Liu Wuxin's sudden outburst shattered the fragile harmony lingering in the hall. The maids stiffened like startled birds, the butler's face sank into a stormy shadow, and the old lady's carefully maintained smile froze halfway, cracking at the edges. Liu Wuxin stared at Wu Qingyi with wide, furious eyes, raw disbelief blazing within them. To her, handing over those dowry items - her dowry was not merely a decision, but an unforgivable betrayal.
The old lady nearly choked on her own breath, cursing silently. When did this girl become so utterly brainless? Could Liu Wuxin not read the room? Could she not understand the intention behind these so-called gifts? Did she truly believe that the Liu family would ever be generous enough to give out such items, whether for Wu Qingyi's marriage or even her own? The old lady's temples throbbed. Foolish child… you'll ruin everything at this rate.
Wang Hao's gaze sharpened as he took in Liu Wuxin's twisted expression, resentment, greed, and barely contained hostility. If he hadn't been present, he was certain this poor, naïve girl would have been chewed up and spat out by Liu Wuxin without mercy. A cold glint flashed in his eyes. He stepped forward, his tone dropping to a chilling depth that made even the maids flinch. "Liu Old Lady," he said, each word deliberated and heavy with accusation, "what exactly are you implying here? Were you never planning to give Wu Qingyi her rightful dowry? And now you expect us to accept someone else's dowry, repackaged and forced onto an innocent girl?" Even he, who rarely allowed emotions to cloud his judgment, felt a flicker of genuine pity for Wu Qingyi. The injustice was too blatant to remain silent about. He couldn't hold back from confronting the old lady head-on.
The old lady's mind spun frantically, scrambling for a plausible explanation. Her lips parted, but before even a single excuse could form, another voice cut in - clear, innocent, and completely unexpected.
It wasn't Wang Hao who spoke... It was the naïve girl...
Wu Qingyi blinked her innocent, starry eyes and asked with genuine earnestness, "Grandmother… isn't the dowry meant for the Wang family's bride?" Her tone was soft, simple, as if she were merely confirming a household chore. But the moment her words landed, the entire hall seemed to freeze.
The old lady's expression stiffened…. Liu Wuxin's face went pale with fury…. Even Wang Hao's brows lifted, amused yet sharply attentive. Because Wu Qingyi hadn't just asked a question, she had cornered her grandmother with a truth that could no longer be twisted, even Liu Wuxin, who looked as if she had swallowed her own tongue.
Then, like a bolt of lightning, clarity struck the old lady. Of course. These items were prepared for the Wang family's bride, and now that the bride had changed… the dowry naturally belonged to Wu Qingyi. Her eyes flickered with calculation, and she forced a tight, trembling smile onto her lips.
"Yes, yes…" she rushed to say, voice unnaturally bright.
"It is indeed prepared for the Wang family's bride."
Wu Qingyi, with her eyes wide and shimmering like an innocent fawn, walked toward Liu Wuxin. Her steps were light, almost playful, as though she truly didn't understand the storm she was about to unleash. Stopping right in front of Liu Wuxin, she tilted her head and asked in a soft, bewildered tone, "Sister… if the dowry is prepared for Young Master Wang's bride, then… how could it be yours? It's mine, right? As I am the Wang family's bride."
Her words were pure and untainted yet every syllable landed like a slap across Liu Wuxin's face. The room instantly dropped into suffocating silence. Liu Wuxin's expression twisted with anger, disbelief, humiliation all crashing together while the old lady's legs nearly gave out from the shock.
No malice.
No scheming.
Just innocent truth and it pierced deeper than any blade.
Wu Qingyi's innocent question didn't just silence the room, but also stunned every member of the Liu family into absolute stillness. Then, very slowly, a faint smile tugged at the corners of Wang Hao's lips as he hadn't expected this. He had stood here, prepared to fight for the girl's justice… yet this naïve little thing had managed to do what even he couldn't that is to shut the entire Liu household down with a single honest question.
Meanwhile, Liu Wuxin was trembling with rage, her hands clenched so tightly her knuckles turned white, her face contorting as she glared at Wu Qingyi as though the girl had stolen her entire life. To her, the insult was unbearable. A "stupid girl," one she had always dismissed, was not only taking the dowry meant for her, but now had the audacity to question her right to it.
Liu Wuxin's face twisted with fury, she pointed at Wu Qingyi and screamed, "How dare you question me! These things are mine! I was the one chosen as the Wang's bride!"
Her voice rose higher, trembling with rage. "You stupid girl! You should be grateful I even allowed you to take my place! If I hadn't rejected that cripple, that monster-looking man, then you wouldn't even have this chance!"
The moment the words left Liu Wuxin's mouth, it was as if a thunderbolt had ripped through the hall. Gasps erupted among the maids, the butler's expression drained of all colour and even the old lady staggered, nearly losing her balance.
But Liu Wuxin was too lost in her fury to notice. She stepped closer, eyes blazing with arrogance and contempt. "So, listen carefully," she spat, "Just pick up the man I discarded and marry him! But don't you dare touch this dowry as you don't deserve a single thing from it!"
The hall fell deathly silent… Her venomous words hung in the air like a slap that no one could recover from, not the Liu family, not the servants and certainly not Wang Hao, whose expression turned colder than ice.
Blinded by her own fury, Liu Wuxin failed to realise the magnitude of what she had done. She had always mocked Wang Lingxuan in secret and whispered insults behind closed doors, called him a cripple, a monster, a disfigured waste of a man. But that was when no one from the Wang family was present and that was when her words could be brushed off, hidden, forgotten.
Now, however… She had hurled those same insults straight into the face of Wang Hao,
the right hand of the Wang family's young master and there was a world of difference between insulting Wang Lingxuan behind his back and insulting him openly, directly, in front of the Wang family representative.
The moment the last venomous word slipped past Liu Wuxin's lips, reality struck her like a thunderbolt. Her face drained of colour. Her legs trembled. Cold sweat gathered at the back of her neck. Because the air around her had changed – thickened… darkened…. turned sharp enough to slice through bone.
Wang Hao's gaze no longer held its usual calm sharpness, it was now a chilling, murderous frost. Behind him, the elite Wang bodyguard took a single step forward, just one, but the killing aura they released was suffocating enough to make breathing feel like a luxury.
Liu Wuxin's heart hammered wildly inside her chest. Her lips quivered as she wished desperately that she could swallow her words back, tear them out of the air and erase the stupidity she had just committed.
Even the old lady the one who always had a way out, always twisted situations to her advantage, stood frozen, tongue-tied for the first time in years. Her mind raced, but no matter how cunning she was, no scheme, no excuse, no fabricated story could undo the blunder her precious granddaughter had unlashed.
Because everyone knew…
Words spoken in hatred cannot be taken back….
Words spoken against the Wang family are unforgivable….