The Flourishing Era of Female Merchants

An Mi looked at Yu Fangfei and, sure enough, saw a shocked expression on her face.

Shocked? Yu Fangfei probably never expected that at this moment, An Xinlian would push her forward for her own sake!

Wow, An Xinlian's move is really a pleasant surprise.

"Xinhe, I'm sorry, it's all my fault. I shouldn't have listened to my mother, and instead, I ended up hurting you by some unforeseen circumstance..." An Xinlian continued, tears streaming down her face, as if she wanted everyone to see her repentance and to make everyone understand that she wasn't a vicious person, but just too naive and had been taken advantage of.

The truly wicked person is someone else!

Yu Fangfei's face had already turned pale and then flushed, and Xinlian actually...

“Xinlian…you…” Yu Fangfei trembled as she glared fiercely at An Xinlian, who seemed like a complete stranger to her at that moment.

But before she could finish speaking, An Xinlian's expression hardened, and she interrupted her excitedly, "Mother, it's all your fault! You've always seen An Mi as a thorn in your side. You hated that An Mi's mother was favored back then, so even after she died, you wouldn't let her daughter have an easy life. You told me to find that Fu Laoliu, to make An Mi suffer unbearable pain and be despised by the world. But in the end, it was Xinhe who was harmed... Mother, I was wrong. I shouldn't have listened to you. Now I feel ashamed towards Xinhe... and ashamed towards An Mi..."

As An Xinlian spoke, she turned to look at An Xinhe, who was tied to the wooden stake and seemed to be on the verge of death from the pain. An Xinlian bit her lip and walked over. "Xinhe, I'm so sorry..."

After saying that, An Xinlian turned around and quickly stepped off the stone platform. Everyone watched her actions, wondering what she was going to do.

But An Mi saw it all clearly. Didn't she understand what An Xinlian was up to? She was putting on a show of feigning injury!

Meanwhile, Yu Fangfei looked at An Xinlian and quickly understood what was going on. She then burst into laughter. The sudden laughter made the atmosphere strange, and everyone looked at the disheveled middle-aged woman. What was she laughing at?

“Xinlian… good! My good daughter!” Yu Fangfei murmured, her eyes filled with a hint of sarcasm as she looked at An Xinlian. This was her daughter!

An Xinlian could hear the reproach in her mother's voice, but so what? The slap her mother had given her earlier still stung. That slap had brought her more than just pain; it had also revealed her mother's selfishness.

Was she blamed? Even if she was, she accepted it!

She couldn't bear the thought of a bleak future. She wanted to change everything. Standing in front of the stone platform, An Xinlian glanced at Yu Fangfei, then turned to An Xinhe, gritting her teeth, "I can only... I can only atone with my death!"

As soon as she finished speaking, under everyone's gaze, An Xinlian slammed into the stone platform in front of her. With a loud bang, the sound of her head hitting the stone could almost be heard. The next moment, her body went limp and slid down the stone platform.

Everyone looked at the blood-stained stone platform, then at the woman whose forehead was bruised and whose life was uncertain. Their expressions were all very solemn. No one went forward to check if the woman was still alive. They all seemed to be processing what had just happened.

Only Yu Fangfei continued to laugh, a laugh bordering on madness. Suddenly, she rushed to An Xinlian's collapsed body, staring at the bleeding forehead with an extremely complex expression. "Xinlian...you...your thoughts are ultimately more complex than your mother imagined..."

Yu Fangfei didn't finish her sentence; her daughter was even more ruthless than her!

She had always taught her that if she wanted to win favor and maintain her position after marriage, she had to be ruthless and resourceful. It seemed that Xinlian had done it, no, even better than she had imagined.

Was this desperate act of feigning death, a tactic of retreating to advance, all to change the world's perception of her?

Xinlian, Xinlian, do you know that your mother never imagined that one day you would use your methods on your own mother?

Fine, whatever you want, your mother will grant it!

However… Yu Fangfei frowned. She knew what the consequences would be after she took all the blame. From then on, all the people of Rongjin City would probably know that this Madam An was ruthless, had failed to educate her daughter properly, abused her illegitimate daughter, and even accidentally harmed her own biological daughter.

As for Madam An's position... Yu Fangfei's lips curled into a bitter smile. She knew all too well how much effort she had put into securing Madam An's position throughout her life. Now it seemed that the prestige she had maintained for so many years was about to slip away from her completely.

She could almost imagine the contempt and scorn of the world towards her, the disgust and hatred her master would feel for her, and even more so, the schadenfreude and gloating of Jin Qiaoyu and the concubines in the other courtyard towards her, and their attempts to kick her when she was down.

But now, what choice does she have?

Taking a deep breath, Yu Fangfei made up her mind: Xinlian, this is the last thing your mother will do for you!

Standing up, a disheveled Yu Fangfei glanced at everyone before her gaze fell on An Xinhe on the stone platform. "Yes, it's my fault. I'm heartless, I'm treacherous, I can't tolerate anyone. I had Xinlian arrange all of this to harm An Mi, but... Xinhe, even I didn't expect it to turn out like this. If I knew..."

At this point, Yu Fangfei choked up and couldn't speak. If she had known earlier, she wouldn't have been so vicious.

"I am guilty...I..." Yu Fangfei knelt weakly on the ground, her whole body buried there, completely devoid of her former dignified elegance as a noblewoman.

An Mi watched this scene, a cold smile appearing on her lips. Had Yu Fangfei finally taken the blame?

Hmph, is she trying to show off her maternal love and greatness?

She didn't believe that An Xinlian was simply "instructed and used." Having lived two lives, how could she not understand the thoughts and consistent behavior of these three women?

An Mi has always been clear about her gratitude and resentment. Does An Xinlian want to escape like this?

Escape? How could she let her escape? But...

She'll keep this score for now; today it's An Xinhe, but tomorrow it will be Yu Fangfei and An Xinlian, and none of them will escape it.

Her gaze lowered slightly as she listened quietly to the commotion around her, all of which were accusations, contempt, and scorn directed at Yu Fangfei.

"Mother...I...I'm so unwilling!" A weak voice came from the stone platform. Amidst the noise, it was barely audible, but everyone noticed the commotion and fell silent. Looking at An Xinhe, still bound to the wooden stake and already on the verge of death from the pain, a mocking smile appeared on her pale, weak face. Her eyes gradually became frantic, and she seemed to be using all her remaining strength to roar at everyone, "I'm not willing...I'm so unwilling...ah..."