Xiao Xiao stood behind the half-open door of the study, her fingertips lightly resting on the carved wood.
She hadn't meant to eavesdrop.
She was just passing by, returning from the garden with a tray of freshly brewed ginseng tea she had prepared for her grandfather. Something simple… something gentle.
She hadn't expected to hear her name.
And definitely not like that.
"She's more of a Feng than you ever were."
Her breath caught in her throat.
The tea tray trembled slightly in her hands.
In her past life, she had thought her grandfather was just another tyrant—forcing her into an engagement, controlling her life, silencing her voice. She never once believed he loved her. Not truly. Not in the ways she had begged her father to. Not in the ways she had foolishly chased from Feng Ju.
But now…
Now she heard the weight of his words.
"You will not interfere with Xiao Xiao again."
She pressed a hand to her chest.
In her first life, she had been poisoned slowly—her body, yes, but her heart even more. Betrayed, mocked, abandoned.
And in that final moment, as the world turned cold, she had remembered a pair of old, trembling hands holding her as a child… whispering stories, feeding her ginger candy, scolding her gently.
Her grandfather.
She had forgotten him in her rage.
But he had never forgotten her.
"I am protecting her."
The tears came silently this time. Not the messy sobs of a girl in pain, but the quiet ache of a woman finally beginning to understand who truly loved her.
She composed herself quickly, wiping her eyes before stepping back and silently returning to the main hallway.
By the time she entered the study a few minutes later, both men were gone.
She placed the tea carefully on the table and smiled faintly to herself.
She would protect him now.
The same way he had protected her—silently, steadfastly, without asking for anything in return.
And one day… when the house was clean of snakes…
She would make sure he smiled without burden.