What are You Trying to Do?

Xia Villa was located at the last row of the housing estate, mainly owned by the richest of the rich. Lan You drove to Xia Yanxi's house, and when she wanted to follow Xia Yanxi, she quickly stopped Lan You, asking her to remain in the car. 

Once she had entered the compound and stepped into the flower garden, Xia Yanxi smiled provokingly as she gazed up at the three storey villa, beautifully and lavishly built. 

This place… this entire villa was filled with sweet memories. Was. Ever since the woman known as Yao Manlian moved in, everything changed. 

The rose garden that was once beloved by her mother was removed. The commissioned pond was filled and covered up… 

Back then, Yao Manlian would always coax her, telling her one white lie after another just to get closer to Yanxi. Xia Yanxi herself was naively fooled. She thought that this stranger was going to be her new mother, to give her a chance to have a new mother-daughter relationship. It was hard to discern her true intentions as ever since the day she moved in, Yao Manlian had been an angel to her. Even if Yanxi had a fight with Yao Manlian's daughter, Yanxi's stepsister, Yao Manlian would always step in and defend Xia Yanxi. 

'Heh.' 

Last night was the big reveal. Only then did Xia Yanxi know what kind of person Yao Manlian really was. 

Aunt Xu, the woman who had been with Xia Yanxi her entire life, came running, concerned about Xia Yanxi's well-being, until a maid interjected their conversation with a face that was incredibly displeased. 

"Miss, the master and mistress are waiting for you in the living room." 

"Aunt Xu, you need not worry. I'll be fine," she said. Her eyes glinted with a sharp look; determined even, as she walked into the excessively large villa. 

Huo Changsheng and Yao Manlian could be seen sitting on the leather sofa, and when Xia Yanxi made her presence known, their expressions changed drastically. 

"You little rascal! You're finally back! Just when I thought you had forgotten how to do so!" Huo Changsheng bellowed with a face so enraged, his eyes filled with anger, as if the person he was glaring at, Xia Yanxi, had wronged his ancestors. 

Xia Yanxi could not help but feel disappointed. She thought that she still had hope. She thought that her father was oblivious to Yao Manlian's scheme to gift Yanxi to a certain Mr. Gu. However, from the looks of it, they, Huo Changsheng and Yao Manlian, were in this together. Perhaps, he could even be the mastermind behind all this. 

They wanted to use her, to sell her off to a certain Mr. Gu for a certain price, but failed as Yanxi had run away… 

One could only imagine how they would feel, to have one's plan foiled so easily… The rage, the hatred…

"You speak as if I am not part of this family. This is my house, why can't I return," Xia Yanxi retorted, the taunting, provoking smile still hanging on her face. She pulled her hair back, lifting the hair that was hanging down from her forehead. She arched the corner of her lips and said, "the only reason you're up this early, sitting there, is to interrogate the reason why I left the banquet, why I wouldn't let myself sleep with Mr. Gu, am I right?!" 

"Dear husband, do you see the way she is talking back to us? All that we have done is to care for her her entire life. We were kind enough to help her find a rich family to be wedded to, to have a happy life. To think that she would toss it all away…"

Since the jig was up, and the curtains were drawn, there was no reason to keep it a secret anymore. Yao Manlian stopped pretending and started to plant sweet words in her husband's ears. 

Xia Yanxi scoffed. 

"If you think he's rich, perhaps you should get married to him instead. Or, how about letting your own daughter be given away? I'm not yours to be thrown as you please, to be used as a tool for your benefit! Who are you to dictate my life?" 

The thought of how she was tainted, fueled Xia Yanxi's entire soul with rage. So much so that she wanted to tear off Yao Manlian's putrid, phoney face! 

Yao Manlian clenched her fist and beat it hard against her chest. Her eyes started to tear up, and with the most shocked expression she could muster, she turned to Huo Changsheng. Her voice was choked and hoarse as she said, "Listen to the girl. How dare she talk to me that way! What would happen when one day her wings harden? What then? Would I still have a say in this household? I was only trying to find a wealthy family for her, yet what do I get in return? It seems my love for her the past six years had been for naught…" 

Huo Changsheng bought the entire facade, the crocodile tears and her self-directed act. He was touched by her, and with anger in his eyes, he glared at Xia Yanxi. 

"Apologize to your mother." 

"My mother is dead. She's nothing but a homewrecker!" 

"ENOUGH! You ungrateful daughter!" Huo Changsheng roared as he stood up. He strode toward Xia Yanxi and gave her a tight slap.