After being sentenced to death, she came to her senses.

Ci'an Hall is planted with many wintersweet trees. As soon as you enter the gate, the entire courtyard is filled with them, and you can smell a faint fragrance as soon as you enter.

Unlike the desolate and cold atmosphere of the northern residence, this place, though also chilly, is very warm—the kind of warmth that comes from a charcoal fire, instantly dispelling the chill from your body.

The old lady's personal maid, Wang, led Fang Xiaoran to the front of the inner chamber, then suddenly stopped and said to Fang Xiaoran, "Fifth Miss, come in. The old lady is waiting for you inside."

Fang Xiaoran nodded slightly and stepped through the door with Qinglan's help. But as soon as she crossed the threshold, Wang Mama pulled her back. "You tactless girl, wait outside."

Startled by Wang Mama's stern rebuke, Qinglan quickly retreated to the side, not daring to say another word.

Upon hearing this, Fang Xiaoran merely glanced at him sideways, ignored him, and walked into the inner chamber alone.

Passing through the circular screen depicting falling snow and red plum blossoms, Fang Xiaoran saw the old lady sitting on a soft couch drinking tea. The room was filled with a light fragrance of incense, a roaring fire in the stove, and a warm breeze wafting through the air.

The Fang family had once been wealthy, but their fortunes declined, and each generation was worse off than the last. By the time of Fang Zhengyong, they faced huge deficits and had no choice but to form a marriage alliance with the Bai family of Lingnan to solve their immediate crisis.

The Fang family's current extravagant lifestyle is entirely due to the large dowry brought by Fang Xiaoran's mother; unfortunately, not a single penny of this money is used for Fang Xiaoran.

The old lady picked up her teacup and drank her tea, completely ignoring Fang Xiaoran as if she hadn't seen her at all. Even when Fang Xiaoran coughed lightly, the old lady didn't respond.

This was a disguised punishment for her to stand up for Fang Xiaoqi. After all, she was the granddaughter she had raised, and even if she wasn't her biological daughter, her attitude was clearly different.

Fang Xiaoran had expected this to happen, so she wasn't angry since it was unexpected. She had long seen through the Fang family.

Fortunately, I've gradually recovered my health over the past few days, so I don't have to stand for too long to stand properly.

"Grandmother, your granddaughter has specially made some snacks for you. Please try them."

After standing there for an unknown amount of time, a voice broke the silence. The old lady's eyes immediately lit up, and she shook her head with a look of doting affection, "Slow down, be careful not to fall. Quick, stop her."

Fang Xiaoqi carried a plate of delicate pastries and ran to the old lady, smiling as she placed the pastries on the table. "Grandmother, please try them. I added honey to them this time."

"Really? Then I'll have to try it."

The two granddaughters looked exceptionally warm and loving, making Fang Xiaoran, their own granddaughter, feel like an outsider. Fang Xiaoran wasn't annoyed; she just smiled and reminded them, "Grandmother has lung heat and fluid depletion, and excessive stomach heat, so she shouldn't eat sweets. It's best to avoid honey in the future."

The old lady had just put the pastry in her mouth when she heard this and immediately put it down, looking at her in shock. "What did you say?"

"It turns out that the grandmother knew her granddaughter had come, but the granddaughter thought her grandmother was seeing things and hadn't seen her."

"Stop being sarcastic. I'm just making you stand there a little longer so you'll learn your lesson." The old lady pushed the pastries aside, sat up straight, and glanced at her granddaughter standing in front of her with a detached look.

She looked so much like her mother, and it was precisely because of this resemblance that the old lady was so disgusted with her.

Fang Xiaoran bowed slightly, neither humble nor arrogant, "Grandmother is right, granddaughter knows she was wrong."

Seeing her suddenly become obedient, the old lady was somewhat surprised, "Does she really know she was wrong?"

Fang Xiaoran nodded and said, "If my sister pushes me into the water again next time, I will definitely hold on to her and die with her."

