The story of a bullied daughter's rise to power

"Mom, there is no love between Young Master Dongfang and I. Even if we force ourselves to be together, there will be no good result. It's better to just let it go." Situ Yaorao said.

"Forget it? A girl's innocence is more important than anything else!" said Mrs. Situ.

"Innocent?" Situ Yaorao smiled, then showed her arm. The red cinnabar on it made everyone stunned again.

"As long as the cinnabar mole is still there, I am still innocent. Young Master Dongfang already has a lover, and so do I. So mother, let's make other plans for this matter." Situ Yaorao said in a friendly and negotiating manner.

Situ Yaorao's attitude was so good that Madam Situ couldn't refute it. Because she saw the seriousness in her daughter's eyes.

"Of course, this marriage can be avoided. But Young Master Dongfang has ruined my reputation, which really puts me in a difficult position. How about this, Young Master compensate me with 20,000 taels of silver, and drive away those women outside, and clarify the relationship between you and me. It can be regarded as a result. What do you think, Young Master?" Situ Yaorao looked at Dongfang Mo and asked with a smile.

Dongfang Mo also smiled when he heard this: "What if I say no?"

"Then I probably have something to discuss with others. Like... what happened in the carriage." Situ Yaorao's words were full of meaning. Dongfang Mo was no fool; how could he not know that this was a threat? So he gritted his teeth and said, "I agree."

"Thank you, Mr. Dongfang." Situ Yaorao said with a smile.

"You're welcome. This is what I should do." Dongfang Mo gritted his teeth.

"Please deliver the banknotes to my yard, and by the way... drive those people away before you leave." Situ Yaorao said decisively.

Dongfang Mo was filled with hatred when he heard this, but he couldn't say anything, so he said, "Goodbye." After that, Dongfang Mo turned and left.

"Father, I wonder if you are satisfied with this treatment?" Situ Yaorao looked at General Situ and asked.

"You just said that you have a lover, but is that true?" General Situ asked coldly.

"If my daughter doesn't say this, how will it end? Even if my daughter wants to marry him, she has to consider her sister's situation. If I marry the third young master, my sister will have a hard time in the future. Don't you think so?" Situ Yaorao smiled.

General Situ fell silent upon hearing this. Indeed, he had been hesitant before because of this consideration, which had led to Situ Yaorao handling the issue herself.

"Father, if there's nothing else, can I leave now?"

"Go down," General Situ said. Madam Situ then left with Yaorao.

"Yao Rao, please come with me. I have something to ask you." Madam Situ looked at Situ Yao Rao with a bad face. Situ Yao Rao did not dare to neglect her and hurriedly followed.

Madam Situ chose a pavilion. It was empty. Situ Yaorao looked at Madam Situ and said respectfully, "Mother, is there anything you need from me?"

"Enchanting, let me ask you, who is your sweetheart?"

"Mother, I've already said it. It's just an excuse."

"Do you think mother will believe your explanation?" Mrs. Situ frowned.

"mother……"

"Mother is not stupid. Tell me who it is." Madam Situ continued. Situ Yaorao thought about it and thought to herself that she would never tell anyone about the matter of Tantai Wuyue even if she died, so she could only lie. Cang had tricked her first, so it was not a big deal for Cang to take the blame. Thinking about it, Situ Yaorao said, "It's Cang."

Situ Yaorao's answer was within Mrs. Situ's expectations, and she could accept it. So, Mrs. Situ felt relieved: "If it's him, Yaorao, don't wait any longer. After all, that man never came back. It's better to forget him and get married than to continue to like him. Young Master Dongfang is a good choice. However, I don't want you to go to the Dongfang family and continue to associate with Situ Honglei. Therefore, the best choice is the Nangong family."

"Mom, do you want me to marry Nangong Ling?" Situ Yaorao frowned.

