What was she trying to do?

She didn’t know either — she’d simply acted on instinct, wanting to chase after them.

Looking at her mother, whose eyes had also welled up with tears in sympathy, Yu Xiaomeng couldn’t hold back any longer. She threw herself into Madam Yu’s arms and burst into sobs!

What was she supposed to do? She truly didn’t know. Could she really do nothing but silently follow her mother home, pretending none of this had ever happened?

Her shoulder still ached faintly from the shove young master Xuanyuan had given her moments ago.

“Mother… tell me what your daughter should do?”

“Tell me what your daughter should do!”

…

Madam Yu, who had been righteously indignant and furious just moments before, now found she had no answer either. What should she do?

Could they really not chase after him and demand a clear explanation?

Could she really let her daughter be shoved to the ground for nothing and just meekly go home?

Watching her daughter so heartbroken, watching a daughter who never easily shed tears, Madam Yu felt her own heart nearly breaking!

Her husband had died young, and her daughter had suffered hardship since childhood. To avoid being looked down upon by others, she’d learned to do everything, handle everything, from a young age, enduring hardships that shouldn’t have belonged to someone her age — and she’d always smiled her way through them!

In the freezing cold, other girls’ daughters were curled up on warm heated beds, gossiping with their close friends, while her own daughter had to go hunting up the mountain with a crowd of men.

Her hands and feet were covered in frostbite, cracked and bleeding, aching terribly — and even then, she never cried!

But now she was crying like a rain-soaked flower, as if trying to weep out an entire lifetime’s worth of tears all at once!

Madam Yu grew more and more furious the more she thought about it, more and more unwilling to accept it!

What right did Xuanyuan Shang have to shove someone like that!

Even if that young woman was someone he knew, even his lover, he still had no right to shove her daughter like that!

Besides, that girl had been the one Yu Xiaomeng herself had rescued!

“Let’s go! Let’s go find him!”

Madam Yu said this, dragging Yu Xiaomeng with her, striding toward Xuanyuan Lige’s courtyard.

The doors and windows were tightly shut, but through the paper window screens, one could clearly see firelight filling the room — heaven only knew how many piles of firewood the person inside had lit!

Standing at the door, one could already feel the warmth radiating from within.

Madam Yu had Yu Xiaomeng’s hand gripped tightly. Yu Xiaomeng had stopped crying by now, only occasionally sniffling, her head lowered, saying nothing.

Madam Yu took several deep breaths, and without knocking, kicked the door open with a single fierce blow!

The moment the door opened, five or six piles of firewood blazed inside, lighting the whole room bright and warm. Xuanyuan Lige held that young woman tightly in his arms, still constantly trying to warm her.

But the young woman’s complexion simply wouldn’t return to normal, no matter what he did!

The moment Xuanyuan Lige saw them come in, he immediately looked over and shouted furiously, “Shut the door!”

Madam Yu, furious, deliberately left the door open and dragged Yu Xiaomeng forcefully inside, saying coldly, “What’s the big deal? It’s just a little cold, isn’t it?”

Xuanyuan Lige didn’t waste words. With a wave of his hand, a sharp, cold gust of wind blade instantly slammed the two door panels shut with a resounding “bang”!

Madam Yu was shocked — this sickly weakling actually knew martial arts!

But Madam Yu, already in a fury, wasn’t about to be intimidated by that. She pulled Yu Xiaomeng along and marched straight up to Xuanyuan Lige, pointing at the still-unconscious Ziqing, demanding coldly, “Just who is she to you!”

Xuanyuan Lige had no time to pay her any mind. His mind was completely blank right now. Ever since that last time she’d been soaked in the corpse-poison water for the Gu cultivation, Ziqing’s health had never been good.

He could well imagine it — this woman simply never had the time to properly recover her health.

And now, already unconscious, she’d been left lying in the snow for who knew how long!

