Reborn As The Wicked Little Sister-in-Law - Chapter 20

Chapter 20: The World is Always Exceptionally Harsh Toward Women

The atmosphere among the five was awkward. Normally, Mu Yan and Wei Chengyan walked together, but Jing Hongyi disliked Wei Chengyan and found Mu Yan too pretentious and annoyingly handsome to the ladies), so he usually kept his distance.

With the addition of Zou Shengsheng and Lyu Guiyan today, everyone had their own hidden agendas. Even a surface-level harmony was impossible to maintain.

Lyu Guiyan didn’t mind at first, but sitting there for so long, she kept receiving warning glares from Wei Chengyan. It felt like being in class with an insufferable headteacher. Even the waiter bringing tea and snacks thought they looked like total strangers forced to share a table.

To make the room seem somewhat normal, Lyu Guiyan braced herself to speak.

“Shengsheng, do you plan on staying in the outskirts forever?”

“I do.”

Seeing a chance to talk to Zou Shengsheng, Jing Hongyi immediately chimed in. “You could come to the capital. The wages are higher here, and there are many noble families—it would definitely be better than that flower nursery in the suburbs.”

Zou Shengsheng replied, “I thought about coming to the city before, but I really couldn’t find a good master to work for.”

In truth, Zou Shengsheng stayed away because of her father and younger brother. Her brother was small, and her father was a drunkard who did nothing but drink all day; she worried there would be no one to look after the boy.

Lyu Guiyan knew this well.

In the original novel, Zou Shengsheng’s family situation was discovered by the male lead in the middle of the story. However, Lyu Guiyan felt that waiting was a waste of time and would hinder their development. She decided to give them a nudge.

“Miss Zou, I’d like to try those Green Fruits the waiter just brought. Could you go and tell him for me?”

“Of course.” Zou Shengsheng didn’t suspect a thing.

Lyu Guiyan then gave Jing Hongyi’s sleeve a secret tug. Understanding the hint, Jing Hongyi made an excuse to use the restroom.

With those two gone, Lyu Guiyan stole a glance at Mu Yan, whose expression was complex.

After a moment, Mu Yan spoke. “You sent them away because you have something to say to us, don’t you?”

As expected of the male lead, Lyu Guiyan thought. He caught on instantly.

“I met Miss Zou in the countryside before. Her mother is dead, her father drinks and gambles all day, and her brother is only six. That is why a young woman like her takes the risk of working away from home.”

Hearing this, Wei Chengyan’s brow furrowed, lost in thought.

“Why are you telling me this?” Mu Yan asked.

Because you’re the male lead, she thought. If you weren’t, I would have told Jing Hongyi.

“Because the Young General of the Mu family doesn’t believe he is superior to others. In your eyes, men and women are equal. You don’t look down on people for their lowly birth, nor do you flaunt your noble status as if you live at the pinnacle of the world. You have always been able to see the suffering beneath the surface of the bustling capital.”

These words were Lyu Guiyan’s sincere feelings.

During her third chance at this life, she had initially taken the female lead’s role. In the original draft, Zou Shengsheng was supposed to be beaten to death by her drunken father in a few days and dumped in a dirty river, only to be saved by the passing male lead.

Lyu Guiyan feared she wouldn’t be able to control Zou Shengsheng’s future life. She feared that one day she might fall in love with the male lead and choose to live on as Zou Shengsheng instead of completing her mission to die. To avoid this, she chose the role of a “villainous minor character” instead.

She had realized since her first mission that she was never truly a part of this world. Inhabiting these roles was merely a means to fulfill the original characters’ tragic lives. She couldn’t afford to get attached to the mortal world; she feared the longer she stayed, the deeper she would sink. Her real life was difficult enough, and she didn’t want to become a mere “spirit” after three attempts, never to be human again.

Because Lyu Guiyan didn’t choose the female lead role, the system database generated a new script: Zou Shengsheng wasn’t beaten to death, but fell into the river while escaping and was saved by the male lead.

