Ruan Xining was about to storm out when Ruan Jianwei, a man who cared deeply about his reputation, realized that the family had already embarrassed themselves enough these past few days. There was no way he could let others laugh at them again. Suppressing his anger, he gently took hold of Ruan Xining and spoke in a conciliatory tone.
“Xining, Dad was wrong. I shouldn’t have gotten angry at you without finding out what happened. Take all these things with you. If Nianzhi ever slanders you again, I absolutely won’t let her off.”
Only then did Ruan Xining wipe the tears from the corners of her eyes and look at Ruan Jianwei aggrievedly. “Really?”
“Really,” Ruan Jianwei promised.
“Dad, I knew it. I’m your biological daughter too, so you must love me as well.” Ruan Xining suppressed her disgust as she said this, but she shot Ruan Nianzhi a triumphant look.
“Auntie, Mom, Dad, you all saw it clearly. I only took what rightfully belongs to me.”
“That way, some people who are accustomed to lying won’t have another chance to scheme against me.” After saying that, Ruan Xining carried a large pile of things back to her room.
Looking at the enormous pile of jewelry, Ruan Xining felt a pang of regret. These things had been valuable in the past, but nowadays, most of them were practically worthless.
Still, she had no intention of letting Ruan Nianzhi benefit from them. She looked at the pile of clothes, all of which had been made from fine fabrics given to her by her maternal grandfather, maternal grandmother, and uncles. Ruan Nianzhi had taken advantage of her for long enough.
She picked up the scissors beside her and swiftly cut into the clothes.
The originally elegant and exquisite garments were instantly reduced to shreds.
“Ruan Xining, stop!” Ruan Nianzhi had followed her inside and turned red-eyed with distress when she saw the scene.
She had initially been too frightened to follow Ruan Xining, but for some reason, after watching Ruan Xining carry away that pile of belongings, she had felt strangely empty inside, overwhelmed by an inexplicable sensation.
It was as though a voice inside her kept telling her to take those things back, to take them back.
“Ruan Nianzhi, do you want another beating?” Ruan Xining had already torn off all pretenses with her, so she no longer held back. The moment she saw Nianzhi, her expression became frighteningly cold.
“Sis, you don’t want these things anymore anyway. Why don’t you give them back to me? I can pay you for them,” Ruan Nianzhi said.
Ruan Xining immediately became interested. “How much money do you have? These things aren’t cheap.”
“Would five hundred yuan be enough?” Ruan Nianzhi’s gaze shifted uneasily.
Five hundred yuan was naturally nowhere near enough to buy all these things, but times had changed, and she soon straightened her back again.
“I don’t think you’re sincere about buying them, so get out of my room.”
“Then what about one thousand yuan?” Ruan Nianzhi said unwillingly.
Ruan Xining frowned. Ruan Jianwei’s career had indeed gone smoothly over the years because of his connection to the Wen family, but his monthly salary was only a little over one hundred yuan, and he still had an entire household to support. Even if he had made quite a bit of money through business in earlier years, most of it should have been spent by now.
Ruan Nianzhi spent even more than she did, yet she could casually offer one thousand yuan. It seemed Ruan Jianwei had secretly been giving quite a lot of money to this daughter of his.
“Two thousand yuan. If you can come up with that much, I’ll give them all to you.” Ruan Xining continued holding the scissors and began counting down. “Three, two…”
“One thousand five hundred! One thousand five hundred is all I have!” Ruan Nianzhi hurriedly interrupted.
“Then go get the money.”
Ruan Xining lowered the scissors and looked at her.
Afraid that Ruan Xining might change her mind, Ruan Nianzhi hurried back to her room, counted out the money, and quickly returned. She handed over a thick stack of bills to Ruan Xining.
She immediately turned around to retrieve her belongings, only to be stopped by Ruan Xining.
“Ruan Xining, I’ve already given you the money. What else do you want?” Ruan Nianzhi thought Ruan Xining was going back on her word and became furious.
“One thousand five hundred yuan can only buy one thousand five hundred yuan worth of things. Choose for yourself.”
“Fine!”
Suppressing her anger, Ruan Nianzhi began selecting the jewelry one piece at a time. Every time she picked something up, that strange sensation in her heart remained, so she would put it down and choose another.
Ruan Xining stood behind her in confusion, watching her movements. After Ruan Nianzhi had picked up every single item, that intense sensation was still there, and her face turned pale with anxiety.
Her eyes darted around the room until they landed on the jade bracelet around Ruan Xining’s wrist. Her eyes brightened as she pointed at it.
“I want that.”
“You can’t have this.” Ruan Xining refused coldly.
This jade bracelet had been given to Ruan Xining by her maternal grandmother on her eighteenth birthday.
The elders of the Wen family had always treated the children fairly. Although she and Ruan Nianzhi were two years apart, they received gifts of equal value for their birthdays every year.
But Ruan Nianzhi had never received a bracelet like this one.
Ruan Xining loved the bracelet too, so naturally she had refused when Ruan Nianzhi asked for it. However, Ruan Nianzhi had pestered her relentlessly, insisting that their grandmother would definitely give her a bracelet like this when she turned eighteen.
She had even promised to return it after wearing it for two years. At the time, Ruan Xining had eventually given in and agreed. If she had not seen the bracelet again today, she would have forgotten all about it.
Now Ruan Xining guarded the jade bracelet tightly, but Ruan Nianzhi suddenly lunged forward like a madwoman, trying to snatch it away.
Afraid that the bracelet might be knocked against something and shattered, Ruan Xining quickly dodged, only to crash into the table behind her. The ornaments on the tabletop began to fall, and she immediately bent down to catch them.
The scissors slipped off the table, their sharp edge slicing toward her wrist.
A sharp sting shot through her. Blood flowed down her wrist and onto the jade bracelet.
The bracelet strangely flashed with a faint light, and the glow then followed Ruan Xining’s wrist and seeped into her body.
As the light within the bracelet disappeared, its former translucence vanished as well, leaving it dull and lifeless.
Ruan Xining felt the light before her eyes shift slightly as the surrounding scenery rippled with a faint, hazy distortion.
Her mind swayed, and her consciousness suddenly went blank. When she came to again, she found herself looking at a vast, open, clean, and orderly independent space.
It stretched as far as the eye could see, filled with endless stretches of fertile soil. Deep within the land stood a quiet, tranquil spring well. The air was pure and serene, as though it were a world unto itself.
Taking advantage of Ruan Xining’s distraction, Ruan Nianzhi tugged desperately at the jade bracelet.
Then came a crisp crack.
The jade bracelet shattered completely, scattering across the floor.
With the bracelet’s destruction, the powerful impulse that had been driving Ruan Nianzhi vanished as well.
Ruan Xining also regained consciousness at that moment. The two stared at each other, completely stunned.
Ruan Nianzhi was especially guilty. “Sis, this has nothing to do with me. I didn’t break it.”
“Ruan Nianzhi, you broke my jade bracelet and still want to run? Dad…” Ruan Xining opened her mouth to shout.
“Sis, I don’t want any of these things anymore. Let’s just say the one thousand five hundred yuan was payment for this jade bracelet, okay?” Ruan Nianzhi said bitterly.
Only then did Ruan Xining stop. Thinking about what had just happened, she glared at Ruan Nianzhi.
“Get out of here.”
After watching Ruan Nianzhi leave, Ruan Xining locked the door from inside. She quickly focused all her consciousness on imagining the scene she had just seen.
Sure enough, the same image appeared again.
Ruan Xining tried taking a step forward, thinking to herself that she wanted to enter.
The next second, she was transported into space from the image.