The phone call naturally disrupted Jiang Mian's sleep.
She lingered in bed for a while before getting up and changing her clothes.
Aunt Song saw her coming downstairs. "Didn't Madam say she was going to sleep? Why are you awake already?"
"Suddenly not sleepy anymore, I need to go back to the old house later."
"Alright, Madam, are you hungry? There's food in the kitchen, I'll get you something." She looked up, her smile kind and full of concern.
Jiang Mian returned a smile. "Then help me make a bowl of oatmeal, I'll eat whatever."
Aunt Song warmed a plate of walnut buns and served them to her.
Jiang Mian scrolled through her phone while slowly sipping her oatmeal.
She then noticed that Weibo had officially announced the male and female leads for Luo's new drama, "Records of the Nine Provinces," who were Jing Zhou and Nan Wei respectively.
Apart from Jing Zhou, everyone else was an artist under Luo's company.
The comment section of the official announcement was already flooded with controlled posts from fans, expressing all sorts of anticipation and hype. The filming was scheduled to begin next month.
Jiang Mian furrowed her brow slightly. If she remembered correctly, Ye Yi had told her that "Nine Glazed Pottery" was also scheduled to start filming next month.
Would the two crews encounter each other at Hengdian then?
Thinking of this, she took out her phone and sent a message to Ye Yi.
Jiang Mian: [Is "Nine Glazed Pottery" starting filming at Hengdian next month?]
Ye Yi: [Yes, Ling He might join the crew a bit later. He told me he has something going on.]
Jiang Mian: [Got it.]
She toyed with her phone, clearly understanding that Luo's company was deliberately trying to suppress "Nine Glazed Pottery," even though it hadn't started filming yet.
Once released, the two similar Xianxia dramas would undoubtedly be compared in every aspect.
But so what? Competition breeds motivation.
As she mused, Xiao Yugan jumped onto her lap and meowed twice to get her attention.
Jiang Mian put down her cup and looked down, affectionately saying, "Little rascal."
She petted the cat a few times and then called for Xiao Bai.
Xiao Bai stood obediently, thinking he was about to be reprimanded.
Jiang Mian, unaware of his unease, looked up and asked him, "Are you free later? Can you take me back to the old house?"
"Y-yes, I'm free. Madam, there's something I forgot to tell you." He stammered.
"What is it?"
"The President asked me to leave a message! He said he's on a business trip, I'm so sorry, Madam, I only just remembered."
Jiang Mian blinked. No wonder he hadn't been home for days; he was on a business trip.
"It's okay," she said with a faint smile. "Let's get ready to leave."
Glad that Madam wasn't blaming him, Xiao Bai breathed a huge sigh of relief and loudly replied, "Okay!"
The Ji family's old residence was imposing and ancient. Jiang Mian had visited a few times, and her impression of it remained unchanged.
The servants were all quiet and polite.
Upon seeing Jiang Mian, they simply greeted her with "Hello, Madam" before lowering their heads and continuing with their tasks.
Jiang Mian returned a slight nod.
She entered the living room and immediately saw Madam Ji sitting on the sofa, watching television. The program playing was "The Locked Heart Chronicle."
"What is Consort Ying worth? She's only relying on her family's influence to monopolize the Emperor's favor. If you ask me..."
"Enough, I'm talking to you. Why get angry with her? Did you see the little prince when you paid your respects to the Empress today...?"
On the television, one voice was indignant, the other gentle and calm.
Jiang Mian was very familiar with this dialogue. It was when Si Pin, who was wronged in the same palace, returned to tell Le Pin, whom she played.
Le Pin was always like this, detached, not taking sides, and always speaking with gentle courtesy.
That was how she gained the heroine's trust, only to be stabbed in the back later.
Jiang Mian was still contemplating this plot point.
Madam Ji's peripheral vision had already caught sight of her. "You're here? What are you standing at the door for? Come in."
