004

Blood splattered across my face as Yu Wei let out a shrill scream of agony.

It was as if I had been cursed—I barely felt the shards of the broken lamp embedding themselves deeper into my own hand as I stabbed him over and over again.

The door burst open.

Lin Zechuan and Shen Yuzhou rushed in, trying to pull me away.

But as soon as they reached for me, I lashed out wildly, the sharp edge slicing across their faces.

I curled into myself, trembling, my eyes filled with terror.

"Get out!"

"All of you, get out!"

Lin Zechuan opened his mouth to speak, but the moment his gaze fell on the scars littering my bare skin, his voice caught in his throat.

"Ranran… your scars…"

"Why won't you just leave?!"

I grabbed a nearby glass and hurled it at them with all my strength.

"Is this still not enough for you?"

"After everything you've done to me, is it still not enough?!"

"Do I have to die right now for you to finally be satisfied?!"

Shen Yuzhou moved to restrain me, but I sank my teeth viciously into his arm, biting down until the taste of iron filled my mouth.

Blood trickled down his wrist.

Behind him, Lin Jiaojiao's face twisted in horror.

"Azhou, your hand—!"

"Move!"

With a rough shove, Shen Yuzhou pushed Lin Jiaojiao aside, letting me continue biting into his arm without resistance. His body trembled, but he made no effort to shake me off.

"Ranran, don't be scared."

"I'm here. I'll stay with you. Just take a deep breath, okay?"

Lin Jiaojiao, sprawled on the floor, clutched her bleeding hands where the glass shards had cut her.

She reached for Lin Zechuan, but he stepped right over her.

His hands hesitated in the air, trembling as he tried to take mine, yet too afraid to touch me.

"Ranran, it's okay now."

"Let your big brother take you to treat your wounds, alright?"

I slashed wildly with the broken glass, aiming for the two of them without hesitation.

The commotion quickly drew a crowd.

Then—

"Ranran, it's Grandma."

Her trembling voice broke through the chaos, carrying the weight of sorrow and love.

My vision swam.

Before I could fully process her presence, I felt a sharp prick in my arm.

The doctor beside her had injected a sedative.

Within moments, my body went limp, my consciousness slipping away.

—

I had a dream.

Countless faces appeared before me, each one wearing a different expression.

One moment, my mother was holding me tenderly, whispering,

"Ranran, you are Mommy's most beloved treasure."

The next, her gentle gaze turned sharp and full of hatred.

"Why did you switch places with Jiaojiao?"

Panic surged through me.

I reached for my father, clutching his hand, begging him to help explain—to tell her it wasn't me.

But his eyes, once warm and kind, grew cold and unrecognizable.

He shoved me to the ground.

"If I had known you were this wicked, I should have strangled you the moment you were born."

Tears streamed down my face as I pleaded with everyone I saw—

My brother.

My fiancé.

The butler…

But they all believed it was my fault.

Together, they pushed me into a bottomless pool.

Venomous snakes, their forked tongues flickering, slithered toward me.

I desperately tried to climb out, but the pool's walls were smooth, impossible to grasp.

On the shore, familiar faces stood in a circle, each holding wooden sticks.

Their eyes were cold, indifferent—

As if the moment I tried to escape, they would strike me down without hesitation.

I wept silently.

When I opened my eyes, all I saw was white.

"Ranran."

At the sound of that voice, panic surged through me.

I scrambled backward, tumbling off the hospital bed, the IV needle ripping from my hand.

"Get out!"

"Go away!"

"Stay far away from me!"

Curled up in the corner, I trembled violently, my eyes locked on Lin Zechuan and the others in terror.

For once, Lin Father and Lin Mother wore expressions of guilt.

Lin Mother cautiously took a step forward, her voice gentle.

"Ranran, it's me… I'm your mother."

"Don't be afraid, okay?"

"Tell me, your injuries—"

"Shut up!"

I couldn't control myself.

I grabbed the vase on the table and hurled it at them.

"Is it not enough?!"

"Is this not enough?!"

"Did I ask to be swapped at birth?!"

"Did I force Lin Jiaojiao to harm and kill?!"

"Why won't you let me go?!"

"Lin Jiaojiao's selfishness cost my real parents their lives, and you—

You ruined mine."

"Did my entire family owe the Lin family in a past life?!"