Old Master Jiang scoffed loudly.
"Take her away?" he repeated. "You think Xiao Li was happy growing up in the Xia family?"
Old Master Xia snapped, his eyes narrowing. "Mind your words!"
"I will not," Old Master Jiang shot back, voice firm despite the tremor beneath it. "You think I don't know what happened? You think I don't know how my own daughter was treated?"
The mention of Jiang Shenqi silenced even the whispers.
Old Master Jiang took a step forward.
"The Xia family still owes a debt for Jiang Shenqi!" he said, his voice heavier now, laced with regret and anger. "If you had any sense, you should have sent Xiao Li back to the Jiang family long ago. We would have raised her properly!"
Old Master Xia's expression hardened immediately.
"Raised her?" he repeated coldly. "After abandoning both mother and child? Now you speak of raising her?"
A sharp intake of breath rippled through the guests.
