6

Cen Lingqiu said she would take her away, but the weather these past few days had been terrible, with almost continuous heavy rain. Occasionally, dense fog would settle due to the high terrain.

Because of the poor weather, a small landslide occurred on the hillside. Although it wasn't severe, Cen Lingqiu decided it would be safer to wait until the rain subsided.

These days, Yu Mingjiao rarely left her room. Cen Lingqiu would bring her meals to her room and then leave, returning later to take the dishes downstairs.

As usual, Yu Mingjiao barely ate.

Perhaps Cen Lingqiu's words last time made her believe a little, so these days she ate her meals properly and didn't engage in any more self-destructive behavior.

She spent her days quietly in her room, painting.

Sometimes, Cen Lingqiu would bring her some afternoon tea and see her silently sitting in her wheelchair, painting.

Her long, jet-black hair spread over her thin back like seaweed. Her delicate profile and perfect features were perpetually shrouded in a heavy, gloomy aura, as if she were painting in a state of complete numbness, devoid of life.

Cen Lingqiu noticed that she had painted many sunsets, especially those by the sea.

This large villa was too dull, and out of boredom, Cen Lingqiu casually asked, "Do you like sunsets?"

Yu Mingjiao remained silent, saying nothing.

Sometimes, Cen Lingqiu felt that Yu Mingjiao was almost lifeless—she spoke little, ate little, rarely smiled, and even moved very little.

From a distance, she seemed like a doll with a broken mechanism.

Cen Lingqiu asked the system about Yu Mingjiao's self-destructive tendencies, and the system reported that it was still between eighty and ninety percent, indicating a high-risk level.

Cen Lingqiu assumed that Yu Mingjiao's deteriorating mental state was due to her dislike of the estate.

Yu Mingjiao was reclusive and gloomy by nature, and Cen Lingqiu was also introverted and indifferent. Neither of them particularly enjoyed lively environments, so they barely spoke these past few days.

It was as if two strangers were living in this damp estate.

Today, the rain finally lessened, and the fog dispersed.

The daylight brightened.

Yu Mingjiao was painting again today.

Since that day when Cen Lingqiu mentioned taking her away once the rain stopped, she had rarely come to this room. Her self-torment seemed to have ceased, and she no longer spoke in an arrogant and aggressive tone.

Although she didn't understand why Cen Lingqiu had suddenly changed, these past few days had been the quietest since she arrived at this estate.

Yu Mingjiao didn't really believe that Cen Lingqiu would truly take her away from here. She didn't trust this woman at all; she was just waiting for Cen Lingqiu to show her true colors.

If this woman was merely pretending to promise her freedom, Yu Mingjiao would drag her down to die together.

After all, she had nothing to lose, so she had nothing to fear.

It was like she was playing a game with Cen Lingqiu. Once the game ended, everything would stop.

Just thinking about that scene, imagining Cen Lingqiu's pain and fear, filled Yu Mingjiao with anticipation.

She was painting when she ran out of blue paint halfway through.

The paint box was on a cabinet against the wall. Yu Mingjiao moved her wheelchair toward the cabinet. She glanced up, remembering that Cen Lingqiu had deliberately placed her paint box on the third shelf, just out of her reach.

Yu Mingjiao coldly stared at the corner of the paint box on the third shelf. She knew this was Cen Lingqiu's way of humiliating her.

This height was easily reachable for anyone who could stand, but she couldn't stand.

She struggled to stand.

When she was seventeen, her stepmother pushed her down the stairs, and her legs were ruined. She had once tried to stand again, but each time, she fell to the ground after just a second.

Time and time again, after countless attempts, she had given up completely.

Perhaps the recent mental torment had driven her to madness; she once again foolishly tried to stand.

The result was the same.

As soon as her upper body left the wheelchair, and her hand barely touched the edge of the third shelf, she quickly collapsed back into the wheelchair as if her body had lost all sensation.

Her hand swiped, and the paint box fell. Yu Mingjiao instinctively tried to dodge, hurriedly moving her wheelchair, but in her panic, the wheelchair collided with the desk behind her. She lost her balance and fell to the ground.

The lid of the paint box popped open, and the chaotic colors spilled onto the floor. Yu Mingjiao fell onto the paint box.

In an instant, her pale, thin wrists were stained with paint.

She was wearing a white knitted blouse with a short skirt today, and in a moment, her white blouse and legs were covered in various colors. Even her hair and face were smudged.

