay at home all day to take good care of her son Ji Mingchong. It is the heartfelt love of a mother that supported her all this time.

Although Ruan Su has only been here for two days, Mother Ji can finally rest for a while.

Although Ruan Su is not very skilled in doing these things, she is very patient. Although Ji Mingchong is now in a vegetative state, it does not mean that he does not need to eat. He can only be fed through a gastric tube. Mother Ji bought a baby food processor and mixed the rice, vegetables, and soup into a paste. Then, she slowly injected it into the gastric tube using a syringe. Today, Ruan Su specially stewed fish soup for Ji Mingchong. Maodou said that this fish soup is particularly delicious, but unfortunately, Ji Mingchong doesn't know what it tastes like.

At night, Ruan Su has to sleep with Ji Mingchong. She gets up every two hours to turn him over.

Right now, no one believes that she willingly takes care of Ji Mingchong.

However, she does not do all this to show off to others. She just wants to repay her deceased father-in-law. Father Ji was kind and generous and a great person. When he was lying in bed in the end, he was already emaciated, and even when he was well, he could not recognize her. But that is not important, right? If it were not for Father Ji, there might not be a person named Ruan Su in this world anymore. Therefore, when she learned about Ji family's situation and how Father Ji was most worried about Ji Mingchong, she chose to accept this marriage agreement.

Outsiders think she did it for the Ruan family, but only she knows that it is not true.

When she returned to the Ruan family, she was already an adult. Just as Father and Mother Ruan did not unconditionally love and care for her because of blood ties, she also felt the same. To her, they were only blood relatives, and in fact, they had no emotional foundation between them. Such a family was not worth her doing this.

Her life was saved by Father Ji, so now she felt obligated to repay the debt. She didn't have much money, only herself, so she wanted to do everything in her power to help Ji family.

It was almost 10 o'clock by the time she finished what she was doing. She washed up and lay down next to Ji Mingchong. She turned her head and glanced at him. There was still a light on in the room. She had been afraid last night, but whenever she was scared, she would reach out to feel Ji Mingchong's breath.

It was warm.

Since agreeing to marry Ji Mingchong, she had heard about his past from various sources.

He used to be the most dazzling youth, so smart that Ji's father regarded him as the most valued successor. Father Ruan also said that if Ji Mingchong had not had that accident, the Ji family would have been even more glorious than before, and he was the hope of so many people.

He was good-looking, and even after lying there for five years, one could still see how outstanding his appearance was. It was said that when he appeared on magazine covers, they sold like hotcakes. On the cover, he looked imposing, wearing a well-tailored suit. At that time, he was only 21 years old. Many people said he was a business genius, while others said he was still too young and inexperienced. Perhaps to make himself appear more mature, he wore a pair of gold-rimmed glasses. She still remembered that her roommate had quietly told her while flipping through the magazine at the newsstand that he was a sophisticated scumbag that made people weak in the knees.

Now, he lay next to her like this, and those who used to say he was a genius had forgotten about him.

As Ruan Su was staring at him absentmindedly, there was a sound at the door, and the next second, a little boy in pajamas holding a pillow came in.

Ruan Su was surprised. "Maodou, why aren't you asleep yet?"

Maodou's pajamas seemed to be a bit too small, especially the top, and his belly looked even more round.

He quickly climbed onto the bed and sat beside Ruan Su with an expression of "affection," saying, "Aunt, I know you're scared. I'll come in to accompany you after Grandma falls asleep!"

Ruan Su chuckled, "Thank you then."

Maodou hurriedly lay down beside Ruan Su, pulled the quilt over his belly, and glanced at the sleeping Ji Mingchong on the side. He whispered, "I dare not stay in the room with Uncle alone."

"Why?"

"Uncle has been sleeping!"

Ruan Su knew she was a bit scared yesterday, let alone Maodou who was still a child.

Maodou was afraid, but he still came in to accompany her, which touched her a little.

The child was soft, fragrant, and warm. Ruan Su and Maodou snuggled together and neither of them slept. After a while, Ruan Su asked, "Do you still remember your Uncle?"

Maodou was a little excited. It was his first time sleeping with someone other than his Grandma. Aunt smelled nice and had a pair of adorable dimples when she smiled. "I don't remember, but I heard Grandma say that my Uncle likes me very much. When I was born, my Uncle bought me a lot of toys."

Maodou was born before Ji Mingchong had an accident.

Ruan Su was lost in thought, as if imagining the way Ji Mingchong would hold a child.

"Grandma said that Uncle thought I was a girl at first, and everyone else thought so too. When he was on a business trip abroad, Uncle even bought me a Barbie doll." Maodou said with some regret, "Unfortunately, those things are all gone. Otherwise, I could have given that Barbie doll to Xiao Min. Do you know Xiao Min?"

"I don't know her. Is she your friend?"

"She's my friend from kindergarten. She's always nice to me and often gives me jelly to eat. On Xiao Min's birthday, her parents bought a big cake and we all ate it together. Everyone gave her gifts, but I didn't have one, so I folded a paper airplane for her." Maodou whispered, "Grandma said that my Uncle is the most powerful person in the world, and when he wakes up, he'll buy me everything. So I told Xiao Min that she can exchange the paper airplane for a real one with me in the future, but that has to wait until Uncle wakes up!"

