A flash of pain momentarily passed across Commander Bai's eyes, quickly concealed as she looked at her carefully nurtured niece.
"Bai Xue, you must know that when your beauty began to unfold, your parents desired to make you walk the same path as me, believing it could bring glory to our family. It was I who argued on your behalf, persuading them to set their sights on the children of high-ranking officials. Given your parents and brother's thirst for advantage, the idea of you marrying an ordinary man is unrealistic! Rather than that, marrying into a high-ranking family might be better—you are beautiful enough to invite proposals, and whether your future life turns out well or badly depends entirely upon your own conduct."
Bai Xue felt aggrieved at being controlled like a puppet by her family, but she dared not express this sentiment before Commander Bai. She was notably afraid of her aunt, the woman who held the reins of the Bai Family.