"That is if you are truly my mother. I'll give you respect only when you are dead." The empress countered with a sly smile.

  Zhang Wuying was taken aback by Tang Moyu's words. Since when did this little bastard know about the truth?

  "So you know, huh?" She chuckled, this time, Zhang Wuying didn't bother to hide her disgust and hatred for the daughter of that other woman who took her husband's affection.

  "Of course, I know. Do you really think I wouldn't be able to find out, Mother?" Tang Moyu spat the last word sarcastically. She'd been living as a fool for decades only to find out that the woman who raised her, who maltreated her during her childhood years wasn't even the woman who gave birth to her.

  "Good. Then you must know the reason why I hated your very existence, Tang Moyu." Since Tang Moyu already knew the truth about them not being blood related to each other, there was no reason for Zhang Wuying to pretend she was her mother anymore.

  Tang Moyu then glanced at Cheng Ning, who immediately understood her unspoken words. Her assistant hurriedly left her desk and went to the pantry, giving the empress and her unwanted guest some privacy. She didn't want Cheng Ning to get caught between her argument with this old woman again.

  Tang Moyu closed the door behind her, forcing the old woman to stagger backwards without a warning. Standing too close to the empress, Zhang Wuying could feel a cold oppressive aura the empress was emitting around her.

  The empress walked around slowly, her fingers lightly brushing the top of Cheng Ning's clean desk.

  "Ah, yes. Forcing my father to marry you even though you already know he was with another woman. You might be able to become my father's wife, Madam Tang, but how does it feel to be hated by my father, to the point that he won't even touch you? He couldn't even stand being in the same room as you. Quite unfair, don't you think, Madam Tang?"

  Zhang Wuying was having a hard time controlling her rage. Her eyes ablaze with anger, showing that Tang Moyu's words hit their mark.

  "You know nothing about me, Tang Moyu. You don't know anything, so don't look down on me as if you know everything. Finding out about Yan Qiuyu was just the tip of the iceberg."

  "Your arrogance will be your downfall one of these days, Tang Moyu. Don't you ever forget that."

  "Hn? Since when did my 'mother' become concerned about my welfare, huh? I thought you would be the first one to buy the front row seat if ever such a thing happened to me."

  "You can enjoy your remaining days here, Moyu. I'll give you that opportunity since it wouldn't be too long before you would be ousted from your position." The old woman implied that she would have the last laugh eventually.

  "Thank you for your concern, Mother. Much appreciated. I can't wait to see what you've prepared for me."

  Zhang Wuying then realized that a single smile from the empress could actually be interpreted into a variety of expressions and meanings. Right now, she felt suffocated by Tang Moyu's domineering aura.

  In her heart, she repeatedly cursed Tang Moyu.

  She then realized that it was almost time for the shareholders' meeting to start and simply turned around to leave Tang Moyu. As she passed Tang Moyu, the latter felt that something was wrong and couldn't help but cup her chin as the thought of several possibilities.

  Was Zhang Wuying aware of the truth behind Yan Qiuyu's sudden death? Suddenly, Tang Moyu felt that she might be facing an unknown enemy. If it wasn't Zhang Wuying, then who was the one responsible for Yan Qiuyu and her brother's death?

  She set these thoughts aside and decided to call Cheng Ning back as the meeting with the other shareholders was about to start.

  Was the Feng Conglomerate trying to devour Tang Enterprise whole? What a bold move on Feng Tianhua's part. Tang Moyu thought. Since the Feng Conglomerate wasn't having any drastic growth for the past years, did he think that by acquiring Tang Enterprise, he would be able to gain control over her?

  Tang Moyu scoffed inwardly. The choice of whether she would allow the Tang Enterprise to fall into Feng Conglomerate's hands was hers. Feng Tianhua needed to be smart to know that she wouldn't hand over the company without a fight.

  Plus, the fact that the Zhang family was also eyeing the Tang Enterprise to make it one of their cash cows without doing all the hard work… these people were underestimating her! The empress thought.

  "Please don't mind me and start the meeting. We can skip the pleasantries for now, don't you think, Moyu?" Feng Tianhua crossed his legs, eyeing the empress, who was seated at the end of the table.

  Instead of acknowledging him, Tang Moyu totally ignored his presence throughout the meeting. She answered the questions from the other shareholders truthfully, backing her answers with data analysis that she prepared ahead of time. Even Feng Tianhua was impressed with her business ac.u.men that he hadn't witnessed for years.

  The empress was unstoppable. What happened five years ago wasn't enough to stop her from moving forward and Feng Tianhua felt uneasiness in his heart when he realized that he was no longer part of it.

  His traitorous heart should have long forgotten about Tang Moyu. Didn't he already make peace with himself that the empress was an unattainable dream the moment he married Xing Yiyue?