Barely had she stepped into the Shen Family house when a teacup came flying toward her.
She narrowly dodged it.
With disbelief in her voice, she cried, "Dad..."
Shen Dong roared, "Don't call me Dad! I don't have a shameless daughter like you! You scoundrel, actually going to a hotel with a man! You've got some nerve, bringing such disgrace upon us all. Why didn't you just die out there? If you were dead, at least I wouldn't have to look at you and lose my temper."
"Can't you learn anything from your sister? She pours all her energy into her work and just signed a major project for the company last week. And you? You've been working for years without a single achievement, still eating and living off me at home. Now you pull off a scandal like this—are you trying to make me drop dead of anger?"
The fingers gripping Shen Huaishuang's handbag turned white, and her heart felt utterly frozen.
Her father was hurling every vicious insult in the book at her, crushing her down into the dust.
She had explained it all—she had been drugged.
Yet Shen Dong still refused to believe her. Not a single word of concern came from him; instead, only harsh words were hurled her way.
Shen Huaiyu handed Shen Dong a cup of tea.
"Dad, drink some tea and calm your anger. What's done is done, so please don't blame Older Sister."
Shen Huaishuang glared angrily at this hypocritical sister of hers.
"Shen Huaiyu, shut your mouth! You were the one who drugged me yesterday and dragged me to the hotel! And now you're still putting on this sanctimonious act. To think that I used to cherish our sisterly bond and let you have your way in everything! You plotted against me like this—you are vicious!"
Shen Huaiyu burst into aggrieved tears.
"Dad, I didn't! I would never do such a thing."
She looked back at Shen Huaishuang, weeping tears like pear blossoms drenched in rain.
"Older Sister, you've misunderstood me. I've always thought of you as my real sister; how could I ever drug you? It hurts me so much that you're framing me like this."
Trembling with rage, Shen Huaishuang said, "Shen Huaiyu, stop acting! You're the one who did it, and I know it."
Last night had been Shen Huaiyu's birthday.
Shen Dong and her stepmother, Ye Xiaomin, had hosted a birthday banquet for her at the city's finest hotel, Huihuang Hotel.
They had invited numerous young socialites and scions of wealthy families.
Shen Huaishuang, as her half-sister, had attended as well.
Shortly after the banquet began, Shen Huaiyu had walked over carrying a glass of fruit juice.
"Older Sister, I know you can't drink alcohol, so I had some fruit juice specially prepared for you."
Touched, she had taken the glass and taken a sip.
Shen Huaiyu had clinked her wine glass against hers.
"Older Sister, I'm the birthday girl today, and as the birthday girl, I'm toasting you—you have to finish it all."
"Alright, I'll finish it."
It was just a glass of fruit juice, after all; it wouldn't make her drunk.
She had raised the cup and finished the juice.
Now that she thought about it, that glass of juice must have been spiked.
Not long after, she had begun to feel terribly unwell, her mouth and throat burning with thirst.
Drinking several glasses of water in a row hadn't helped, so she had hurried to the restroom to splash some water on her face.
Just as she was about to come out, she had heard two familiar voices in the hallway.
It was her stepmother and Shen Huaiyu.
Her stepmother had asked, "Did Shen Huaishuang drink all the juice?"
"She drank it all. I watched her drink every single drop. Mom, does that drug work?"
"Of course it works, I pulled strings to get it. I gave Shen Huaishuang an extra-large dose; she'll definitely be fucked to death by a man tonight."
Shen Huaiyu had let out a cold laugh.
"Fantastic! Once that bitch Shen Huaishuang gets taken by another man, Brother Yujie won't want her anymore. From now on, Brother Yujie will be mine and mine alone."
"That bitch Shen Huaishuang is so hateful. Brother Yujie has already been with me, yet in his heart he still thinks of her. And Brother Yujie said that even though he's been with me, he can't marry me—the one he wants to marry is Shen Huaishuang. Since that's how it is, I'm going to ruin Shen Huaishuang. Let's see how he marries her then. I don't believe that once Shen Huaishuang has been touched by other men, he won't care at all."
