“Fine.” Rong Yuchuan interrupted her. “Very good.”
She actually dared to reject him now.
Interesting.
There seemed to be a hint of gritted teeth in those words.
Rong Yuchuan lightly twisted his fingers, a few strands of Shen Chuhe’s hair caught between them.
“I never force women. But Shen Chuhe, you’d better not regret this.”
With Rong Yuchuan’s status and position, he would never stoop to forcing a woman to submit.
Rong Yuchuan stood up, straightened his clothes, and once again regained his usual proud and distinguished bearing.
Shen Chuhe quickly scrambled to her feet and took a large step toward the door, putting more distance between them as she assumed a guarded stance.
Although her state of mind was different from before, it would be a lie to say she was not nervous at all.
But she was even more determined that from now on, whenever she saw this man, she would stay away from him whenever possible and avoid him whenever she could.
She would absolutely not waver!
Seeing her like this, Rong Yuchuan became inexplicably irritated. Anger showed between his brows as a cold smile appeared at the corner of his lips.
“Get out!”
Shen Chuhe felt inexplicably relieved when she heard those words and immediately left.
She fled as though escaping from a plague, unwilling to stay even one second longer.
Rong Yuchuan’s expression turned slightly grim.
He wanted to see exactly what Shen Chuhe was plotting this time.
How long would she be able to keep this up?
After returning to her room, Shen Chuhe stood with her back against the door for a long time.
No, she could not stay in the Rong family anymore!
At the very least, she could not continue living in this place. It was too dangerous!
She had to find a way to move out!
The Old Master was still relatively easy to talk to for now, but how could she completely escape Rong Shuhua’s control?
After thinking for quite a while, she finally sent a message from her phone.
The next morning, Shen Chuhe was jolted awake by a frantic pounding on the door.
When she opened it, she found two of the Rong family’s old servants, Madam Wu and Madam Zhang, standing outside.
Shen Chuhe frowned.
Before she could say anything, Madam Zhang was already glaring at her and speaking sarcastically.
“Oh, Miss Chuhe, aren’t you lucky? Sleeping until this hour! You’ve been in the hospital for four days, and have you forgotten your place? Hurry up and make breakfast for Madam and Master!”
Shen Chuhe glanced at the time.
It was five in the morning.
Ever since Rong Jiasi had returned, Shen Chuhe might have carried the title of the Rong family’s daughter, but she had been doing the work of a servant.
That had been Rong Shuhua’s order.
The Old Master knew nothing about it, while the servants had learned to read the situation and secretly played all sorts of cruel tricks to torment her and curry favor with Rong Shuhua.
But Shen Chuhe had never thought she owed the Rong family anything.
They were the ones who refused to let her go.
“Are you finished?”
Shen Chuhe’s gaze remained calm. Before they could react, she closed the door and locked it from the inside.
In her previous life, she had repeatedly backed down and endured these little things.
But she did not want to live like that anymore.
“This little bitch actually dares to shut the door!”
“You think you’re still the real young lady of the Rong family? You refuse to come out and work, and expect us to serve you? You’re nothing but a useless freeloader! I’m telling you, this is Madam’s order!”
“Shen Chuhe, come out!”
“You little brat, get out here!”
Fortunately, none of the Rong family’s masters lived in this building, so the two servants freely raised their voices and shouted.
Shen Chuhe found them annoying. She simply turned over and pulled the quilt over her head.
Outside the door, Madam Zhang and Madam Wu eventually became tired of shouting and exchanged glances.
“That wretched girl, what happened to her today? Has she lost her mind? She actually dares to disobey Madam now!”
“I’ll report this to Madam later! Let’s see how Madam deals with her!”
By the time the sun was high in the sky, Shen Chuhe had woken up and headed straight for the Rong family’s back garden.
The Old Master practiced tai chi there every morning.
When Shen Chuhe arrived, only the Old Master’s butler was standing nearby. She did not hold back and explained everything before dropping straight to her knees.
The Old Master stopped his movements and listened for a long while. By the end, he understood what she meant.
“He Ya, my Rong family isn’t lacking the kind of reputation you think you need to earn.”
“I am very grateful that Grandpa gave me a place to stay, but even the servants in the house think that I’m freeloading off the Rong family and that I’m useless… So I simply want to find something meaningful to do and prove myself. I beg you, Grandpa, please let me.”
“Have you spoken to Lao Si?”
Shen Chuhe froze. “Not yet. I wanted to tell Grandpa first.”
She had to settle this matter with him first.
“How long?”
“Almost two years.”
“You’ll be twenty four when you come back? That’s the perfect age.”
The Old Master sighed, and Shen Chuhe’s heart stirred slightly.
Sure enough, the Old Master continued.
“Go and do whatever you want. When you come back, Grandpa will find you a good marriage. Would you like to meet someone?”
There was a hint of probing in his tone, but more than that, there was an unquestionable firmness.
The Old Master had said something similar in her previous life.
In fact, he knew everything that went on in the family. But he had his own calculations, and he had indeed… already arranged a good marriage for her.
At the thought of this, a trace of mockery surfaced in Shen Chuhe’s heart, but her expression remained obedient.
“Okay. I’ll do whatever Grandpa arranges.”
After Shen Chuhe left, the Old Master no longer felt like practicing tai chi.
He casually took the handkerchief his butler handed him and wiped away his sweat.
“She really has grown up. She wants to go outside and spread her wings.”
Butler He picked up the conversation. “Yes, Miss Chuhe has started having ideas of her own. But I’m afraid of the elderly Miss Shuhua…”
“Being too opinionated makes you unlikable. Forget it, I won’t stop her either! That girl still has some use. Shuhua is ruthless. As long as she doesn’t let things go as far as someone dying, let her do whatever she wants!”
After a moment, the Old Master added, “Oh, right. Don’t let Lao Si know about this yet.”
Butler: He froze for a moment before answering respectfully.
As soon as their conversation ended, Shen Chuhe was seized by the household servants on the other side.
The Eastern Residence of the villa was Rong Shuhua’s living quarters.
Shen Chuhe was forced to kneel for two hours.
At that moment, the sunlight above her was scorching, and her face had turned bright red from the heat.
Rong Shuhua walked up to her and looked down at her condescendingly.
“What did I do wrong? Why are you making me kneel?”
The moment she spoke, Rong Shuhua’s slap landed across her face.
With a sharp crack, Shen Chuhe fell to the ground. Her cheek stung painfully as she slowly pushed herself upright and tried to stand, only to be held down by two burly servants.
“What are you supposed to be, daring to question me?”
Rong Shuhua wiped her hand and spoke harshly. “Little bitch, if you disobey me again, kneeling will be the least of your worries.”
Sure enough, the two old servants had gone to complain about her.
Shen Chuhe clenched her fists, and for the first time, a trace of resentment toward this woman rose in her heart.
“Do you hate me?”
Rong Shuhua caught that flicker of emotion in her eyes and looked at her coldly.
“If you have the ability, then break free from the Rong family. Otherwise, you’ll be in my hands for the rest of your life! I’ve given you good food and a comfortable life and raised you for ten years. This is what you owe me!”
Break free from the Rong family?
Soon! She definitely would!
Shen Chuhe swallowed, suppressing the inexplicable anger in her chest, but unlike before, she did not humble herself or meekly admit her mistake.
“Still refusing to admit your mistake?”
Rong Shuhua sneered.
“Take her to the front gate and make her kneel there. She’s an eyesore!”