"That's very smart. Xiao Min must be very happy?"

"Of course, she said she would keep the paper airplane safe. Aunt, do you think my Uncle will wake up?"

Ruan Su hesitated for a moment. In fact, one cannot be blindly optimistic in such situations.

She had heard that the probability of Ji Mingchong waking up was not very high.

"…I don't know," said Ruan Su, "but I think he must want to wake up very much."

Maodou yawned and rubbed his eyes with his chubby paws. "I'm sleepy."

"Go to sleep~"

After Maodou fell asleep, Ruan Su got up and carried him.

She struggled a bit to pick him up. Maodou was over five years old. Although he had lost some weight recently, he was still considered slightly chubby.

The bed wasn't very big, and Ruan Su knew she would have to get up every two hours to check on Ji Mingchong, so she carried Maodou back to his room to avoid waking him up.

Unexpectedly, as she walked out of the room carrying Maodou, she saw Mother Ji coming out of her room.

The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law exchanged a glance, but neither said anything. Mother Ji took Maodou from Ruan Su's arms and went back inside.[1]

The next morning, Ruan Su received a call from Mother Ruan, asking when she would be coming back. Ruan Su and Mother Ruan were polite to each other, but were not as close as one might expect. Her mother didn't act like a typical "affectionate" mother in TV dramas, nor was she as bad as Ruan Su's friend had imagined. Instead, her role in Ruan Su's life was more like that of a relative.

Initially, Mother Ruan also hesitated letting her biological daughter marry Ji Ming Chong, but she couldn't resist Ruan Man's persistence. On one hand, she had a biological daughter without an emotional connection, and on the other, she had a foster daughter with a strong bond. She hesitated but ultimately Ruan Su took the initiative and accepted the marriage proposal. Mother Ruan breathed a sigh of relief, but at the same time, she felt a twinge of pain for her biological daughter and some distance from her adoptive daugher Ruan Man.

Ruan Su didn't want to go back, but it was customary, so she had to agree.

On the wedding day, it was the first day. Today is the third day, and it's the day for the bride to return to her natal home.

Not only the Ruan family but also their relatives will come to have a meal.

After hanging up the phone, Ruan Su told Mother Ji about it, "My Mom wants me to go back and have a meal. Our relatives will be there too."

Mother Ji responded calmly, "Go ahead."

Ruan Su went back to her room to change clothes.

Maodou listened to what Ruan Su said just now and became nervous. He pulled Mother Ji and anxiously asked, "Why is Aunt going back?"

Mother Ji glanced at him and said, "What, can't bear to see her go? She must go back today."

Today is the day for the bride to return to her natal home. If Ruan Su doesn't go back, the Ruan family will definitely have some opinions, and it will also be impolite. Although Ruan Su and the Ruan family are not close, they also didn't have any grudges.

Maodou became anxious and clenched his little fists, "If she goes back, that vine will definitely bully her!"

Mother Ji said calmly, "That's something she has to endure. Who asked her to be weak."

Originally, Ruan Man was an adopted daughter. Now, an adopted daughter can bully and mock the biological daughter of the Ruan family. In other words, the elders in the Ruan family are biased.

She never liked the Ruan family before.

"But, but…" Maodou muttered, "What if she goes back and never comes back here? I really like her."

Mother Ji frowned, "She bought you a remote control car, made you delicious food, so you like her now?"

"Who said that! I'm not that materialistic!" Maodou protested, "I like her because not because of those!"

Maodou couldn't really say why he liked Ruan Su, but he just felt that his Aunt was great!

Mother Ji knew, though. In the past, there were three people in this household who breathed, but only she and her grandson really talked and interacted with each other. She was getting old and her grandson craved someone to accompany him, but she gradually couldn't fulfill that role anymore.

Mother Ji's tone softened, "So what do you want to do?"

She knew her grandson well and he must have had an idea already.

Sure enough, Maodou's eyes lit up when he heard this and he raised his hand and said crisply, "We'll go with her and not let that vine bully her!"

On the other side, after hanging up the phone, Mother Ruan immediately began instructing the housekeeper to make arrangements. Mother Ruan was a very contradictory person. Every time before seeing Ruan Su, she would plan to be affectionate towards her daughter, show her daughter more care, but when she actually saw her daughter, she would be polite rather than close, as she used to be. It's not that she doesn't like Ruan Su, after all, no matter how weak the emotional bond, Ruan Su is still her own flesh and blood. But she is afraid of seeing Ruan Su, afraid of looking at Ruan Su's eyes. She always feels that her daughter's eyes are too clear, as if her daughter can see through everything, making her attempts to remedy the situation seem ridiculous.

Father Ruan came downstairs from upstairs, still carrying his briefcase, looking like he was about to go out.

Mother Ruan hurriedly said, "Today is the day when Susu returns home, and some relatives will come over for dinner later."

