Get out, get out... Gu Xiangyun rasped, her voice hoarse with pain, each word dragging across her throat like broken glass. Her scorched skin twitched with every breath, and her fingers curled into the sheets as if trying to claw away the humiliation.
But even in such a sorry state, her pride remained unbroken.
She glared at Su Jin with venom. "When I recover, I won't let you live in peace."
Su Jin's lips curved into a cold, elegant smile, the kind that sliced deeper than words.
"You won't get that chance."
Gu Xiangyun's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"
Su Jin slowly pulled a chair to the bedside, sitting with deliberate grace, like a queen observing a dethroned traitor.
"Dad won't want a woman whose face is ruined. Don't delude yourself into thinking you'll remain Mrs. Su. He'll divorce you. It's only a matter of time."
"You're lying!" Gu Xiangyun shrieked, but her voice cracked under the weight of fear. Her burned face flushed with anger, and her bandaged chest heaved. "Su Mingyuan doesn't have the guts. He's mine—he always has been."
Su Jin leaned forward slightly, her gaze icy. "The woman he slept with last week is accused of arson and attempted murder. Do you really think a man drowning in scandals and debts will drag a disfigured wife along for the fall?"
That struck a nerve.
Gu Xiangyun froze.
Her confidence faltered just long enough for Su Jin to see the cracks beneath her arrogance.
Su Jin sat back, voice light but cutting. "You really don't know the man you've spent decades with. You weren't his partner—you were his tool. And now you're broken."
The silence between them was thick with fury and fear.
For the first time, Gu Xiangyun looked… lost."
Su Jin stood, adjusting her coat as she prepared to leave. "Don't worry, Mom. I'll make sure they give you the best burn cream. After all…" She smiled sweetly.
"You'll need to look your best in court."
In her prime, Gu Xiangyun had relied on her beauty and cunning to control Su Mingyuan, even going as far as collecting evidence of his tax evasion to use as leverage. It had always worked—until now.
But Su Jin stood calmly at the foot of the bed, her voice light and mocking.
"Mom, you still don't know? Grandma dismissed Dad from the company this morning. The news will be made public tomorrow. So..." she leaned in slightly, lips curving into a razor-edged smile,
"Your precious evidence? It's worthless now."
Gu Xiangyun's eyes widened in disbelief, her body tensing beneath the gauze and ointments.
"Impossible. The old lady would never—she wouldn't do that! You're lying. I don't believe a word!"
Su Jin tilted her head slightly, her eyes calm and cold.
"Believe it or not, turn on the TV tomorrow morning. And just so you know..." she added smoothly, "I've agreed to marry into the Fu family."
The words hit like thunder.
Gu Xiangyun's face twisted, her eyes bulging with disbelief and seething resentment.
"I don't believe it! I won't! You filthy little wretch—what kind of poison did you feed that senile old woman? How could she choose you over Su Nuo?!"
She screamed, trembling, unable to accept what she was hearing.
All her planning, all her sacrifices, her manipulations—everything had been for Su Nuo, to one day see her become Mrs. Fu. But now, that title was going to Su Jin? Her discarded, adopted daughter?
Her voice cracked with rage.
"I gave twenty years of my life! I gave everything! And now, it's all... gone?!"
Su Jin's smile faded, and a chilling calm replaced it.
She stepped closer, her eyes like sharpened blades, and without warning—slapped Gu Xiangyun hard across the face.
The sharp crack echoed through the sterile hospital room.
Gu Xiangyun's head snapped to the side, her burned cheek instantly red beneath the bandages.
She stared at Su Jin in shock—too stunned to speak.
Su Jin's voice was low and cold:
"You stole my life, tortured, tried to destroy me—over and over. And now you expect sympathy? No, Gu Xiangyun."
She leaned down, inches from her face.
"You're going to watch everything you built turn to ash. Just like your face."
Su Jin leaned in, her gaze piercing and cold, locking eyes with Gu Xiangyun. Her voice was quiet but sharp as a blade, each word cutting with precision.
"You can insult me all you want, but if I ever hear you curse Grandma again..." she paused, her lips curling into a cold smile, "don't blame me for being ruthless."
Gu Xiangyun scoffed through the pain, forcing a bitter laugh.
"You? What can you do to me?" she spat, her voice laced with scorn. Even now, she refused to take Su Jin seriously.
But Su Jin didn't flinch.
Her next words were steady, dark, and chilling:
"Try me. I won't kill you, Gu Xiangyun... I'll destroy everything you care about. Slowly. Methodically. I want you alive—just long enough to watch everything you love crumble right in front of your eyes."
There was no emotion in her voice, only quiet certainty. A promise.
For the first time, Gu Xiangyun felt a chill climb up her spine. The obedient little girl she once looked down on... was gone.
This was someone else. Someone she couldn't control anymore.
Her voice faltered.
"W-what do you want?"
She tried to sound calm, but the fear had already crept into her tone. With her face ruined, her reputation shattered, and Su Nuo barely survived the surgery. She had no leverage left. She had to yield.
Su Jin didn't respond immediately. She simply straightened up, letting a slow, mysterious smile stretch across her lips.
"You'll find out soon enough."
And with that, she turned to walk out of the ward, leaving Gu Xiangyun alone—burned, humiliated, and gripped by a growing sense of dread.