Jiang Mian snapped back to attention, smiled faintly, and walked back. "Mom."
Madam Ji hummed. "Have you eaten?"
"Not yet."
"I asked the servants to save some food for you. Eat first, and wait for me to finish this episode."
Jiang Mian nodded. "Are Grandpa and Dad not home?"
"They're all out," she replied without looking back.
Seeing Madam Ji engrossed in the show, Jiang Mian didn't say anything else.
Apart from the voices from the television, the vast living room was very quiet.
Jiang Mian had eaten a little in the afternoon and wasn't hungry now.
Madam Ji said she had saved food for her, but Jiang Mian could see that the dishes were untouched, as if no one had started eating.
She ate slowly, and by the time she finished the last bite,
the television program had just ended.
Madam Ji stood up and glanced at her. "Come upstairs with me."
Jiang Mian put down her chopsticks, and a sudden, inexplicable sense of foreboding washed over her.
She followed Madam Ji upstairs, her eyes fixed on the staircase.
Her mind couldn't help but wander, and she almost tripped as she stepped up, luckily catching the handrail just in time.
Fortunately, Madam Ji didn't turn back to witness this embarrassing scene, and Jiang Mian breathed a sigh of relief.
The two went to the study.
This wasn't Jiang Mian's first time here.
Madam Ji sat down behind the desk. "Sit, close the door."
Jiang Mian complied, closing the study door, and sat down opposite her.
"Mom, you asked to see me, what is it?" She asked, suppressing the slight nervousness in her heart.
Madam Ji didn't waste any more time. She pulled open the bottom drawer of the desk, took out a document, and handed it to her, her voice calm. "Sign it."
Jiang Mian took it, puzzled, and carefully opened it.
The bold words "Divorce Agreement" appeared before her as she turned the page.
Her head spun for a moment. She gripped the paper tightly, struggling to remain steady.
Jiang Mian felt her throat tighten. She took a deep breath, closed the divorce agreement, and met Madam Ji's gaze. "Why?"
This all came too suddenly. Why, out of the blue, was she being asked to divorce Ji Zhixiu?
"This is my decision. Don't misunderstand Zhixiu. Jiang Mian, I'll be frank: I will not agree to you and Xiu'er being together."
What she had to do, she wouldn't deny at all.
She also didn't want Jiang Mian to resent Xiu'er because of this.
Jiang Mian didn't know whether to admire Madam Ji's frankness.
Smart people talk directly, and in one glance, Madam Ji understood her meaning.
Whether this divorce agreement was Madam Ji's or Ji Zhixiu's decision was very important to her.
Since it wasn't Ji Zhixiu's decision, Jiang Mian slowly pushed the divorce agreement back. "I'm sorry, I can't do it."
Madam Ji had anticipated her refusal and wasn't in a hurry.
Knowing she hadn't read the contents carefully, she simply explained, "Jiang Mian, look at the terms. If you divorce now, I'll give you fifty million. Also, the apartment in Shengshi Huating, Xiu'er put it in your name, right? After the divorce, this apartment will still belong to you, and I'll also give you two cars worth five million. I've also looked at your collaboration with Ji's Corporation, and I'm very satisfied with the advertisement. I'll also have the company invest heavily online. The influence brought by Ji's Corporation, I don't need to elaborate, right? In short, you won't be at a disadvantage in terms of material things."
"If you sign it now, when Xiu'er returns, I will naturally have him sign it. You can use this time to leave Xiushui Villa."
Jiang Mian calmed down and began to consider the current situation.
She spoke slowly, "Mom, you specifically sent Grandpa and Dad away, didn't you?"
Madam Ji was stunned, inwardly sighing at her intelligence.
She didn't deny it. "So what?" She easily saw through Jiang Mian's thoughts. "You don't need to use Father to pressure me. Although Father doesn't agree with what I'm doing, he can't stop me."
