"So hot, so very hot…"
Within the residential quarters, the sounds of insects came in waves.
On the vintage wooden bed in the room, Chen Nanxing was running a high fever, her face flushed red.
In her dizzy state, it seemed as though she was having a bizarre dream.
She dreamed that the era she was living in was actually a period novel.
She was the pitiful supporting character in the book, while the protagonist was her dear friend, Tong Nian.
Tong Nian continuously warned her that her cousin harbored bad intentions, advising her to be wary, but she didn't take it seriously.
As a result, her cousin stole her fiancé.
Her father asked her to replace her cousin in going to the countryside. Despite Tong Nian's persuasion against it, she insisted due to her altruistic nature.
As a result, under dismal conditions in the countryside, she narrowly escaped being assaulted by the villagers and lost her life in the deep mountain.
Afterward, with the help of Tong Nian, she finally returned to the city.
Only when she arrived home did she discover that her mother had, for an unknown reason, gone mad and had been admitted to a psychiatric hospital.
Her father had remarried, creating a new family.
Turning her grief into determination, she worked hard to get into university, only to have her admission letter torn up by a young man who secretly admired her.
Through a series of unfortunate events, she ended up marrying a military officer several years older than her.
She couldn't have children, so the couple adopted a daughter.
Unexpectedly, the daughter she had adopted turned out to be an ungrateful wretch, tormenting her until she lost her mind.
In the end of the story, she jumped off the thirtieth floor of a building...
"Huu..."
Chen Nanxing opened her eyes in horror. The fear before death in her dream still lingered in her body, causing her to breathe heavily and her complexion to turn pale.
"Smash!"
The sound of porcelain cups landing on the floor came from outside the room.
"Chen Aihua! Listen to me! I will never allow you to do this!"
"Nannan is my precious girl, you expect her to replace Chen Xiahe and suffer in the countryside, in your dreams!"
"Since when did I not know that you, as an uncle, cared so much about your niece? Since when does a father push his own daughter into fire for his niece?"
"Chen Aihua! I think you've eaten too much lard and have your mind clouded!"
Hearing this, Chen Nanxing's pupils trembled.
This familiar conversation, familiar anger, she just went through it once in her dream!
Could it be that what happened in the dream is indeed going to happen in the future?
If that's the case, then, will my father soon explain that what he did was all to repay his second uncle's life-saving favour?
Sure enough, the next second, the voice of Chen Aihua echoed in the living room.
"Honey, I had no other choice, you know. I am aware that our daughter Nannan is feeling wronged. But my younger brother once saved my life, and Xiahe has been fostered in our home since childhood. I watched her grow up."
"She has been weak since she was young, which you very well know. Imagine the sorrow they would feel if my brother and his wife return from the cattle shed, to find out that Xiahe had to endure hardship in the countryside!"
"Are you out of your mind?! You neglect your biological daughter and instead show concern for your brother and his daughter's feelings?!"
"Nannan is still running a high fever, have you cared for her at all?!"
Sun Wan could no longer hold back her anger, "It was your life that your brother saved, not Nannan's! You have no right to use your moral obligations to bind myself and our daughter. If you can't bear to let Chen Xiahe go to the countryside, then you should go in her place!
"Moreover, Nannan is no longer young, she and Gu Muyu have had a marriage pact since childhood. If she had to go to the countryside, the wedding could be ruined, then what?"
Chen Aihua frowned, "This matter of childhood marriage was casually mentioned back in the day. Gu Muyu is now close with Xiaxia, and the elder Gu even told me he wants to play matchmaker for them."
"You said what?!" Like a bristling cat, Sun Wan placed her hands on her hips, "Chen Aihua! Let me make this clear, it was Gu Muyu's mother who confirmed this marriage pact with our family when I was pregnant with Nannan!"
"Gu Muyu is intelligent and capable, he's started working in a factory at such a young age, he could even become the factory manager in the future!"
"You are ignoring such a promising son-in-law, and not trying to seize this opportunity for Nannan, instead listening to Elder Gu's words about matchmaking him with Chen Xiahe?!"
Chen Aihua sighed, helplessly saying, "There's nothing I could do about it! To tell you the truth, Gu Muyu... he has fallen for Xiaxia!"
"They harbor feelings for each other, and Director Gu also approves of this marriage. What... what could I possibly do?"
"It's a new era now, we can't possibly enforce an old-fashioned arranged marriage, can we?"
Sun Wan's face turned beet red with anger,"Alright, I knew it all along, Xiahe doesn't have the purest intentions, she dares to snatch Nannan's man away!"
"Enough! If you don't want to live a good life, get out!”
Chen Aihua slammed his hand on the table and bellowed, “Don't blame everything on Xia He, it is clearly Mu Yu who liked her first, what has she done wrong?”
“Now, I haven’t even settled in my position as workshop director, and you're creating trouble for me here. If this leads to a rift between our two houses, how am I supposed to face Old Gu!”
“Moreover, as the older sister, what’s wrong with Nan Xing going to the countryside on behalf of her sister? Isn’t this what she should do?”
“Forget it, I will definitely not agree.” Chen Nan Xing stood at the door, her tone calm.
Sun Wan was startled, "You child, how can you get up when your fever hasn’t subsided yet!”
"I too, wish to rest, but hearing that my father wants to sell me off, I could not sit still.”
Chen Nan Xing's eyes were filled with disappointment.
All the signs indicated that everything she had dreamed of during her high fever was happening in reality.
So, all the favoritism she could not understand in the past, finally, has an answer at this moment.
Justin Bieber, my dad's favorite cousin, is not because my second uncle saved his life.
Turns out, it is because Xia He is his illegitimate daughter with my second aunt!
This secret, aside from them, no one knows.
My second aunt is my father’s first love, and they have been colluding all these years, maintaining their illicit relationship.
But without substantial evidence, even if she were to write a letter to the factory denouncing Chen Aihua, he would have a way to argue his way out of it.
Chen Nanxing took a deep breath, recalling the sorrowful ending of herself and her mother in the book, a chill flickered in her eyes.
Even though she was angry, she still retained her rationality.
She had to let them pay the price, step by step.
And she couldn't ignore her innocent uncle, the second uncle.
In fact, as long as she insisted on not agreeing, her mother would definitely stand by her side.
Why would she foolishly sacrifice herself for the sake of others?
Her mother forbore absolutely everything for her sake, which eventually led to her sickness.
She wouldn't let such tragedy repeat itself!
Chen Aihua's neck was red with anger, "What are you blabbering about, child. How could I possibly sell you! Going to the countryside is a policy, it's not only you who's going!"
"You're all talk. Why don't you let Xia He go!" Chen Nanxing retorted, "It's Xia He's name on the list, not mine!"
An anxious Chen Aihua retorted : "Nanxing, you're the elder sister, you should act like one!"
"Xia He's health is poor, you go on her behalf for now. When I have stabilized here and have been elected as the department chief, I will find a way to bring you back."
"Don't try to pull a fast one on me! I'm not a little girl anymore."
Chen Nanxing's face was chilly.
"Whoever is supposed to go, has to go. I will no longer take anyone's place to endure this hardship! If you insist on forcing me, I will report you to the government!"