Compared to Mother Ruan's tangled and meager motherly love, Father Ruan's affection for his daughter Ruan Su is even more pitiful. In this man's heart, the interests of the company and the family come before everything else. He just glanced at his watch and said in a deep voice, "I have an appointment with Manager Chen, I can't cancel."

"But…" Mother Ruan wanted to say something.

Ruan Father interrupted her, "Susu is coming back alone today, she will understand."

If Ji Mingchong, who is currently in a vegetative state, is still the highly regarded CEO he used to be, wherever he goes he is surrounded by a lot of people, then for Father Ruan, his daughter's return home would naturally be a top priority. But now the situation is different, after all, only his daughter is coming back, there is no need to be so concerned.

In the Ruan family, Father Ruan holds all the power, his word is law, and now that he has decided to go out, Mother Ruan has no choice but to sigh and accept it.

After Father Ruan left, the atmosphere at home changed.

Now the Ruan family is even quieter than before. Ruan Su hasn't lived here since she got married. Ruan Shuyang, the eldest son of the Ruan family, holds an important position in the company and is often busy, so he prefers to live in an apartment near the company and rarely comes back. Ruan Man, on the other hand, used to come back frequently, but after she confirmed her relationship with Lin Xiangdong, the youngest son of the Lin family, she also moved out to live elsewhere.

Lin Xiangdong was driving and noticed that the road conditions were not good, so he asked, "You and your sister don't get along well, why are you going back today?"

Ruan Man was wearing a high-end suit today, and she looked very suitable in this style. With her elegant dress, her appearance was enhanced.

She sighed lightly after hearing her fiancé's question, "Even if she doesn't like me, she is still my mother's daughter. You know, without my parents, I wouldn't be who I am today."

After her rebirth, Ruan Man did two things that she was most satisfied with.

The first thing was naturally pushing back her engagement with Ji Mingchong. Although she was no longer the legitimate young lady of the Ruan family, she considered the gains and losses, and it was still worth it.

The second thing was getting to know and have a relationship with Lin Xiangdong, and becoming his fiancée.

In her past life, she had also heard of Lin Xiangdong's story. He was an illegitimate child, but his abilities were outstanding. He successfully seized power from the original heir of the Lin family and became the one in control. As they say, for a hero, their background doesn't matter, and there are probably many people like Lin Xiangdong in the wealthy circles, where even the illegitimate children of some CEOs' mistresses can inherit power. She knew that Lin Xiangdong was the one who laughed last. After her rebirth, she approached Lin Xiangdong, who was still in a pitiful state, and gradually entered his heart, becoming his girlfriend and fiancée. Calculating the time, it wouldn't be long before Lin Xiangdong would completely take control of Lin family.

Although the Lin family still had some distance from the former Ji family, it would still be happier for her to become Mrs. Lin.

Most importantly, Lin Xiangdong loved her wholeheartedly, even his recent proposal was extravagant and romantic.

Before Lin Xiangdong could say anything, Ruan Man said with a worried expression, "I was the one who got engaged to Ji Mingchong. Now that she has married into that family, I am grateful to her. Actually, I am not someone who is afraid of difficulties. Otherwise, I wouldn't have agreed to cancel the engagement when Ji Mingchong got into trouble. Ji family has been kind to my family, and if it weren't for you, I wouldn't have pushed this marriage arrangement to Susu. So, Xiangdong, can you understand? No matter how much she resents me in her heart, no matter how she treats me, I can accept it, because without her, I wouldn't have the happiness I have now. I feel sorry for her."

Lin Xiangdong said, "You're just too soft-hearted. If anyone dares to mistreat you, just tell me. She can't keep bullying and hurting you just because of such a thing."

Ruan Man lowered her head and responded gloomily, "… Okay."

When Ruan Man and Lin Xiangdong arrived at the Ruan family, other relatives were also present, but Ruan Su hadn't arrived yet. Lin Xiangdong was different from a few years ago; he had already become a manager in the company, and everyone could see that he had stronger abilities than his elder brother. It was also evident that Chairman Lin had been grooming Lin Xiangdong. As for who would ultimately control the Lin family in the future, it was hard to say. Therefore, Lin Xiangdong received warm welcomes from Ruan's relatives, including Mother Ruan.

An aunt from Ruan's relatives held Ruan Man's hand affectionately and said, "I still don't know when I can drink the your wedding wine. Ruan Su's wedding a few days ago… it was really disappointing. We didn't have a good time."

The relatives frowned as they remembered Ruan Su's wedding a few days ago.

Such a big family like the Ji's, but their wedding was so simple. But then again, without a groom, the wedding couldn't be lively.

It used to be that the Ji family was beyond their reach, but now it has come to this. They all felt a subtle sense of satisfaction.

"Exactly, what kind of restaurant was that? Even when we went out to eat ten years ago, we've never been to such a low-class place. It's a joke to even mention it. Fortunately, not many guests were invited, otherwise where would Ruan family's face be?"