Although Yu Mingjiao was an art major and naturally couldn't stay clean while painting, she was a neat freak and couldn't tolerate paint on her body.

The sticky, clammy feeling made her extremely uncomfortable.

So she tried to crawl back to her wheelchair and go to the bathroom to take a shower.

But even this simple task was beyond her reach. Her waist had just hit the corner of the desk, and now it hurt with every movement. She couldn't even crawl.

She lay in the sticky paint, feeling like she was being slimed by a snail. Even she thought she looked too pathetic and ugly.

Something so small, something that should have been easy, was beyond her. Even getting to the bathroom was a struggle now.

She could do nothing, lying there like a dead person.

Yu Mingjiao truly—

Hated herself like this.

She hated being crippled, hated how even the smallest issues could so easily destroy her.

She hated everything.

She really just wanted to be normal.

But why was she the only one with a broken body? Why was everything so horrible for her?

Why?

She bit her lip hard, her eyes red and moist.

So painful.

Her body felt so disgusting.

At that moment, the door suddenly opened, and Cen Lingqiu walked in. "What was that noise—"

She saw Yu Mingjiao lying on the floor, covered in paint, and quickly stepped forward to help her up.

Yu Mingjiao didn't push her away. She had to admit, she was too weak to do anything on her own, and now she had to rely on Cen Lingqiu.

Yu Mingjiao was enveloped in overwhelming self-loathing and shame.

Cen Lingqiu didn't ask why she had fallen; she simply helped her up with a calm, detached expression, then wiped the paint off her skin with a wet cloth and proceeded to clean her hair.

Yu Mingjiao was silent as death, not moving an inch.

A strange, absurd harmony existed between them.

But beneath that harmony was an iceberg.

"It's hard to clean up," Cen Lingqiu said. "How about a bath?"

Yu Mingjiao slowly nodded.

Cen Lingqiu prepared the bath and then placed her in the tub. "You can bathe yourself, right?"

Yu Mingjiao silently nodded.

Cen Lingqiu was used to her coldness and didn't mind. "Take your time. Call me if you need anything."

She didn't particularly enjoy bathing others, so after getting Yu Mingjiao's answer, she left.

Cen Lingqiu tidied up the messy floor. Since the protagonist was disabled, bathing was bound to be a bit difficult for her, so she waited in the room for her to finish.

She waited a long time. Half an hour passed, and Yu Mingjiao still hadn't finished. Worried she might have done something reckless again, Cen Lingqiu went to the bathroom door and called out to her. There was no response, and no sound from inside.

Afraid she might have lost it again, Cen Lingqiu hurriedly opened the bathroom door.

Yu Mingjiao glanced at her coolly, then looked away, submerged in the bathtub without any expression or movement.

Cen Lingqiu sighed in relief.

"Why didn't you call me when you were done?" Cen Lingqiu walked over and touched the water; it was no longer warm.

"The water isn't hot anymore. Why didn't you change it?"

"..."

Yu Mingjiao didn't want to talk to her. Every time she saw Cen Lingqiu, she was reminded of how pathetic she was, relying on her tormentor. And all her current misery stemmed from Cen Lingqiu's cruelty.

Cen Lingqiu sighed, unable to understand the mindset of young people. She tried to help Yu Mingjiao dry off, but she seemed ashamed and avoided her touch.

"What's there to be shy about?" Cen Lingqiu said. "We're both women; there's nothing to be afraid of. I already helped you change clothes last time. I've seen everything there is to see."

To be honest, the protagonist's body was too thin, all bones, and her skin was unnaturally pale from lack of sunlight—not very attractive, really. But she didn't mention this to Yu Mingjiao.

Yu Mingjiao still avoided her, her wet hair covering her shoulders and chest as she turned away, refusing to look at Cen Lingqiu.

Hearing Cen Lingqiu's words, her eyelashes fluttered slightly.

She had always thought it was a maid who had helped her change that day, but it turned out to be her?

That didn't seem like something Cen Lingqiu would do.

Cen Lingqiu, seeing no response, took it as a silent agreement. She picked up a dry towel and tried to wipe Yu Mingjiao's body, but Yu Mingjiao took the towel, her voice cold, "I'll do it myself. You can go out."

"..."

So troublesome.

Cen Lingqiu left, waiting a few minutes before hearing the silence inside and knowing she had finished changing clothes. She went back in and carried her out.

Yu Mingjiao was light, so Cen Lingqiu had no trouble carrying her.

