After her mind was read, the spoiled brat became the darling of the whole group.

Xie Yuhe and the others were extremely anxious.

They couldn't find Xie Xing's whereabouts all day.

Even Madam Xie, who had been complaining about Xie Xing's troublesome behavior just yesterday, couldn't help but become anxious. She frowned and asked, "Who on earth would kidnap Xie Xing?"

"Not even a single word."

If someone had ulterior motives, they should have sent a message by now.

Xie Mingzhu stayed by Madam Xie's side and comforted her, saying, "Mother, your health is not good to begin with. With Father and Brother by your side, you don't need to worry about this matter."

That being said, Madam Xie felt a tightness in her chest.

Just then, a servant came from outside with a message.

"Reporting to Madam, the Old Madam has returned."

"It's Grandmother!" Xie Mingzhu's eyes lit up. She immediately stood up, lifted her skirt, and was about to run outside.

Seeing this, Madam Xie shook her head helplessly. She turned to the nanny beside her and said, "Go and find more people..."

She paused for a moment before saying, "Tell Father to be more careful too."

The nanny replied, "Yes."

Madam Xie was referring to her maternal family.

The old lady's sudden return has made the already overworked Xie family even more overwhelmed.

The main gate of the Xie residence.

The old lady's carriage was parked at the door, and the maids and servants stood by the carriage. Among them, a pretty and gentle young girl affectionately helped the old lady, who was dressed in a magnificent and elegant outfit, down from the carriage.

"Mother, why didn't you write in advance that you were coming back? I would have arranged for someone to welcome you back." Xie Ansheng walked over quickly and carefully helped the old lady from the other side.

The old lady held absolute power in the Xie family. In her youth, she even accompanied Xie Ansheng to the battlefield, where she once shielded the emperor from an arrow, earning her the title of a first-rank noblewoman and a pardon from death bestowed by the emperor.

When Xie Xingchu first returned, he angered the old lady so much that she went to live in a temple for several months.

This time, however, he suddenly returned without saying a word.

"And who is this?" Xie Ansheng asked, looking at the young girl beside the old lady.

The girl was dressed simply and had a delicate and beautiful face. After Xie Ansheng noticed her, she looked up at him and smiled sweetly: "Hello, Second Uncle, I am Xie Jiaojiao."

"Jiaojiao." Xie Ansheng was in a daze for a moment. "So she's my eldest brother's child. It's been so many years. She's grown up so much."

The old lady had three sons in total. Xie Ansheng was the second oldest, while the eldest and third sons were away on official business and not in the capital.

Xie Ansheng did not recognize him at first.

The old lady glared at Xie Ansheng with annoyance: "If I hadn't come back, you would have been kept in the dark about such a big thing happening in the family!"

Xie Ansheng quickly explained, "Mother, I was just afraid you would worry."

When news of the assassination attempt during the autumn hunt reached Madam Xie's ears, she was so frightened that she immediately set off to return home.

"grandmother!"

At that moment, Xie Mingzhu's charming voice came.

The old lady's expression immediately softened, and she smiled as she looked in Xie Mingzhu's direction: "My dear, my sweet little girl."

"Grandma~"

Xie Mingzhu snuggled into the old lady's arms and acted coquettishly.

The old lady exclaimed "Oh dear!" and affectionately tapped Xie Mingzhu's nose. She looked Xie Mingzhu up and down and said with some heartache, "Oh dear, my little girl, I almost didn't get to see you again."

Madam Xie knew about the incident where Xie Mingzhu and the others were almost forced to fall off a cliff.

Xie Mingzhu shook her head: "Grandmother, don't worry, Mingzhu is perfectly fine."

"grandmother."

The three Xie brothers also bowed to Madam Xie.

"Mother, don't stand at the door, let's go inside." Xie Ansheng immediately arranged for people to move the old lady's things into the mansion, and led the old lady and others to the main hall.

Inside the main hall, the old lady sat in the seat of honor. Suddenly, she frowned and snorted coldly, "What? You're all here, but Xie Xing isn't. Does she not respect me, her grandmother?"

The Xie family's younger members filled the main hall, all of them well-behaved, except for their youngest daughter, who had just been found.

The Xie family members' expressions turned sour at the mention of Xie Xing.

No one said a word.

Madam Xie's expression grew even colder. She slammed her hand on the table and said, "What? Is my face not big enough to invite her?"

Xie Mingzhu then said, "Grandmother, you misunderstand. My sister... had an accident and was kidnapped."

Upon hearing this, Madam Xie was stunned: "Kidnapping?"

How could such a thing happen to the Xie family?

Xie Jiaojiao also covered her mouth in surprise: "How could you have been kidnapped?"

Xie Mingzhu sighed, her eyebrows furrowing slightly, and said worriedly, "Perhaps my sister is too naive and may have offended someone."

"Yesterday at the restaurant, I got into a fight with the young master of the Chang family, and I also had a falling out with the Seventh Prince, which displeased His Highness the Crown Prince and His Highness the Third Prince."

"His Highness the Third Prince even said he wanted to annul the engagement."

Hearing about the Crown Prince and the Three Princes from Xie Mingzhu's mouth made Xie Jiaojiao's eyes widen.

She had never met royalty before; she had only heard of such people from others. But she never expected that Xie Xing was engaged to the Third Prince.

Wasn't she just a country bumpkin who was recently found in the countryside?

How could she be engaged to someone as noble as the Three Kings?

Before he could finish his surprise, Xie Ansheng's astonished voice came from beside him: "What? The engagement is called off?"

Madam Xie frowned as well, then turned to Xie Mingzhu: "Mingzhu, did you hear the Third Prince say that with your own ears?"

The reason why Madam Xie returned at this time was not only because she was worried about the impact of the recent autumn hunt on the Xie family, but also because of the marriage agreement that His Majesty had bestowed upon Xie Mingzhu and Xie Xing.

Let's not even talk about Xie Xing. She's someone who's inferior to Mingzhu in every way of etiquette, and even a boorish person raised in the countryside. It's just that she's lucky that she was granted a marriage by the three princes.

However, what displeased Madam Xie was Mingzhu's marriage.

Their pearl is destined to be empress and mother of the nation; how could she marry a prince?

Xie Mingzhu nodded: "Yesterday, my brother took my sister and me to the Supreme Pavilion, where we happened to meet the Crown Prince and the Seventh Prince, and so we had fun together."

Unexpectedly, halfway through, the younger sister disliked the Seventh Prince and was taken away by her brother. Then the Crown Prince spoke to the Third Prince…

As she spoke, she bit her lip and said, "His Highness the Crown Prince said that my sister is uncouth and unfit to be a princess."

The Third Prince then said that he would find a way to annul the engagement with His Majesty.

The two spoke without any attempt to hide it from Xie Mingzhu, allowing her to hear everything.

Xie Mingzhu was at a loss for words.

Undeniably, she felt a mixture of satisfaction and disdain at that moment.

She even thought Xie Xing was foolish; how could she be so arrogant in front of men? It would only arouse their disgust.

"Foolish!" Madam Xie's chest heaved with anger as she slammed her hand on the table.

Her stern gaze fell upon Madam Xie beside her: "How did you teach her? Have you forgotten all the etiquette you've taught her over the past few months?!"

"How could the Xie family produce such a foolish woman? Let her die out there, so she won't become a stain on the Xie family!"

Madam Xie turned pale from the scolding, and she said in a panic, "Mother...it's my fault."

Xie Ansheng clapped his hands and laughed: "If the three princes really have this intention, then that's good."

His words made Old Madam Xie look at her son in disbelief: "Second son, has leading troops into battle finally damaged your brain?"