In her dream, Xiao Yunying watched as one mess after another gradually crushed the original owner, turning her into a wicked woman with a ferocious face who kept whipping her child with a tree branch.

She tried to dissuade him, but in her haste, she woke up from her dream.

Xiao Yunying simply sat up and sighed for what seemed like the umpteenth time today.

In my dream, Luo Sheng was imposing and dignified. Putting aside his appearance, his overall demeanor was something that ordinary country folk would not possess.

The phrase involuntarily popped into my head—a fallen nobleman.

Xiao Yunying always felt that it wasn't the original owner who schemed against Luo Sheng, but rather Luo Sheng who schemed against the original owner.

Or perhaps it was a scheme by Luo Sheng that began the moment he agreed to marry her.

I don't know why.

Perhaps it was because the expression on Luo Sheng's face as he clutched the money pouch on the night he left in the dream was too complex, giving off an indescribable feeling.

It's a bit like worry, and a bit like guilt?

What is there to feel guilty about? Guilt for abandoning the child to the original owner and running away with the money and his own mother?

I guess I've read too many mystery novels, so everything I read seems to have a conspiracy theory involved.

Feelings are just feelings; without evidence, you can't assume the worst about someone based solely on your feelings.

What if something really happened that prevented him from returning? Wouldn't that be wrongly accusing him?

As for the original owner, in Xiao Yunying's view, beating and scolding the child to vent her anger was indeed despicable, but it was not what she wanted to become like this.

She wasn't originally the kind of person with a violent temper.

Putting aside other pressures, how many people can withstand just the rumors and gossip?

How many people were driven to their deaths by cyberbullying in the past? Let alone in today's social environment where reputation is as valuable as life itself.

The wait has been too long; hope has slowly turned into despair. The more I liked it before, the angrier I am now.

The accumulated negative emotions were suffocating her, and she desperately needed an outlet to relieve the pressure in her heart.

The children's two accidents drew her attention. Overwhelmed with fear and apprehension, she directed her disappointment, anger, and blame towards Luo Sheng onto the children, venting her rage.

She found a way to vent her negative emotions, and from then on, she couldn't stop.

"Sigh~ This whole thing is a mess. No matter what, you can't take your anger out on the children. They're so innocent. Why did you have to marry him? If you hadn't married him, none of this would have happened."

The original owner of this body had a split personality. On one hand, she would take her anger out on the children by beating and scolding them, while on the other hand, she would suffer and toil to raise them. No matter how many times her parents told her to go back to her parents' home, she just wouldn't go back.

She arrived because her family had run out of food and the embroidery work couldn't be delivered until tomorrow. The original owner was worried that the children would go hungry, so she did the embroidery work during the day when it was sunny and went up the mountain to dig for wild vegetables in the evening.

It was getting dark, and the light in the woods was poor. She was so focused on the wild vegetables in the distance that she didn't pay attention to her footing. She lost her footing and fell into a puddle in the mountains. She hit the back of her head on a rock and passed out.

She soaked in the water all night and didn't wake up until dawn. No one came looking for her, so she got up and walked down the mountain by herself.

It's already autumn, and the temperature on the mountain is low. She soaked in cold water all night, developed a fever, and felt extremely dizzy. She fainted again after walking only a short distance.

When I opened my eyes again, I found myself back there.

Xiao Yunying touched the back of her head and found a slight swelling. Pressing it hard caused a throbbing pain, but it should be going away soon.

He yawned, lay back down, sighed for the N+1th time, and muttered to himself the question in his mind:

"Logically speaking, given your selfish and lazy nature, you would have abandoned them and gone home long ago. What are you thinking? Why don't you want to go back? Why do you stay here to support them despite all the pressure? Is it all for that man?"

"I can't go back."

Um?

Xiao Yunying was startled: "Who's speaking?"

She tried to open her eyes to see her surroundings, but her eyelids seemed glued shut, and she had no strength left in her body. She tried, but couldn't even move her fingers.

“I can’t go back. What will happen to the children if I go back? They are still young. How can they live without me? I promised him I would take good care of the children.”

The voice didn't just ring in my ears; it sounded more like it was echoing in my mind.

It is the soul of this body itself!

Once she realized what was happening, Xiao Yunying broke out in a cold sweat. She didn't rush to open her eyes, afraid that she might see something she shouldn't.

Lying down like a corpse is the best option.

"Don't be afraid, I won't hurt you. I'm just worried about the children and wanted to stay a little longer to see them. Seeing that you treat them well, I'm relieved."

You're right. The children are innocent no matter what. I shouldn't have taken my anger out on them, hitting and scolding them to vent my frustration. Could you please help me apologize to them?

Xiao Yunying tried to move her mouth, but couldn't make a sound. She could only reply in her heart that she could.

"I'm leaving now, thank you..."

As the last sentence faded, Xiao Yunying fell back into a deep sleep.