Severing Ties

Tomorrow finally arrived.

Qian Xiaoli sat on the couch in the main hall, a book resting in her hands.

At a glance, she might have appeared calm, engrossed in her reading. But to anyone who knew her well, the subtle signs of her nervousness were clear.

Her right index finger tapped a rapid, restless rhythm against the book's cover, betraying her unease. Her eyes darted across the same page repeatedly, moving too quickly to truly absorb the words.

She wasn't reading—she was waiting, her mind racing far beyond the confines of the text.

It wasn't until the door opened and she saw her head maid accompanying a plump middle-aged man that she finally sighed in relief.

Her mother appeared silently beside her, unnoticed by Qian Xiaoli. Like her daughter, Su Liqiu seemed nervous, but instead of calming down when the man arrived, her anxiety only grew.