"But... but none of this is Rou'er's fault! She's just a child. It was the Zhou parents who committed those evils—what does it have to do with my Rou'er?"

"Then while your Rou'er was living in luxury, feasting on delicacies and adorned in gold and silk, the child who should have enjoyed all that was toiling, starving, and freezing. These were the hardships your Rou'er should have endured—why did my daughter have to suffer them instead?"

Yu Qinchun had never dwelled on these thoughts before, always preferring to keep the peace. He had turned a blind eye to Madame Sun supporting those people, but now, reflecting calmly, he realized how despicable his past actions had been.

No wonder that child had grown cold toward them. If it were him, he’d have likely turned vengeful upon learning the truth.

And then there was the one who had passed away at the age of five. His father was right—though the child had already been reborn into a good family, the Yu Family should still light a perpetual lamp for her, praying she lives a long, painless life in her next incarnation.

He had no intention of sharing these thoughts with Madame Sun. Even if he did, she likely wouldn’t take them to heart.

Now, all she cared about was clinging to this situation, using it as leverage to secure a good marriage for her beloved Rou'er.

Had she even considered that after today’s events, no respectable family in the capital would want Yu Ningrou as a daughter-in-law?

And then there were those two troublesome sons of hers. Yu Qinchun’s voice turned icy. "If you want to take Fourth Lang and Sixth Lang with you, I won’t stop you. But remember—once they step out of the Yu Family’s gates, they are no longer Yu descendants. From then on, they’ll bear the Sun surname!"

This time, Yu Qinchun was resolute. If he didn’t seize this moment to harshly correct his sons’ blind devotion to their sister, he might as well start anew with different children.

At thirty, he was still young enough to divorce and remarry.

Madame Sun’s sobs abruptly ceased at his words, her tear-streaked face frozen in shock. Her voice trembled, dry and hesitant. "Husband... what do you mean? Why should Fourth Lang and Sixth Lang take the Sun surname?"

"My words mean exactly what they say. Since you love your maiden family so much, you may go—and never return."

The coldness in his tone and the shadowed look in his eyes terrified her.

In all their years of marriage, this was the first time her husband had ever looked at her with such disgust.

Madame Sun’s heart plunged into icy water, a belated realization dawning: her husband had changed. He was no longer the man who had once doted on her.

All because of that wretched girl. Why did she have to come back to life?

She wasn’t even their real child—why did the entire family have to fawn over her?

Because of her, Madame Sun’s precious Rou'er had lost her rightful place!

Before she could protest further, the siblings of the third branch—except for Yue Fu—burst into the room.

Yu Ningchen spoke first. "Father, I don’t want to go to our maternal grandparents’ house. I’m a Yu descendant—how could I take the Sun surname?"

Yu Ninghao quickly echoed his brother. "Yes, Father! Sixth Lang doesn’t want to go either. I’m your son—I should bear the Yu name!"

Yu Qinchun remained unmoved. "Weren’t you both always doting on your sixth sister? If she’s leaving with your mother, shouldn’t you, as her devoted brothers, follow?"

"Father, we’ve realized our mistakes. Fuguang is our true sister—we’ll treat her well from now on. Please don’t send Mother away, or Sixth Sister either. She’s just a girl—once she’s grown, we can marry her off with a dowry and be done with her."

Yu Qinchun gazed at his eldest son, disappointment heavy in his voice. "Fourth Lang, you still don’t understand where you went wrong, or why your grandfather and I are doing this."

He waved a dismissive hand. "You’re nearly thirteen, about to take the imperial exams. After all these years of study, go reflect on your mistakes in your room."

Then he turned to Yu Ninghao. "And you, Sixth Lang—you’re old enough to think for yourself, not just parrot others."

This son had always blindly followed his sister. Changing his mindset wouldn’t happen overnight.

Though both boys had been overly devoted to their sister, they weren’t fools. Seeing their father’s disappointment frightened them more than the threat of losing their surname.

Neither dared argue further. They obediently retreated to their courtyards for self-reflection, not daring to plead for their sister again.

If worst came to worst, they could always secretly support her after she left.

Right now, their priority was winning back their father’s favor—not just for themselves, but for their mother too. The thought of living under a stepmother’s rule terrified them.

They had a classmate who suffered under a stepmother’s cruelty—proof of the saying, "With a stepmother comes a stepfather." They couldn’t bear that fate.

Yu Qinchun had no idea his sons had already guessed his thoughts of remarrying.

After shooing them away, he didn’t spare a glance for Yu Ningrou, who had been silently weeping since entering.

Her "tearful act" was identical to Madame Sun’s—except that even at thirty, Madame Sun cried more gracefully.

Ningrou’s pitiful sniffling made it seem like the world had wronged her, like she alone was the victim.

Once, this expression would have melted hearts—her father’s, her mother’s, her brothers’.

But now, one parent was too heartbroken over her husband’s sudden change, and the other was too busy regretting past mistakes.

One had no energy for her; the other no longer cared.

So the room fell into silence, Ningrou’s performance ignored.

Panic gnawed at her. Her brothers, who had always orbited around her, had fled without a backward glance, cowed by their father’s severity.

Her weak-willed mother, stripped of her husband’s support, was powerless.

In less than a day, all her maids and nannies had been replaced—even her most loyal wet nurse had been beaten and expelled by the eldest aunt on some pretext.

She had no one left to trust.

Slipping out of her parents’ courtyard, Yu Ningrou pondered the drastic shift in her family’s attitude since their return from the palace banquet.

Her only hope now was Fourth Brother and Sixth Brother.

She rushed to their courtyards, only to be stopped by servants—something that had never happened before.

Both brothers gave the same reply: "Go back to your room. Don’t come here—we’re reflecting on our mistakes."

Little did she know, they were too consumed by the horror of their father possibly remarrying and subjecting them to a stepmother’s tyranny to spare her a thought.