章 9: She Loved the Wrong Person (3)
Everyone was stunned by Shen Minyao's words, especially General Shen. Although he and Shen Minyao had an estranged relationship since her mother left without notice when she was merely five years old, this was the first time he heard his daughter talk back to him.
They never thought that the usually submissive and quiet young woman would be able to speak like that, especially towards her father. What's more, Shen Minyao clearly drew a line between her and her father by addressing him using his title and not as her dad.
General Shen's face darkened while his second wife, Cheng Lifan, covered her mouth in shock while looking at her stepdaughter's face confusedly. Why did she feel that Shen Minyao had just got a complete 180-degree change?
"Ridiculous!" General Shen sneered at his daughter. "Don't make this sound about me, Yao'er. What are you thinking about—going to Qingqiu Mountain without informing anyone about it? You were even found on the road unconscious with a man by a stranger. Do you really not care about your reputation anymore?!" He barked at her.
The fox woman looked at the old man like she was looking at a clown making foolish assumptions. In the corner of her eyes, she saw a woman of the same age as Shen Minyao and the man her host held such special feelings for, Su Yin.
Su Yin stood behind Cheng Lifan and next to Shen Qing. The man was Shen Minyao's fiancé, and yet this same person betrayed her and had an affair with Shen Qing. Even when Shen Minyao stumbled and walked in on the cheating couple, she had been mum about it. However, deep down, she was weeping in pain.
Shen Minyao liked Su Yin for years. She and her Brother Yin had known each other for a long time and were betrothed to each other by their families. It wasn't until Su Yin met Shen Qing that his treatment changed, soon giving her a cold shoulder.
The fox woman realized that, just like her, Shen Minyao loved the wrong person. In her past life, didn't she also fall in love with a man that could never be hers? He was destined to become a hero while she, to die by his own hands.
The last memories of him flashed in her mind as he ruthlessly stabbed her in the belly with the same sword she gifted him before his journey. If only she foresaw that betrayal was the only thing he would return in the end…
Ha! How foolish! The fox woman thought. Whether she was talking about herself or Shen Minyao, it didn't matter. Both of them had been blinded by the love which eventually caused their lives to perish.
"General Shen, how can you say that?" This time, Shen Minyao turned pitiful. Her jaws hardened, eyes peering at her father as if he just struck her.
"I'm pretty sure it was Qing Jie and Qiu Gege who invited me to join them." She then glanced at Shen Qing whose face was visibly pale when her name was mentioned.
"Qing Jie, how could you do this to me? Wuuuuu…" Shen Minyao suddenly cried much to everyone's shock. One minute, she was being arrogant; now, she was wailing like a baby.
"How could you leave me there on my own, knowing I fear being left in the dark?"
Everyone within the family knew well that Shen Minyao had a great fear of being in the dark, and it was the reason why she was frequently bullied by her cousins and other children when she was younger.
It was just too bad that the Shen Minyao that returned to them was now a creature of the dark.
Shen Qing looked at her cousin in disbelief. Actually, she was shocked to hear it when she first heard the news that Shen Minyao had been found. She was sure that Shen Minyao died that night when she and her brother pushed Shen Minyao to her death. However, Shen Minyao survived.
So imagine their shock when they heard about it. She and Shen Qiu feared that Shen Minyao would tell on them.
The fox woman hid her sneer behind her hand as she lowered her head.
'Shen Qing, Shen Qiu. Do you think I'll allow you to live happily after you murdered Shen Minyao?' Since she was now living as Shen Minyao, there was no way in hell she would allow these pigs to continue harassing her.
"What are you…?" General Shen almost exploded in anger right then and there, but seeing his daughter cry for the first time had somewhat bothered him.
"Why is it my fault now? I'm your daughter, but you would rather believe outsiders? General Shen, aren't you being unfair to your own daughter? Where is your face when I need it?"
The fox woman refused to acknowledge this bastard as her father. The sadness her host had kept over the years as Shen Xin ignored her was something Shen Minyao continued to endure until her last breath. Even if Shen Xin had a change of heart later, it was already too late for him to regret now. He had allowed other people to kill his daughter just because he was being indifferent to her.
"It's my fault, Yaoyao. It was me who wronged you." Shen Qing fell to her knees, her whole body trembling from fear. She wasn't sure why Shen Minyao hadn't snitched on her yet. Shen Minyao only said that they had left her, but Shen Qing wasn't certain what her cousin would say once Shen Minyao was left alone with her Uncle Xin.
"Qing, get up. You don't have to do this. It's not your fault you've lost sight of Yaoyao that day." Su Yin helped Shen Qing to get back on her feet and glanced in Shen Minyao's direction. This was the woman he had wronged, but he couldn't help it if his heart was stolen by her cousin.
