Yuanying wiped her eyes furiously.
"She stole everything…"
Her voice was barely audible.
"My place… my family… the love… everything…"
But even as she whispered it, she felt guilty.
Because… Huaijin wasn't bad.
She wasn't cruel.
She wasn't scheming like in those stories Yuanying's mother read aloud, villainess cousins who bullied the true heiress.
Huaijin was… gentle.
Annoying sometimes, smug at other times, but honest and straightforward.
She didn't deserve to be hated.
Yuanying buried her face in her arms.
"…Why does it hurt so much then…"
***
While Yuanying trembled upstairs, the elders discussed the festival outcomes.
Inside the study room, the old man, Grandfather Chi, sat with a heavy expression.
He, too, had seen everything today.
The way Huaijin danced with effortless grace. Her calm poise on stage, her innocent, bright smile, and natural charm, even at age six.
And more importantly—
The way his granddaughter had inherited the aura of her mother.
