Chapter 3
The doctor’s plan was bone puncture plus stem cell extraction.
The operating room was so cold.
Even with anesthesia, I still felt the pain.
That was the first time I cried since returning to the Qin family.
I missed my mom.
I wanted to ask her why it hurt so much.
Qin Yu’s recovery went smoothly.
Qin Yuanhang’s attitude toward me improved a bit.
He transferred me to the high school where Qin Ziyao studied.
Even though I saved her brother’s life, she still hated me.
My status as an illegitimate daughter spread throughout the school.
Qin Ziyao led the isolation against me.
My freshman year was filled with cockroaches and spiders in my desk, razor blades in my water cup, and torment from curling irons and staplers.
I was beaten, cursed, threatened, and isolated.
Whether splashed with cold water or locked in the equipment room all night.
I always faced it with a smile.
I didn’t tattle or cry.
I often ate greasy, unhealthy food.
I gained weight, and acne appeared on my face.
In loose, baggy school uniforms, I was as ordinary as could be.
My mom said when you’re dull and unremarkable, fewer people pay attention to you.
Over time, my lack of resistance bored Qin Ziyao.
She stopped watching me constantly.
I finally had time to breathe and study.
But my grades stayed at the bottom, always padding Qin Ziyao’s scores.
In the second semester of sophomore year, Qin Yu’s rejection worsened.
I donated bone marrow again.
It hurt more than last time.
I bit my teeth hard, not letting myself cry out.
Only kids who get candy have the right to cry; my tears were useless and forbidden.
After this surgery, I moved to a small independent room.
Though it was the villa’s worst-lit room, I finally had my own space.
Aunt Liu secretly made me pork liver.
She watched me eat, then turned away to wipe her tears.
Over this year and a half sharing a room, she knew my injuries better than anyone.
From despising me as an illegitimate daughter to pitying me now.
She asked if I resented it.
I smiled silently.
After walking too many helpless paths alone, resentment fades.