Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
After returning to the Mo Family, Wen Xinya received a call from her Grandpa asking for her to visit the Wen Family.
Wen Xinya greeted Grampy and then went to the Wen Family.
Upon seeing her, Mother Wang exclaimed in joy. “Miss, you’re home! Old Master is waiting for you in the study room.”
“Thank you, Mother Wang!” Wen Xinya gave her a nod. As she entered the living room, her gaze landed upon Ning Shuqian and Wen Yuya who were all dressed up and ready to go out.
Ning Shuqian glared at Wen Xinya with hatred but greeted her graciously with a smile. “Xinya, you’re back.”
Wen Xinya nodded and said, “Aunt Ning, Sister Yuya, are you two going out?”
Wen Yuya looked as if she had not slept well. No matter how thick the makeup on her face, it could not conceal her dull eyes, making her appear weak and listless.
Even though Ning Shuqian tried to pretend to be gracious, her stiff expressions revealed her true feelings.
Ning Shuqian replied, “Yuya is not feeling well, so I’m bringing her to see a doctor.”
Considering how emotionally unstable she was yesterday after the incident, they did not bring her to the hospital for a checkup. After having her rest for a night, she calmed down and would bring her to see a doctor now.
“Oh! No wonder Sister Yuya looks so listless,” said Wen Xinya understandably. She recalled her past life when Ning Shuqian and Wen Yuya had plotted for her to be raped and had compromising videos of her taken. There was an outroar, and the Wen Family became the talk of the town. Anger from Grandpa, insults from Grandma, and beatings from her father were directed at her while the two of them stood idly by. Nobody cared about her health, much less bothered to bring her to the hospital. The memory of her visiting the pharmacy to purchase contraceptive pills only to have the pharmacist look at her with disdain when asking for her age was deeply etched in her mind.
Without anyone to comfort her, she was haunted by her nightmares for countless nights and was swallowed up by the terror. Thinking back about the despair she felt from back then, Xinya felt suffocated. Her eyes darkened with malice as she recalled her tragic past life. Wen Yuya should have a taste of that despair and pain too.
“Sister, you look so pretty in that outfit, just like a pure angel.” Wen Yuya said to Wen Xinya, who was wearing a white dress. Her body development looked better than before, and she had grown taller too. She was brimming with youth, and there was a perceptible vitality about her. Yuya could never compare to her.
At that moment, a sense of inferiority hit her. She felt cold as if the coldness had seeped into the pores on her skin and penetrated her veins into her blood, engulfing her entire body. The memory she had so carefully hidden inside her head, afraid to let it surface, was like a cold flame. It swept over her and burned her, causing her to be overwhelmed with grief.
A malicious feeling arose inside of her. It was so clear and distinct as if a blood-sucking worm had latched onto her heart.
“This is from Jo-ramst’s new season’s collection.” Wen Xinya could feel the intense hatred from her gaze. Thus, she raised her head and looked straight into that pair of bloodshot eyes. Her reflection through those eyes looked ghastly.
The hatred in Wen Yuya’s eyes melted away in an instant, and she said while smiling ever so sweetly, “The retro feel of the clothes from Jo-ramst suits sister so well.”
Her eyes were slightly red as if tears had cleansed it, looking all the more penetrating. Wen Xinya started having doubts about the emotions she had seen in Wen Yuya’s eyes just now. Hearing she call her “sister” again and again, Wen Xinya’s heart was in a turmoil. Wen Yuya must have gone crazy! She actually called her “sister” on her own accord and even talked to her happily. This made Wen Xinya even more vigilant.
As if she could sense that Wen Xinya had her guards up, Wen Yuya smiled even more brightly and said, “Sister, that long earring on your ear is so pretty, where did you get it? I would like to buy it too.”
“A friend of mine gave me this earring. I don’t know where to buy it either.” She stroked the earring given by Si Yiyan subconsciously, and her thoughts went to him. As she thought of Si Yiyan, she recalled what happened on that afternoon in Jo-ramst.
“Sister’s friend is so nice, always giving you pretty things.” Within Wen Yuya’s innocent smile harbored a shred of envy that was so pure and so bright that it was blinding. She even wrapped her arms around Wen Xinya.
The faint smell of perfume on Wen Yuya provoked her nerves. She pushed Wen Yuya’s arms away with a pretense of indifference and replied, “This is just the way friends are, exchanging gifts with one another.”
An alarm went off in her heart. Any normal person would have a drastic change in their mood upon suffering from setbacks and harm. What exactly was Wen Yuya planning?
“Did sister come back to visit Grandpa?” Wen Yuya did not have anything planned as she realized that Wen Xinya would tense up every time she called her “sister.” This feeling where she could manipulate her emotions with every move made her happy.
So, Wen Xinya is not as elegant as she made herself out to be.
She was very cautious and guarded around her.
“Yup! I haven’t seen Grandpa in a long time, so I’m here to see him.” Wen Xinya frowned a little. The way Wen Yuya was acting annoyed her to a great extent, as if something was getting out of her control bit by bit. This Wen Yuya became so much harder to handle compared to before.
“Grandma went out to play mahjong while mother and I are going to the hospital. Originally, I was worried that Grandpa was going to be left alone in the house. Now that you are here, I can rest my mind.” Wen Yuya was smiling so sweetly, yet her eyes were locked onto Wen Xinya. She derived a great sense of joy from her vengeance everytime Wen Xinya was on the alert or felt annoyed.
“Aren’t you going to the hospital with Aunt Ning? Hurry and go! I should go up to see Grandpa too.” said Xinya with a faint smile. She had completely lost her patience to pretend cordiality with Wen Yuya.
Wen Yuya smiled. “Sister, see you later.”
Wen Xinya nodded and headed upstairs.
The smile on Wen Yuya’s face disappeared in a moment, leaving behind a cold, sly gaze. She stared at her back with so much evil intent that it could make one’s hair stand on end.
Ning Shuqian felt relieved. Through this incident, Yuya finally got rid of her rash behavior. “Yuya, have you heard of the story of the snake in the cup?”
Wen Yuya could faintly understand the meaning behind Ning Shuqian’s words. She replied, “It is a story about a man who went to his friend’s house to drink and mistakenly thought that a shadow reflection in his cup was a snake swimming about. He did not listen to his friend’s persuasion, drank the wine, went home thinking that he had a snake in his belly and ended up scaring himself into becoming ill. The moral of this story is that paranoia and false beliefs would lead to terror.”
Ning Shuqian broke into a smile and said, “Have you realized? The moment she heard you call her sister, she became tense and cautious. She must be suspecting that you are planning something with your sudden change. Isn’t this the story of the snake in the cup?”
Wen Yuya came to a sudden realization. Her eyes gleamed with malice as she said, “I want her to always be in fear and on guard so that she would never get a day of peace.”