This was the first time Yu Mingjiao had been carried by her, and she felt the warmth of the woman's body, which made her feel repulsed and disgusted.

If she could, she would want nothing to do with Cen Lingqiu. But so many things were beyond her control. She couldn't even hate this woman completely, because she had to rely on her.

Cen Lingqiu placed Yu Mingjiao on the bed. Seeing her hair was still wet, she gently touched it, "You didn't dry your hair? It's so wet."

Yu Mingjiao looked listless, as if exhausted.

"It's none of your business. Leave; I want to sleep."

"You're just going to sleep like that?" Cen Lingqiu raised an eyebrow, "You'll get cold and catch a cold, you know."

Yu Mingjiao couldn't understand why this spoiled young lady had suddenly turned into a nagging, caring sister. What had gotten into her?

Did it really matter if she got sick? No one cared. She even wished she could get sick and die.

She wanted to laugh, but she couldn't.

"Get out."

Yu Mingjiao already felt enough shame. Falling to the ground and not being able to get up, being seen in such a pathetic state by the person who tormented her, and even needing help from the person she despised most to take a bath.

She was already a pitiful, prideful person, but reality repeatedly crushed her fragile pride under the feet of the one she despised.

All she could do was seethe with self-loathing, unable to do anything else.

Beneath Yu Mingjiao's calm exterior lay immense despair.

Cen Lingqiu quietly watched her.

In these few short days, she had begun to sense that the protagonist was a girl who didn't value herself much. She was always closed off, extremely rejecting others.

And she was only twenty years old.

A very beautiful age.

She was twenty and still alive in this world, which was already an achievement.

But Yu Mingjiao seemed to be dying every second.

A faint ripple of emotion stirred in Cen Lingqiu's heart—a strange feeling of pity for her mission target for the first time.

This weak sense of pity made her ignore Yu Mingjiao's words. There was no hairdryer in this room, so she went to the room next door.

Yu Mingjiao's expression was emotionless as she watched her leave.

Cen Lingqiu left, as expected. There was no way she would really care about whether she lived or died.

No one in this world cared about her, not even herself.

This was perfectly normal.

Yu Mingjiao found it hard to breathe. The room was too quiet, and the sound of her wet hair dripping onto the floor echoed in the silence.

Drip, drip.

She remained still, sitting on the bed, not moving a muscle. The room was deathly silent.

In that silence, the sound of the door opening was suddenly startling.

Yu Mingjiao looked up.

Cen Lingqiu walked over with a hairdryer, "Dry your hair before you sleep."

She plugged in the dryer and said calmly, "Even if you're annoyed with me, bear with it. I'll leave after I'm done. Be good."

Yu Mingjiao looked at her, seemingly not understanding why she hadn't left.

The hum of the hairdryer filled the quiet room as Cen Lingqiu silently dried her hair. Yu Mingjiao didn't resist like a hedgehog this time.

She lowered her head, quietly letting her dry her hair.

Cen Lingqiu's fingers occasionally rubbed her hair, massaging her scalp. Being so close, Yu Mingjiao could even smell her scent.

A faint cherry blossom fragrance.

She remembered that Cen Lingqiu used to reek of strong perfume.

This was the first time anyone had dried Yu Mingjiao's hair.

It was a strange feeling.

When her hair was almost dry, Cen Lingqiu stroked her smooth, black hair and couldn't help but say, "Your hair... is so beautiful."

Yu Mingjiao's hair was jet black and straight, without any split ends or yellowing, like a smooth black silk, very beautiful.

Cen Lingqiu envied the protagonist's hair.

When she was alive, her hair was short and yellow due to malnutrition, with split ends everywhere, looking like a frayed broomstick, very ugly.

So she had always admired and envied people with beautiful hair.

Yu Mingjiao didn't take her compliment seriously.

Cen Lingqiu wanted to play with her hair a bit more, but her phone rang. She glanced at it and quickly grabbed it.

She swiped her finger across the screen and threw it on the table, not caring, but the phone rang again, and Cen Lingqiu's face showed a trace of impatience.

"I'm going out to take this call," she told Yu Mingjiao. "Dry the ends of your hair yourself; they're still a bit wet."

She left quickly, not noticing Yu Mingjiao's odd expression.

Although Cen Lingqiu had grabbed the phone quickly, Yu Mingjiao had caught a glimpse of the name on the screen.

"Brother."

Lin Qiu's brother, Lin Dong.

