This time Sayaka did not oppose the accusation against her. She remained silent after Akira spoke up. No one knew if her expression was a sign of her guilt or if she was just shocked at the unexpected words from her daughter.

For a long moment, no one spoke.

If Kazuo had not been too shocked at the revelations made during the entire session, he would have risen to scold Akira and defend his mother. However, nothing had worked in his favour since Akira began speaking.

Therefore, he chose to remain quiet.

As for the rest, they had always been fence-sitters. They would only defend people if they were sure that it would be in their best interests. Since Sayaka had not expressed her stance, they did not dare to do anything that would expose them to unfavourable circumstances.

"I will assume that your silence is an admission of guilt, mommy dearest." Akira lifted a brow.

Sayaka looked at her with a mixture of hatred, discomfort and even regret.

"This is not a court of law, Madam Yamazaki. You can speak up freely and unburden your heart. Perhaps telling me about your choice to cover up for a criminal might make me less interested in exposing any evidence against you to Dad." Akira said with false kindness.

Sayaka laughed softly.

"I might appear foolish, but I am not an idiot, Akira. Do you think I have been able to stand firm in my position in this city by being an airhead?" Sayaka decided to broach the topic indirectly instead of responding to Akira.

Akira was surprised. It seemed that this mother of hers was a deeply hidden player. It was a pity that this smart woman had met her. Otherwise, she might never have been exposed.

"Do you think I am unaware that my sister and her family are always using me? Do you think I do not know that my mother-in-law dislikes me? I am not so stupid to not see through these transparent things." Sayaka added.

Kaoru and Hanae showed a hint of guilt on their faces at the words.

"This world of aristocrats does not favour women who are too smart for their own good. Trust me. If you had learnt this simple thing, we would not be in this position. The upper class favours women who can make their men fall in love with them completely." She smiled.

"And most men will only fall in love with people who do not challenge their position or intelligence. And I am such a woman." Sayaka declared without shame.

She was not afraid of the people in the room exposing her hypocrisy. Her confidence came from one thing: understanding that everything that Akira had said through the evening was true. So, if there was a good place to reveal her true colours, it was in this place.

"I know when to be gentle and soft, and when to show a forceful personality. I know when to make mistakes and what mistakes to make. You see, it is a very delicate balance between being a good wife and a great wife."

"I am a great wife and mother. If it were a typical good wife, I would try to be as perfect as possible. But a great wife makes mistakes to keep things a little interesting. And fixing those things makes a man feel powerful and useful."

Sayaka did not care about the looks the rest of the people in the room were giving her. She felt a hint of freedom. She was always trying to strike the right balance of being the best wife, that it felt good to finally show that she was not useless.

"Thank you for the explanation. It does take a lot off of my mind. I was hoping that you were a good person, of course. But this has settled my internal conflict." Akira smiled. "But you have still not said what this has to do with you not caring about your sister's conspiracy to kidnap me."

Sayaka remembered the original issue. "The point I was trying to make was that I am not stupid. Do you think I will fall for the 'let it off your mind' trick? I am not going to tell you anything. If you had any evidence to prove anything, you would use it."

"I am not under any illusion that we can repair our mother-daughter relationship." She sighed. "Why couldn't you just accept things as they were? All I want is for the Yamazaki family to continue to be as exemplary as it has always been. Everyone has to make sacrifices."

Akira turned to the rest of the family.

"Do you share this opinion? I will give you all one last chance. Do you think that it would be better if I did not tell you about each other's darkness? Are you all satisfied with the superficial appearance of peace? If you answer correctly, I might let you off." Akira said.

There was immediate tension in the room. In their hearts, they knew that the accusations that Akira made about all of them were true. They were not sure if she was willing to send them to jail or have them kicked out of the family.

However, they would prefer not to have the sword over their heads.

Chiharu was the first one to speak up. "All families have their secrets, and such things should remain hidden. Did you think that you were joining a perfect aristocratic family? I am telling you right now. You will never find such a thing."

Akira nodded in understanding. It was a good answer. Actually, she was fine with everyone hiding their filthy little secrets. Her problem was their intention to treat her Little Precious like it was one of their nasty secrets. How could she stand it?

"Is that what you think? I have given you everything. I have followed your plans. Even when I questioned your decisions, I supported you. How many more things have you hidden from me? Have you ever loved me?" Kazuo asked Chiharu.

He seemed to have lost his initial high level of anger. He looked like he was on the verge of tears. Kazuo was not the ideal man because of his low level of smarts, both book and street. But he loved Chiharu with everything he had. He never, for a moment, stopped loving her.

"Why does it matter? You believed I loved you. I am a good wife, and I helped you." Chiharu responded bitterly.

She was tired, and her head hurt after being hit by Sayaka. She did not have the strength to pretend anymore. Even Sayaka had already dropped the act of being a kind and naïve housewife who only wanted the best for the family.

Kazuo looked like he was crushed.

Akira stared at the man with interest. "Eldest Brother, you would rather have the truth revealed even though it meant that you will lose your fake academic achievements?"