"In the future, Ruan family's face still depends on Manman, Susu's just not capable. Even if Ji Mingchong wakes up now, it won't change anything. The Ji family has already fallen." Aunt Ruan tactfully praised Lin Xiangdong, "I have to say, in the past, everyone praised Ji Mingchong for being capable, but that was because he had the Ji family as a backing. He would succeed in whatever he did. It's actually Xiangdong who is the most capable. Xiangdong's current achievements are solid and rely on himself. It's not easy."

Lin Xiangdong was actually quite annoyed with this family.

But out of respect for his fiancée, he had to go along with it. Thinking that if he wasted his time on their family matters today, it wouldn't be worth it. After chatting for a while, he stood up and said to Ruan Man, "My dad asked me to accompany him to a dinner tonight. I have to leave now."

Ruan Man knew that it was also because she had been too forceful in creating a pitiable and helpless image of herself in the past, which led to Lin Xiangdong not being very fond of Ruan family now.

However, this didn't really cause her much loss. Anyway, whatever happens to the Ruan family, it doesn't have much to do with her.

She nodded, "You go about your business. Official matters are important."

Mother Ruan and other relatives got up to see Lin Xiangdong off outside.

In the past, Mother Ruan might not have looked up to Lin Xiangdong, an illegitimate child with an uncertain future. But now things were different. With the fall of the Ji family, Ruan's family was also declining day by day, losing its former glory. If Lin Xiangdong really inherited the Lin family, then there was a possibility of Ruan family returning to its former glory. Therefore, Mother Ruan and even Father Ruan were trying to curry favor with Lin Xiangdong as much as possible, and they were particularly accommodating towards Ruan Man.

After Lin Xiangdong left, it was almost noon.

Aunt Ruan said, "This Ruan Su is too unreasonable. Does she still have any filial piety in her heart? On such an important day of returning home, which daughter doesn't come back early? But she, instead, made the whole family wait for her alone! Who does she think she is, some distinguished guest?"

Mother Ruan was also getting angry as she waited. She thought her daughter was dissatisfied with the marriage, so her daughter deliberately came back late to embarrass the family.

…

Ruan Su didn't expect that Mother Ji and Maodou would accompany her back to the Ruan family.

Mother Ji naturally couldn't say that Maodou was afraid of Ruan Su being bullied, so she just glanced at Ruan Su casually and said, "According to reason, Mingchong should have accompanied you back. But he can't go now, and my Ji family also has people. It's only right for someone to accompany you on this trip."

Maodou pestered Mother Ji for a long time before she agreed.

This surprised Ruan Su, but she couldn't refuse. The three of them asked their neighbors to take care of Ji Mingchong, and then they left. When a bride returns to her natal home, she usually buys gifts for her family. When they finished buying the gifts and were ready to find a taxi, a small mishap occurred.

The taxi drivers refused to go to the address as soon as they heard it.

Ruan's family's old villa was still located in the villa area on the hillside, not far from the city, but it took a while from the urban village area where they lived. And then they encountered traffic congestion. By the time they reached Ruan's villa, it was already 11 o'clock.

Maodou looked at the villa from a distance and couldn't help but show a jealous look. He pulled Mother Ji's sleeve and said, "Aunt's house is so big, much bigger than our house! Xiao Min said only rich people live in villas!"

Mother Ji wasn't pleased and said, "Our house used to be better than this. What are you jealous of?"

Maodou didn't care at all. "Granny, you said it yourself, it's in the past. Don't talk about the past anymore."

Mother Ji : "…"

Ruan Su was originally feeling a bit sentimental about the drastic changes in Ji's family, but when she heard Maodou's words, she almost couldn't help but laugh.

Despite Maodou's young age, he sometimes speaks quite harshly and can really choke people.

Maodou asked Ruan Su again, "Your house is so big, do you find our house too small?"

Children are like this, they won't hide what they're thinking in their hearts.

Ruan Su thought for a moment and said seriously, "Actually, the living room of my previous house wasn't as big as the one in your house now."

Mother Ji glanced at her.

Curious, Maodou pointed at the villa and said, "Isn't that your house? Don't lie to kids, lying to kids will make you fat."

Ruan Su smiled, "I didn't lie to you."

The three of them got out of the car and walked towards the entrance. The housekeeper quickly opened the door to welcome them, but was surprised to see Ruan Su bringing two more people…

The housekeeper's expression changed, and he quickly went into the house and whispered, "Madam, Madam Ji is here too!"

As soon as these words came out, the relatives who were just stepping on Ji Mingchong and praising Lin Xiangdong were all stunned.

Then, Aunt Ruan and Mother Ruan instinctively stood up to greet Mother Ji. These people only dared to talk about Ji family behind their backs, but no one dared to speak in front of Mother Ji. The fear of Mother Ji had been ingrained in their bones for years, and it wasn't something that could be changed in a short time.

Aunt Ruan even wondered, "I hope she didn't hear the nonsense I just said! She must not have heard it!"

The people in the living room of Ruan's house had different reactions: some were surprised, some were instinctively afraid, while Ruan Man had a shocked expression. She could hardly believe what she had heard and stood up eagerly, only to see the butler bringing Ruan Su and others into the room the next second.

