Rong Guohai is now a real estate tycoon, but back in the day, he was the son of a real estate magnate—and an only child at that. However, his status as the heir was far from guaranteed. After all, his father was an excessively promiscuous man who followed his desires rather than his heart, naturally resulting in no shortage of illegitimate children.
That said, despite his father’s philandering ways, the man held onto old-fashioned values and was adamant about passing down his inheritance and business to his legitimate son—Rong Guohai. Moreover, Rong Guohai’s mother, his father’s wife, came from a family with considerable influence. Thus, while Rong Guohai’s position wasn’t entirely secure, it wasn’t particularly unstable either. Following his father’s example, Rong Guohai also indulged in a playboy lifestyle.
Ironically, this made his father even more satisfied with him, believing that his son truly took after him.
That is, until one day, Rong Guohai met a delicate, ordinary girl—a “little white flower”—and fell deeply in love with her, insisting on marrying her. This enraged his father.
In his father’s eyes, such a girl might be passable as a mistress, but as a proper wife? Impossible! The elder Rong was rigidly traditional, placing great emphasis on social status and family background. As his heir, Rong Guohai’s wife had to be someone who matched the Rong family’s standing.
At the time, Rong Guohai and the girl were deeply in love, so he rebelled against his domineering father for her sake. This, however, only provoked his father further.
He was placed under house arrest, had all his accounts frozen, and his father even openly brought one of his illegitimate half-brothers into the company. These were all warnings: *If you insist on marrying that girl, you’ll leave the Rong family with nothing—not a single cent. If you want to remain the heir, you’ll obediently marry the woman I choose, have children with her, and keep that little white flower as a mistress if you must—but nothing more.*
Within days, Rong Guohai caved.
Yes, he did love that gentle, understanding girl, but not enough to sacrifice his status, wealth, and privileges. Under his father’s “pressure,” he “reluctantly” cut ties with her, and she left for distant lands, severing all contact.
Afterward, Rong Guohai followed his father’s orders, becoming engaged to, then marrying, a woman of equal social standing, and eventually having children. However, inheriting his father’s promiscuity, Rong Guohai never curbed his womanizing ways after marriage, keeping numerous mistresses on the side.
His wife protested, but to no avail. As the Rong family’s influence grew, their marriage remained a business alliance—as long as the partnership between the two families held, divorce was out of the question. She had no choice but to resign herself to her fate, focusing instead on safeguarding her son’s rights and status.
*Everything in the Rong family belongs to my son. Those outsiders can forget about getting a single thing!* Rong Guohai could fool around all he wanted, but no one outside their marriage would ever threaten her or her son’s position.
Rong Guohai had no objections to this arrangement. After all, the child he had with his wife was the product of two powerful families—his legitimate heir. As for the women and children outside? Mere pastimes.
Thus, the Rong household maintained an illusion of harmony.
Until one day, Rong Guohai met Jiang Yinglu—a woman who bore an uncanny resemblance to his first love, the “little white flower.” And just like that, he fell for her.
Jiang Yinglu was just a naive college student, no match for a seasoned womanizer like Rong Guohai. Wealthy, powerful, handsome, and exuding the charm of a mature man, he quickly won her over. Under his persuasion, she dropped out of school, becoming his caged canary—living with him without status or recognition, and eventually giving birth to Rong Jiang.
Then, she learned the truth: Rong Guohai had a wife and children. The world seemed to collapse around her.
Though fragile, Jiang Yinglu found strength. She immediately cut ties with Rong Guohai, packed her things, and returned to her hometown, heavily pregnant, weeping in her parents’ arms.
Her parents were simple, hardworking farmers who had sacrificed everything to send her to school—only for her to return like this. Jiang Yinglu hated herself for it. Yet, her parents forgave her. After the initial heartbreak, they comforted her, and she resolved to keep the child.
