“Mother is vain and craves wealth. She’s abandoning her husband and children, so I won’t go with her. I want to stay with Papa and my brothers.”
A delicate, sweet voice sent a tremor through Wen Chuxia’s heart, her pupils dilating in shock.
The phantom pain of being beaten still lingered. Wen Chuxia realized instantly—her younger sister, the one always favored by their father and brothers, had also been reborn.
In their previous life, her sister chose to follow their mother and remarry into the Huo family, hoping to soar to the heights of wealth and status for the rest of her life. As it turned out, the Huo family didn’t like her.
Old Master Huo sent the mother and daughter to the Great Northwest to follow their stepfather’s military posting. Wen Yuyan hated the yellow sands of the Northwest, so she secretly married a scoundrel to stay in the capital.
Meanwhile, Wen Chuxia followed their father and brothers when they were sent down to the countryside. Relying on her medical skills, she saved the life of the local village Party Secretary.
She caught the eye of the village chief’s eldest son, a tractor driver, which allowed the men of the Wen family to live a relaxed and comfortable life in the village.
She was the only one who toiled. She earned work points to support several “man-children,” doing their laundry and cooking their meals.
She exhausted her heart and soul to pave the way for her father’s and brothers’ futures. She studied by lamplight every night, eventually not only getting into medical university but also reviving the Wen-shi Pharmaceutical Factory.
At the height of her success, however, she was kidnapped by her father and brothers and taken to a hospital to have her heart harvested to save her sister. She was thirty-eight years old.
Facing the choice once again, Wen Yuyan spoke up first. she changed her mind about following their mother and instead insisted on sharing hardships with their father and brothers.
Wen Yuyan had only seen the outward glory of Wen Chuxia’s previous life, but she knew nothing of the bitterness within…
When Wen Chuxia had been tied up in that hospital, the country man from all those years ago had simply stood by and watched with cold eyes.
That was because, with her support, he had already become a top entrepreneur.
Once he achieved fame and fortune, he couldn’t wait for his wife to die so he could build a new nest with the woman he actually loved.
Her father and two brothers couldn’t carry anything on their shoulders or lift anything with their hands. Without her, it was a question whether they could even survive long enough to return, let alone restore the Wen family.
“Yuyan, have you lost your mind from the fever? What nonsense are you talking! Who would give up a good life to go suffer?” Wen Xiuyuan scolded her, though his tone was full of heartache.
Wen Yuyan playfully shook his arm, acting spoiled. “Papa, your daughter isn’t going anywhere. I don’t want any ‘good life.’ I only want to stay by your side and fulfill my filial duties.”
“Yuyan is such a good child!” Hearing this, Wen Xiuyuan felt distressed yet comforted, and more than anything, deeply moved.
Wen Chuxia looked up to see Wen Yuyan intimately leaning against their father’s arm, while their father doted on her, stroking the top of her head.
Watching this warm display of father-daughter affection, Wen Chuxia let out a mocking smile.
In their previous life, when Wen Yuyan chose to go to the Huo family, she claimed their mother was weak and easily bullied, so she had to go along to protect her.
Back then, their father had also praised her for being a good child. Wen Yuyan had been pampered since she was small; in the eyes of their father and two brothers, everything she did was right.
From childhood to adulthood, Wen Chuxia was the scapegoat for every misfortune. If they truly couldn’t pin it on her, they would simply say, “You’re the older sister.”
The Wen family’s ancestors were imperial physicians. After the fall of the Qing Dynasty, they opened a pharmaceutical factory and went into business, accumulating a substantial fortune.
But ever since Old Master Wen died, the family’s fortunes had declined daily. The Wen father and sons often offended people without even realizing it.
With no one left to clean up their messes, they eventually faced retaliation. It was said the entire Wen family was headed for prison.
Wen Xiuyuan knew his wife had a history with the Huo family, a prominent military clan. It was rumored that Huo Tieniu—the third Huo son—had pursued Liu Cuihua in his youth.
So, he had intentionally beaten his wife in a place where Huo Tieniu was sure to pass by, cursing her as a jinx who had ruined him and his sons…
The upright Huo Tieniu couldn’t stand to see a man beating a woman, especially when the victim was a woman he had once cared for. Naturally, he stepped in to intervene.