Seeing Ruan Su again, Ruan Man thought Ruan Su would be haggard, as Ruan Man had not slept for two nights when she first arrived at the Ji family in her past life. Fortunately, Mother Ji still had some humanity and did not force her to share a room with Ji Mingchong. The shabby house had only three rooms, and she did not want to stay in the so-called bridal chamber, so Mother Ji let her clean up the storage room as her bedroom. She still remembered that the room had no sunlight, only a table and a folding bed, and she could hardly believe that she could live in that room for two days.

In the Ji's house, there were no maids or aunties, and Mother Ji cooked for the three of them at first. But after Ruan Man said she didn't like the food, Mother Ji ignored her.

Ruan Man had never lived like that before. As for Ji Mingchong, she rarely went to see him and just stayed in her room counting the days.

She still remembered the day she returned to her parents' home, looking haggard, and her mother and eldest brother were heartbroken.

Now, she thought Ruan Su would be the same.

But when Ruan Su walked in from outside, she was wearing a long dress, with a rosy complexion and the same lively eyes as before.

That didn't make Ruan Man too uncomfortable. What she couldn't understand was how Mother Ji and that brat accompanied Ruan Su back home?

In her past life, she came back alone at this time! Mother Ji didn't even ask, and the brat never looked at her properly!

This was difficult for Ruan Man to accept.

The arrival of Mother Ji instantly quieted the entire living room. In these few years, Mother Ji had taken care of her son and grandson meticulously, doing everything herself. Compared to the wealthy lady she used to be, she visibly aged a lot. But she was still the person that Mother Ruan feared. Mother Ji and Father Ji were a couple who went through thick and thin together. When Father Ji started from scratch, Mother Ji went through countless hardships with him. She had an imposing aura back then, enough to make even Mother Ruan gasp for air.

Mother Ji was like a strict homeroom teacher, and Mother Ruan was a student in her class. Even after graduating, seeing the teacher again would make her heart beat faster.

It was Maodou who broke the silence. "Aunt, I'm thirsty and want some water."

Ruan Su immediately replied, "Sure, right away. Sister Chen, please pour some water."

Sister Chen, the housemaid, came back to her senses after hearing Ruan Su's words, and hurriedly went to the kitchen to make tea.

When Ruan Man heard Maodou call Ruan Su "Aunt," her eyebrows furrowed even tighter.

In her past life, Maodou had never called her like that. He didn't even look at her in the eye most of the time, and the thought of it made her angry.

If Mother Ji weren't here, Ruan Man would have already exploded. But with Mother Ji here, she dared not act rashly.

Mother Ruan was afraid of Mother Ji, and so was Ruan Man. In her past life, she had been tormented by Mother Ji countless times. She couldn't bear the thought of having no future back then, and at first, she could hold it in and wait for Mother Ji to voluntarily hand over the hidden things. But when she realized that Mother Ji didn't have anything at all, she became lazy and started dating other men. She wasn't afraid of being caught, and one time, when a man offered to send her back, Mother Ji saw them. Mother Ji didn't say anything, but after a few days, Mother Ji asked Ruan Man to pack her things and leave.

How can she be willing to leave without getting anything? She said she won't leave!

But then, Mother Ji looked at her with disdainful eyes, "Is a person like you worthy of my son?"

After that, she didn't know what Mother Ji did, but Father Ruan came to pick her up, and then she became single again.

Right now, Mother Ji sat on the side with Maodou, her expression cold and she didn't take the initiative to greet anyone.

Mother Ruan pulled Ruan Su to her side and asked with a smile, "Are you still used to it over there?"

"It's pretty good." Ruan Su wasn't used to staying at Ruan's house. The people here were not simple, and every word they said had a hidden meaning. Compared to that, she preferred to stay at Ji's house.

The other relatives originally wanted to ask if Ji's house was really in that old and dilapidated neighborhood, really without even a hundred square meters, really without any servants, really without any professional housekeepers, but with the arrival of Mother Ji, those who wanted to see a joke and cause trouble all became quiet as chickens.

"It's good that you're used to it." Mother Ruan looked at her daughter's good complexion and finally felt relieved.

Including Mother Ruan, everyone present except Ruan Man didn't believe that the situation at Ji's house was really that bad.

They all thought that with Mother Ji's character, how could she not leave a way out for her son and grandson? She must have many good things in her hands.

Now it seems that Mother Ji values Ruan Su quite a bit, and in the future, Ruan Su might even take over some of Mother Ji's things, so everyone is being attentive to Ruan Su again.

Ruan Man watched coldly from the sidelines, and even felt like laughing.

Mother Ji doesn't have anything in her hands!

If there really was something, how could Ruan Man not have discovered it after living in that house for several years?

Thinking about how the Ji family was a real empty shell, Ruan Man became even more resolute and didn't think that Mother Ji had anything to be afraid of. With this in mind, her expression also became much calmer as she looked at Ruan Su and asked softly, "Susu, why are you so late today?"

As if that wasn't enough, she added, "Everyone has been waiting for you for a long time. This is not polite behavior."