By telling Mu Yan about Zou Shengsheng’s family now, Lyu Guiyan hoped he wouldn’t arrive too late. Deep down, she pitied Zou Shengsheng: losing her mother at seven, her brother at sixteen, losing her first child days after birth at nineteen, and finally dying during the birth of her second child at twenty-one due to a frame-up. The male lead would then follow her in death five years later.

That was the story of Yunhua Tower—a tragedy through and through.

Lyu Guiyan couldn’t change everyone’s fate, but she could try to ensure Zou Shengsheng suffered a little less. She knew the male lead fell in love with her at first sight. If that was the case, she would cut out the endless “near-misses” in the plot and fast-track their relationship.

She knew the cost: her own “luck” in her next life would be diminished. But as long as she finished the mission and could be a wealthy woman in her next life, she didn’t mind being a bit unlucky—money would be enough.

“So, you want me to help Miss Zou? But this involves her father. How can I intervene without making her sad?” Mu Yan asked.

Lyu Guiyan rested her chin on her hands and thought for a moment. “She feels both hatred and a sense of kinship toward her father. If you force her to leave that home now, she won’t have the heart to do it. For now, just be there when her father tries to hit her. She is a kind, beautiful girl, but her weakness is her soft heart—she can’t withstand the moral blackmail of her relatives. Some hardships must be experienced to be understood, but I hope she only experiences them mentally, not physically.”

If Zou Shengsheng left, her drunkard father would just leech off their relatives and claim they were hiding her. Those relatives had their own families; none of them wanted to deal with a violent, alcoholic scumbag. They would constantly pressure Zou Shengsheng, telling her, “He’s family, you have to take care of your father.”

Lyu Guiyan understood that predicament all too well.

“I understand,” Mu Yan said. “As they say, filial piety comes first. If she leaves her father, people will brand her as unfilial. Her father could even sue her in court. She is a woman, and the world is always exceptionally harsh toward women.”

After speaking, Mu Yan glanced back at the silent Wei Chengyan.

“I’m glad you understand, Young General.”

Just as they finished, Zou Shengsheng and Jing Hongyi returned to the room.

Jing Hongyi sat down and was immediately startled by Wei Chengyan. “Heir Wei, you’re crying? Even you cry? I thought you were a stone-carved night-demon that no storm could knock down.”

Lyu Guiyan felt a pang of disappointment. The reason she hadn’t sent Wei Chengyan away was that Wei was also a woman (in disguise). In their shared longing for a father’s love, Wei Chengyan and Zou Shengsheng were cut from the same cloth. Lyu Guiyan hoped that, in the future, Wei Chengyan wouldn’t be too hostile toward Zou Shengsheng.

“Are you alright, Heir?” Lyu Guiyan asked tentatively.

“I’m fine!” Wei Chengyan snapped.

Don’t you dare pity her, the system Qiyun warned. The pain of the curse gets worse every time it’s triggered.

Wei Chengyan was her opponent in this mission. Lyu Guiyan wasn’t so saintly as to help her enemy.

Don’t worry, Qiyun. I’ll never sympathize with Wei Chengyan again in this life.

“It’s getting late,” Zou Shengsheng said as people from the flower convoy came to fetch her. “Gentlemen, I must take my leave.”

“I’ll walk you,” Jing Hongyi offered.

“Thank you for the kind offer, Master Jing, but it’s a long way back. I wouldn’t want to trouble you.”

Zou Shengsheng rejected him. She knew he was interested, but she was not.

“Alright then,” Jing Hongyi said, looking dejected.

Soon after the convoy left, Mu Yan also slipped away. Jing Hongyi found the tea house boring and decided he’d rather head to a brothel for some fun.

Only Lyu Guiyan and the silent Wei Chengyan remained in the room.

“Are you… still sad?” Lyu Guiyan asked cautiously.

“No!”