Volume 1, Chapter 58: It Wasn't Sister Who Hit Me

Consequently, relying on her good culinary skills, Su Wan stopped pretending and directly revealed her true nature.

Today, Xie Bailing was about to bring Xinyih back.

Allowing her to live in the Huo family home when she was capable of bullying her own sister like this—who knew if she might bully Xinyih behind their backs?

"Grandmother, Xiaohui didn't even say it was Su Wan who hit her," Meng Xinhao said with a puzzled expression.

He felt that Su Wan had always been gentle and soft-spoken, so how could she beat someone out of nowhere, and beat Xiaohui into such a state?

"Grandma Huo, it wasn't my sister who hit me; I just fell down by accident," Su Xiaohui said timidly, keeping her head lowered and sitting pitifully to one side. Her voice was weak and trembling, making her look extremely cautious, like someone who had been beaten so badly she was afraid to speak.

The braided hair she had carefully styled in the morning was torn apart into a messy state, with a few leaves clinging to it. Her eyes were red, a clear palm print was left on her cheek, and there were bruises and pinch marks on her arms and legs.

Crouching timidly in the corner like a stray dog bullied on the roadside, anyone who saw her would feel a pang of heartache and rise up to defend her.

Old Mrs. Huo glanced at the frail and helpless Su Xiaohui.

If Su Wan didn't hit her, then who did? The two of them had walked out together, and as soon as they arrived home, Su Xiaohui looked like this.

Could a simple fall result in injuries like these?

Her character was truly vile and utterly unbridled.

"I can't control her, and it's not my place to do so. When your Uncle Huo comes back, let him see this properly," Old Mrs. Huo said coldly. "The Song family's maid suddenly returned a month early, and they stopped letting her work there. They must have discovered her true colors, which is why they brought the original maid back."

Mother Wu was sweeping the floor nearby. She wanted to speak up for Su Wan, but Aunt Wang was originally supposed to leave for two months, so her sudden return a month early did indeed seem quite strange.

"Sister Xiaohui, tell us who beat you like this. Don't be afraid," Meng Xinhao said, refusing to believe that girls would fight so fiercely, especially not own sisters. What kind of hatred or resentment could drive someone to deal such heavy blows?

"Brother Xinhao, I really just fell down myself. It has nothing to do with my sister," Su Xiaohui said in a voice as thin as a mosquito's, coughing up a streak of bright red blood as she spoke.

Old Mrs. Huo furrowed her brows deeply at the sight. Xiaohui was probably afraid to speak out precisely for fear of future beatings, and she must have been severely threatened and warned by Su Wan.

What a ruthless and vicious person—she was exactly as described by Huo Jianguo's old subordinate.

"Xinhao, go make a phone call to your uncle." Old Mrs. Huo's anger was thoroughly stirred, primarily because she worried that Su Wan's vile character would affect Xinyih, leading to verbal and physical abuse whenever adults weren't paying attention.

Xinyih had been separated from her parents since childhood and inherently lacked a sense of security; even if she were bullied, she wouldn't dare to speak up.

She could not allow her great-granddaughter to suffer even the slightest grievance.

She would make Huo Jianguo, as the grandfather, choose between his own biological granddaughter and Su Wan.

"Grandma Huo, it really has nothing to do with my sister! I just fell by accident. Please, I beg you not to tell Uncle Huo," Su Xiaohui pleaded in a panic, desperately trying to stop them.

She wore the virtuous expression of someone who had been beaten and wronged, yet still insisted on protecting Su Wan.

Yet, deep within her eyes, a flash of cold mockery crossed.

She should have done this long ago to make the Huo family despise Su Wan.

Su Wan, you are still dreaming of coming back to take care of Elder Brother Huo and making the Huo family accept you? Keep dreaming.

Everything you ever wanted—pretty clothes and shoes, pocket money for school—would all belong to her.

