It hurt so much.
Mu Yao felt a burning pain across her cheek. The metallic taste of blood filled her mouth, her ears rang loudly, and her whole body felt as limp as overcooked noodles.
She struggled to open her eyes. Instead of the familiar hospital ward, what came into view was a shabby, run-down room.
“Mom, do you think Second Uncle will agree to adopt Second Sister as his daughter?”
“Hmph, why wouldn’t he? Your second uncle stole your father’s chance to enlist in the army. Now he’s a soldier, living comfortably in the city. Shouldn’t he be thinking about our family? We’re not asking him to raise all of you siblings—just one little girl. What’s there for him to hesitate about?”
Yao Chunhua’s words sounded reasonable, but that wasn’t how she actually behaved.
She stubbornly insisted that Second Uncle had stolen her husband’s opportunity to become a soldier, and she had squeezed countless benefits out of him because of it.
“Mom, if Second Sister is adopted by them, will she get to live a good life and eat meat every day?”
Mu Xue’s voice was filled with envy. She had seen Second Aunt secretly eating meat at home. She had stared at it longingly, but Second Aunt pretended not to notice and refused to give her even a single bite.
Mu Yao overhears her mother speaking dismissively while she lies injured and disoriented. She realizes she has somehow returned to a painful event from when she was fifteen years old. Back then, after her second uncle was promoted in the military, her mother accused him of stealing her father’s opportunity to enlist. Resentful that he was living comfortably while the rest of the family struggled, she demanded that he send money every month and insisted that Mu Yao be adopted by him. Mu Yao refused to leave her home or become her uncle’s daughter, so her mother beat her severely. Her injuries became infected, causing her to miss the high school entrance examination, and when she later went to her uncle’s house, her cousin mocked her mercilessly.
She had pleaded humbly for a long time before her Second Uncle, afraid that his political rivals would use it against him, reluctantly agreed to pay for her to repeat the school year.
Of course, she only came to understand the truth after she grew up and endured blow after blow, hurt after hurt.
Back then, she had been young and naïve, completely deceived by her Second Uncle’s family. She had been deeply grateful that her Second Uncle allowed her to continue studying, and she obeyed Mu Nan in everything, following behind her like a shadow.
Thinking about her foolish teenage self, who had been manipulated so easily, Mu Yao curled her lips into a mocking smile. The movement tugged at her wound, making her let out a muffled groan of pain.
“Yaoyao, you’re awake?” Hearing the sound, Mu Xue turned to look at her and said in a strange, sarcastic tone, “Really, what’s wrong with you? You had the chance to live a good life, but you just had to argue with Mom. Why do you think she wanted to send you to Second Uncle’s house? Wasn’t it so you could have a better life? Why can’t you understand something so simple?”
Mu Xue was wearing a brand-new white dress decorated with tiny yellow flowers, making her look as bright and youthful as the morning sun.
Mu Yao remembered that dress clearly. Their grandmother had bought it for her, yet Mu Xue had taken a liking to it and snatched it away.
Unfortunately for Mu Xue, she didn’t get to wear it for long. When Mu Nan arrived, she took a fancy to the dress as well.
“You little brat, what kind of look is that? It’s just a dress! You’re about to go live with Second Uncle’s family and enjoy the good life. Can’t you let your older sister have one dress?”
Mu Xue didn’t think there was anything wrong with taking someone else’s belongings. Pointing a finger at Mu Yao’s nose, she scolded her viciously. The sweet image the dress gave her vanished completely, revealing the mean expression on her young face.
Struggling through the pain, Mu Yao forced herself into a sitting position.
“I’m sick. Give me an antibiotic pill.”
“You deliberately argued with Mom and made her so angry she got sick, and now you still want medicine? No way!” Mu Xue sneered maliciously. She had no intention of giving Mu Yao any medicine—if anything, she wished Mu Yao would simply die.
