Ruan Jiaojiao began cleaning the attic, tidying up the bed and wiping the windows. Fortunately, there was a small bathroom attached to the space, which made fetching water much easier.
She had just about finished tidying up when she heard her mother shriek from outside the door.
Startled, Ruan Jiaojiao dropped her rag and rushed out of the room.
"You slut! How dare you threaten my father? A mistress actually has the nerve to move into my house!"
"You think you’re not a slut? I’ll strip you bare for everyone to see!"
As soon as Ruan Jiaojiao stepped out, she saw two people pinning her mother to the ground by her hair. One of them was tearing at Ruan Qianlian’s clothes, clearly intending to strip her completely.
Seeing her mother subjected to such humiliation, Ruan Jiaojiao rushed forward, shoved the two women away, and shielded her mother.
"What are you doing! Stop it!"
The two women were shoved aside and nearly fell to the floor.
As they steadied themselves and looked at Ruan Jiaojiao, their expressions turned to shock upon seeing her pure yet bewitching beauty. But a second later, jealousy and rage flooded their hearts.
Fu Jiaru’s face was cold, her delicate makeup twisted in anger.
"So you’re that slut’s daughter? You really do look just like your mother—a little vixen!"
She felt an impulse to tear that face to shreds.
Fu Jiaru was Fu Dexin’s daughter. She attended A University, where she was a prominent figure known for her flashy fashion and delicate beauty. Spoiled since childhood, she was arrogant and domineering. Upon returning home today and hearing that her father had brought a mother and daughter into the house, she had stormed upstairs to settle the score.
Ruan Jiaojiao helped her mother up, straightened her clothes and hair, and turned to face the two women.
"Who are you? Why are you hitting people the moment you arrive?" Ruan Jiaojiao guessed from their appearance that this was likely one of the young ladies of the Fu family.
Fu Jiaru put her hands on her hips, snorted, and tossed her long hair arrogantly. "You’re asking who I am? Do you think you’re worthy?"
"Get out of here right now, or I’ll have people drag you out!"
Ruan Jiaojiao looked at the furious girl and explained patiently, "It was Father who invited us to stay. If you have any objections, you can discuss them with him."
"Father?" Fu Jiaru let out a shrill laugh. "Are you joking? Who is your father? Do you even deserve to call him that?"
"You’re just a bastard born to a mistress outside. You have no right to enter the Fu family home!"
With that, Fu Jiaru lunged forward to grab them, but the moment she laid hands on Ruan Jiaojiao’s arm, she was shaken off.
"How dare you resist me!" Fu Jiaru screamed in frustration, shouting toward the stairs, "You lot, get up here! Drag these two sluts out!"
The maids downstairs, hearing the command, hurried up.
In an instant, four or five people surrounded Ruan Jiaojiao and her mother. Ruan Jiaojiao shielded her mother, backing away as they closed in.
Ruan Jiaojiao frowned, calculating her odds of winning a fight against them. She was confident she could handle them if it came down to it, but what then? The girl in front of her was clearly a Fu family heiress; if she fought back, the girl would surely hate her even more. Even though they already despised her, it was better not to escalate things, or she and her mother would definitely be kicked out.
They needed this shelter and the tuition fees provided by the Fu family; otherwise, she wouldn't even be able to finish college. Without a degree, she wouldn't find a decent job in society. If she wanted to climb her way up, she needed her education first, then perhaps, with time, she could pursue a master’s or doctorate to change her life. Otherwise, her mother would spend the rest of her life in the Fu household, living at the mercy of others.
That was not the life Ruan Jiaojiao wanted.
"What are you standing there for? Grab them! Throw them out!" Fu Jiaru barked at the maids.
The maids moved in, grabbing Ruan Jiaojiao and Ruan Qianlian.
Ruan Qianlian struggled, shouting angrily, "What are you doing! Let us go!"
"I want to see Fu Dexin! Bring him here!"
"Mom! Let go of my mother!" Ruan Jiaojiao’s brow furrowed deeper as she saw her mother being held by her arms.
Ruan Qianlian had always made a living with her hands, doing everything from clothing design to cutting and finishing. But after falling into a gambling addiction and borrowing money, she had been harassed by debt collectors, and one encounter had severely injured her arm. Since then, her arm had been weak, and it ached whenever winter came.
Seeing her mother suffer, Ruan Jiaojiao had worked part-time jobs while attending school to pay for her mother’s medical treatment. Seeing her mother’s arm being twisted by the maids, Ruan Jiaojiao was livid. She clenched her fists, barely holding back from retaliating.
"Take them down!" Fu Jiaru ordered.
Ruan Jiaojiao and Ruan Qianlian were shoved and pushed down the stairs in a painful hold. Once they reached the lobby, they were shoved to the ground.
"Mom, are you okay?" Ruan Jiaojiao asked worriedly.
Ruan Qianlian clutched her arm, her expression pained, but she shook her head at her daughter. "Jiaojiao, I’m fine. Are you?"
"I’m fine, don’t worry."
Just as Ruan Jiaojiao was helping her mother stand, a school bag was thrown, slamming into her head.
Ruan Jiaojiao stumbled, falling back onto the floor, her head spinning. She looked down to see it was her own bag; Fu Jiaru had ordered the maids to clear their things out of the attic. They didn't have much—just her school bag and a suitcase. That was everything they owned.
"Take your things and get out of my house!" Fu Jiaru pointed at the door, looking down at them in triumph.
Ruan Qianlian checked her daughter’s head, relieved there was no blood. But seeing her daughter struck, she burst out in a flurry of Jiangnan dialect, cursing, "You vile creature! You pathetic excuse for a person! How dare you drive us out!"
"You ugly, rotten thing! You must apologize to Jiaojiao today! Otherwise, I won’t let this go!"
Fu Jiaru didn't understand the first part of the outburst, but she understood the words "ugly thing." She was obsessed with her appearance; she spent a fortune on skincare and top-tier products, never allowing a single blemish on her face. At school, she was considered the campus beauty. To be called ugly by a lowly mistress who had wormed her way into her home was the ultimate insult.
She was livid, her fists clenched and her whole body trembling. Maybe she wouldn't have been so angry if someone else had called her ugly, but to be insulted by someone like this was infuriating.
"Apologize? You want me to apologize?" Fu Jiaru gritted her teeth, waving her hand at the maids, roaring, "Beat them! Beat them until I’m satisfied!"
The maids swarmed them, raining punches and kicks down on Ruan Jiaojiao and Ruan Qianlian. Ruan Jiaojiao pulled her mother into her arms, taking all the blows on her own back and head.
Seeing that Ruan Qianlian was no longer being punished, Fu Jiaru ordered, "Drag that old vixen out! Beat her!"
Ruan Jiaojiao had intended to endure it, but when she saw them pulling her mother away, she couldn't stand by.
"Let go of my mother!"
Ruan Jiaojiao clenched her fists, and just as she was about to strike back, a low, deep voice echoed from the door.
"What are you doing?"
Hearing that voice, the arrogant Fu Jiaru turned deathly pale. She turned her head mechanically toward the door.
When she saw who had arrived, her lips trembled.
"Second... Second Uncle?"