Ruan Su made a sound of agreement, as if responding to Ruan Man, but it was more like she didn't want to pay attention to her.

The atmosphere suddenly became tense.

The relationship between Ruan Su and Ruan Man was not good. One was a true heiress, and the other was a fake one. They had conflicting interests, not to mention that Ruan Man had also forced Ruan Su to accept this engagement. Despite the relatives' flattery towards Ruan Man, they had also secretly whispered that Ruan Man was a thankless white-eyed wolf. Ruan's family had fed and entertained her for so many years, but she had begged and pleaded to be engaged to Ji Mingchong in the first place. Now that she saw that the Ji family had fallen to this point, she pushed the engagement onto Ruan Su. Wasn't this repaying kindness with enmity? Of course, this was only said behind Ruan Man's back.

Ruan Man was mainly stimulated by Mother Ji's arrival and Maodou's calling Ruan Su "Aunt."

This time, instead of stopping abruptly as she had done in the past, Ruan Man chuckled softly and asked, "Did you take a taxi here?

"When I was dating Xiangdong, I remember one time the driver couldn't take me home, so I said I'd take a taxi. Xiangdong was very…"

Before she could finish bragging, she was interrupted by Mother Ji.

After taking a sip of tea, Mother Ji asked, "Is lunch ready, In-law's Mother[1]?"

Ruan Man was choked : "…"

Mother Ruan quickly replied, "It's ready."

Mother Ruan's response was prompt, like a capable servant. After realizing what she had done, Mother Ruan felt a bit regretful. How come she couldn't break this habit after so many years?

Mother Ji was satisfied and looked at the other relatives. "Let's go eat, the children are hungry."

Ruan Su was slightly surprised. Before she got married, she knew her mother-in-law was a powerful, but she hadn't had much contact with her mother-in-law. In the past couple of days, she had only felt that her mother-in-law was a bit cold, but not a wicked mother-in-law. But now, why did she feel that everyone was afraid of her mother-in-law?

With this doubt in mind, Ruan Su followed them to the dining hall.

Today, the Ruan family had prepared a sumptuous feast, which made Maodou very happy.

It's been a long time since Maodou had such a good meal, and he increasingly felt that it was the right decision to follow along.

Ruan Man didn't expect that Mother Ji would interrupt her without any mercy, and she was still holding a grudge. She didn't feel good about anything and finally directed all her anger towards Ruan Su, who seemed to be the easiest to bully.

After thinking it over, only Ji Mingchong's matter could make both Mother Ji and Ruan Su irritable.

Ruan Man smiled and casually said, "Susu, Xiangdong knows some very powerful medical professors. Let them help my brother-in-law later. As long as there is a glimmer of hope, we should try. You're still so young, and if my brother-in-law wakes up, you two are a perfect match. You don't know, Mom is most worried about you. She couldn't sleep last night. If you are doing well, your parents can also be at ease."

Ruan Su's eyes also turned cold.

Although she knew that Ruan Man would definitely cause trouble when she returned home today, now that Mother Ji and Maodou were here, what was Ruan Man's intention in saying such things?

Although she had only been in the Ji's house for two days, she could tell that both Mother Ji and Maodou firmly believed that Ji Mingchong would definitely wake up. Mother Ji, who was sixty years old, had been giving her son massages and turning him over every night without a full night's sleep. Maodou, who was over five years old, would talk to Ji Mingchong every day, trying to wake him up.

Ruan Man's words made sense, but Ruan Su knew that she deliberately brought up this matter to make them uncomfortable.

Ruan Su put down her chopsticks and was about to say something when a voice interrupted her.

"Brother-in-law? Who is your brother-in-law?" Mother Ji looked at Mother Ruan again, "In-law's Mother, I remember you only have one son and one daughter. When did you have another daughter?"

Mother Ji has always looked down on the Ruan family. A family that could abandon their child and yet hold someone else in such high regard, how good could they be? It's a joke just to talk about them. But this family remains oblivious and now they even let this unrelated person play host at the true child's homecoming banquet. It's truly laughable.

Mother Ruan was taken aback and, looking at Ruan Man's face turning ashen, thought of Lin Xiangdong and gritted her teeth to say, "Manman has been raised by my side since she was little, and she is also my daughter."

Mother Ji snorted, the mockery clear in her tone.

Although Maodou is young, he's quite clever. Upon hearing these words, he also became angry. He stood up and shouted, "My uncle will definitely wake up!"

"And you," he pointed at Ruan Man, "you bullied my Aunt, I remember. When my uncle wakes up, I will tell him, and you'll be in trouble!"

Upon hearing this, Mother Ji's face darkened. She loved Maodou very much, but she was rarely angry. She pulled Maodou back to his seat and said, "Ji Junting, do you forget what your Grandma has taught you? You can't be impolite even if others are. This is basic manners!"

Maodou pouted. He was just angry.

Ruan Su knows Ruan Man very well. She absolutely does not believe that Ruan Man has any good intentions towards her. Perhaps in this world, the person who least wants Ji Mingchong to wake up is Ruan Man. The reason why Ruan Man brought up this matter at the dinner table was just to show off Lin Xiangdong's financial power and to make trouble for her, Mother Ji, and Maodou.

