It was already half an hour later when Mingyue had completely vented all her anger. On the floor, Liu Fan’s loud wailing gradually subsided until he finally fell completely silent.

Old Lady Liu and the others were also too exhausted to keep cursing.

But Mingyue felt energized as ever.

When she’d had her fill of yelling, she slapped her hands together and called out in a stern voice, “All right, that’s enough! You still have some steam left—hurry up and take him to the hospital! If you’re late and he ends up disabled or something, don’t blame me then!”

“You…”

Old Lady Liu shot Mingyue a venomous glare.

Mingyue immediately smiled at her, her beautiful eyes narrowing mischievously. “Well, well—why’d you stop there? Are you mute now?”

Old Lady Liu didn’t dare reply.

Mingyue shrugged nonchalantly. “Such a coward—you only dare to vent your frustration verbally, but you don’t even have the courage to look me in the eye. I thought you might have the guts to challenge me, but nope—it’s just boring.”

Old Lady Liu still didn’t say a word.

Mingyue lost interest.

She walked over to the dining table, poured herself a cup of warm water, sipped it slowly, and watched leisurely as the Liu family took Liu Fan away. Then she saw Liu Qinxin follow after him, only to be scolded back by Old Lady Liu.

“Oh dear, Mr. Ming, your mother-in-law sure seems a bit dim-witted! Already taking a grudge against your precious darling? Tsk tsk tsk—she clearly doesn’t understand how hard your darling has it or how carefully he plans everything. What, does she have shit for brains?”

Mingyue asked the man on the sofa.

He ignored her.

So Mingyue turned to Liu Jia, who was sitting nearby, and ladled some side dishes into her bowl. She spoke softly, “Little Jiajia, don’t let their stupidity rub off on you. Pay close attention to how your mom and dad behave and speak—use your head. After all, if they embarrass themselves, it’s just their problem; they’re just the relatives of a third party, so it doesn’t really matter. But if you and Little Lai Lai end up being this stupid too, that’ll be a whole different story! One little thing could set off a chain reaction and affect our entire Ming family business!”

“You…”

Liu Jia shifted slightly, unsure how to respond, so she simply stayed silent and kept her distance from Mingyue.

Mingyue didn’t press the issue. She stayed put, glancing over at Liu Qinxin—who had just been called a “third party” and was visibly shaken—and then turned to Grandma Ma Fengying, who had already returned to the living room. “Grandma, did you hear what I said?”

Ma Fengying remained silent.

Mingyue wasn’t in a hurry. She asked again, “It’s okay if you didn’t hear me—let me say it one more time. It’s really simple: those Liu folks can be as stupid and wicked as they want, but it doesn’t really affect us, since we’re the Ming family and they’re the Liu family. Their foolishness won’t come back to bite us. However, Jiajia and Lai Lai are your own grandchildren—if they start copying the Liu family’s stupid ways, our Ming family will be in big trouble!”

“Shut up, you jinx!”

Liu Lai poked her little head out of her father’s arms, only to be pushed back down.

Mingyue quickly chimed in, pointing at her and saying to Ma Fengying, “See, Grandma? I told you so—your little Lai Lai has already picked up the knack. If you don’t cut ties with that stupid Liu clan soon, your precious grandchild might get dragged down the drain by them!”

Although Ma Fengying didn’t say a word, her expression had softened compared to when she first saw Mingyue. Instead, she seemed to take Mingyue’s words to heart, casting a quick glance at Liu Qinxin before declaring, “From now on, no one from the Liu family is allowed in this house!”

“Mom?”

Liu Qinxin was struck dumb.

Even though she knew her own family had acted foolishly today, shutting them out like this made her deeply resentful and extremely uncomfortable.

But Ma Fengying paid her no mind. She’d already made up her mind and was putting pressure on her son.

With the job done, Mingyue was in high spirits. She clapped her hands and headed upstairs, but suddenly stopped when she reached her father, Ming Shuo.

“Dad, it’s been hours since I walked in—aren’t you the least bit curious about how I got through the night?”

The smile on Mingyue’s face vanished completely as she stared intently at her father.

Ming Shuo remained silent, still holding Liu Lai and reading his newspaper, not even turning to look at his daughter, Mingyue.

In the past, Mingyue would have been heartbroken beyond repair.

But now…

Not a ripple stirred on her delicate little face. It was as calm as a tranquil autumn lake, as she gazed steadily at her father. “Looks like you’re not curious at all. And frankly, you don’t care either. To you, a rebellious daughter like me—whether I live or die makes no difference. If I’m gone, that’s just fine; at least you won’t have to watch me annoy you anymore.”

End of Chapter 74: Heartbreaking