Shen Huaishuang had felt as though she had fallen into an icy abyss, collapsing helplessly to the floor.
The two people she trusted had betrayed her simultaneously.
Bai Yujie was her boyfriend, and they had been together for three years.
Bai Yujie had treated her wonderfully, constantly swearing that he loved her.
She had basked in the sweet words Bai Yujie gave her, never expecting that behind her back he was sleeping with her sister.
She was heartbroken and furious.
...
Now, Shen Huaiyu was still putting on an act.
Did she really think she would believe her again?
She had loved her like a real sister, yet behind her back, Shen Huaiyu called her a bitch, slept with her boyfriend, and drugged her.
How vicious!
Ye Xiaomin chimed in, "Huaishuang, Huaiyu has a kind heart and has always treated you well as an older sister, always giving you the best of everything first. If you make a mistake, you need to have the courage to admit it—don't try to pin it on your sister."
Shen Huaishuang let out a cold laugh.
"Ye Xiaomin, have you two mother and daughter put on enough of a show? You make me sick! She gives me the best of everything? You actually have the nerve to say that—when was there ever a time I didn't yield to her and protect her?"
"Back when we were in school and she was being bullied, I fought for her. When it was her birthday and you threw her a banquet, I carefully prepared a gift for her. But when it's my birthday, you don't even remember. Shen Huaiyu gets a hundred thousand pocket money every month while I only get five thousand, and whenever she runs short, I even have to give her three thousand of mine."
"I poured my heart and soul out for her, and I honored you like a real mother. With my very first paycheck after starting work, I bought a gift for Dad, and I bought one for you too. But how did you treat me? You teamed up to drug me and wanted to destroy me."
Ye Xiaomin had no idea how Shen Huaishuang had found out that she and Shen Huaiyu were the ones who had drugged her.
But right now, she absolutely could not admit to it.
Anyway, she had wiped away all the evidence, so Shen Huaishuang couldn't do a thing to them.
She reached up to wipe her eyes as two tears fell.
"Darling, Xiaoyu and I really never did such a thing. I have no idea why Huaishuang would frame us like this. She must have had a grudge against us mother and daughter for a long time and wants us to take the fall for the scandalous things she's done."
Shen Huaiyu also piled on the accusations, saying, "Older Sister, I understand you—you don't want to be scolded by Dad, but when you make a mistake, you have to dare to admit it. This time, there's no way I can take the blame for you."
Shen Huaishuang was speechless with fury.
Shen Huaiyu was talking as if she had ever taken the blame for her before.
Ridiculous!
"Do you mother and daughter have any shame left at all?"
Shen Huaishuang turned her head to look at Shen Dong. "Dad, I really was drugged and harmed by them, you have to believe me. Ye Xiaomin and Shen Huaiyu tried to hurt me, Dad, you have to help me."
Faced with the sophistry of Ye Xiaomin and Shen Huaiyu, Shen Huaishuang could only beg Shen Dong to believe her and stand on her side.
Instead, Shen Dong barked harshly, "You scoundrel! You acted vilely and shamelessly of your own accord, and now you even try to pin it on your mother and sister. Get back upstairs to your room and reflect on yourself! You are not allowed to go anywhere these few days—stay put and behave yourself."
Shen Huaishuang's heart turned completely cold.
This was her father.
From the time she was little, his paternal love was given solely to Shen Huaiyu.
She could only watch with envy.
She had studied hard, stayed out of trouble, and been obedient and sensible, all in the hope that Shen Dong might spare a shred of paternal love for her.
Yet there was none.
Shen Dong could never even see this daughter of his.
Now, she had hoped Shen Dong would believe her just once, and offer her a single word of concern.
Instead, he stood shoulder to shoulder with Ye Xiaomin and Shen Huaiyu, condemning and berating her.
Her heart was dead...
She would no longer harbor any vain hopes for fatherly love.
Weeping in silence, Shen Huaishuang ran upstairs.
As she returned to her room and reached to close the door, it was blocked by Shen Huaiyu, who had followed her up.
Shen Huaishuang said sharply, "Shen Huaiyu, what more do you want? Haven't you punished me enough yet?"