The one who knocked her out and locked her in this estate, treating her like a plaything.

The source of all her pain.

Why was he calling Cen Lingqiu?

Was he convincing her to continue imprisoning her?

Or had he come up with some other disgusting way for Cen Lingqiu to torture her?

Why was he calling Cen Lingqiu!

Cen Lingqiu had finally gone mad and acted like a normal person, even promising to take her away.

But Cen Lingqiu adored her brother. What if she changed her mind after talking to him?

Yu Mingjiao anxiously bit her finger.

Would she go back to her old life?

No.

No.

Yu Mingjiao's eyes turned sinister, her tender fingers already bitten to the point of bleeding, though she didn't notice.

Why would she believe that Cen Lingqiu had changed and would even let her leave this estate?

It made no sense.

That woman had no reason to do so. She despised her and took pleasure in tormenting her.

She was a thoroughly bad person.

It was impossible for her to suddenly become a kind and understanding person overnight.

And she actually believed that woman's words.

This might just be a new way for the siblings to torture her.

Yu Mingjiao carefully pushed her wheelchair out the door, hearing voices from the room next door. She moved very slowly and stopped at the door of Cen Lingqiu's room.

The door wasn't closed tightly, and the house was quiet. Yu Mingjiao had good hearing, so she could hear not only Cen Lingqiu's voice but also a little of the voice on the other end of the phone.

Cen Lingqiu was annoyed by the male lead's call. Every time he called, it was to ask if Yu Mingjiao was being obedient, urging her to bully Yu Mingjiao more to break her stubborn spirit.

Those words were both malicious and irritating, and she always brushed him off.

"Sis, is it really that hard to record a simple video? Why do you keep refusing?"

The male lead on the other end of the phone kept asking the original protagonist to record a video of the female lead being bullied. Cen Lingqiu couldn't understand his perverted mindset.

"I've been busy with work lately, no time." She made an excuse.

"You're just brushing me off." The voice on the other end was cold, "What are you thinking, Sis? Ever since you inexplicably fired the mute maid, you haven't sent me any updates about Yu Mingjiao."

Cen Lingqiu sat on the sofa, rubbing her forehead, wondering if the male lead would go crazy if she hung up on him.

He kept talking, "Sis, I know you hate Yu Mingjiao. Are you worried I don't love Ning Jia anymore? I still do; I love her deeply. Yu Mingjiao is just a toy to me. You know that toys are meant to be discarded. I like seeing her depend on me like a piece of trash. A toy only needs to be obedient."

His voice was low and cold, each word sending chills down her spine.

Cen Lingqiu felt disgusted. In her past missions, she had encountered scummy male leads, but ones like Lin Dong were rare.

That such a person could be the male lead was a miracle, and Yu Mingjiao, as the female lead, was truly unfortunate.

Cen Lingqiu couldn't admonish the male lead, fearing it would severely break character. After all, the original protagonist was someone who obeyed her brother's every word.

She didn't want to talk to him, so she responded with a few "uh-huhs," "Got it. Hanging up now."

"Wait—" Lin Dong stopped her, "Sis, I'm coming back to the country in a few days. I need your help."

Cen Lingqiu's expression turned cold, "With what?"

"Help me break Yu Mingjiao's spirit. I hate the way she looks at me like I'm her enemy. I heard from the maid that you even treated Yu Mingjiao's wounds. Sis, I trust you're on my side. You wouldn't suddenly go soft on me. I know you'll help me."

Oh, so he wanted her to help him torment the female lead.

Lin Dong's voice was low, "Sis, answer me."

Cen Lingqiu didn't want to chat anymore, worried he would keep asking questions. Impatiently, she brushed him off, "Got it, really hanging up now."

Before he could speak again, Cen Lingqiu hung up the phone and tossed it aside.

Annoying man.

She needed to find an excuse to avoid his calls next time.

Meanwhile, outside the door, Yu Mingjiao's face had turned pale and cold.

She hadn't heard everything, only bits and pieces, but it wasn't hard to piece together.

She heard Lin Dong call her a toy that could be discarded at any time.

A toy meant to replace someone else.

She heard Lin Dong telling Cen Lingqiu to keep torturing her, and Cen Lingqiu agreed.

Ah.

So Cen Lingqiu hadn't changed after all.

She was still the same as before.

She had just come up with a new way to humiliate her.

As for what exactly she had in mind, Yu Mingjiao no longer cared. It wouldn't be anything good.

