Yet in the face of such blatant favoritism, her heart, already battered and broken beyond recognition, still gave an involuntary stab of pain.
That was right. Although she was the Su family’s biological daughter, from beginning to end, Su Mengyao had always been the apple of the Su family’s eye.
Su Mengyao lived in a luxurious princess-themed bedroom, while Su Ni lived in a cramped room meant for servants.
Su Mengyao wore haute couture gowns custom-made by renowned designers from overseas. Su Ni had only a few faded, outdated clothes—and even those were hand-me-downs Su Mengyao had worn until she no longer wanted them.
The year Su Mengyao fell into the water, she couldn’t swim. Su Ni had risked her life by jumping in and pulling her out. Yet in the end, they accused her of pushing Su Mengyao into the water out of jealousy, claiming she had wanted to kill her, and locked her up for three days and three nights.
During those five years in the psychiatric hospital, she had come to regret everything.
She regretted secretly overhearing the truth about the baby swap at her adoptive parents’ home and then rushing to the Su family to claim her identity.
She regretted choosing to swallow her grievances time and time again for the sake of that cheap excuse for familial affection, even after suffering one humiliation and frame-up after another.
She regretted believing their bullshit about lying low to avoid trouble, only to be sent by them to that psychiatric hospital, where she was tormented for five whole years.
She drew a deep breath, doing her best to calm the storm of emotions raging inside her. A mocking smile curled across her lips once more, looking especially jarring in the dimly lit car.
The car continued speeding toward that so-called “home,” but Su Ni knew that this was her true battlefield.
Only this time, she had come back for revenge.
The car pulled into the Su family’s estate. Su Ni stepped out and looked up at the luxurious mansion before her, so familiar yet so strange. Not a trace of warmth remained in her heart.
Along the way, the servants pointed and whispered about the clothes she was wearing.
On the way home, Su Jingheng had thrown a bag of clothes at her, claiming that Su Mengyao was kindly giving them to her because she was worried Su Ni would have nothing to wear after being released. He had even insisted that she wear them home.
Without even looking at them, Su Ni raised her hand and tossed the bag straight into the sea.
“You…” Enraged, Su Jingheng raised his hand to strike her.
Su Ni caught him by the wrist. With a light squeeze, his entire arm instantly went numb.
Su Jingheng’s eyes widened in shock. Why couldn’t he feel his hand?
“Su Jingheng, I’m no longer the Su Ni who would let you do whatever you wanted—beating and berating me as you pleased.”
Su Ni’s voice was cold, as though it carried shards of ice, and the chilling light in her eyes was enough to make anyone’s blood run cold.
She tightened her grip.
The pain was so intense that Su Jingheng’s legs gave way, and he collapsed to his knees.
Ignoring the servants’ pointing and whispering, Su Ni straightened her back and strode into the mansion.
In the living room, her father, mother, and Su Mengyao were chatting and laughing together. The moment they saw her enter, disgust immediately appeared on her mother’s face, as though she had just seen something filthy.
But after Su Mengyao gently nudged her arm, she quickly replaced that expression with a smile.
“Su Ni, you’re finally back. You must have suffered these past few years, haven’t you?” her mother said hypocritically.
There wasn’t the slightest trace of concern in her voice. Instead, she began blaming Su Ni.
“This was your own doing. Who told you to be so willful and reckless back then, beating someone until—”
“Ahem! Ahem!”
Su Zhengguo suddenly coughed several times, cutting her off.
Her mother realized what she had almost said and hurriedly changed the subject.
“Now that you’re back, you’d better learn to behave and keep your head down. In a couple of days, we’ll take you to the Huo family’s banquet. Don’t cause any more trouble. We went to great lengths to secure this marriage for you. If you dare cause trouble, don’t blame us for sending you back there again.”
Su Ni raised her eyes and looked at her coldly. With a mocking smile, she said, “Oh? You secured it for me? I’m afraid you did it for the sake of the Su family’s interests, didn’t you?”
Su Mengyao was somewhat surprised that Su Ni dared to speak to them like that. She supposed Su Ni must still be harboring resentment.
In a delicate voice, she said, “Sister, how hurtful would that be for Mom and Dad to hear? Besides, marrying into the Huo family is a blessing that countless people would give anything for.”
Su Ni turned her gaze toward Su Mengyao, her eyes sharp enough to see straight through her.
“Is that so? Then I’ll give that blessing to you. Do you want it?”
Su Mengyao’s expression changed. Somewhat flustered, she glanced at their parents and began to stammer, unable to say a word.
Su Zhengguo slammed his hand heavily against the table and barked, “Su Ni, stop being unreasonable! This has already been decided. You don’t get to be willful about it.”
He looked at Su Ni threateningly.
“If you don’t want those videos made public, you’d better obediently do as you’re told.”