It's strange that Ruan Man has used these tactics more than once, but in the past, Ruan Su could ignore it. Now, she is getting angry.

Just when everyone thought Ruan Su wouldn't say anything, she calmly said while peeling shrimp for Maodou, "Let's not worry about the Ji family's affairs. Everyone should just focus on living their own lives. It's not interesting to always watch what others are doing, right?"

What Maodou had just said to Mother Ji had already made Ruan Man almost explode with anger. Now, seeing Ruan Su, who is usually gentle, dare to confront her like this at the dinner table, she immediately put down her chopsticks and said with an ugly expression, "I care about you because you are my sister. If you are doing well, it's not just because you are full. If you are not doing well, it will make our parents and older brother sad too!"

Actually, Ruan Su is quite annoyed with Ruan Man. If Ruan Man expressed her dislike and disgust towards her clearly, it would be a bit more genuine. Now Ruan Man is always doing things that make people uncomfortable, all while claiming to be doing it for her own good. Ruan Man really thinks people are idiots. But maybe Ruan Man enjoys it herself.

Ruan Man has said these kinds of things more than once, but Ruan Su doesn't want to hear them anymore, not now and not in the future. She wants to make sure that Ruan Man won't be able to use this as an excuse again.

Ruan Su chuckled, "When did I become your sister? Sorry, I only recognize my blood relatives as family. For mom and dad, you are their daughter, but for me, you are not my relative, not my sister. So, please keep some things to yourself."

After saying this, Ruan Su looked at the pale Mother RUan again, "If we can't reach a consensus on this matter, I won't come back to bother you again. Mom, you and Dad can treat her as your daughter, and I won't object. But I don't consider her my sister. I'm grown up now, and I don't like it when unrelated people try to lecture me. Is that okay?"

This is the first time Ruan Su has clearly expressed her desire to draw a clear boundary with Ruan Man.

She is expressing her position, stating that she does not recognize Ruan Man as family.

Since they are no longer family, there is no need to put on the airs of being an older sister in front of her.

Ruan Su's behavior surprised her relatives and even Mother Ji and Maodou. Ruan Su appeared to be a gentle and peaceful person, always smiling and clean, with a gentle personality. Suddenly showing this side, who wouldn't be shocked?

But in this world, even the most peaceful and non-confrontational person has people they want to protect and things they will not tolerate.

For Ruan Su, her late father-in-law, Father Ji, was her savior, the person who gave her a future, and the person she wanted to repay. Now that Father Ji was no longer there, his wife and family became the people she wanted to protect.

Mother Ruan was very upset after hearing this. She looked at Ruan Man's extremely unpleasant expression and quickly tried to persuade Ruan Su: "Susu, we are all family. Blood ties do not matter. Although you are married, this is still your home. If you say you won't come back, does that mean you don't want these relatives from your mother's side anymore? Won't you need help from us someday?" Her tone softened, and even carried some unnoticed pleading. "Look, things are going well. Why turn it into this? Manman cares about you. That's why she suggested asking Xiangdong to help see a doctor. Why cause unnecessary conflict? Xiangdong knows more people and has more resources…"

In fact, Mother Ruan was reminding Ruan Su not to start unnecessary conflicts with Ruan Man.

Ruan Man's current fiancé was Lin Xiangdong. If one day he became the head of the Lin family, this whole family would have to rely on him. They couldn't afford to make their relationship too tense. Would they not need to ask Lin Xiangdong for help in the future?

Properly bowing one's head and enduring hardships can make one's life better. Why doesn't her daughter understand this? As a mother, how could she harm her daughter?

After a brief silence, just when Mother Ruan thought Ruan Su was going to apologize, she spoke softly instead, "I am not that kind of person, I cannot do such things, and I cannot accept such care."

Mother Ruan was taken aback.

Ruan Su felt she couldn't eat anymore and even Maodou barely touched the shrimp in his bowl. She wiped her hands with a handkerchief and said to Ji Mu, "Mom, let's go back. It's not good to trouble the neighbors."

Mother Ji nodded, "It's time to go back."

Maodou didn't show any reluctance and followed his Grandma and Ruan Su to stand up.

The other relatives of the Ruan family were all dumbfounded. No one expected this dinner to turn out like this.

Although they came to watch the show, now they didn't even want to watch it anymore!

It was Mother Ruan who first realized that keeping them there would only make the situation more awkward. She apologized to Mother Ji at the door, "In-law's Mother[1], I'm really sorry that you didn't have a good meal today."

Mother Ji didn't care and didn't say anything.

She had no interest in the Ruan family and didn't think much of them. If Ruan Man didn't mention her son, she wouldn't even bother to speak.

Mother Ji and Maodou got on the car first. When Ruan Su was preparing to get on the car, Ruan Man came out of the house and asked Mother Ruan to go in first. She had a few words to say to Ruan Su.

Ruan Su closed the car door and quietly waited for Ruan Man to speak.

