Huo Family Old Residence, Wutong Courtyard.
The Nth vase was slammed heavily onto the ground by Huo Lei, shattering into pieces with a loud crash. The scattered fragments hid within the wool carpet, and the servants responsible for cleaning grimaced as they once again took brooms to tidy up.
Just as they approached, Huo Lei once again scolded them indirectly: “What are you sweeping? Do you think I won’t smash things if you sweep? Do you think I’ll thank you? Ah!”
The servants dared not retort, but they were only following orders—before Huo Lei’s mother Yuan Xiuqin left, she instructed that if Huo Lei broke anything, it should be cleaned up immediately.
Her back was already covered with bloody marks from whip lashes; if her feet were also pierced by fragments, how would she fare in the future?
Yuan Xiuqin wept bitterly, and most of the servants present were older, having children themselves. Sympathizing with Yuan Xiuqin as Huo Lei’s mother, they did not take Huo Lei’s current behavior seriously.
The servants cleaned up the fragments once more.
All the movable vases in the entire hall had been smashed, and Huo Lei could no longer break anything.
Her back hurt terribly, and Huo Lei lay on the cool bed, unable to do anything comfortably.
She thought again about Huo Shengye’s words in the phone call last night, saying that because Wen Yuan pleaded for her, the twenty whip lashes were reduced to ten.
Huo Lei grew angry. And the more she thought about it, the angrier she became.
Clearly, she shouldn’t have been whipped at all. Moreover, what kind of trash status was Wen Yuan’s family? Just an ordinary, nearly bankrupt wealthy family—why could someone from a conglomerate marry her?
And Huo Shengye marrying Wen Yuan—what a joke!
In the future, would she, Huo Lei, have to call Wen Yuan “little aunt”?
The Huo family valued rules; on the first and fifteenth days of each month, they had to pay respects to elders. Previously, there was no head mistress, so Huo Shengye abolished this practice.
But if Wen Yuan married Huo Shengye, wouldn’t Wen Yuan become the head mistress?
If Wen Yuan… wouldn’t she have to pay respects to Wen Yuan, that little bitch, on the first and fifteenth days of each month? Greet her??
“Cough!! Cough…”
“Miss, Miss, are you alright? Would you like some throat-soothing candy?”
Huo Lei suddenly coughed violently, startling a young maid beside her named Lin Li, who usually had a good relationship with Huo Lei.
Huo Lei looked at Lin Li, feeling irritable and impatient, and ordered simply: “Water.”
Lin Li was thoughtful, bringing Huo Lei the honey water she usually enjoyed—not too sweet or cloying, just the sweetness Huo Lei liked.
Huo Lei felt a bit better. She dismissed the others, keeping only Lin Li. “Come closer, help me with something.”
Huo Lei felt she couldn’t just wait passively.
She must cause Wen Yuan some trouble!
A conglomerate daughter, yet ridden over by a little bitch, and pleading for her?
Did she need her pleading? Pretending to be kind, yet slapping her twice right in front of so many people!
If she didn’t show Wen Yuan some consequences, Wen Yuan would really think she, the conglomerate daughter, was raised timidly.
Huo Lei leaned close to Lin Li’s ear, whispering softly: “Do this…”
Meanwhile, Huo Family Old Residence, Serenity Manor.
The person Huo Shengye arranged to show Wen Yuan the pond and tour the old residence arrived punctually—a woman around forty years old.
With a friendly, round face, she was not tall—just over one and a half meters—slightly plump with fair skin. It was clear she had been a beauty in her youth, and her expression was very warm. She appeared to be a senior maid with considerable experience, as her uniform differed slightly from the other maids’.
“Greetings, Madam of the household. My surname is Wang—you can call me Wang Ma,” she introduced herself warmly and succinctly, smiling kindly.
Wen Yuan had a habit of looking at people’s eyes first. The middle-aged woman’s gaze was bright and open, putting others at ease.
“Alright, Wang Ma,” Wen Yuan nodded with a smile. “Could you take me to see the pond first?”
“No problem, no problem!” Wang Ma chuckled cheerfully. “You’re too polite, Madam. This way, please.”
Wang Ma led Wen Yuan out of the courtyard, and as they stepped outside, Wen Yuan raised an eyebrow—there were many black-clad men outside the courtyard.
They were Huo Shengye’s people, several of whom looked familiar, and Qiu Ye was among them.
Upon seeing her, they didn’t shout “sister-in-law” loudly this time, but they all briskly fell in line behind her and Wang Ma.
This forced Wen Yuan’s alertness level to rise.
Although she knew wealthy families had many people, and it might not be entirely safe even at home, still…
Wasn’t it a bit too exaggerated to have so many people following her?
Anyone who didn’t know better might think she was filming a movie—it was too conspicuous.
However, Wen Yuan naturally understood that these people were just following orders, all arranged by that man, Huo Shengye.
So… as she walked through the garden, Wen Yuan couldn’t help but wonder—was Huo Shengye very worried about her?
But why was he so worried about her?
Or rather, why was Huo Shengye so uniquely kind to her?
Wasn’t this marriage “appointed” by Huo Shengye’s mother, Madam Xie?
A man of his status probably didn’t like being pressured into marriage, right? Yet he seemed so proactive about it…
Could it be that Huo Shengye was a mama’s boy?
A mama’s boy—Huo Shengye.
Wen Yuan frowned. Would he immediately consummate the marriage if Madam Xie said she wanted a grandchild?
At this thought, Wen Yuan shuddered inwardly. Honestly, it felt like something Huo Shengye might actually do.
Well, Wen Yuan realized she was starting to become curious about Huo Shengye as a person.
They arrived at the pond, which was much larger than the one in the courtyard.
Many varieties of lotus flowers were planted—besides the common pink, there were yellow, purple, white, and emerald green ones, exceptionally beautiful.
The fish swam joyfully. In addition to common carp and goldfish, there were several types Wen Yuan had never seen before. One had scales that shimmered with iridescent colors under the sunlight, incredibly beautiful.
After asking Wang Ma, Wen Yuan learned it was called a rainbow fish—true to its name, it looked as if it had draped a rainbow over itself.
The beautiful scenery and lively creatures before her temporarily pushed aside her thoughts about Huo Shengye. She truly loved watching the pond; just observing the fish swimming around while brewing a pot of light tea, she felt she could sit by the pond all day.
But soon, Wen Yuan’s peaceful fish-watching was interrupted.
It seemed there was a commotion behind her—some noise and the faint sound of a young girl’s voice.
Wen Yuan glanced over curiously, but the tall black-clad bodyguards blocked her view, making it hard to see clearly.
Judging by the voice, the girl sounded around her age, which made Wen Yuan feel a bit concerned.
Among the black-clad bodyguards, Wen Yuan was most familiar with Qiu Ye. After a moment’s hesitation, she walked over to him, deciding to intervene in this matter.
“Brother Qiu Ye, what’s going on over there?” Wen Yuan asked Qiu Ye.