"Xinyue!" Huo Siqing strode past Yun Anan without a second glance, his gaze fixed on Yun Xinyue. His face was a mask of dark pity as he stared at her bleeding wound, a savage glint flashing in his hawk-like eyes. "It's nothing, just a scratch. It doesn't hurt," Yun Xinyue managed, forcing a fragile smile for him. "My sister didn't mean it. Please, don't be angry with her..." Didn't mean it? Huo Siqing’s frigid gaze swept to Yun Anan, who stood pale and shaken by the table. Disgust twisted his handsome features. "Yun Anan, do you have a death wish?" "It wasn't me. She cut herself. I..." Yun Anan bit her lip, trying to explain. "Enough!" Huo Siqing's voice cut through her like a whip, his impatience boiling over. "Yun Anan, take a look in the mirror. Look at that ugly, vicious face of yours. Xinyue is your own sister!" Yun Xinyue had always been terrified of pain. Why would she ever cut herself for no reason? The woman couldn't even bother to think up a decent lie. "I really didn't do it. The only reason Xinyue ran from the wedding six months ago was because she heard those rumors—the ones saying you didn't have long to live. It wasn't some scheme I cooked up to take her place!" Yun Anan endured the pain that made her teeth chatter, her bright eyes fixed on Huo Siqing, filled with a desperate hope. She just wanted him to believe her. Just once. Leaning weakly in Huo Siqing's arms, Yun Xinyue let a faint, mocking smile touch her lips at Yun Anan's words. As if he would ever believe her. After all, the one who had been a pathological liar since childhood, the one who bullied her own sister, had always been "Yun Anan." "Next time, I won't be so forgiving. Get out," Huo Siqing's voice was ice. Averting his eyes in disgust, he immediately rang for someone to come and treat Yun Xinyue's wound. Yun Anan watched, utterly devastated. A hollow ache bloomed in her chest, as if her heart had been carved out and left open to a bitter wind. A chill seeped through her, from her head to the soles of her feet. She curved her lips into a smile that was half self-mockery, half disbelief. It was amazing how time could change a person so completely. - Exhausted, Yun Anan returned to the Huo residence. She had no appetite and went straight upstairs. Her mother-in-law, Qi Lan, was coming down the stairs to meet her. Dressed in an exquisite, stately gown, her flawlessly maintained face showed no trace of age, radiating an air of nobility. Yun Anan stopped, murmuring softly, "Mother." "Did you forget this family has a curfew? What sort of sordid affairs keep you out until this hour?" Qi Lan sneered, her eyes raking over Yun Anan with contempt. "I'll be more mindful next time," Yun Anan replied, her expression unchanging, not questioning when this curfew had been put in place. "And another thing. Siqing is buried in work every day. If you can't help him as his wife, the least you can do is not pester him for... *that*. You're not some hussy from the gutter, so stop acting like a cheap seductress." Qi Lan was pointedly referring to the sounds from their bedroom the night before. The mere thought of it made her skin crawl. How a woman with a reputation for running with thugs and hooligans since high school had managed to marry into their Huo family was a mystery. She must have been a saint in a past life to deserve such luck. If the Old Master hadn't insisted on honoring a promise to an old friend and refused to let Siqing divorce her, Qi Lan would have thrown her out on the street long ago. Yun Anan bit her lip, her eyes turning red at the rims. A lump formed in her throat, stealing her words. She knew Qi Lan was fully aware that since their wedding day, last night was the only time Huo Siqing had ever touched her. Suddenly, something inside Yun Anan snapped. She looked directly at Qi Lan and said, "Mother, if that 'behavior' is so shameful, then producing an heir for the Huo family is going to be quite difficult, wouldn't you agree?" "You—" Before Qi Lan could continue her tirade, Yun Anan gave a slight nod and walked past her up the stairs. Stunned that the meek, easily manipulated Yun Anan had dared to talk back, Qi Lan stormed down the stairs in a fury. Housekeeper Lin was just coming out of the kitchen. Qi Lan's face immediately hardened as she repeated her daily order. "Remember to watch her drink the milk. Do you understand?" Produce an heir for the Huo family? *Hah.* As if she were even worthy.