Seeing Ruan Su's calm demeanor made Ruan Man angry. She coldly said, "Do you really think that offending me will lead to a good outcome?"

Today was supposed to make Ruan Su unhappy, but now it seemed that the unhappy person had become her?

Ruan Su shook her head. In the sunlight, her pupils seemed to be amber-colored, her eyes were very clean, and her expression and tone were very calm. If someone didn't know better, they would have thought that she and Ruan Man were just chatting.

"You're wrong. Those who have nothing to lose aren't afraid of those who do. I'm not a pushover. I didn't pay attention to the things you said before because I didn't think it was necessary and it had nothing to do with me. If you dare to do something to me, I will publicize it and everyone will say that you're repaying kindness with enmity.

"Do you know what the difference between you and me is? In everyone's hearts, I don't have to be kind, but you have to be kind. You stole my life. You've been the young miss of the Ruan family for so many years, and Mom and Dad have no blood ties with you. They have devoted themselves to raising you, and your life has undergone a huge change because of them. The Ruan family is your benefactor, and you cannot deny that I am also a member of the Ruan family. Everyone knows that you pushed this marriage proposal onto me for your so-called love. You owe me. Whatever I do, you have to put up with it. How about it? Can't handle me saying these things?

"Today, you can go cry to Lin Xiangdong and tell him that I'm bullying you. Maybe he'll try to get back at me for you and make me suffer. But how can you be sure you can silence everyone else? How can you be sure that when they think back on these things in the future, they won't think that you're a little heartless, just like those other people?"

This was the first time Ruan Su had spoken such a long dialogue to Ruan Man.

She had always known that Ruan Man wasn't very smart and could only use some small tricks. So she had to remind her not to do anything stupid. Of course, this wasn't for Ruan Man's benefit, but because the Ji family should be quiet for a while now and shouldn't be disturbed by these things and people.

Ruan Man heard the words and felt a chill in her feet.

It was a feeling of falling into an abyss.

Yes, Ruan Su was right. Ruan Man had to be very concerned about the Ruan family in public. That was why Lin Xiangdong wouldn't go too far, and she wasn't sure if he would really harm Ruan Su. From what she knew about him, Lin Xiangdong was not the type of person to go too far with women, especially not with a woman who was supposed to be his sister-in-law. She could tell him about today's matters. But even if he actually did something to Ruan Su and made Ruan Su pay the price, If this matter got out, it would not be good for his reputation or hers.

Everyone knew that she had pushed off the engagement. Everyone knew that the Ruan family had taken care of her for so many years. From now on, she would have to be tied to the Ruan family.

If her reputation was damaged and it even reached the ears of Chairman Lin, how could he let his heir marry her? The most important thing for the wealthy was their reputation, so the matter with the Ruan family had to be kept internal. If Lin Xiangdong did something for her, it would be impossible to keep it quiet.

As expected, the barefoot were not afraid of those who wore shoes.

Ruan Man trembled all over and sneered. She had underestimated Ruan Su!

Ruan Su glanced at her and confirmed that she wouldn't do anything annoying before getting on the car, leaving Ruan Man alone.

In fact, Ruan Man had treated everyone as fools, so much so that she couldn't see the current situation clearly. Everyone's expectations of Ruan Su were not so high, including Father and Mother Ruan, who felt indebted to this daughter. Even if Ruan Su said something excessive, they would be understanding and tolerant. But Ruan Man was different. She had taken this position and had pushed off the engagement. As long as she retaliated against Ruan Su, Father Ruan, Mother Ruan, and even the relatives watching the show would think that she did not know how to be thankful.

In the end, it was Ruan Su who had the moral high ground. She had not used this before because she did not want to, but if Ruan Man dared to provoke her repeatedly, she would no longer tolerate it.

On the car, Mother Ji was still educating Maodou about the matters on the dinner table today.

Maodou also realized that his behavior today was not very polite, but he couldn't help saying, "But I don't regret it. That vine is too annoying, and so are Aunt's relatives. They don't help Aunt."

The more he thought about it, the more he felt sorry for his Aunt.

Mother Ji's gaze swept over Ruan Su, but she quickly withdrew it after a few seconds.

She continued, "There is a saying that you may not understand now, but you will understand later. When the world is bustling, it is all for self-interest, and when the world is peaceful, it is all for mutual benefit. If she is beneficial to others today, those people will support her. If she loses her value to others tomorrow, they will distance themselves from her. However, what she has done and what she has said is like a nail. Even if it is pulled out, there will be marks and it will be bitten back."

This is how Mother Ji teaches her children. She does not teach shallow things just because her children are still young. She always believes that these words will be remembered by her children, and when they learn this lesson someday, they will remember.

"However, Grandma hopes that you will not become either of these two types of people. You need to have a balance in your heart, not driven by self-interest. You need to know what is right and wrong for yourself. Of course, don't be the kind of person who only gains others' respect because you have benefits. You need something other than self-interest that truly makes others trust you."

Ruan Su also smiled at Mother Ji's words.

Ruan Su is now really curious and wants to know what kind of person Ji Mingchong is.