Lin Shirou listened to the murmurs around her, feeling thoroughly satisfied.
Stirring up this commotion today was precisely what she wanted. The situation in the Lu family had dragged on for years like this, and unless she made a big scene, nothing would ever change.
As for her nominal husband, Lu Wen, he was never home and only ever had a few days of vacation at a time.
Whenever he returned, the Lu family put on their best behavior, hiding any major issues. But ever since he left home at fifteen to join the army, his brothers had each married, and the friction among them had only deepened.
Zhang Ximei and Lu Zhuanghuang refused to split the household and divide the property, leaving their home an absolute toxic mess.
The original body was a fool. Ever since marrying Lu Wen, she had been desperate to give birth to a son, only to end up with a daughter. Believing that Lu Wen disliked her solely because she had borne a girl, she had taken out all her frustrations and resentment on the child.
Yet she was timid and spineless by nature, too terrified of being beaten to ever argue back against sharp-tongued rural women.
Seeing the village head arrive, Zhang Ximei and Lu Zhuanghuang quickly rushed forward with beaming smiles.
“Village Head, don’t listen to her spewing nonsense! An auntie like her actually hit Dongdong—tell me, is that any way for an elder to behave?”
Xu Xiaoying had followed closely behind, lingering on the outskirts to eavesdrop. She had never imagined Lin Shirou had this side to her.
Tsk, tsk. A city-girl intellectual acting like a common shrew—she was making a complete laughingstock of herself.
Just imagine what Lu Wen would think if he came back and saw her acting like this. He would probably divorce her on the spot!
At that thought, Xu Xiaoying walked over to Zhang Ximei’s side and gently supported her by the arm.
“Aunty, don’t let this upset you and ruin your health. You haven’t fully recovered from your heatstroke last time!”
She turned her gaze to Lin Shirou, furrowing her brow slightly with a look of deep disapproval. “Lin Zhiqing, as daughters-in-law, shouldn’t we be helping shoulder our mother-in-law’s worries? How could you make aunty this angry?”
Xu Xiaoying already had an immaculate reputation in the village. After her husband passed away, she never remarried, choosing instead to stay a widow while raising her young son. Her mother-in-law praised her to everyone she met, calling her a daughter-in-law you couldn’t find even with a lantern.
Because of this, her standing in the village was spotless. As soon as she spoke, many onlookers began to feel that Lin Shirou’s behavior was completely out of line.
“That’s right, Lin Zhiqing! You’re an educated youth, how could you possibly hit a child over kids fighting?”
The village head, who had initially felt some sympathy for Lin Shirou and her daughter, found it hard to say anything further once the villagers chimed in. After all, this was an internal family matter for the Lu household.
Lin Shirou glanced at Liu Chunli, who had just spoken up, and gave a cold laugh. “You sure love talking when it’s not your skin on the line. Didn’t your Li Dabao get beaten up by the Zhao family kids half a month ago? Why did you end up thrashing them right back?”
Liu Chunli’s face stiffened instantly. Half a month had passed, and she had almost forgotten all about it—how on earth did Lin Shirou still remember?
Lin Shirou then turned her gaze toward Xu Xiaoying, letting out a soft tsk. “Watching the two of you, anyone would think you were the one married into the Lu family!”
“Did you lavish your filial piety on the wrong person? Since it wasn’t your child who got beaten up, of course you can afford to play the virtuous, gentle peacemaker!”
Xu Xiaoying’s hand, which had been supporting Zhang Ximei, froze before slowly pulling away.
Thinking something privately and having it called out publicly were two entirely different things. Why had this Lin Shirou suddenly become so sharp-tongued? Her face turned pale, and her eyes welled up with tears. “Lin Zhiqing, I…”
Lin Shirou couldn’t be bothered to watch her act. When reading the original story, she had already thought this female protagonist was an absolute green tea bitch.
Now experiencing it firsthand, she realized the artificial sweetness was practically oozing out of her pores. Tsk, the male lead really has terrible taste!
The surrounding crowd, however, completely bought into the act and quickly began comforting the aggrieved-looking Xu Xiaoying.
Zhang Ximei was furious. “Second daughter-in-law! You’ve really grown some nerve, haven’t you? You even dare to talk back to your father-in-law! Just look at yourself—do you have even an ounce of the gentle, obedient demeanor a daughter-in-law should have?!”
Unwilling to bicker with her any further, Lin Shirou turned to the village head with a wronged expression. “Village Head, you’re the head of our village, and everyone listens to you.”