"Nangong Ling helped you out before. If you can be with him, it can be regarded as fulfilling my wish." Madam Situ said so. Situ Yaorao shook her head upon hearing this: "Mom, if it were someone else, perhaps I would consider it. But let's forget about Brother Nangong. The relationship between him and me is only that of master and disciple."

"Girl, why are you so stubborn!" Mrs. Situ said dissatisfiedly.

Upon hearing this, Situ Yaorao looked deeply at Madam Situ and said, "Mother, this isn't stubbornness, but... my daughter's honest words. I don't want to."

"Yao Rao, why can't you just listen to me?" Mrs. Situ sighed.

Situ Yaorao didn't answer her, but remained silent. Seeing that continuing would lead to no results, Madam Situ simply stopped talking about the matter and said, "The palace sent out the invitation today, and the women's exam will be held in three days. Yaorao, you should know what the consequences will be if you fail the women's exam, right?"

"I know, so, at any cost, my daughter will pass the women's exam. Don't worry, mother." Situ Yaorao promised. Upon hearing this, Madam Situ nodded gently: "That's good, mother believes you can do it."

"Mom, I'm a little tired and want to go back and rest first." Situ Yaorao said.

"Go back. Mother has something to do at your grandmother's house today." After Mrs. Situ said this, she walked in the opposite direction of Situ Yaorao. Situ Yaorao looked at Mrs. Situ's back and felt for the first time that she and this mother who was very sincere to her were drifting apart.

It was for no other reason than the secret Madam Situ was hiding. Perhaps Madam Situ truly had her best interests at heart. However, in Madam Situ's eyes, there was someone more important than her. Otherwise, Madam Situ wouldn't have said those words to her last night.

Or maybe, Mrs. Situ is hesitating about whether to choose her or the other side?

Since ancient times, music, chess, calligraphy and painting have been the arts that women must learn. Situ Yaorao plucked the strings of the zither carelessly. Lian'er covered her ears, looking helpless: "My lady, if you don't want to play the zither, then put it down first. This sound... if you don't know, you might think it's a crow landing in our house."

"Lian'er, what do you think my mother has been thinking about recently?" Situ Yaorao asked blankly.

"Madam? How could a little maid like me possibly guess what Madam is thinking? But no matter what Madam does, it's all for the good of the young lady. Over the years, Madam has been so kind to the young lady, and I have seen it all. I still remember one time, the young lady offended the Empress in the palace, and Madam knelt outside the palace for three whole days for the sake of the young lady, which finally calmed the Empress."

"I know mother is good to me, but..." Situ Yaorao fell silent.

"Miss, although I don't know what you are worried about, I can be sure that no one can compare to how good Madam is to you. In this world, Madam is the only one who will not deceive you." Lian'er looked at Situ Yaorao and said solemnly.

Situ Yaorao looked at Lian'er and nodded blankly: "I understand everything you said."

"Now that you understand, Miss, you should listen carefully to Madam's words.

Madam has suffered so much for the young lady over the years." Lian'er said in a low voice.

Situ Yaorao also felt that this made sense. Sometimes, others' explanations were far less clear than one's own understanding. All the things Madam Situ had done for the original owner of this body over the years were still vivid in her mind.

And now she has become Situ Yaorao, so naturally, she should thank Madam Situ.

But for some reason, she felt that Mrs. Situ was a little strange.

"Miss, instead of worrying about the Madam, you should think about how to handle the women's exam. If you fail the women's exam, that will be the end of the world." Lian'er said, and hurriedly handed the women's exam supplies to Situ Yaorao. Situ Yaorao smiled helplessly when she heard this: "I know. There are still three days left for the women's exam. It's useless to cram at the last minute."

"But it's better to have held her than not to have held her at all. Miss, I know that you are really in trouble for this female exam. But even so, I still hope that you can succeed. At least then, Madam won't have to worry." Lian'er said softly. Situ Yaorao nodded after hearing this: "This female exam is very important to me and to my mother."