Hearing the thunderous roar, Wen Chuxia, who had been ready to jump up and throw a punch, quickly withdrew her momentum and lay back on the ground.
In her previous life, burdened with guilt, she had single-handedly supported her father and two brothers. After decades of hardship, she had become incredibly strong.
So strong it was terrifying—yet she was still bound by family ties, ultimately beaten to death by her own brother!
Now, reborn, if circumstances allowed, why couldn’t she play the role of a “weak woman” protected by others?
So she lay on the ground, squinting slightly as she watched a middle-aged man rush forward to support Liu Cuihua, who was crying as if her heart were breaking.
Furious, he demanded, “Wen Xiuyuan—she’s already divorced you. What right do you have to hit her?”
“Brother Huo, don’t be angry. Listen to me—it’s all Wen Chuxia’s fault, that ungrateful daughter. She’s the one who insisted on cutting ties with us just to chase wealth and status.”
Wen Xiuyuan shamelessly shifted the blame, pinning everything on Wen Chuxia.
Since the Wen family’s future was still uncertain, they couldn’t afford to offend the man before them. Eldest Brother Wen stepped forward and added, “Uncle Huo, it really isn’t our fault. My younger sister Yanyan gave up her chance to marry into the Huo family and enjoy a life of comfort for Wen Chuxia, but she still isn’t satisfied…”
“What ‘give up’? Why can’t both sisters go with Cuihua to our home? All you do is shift blame—how disgraceful.”
The middle-aged man cut off Eldest Brother Wen with disdain. His sharply defined face, with its thick brows and dark eyes, was tightly furrowed, clearly expressing his displeasure.
Holding Liu Cuihua by the shoulders, he turned and instructed the young man behind him, “Yunxuan, go help your sister up.”
“Alright.” Huo Yunxuan reluctantly walked over to Wen Chuxia, bent down, and extended both hands toward her. “Let me help you up.”
His eldest brother had been injured on a mission the night before, and his second brother was at the hospital taking care of him, so his father had dragged him along to the Wen family to pick up his stepmother and stepsister.
He hadn’t resisted the idea of having another sister, but when he saw the pitiful girl abandoned on the ground by her own father and brothers…
Her fair, delicate face was covered with overlapping handprints and finger marks, making his heart ache with sympathy.
Wen Chuxia looked at the young man before her—around eighteen or nineteen, with a rebellious face, thin lips curved into a smile that was complex yet easy to read.
“Thank you.” Wen Chuxia placed her calloused hand into the boy’s palm, using a subtle force to stand up smoothly with his help.
Huo Yunxuan felt as though he hadn’t exerted any effort at all to pull the girl up from the ground.
Surprised, he asked, “Didn’t they say your family was well-off? Why are you so thin?”
Hearing this, Wen Xiuyuan shot a hostile glare at Wen Chuxia. “See for yourselves—she’s just putting on a pitiful act.
She’s my own daughter—I would never wrong her. She’s cunning, more scheming than anyone, and will stop at nothing to get what she wants.”
Second Brother Wen joined in the accusations. “Originally, it was my younger sister Yanyan who was supposed to remarry into the Huo family with our mother.
But Yanyan is pure and kind-hearted—she gave up this opportunity so Wen Chuxia could enjoy a better life.
Yet this ungrateful wretch shows no gratitude at all. She even wants to cut ties with us, exploiting the blood bond we share.”
Faced with her father and brothers’ belittling accusations, Wen Chuxia felt no emotional turmoil.
Her heart, in her previous life, had long been crushed into mud by the favoritism of her two brothers. Now, her inner resilience was terrifyingly strong.
But she would not show it. She clenched her hands tightly on the hem of her clothes, making anyone who saw her think she was terrified.
The Huo father and son noticed her stunned expression. Huo Tieniu softened his voice unusually, “Enough. Both of you, come with me.”
“I don’t want to go with you. I want to share the hardships with my dad and brothers,” Wen Yuyan declared righteously.
“Uncle Huo, you see how sensible our Yanyan is? She would never abandon us to go live in comfort at the Huo family.
You should be careful—don’t let someone as malicious as Wen Chuxia stab you in the back later,” Second Brother Wen kindly reminded.
“What’s the point of all this nonsense? If you weren’t fighting to go to our house, why did you hit her?” Huo Yunxuan asked impatiently.
His father suddenly wanted to remarry, but he and his brothers wouldn’t oppose it. Having a stepmother and stepsister just meant two more mouths to feed.
As long as they didn’t cause trouble or disgrace the Huo family, he wouldn’t go out of his way to make things difficult for them.
After his uncle passed away, his aunt had also remarried, and his two cousins treated their stepfather and stepsister with respect.
“Huo Yunxuan, you’re actually willing to accept her? And even defend her?” Wen Yuyan questioned sharply.
Her eyes reddened as she glared resentfully at Huo Yunxuan. His temperament was unpredictable and harsh. In her past life, he had refused to accept her until his dying day.
Moreover, in that life, no one from the Huo family had come to fetch them. It was her two brothers who escorted her and her mother to the Huo family.
She had thought the Huo family was a golden nest, with Old Master Huo holding high status and power. She believed her future life couldn’t possibly be too bad.
Little did she know, the three Huo sons and their cousins would coldly watch as she was bullied by her aunt’s stepdaughter and ostracized by the people in the Dayuan.
The old man went even further, insisting that she and her mother follow Huo Tieniu to Da Xibei to endure the hardships of the desert.
So, in this life, she would rather die than go to the Huo family to suffer their contempt. She would stay with the Wen family, enduring hardships alongside her father and two brothers.
She would accompany them as they rebuilt their lives, ensuring her place in her father and brothers’ hearts would be irreplaceable.
“You actually know my name? Have you been secretly investigating our family all along?” Huo Yunxuan looked at Wen Yuyan in disbelief.
“You have misunderstandings about the Huo family, so you forced her to go to our house. She didn’t want to go either, so you all ganged up and hit her?”
Huo Yunxuan wore an expression as if he had seen through the truth, infuriating Wen Yuyan to the point of wanting to vomit blood. She stared intently at Wen Chuxia.
This foolish older sister, always sacrificing herself for others—how could such an idiot be so lucky?
She clearly hadn’t done anything, yet the Huo father and son were defending her?
“You’re so clever!” Wen Chuxia, her face swollen and red, looked at Huo Yunxuan with sparkling, admiring eyes and sighed.
Then she continued, “My dad—oh, he’s not my dad anymore. I’ve already severed ties with them. This is the severance document we just signed.
Yesterday, the three of them packed ten boxes of clothes and money, saying they were for my sister to take away.
Today, my sister went back on her word, refusing to go to the Huo family with Mom, so they kicked us both out.
My mom begged them to let us take a few changes of clothes, but they refused.
I’ve been cooking and washing clothes for them since I was seven. Even without considering blood ties, I’ve put in hard work.
They should have let me take two sets of old clothes to change into, but they yelled at me instead. I couldn’t take it anymore, so I severed ties with them.”
Wen Chuxia’s tone was cool and calm, as if she were stating something that had nothing to do with her.
“You… you… I’ll beat you to death!” Wen Xinghe’s inner ferocity surged uncontrollably, provoked by Wen Chuxia’s challenging gaze.
“If you’re sick, go see a doctor. If you want to fight, fight me.” Huo Yunxuan’s eyes flashed with a cold glint as he rolled up his sleeves, taunting Wen Xinghe.