*No matter what, the child is innocent. I was foolish, I was deceived—but since this child is mine, it’s fate. I’ll honor that bond.*
Naming the child Rong Jiang wasn’t out of lingering affection for Rong Guohai, but as a reminder of her past mistakes—to stay vigilant and never repeat them.
Thus, Jiang Yinglu juggled studies, work, caring for her aging parents, and raising her child. Life was hard, but she endured.
She wanted her parents to have security in their old age, and she was determined to raise her child well. But then, Rong Guohai and his “little white flower” re-entered the picture.
Years later, Rong Guohai reunited with his first love, Jiang Meng. It turned out that when Jiang Meng left all those years ago, she had been pregnant with his child. Despite being abandoned, she had still loved him deeply, raising their son, Rong Haisheng, as a single mother. Touched by her devotion, Rong Guohai rekindled their affair, their bond growing stronger.
But Rong Guohai, long accustomed to his playboy ways, wasn’t about to change for Jiang Meng. His wife had long turned a blind eye to his affairs, spoiling him rotten. This, of course, upset Jiang Meng.
*I bore and raised your child, and we love each other. Why won’t you sacrifice anything for me? I don’t even ask you to divorce your wife—yet you treat me like this, trampling on my feelings!*
After his father’s death, Rong Guohai had grown used to having his way. When his attempts to placate Jiang Meng failed, he lost patience and ignored her. Their relationship soured.
Later, Jiang Meng accidentally learned about Jiang Yinglu—another single mother struggling to raise Rong Guohai’s child. Panic set in.
*She looks so much like me. What if Rong Guohai finds out and abandons me for her?*
Driven by jealousy and fear, Jiang Meng targeted Jiang Yinglu’s family. In the end, Jiang Yinglu was violated and killed by a group of vagrants. Her parents, devastated and already weakened by years of hardship, soon passed away as well, leaving only Rong Jiang behind.
Thanks to his mother and grandparents’ efforts to hide him, and Jiang Meng’s preoccupation with repairing her relationship with Rong Guohai, Rong Jiang survived.
Why was Jiang Meng so ruthless? Perhaps because Jiang Yinglu embodied her deepest fears. After all, Jiang Meng’s claim of raising Rong Haisheng alone was a lie.
In truth, she had abandoned Rong Haisheng at an orphanage after his birth. He survived only because of kind strangers. Later, unwilling to work, Jiang Meng seduced another man, married him, and had a child. When that man went bankrupt, she abandoned their son and fled. By chance, she rediscovered Rong Haisheng and used him to worm her way back into Rong Guohai’s life.
As for Rong Haisheng? He was no better than Jiang Meng. Why else would he corroborate her lies to deceive Rong Guohai? It was all for money and status.
He might have even known about Jiang Yinglu’s fate but chose to turn a blind eye, fearing she and her child would threaten his position.
Rong Jiang’s goal was simple: *”I will take revenge—on Rong Guohai, Jiang Meng, and Rong Haisheng!”*
If not for Rong Guohai’s deception, his mother and grandparents wouldn’t have suffered so terribly. If not for Jiang Meng and Rong Haisheng’s malice, his kind mother wouldn’t have died in humiliation, and his grandparents wouldn’t have met such tragic ends.
*”I will never let them get away with this!”*
After hearing the story, Liu Di’er and the others sighed. Jiang Yinglu had been an extraordinary woman and mother, but life had been cruel to her.
Xie Jinghong adjusted his glasses. “Then, who is He Maozhe? And how did you learn about Jiang Meng’s past—especially the parts even Rong Guohai doesn’t know?”
Given Rong Jiang’s lack of connections, how could he have uncovered such well-hidden secrets? Jiang Meng certainly wouldn’t have willingly revealed them.
Rong Jiang froze, then paled as he remembered.
“…It was He Maozhe who told me.”
How could he have been so foolish, so careless, to forget something so crucial?
*(Note: Today is the first day of the Lunar New Year—Happy New Year, everyone!)*
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