Thus, the straightforward Huo Tieniu and Liu Cuihua fell right into the trap Wen Xiuyuan had deliberately set.
How could the seventeen-year-old Wen Chuxia of her previous life have suspected such darkness? She only saw the surface.
On the surface, it appeared that her mother had indeed abandoned her husband and children to marry into a high-status family when the Wens fell into ruin.
Full of kindness and self-reproach, the previous Wen Chuxia allowed her father and brothers to exploit her, hoping to make up for the harm her mother had supposedly caused them.
And the result?
She labored with all her heart and soul to help them restore the family, only to be tied up and taken to a hospital so they could cut out her heart to save her sister.
Wen Chuxia turned to look at her biological mother, Liu Cuihua, who was huddling her shoulders and weeping piteously, looking like a poor, helpless soul.
In reality, she had been forced by her husband to divorce him and cling to the Huo family so that the Huos would intervene—ensuring that instead of going to prison, the Wen family would only be sent down to the countryside.
Yet she was misunderstood by her children, who believed she was a social climber abandoning her family for wealth.
Because Liu Cuihua had married “up” into the Wen family, she was naturally a bit insecure and never defended herself.
So, when her sister chose to go with their mother to enjoy a life of luxury, Wen Chuxia hadn’t sought out news of them.
It wasn’t until later, when Wen Yuyan returned to the Wen family after they had become successful again, that she boastfully told her the cruel truth.
Yuyan had said venomously: “Sister, we are twin daughters from the same womb. Why is it that you got to eat and drink well in the countryside with Papa and our brothers, and then come back to the city to open a pharmaceutical factory with a wealthy businessman for a husband?
“Meanwhile, I was looked down upon by everyone in the military compound because of our pushover mother. What’s hateful is that she only knew how to cry and never dared to talk back to anyone.
“Mom didn’t suffer because that man protected her, but I was ostracized by everyone. They poked my back and called me ungrateful. I lived every day walking on eggshells. I was tricked by a scoundrel and domestic abuse ruined my organs.
“Even if I take your heart, I won’t live much longer. But I just want you to die first…”
Recalling Wen Yuyan’s wicked words, her crazed expression, and her hysterical, resentful face…
Wen Chuxia, who had been tied up like a bundle of firewood back then, hadn’t bothered to argue. she had simply rolled over and used a silver needle to kill her.
But then she was beaten to death by her two brothers. The sensation of fists hitting her flesh flooded back, and Wen Chuxia’s hands tightened slightly.
Wen Xiuyuan made a token effort to ask for her opinion. “Chuxia, are you willing to go to the Huo family with your mother?”
A cold gaze swept over the father and daughter before her. In this life, without her sacrifice, she wanted to see how this “tight-knit” family of four would rise.
“Does it really matter if I’m willing?” A faint smile touched the corner of Wen Chuxia’s mouth, but her eyes flickered with cold mockery.
After weighing the pros and cons, Wen Xiuyuan was actually reluctant to give away his workhorse of an eldest daughter to be someone else’s.
It wouldn’t be bad if both daughters went to the countryside with him. The eldest had been hardworking and compliant since she was little; she could handle the labor for them, while the younger one was sweet-talked and could keep him happy.
“If you don’t want to go, then Papa naturally won’t—” Wen Xiuyuan’s words were interrupted by Wen Yuyan’s sweet voice.
“Papa, Huo Tieniu only has three sons. He surely wants a daughter, which is why he’s willing to help us.”
Understanding his younger daughter’s implication, Wen Xiuyuan exploded into a rage. “You unfilial girl! You’re going whether you like it or not. It’s not up to you!”
“You asked for my opinion. I only stated my wish. How does that make me unfilial?” Wen Chuxia looked Wen Xiuyuan directly in the eye and asked calmly.
“Wicked girl! You haven’t even climbed the social ladder yet and you’re already trying to anger your father to death? Get back to your room and pack your things. Get out of here and go to the Huo family with your mother, that woman who abandoned her husband and children!”