“Ow, ow, ow, it hurts, be gentle…”
Gu Maowen and his wife had just returned from work and heard their youngest son’s cries of pain from inside as soon as they reached the door.
The couple exchanged puzzled glances, thinking the youngest had gotten into a fight again with the boys from the Military District Compound and had probably caused some trouble.
They hurried inside to find Gu Yuanhui lying on the living room sofa, his face swollen and bruised like a giant steamed bun. Gu Yuanxiang was pressing a towel wrapped around an ice pop against his face, while Gu Yuanzheng sat nearby with a grim expression, rubbing his sore belly.
“What happened to you all?”
Jiang Huijun asked worriedly.
“Yuanhui, did you get into another fight?”
“I didn’t!”
Gu Yuanhui jumped up in frustration, revealing his swollen, bruised face.
Gu Maowen and his wife gasped involuntarily upon seeing his injury.
The blows must have been severe for him to be in such pain and swollen like that.
Gu Maowen was furious. Although their youngest son was mischievous and often got into scuffles with the boys from the compound, he was still their child, and seeing him beaten like this was unbearable.
Jiang Huijun was equally heartbroken.
“How did you get beaten like this? Who did it?”
Seeing their parents, Gu Yuanhui looked wronged and began to complain, “Dad, Mom, it was that damn Gu Xi… she hit me…”
Gu Yuanzheng rubbed his still-aching belly. Earlier, he had checked and noticed it was bruised.
Though they knew Gu Xi grew up doing farm work in the countryside and was reportedly quite strong, they never really understood how strong she was until now.
They had always thought that, being a girl, her strength was limited, but after this beating, the brothers finally realized just how painful her hits could be.
Gu Maowen and his wife found it hard to believe their quiet, well-behaved daughter-in-law would hit anyone.
They looked to the more level-headed second son, Gu Yuanzheng, to confirm the story. When he nodded, they were both shocked.
“How could Xi Xi hit someone?”
Jiang Huijun doubted.
“Maybe Yuanhui did something again?”
Though she favored the children raised around her, she loved her biological daughter deeply and knew Gu Xi’s temperament—quiet, obedient, and introverted.
She wouldn’t refuse anyone, nor would she pick fights. No matter what she was asked to do, she did it silently, rarely resisting or dragging her feet. Even when her brothers bullied her, she endured silently.
But Gu Yuanhui, the youngest son, had a mischievous nature and was spoiled to the point of recklessness. He felt Gu Xi was a disgrace to the Gu Family and had been tormenting and bullying her ever since she returned. Sometimes even Jiang Huijun couldn’t stand it.
Gu Maowen also found it hard to believe that Gu Xi would resort to violence.
Seeing their disbelief, Gu Yuanhui nearly lost his temper and wanted nothing more than to drag Gu Xi back to confront her.
He really had been hit by that damn girl. Half his face was swollen, and it hurt so much he struggled to speak.
In the end, the three siblings testified together, finally convincing their parents that Gu Xi had indeed hit not only the youngest son but also the second son, whose belly bore a large bruise that looked painful.
Seeing Gu Yuanhui’s face swollen like a steamed bun and his darkened eyes, the couple grew very angry.
“How could she hit with such force?”
Jiang Huijun carefully cupped her son’s face, full of concern.
“Where’s Xi Xi? Where is she now?”
Gu Maowen’s face darkened.
“Yuanxiang, go call Gu Xi over.”
They hadn’t seen her and suspected she might be hiding out of fear after hitting someone.
Gu Yuanxiang said angrily, “She ran out right after hitting them and hasn’t come back yet.”
Then she looked hurt.
“Dad, you don’t know, she even pushed me, and I hit the sofa. My arm turned blue and it really hurts.”
She rolled up her sleeve, revealing a large purple bruise on her elbow.
Just touching it made her wince. She had never been wronged so badly before.
Jiang Huijun was equally heartbroken for her adopted daughter. She took her hand, gently touched the bruise, and went to get some medicinal liniment for bruises and injuries to massage and soothe the pain.
Gu Yuanhui resumed his barrage of complaints.
“Dad, Mom, you have no idea how awful that damn Gu Xi is. You have to punish her severely this time, or else she’ll be uncontrollable and start hitting her own family without mercy!”
Then he added, “She must have gone to the Shen Family. She thinks having the Shen Family backing her means you won’t dare punish her.”
These words did not sit well with the couple. Gu Maowen’s face tightened, and Jiang Huijun’s expression darkened.
Though the Gu Family was a cadre family, there was still hierarchy among cadres, and compared to the Shen Family, they were nothing.
The Shen Family patriarch was a respected former senior commander in the Military District Compound, a war hero admired by all. The Shen descendants were fearless and hardworking, mostly serving in the military with a noble family tradition.
Originally, the Gu Family and Shen Family had nothing to do with each other—until Gu Xi and Shen Mingzheng, the second son of the Shen Family’s second branch, were betrothed.