She really wanted to laugh.

She had always been a toy to this pair of siblings.

Constantly being toyed with.

The saddest part was that she knew the outcome but couldn't do anything about it.

Lin Dong was coming back.

Who knew what he had planned next?

Whether it was punishment or fake gifts, Yu Mingjiao felt utterly disgusted.

She couldn't escape this prison.

And now, a new kind of suffering was about to begin.

Yu Mingjiao wasn't particularly disappointed; she accepted this disgusting reality with surprising calm.

Inside, she was like a damp, black lake, with the only white spot now tainted by the black sediment, leaving her heart empty and devoid of any light.

She quietly wheeled herself back to her room.

That night, she had another dream.

She dreamed of when she was very young, just taking a few extra bites at the dinner table, and her stepmother got upset and scolded her, leading her father to grab her head and slam it against the table while cursing her.

"Eat so much, are you a pig? You're just a useless eater!"

"Your mom worked so hard to cook, and she didn't eat much. Your sister only ate a little, so why are you the only one eating and eating!"

Her nose bled heavily, and she softly begged for mercy.

"I'm sorry, Dad, I won't eat too much anymore..."

"I'll eat very little from now on, I'm sorry..."

She dreamed of when she was seventeen, and her stepsister stole the necklace her mother had left her. When she tried to take it back, her stepsister wouldn't give it to her. Then her stepmother came over, took the necklace, and tried to give it to her stepsister. She tried to grab it back, but in the struggle, her stepmother pushed her from the third floor. She didn't die, but her legs were ruined.

She lay in the hospital, and no one came to see her.

They all thought she deserved it.

Then she dreamed of her first year in college when Lin Dong wanted her to be with him. She refused, so he drove her to a deserted highway in the middle of winter, leaving her there, hoping she'd change her mind.

She was alone, moving her wheelchair aimlessly in the desolate wilderness, terrified of the dark and unable to see the road.

A stray dog came out of nowhere and charged at her. She was terrified, and when the wheelchair hit a rock, she fell to the ground.

The dog bit into her waist, and she screamed in pain, struggling desperately.

Lin Dong arrived just in time to save her.

A scar was left on her waist, impossible to remove.

"..."

Yu Mingjiao woke up with a start.

The pain from the dream still seemed to linger on her body.

She felt pain all over.

Her father, stepmother, stepsister, Lin Dong, Cen Lingqiu.

Every one of them was a source of her misery and pain.

Yu Mingjiao truly didn't understand why she was still alive after all this. The shame of the day, the malice from Cen Lingqiu and Lin Dong, the continued lack of freedom, all left her feeling utterly exhausted.

Why was she so tired?

Why was breathing so difficult?

She no longer wanted to continue this miserable life.

She was truly exhausted.

And she was so afraid of pain.

"Rip——"

The sound of a blade cutting through skin was sharp and piercing.

Yu Mingjiao curled up on the bed, quietly feeling the blood flow from her wrist.

Her expression was frighteningly calm as she stared unblinkingly at the pitch-black window.

Tonight was a moonless night.

"Yu Mingjiao! Do you know your mother killed herself because of postpartum depression after giving birth to you! You're a curse who killed your own mother!"

"Yu Mingjiao, what do you think you are, daring to touch my brother, you crippled piece of trash? What right do you have!"

"Yu Mingjiao, how dare you show me that attitude? If you didn't look a little like Ning Jia, do you think anyone would bother with a piece of trash like you—"

There were so many voices in her head—her stepmother's, Cen Lingqiu's, Lin Dong's.

So loud, so loud.

It was so annoying. She couldn't understand why these people kept repeating the fact that she was trash.

As if her existence was something shameful.

"Sis, Mom died, and Dad left us too. Are you really a jinx, Sis? Why is everyone leaving us? Sis, will you curse me to death too?"

Her stepsister's childish voice suddenly echoed, like a ghost.

Ah, ah, ah, ah—

Shut up.

Just shut up.

Yu Mingjiao pressed her ears tightly.

Why did they keep talking?

She was going to die soon, so why were they still bothering her?

The pain in her wrist grew more pronounced, and the bedsheets were quickly soaked with blood. Yu Mingjiao felt like she was lying in a cold grave.

Her consciousness grew fuzzier, and her body colder.

Suddenly, she reflected on her twenty years of life.

Loneliness, abandonment, imprisonment, and the absence of love.

Endless pain.

Nothing worth celebrating.

If only...

Forget it.