“Tell me, if your own child were beaten black and blue, could you just stand by and take it?”
“Besides, this isn’t the first time Lu Dongdong has done this. My Tiannian has been bullied by him since she was little. In the past, I chose not to make a fuss, but this time has gone way too far!”
“If you people refuse to give me justice, I’m going to call the military district and report that someone is bullying a military dependent! I refuse to believe nobody will step in to manage this.”
Lu Zhuanghuang blurted out, “You wouldn’t dare!”
He was terrified of Lu Wen. Ever since that boy joined the army, his presence had carried a pressure far more terrifying than any imperial official. Fortunately, he only ever came home for a few days at a time; if he lived here day in and day out, the whole family would be frightened out of their wits.
If Lu Wen ever found out they had been abusing his daughter, he would definitely come back to settle the scores.
Lin Shirou arched an eyebrow. “Just watch me and see if I dare!”
She gathered up the clothes that Li Hong had reluctantly tossed out from the wardrobe, drew a basin of water, and began gently scrubbing Lu Tian clean.
As she stripped off the little girl’s clothes, Lin Shirou saw the mottled bruises covering her thighs and back, with even pinch marks visible across her chest.
Lin Shirou’s vision blurred as memories rushed back, filling her with a nausea so intense she wanted to vomit.
In her past life, Lin Shirou had been a fashion designer with her own brand. Even after losing the use of her legs, it hadn’t stopped her creative work.
After graduating college, she had already traveled the world, witnessing countless landscapes and crossing paths with all sorts of people. She was exceptionally talented, and her past boyfriends had all been top models or elite professionals, yet she had never once considered marriage.
Her aversion to marriage stemmed entirely from her parents.
Her mother had been a ballet dancer—and a mistress. Before giving birth, her mother hadn’t known the man was married, only discovering the truth afterward about the man she so deeply loved.
Proud as she was, her mother couldn’t stomach the role of a homewrecker, so she packed up and fled with Lin Shirou.
Equally proud and unable to accept having been duped into becoming a mistress, her mother turned to daily heavy drinking. Lin Shirou became her primary outlet for frustration, as her mother viewed her as the greatest stain on her own life.
That continued until the man finally tracked them down. He had divorced his wife, swearing that the only woman he truly loved was Lin Shirou’s mother.
At thirteen years old, Lin Shirou overnight became the wealthy heiress of an elite family, and her mother became an envied matriarch.
She also gained a brother and a sister who was just a year older than her. To deflect any criticism of her role as a stepmother, her mother treated those two stepchildren with extraordinary gentleness—a tenderness Lin Shirou had never once experienced herself.
Her mother meticulously raised her, hoping she would grow up to be a ballet dancer.
Instead, Lin Shirou stubbornly chose fashion design, sparking a furious argument that resulted in her being kicked out of the house.
She paid for her entire university tuition through her own earnings. Even when her father tried to reach out several times, she ignored him completely.
Ultimately, she made a massive name for herself in the fashion world. Her designs—avant-garde, daring, and brimming with artistic flair—earned her the title of “Eastern Fashion Godmother.”
Every fashion show she hosted triggered a sweeping storm in the industry; her career was an unmitigated success.
Until that fateful day when she visited a temple and decided to take a walk by herself. She spotted a little girl wandering right into the middle of a busy road, her face flushed red with tears as she cried out, “Mommy, wait for me…”
A massive cargo truck came barreling down from afar. In that split second, a cord snapped in her mind, and she threw herself forward to rescue the child.
When she woke up, the first person she saw was her mother, wearing exquisite makeup, her scarlet fingernails gleaming like fresh blood.
“Are you stupid?” her mother had asked.
Right then, Lin Shirou felt all her resentment melt away. People who are never loved will always spend their lives doubting themselves.
Yet, how similar were her past self and little Lu Tian?
Now washed clean, the little girl looked remarkably endearing. She seemed to have inherited her biological mother’s fine skin; despite growing up in a rural village, her complexion was naturally fair.
Precisely because her skin was so fair, those bruised, mottled patches looked all the more heartbreaking.
Lin Shirou gently touched one of the bruised spots. “Does it hurt?”
Lu Tian flinched slightly under her touch, then obediently shook her head. With wide, timid eyes, she peeked up at Lin Shirou.
“Mommy, Tiannian doesn’t hurt at all. If Mommy is upset, you can pinch me here—Tiannian won’t cry!”