The Marriage Contract had been arranged by Shen Zhongshan and Feng Min, with the Shen Family’s consent, and was largely driven by Feng Min, Shen Mingzheng’s mother.
Five years ago, Feng Min had been in danger while visiting her hometown and was saved by Gu Xi.
Gu Xi carried the injured Feng Min over twenty kilometers to the town hospital, collapsing from exhaustion upon arrival, nearly losing her life in the process.
Thanks to Gu Xi’s timely help, Feng Min recovered.
Feng Min’s natal family was the commune where Gu Xi’s adoptive parents lived. Grateful for Gu Xi’s rescue, and aware that Gu Xi’s adoptive family was biased toward sons and treated her poorly as the eldest daughter, Feng Min decided to adopt her and bring her to Beijing.
But shortly after arriving in Beijing, Gu Xi was recognized by Jiang Huijun’s family because she looked strikingly similar to Jiang Huijun’s grandmother. They discovered the baby had been switched at birth.
After a chaotic series of events, Gu Xi was returned to the Gu Family.
Since Gu Xi had biological parents, Feng Min felt it improper to adopt her formally, but she still cared deeply about Gu Xi. Seeing the Gu Family favor their adopted daughter who was switched at birth, she worried Gu Xi would suffer, so she proposed the betrothal between her son Shen Mingzheng and Gu Xi.
Feng Min hoped this Marriage Contract would ensure the Gu Family treated Gu Xi better and spared her further suffering before she came of age.
The Gu Family was naturally pleased to be connected with the prestigious Shen Family.
But over the years, Feng Min’s frequent interventions to support Gu Xi often embarrassed the Gu Family.
Gu Maowen and Jiang Huijun were proud people who had once looked down on Gu Xi for her rural, rustic appearance. Feng Min’s persistent defense of her made them uncomfortable, and gradually, their enthusiasm for the Marriage Contract waned.
Sometimes they even wished Gu Yuanxiang had been the one betrothed to the Shen Family instead.
Yuanxiang was considerate and loyal to her parents and the Gu Family. She wouldn’t let her future mother-in-law disrespect her parents like that.
Gu Maowen suppressed his displeasure and said, “When Gu Xi comes back, we’ll have her apologize.”
Jiang Huijun sighed. Though she didn’t know why her daughter had hit the boys, violence was unacceptable. How could a girl raise her hand against others? If word got out, what would people think of her? What would they think of the Gu Family?
“All right, let’s eat first,” she said to the three children, who had all had a long day and were both tired and hungry.
“We’ll talk about this after dinner.”
But just then, Gu Yuanzheng and the others exchanged glances and told them the truth—there was no food cooked yet.
“What time is it, and there’s still no food?”
Gu Maowen frowned. It was summer break, and all three children were home. With Gu Yuanxiang, Gu Yuanhui, and Gu Yuanzheng around, why hadn’t anyone made dinner?
Usually, they could come home and eat a hot meal, so suddenly being hungry put everyone in a bad mood.
Gu Yuanhui spoke confidently, “Gu Xi usually cooks. She ran away after hitting us, and we’re in too much pain to do it ourselves.”
Gu Yuanxiang gave an awkward smile.
Gu Yuanzheng looked exhausted.
“I just got back from Shanghai.”
Gu Maowen and Jiang Huijun were left speechless.
They were so used to Gu Xi doing the cooking, especially now on vacation, that the sudden lack of dinner was an unpleasant surprise.
Despite her fatigue, Jiang Huijun couldn’t skip eating. The men in the family were typical grown men who never entered the kitchen and only waited to eat.
In the end, she had no choice but to take her adopted daughter to cook.
She inwardly resented Gu Xi for making such a fuss and running off to the Shen Family’s place. Gu Xi wasn’t married yet—why did she keep running off to her future in-laws? This would only give Feng Min more ammunition to claim they mistreated her.
The thought of Feng Min possibly coming to their home with her usual passive-aggressive attitude made her head ache.
Seeing her adoptive mother’s sour expression, Gu Yuanxiang kindly said, “Mom, Gu Xi was wrong to hit people, but as long as she apologizes, we won’t make a fuss. If Aunt Feng comes, we’ll honestly tell her the truth—this time it really was Gu Xi’s fault. No matter how much Aunt Feng cares for her, she shouldn’t ignore right and wrong.”
Her words touched Jiang Huijun’s heart, and a smile finally appeared on her face.
“You’re right.”
Then she sighed, “I wish Gu Xi were as considerate as you.”
She felt guilty toward her biological daughter, believing she had suffered a lot during those fifteen years in the countryside.
But no matter the guilt, the family had many children and loved the adopted daughter more since she grew up with them. Gu Xi’s quiet and unassuming nature made her easy to overlook sometimes.
Plus, Feng Min’s constant interference and lack of respect toward them created a lingering bitterness in their hearts.