章 10: Haunted by Her Own Ghost (1)
"Yaoyao, please don't blame Qing. Indeed, she was the one who invited you to come with them, but weren't you the one who lost your way and parted from their company? But it's a good thing someone found you. Else, Qing and Uncle would be worried about your safety," Su Yin told Shen Minyao.
The fox woman was so disgusted by this cheating couple. In her eyes, Su Yin and Shen Qing were both shameless for even showing up together in front of the person they both wronged. Weren't they the reason why her host lost her life? Yet, Shen Qing dared to come here, playing her role as a white lotus very well.
"I see, Brother Yin is still very kind towards my Qing Jie. What about me, Brother Yin? Are you forgetting that I'm still your fiancée, not her? Why aren't you good to me? Could it be that the Su family look down on my Shen family now that my father is facing a problem?"
Su Yin flinched at that while Shen Xin's face darkened at the thought of being looked down on by the Su family. While it's true that he was having some issues at work and his younger brother's influence was flourishing within the Jiang City, the second son of the Su family was still betrothed to his first daughter, Shen Minyao.
"It's not that I'm favoring her, Yaoyao. I'm also worried about your safety."
Su Yin was a little confused. He felt like something was wrong with Shen Minyao. He thought it might be because he came with Shen Qing, and Shen Minyao was being jealous of her. Furthermore, he revealed an understanding smile and said in a gentle tone.
"Yaoyao, no matter how angry you are, you shouldn't make false accusations."
"False accusations? Brother Yin, it is true that Qing Jie was the one who picked me up from my dormitory—everyone had seen her. She also knew about my fear of being left alone in the dark, and yet she was the one who purposely let go of my hand. So tell me, Brother Yin, tell me why would Qing Jie do such a thing?"
Su Yin opened his mouth, but no words came out. He wasn't sure of what he had seen. Shen Minyao, who had always been obedient to him—who always looked at him with admiration and longing, was now looking at him with unconcealed disgust but also hatred.
Shen Minyao looked at him as if she wanted to strangle him to death!
The fox woman refused to admit defeat though and continued her impeccable acting. Although she despised looking weak in front of other people, she cannot let this white lotus to let of her crime easily.
She looked at Shen Qing with the same expression Shen Minyao had when she was still alive, far from the arrogant facade she showed to General Shen. For those who could see her right now, it looked like she had suffered grievances and had broken down in tears as helplessness washed through her.
'Shen Qing, do you think you are the only one who knows how to deceive people?'
Shen Qing might have able to bully Shen Minyao in the past, but it didn't mean she would be able to do the same to the fox woman. The two had different personas, and it was Shen Qing's misfortune for the fox woman to possess the person she had just killed.
Shen Minyao would never return; even on her last breath, she was filled with so much resentment in her life. For the fox woman who died unjustly at the hands of her beloved, how could she not understand her host's past grievances?
Abandoned by her birth mother, rejected by her father. The only people who truly cared about Shen Minyao weren't even blood-related to her. Unlike other stepmothers who were vilified by people, Cheng Lifan took care of her as if she was hers.
Cheng Lifan didn't dare to hide her anger towards Shen Qing when she heard what her stepdaughter said. She pulled Shen Minyao into her arms and glared at Shen Qing and Su Yin. How could she not know what these two doing behind her stepdaughter's back?
She had warned Shen Minyao about Su Yin, but the young woman was completely smitten by him so Cheng Lifan couldn't do anything.
"Shen Qing, you know our Yao'er is afraid of the dark. Why did you force her to join you for hiking? What were you thinking?" She scolded the scheming young woman, upset that she wasn't able to protect Shen Minyao this time. There was no way Shen Minyao would accompany her cousin if she knew where they were going.
"A-Auntie, that's not my intention at all. It's my fault that I didn't pay more attention to Yaoyao and lost her." Shen Qing wept pitifully, much to the fox woman's disgust.
"Enough of this. Lifan, you look after Yao'er, and you better make sure to remind her not to cause trouble next time." General Shen huffed and shot Su Yin and Shen Qing a fierce glare before storming out of his daughter's room. He was aware that his daughter was wronged this time, but he wouldn't even protect her from the outsiders. Sadly, Shen Minyao was already used to it.
The fox woman had seen from her host's memories what kind of life and childhood she had growing up. Shen Minyao was not close with her father, and while it was true that Cheng Lifan became her stepmother due to some arrangements the Cheng family insisted on her, she had been Shen Minyao's mother figure.
"Auntie, I really didn't…" Shen Qing continued her act and clung to Su Yin's arm.
Shen Minyao grabbed the pillow on her bed and threw it right on her cousin's face.
"Get out! I don't want to see you! This pair of cheating couple!" She yelled, much to Shen Qing and Su Yin's shock. Both wondering since when did she know. "I will let Grandfather what you did to me and tell him to cancel our engagement!"
Su Yin's face blanched while Shen Qing cursed Shen Minyao repeatedly in her heart. It wasn't a secret that Grandfather Shen doted on Shen Minyao the most.
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