At that very moment, Huo Hong pushed the door open and walked in, accompanied by Su Wan. Her eyes immediately landed on Su Xiaohui, whose hair was disheveled and whose cheeks bore a bright red handprint, with numerous bruises and finger pinches visible on her exposed arms.

She paused in astonishment. It really was exactly as Su Wan had said.

"Xiaohui, what happened to your face? Your arms are bruised black and blue," Huo Hong asked, staring at Su Xiaohui.

She wanted to get to the bottom of the matter and find out what had truly happened.

Seeing that Su Wan had actually returned as well, Old Mrs. Huo's expression darkened like a stormy sky, her gaze sharp and piercing, causing the air pressure in the entire living room to plummet.

She let out a cold snort and turned her head away.

"Auntie Hong, I'm fine. I just fell down by myself," Su Xiaohui maintained her pitiful persona of being bullied yet refusing to complain.

Seeing Su Wan present did not rattle her in the slightest; if anything, she performed even more realistically.

Whether it was in Qiantang Village or the Huo family, nobody would ever believe Su Wan.

"Auntie Hong, look, I wasn't lying to you, right? I literally saw Xiaohui in the small alley just now, pulling her own hair and slapping her own face. Her expression was so ferocious at the time she didn't even look like Xiaohui anymore," Su Wan immediately fluttered her watery eyes and said with a worried expression.

Su Xiaohui had pulled this trick countless times before. She would put on a tragic, pitiful act of having been severely mistreated, but stubbornly refuse to utter a word of accusation when questioned, leaving the adults to misunderstand the original owner entirely.

Meanwhile, she would pretend to act sensible and "mediate" the situation.

The more she pretended to mediate, the more people became convinced that the original owner was the culprit.

As the crisp, clear words fell, a flash of panic swiftly crossed the eyes of the deeply aggrieved-looking Su Xiaohui.

She had actually seen it all.

But why on earth would someone beat themselves up for no reason?

Naturally, Old Mrs. Huo refused to believe it. In a calm and skeptical voice, she demanded, "Are you saying Xiaohui ran into a narrow alley all by herself and beat herself up? Beating herself into this state—you are getting better and better at making up stories."

It wasn't just Old Mrs. Huo who refused to believe it; Meng Xinhao and Mother Wu didn't believe it either. What possible reason could there be for such behavior?

"Grandma Huo, Auntie Hong... I really did it to myself in the alley. Please stop asking about it," Su Xiaohui cried miserably, tears welling up and sliding down her cheeks on command.

It made her slightly swollen, palm-printed face look exceptionally desolate and wronged, instantly maximizing the observers' fury.

"What... on earth is going on here?" Huo Hong looked back and forth between Su Xiaohui and Su Wan.

Su Wan claimed that Su Xiaohui had hit herself, and although Su Xiaohui said the same thing, she clearly looked like someone who had been beaten by another and was forced to say so against her will.

"What else could be going on? The wicked always try to file a complaint first. She can even invent a story about hitting herself. Are you trying to say Xiaohui did this on purpose just to frame you?" Old Mrs. Huo shot a cold glance at Su Wan, her eyes brimming with disgust.

Su Xiaohui felt a surge of smug triumph inside.

So what if she saw it?

From start to finish, she never claimed that Su Wan hit her; she insisted she did it to herself.

Yet nobody believed the truth—they had already decided it was Su Wan's doing!

That certainly couldn't be blamed on her.

Su Wan's expression remained calm and unruffled, devoid of any panic as she looked at Old Mrs. Huo and said, "Grandma Huo, I don't know why Xiaohui suddenly started self-harming either, just like how she suddenly started convulsing and foaming at the mouth without any warning back then.

"The palm prints left by oneself and those left by someone else are different. When hitting your own right face, your right hand can only exert force if you use a specific angle, so the fingerprint of the index finger will end up at the very bottom. However, if someone else hits you, the index finger's print will be at the very top of the handprint. You can simply inspect the finger marks on Xiaohui's face to verify this."