Upon hearing this, Fang Xiaoqi immediately flew into a rage: "What nonsense are you talking about? You were the one who pushed me into the water but ended up flopping in yourself instead. Now you're blaming me?"

Fang Xiaoran said coldly, "You've got it backwards. You pushed me into the water but ended up falling in yourself. I went in to save you, but you turned around and accused me. Otherwise, according to your logic, why did you fall into the water?"

"I... of course I did it to save you..."

Can you swim?

“My…grandmother, look at her…”

In situations like this, the side that is most anxious and frustrated has the least chance of winning. Unfortunately, the person in charge is the old lady, so she will naturally help Fang Xiaoqi.

"Enough!" the old lady snapped. "This matter is over, don't bring it up again."

As she spoke, the old lady beckoned to Fang Xiaoran and ordered someone to bring over a low stool. She pulled Fang Xiaoran to sit beside her, gently took her hand, and said with a kind expression, "I called you here today just to see how you've been recovering these past few days. Is your cold better?"

Fang Xiaoran thought to herself that her face changed faster than turning the pages of a book, and that she must have other motives. However, she put on a well-behaved smile and said, "I'm all better now. Thank you for your concern, Grandmother."

The old lady patted Fang Xiaoran's hand and said with a smile, "No need to thank me, we're all family."

"Now you know we're family? I've never seen her care about me before," Fang Xiaoran thought with a cold laugh.

Unexpectedly, the old lady said again, "Your brother will be getting married in the spring. The Zhou family is a prestigious family, and the wedding must not be done carelessly. Otherwise, others will look down on our Fang family. You sisters will also get married in the future. We are all family. You should understand the principle that we share the same fate."

So, after going through all that trouble, wasn't the real purpose the inheritance her mother left her? The old lady, concerned about her reputation, was unwilling to say it outright, but wanted Fang Xiaoran to hand over the key voluntarily.

Is there really such a good thing in the world? They get all the benefits.

Fang Xiaoran pretended not to understand, tilted her head and looked up curiously, asking, "I understand the reasoning, but what exactly does Grandmother want her granddaughter to do?"

"You child..." The old lady was speechless. If she didn't want to be the bad guy, then someone else would have to be. Fang Xiaoqi immediately said in an annoyed tone, "Grandmother means that Aunt Wang needs a large sum of money to prepare for my eldest brother's wedding. It just so happens that Mother left you a sum of money, so you can take out a portion of it."

Fang Xiaoran smiled brightly, "I understand, Grandmother is asking her granddaughter for money."

She was already so old, how could she ask the younger generation for money? If word got out, where would she put her face? The old lady quickly shook her head, "I didn't mean that, but we're all family. If you help your elder brother now, he will naturally help you when you're in trouble in the future."

Fang Xiaoran knew exactly what kind of person her older brother was. After they got married, the eldest daughter of the Zhou family would be in charge of the household. Forget about helping her; she'd be lucky if he didn't try to kick her out.

Fang Xiaoran smiled slightly, "But Grandmother, my mother brought a lot of dowry when she married into the Fang family. Just taking a little of it would be enough to hold a wedding. Has all that money been spent? Logically speaking, it shouldn't be. Even if the Fang family is so extravagant, it should still be enough even if they squander it for another ten years."

When Fang Xiaoran mentioned her mother's dowry, the old lady was speechless for a moment. Her words were full of complaints about their reckless squandering of her mother's dowry, and the old lady couldn't refute them.

The old lady was furious. "Don't keep bringing up your mother. If your mother hadn't poisoned me back then, she wouldn't have been kicked out of the Fang family."

"One thing is one thing, and besides, Mother knows medicine. If she really wanted to poison someone, she would never use such an easily detectable method."

"You!" The old lady was so angry that she pushed Fang Xiaoran's hand away. Her chest heaved as she gasped for breath. In her previous life, she had angered the old lady here and was punished. This time, she was smarter and quickly grabbed the old lady's hand and said, "Grandmother, don't be angry. Aunt is so smart, she will definitely find a way to make my eldest brother get married in a grand manner."

"So you're unwilling to help your older brother?"