Ma Ji sat down on the deck next to me. “Xiao Yi is really not related to me.”

I scoffed. “Do you really think I’ll still believe you after all that? Trust the person when they reveal their true selves to you. That’s what my little uncle taught me.”

Ma Ji shook her head helplessly. “It looks like I can’t persuade you otherwise.”

I didn’t say anything.

Ma Ji said, “Nanxing, things aren’t as bad as you think. When you come to our place, you’ll still be the little princess of the Tong family. Your status won’t change.”

I snorted coldly. “Little Princess? Little blood-supplying princess? There’s no need to paint me a pretty picture. I’m your living blood vessel. I understand, and I’m not worried. As long as my eldest uncle is still sick, I’ll be kept alive, right?”

I tilted my head to look at her and raised my eyebrows to tease her.

Ma Ji didn’t mind. “You’ve really inherited your mother’s personality. People can’t help but love you.”

Huh?

I was shocked. I glanced at her and didn’t say anything.

Ma Ji said to herself, “Nanxing, your uncle will be so happy to see you. He was so good to your mother, and he will be so good to you. He’ll do everything he can to satisfy your needs.”

Her voice was laced with melancholy and flattery. I thought I heard wrong, and I widened my eyes at her.

Ma Ji was calm as she looked out to the sea.

In a flash, I understood why Ma Ji was acting so strangely.

I stretched as I sat up and yawned. “Don’t worry. I will praise you a lot when I see him. I will have him keep you by his side and make him chase away all the other women. Of course, that is if he will listen to me in the first place.”

Ma Ji immediately said, “He will!” She sounded urgent.

I smiled.

Ma Ji realized that she had lost her composure. She hurriedly added, “Nanxing, Tong Le’s little fortune isn’t even worth mentioning compared to the Tong family. Tong Le wouldn’t need to waste so much energy to hold up the Tong Family if the master wasn’t so sick. Now that we have you, the master will become better, and the Tong Family will rise again. When you were young, everyone said you were the Tong Family’s lucky star. It looks like that is true.”

Who doesn’t like flattery?

I nodded. “What you said makes sense, but why jump through so many hoops to find me? If you come directly to me, I would have agreed to help you, but now you’ve made enemies of so many people.”

Ma Ji said, “You won’t agree. You’ll suspect me. Besides, Jing Tian and Tong Le won’t let me get close to you.”

I laughed, “Ma Ji, are you kidding? You are Xiao Yi’s grandmother, and I heard from him you were also Han Cheng’s mistress. You saved Xiao Yi’s mother and helped raise her. How many years was that? I was only so tiny at the time. How can you say you have no opportunity to approach me?”

Ma Ji smiled, “You are really sharp.”

That was sharp?

Ma Ji explained, “I wasn’t Han Cheng’s mistress. I didn’t raise Xiao Yi’s mother. I only assumed this identity two years ago. I had another mission at first, but I stumbled across you. No mission is more important than you!”

So my guess was right.

I nodded.. “So bringing me back is your perfect chance to return to my uncle’s side from exile, right?”