Jiang Mian let out a bitter smile. Madam Ji was an elder to her, and without Ji Zhixiu, she really couldn't do anything.
Madam Ji had clearly accepted her, and now she was suddenly demanding a divorce with such a resolute attitude.
There must have been some problem.
But Jiang Mian didn't understand why Madam Ji insisted on her divorcing.
Judging by Madam Ji's demeanor, she clearly wouldn't tell her.
She pursed her lips, her tone softening. "I want to wait for him to come back."
"Do you think delaying until he comes back will mean no divorce? Let me tell you, you're just wishful thinking."
"Jiang Mian, I don't want to say unpleasant things. While your relationship hasn't been publicly announced yet, you can still find someone else. It's not too late."
Wasn't that unpleasant enough?
Jiang Mian gave a self-deprecating laugh, then said firmly, "Before we divorce, I will still call you Mom. Mom doesn't need to start with me. If Ji Zhixiu agrees to the divorce, Mom wouldn't be looking for me, right?"
Madam Ji looked at her, finding her complete accuracy troublesome. "You don't need to say all this nonsense, you just need to sign."
Once she was sure of this, Jiang Mian became even more composed.
She curled her lips. "I won't sign. Not unless Ji Zhixiu tells me himself. It's getting late, I'm not staying here tonight, so I'll be going back. Mom, you should rest early too."
After saying this, she stood up and left in one smooth motion.
Madam Ji didn't stop her.
She stared blankly at the tabletop. If she could, would she really want to break up her son's marriage?
But how could she accept it!
She couldn't!
Three days ago.
Old Master Ji sat in his study, looking at Madam Ji. "Shuhua, I've investigated what you asked me to."
Madam Ji clasped her hands tightly, gritting her teeth. "Tell me, Father, I can accept any outcome."
Old Master Ji sighed. "That child is indeed the current manager of the Fanhua nightclub..."
Madam Ji gave a desolate smile and interrupted him. "I knew it... I knew that mother and son would come back! It's true!"
After all these years! They still wouldn't let her go!
Old Master Ji frowned. "It's not what you think, Shuhua, listen to me first."
"That mother and son went abroad back then. Not long after, the woman died of illness, and the child also stayed abroad. He only returned to the capital in the last two years."
After all, that child had Ji family blood. Madam Ji could hear the faint pity in Old Master Ji's words.
But she didn't blame Old Master Ji. If it hadn't been for his support back then, she probably wouldn't have held on for so long.
However, the image of that woman acting so imperiously was still etched in her mind, haunting her.
To believe that this child had no intentions towards Ji's Corporation when he returned, she absolutely wouldn't believe it!
"Jiang Mian is under his company," she said angrily. "He's deliberately trying to get close to Jiang Mian, or perhaps they are in cahoots."
"Shuhua, calm down," Old Master Ji said gravely. "I know that incident from back then had a huge impact on you, but you shouldn't think so extremely about everything. No one knows about these things from back then except us. How could the grandson's wife know?"
"Also, Xiu'er has his own happiness now. Don't say things that will create a rift between the children."
"No, no," Madam Ji murmured to herself. "I want Xiu'er to divorce her."
Old Master Ji frowned, his expression turning grim. "Shuhua, do you know what you're saying?"
"I know! Father! I can't accept her being involved with that illegitimate son. You investigated, you must have seen the reports online about their relationship, right? It shows they are quite close. I cannot tolerate my daughter-in-law being with the illegitimate son I despise!" Her eyes reddened, and she spoke almost hysterically, out of control.
Seeing her emotional state, Old Master Ji took a step back, his tone softening. "Don't get agitated, Shuhua. Don't you remember? Doctor Li said you can't have strong emotions, big joys or sorrows. Take it slow."
Madam Ji slowly calmed her breathing and relaxed her body. "Okay... I won't get agitated. I only hope Father won't stop me in this matter. I'll handle it all myself."
"I'm not important. Xiu'er is your son, you know his temperament best."