“Why don’t you want to?” the King of Hell asked.
“I’d still end up killing them if I went back,” Shen Fuyao replied. She was vindictive by nature; even after serving twenty-plus years in the underworld, that hadn’t changed.
The King of Hell tensed, then pulled out his MiYao tablet and flipped through it. “I’ve checked. The reason you were imprisoned was suicide. The four people you killed deserved to die—if you hadn’t killed them, they would have killed you first.”
The laws of the underworld differ from human laws. Human law values consequences more than motives. Killing someone is still killing, and even self-defense can only excuse excessive force to a certain degree. Someone like Shen Fuyao, who kills before being physically harmed, is committing premeditated murder.
The underworld judges by cause and effect, and it can even see alternative outcomes.
If Shen Fuyao hadn’t agreed to divorce or transferred the shares to Wang Chaoying, the family of four would have killed her for her wealth.
“Rebirth as a human isn’t so bad. You’re only twenty in your next life. Everything can start anew—you can get rid of your scumbag husband and the ungrateful stepchildren sooner,” the King of Hell coaxed gently. He needed to send this “great Buddha” back quickly; otherwise, the underworld might face a catastrophe.
“I don’t want to. Being human is pointless,” Shen Fuyao shook her head. If she had another life, she’d rather be a tree, a flower, or the free, wandering wind.
“This…” The King of Hell was at a loss. Rebirth isn’t reincarnation—you need the soul’s consent. Otherwise, he would have sent Shen Fuyao back long ago.
“But last time, you didn’t get to finish off your lecherous father-in-law, cruel mother-in-law, and meddlesome sister-in-law. Don’t you want revenge?”
A judge standing nearby spoke up, trying to help his superior. He was clever enough to see that Shen Fuyao was the type who would settle scores no matter what.
“They care most about their son and grandson. If I kill Wang Chaoying and his son, hearing the news would hurt them more than death itself. As for my sister-in-law, I’ll pay for her plastic surgery—her face is already ruined, and she won’t have an easy life,” Shen Fuyao said calmly.
“Ah, Wang Caifeng isn’t Wang Chaoying’s biological child—she’s the daughter of Xia Yulan and the troupe leader,” the judge began spilling gossip. “Also, your stepsister isn’t even your father’s daughter. She’s the product of your mother’s affair with your father-in-law.”
“Wait, wait—Wang Chaoying isn’t even your father-in-law’s child either!” The judge continued excitedly.
Shen Fuyao’s expression stiffened. This family’s connections were seriously tangled.
“Hold on—if Wang Caifeng isn’t Wang Chaoying’s, what about Wang Zhuo’er?” Shen Fuyao’s mind was sharp; she paused for a second and immediately caught the judge’s loophole.
“Wang Zhuo’er is Wang Chaoying’s son.”
Shen Fuyao nodded. No wonder the twins, Wang Zhuo’er and Wang Caifeng, didn’t look alike at all. She had assumed they were fraternal twins, but it turned out they were half-siblings with different fathers.
This rare phenomenon is called heteropaternal superfecundation—when a woman conceives from two different men in a short period of time.
Shen Fuyao marveled at Xia Yulan’s ruthlessness.
“Don’t you want to expose all this, ruin them, and disgrace them?” the judge tried again.
“Maybe a little… but not enough to make me want to be reborn,” Shen Fuyao replied, sensing the King of Hell had a reason to insist she return.
She was a businesswoman—she knew how to drive a hard bargain. Even if she wanted something, she couldn’t show it too openly.
“Oh, and your biological mother and grandfather are still alive,” the judge added, raising the stakes.
“Who?” Shen Fuyao asked. Her family had always told her that her mother died before she turned one, and her grandfather went off to the army when her father was three and had never been heard from again.
Her grandmother would wait at the village entrance every day for an hour or two, rain or shine.
If these two people were alive, why hadn’t they come back to find her?
“That’s a matter of fate. It can’t be revealed. If you want to know, you’ll have to return to the 1970s and find out for yourself,” the judge deliberately left a suspenseful clue.
Shen Fuyao thought for a moment, then smiled indifferently. “They don’t care about me or Grandma, so I don’t need to seek them out.”
The judge was exasperated, glaring helplessly.
The King of Hell, holding the MiYao tablet and looking over Shen Fuyao’s life records, made a decisive move. “If you go back, I’ll give you a space. It will have food, drinks, essentials, rare medicinal herbs, medical books, a spring of spiritual water, and martial arts manuals.”
In her last life, Shen Fuyao, besides being a businesswoman, had also loved studying medicine and martial arts.
“Deal,” Shen Fuyao said, lifting her head and replying loudly.
Regardless of whether she acknowledged her mother and grandfather, she still wanted to go back, find them, and ask why they never came for her and her grandmother.
Especially her grandfather—her grandmother had waited all those years, thinking of him every single moment.
Grandma had been beautiful in her youth. Even in those turbulent times, when food was scarce, she had never married for security. She raised her son alone, ensuring the Shen family lineage continued. In her last moments, she still called her husband’s name.
Shen Fuyao wanted to go back, find her grandfather, and help her grandmother make up for the regrets of her past life. At the same time, she would tear off her stepmother’s hypocritical mask and shake up the Wang family.
Those who had bullied her would pay back a hundredfold.