He had no idea what to do, only worried whether she would wake up at all, and could only keep trying desperately to warm her!

Seeing Xuanyuan Lige ignore her, Madam Yu’s fury flared even higher. She reached out to grab him, but the moment she touched him, he violently shook her off. “Get lost!”

Madam Yu froze for a moment but refused to give up. “Xuanyuan Shang, what exactly do you mean by this, can’t you just talk this out properly? What do you mean shoving my daughter! If it weren’t for my daughter, this woman would already be dead in a wolf’s mouth!”

“Xuanyuan Shang, if you don’t give the two of us an explanation today, you’re leaving the northern desert tomorrow! You’re not welcome here!”

“Xuanyuan Shang, do you hear me! Say something!”

Madam Yu scolded furiously, and seeing Xuanyuan Lige continue to ignore her, still shielding Ziqing, and seeing her own daughter standing there like a wooden statue, head bowed, unmoving—

She grew both furious and heartbroken at once, more and more resentful with every scolding word, until she suddenly reached out to grab at Ziqing!

“You won’t answer? Fine, I’ll ask her myself! Just who exactly is she! Worth shoving your own life-saving benefactor over her!”

But before she could even touch Ziqing, Xuanyuan Lige seized her wrist. Finally, he glared at her, his eyes — usually so clear and calm — now completely bloodshot!

“Get out! Don’t make me say it twice!”

He shouted furiously, and with that, shoved Madam Yu out with far greater force than he’d used on Yu Xiaomeng earlier — sending her flying backward, slamming hard into the wall!

Madam Yu, an old woman after all, cried out and nearly fainted.

At this, Yu Xiaomeng finally snapped back to her senses and rushed over. “Mother! Mother, are you alright!”

Madam Yu had indeed fallen quite hard, but seeing Yu Xiaomeng rush to her, she immediately slumped down and pretended to faint!

She thought to herself — if they were going to break ties, they might as well go all the way!

Make a big scene, and from then on, owe each other nothing, truly never have anything to do with each other again!

The moment Yu Xiaomeng saw her mother collapse, she was terrified and burst into tears. “Mother, are you alright! Mother, wake up, please! Wake up!”

But no matter how she called out, her mother wouldn’t wake, lying limp on the floor, pitiful and forlorn.

Yu Xiaomeng suddenly whirled around to face Xuanyuan Lige, finally losing her temper. “Xuanyuan Shang, who gave you permission to shove my mother!”

Xuanyuan Lige’s heart had turned cold and hard — he no longer cared who the other person was.

Even his own sister’s death had never truly grieved him — his heart was simply without mercy.

He only recognized the woman in his arms. He shielded Ziqing, rubbing her hands over and over, warming her ice-cold face and hands, not even sparing Yu Xiaomeng a single glance.

Yu Xiaomeng rushed toward him in tears, her tear-filled eyes hiding a stubborn defiance. She said nothing more, only stared fixedly at Xuanyuan Lige!

But the man she’d fallen for was exactly this heartless — even if the whole world were watching him, he would remain just as unmoved.

After a long, long while, Yu Xiaomeng’s tears had nearly run dry, while Xuanyuan Lige held Ziqing close, cupping her hands and breathing warm air onto them, rubbing them back and forth with careful tenderness, until at last Ziqing’s complexion began to improve somewhat.

Madam Yu, secretly watching from a distance, saw her daughter’s lonely, pitiful figure standing there, and simply couldn’t bear it any longer.

She thought — this couldn’t go on!

That woman must be Xuanyuan Shang’s lover, and Xuanyuan Shang absolutely had to pay a price for this!

Otherwise, she would never be able to swallow this bitter pill!

After a moment’s thought, Madam Yu pretended to wake up. “Girl Yu… girl Yu, come here…”

The moment she spoke, Yu Xiaomeng immediately turned back to look, rushing over with delighted relief. “Mother! Are you alright, where did you hurt yourself falling?”