She then straightened, wiped her hand slowly on a tissue, and dropped it in the hospital trash bin.
"Enjoy your night, 'Mom'."
And with that, Su Jin turned and walked out, her heels clicking softly against the tile—each step echoing with justice.
Behind her, Gu Xiangyun screamed hoarsely, voice sharp with pain and rage. But the soundproof walls of the hospital ward swallowed her cries. No matter how she screamed, how she clawed at her throat, her voice couldn't reach anyone. She was trapped—in her pain, in her disgrace, and in her helplessness.
Outside, on a quiet roadside bench, Su Jin sat alone beneath the late afternoon sun.
A simple jade pendant rested in her palm, its surface cool and smooth. She held it gently, almost reverently, her brows furrowed in thought.
This jade… "who are my parents,where are they?
The old lady told her it was around her neck when she was found at the orphanage—her only possession. Gu Xiangyun had tried to claim it was already part of the Su family's belongings, but the old lady had intervened, stopping her from taking it away.
Now, the more Su Jin thought about it, the more certain she was—this jade was a clue. A piece of the puzzle to her past, to her true identity.
.....
That night, Su Jin returned to the villa.
The house was quiet. Fu Siyan hadn't come back yet.
The silence was strangely comforting.
She moved around slowly, her thoughts still tangled with the jade and the stormy past she couldn't yet see clearly.
After a moment of hesitation, she entered the kitchen and prepared a cup of lemon tea—lightly steeped, just the way Fu Siyan liked it. The scent of citrus slowly filled the air, refreshing yet slightly sharp.
She placed the cup on the coffee table in the living room.
And then… she waited.
Not because she was trying to please him.
But because something inside her whispered that this was only the beginning—a game between her and the world - and Fu Siyan was one of the few unpredictable pieces
Before heading to bed, Su Jin gently pressed a small note beneath the lemon tea glass:
I won't disturb your life.
Simple words. No emotion.
Then she quietly returned to her room, bathed, and lay down, readying herself for tomorrow's storm—the press conference.
Late that night, Fu Siyan returned.
The moment he stepped inside, his eyes fell on the unfamiliar pair of slippers at the door.
His brows drew together slightly.
In this house, he had grown used to silence, to solitude. The presence of another—especially Su Jin—felt like a ripple against still water.
His gaze swept the living room and landed on the glass of lemon tea.
Steam had long faded, but the scent lingered.
He reached for the glass, and as he lifted it, a folded note clung to the bottom.
I won't disturb your life.
He stared at the words for a while.
His fingers tightened. The note crumpled silently in his palm. Without hesitation, he tossed it into the trash.
Then, with unreadable eyes, he took a sip of the cooled lemon tea.
A strange warmth slipped down his throat—bittersweet.
The next morning
When Su Jin and Fu Siyan appeared together at the press conference, she still felt a little dazed.
The reporters seated below the stage were sharper than ever, eager to magnify every detail and dig up any trace of scandal.
To them, Su Jin—the adopted daughter—was unworthy of Fu Siyan.
Fortunately, Master Fu sat high above like a steady mountain, silencing the room with a single declaration:
"Today, I've gathered everyone here to announce a joyful event."
The reporters, already guessing what was coming, leaned forward with anticipation.
"In a month's time, my grandson Fu Siyan will be engaged to Su Jin, the third young lady of the Su family," Master Fu said, his voice calm yet commanding.
The room fell silent.
Then, chaos erupted like a boiling pot.
"What? Did I hear that right? The Fu family is marrying into the Su family?"
"And not to the Su family's real daughter—but the adopted one? What's going on here?"
The crowd erupted with suspicion, many believing that Su Jin must have used underhanded means to entangle herself with Fu Siyan and force the Fu family into this decision.
"Mr. Fu, is this true?" one reporter asked, directing the question at Fu Siyan.
"Excuse me, Mr. Fu, do you actually like Su Jin?"
Countless eyes fixed on him, hungry for the truth.
Fu Siyan remained silent for a moment or two before calmly replying,
"Please join us one month from now."
Then, without another word, he took Su Jin's hand and led her off the stage.
Once they reached a quiet place, away from the crowd, Fu Siyan released her hand.
"The announcement's been made," he said flatly. "I've repaid what I owed you."
"Owed me?" Su Jin looked at him, puzzled.
Then it clicked. Perhaps the debt he was referring to was related to the hospital fire.
She hadn't expected him to separate things so cleanly—even now.
But regardless of what truly lay behind it, the news was explosive—so sensational that it completely overshadowed Su Mingyuan's own moment in the spotlight.
Compared to the Fu family's engagement announcement, the Su family's news—centered around a messy dispute between the main wife and a mistress's child—barely caused a ripple.
Su Mingyuan, however, couldn't stop smiling. Now that the pressing matter had been handled, he could finally relax.
With the public situation settled, his thoughts turned to Gu Xiangyun's condition.
Her face had been severely disfigured. The first time he dared to step into her hospital room, his heart nearly stopped.
Was that even still a person? She looked more like a ghost than a woman.
For several days, Su Mingyuan made excuses to avoid visiting. Gu Xiangyun, on the other hand, refused to leave the ward, waiting stubbornly.
She had hoped he would come to see her each day, but even after she was discharged, he never showed up.